“I hope I get the chance to say the same thing,” she said, her own hand trailing down to the opening of his trousers.
In no time he was just as naked as she, the urgency building until there could be only one outcome. He didn’t want to hurt her. When he slid one finger into her, she was so tight, so hot, so welcoming, but he was afraid the last thread of his control would snap the glorious second he entered her.
“Slow it down,” he whispered as he slid his finger slowly in and out, in and out, still learning, still memorizing and being mesmerized.
She panted and dragged him into a hard kiss, full of urgency and carnal desire. He ignored the pain in his nose and his face and thought of nothing but pleasure.
“Faster, James, I can’t bear it for much longer.”
He smiled against her lips. “It’s going to hurt, my sweet. You’re not ready yet.”
Pushing with the heel of her hands hard against his chest, she rolled him to his back and straddled his hips. He grew harder in an instant. He hadn’t known it was possible.
“Just how many times did you…ah…lose your innocence?” he asked with a laugh.
The feline grin she gave him made him laugh again but he stopped when she took his member in her hand and directed him towards her entrance. “There was one boy; his name was Jimmy,” she breathed, her eyelids drifting closed as she slid down his length, her body greeting his as though they had done this many times before. When she was seated to the hilt she opened her eyes again. “He showed me a few things.” She tilted her hips and clenched her inner muscles.
James held on tight to the control he thought he still had.
She bent to trail kisses down his neck, her hair heavy against his chest, her scent everywhere, like cherries and spices. She lifted a fraction at a time and then slid down again, the torturous friction agonizingly unhurried after the urgency of moments before. After about the fourth time, right after she nipped the flat plane of his nipple and ran her smooth hand over the other, that control snapped completely and he flipped her onto her back. “I happen to also know a few tricks.” His voice was coarse, husky, unrefined.
“Show me,” she implored, her hands relaxing above her head.
He pulled her legs up so her knees were raised, her ankles at his sides, then covered her hands with just one of his own. Gripping her buttock to hold her still, he pushed inside her folds again, knowing now he couldn’t hurt her. She was wet and ready and wanted it more than he did, if that was even possible.
As he withdrew, her eyes would open wide but when he slammed back into her with all the force of his desire, she closed them again, her head thrashing against the rough cotton sheet, sweet little noises of pleasure filling his ears. A wholly male satisfaction the likes he hadn’t known in an age rocketed in his blood.
Her muscles tightened, her nails dug into his skin but still he held back. He wanted to watch her face as she fell into her pleasure. He wanted to hear her cry out before he lost himself in this moment.
Just when he thought her body couldn’t handle any more, just when he thought she’d reached the highest peak she could find, he took her mouth in a kiss not meant to be punishing but harsh in their combined needs, forcing the breath from both of their bodies. He was relentless then, stoking her desires, pushing and pushing until her nails scored his skin, pushing even after he’d swallowed her ragged cries and her legs lost their tension. When he reached heights he’d never before experienced and thought he’d die from the lack of oxygen and rationale, he let go and buried his face in her hair as he emptied his seed deep in her womb.
“Extraordinary,” he whispered, running his palms lightly down her ribs, his thumbs brushing the edges of her breasts and then lower still to her hips. He kissed her cheek, her jaw, her neck, her chin. He raised himself up on his elbows just in time to catch the look of intense satisfaction on her face, the silly grin on her lips.
It was the single most perfect moment of his life to date and if he did die tomorrow, he would meet his maker a very contented man.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Darkness had fallen in the time they’d spent in each other’s arms. Daniella couldn’t string a coherent sentence together to save her life and that gave James a thrill he’d never before had.
All the time he’d spent with Marie during the campaign, never had he been this spent. Sure, he was younger and stupider then, full of fire for the battle and a naive desire to serve his country. But this was different. Daniella was different. He had more to lose now than he ever had before but he wouldn’t have done anything differently. Well, perhaps he would have bedded the chit before now. They’d had so many opportunities and he had squandered them all in the guise of propriety and honour.
Moonlight reflected from the ocean created trembling shadows and darkened corners for past wrongs to hide away. Tonight wasn’t a good time for ghosts and nightmares. James rolled from the bed and lit the lantern, dressing swiftly.
“What are you doing?” Daniella asked with a wide yawn.
“We have to get dressed. As much as I like you like this—” all smooth contours and erotic dips “—Darius will be back soon and he can’t be aware of what went on here.” Although it would further James’s cause. Beneath that wily madman lay a gentleman. He recognized that and wondered what the pirate’s story was.
“When did Darius come to your crew?”
Daniella shrugged, the sheet slipping from her body as she rose in
