Two massive hands splayed over her ribs, his fingertips dimpling her curves. With ease, he lifted her out of the water. The air stung against her warm skin, making her gasp.
She stood before him, the glow of the fire crawling along her spine.
Droplets slicked off her smooth skin, glistening in the golden flicker of the tallow candles. The muscles in her forearms twitched, and she fought the urge to cover herself, not wanting to hide anything from him.
Slowly, he rose from the basin, the corners of his lips turning up in a hungry smile.
Water sluiced off Njáll’s body, running down the lines of his abdomen, tracing a path to the hard length pressed against his stomach.
Her chest throbbed with how hard her heart hammered against her ribs. The sound must have been loud enough for him to hear.
She dragged her gaze over his exquisite figure, the ache between her legs driving her mad.
The scars adorning his body glittered like constellations in the firelight. The warmth in her belly flared. Her eyes widened as his fingers closed around himself, languidly pumping his length until pearlescent beads glistened on the tip.
“Greedy girl,” he purred, sucking all the air out of the room as he moved closer. Two fingers hooked under her chin, bringing her gaze to his. “You. You will never question the hold you have over me. For I will serve you from my knees.”
“What?” she babbled.
Dark rings pushed against the edges of his irises as he walked her back until she hit the cold stone wall. The rough texture scratched against her sensitive skin. She squirmed, and his hands trailed over her hips, down her thighs.
Keeping his gaze locked on hers, he sank down onto his knees. Jeweled braids dripping with water framed his sun-kissed face. Elara tried to swallow, nearly choking, at a loss at the sight before her.
A man who commanded armies, whose blade drew death to the surface, had his head bowed to her. His fingertips seared crescent marks into her thighs while blowing hot air over her soaked center.
It wasn’t an act of submission, but devotion, the worshipful gleam in his gaze almost sending her to her knees beside him.
Wet heat slicked down her legs, making her cheeks burn. A dull ache hummed at the back of her head as it fell into the wall with a thud.
Instinct told her to look away, warning her that holding his stare for too long would corrupt her.
But she couldn’t.
Wouldn’t.
Maybe she wanted to be corrupted.
“Please,” she whispered, not knowing what she was asking for.
“You never have to beg me,” he rasped, inhaling deeply, his nose hovering over her core. “A Jarl tends to his kona.”
The tip of his tongue slid over her calf, his hand tracing the path. An eruption of shivers slithered through her, the feeling intoxicating.
She blinked, her mouth parting as he lifted her leg and draped it over his chiseled shoulder.
A new sensation swooped in her stomach. There was no hiding anything from him like this.
If it weren’t for how he had her positioned, she would have snapped her legs shut.
Desire stained the tops of her breasts a deep crimson, even as her nipples tightened, aching for his attention.
“Njáll…”
“Hmm,” he groaned, his dark eyes snapping to her clenching core. The pad of his thumb parted her folds, making her sob. “Needy girl.”
Saliva coated her tongue, his palms scorching her already burning body as he gently guided her forward. She barely had time to comprehend what he planned to do when his lips brushed her heat, his tongue licking through her slit.
“Gods. Gods.Gods,” she whimpered, and he breathed a low, ominous chuckle.
