Page 71 of Monster. Me.

But my eyes keep returning to what's between his legs. Can you blame me?

Well, if I thought this wasn't going to be a challenge, I was very wrong.

Feeling a little flustered by all of this, I force myself to tear my eyes away from his crotch and shift my gaze to a safer area.

Massive slabs of muscle, broad shoulders, deeply defined abs, narrow hips, not an ounce of fat anywhere on his body, only muscle and those bizarre purple markings…

All I can say is that his body is truly flawless, whether I ignore those inhuman traits or include them.

I've always been attracted to really massive guys, gym rats, athletes, bodybuilders. And he looks like the embodiment of pure muscle.

I can see that Fenn is simply standing there, looking at me.

He doesn't take a single step toward me, and to be fair, he shouldn't.

This is my choice to make, my moment to decide what happens next between us.

But I don't need much time to think about it. I already know what I want. I step into the water.

Ten steps carry me across the shallow pool, the water rising to my waist. When I reach him, I simply lift my arms, wrap them around his neck, and pull him closer, into a kiss.

Fenn immediately draws me against him. I can feel the joy coursing through his entire body, his tension melting away now that he knows I didn't reject him, that I looked at him like this and still want him.

The kiss is desperate at first, but full of relief. As we break for air, I can feel Fenn trembling slightly in my arms, his massive chest heaving against mine.

"I've never made love before, Marlow. Nobody wants that with a monster… we're only good for a fuck."

He looks at me with an intensity bordering on reverence, as if I’m something fragile and precious.

"What I want with you is different; I want more than a fuck… it's very important to me to do everything right."

"Then let's make it right and perfect," I say firmly.

"You're sure?" he whispers in a low voice, and sends a rumbling vibration that echoes in my own chest. "You… you also want this?"

Answering with words just doesn't sit right, so I just pull him back in, returning to our kisses, even intensifying them, my tongue sliding against his, my hand running down the hard ridge of his spine.

Only then does he carry me toward the shore.

When we hit the grass, it's cool but soft. Drax doesn't just push me down; he lowers me with an agonizingly slow care, cushioning my head with his hand as he lays me back against the blades. He towers over me, a true mountain of muscle and purple markings, but the look in his eyes has no tones of aggressive dominance.

Actually, I can sense slight nerves from him. His eyes wander slowly over my face as if in marvel.

"Do you know how beautiful you are to me?"

I stay silent, just looking at him with a subtle flirtatious look because even though I have heard those compliments so many times before, coming from him it means so much more.

Then he leans in and begins to kiss my jaw, my cheeks, and my forehead in a languorous, incredibly slow journey…

The kisses are light, like touches of butterfly wings. Each one is slightly hesitant yet still full of hunger. As his hands wander, tracing the lines of my ribs and hips, nudging at my nipples, fleetingly pinching them… I feel a river of heat meandering into my lower abdomen, and my dick hardens enthusiastically.

Then, he moves lower.

He opens his mouth and slides his lips along my neck. I can feel the nip of his teeth, thin and sharp against my gland, and it makes my breath hitch, my fingers dig into the grass.

Fenn makes a long line of kisses over my collarbones, my chest, my nipples, and over my abs, though carefully avoiding my impatient dick, before he ends up between my thighs.

I can see his face as he glances at me for a fleeting moment, and it's just in his eyes… the upcoming challenge. He’s well aware that what he's packing is more than most could handle. The way he touches me suggests he's afraid of hurting me.