Page 76 of The Temptation of Roan Island

Her eyes rove up from the obvious tent in my pants until she meets my gaze, brows pulled down.

“So I can undo the buttons on your dress,” I explain.

“Oh.” She sits up, making to stand.

“No.” I press a palm to the center of her chest and push her back to the bed. “Rest.”

Her nose wrinkles, and she opens her mouth as if to argue, but yawns. I smile. She huffs and rolls onto her belly.

With my knees straddling her legs, I push the dress higher, dragging my palms across the silk of her skin. She lifts into my touch. I hesitate for a moment, my desire flaring bright inside me. Then I push the fabric over her ass, revealing her cleft, the perky, beautiful orbs of muscle and skin. I palm her for just a heartbeat before straddling her backside and methodically setting to work unbuttoning her dress. Every few buttons, I stop and press a gentle kiss to her spine, reveling in the way she sighs at the simple touch. The last few buttons trail over her ass. I kiss her after each one. Cock throbbing, fangs extended, but my hearts calm and relaxed. There will be time for everything I want to do to her.

I rear back. No, there won’t be. There might never be enough time to do everything I want to do with Pippa. My hearts sputter, and I swallow the lump in my throat.

“Are you alright?” she asks, as in tune with my subtle emotional shifts as I am with her scent. She rolls over, twisting in the dress so that it’s now stuck around her waist, her tight little breasts finally revealed.

Unsteady and worried about losing my head, I note the slightest outline of her ribcage and vow to make sure she eats more. I’m going to pamper her with food and kisses and orgasms. I’m going to soak up every second of these few days we’re together on this ship with nowhere to go and nothing else to do. I’m going to take care of her, every part of her.

“Maiah?” She presses the back of her hand against her mouth as she yawns.

Starting with sleep.

“I’m fine.” I smile, but I’m not sure she buys it. “Really, Pippa. I’m just a little shocked to be here.” My eyes travel down her body before returning to her face. “And overwhelmingly grateful.”

Her answering smile is the brush of silk against hot skin. “I am too.”

We stare at each other for a long moment before her eyes droop. It was a long day of travel, and she needs to rest.

“Move up the bed.” I take hold of her dress. Thankfully there’s no corset tonight, and she easily wiggles out of it. I drape it over a chair, then crawl onto the bed, patting the space between my legs.

“Aren’t you going to undress now, husband?” She arches her eyebrows.

I arch mine right back. “If I undress, I might not be able to control myself.”

The corners of her lips tip downward. “I thought we were going to…”

I grab her and maneuver her between my spread legs. “Later. You need to sleep.”

As I undo the layers of pins keeping her long hair in place, the locks—looking more luxurious than ever—spill over her shoulder, hiding her from me. I brush her hair to the soundtrack of her moans and sighs, then braid it in a long plait.

“Maiah,” she says my name with a tentative note, twisting her fingers together nervously. “Do you think… would you…”

I kiss her bare shoulder. “Anything, wife. Don’t be nervous to say it.”

“Would you… could I sleep with you inside me?”

Just when I think I know her, she surprises me. This is new. I’ve seen and experienced a lot at new moon parties, but her request is so intimate it gives me pause. I’ve never slept like that with anyone before.

“Maybe it’s a horrible idea,” she says, backpedaling. “It would probably be uncomfortable for you to be inside me and not do anything. I guess you could do something if you want, but I’d rather participate. And I am really tired. But I want… I want to feel close to you.” Her laugh is nervous. “This is all so new, and I’m a little scared it’s a dream, and I’m going to wake up, and we’ll just be friends again and⁠—”

“Shhh.” I turn her so she’s facing me and cup her face in my hands. “I can think of nothing better than warming my cock in your cunt while we sleep.” I won’t get much sleep, that’s for sure, but the idea of being close to her in such a way appeals to me.

She worries her lip, and I pull it free from her teeth.

“Will it… hurt you?” she asks. “Because I don’t want to hurt you, so if it would be too hard, or if you⁠—”

“Pippa.”

“—need sex, we can have sex, and then I’ll sleep. I just want⁠—”