“My family can be called a lot of things, Lord Knight, but liars aren’t one of them.”
“Fair enough.”
Annwyl fought to understand the confusing man. She sensed he wanted something from her, but she had no idea what. And her frustration was too great to try and figure it out. With an aggravated sigh, she pushed past him.
“We’re not done.”
She stopped in midstride, annoyed by his tone. Annoyed by him. “We’re not?” She faced him, arms crossed in front of her chest.
“No. I’m still waiting.” He walked toward her, and she felt like a hunted doe in the woods.
“Waiting? For what?”
“For your promise to me.” He stepped in front of her and what little light the two suns poured into the dragon’s heavily wooded glen was completely blocked out by the man’s huge body. She now stood in shadow.
“Promise?”
“Your promise to stay away from Gwenvael.”
Now she really was annoyed. She could care less about Gwenvael. A mischievous little troublemaker that one. But she also understood how brothers could make each other insane. “I do not intend to make such a promise.” She could see his jaw tighten and she had the sudden desire to be wicked.
“You test me, wench.”
“And you push me. I strongly suggest you not.”
“Or you’ll what?”
She gave him the same smile she gave an enemy soldier in battle. She didn’t practice it, but she knew it when she gave it. Men blanched at this expression. Most ran. All died. Her knight didn’t even flinch.
“Or I’ll make your brother a very happy man. He seems more than willing.”
With a feral growl, he grabbed her arms and pinned them behind her back. He pulled her close and she felt the intense heat from his body. The anger. And the lust. “You play where you should not, Lady Annwyl.”
She could have backed off. She probably should have. But Annwyl had always been reckless. Foolish. And this man . . . this man brought out something base and primal in her. Something that she couldn’t control.
“Only one man ruled me. Now his bones lay rotting in the ground. And since his death I answer to no man. And especially not to you.”
The knight gave a painful groan, just before his lips slammed against hers. And for Annwyl there would be no going back.
Fearghus wanted to be stronger than this. He wanted to hand her sword to her and begin their daily training session. Instead he ripped her swords from her back and threw them across the glen floor.
Annwyl the Bloody was more dangerous than anyone realized. She took no prisoners whether in love or war. Her response to his kiss was as desperate and demanding as he felt. But he had to remind himself that she was still a virgin. As much as he wanted to find a boulder and bend her over it, he couldn’t. He didn’t want her first experience to be a painful memory that made her wince.
He fought for control, pulled away from her, leaving her gasping, and annoyed.
“Take your clothes off,” he ordered as he stepped away from her. She frowned in confusion. “I’ll rip them off your back if I do it myself. Take them off.”
Annwyl stared at him, her entire body tense. For a moment, he thought she might have changed her mind. Her eyes flickered to the path that led back to the cave. But then she pulled the shirt over her head. Followed by the bindings. She slid the breeches off past her hips and long legs, dropping them in a puddle at her feet. She kicked them as well as her boots aside. She stood before him completely naked. He studied every inch of her. Every scar. Every freckle. She was so beautiful. And his.
“You stare, knight.”
“Yes. I do. You’re beautiful.”
Suddenly she appeared awkward and shy. Her gaze shifted to the ground and it seemed as if she might bolt.
“Has no one told you that before?”
“They have. Usually when they wanted something from my brother or myself. They’ve never meant it.”
And suddenly he saw the woman behind the warrior. A woman who grew up among evil men but still somehow managed to keep her soul. A woman who fought for the freedom of people she didn’t know and who risked her life every day to defend them against her own kin. A woman who easily called a dragon her friend. And whether she knew it or not she belonged to him. His woman. His warrior. His life. He’d do anything to protect her. Anything to keep her.
He reached out and pushed her long hair off her shoulder. Gently he ran his finger down her chest, across her breast, circling the nipple. He watched it harden at his touch. Watched her breath come hard and fast. She smelled of desire and the forest. And soon she would smell of him.
His arm slipped around her waist and he roughly pulled her flat against his body. His mouth captured hers as his hands trailed down her back and bottom. Her strong hands gripped fistfuls of his hair. Her tongue tasted his.
He moved away from her long enough to snatch off his own clothes and weapons, then he had her in his arms again. Fearghus nipped the soft flesh at her neck and heard her give a growl. The sound played across his every nerve, testing the very control of his human body. He lowered her to the soft grass of the glen, settling down beside her.
* * *
Annwyl loved the feel of his body. His hips fit snuglyagainst hers. His hands were rough and large, capable of holding her sizable breasts. His skin hard and smooth. Her fingers reveled in flowing across his body, through his long thick hair.
As he slowly trailed his tongue down her chest, she feared she might come out of her skin. But his hands held on to her, grounding her, as they trailed down her back until they cupped her rear. His tongue slid between her thighs, causing her back to arch. But when his teeth rasped over her clit a feral moan tore from her throat.
Annwyl always believed herself beyond this. That desire would never trap her like the few women she’d known over the years. But now she realized that her body had become a treacherous thing. In battle it responded to her every command. Did things she never believed that it could. Had strength she never knew it possessed.
But now her body completely ignored her. It responded to something else altogether. And until it got what it needed, it would no longer respond to anything she thought or rationalized. It would only respond to her desires. To her needs. And at the moment, that meant her body would only respond to him.
He loved the taste of her. The scent of her. Everything about her brought him to life. Making him more human then he’d ever been before. She panted, her body tight and coiled, afraid of this new feeling. This new sensation she’d never had. But when she tightened her hand in his hair, winding the strands around her fingers, he realized how much he needed her. How much he would risk so that he could have this time with her.
He swirled his tongue slowly around her clit as he slipped a finger inside of her. Her whole body jerked, and he smiled as he licked her over and over while slowly fucking her with his hand. She moaned aloud and he wondered how much more of this he could stand before he could be inside of her. But her body jerked again and the muscles of her sex tightened around his finger. She gasped loudly and gripped his hair tighter as she came, her juices sliding down her thighs.
He licked her clean as the spasms passed and moved slowly up her body, kissing and licking every scar as he went.
His lips reached her mouth and he groaned in surprise to find out how hungry she was for him. Fearghus hadn’t satiated her as much as he made her want more. Her passion increased his.
He settled his hips between her thighs, his erection pushing against her. She panted in his ear, her body shifting beneath his, preparing herself for his shaft, her legs opening wider. Fearghus kissed her along her neck, moving up to her earlobe. He licked the sensitive bit of flesh, and then bit down on it.
She gave out a sharp cry of surprise and that’s when he slammed home, breaching her maidenhead, and filling her completely, his cock buried deep inside her.
