chest in appreciation of the muscles there.
He undid the first button of my ugly flannel pajamas and exposed a bit more of my skin, then pressed his mouth there. “For someone so cranky, you sure do taste good.”
I smacked his chest, and his chuckle at the hollow of my throat sent a shiver through my body. I immediately lost track of all teasing thoughts, especially when he nipped lightly at my skin. Small, soft little bites, just the barest scrape of teeth against flesh. It gave me goose bumps, and I moaned when he gave my neck a long swipe with his tongue in response.
“Sorry,” he said, and his voice sounded rough with need. “Couldn’t resist.”
“Do it all you like,” I said dreamily. It felt amazing.
“You shouldn’t tell me that,” he growled, then licked my collarbone again.
“Then maybe I shouldn’t tell you how wet it makes me,” I whispered.
He bit me. I gasped in shock as I felt his teeth dig into my skin, the sting traveling up my neck. “Josh?”
He licked the spot carefully. “Sorry. Just had to do it. You were just begging for it.”
“I was not begging for anything,” I told him, running my hands along his back. I loved touching him after weeks of imagining how he’d feel.
“Really? Because all I’m hearing is ‘Josh, I need you to lick my breasts,’?” he told me in a husky voice, kissing lightly along my jaw.
I sucked in a breath, my nipples going hard.
“Liked that, did you?” he said with a chuckle. Then he leaned down and undid the next button of my pajamas with his teeth. I watched, dazed, as his mouth moved to the curve of my breast and began to gently kiss it. “Can I undo the rest of them?”
“You’re asking permission?” I said, unable to stop looking at his mouth on the valley between my breasts.
“I need to know that you want this, too, Marie.” He looked up, and I saw his dark eyes reflecting with the were-cougar side of him. “You’ve got to encourage a man a bit, Marie.”
“What happened to all that talk about foreplay?” I was finding it hard to breathe. It was like all the air had left my lungs at the sight of his dark head over my chest.
He grinned. “Just talk, baby.”
I snorted at that.
He gave me a wounded look. “You’re killing my ego here, Marie.”
“It might need a nice, healthy deflating,” I told him, and then to take the sting out of my words, I ran a finger along his chest. “But I wouldn’t mind if you were shirtless.”
“I’ll go skins if you go skins,” he said with a grin. Josh crawled off me and stood up, then offered me his hand.
I placed mine in it slowly, feeling a little out of my element as he pulled me to my feet. Okay, a lot out of my element. All my expertise in flirting and being sexy was ten years rusty. And here I was in ratty pajamas, with dark circles under my eyes.
Then he tugged his shirt over his head, and my mouth went dry.
Josh was . . . gorgeous. In the future, I needed to see him naked at least once a day. Maybe more. I couldn’t resist reaching out to touch him. Taut, strong shoulders that framed a lean, tapering torso and a flat stomach. He had a sprinkle of hair on his pectorals and a line of it down his belly. Elegant. Delicious. His biceps were hard and strong, and I couldn’t help squeezing them as I ran my hands over him.
He remained perfectly still as I explored him, touching him the way I’d wanted to so many times before. I brushed my fingers over those pectorals, so well defined and hard, and jumped as a low rumble started in his chest under my fingers.
“Sorry,” he said, putting his hand over mine and trapping it against his chest again. “Should have warned you. We purr.”
Sure enough, a deep rumble just like a cat’s purring came from his chest as his hand held mine over his heart. “I didn’t realize your cat was so . . . close to the surface.”
“Don’t worry, I’m house trained.”
“Very cute.” I stared at that delicious skin, entranced, and ran my fingernails down it, raking them over the lean muscle.
He groaned, pulling me against him for another hot, quick kiss. “Your turn.”
I pulled out of his arms and felt my cheeks heating with shyness. Would my inexperience show? I hoped not. I finished unbuttoning the pajama top, keeping the fabric together until the last minute. Then I shrugged my shoulders and let it drop to the floor. I closed my eyes, waiting for his response.
“Beautiful,” he said, his warm hands moving back around my waist and pulling me against him for another hot, openmouthed kiss. We were naked chest to naked chest, and dear God, the sensation was sinful. Especially when his tongue was stroking into my mouth so sensually, like I was something delicious to be enjoyed for hours. One of his big hands stroked down my spine and I whimpered, pressing my breasts closer against his chest. I loved his warmth, his big body. I wanted to feel him all over me.
His hand slid to my ass and tugged me closer as the kiss deepened, became more possessive. My pulse heated, pounding through my body in excitement. His mouth slowly pulled away from mine, and he stared down at me with hot eyes. “You want the bed or right here? Because we should probably go there now.”
“Bed,” I said softly, my fingers twined in the silky hair at his nape.
He picked me up, kissing me as he carried me to my bedroom, then laid me on the bed and crawled on top of me. I wrapped my pajama-clad legs around his waist as he leaned in for another kiss, his chest hair tickling against my nipples.
And then he thrust against the juncture of my thighs, and I moaned. Oh, wow. Even through his jeans, that felt really, really good.
He swallowed my moan with another hot kiss, thrusting again, rocking against my core. My mind went blank with pleasure as he slid his hands to my waist and kissed my neck again, then down my collarbones.
When he leaned over and took the tip of one breast into his mouth, I dug my fingernails into his skin. “Joshua!”
He was purring again, nuzzling against my nipple, and he licked and sucked the sensitive tip, rolling it against his tongue. I felt the purr vibrating through his body, and it was doing crazy things to the way he felt against me. My sex felt hot and slick with need, my thighs clenching around him involuntarily. “Please . . . ”
“Please make love to my other breast?” He blew across my sensitive skin, and my entire body prickled in response. “If you insist.” And his mouth latched onto my other breast. His thumb went to the nipple he’d just abandoned, teasing the peak as he licked and nibbled on the other.
I writhed under him, my back arching. I didn’t want the sweet, intense torture to ever stop. I wanted more, desperately. My fingernails dug into his skin and my hips began to rise instinctively. “Please,” I breathed again, because I loved the consequences and wanted to see what he’d do next.
“Please,” he whispered huskily. “Put my mouth on you?”
I inhaled sharply, and nodded.
His fingers tugged the waistband of my pajamas and slid them down my legs. “I’ve been thinking about how you’d look for weeks. It’s been driving me crazy. I can’t wait to see all of you.”
I held my breath as his gaze moved over my body. His hand followed his gaze, skimming up my leg, then my thigh, the dark curls at the junction of my sex.
“Lovely,” he whispered, and leaned in to press a kiss to my belly.
That simple movement set my body aflame. I reached for him, dragging him back on top of me and kissing. He slid between my thighs and I parted them, letting him rock his weight against me again. His jeans rubbed against my sex in a raw way that sent shivers through my body. His kisses were deep and drugging, and I utterly loved the taste of him. I could kiss him for hours on end.
He slowly pulled away. “I need to take my pants off before they geld me.”
I giggled, and he grinned. “Do you want me to use a condom?” he asked.
“Shouldn’t you automatically do that?”
He shook his head. “Shifters don’t get diseases, and I can only make someone pregnant if she’s in heat.”
