Authors: Kate Douglas
Crystalfire (21 page)
What in the nine hells was she thinking?
She didn’t leave him wondering for long. Glancing down, as if to reassure herself his hands were still where she’d put them, Willow folded her arms across her chest. That, of course, had the effect of barely covering her nipples while forcing her breasts up and forward, ensuring that his brain would quit functioning altogether.
If she was trying to affect a businesslike pose, the effect was lost on him altogether. He couldn’t get his mind off the points where they connected—her warm sex against his stiff erection, her smooth thighs over his hard flanks. He felt a sensory overload coming on, and Willow was just gearing up to talk.
Talking was quickly becoming the last thing on his mind.
She wriggled her butt, as if she were trying to get more comfortable. Taron bit back a groan. Did she have any idea what she was doing to him?
Impossible. She’d been a woman for such a short time. Even Willow couldn’t fully comprehend how precarious his control was right now, how hard it was for him to concentrate, to hold the wild side of himself at bay. Even for a scholar who’d long eschewed anything remotely similar to a naked woman straddling his crotch, this position they both held was really not conducive to an adult conversation.
Unfortunately, it didn’t appear that was going to stop her.
“So. What now, Taron of Libernus?” Willow raised an eyebrow and pinned him with her steady gaze. “I think, as Eddy would say, the ball is in your court.” She leaned forward and planted both hands on his chest. Her breasts swung forward. His eyes almost crossed, following those perfect nipples. “And no more kissing until you figure out exactly what you want.”
He stared at her breasts a moment longer, at least until he finally dredged up the strength to raise his eyes. Then his vision was filled once again with that tangled mass of curls falling across her shoulders and curling around the tips of her breasts, at the sparkle in her blue eyes and the firm tilt to her chin. This woman was no pushover. She was everything he could ever imagine wanting or needing, and she was right.
The ball was in his court, and he knew, without a doubt that only a coward would pass up a chance at love. Only a coward would ignore what was so generously offered, so freely given.
He was tired of playing the coward. And gods-be-damned, but he wanted Willow.
He met her gaze without wavering. Kept his hands exactly where she’d placed them. “I want you,” he said. “Without barriers or boundaries. I want to love you for as long as we have. If you’ll have me. If you’re willing to take a chance on a guy who obviously doesn’t have a clue what women really want or need.”
Her smile would have lit the darkest night. She reached for his hands, brought them up and placed his palms firmly over the full curve of her breasts. “I never let you go, Taron. I’ve only been waiting for you to figure out what. You. Really. Wanted.”
He nodded. “I think I’ve got it.” Then he closed his fingers around her breasts and gently pinched both nipples. She sighed and arched her back, and he knew that, no matter what fate might think it had in store, he would hang on to her, protect her, and keep her.
“No one,” he whispered as she closed the small gap between them. “No one will ever take you away from me.”
She’d never been so terrified in her life. Willow couldn’t believe she’d actually given Taron an ultimatum. Even more unbelievable, it appeared to have worked.
Leaning close, she pressed her lips to his, sighing when his hands slipped along her sides and around her back. He cupped her bottom, kneading the sensitive skin with his big hands, lifting her until the thick length of him slipped close against her damp folds.
All it would take was a tiny little adjustment on her part, just a lift of her hips, a bit of a tilt like this, and ...
Puppy parts, Willow! Don’t forget the puppy parts. Taron, be careful!
Bumper! What ...
She collapsed against Taron’s chest, giggling uncontrollably. Taron cursed. Bumper had the good sense to shut up.
She collapsed against Taron’s chest, giggling uncontrollably. Taron cursed. Bumper had the good sense to shut up.
Willow thought she heard Taron fumbling with the drawer beside the table and then the now familiar sound of the packet tearing, but she was wiping the tears from her eyes and giggling so hard she wasn’t really certain what he was doing.
Finally, gasping for breath, Willow raised her head and looked into icy green eyes totally devoid of any sense of humor. Taron held the tiny clear disk in one large hand, but he didn’t look the least bit pleased about the interruption.
Willow leaned over and grabbed a tissue from a box on the table beside the bed to wipe her eyes. Finally, with her giggles under control, she slipped back on his legs almost to his knees.
“Here. Give that to me.” She held out her hand. Taron slapped the condom against her palm.
“Don’t look so grumpy. Bumper’s right, you know.”
“I’m not grumpy.” He glared at her. Then she could tell he’d thought about how he sounded, and the corner of his mouth twitched.
“You’re sure about that?” She rose up on her knees, leaned over his belly and kissed him. “You taste grumpy.”
“Do not.”
“Do too.”
“Well ... maybe a little.” He ran a finger along her cheek. “Bumper’s timing is horrible.”
“Bumper’s timing was perfect.” She turned her head and nipped his finger. “I’m not ready for puppies.”
That, at least, got a smile out of him. “I don’t think I’ll ever be ready for puppies.” Then his expression changed and he stared at her for the longest time before softly adding, “But babies? Maybe some day. If we’re lucky.”
That one sort of knocked the breath out of her. She sat very still and studied him—the wide green eyes, the clear bronzed skin, sharp cheekbones and long, straight nose. And that mouth ... she really loved his mouth. He truly would make beautiful babies. Her answer caught in her throat. “Really? You’re sure?”
He nodded his head and brushed his fingers through her tangled hair, tugging it. “Yeah. I’m sure. But it’s not easy for Lemurians. We don’t make a lot of babies.”
Willow shrugged. “I’m not a Lemurian. And Bumper says I’ve got my puppy parts.” A nervous giggle slipped out.
Taron looped his arms over her shoulders and grinned at her. Willow got the feeling he really liked what he was looking at, but then, so did she. She’d been attracted to the man from the very first time she saw him, when all she could do was look and dream because she was nothing more than a tiny sprite.
He was so tall, his smooth muscles perfectly defined, and that long, silky red hair falling over his shoulders and pooling on the bed beside his hips, the brilliant green eyes and that perfect mouth made a most attractive package. One that truly appealed to her. He would never be a forceful leader like Alton, or a powerful warrior like Dax. No, Taron was different, his mind constantly analyzing and questioning, his skills as a warrior a subtle blend of self-deprecating humor and pure athleticism.
He was gentle and good and kind, and sometimes so unsure of himself he made Willow feel as if she were the more experienced of the two of them. And maybe, in life, she was.
Taron had spent all his years in Lemuria studying life. Willow, in one short month, had lived it.
Taron lifted her chin with his fingertip, interrupting her slowly spinning thoughts. “Where’s Bumper now? Doesn’t it bother you to know there’s a dog watching everything we do?”
His question centered her, and Willow gave him her widest smile. “Not when she’s looking out for me. We should not have forgotten this.” She held up the condom before she carefully placed the soft disk over the broad crown of his penis and just as carefully rolled the sheath down over the full length of him. He was so silky and yet hard at the same time, and his entire body seemed to quiver with her touch.
“There. Be glad that Eddy and Dax have these, or the question of whether or not we were going to make love wouldn’t even be coming up.”
She knew by the look on his face he hadn’t even thought along those lines. It might not be an easy thing for Lemurians to make babies, but she had absolutely no idea what she was. Not human, not Lemurian, and she wasn’t anything like the Edenites.
All she knew for certain, if Bumper could be believed, was that she still had her puppy parts. Other than that, Willow figured she was absolutely unique as far as sentient beings went.
Not too many women could say they started out as swamp gas.
Not the most romantic beginning, but she wasn’t going to complain. Not when that weird beginning had led to her being here in the little town of Evergreen, in bed with a handsome man, stroking that most wonderful part of him and preparing to make love.
If she actually thought about it, the entire scenario was impossible. How could someone like Taron actually love a girl like her? How could she even exist? It was truly amazing. Completely unbelievable, but Willow continued stroking the sheath down over Taron’s erection and decided she wasn’t going to worry about her good fortune for another minute. Instead, she searched her mind for Bumper and found her sleeping.
Then she raised her head and looked into Taron’s eyes, and found them looking right back at her. He reached for her as she leaned close to him, and everything sort of clicked, just the way it had the day before.
Had it only been one day ago? Taron ran his fingers over her shoulder, pulled her close, and slowly, so very slowly, rolled her over onto her back. He settled himself between her legs and planted his elbows on either side of her body. She lay there, looking up at him, at the smile on his face and the twinkle in his eyes and just knew.
She was meant for this man. Fated from the very beginning, and today, right now, this moment merely sealed the bargain. It might be their only day together; it could be the beginning of a lifetime. She refused to think of all that could go wrong.
Bumper lived in the moment, and that wasn’t such a bad thing, not when the world was falling apart all around them.
Taron’s soft lips found her breast and Willow almost came undone. He flicked his tongue over the sensitive tip, and she forgot all about the world falling apart and concentrated instead on not coming apart herself.
How did he do this to her? The slightest touch and she was gone. How could he know how to touch her so perfectly, how to make her body respond to his as if she’d always needed him, always loved him?
One of his hands traced the length of her torso and trailed across her belly. She arched closer, whimpering with a sudden onslaught of need as he ran his fingers through the tight curls between her legs.
One long finger slipped between her folds where she was already wet and sensitive beyond belief. She jerked and gasped as he softly rubbed back and forth, the thick tip of his finger sliding so easily through her buttery cleft. He went deeper each time and yet still managed to find that perfect spot that sent shock waves from her crotch to her womb and back again.
Whimpering, she raised her knees, lifted her hips, and tried to direct his touch with her suddenly frantic motions. He released her nipple, planted a kiss on the underside of her right breast and then concentrated on the other one, but all the time his mouth was pleasuring her so perfectly, his fingers were driving her wild.
What happened to all that wonderful control she’d been so proud of? Right now, Taron of Libernus was in charge, and he played her like a master. Who would have guessed that he’d done this for the first time only yesterday?
He’d already grown adept at finding her pleasure points and making her totally nuts, but what had she done for him?
The thought no sooner entered her mind than Willow slipped a hand along his side, trailed her fingers across his hip and then slowly and carefully walked them over his groin.
When she found his thick length, he jerked. She clasped him tightly and slowly stroked. He groaned. His fingers stilled on her as she continued to move her hand up and down his shaft.
“Okay,” he said, and his voice sounded strained. “Enough of that.”
She kissed his chest. “I was just getting started.”
He laughed and moved between her legs. “Any more and I’ll be finishing. Without you.”
“Ah.” She spread her legs and, still holding on to him, directed the tip toward her sex.
He pressed forward, so thick and hard she wondered how he’d fit so well the day before, but she lifted her hips and he rocked his, and suddenly he was in and her body welcomed him with rippling, clenching muscles and a sense of emotion that burst from her heart and her mind—emotion she never could have imagined before now.
Holding himself above her with his hands planted at either side of her face, Taron gazed at her with eyes gone all soft and dreamy. “I love you, Willow. We’ll beat whatever fate has in store. You’re mine, and I’m not letting you go.”
“Good,” she said. Just that one word, but it encompassed everything she felt. Taron was good. This thing they were doing was good. All of it, both of them ... all good.
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