Visions of Fire and Ice (The Petiri) (31 page)

His lips teased and caressed a moment longer, soft against her mouth, yet she knew the power and strength he held inside. Hungry to taste him, she opened, inviting, no, begging for more. To give more. And he did. He delved in, devouring her mouth and soul with a sweep of his tongue. The sensation of his cool touch against her heat was sharp, the contrast invigorating and arousing. She’d never expected this, a soul mate with the power to control cold and ice. Nor would she have thought it would be so erotic. Her body melted into his, molding to his every angle and curve, hungry to feel every inch of him tight against her.

The hard ridge of his hunger pressed against her belly, but there he wasn’t cold. No, there was nothing but heat. Hungry, smoldering heat. Her fingers tightened on his waist, grasping the white linen. Her palms itched to take him in her hands, to stroke the hot, velvet-covered steel of his body.

As though he knew her thoughts, he encircled her wrists and broke the kiss. His mouth whispered close to hers. So erotically close. “Not tonight,” he growled. “Tonight, I pleasure you.” With a quick movement, he trapped both her hands behind her.

“Let me touch you,” she groaned. He smiled, the curve of his lips brushing hers. She lunged to kiss him, but he pulled back.

He shook his head. “Lie on the bed,” he commanded. He released her and stepped back. “Face down.”

Again, he stopped her from speaking. “Trust me,
Kha-Ib
.”

Tamara gasped, her lips parted, her eyes focused on his mouth. She wanted more. Not just his kiss, but everything. What was wrong with her? She’d never been this aroused. It couldn’t be natural.

“What did you put in that oil?” Fear edged into her mind. He wouldn’t drug her, would he?

“Nothing but a few fragrances designed to mix with your own natural scent.”

She stepped back, shaking her head. “But I…” How could she tell him what she truly felt?

“Tamara.” His voice was soft, so soft she had to strain to hear him. “You are relaxed is all. It’s perfectly natural. Focusing only on you and I, nothing more, makes it easier to relax. There’s nothing to fear.”

He moved close to her again, folding her into his arms. “I promise you,” he murmured in her ear, “there is nothing in the oil to affect your thoughts or desires. Everything you feel is natural.” His lips trailed along her neck, leaving soft kisses, sending shivers of desire down her spine.

“Come,” he whispered, his arm wrapped around her waist. He escorted her to the side of the bed. “On your stomach. Let me give you the same pleasure you gave me yesterday.”

He was right. Even now, with confusion and the trickle of fear moving along the edges of her mind, she still wanted him. And not just for his body, though that was pretty darned hot. No. She wanted all of him. His body. His heart. And his soul.

“Please,” he murmured.

This was her time. Hers and Ramose’s. The past was the past, and nothing could change it. She couldn’t let her fears get the better of her. His words played in her mind. “…
where my woman is lost in pleasure, where she screams for me, begs for me. You will, today, Kha-Ib. You will
.”

Tamara laid her palm in his, smiling at the relief flashing through his eyes. She climbed into bed, and, with a last look over her shoulder, she lay down.

He reached into a drawer in the bedside table, removing a small jar. He screwed off the cap and dipped his hand inside.

Tamara trembled. Nerves? Anticipation? Maybe both.

His palms whispered together as he distributed a soft, delicately scented white lotion over his hands.

He moved beside her, gripping the towel and tugging it from her body. She tensed when cool air swept over her exposed skin.

“Trust me.”

She closed her eyes, forcing her muscles to relax, but still gasped and jerked when his chilled hands first touched her body. He waited until she settled.

When next his hands moved, they swept along her legs in long, comforting sweeps, his cool palms easing the tight muscles. Each gentle touch held the promise of passion. He moved higher along her thighs, stirring her already heightened arousal with his caress.

“Years past,” he said, his voice soft and soothing, “the Egyptian god, Nefertem, taught the nobles to have a massage every day in order to remain healthy. He gave sound advice for someone so ancient.”

His low voice worked magic, soothing her nerves.

He didn’t wait for her to respond, but kept speaking.

“The ancients did not understand the reasons behind Nefertem’s teachings, and I often wonder if perhaps he really existed. In many ways, he pushed them forward with his commands of cleanliness and medicine.”

But it wasn’t Nefertem Tamara was thinking about when Ramose’s hands skimmed along her ass, his body moving to straddle her. The cool touch of his bare thighs pressed against her heated flesh. He worked her back with long, gentle strokes, and she moaned. The illusion of relaxation disappeared, leaving only the building desire swirling low in her body. When he leaned forward, his breath warm against her neck, she fought the urge to arch into him.

“The ancients believed the massage was for relaxation, but didn’t understand its full effects and how it clears your body’s energy.”

“Hmm.” She struggled to pay attention his words, but his strong hands were working magic, not relaxing her, but arousing her with his simple touch.

“Does this feel good?” he asked, his breath whispering across her neck.

She nodded.

His wet tongue trailed down her back. Heat sizzled along her spine, wrapping around and nesting deep within. She bit her lip, fighting the moan building inside her.

“And does that make you feel good as well?”

She laughed, hiding the hiccupping sob of desire in her throat. “Maybe you should try it again so I can be sure.”

“My pleasure.”

His tongue left another wet trail along her flesh, and she gave herself over to the sensation of cold on hot. This time, she couldn’t hold back the pitiful moan fighting to be heard. He slid back again, working on the muscles of her buttocks. Each gentle squeeze accented the hollow ache building inside. She needed…to touch him. To feel him skin to skin, from shoulder to toe. This was torture, lying here, giving him freedom to touch her when she wanted to reciprocate.

The strokes of his hands drew closer and closer to the juncture of her thighs. Each stroke, she arched into his palms, hungry for more.

He drew back, lifting himself from her body. She groaned in disappointment.

“Roll over,” he said.

He’d taken her towel. Up until this moment, she’d had the illusion of privacy, her face tucked into a pillow, her breasts pressed into the bed. The illusion would be shattered when she rolled over. What the hell. He’d had his hands all over her nude body for the last twenty minutes. And it wasn’t like he hadn’t seen her before.

She rolled, fighting the urge to cover herself. She couldn’t avoid his gaze by hiding her face now.

In seconds, the point became moot as Ramose crawled up her body, his breath mingling with hers.

“Just feel, Tamara,” he said, his breath tickled across her face, like soft lotus petals fluttering across her cheek.

Tamara arched toward him, hungry for his weight against her, yet he held himself apart, only his lips teasing her skin. Her arms ached to hold him. Grabbing him, she jerked him down to her, his eyes widened in surprise before he laughed.

“Not yet, sweet woman,” he growled with amusement. His raised up, and, with one hand, he caressed her body, massaging the oil into her skin, relaxing tight muscles hidden beneath her flesh.

When he reached her breasts, he gave them a thorough massage, touching all but the center, which ached so pleasantly, waiting for his touch. She’d thought she was aroused last night, but this was different. This time, the blood sang in her veins, rushing like a swollen river in the midst of a storm.

He took his time. She grew impatient, finding it harder to lie still as his hands worked magic over her body. He straddled her legs, holding her in place with a mere nonverbal command.

“Tamara, you are so beautiful.” His voice was low, deep with desire, and she remembered the smooth sensation of hot melted chocolate she’d felt at his first words the night they’d met.

“And you,
Kha-Ib
,” she whispered. “You are more than I could ever have dreamed.”

His green eyes glittered in the darkness, and she saw his smile. “Maybe. But I can say this,” he wrapped his lips around one taut nipple, teasing it with the edges of his teeth before releasing it, “you are more than a dream. More than I’d ever hoped. You are powerful in your own right.”

The empty ache inside her screamed for more. As though he read her mind, his hands moved down, touching and caressing. The oil he used slid over her skin, and, though his touch remained cool, her flesh burned with a need she knew only he could fulfill.

“Please,” she whispered.

He grinned and slid backward, his kisses trailing from her breasts to her naval. As though he’d found a new playground, his tongue teased her navel then trailed downward. His fingers continued to knead muscle as his lips and tongue worked over her belly.

When his tongue reached her feminine core and slipped inside, she almost screamed, arching upward.
By the gods.
She didn’t have time to think about slipping into Ramose’s favorite phrase when he focused only on pleasuring her. Her hands flailed until she caught his dark hair. But she didn’t pull. There was no way on this earth she was going to do anything to make him stop. Indescribable sensations ripped through her, and the once relaxed muscles tightened, rippling inside her, reaching for something she didn’t know or understand.

“Ramose,” she cried.

“I’m here, baby,” he murmured. His hands reached up, taking hers from his scalp and clasping them with his.

Every sweep of his tongue sent unexpected, new sensations inside her. Liquid heat was only part of it, as her body yearned for something more. She fought the need to scream, afraid others would hear, panting with desire. He was destroying something inside her, yet, at the same time, he created something as well. But her mind couldn’t comprehend as sensations crashed through her.

The whimper escaping her throat grew louder and longer. He released one of her hands, and she snatched onto his hair again, only this time she held on tight. Her body was no longer her own, every muscle tightening, reaching upward. Higher and higher, it reached as though dragging to the peak of a mountain.

Then it happened. An explosion inside, rocking her body. Her soft keening cries could not be contained. Her body vibrated as muscles clenched and released, over and over. Lights flashed behind her eyes filled with sparks of color. It went on and on until she knew she would die. Her body shook and jerked, and, even if she’d wished, she had no control. The climax went on, vibrating to her soul. She could contain it no longer.

“Ramose,” she screamed.

* * * *

Ramose smiled when Tamara exploded beneath his mouth. Gods, she tasted like the sweetest of honey. He lapped each drop, hungry for more and more. Heat surged from her body, wrapping him in a blanket as hot as an inferno. An inferno he reveled in. As her body trembled, his need built. Never had he seen anything so beautiful or arousing. He’d nearly come when she’d screamed his name. He’d done it. He’d given her the one thing he knew she’d never experienced. He hid his smile of satisfaction despite the ache of his own need.

Her tremors eased, and she lifted her head to meet his gaze. What he saw surprised him. She wasn’t sated and limp as he’d expected. Her eyes were wild with hunger, her face flushed with heat, and she tugged at his hair, pulling him up her body. He’d awakened her inner vixen, and she wanted more. He was happy to provide. He grinned, crawling up to her arms. Once he was within reach, she dragged him down to her mouth.

She fed off him the same way he’d fed off her essence. Hungry and wanton, she devoured his mouth.

“I need,” she whispered. She hesitated, a slight frown crossing over her features. “I need more. I need you inside me.” She said the words as though they surprised her.

Ramose growled with pleasure. He’d spent his life waiting for this. Waiting for the woman in his dreams to want him. To need him. He plunged inside her in one powerful thrust. She arched upward, her lips capturing his.

Once seated inside her, he rolled them over, dragging her atop him. This was her night. And as much as he would enjoy sating himself inside her again, he would not. Not until she was complete.

“I’m all yours. It’s time to take over,” he whispered.

Her face furrowed in puzzlement.

“Just like the dance,” he murmured.

Her eyes went wide with understanding, and a slow, sensual smile spread across her face.

“My pleasure,” she murmured. It didn’t take long before her body moved with a rhythm which worked best for her. He saw it the instant she found it. Her eyes fluttered closed, and a slow, soft moan escaped her lips.

Oh, yes, this would be his death. She would kill him with slowness. She moved over him with unhurried, sensuous strokes. Each movement was like torture. Each movement was like heaven. He groaned, fighting the urge to thrust upward. Instead, he cupped his hands over her breasts, his fingers teasing the nipples.

Her body trembled, as she built toward another climax. A throaty moan echoed in the room about him, and his joined hers. Her muscles clenched him. A silken web filled with pleasure. Her body wrapped about his, dragging every ounce of pleasure from them both.

Another tremor rippled through her body, and he knew she’d reached that edge all on her own. A spark lit in her eyes, and heat burned all around her body. Flames sizzled along the edges where her body touched the sheets. Ramose moved his hands to the edges of the bed, and let his ice fill the room, wrapping them in a small, tented igloo. The crystalline shield raised over them, shining in the candlelight as he prepared for what he knew would be her biggest explosion.

With half-closed eyes, he slid his hands again to her breasts. She didn’t seem to notice his cocoon he’d built around him. All the better. No longer able to hold back, he thrust, watching the peaks of her breasts move up and down. She was so beautiful, in her pleasure, her body flushed a sensual pink, but he needed more. He knew she needed more. He raised up, wrapping her in his arms, holding her tight until their bodies were as one.