A soft moan escapes her and I pull her even closer. She climbs into my lap while my stav extends, seeking the warmth of her center. The scent of her arousal thickens the air. Only the thin barrier of her robe separates us, her wet heat soaking through the fabric as she moves her hips insistently against mine.
I release a tortured groan. It would be so easy to pull back her robe and bare her to my eyes. I ache to bury myself inside her. To fill her with my seed and claim her as mine. My nostrils flare as the scent of her need strengthens.
Though she claimed her people do not go into heat, when she grips my shoulders, digs her nails into my back, and rolls her hips against mine, it is obvious she desires me as much as I do her.
I love the feel of her petal-soft skin beneath the tips of my fingers as I trace them down her form. When I reach the curve of her breast, I am surprised by how easily the soft flesh gives beneath my touch. Drakarian females do not have any softness here.
I brush my thumb across the peak and she gasps, her kisses becoming more desperate as her nipple becomes a hard beaded tip beneath my palm. When I roll the stiff peak between my thumb and forefinger, she gasps and arches into my palm as if begging for more.
“This is,” I gasp between kisses, “sensitive?”
“Yes,” she breathes into my mouth. “I want your hands all over me.”
Encouraged by her response, I cup her other breast to give it the same attention.
She takes my hand and moves it down her body. My heart hammers as she guides me to her center. “Touch me here,” she whispers with a half-lidded gaze.
I dip my fingers between her soft folds, pleased to find that she is already slick with arousal. She guides me to a small pearl of flesh at the apex and as soon as my finger brushes against it, she moans and her entire body seems to light up with pleasure.
“Right there,” she mumbles against my lips.
I continue to tease at the sensitive flesh as she writhes in my lap. I groan as the hard length of my stav drags through her warm, wet heat.
I explore her body, and as soon as I find the entrance to her channel, she arches into my hand. Carefully, I press the tip of my finger into her tight heat and she gasps.
Heavy-lidded eyes meet mine. “Raidyn,” she pleads. “More.”
My entire body is tense with need. I’m desperate to claim her, but she is not ready for a full mating yet. However, she desires my touch, and I will take anything she is willing to give me. And even if we never fully mate, holding her in my arms, her body pressed against mine, is enough. I hug her tightly and drop my head into the space between her neck and shoulders, inhaling deeply of her intoxicating scent as she kneads the muscles along my back and grinds herself against me.
“I long to taste you on my tongue,” I whisper against her skin.
She stills and I worry that I have said too much; that I have asked for more than I should. But she pulls away to lie on her back. I watch as she undoes the fastening of her robe and it falls away, revealing her bare form to my gaze. She is perfect; I have never seen a more beautiful sight in my entire life.
She reaches for me and I surge toward her. Curling her hand around the back of my neck, she pulls my lips back down to hers. I worry my weight could crush her beneath me, so I brace my elbows on either side of her body as she deepens our kiss.
The tip of my stav bumps against her entrance and she inhales sharply. Her tongue curls around mine and I long more than anything to join our bodies as one. But when I pull back just enough to search her gaze, hesitation is evident in her eyes. I will not fully claim her until she is ready, but I want to give her pleasure. “Please, allow me to taste you, my beautiful mate.”
She nods and I move down her body, trailing a line of soft kisses down her petal-soft skin. I run my hands along her inner thighs to part them, baring her fully to my gaze. The hesitation spreads across her features, and she starts to close her thighs. I remove my hands and gaze up at her. “We will do nothing you do not wish.”
She sits up, pulling her robe to cover her body, then nestles against me.
“I’m sorry,” she whispers. “It’s just… I’ve never done this before and I—”
I press a kiss to her forehead and cup her jaw, tipping her head back to look up at me. “It is fine, my mate. We can wait.”
I hold her tightly to me. She is perfect, my Skye. I will wait as long as she needs me to. This night, she has allowed me to touch her more intimately than I could have ever dreamt.
Chapter 16
Skye
As I nestle against him, I notice his scales glowing much brighter than they ever have before. I trace my fingers over the swirling pattern, curious. “They’ve brightened. Why is that?”
“Because you are so close to me,” he replies. “When fated mates complete their bonding, joining their bodies as one, the pattern will remain steadfast and glowing so all may know they are a fully mated pair.”
I think about his father, remembering the same pattern on his scales. “I saw something similar on your father’s chest, but the glow had gone dark.”
He nods. “Because my mother is dead, it will never glow again.”
Only now do I realize that I did
