"I need—" She breaks off with another moan as I grind against her, letting her feel exactly how hard I am. "I need you. All of you. I need to forget Nathan ever existed."
The mention of my son's name should kill my erection, should remind me of all the reasons this is wrong.
Instead, it makes me more determined. To erase every touch Nathan gave her, every cruel word, every moment of pain. To replace all of it with pleasure, with care, with the worship her body deserves.
"Then forget him," I growl against her throat. "Forget everything except this. Except us."
I kiss down her neck, finding that spot where her pulse races, and suck hard enough to leave a mark. Mine. She's mine now, not Nathan's, and I want evidence written on her skin.
Belle's head falls back, giving me better access, and I take full advantage: kissing, licking, biting my way across her throat while my hands roam her body. Learning her curves, everywhere I've imagined touching for two years.
"Belle, I can't—" I break off, breathing hard, my control hanging by a thread. "I can't control myself much longer. I want all of you. Everything."
"Then take it." Her voice is breathless, desperate. "Take everything. I'm yours."
Those two words—*I'm yours*—snap something inside me. I pull back just enough to look at her, to make sure I'm reading this right.
"Here?" I rasp. "In the pool?"
"No." She unwraps her legs from my waist, sliding down my body, and I have to grit my teeth at the friction. "The balneary. Take me there. Now."
I should argue. Should tell her she deserves better than being fucked in a spa facility, that her first time with me should be in a proper bed with soft sheets and all the time in the world.
But she's already moving toward the steps, water sluicing off her curves, that burgundy bikini clinging to every inch of her body. And I'm transfixed by the sway of her hips, the roundness of her ass, the way her thighs look thick and perfect and made to be wrapped around my head.
"Richard." She looks back over her shoulder. "Are you coming?"
I follow her out of the pool, my cock straining painfully against my swim shorts. The wet fabric does nothing to hide my erection. Not that I'm trying particularly hard to conceal it anymore. She's seen it, felt it pressed against her. She knows exactly what she does to me.
Belle reaches for a towel, but I catch her wrist, spinning her back to face me. Her surprised gasp turns into a moan when I scoop her up, one arm under her knees, the other supporting her back.
"Richard!" She clutches at my shoulders. "What are you—"
"I'm done waiting." I stride toward the balneary door, carrying her easily despite her curves. "I'm done being patient and appropriate and keeping my fucking hands to myself."
The balneary is through a side door, another glass-enclosed space with massage tables, a sauna, comfortable lounging chairs. I carry her to the nearest wall. Smooth tile, warmed by the heating system, and press her against it.
She gasps at the contact, her wet skin sliding against the tile, and I brace my hands on either side of her head.
"You deserve better than this," I tell her, my voice rough. "You deserve a nice bed, proper sheets, time for me to worship every inch of you."
"I don't want to wait." Her hands find my chest, fingers splaying across my pecs. "I can't endure another second without you claiming me, Richard. The balneary is perfect. You're perfect. Please."
I kiss her hard, claiming her mouth while my hands roam her body. I find the tie at the back of her bikini top and pull, watching the fabric fall away to reveal her breasts in all their glory.
"Fuck." I can't help myself. I cup them both, feeling their weight, thumbing her nipples until they're hard peaks. "You're so fucking beautiful, Belle. So perfect."
She arches into my touch, her head falling back against the tile. "Richard, please—"
"I know, baby. I know." I kiss down her throat, between her breasts, down her soft stomach. My hands hook into the waistband of her bikini bottoms, and I look up at her. "Can I?"
"Yes. God, yes."
I pull the bottoms down slowly, revealing her inch by inch. When they fall to the floor, I take a moment to just look at her—completely naked, pressed against my wall, looking down at me with hooded eyes.
Then I sink to my knees.
"Richard, what are you—oh." Her words dissolve into a moan as I kiss the inside of her thigh, my hands gripping her hips to hold her steady.
