So smooth, so inviting, so beautiful.
He was hard in an instant, pulled towards her as if she’d put a charm on him. Their eyes locked. Her sweet, full lips parted. Fire played in her dark eyes.
She loved him. He was going to battle. He needed to explain to her why he couldn’t be with her.
Only he couldn’t think of a single reason.
Lightning flashed outside and brought him out of his stupor. He crossed the space between them and stood in front of her in a moment. She dropped the ewer and it splashed water on them both.
He didn’t care. He took in every detail of her pretty face. Her long eyelashes, the thin scar above her eyebrow, lips so full and so desirable, he didn’t think he’d seen anything more beautiful.
“God, help me,” he whispered.
Forgetting everything, he plunged his hands into her hair and kissed her. The moment their lips touched, thunder cracked the sky above them in a deafening roll. Owen’s blood turned to fire. She gave out a small, feminine whimper, a mixture of surprise and pleasure, and wrapped her arms around his back, pressing herself to him.
He kissed her with more vigor, only now realizing how starved he was for her. How much his soul, his body, and his heart had been deprived of her this whole time.
She melted against him, arching her back into him, one hand burying into his hair at the back of his head, pulling him closer to her.
He wanted her so badly, he was ready to go fight the whole world to have her. Her mouth was delicious and wanton, responding to his kisses with the same passion as his. His hands shook, and he could barely breathe.
He wanted to take her like an animal. Make her his. He picked her up and carried her to his bed. He laid her down and stretched beside her.
Eyeing him from under her eyelashes, she asked, “What about you not being the man for me? That you can never be—”
“All lies. All I can think of is ye. I burn for ye. I live for ye. I havena really lived before ye. I’m only starting to live now.”
He moved his mouth to her neck and started kissing her there, inhaling the clean, feminine scent of her skin. He gently nibbled his way down her neck, and she rewarded him with a throaty moan that made him all but burst into flames.
Down he went, brushing his lips over her silky, perfect skin. When he reached her breasts, he had to stop himself to admire the dark nipples, the round, full, beautiful hemispheres. He reached down and bit her nipple.
“Ohhhh…” she cried.
“Sorry, lass, was that too much?”
“No. Oh, no. Do it again.”
He obliged, taking the whole nipple into his mouth and sucking. She arched her back into him, her eyes rolling into her head. He covered her other breast with the palm of his hand and began gently twisting the nub between his fingers.
“Owen…” she whimpered breathlessly.
“Aye, my sweet lass.”
“Ah…”
The sound that was born out of her throat sent a jolt of pleasure right into his groin. He’d never heard anything so beautiful and alluring. He wanted to bury himself deep inside her. Touch her everywhere. Dissolve with her.
Lose himself in her.
Amber was in heaven. Something like bliss was building inside her. She felt like a wild creature, with no thoughts of yesterday, and no worry about tomorrow. Her body was free, living to follow its instinct.
Because she trusted him.
There was no fear he’d hurt her. No worry that if she moved the wrong way, he’d get too excited and hurt her.
She wanted him. Everywhere. His mouth on her breasts, his skin on her skin, him buried deep inside her. She rolled from the bed and stood before him. Owen’s eyes filled with awe, and her chest tightened with a sweet ache. She pushed the night shift down her hips.
“God almighty, there’s nae a woman more beautiful than ye,” he whispered, his eyes dark and intense and burning.
The words were like a caress over her skin.
“You’re not so bad yourself.” She let his gaze run up and down her body, for the first time in her life, she wanted to be this open. Wanted him to see her.
She came back to bed, climbing over him and straddling him. He sat up and took her into his arms. She winced as his hand touched her tender scars.
“Forgive me, lass,” he murmured, kissing her chest above her breasts.
“It’s nothing.” She cupped his face. “Your touch is healing.”
His eyes gained the dark intensity of malachite. “No one has ever said that to me before. I’ve been nothing but trouble.”
“To me, you’ve been nothing but a blessing.”
He kissed her tenderly, taking his time, as though kissing her was his only purpose in the world. When she was breathless, he pulled away and went back to her breasts. He suckled on the hard bud of her nipple, sending an electrical jolt of pleasure through her. Hungrily, he sucked harder and took more of her breast into his mouth, his tongue working wonders around the nipple.
He moved to the other nipple and bit it ever so slightly, and a throaty moan escaped Amber. He slid his hand between her legs and brushed his fingers up and down her cleft. A tremor of pleasure ran through Amber.
“Does that please ye, lass?” he murmured.
“Yes…”
He released a masculine sound of satisfaction and slipped his fingers between her folds. He found her swollen, sensitive knot and began rubbing it gently up and down and in circles. Amber gasped as a small convulsion went through her.
He laid her gently on her back, then settled himself between her thighs and put his mouth on her. Sweat misted Amber’s skin. A trembling moan escaped her throat. Her breath gusted as he spread her folds and licked between them. The flutters of his tongue teased her, driving her crazy. She dug her fingers into his hair, her pelvis bucking with the rhythm of his mouth.
He drove her to a delirious peak of blinding pleasure, making noises as though he was about to fall apart, not her. He inserted a finger inside her and began circling it, bringing her to the next level.
An intense, magnificent pleasure was building in her, and with a loud moan, she exploded and fell apart like stardust. She tightened in a ferocious convulsion, a blazing eruption. The orgasm cascaded through her in a searing wave.
Owen climbed up and stretched next to her, taking her into his arms.
“Ye’re so bonnie when ye find yer release. I havena seen anything so beautiful as ye,” he said, his voice a husky rasp.
Amber opened her eyes and met his gaze, breathless. Love for him spread through her, and she thought she’d never seen anyone as handsome as he. He eyed her with male pride and a sense of possessiveness. He traced a finger down her cheek, down her neck and towards her breast, circling her nipple gently with his knuckle. It hardened from sweet pleasure in response. The sensation shot straight through her core.
Amber bit her lower lip, surprised at her reaction. She’d just come, and yet she was ready to go again.
Yes, she thought in surprise, yes. She wanted him. She wanted him inside her, driving into her, owning her, making her his.
She reached out and kissed him, trailing her fingers down his hard body, over the crisp hair on his chest, his solid six-pack, and down to his erection. She circled the base of his cock, and he sucked in air with a hiss.
“Lass…” he groaned, his voice a hot warning.