He kissed and licked my neck, weaving his fingers through my hair and tugging lightly. The exquisite pressure against my scalp and the warm puffs of air against my skin rose a deep, lusty moan to my throat. I lowered my head and pressed my backside against him until I could feel the fabric of his leggings against my bare flesh. His long hair teased my shoulders and back and as he kissed me, the slick space between my thighs throbbed unbearably. I wriggled against him, desperate to feel more of him, all of him.
He spun me as if we were about to dance and lowered me to the bedroll.
“It’s not too late,” he whispered. “I can still tuck you into bed and sleep here all night.” A massive bulge in the front of his leggings drew my eyes along his body. He followed my gaze and laughed. “Perhaps I won’t sleep much tonight, but I would tuck you in if you said the word.”
“I want this,” I begged. “I want you.”
Syndrian’s eyes sparkled with the light of a thousand stars. I reached a hand to stroke the smooth muscles of his chest, and he groaned. I gave his chest a light push and he settled onto his back. I kneeled beside his body, curiously bold.
Even though my nipples were so hard they ached, I couldn’t help smiling as I traced my fingers along the scars and scabs on his forearms.
“Do you know how long I’ve wanted this?” I whispered. “For years I’ve wondered after this one, and this one… How did this happen?”
As he told me the tales of each mark on his body, I kissed each healed injury, each irregular bit of skin, more precious to me, perhaps, than even the perfect parts of him. After I kissed his arms and his fingers, I swatted his hands from my breasts.
“This is why you lose,” I teased. “You’re too impatient to play a long game.”
He groaned and the bulge in his leggings twitched. “You cannot apply strategy to this, Pali. You intend to destroy me, don’t you?”
“In the best possible ways,” I giggled. “You know I always play to win.”
Emboldened by his arousal, I lowered my face to his chest and kissed a line from his nipples to his belly. The light dusting of hair there tickled my lips and I scratched my nails along his ribs, my hands and mouth in competition to cover all of his beautiful body at once.
When I hovered a shy hand over the waistband of his leggings, he stopped my fingers with his palm. “Pali,” he moaned.
“Shhh,” I scolded. “I’ve had my clothes removed. You don’t want an unfair advantage, do you?”
His hips bucked as I gently loosened the drawstring on his leggings and tugged the garment away from his body. I shoved them down his thick thighs, generously dusted with golden hair, his knees, his shins, and finally, his bare feet. “Woman,” he hissed, but I was too taken by his beauty to answer.
I reached for his erection, and stroked the hard length in my hand. “You’ll have to teach me the rules,” I whispered. Gone was the fear and uncertainty. My thighs were damp with need, my hairline misted with sweat. “What now?”
He grunted as he pulled me down to lie on top of him. He reached for my face and claimed my lips in a greedy, ravenous kiss. My hair hung between us and my breasts smashed against his bare chest. He opened his legs and I slid one thigh between his. As his tongue explored my mouth, he ran his hands along my backside, tugging me close to him. I wriggled my hips, and he positioned his thigh so that he could move his leg against my core in delicious, agonizing strokes.
I lifted my face from his and gasped as he scooted me farther up his body, so my nipples lined up with his mouth. He sucked the tender flesh, nipping and licking my aching peaks while his thigh worked a beautiful rhythm against my core. The friction and the pressure, the deep, aching need I felt overtook me. I closed my eyes and heard nothing but our paired breaths, felt nothing but the rough callouses of his hands on my skin. The hairs of his legs, the heat of the fire… It all disappeared to the haze of sensual connection I felt with this man.
“It’s your move, Pali,” he panted. “Give in to what you feel.”
As he gripped my rear end in his hands and held me firmly against him, I rocked my hips and arched my back. My nipple slipped from his mouth with a satisfying pop sound, and he whispered praise and encouragement as I slammed my eyes shut and shuddered along with waves of pleasure that rocked my body against his. I collapsed against his chest, sweating and panting, my hair tangled and my legs weak.
“By the gods…” I croaked.
Syndrian laughed, a deep, rasping sound that echoed through my body. My ear was against his damp skin and I could hear his heart pounding.
“I lied,” I admitted, lifting my face. I kissed him and noticed his excitement hadn’t yet abated. “There is no way we’re doing this just this once.”
He kissed me back and growled against my lips. We snuggled together before the fire, Syndrian’s arousal still unsated. What pleasure he’d given me, simply with the touch of his thigh between mine, I was anxious to learn. Anxious to return. And he was very anxious to finally have something to teach me.
“I may need lots of practice,” I said, lowering my lips to his hardness and giving the tender flesh a soft kiss.
Syndrian closed his eyes and mewled, fisting my hair gently between those beautifully scarred fingers. “Pali,” he sighed, as I tasted him. “I’ll play you all day, every day, my love.”
ChapterNineteen
ONE MONTH LATER…
“Lord Lombard.” Drustan held his hand out expectantly.
“Lord, lord, out of my gourd.” Biko rolled his shoulders and sighed. “Still not used to the sound of that. The title…”