Page 132 of Kathryn

She made herself look up.

“Is this for me?” he asked, his distracting touch sliding up her arm and causing her entire body to break out in gooseflesh.

“Yes,” she said, aiming for saucy but sounding squeaky, instead.

His lips curled up at the edges. But rather than stopping at their usual twitch, they kept going up and up, until he was smiling a real smile.

“That is a first,” she said, breathless with astonishment at how young he suddenly looked.

“Hmm?” His attention was focused on his finger, which was gently but inexorably pulling down the sheet that covered her breasts.

“Your smile.”

“What of it?”

“That is the first time I’ve seen it.”

“Surely not.”

“Oh, yes.”

“I smile when I am happy. Let go,” he said, gently tugging the sheet.

Katie lowered her arms, and he exposed her breasts, not stopping until he’d brought the sheet to her hips.

A low rumble emanated from his chest. “Kathryn,” he said, his voice harsh and his pale eyes turning dark.

The effect on him was so mesmerizing that she hardly noticed when he removed the sheet entirely, baring her to his consuming gaze.

“So beautiful.” He swiftly tugged on his sash and shrugged out of his robe, letting it puddle on the floor at his feet.

Katie gestured to the robe. “Should I—”

“Leave it.”

Hmmm. That was interesting…

Her eyes immediately lowered to that most masculine part of him, and her mouth flooded at the sight of his thick, ruddy shaft jutting straight up from the nest of straw-colored curls. She wanted to touch him—desperately—and had done for weeks, but the fear of what he might think of her, of how he would wonder about her experience and how she had gained it held her back.

Be bold.

Katie somehow doubted this was what Betje had meant, but she was so tired of second guessing herself. And of hiding what she wanted.

And so she reached for him but then hesitated an inch away, looking up to find his gaze locked on her. He gave a slight nod, and she curled her fingers around his thickness, earning another of those intoxicating animal growls.

She had stroked Jasper before and knew what to do. She made a tight fist of her hand and focused her attention on the area below the crown.

Dulverton hissed and his hips flexed to thrust into her hand, the action causing a truly fascinating cascade of muscles in his thighs, abdomen, and chest. “That feels so good, Kathryn.”

She loved the feel of him hot and hard and throbbing against her palm. She cut a glance up at him, entranced by his hooded gaze. Do it, her inner devil urged.

Katie swallowed down both her nervousness and the copious moisture in her mouth and leaned closer, watching him the entire time. His eyelids slowly lifted, and his nostrils flared as she shifted on the mattress until she could kiss his swollen crown.

He groaned, his expression one of desire rather than disgust or judgment. He slid a hand around her jaw and slowly pushed his hips toward her. “Suck me, Kathryn.”

It was her turn to groan at his crude command, and her hand shook as she positioned him at a better angle and opened her mouth and took him inside.

***