When Sparks Fly (29 page)

She seemed to approve of his technique. With
every soft caress, she snuggled closer, wordlessly demanding a
little more. He kept his touch light, relaxed yet passionate.

Soon she was the aggressor, pushing him over
on the bed to kiss him deeply. It was awkward with her arm in a
sling, but she was determined. As long as they were careful, the
pain meds would prevent her injury from interfering with their
pleasure.

She didn’t seem to notice his busy hands
sliding the silk ever higher up her legs. He lightly stroked the
insides of her thighs. She dropped her head to his shoulder with a
little moan. Utterly limp, it was obvious she’d become too dazed
with passion to do anything other than enjoy.

He smiled against her mouth as he rolled her
onto her back. She blinked, momentarily startled, then relaxed
under his kiss. Her eyes were glazed, slumberous with pleasure as
his mouth toyed with her ears and then drifted down her neck. She
was a little shy about her breasts and tried to cover what he
bared, but her concerns melted away as he sucked the screening
fingers into his mouth one by one, laving her exposed breasts as he
went. When she was utterly boneless, he guided her hand to his
shoulder and had his way, teaching her the many pleasures of a
man’s mouth on her nipples, the fiery chill of a silken tongue.

She conceded his expertise with a soft moan,
turning her head restlessly. It must have been a further torment
with her bound arm, which, though it remained unable to pain her,
forced her to remain as still as possible. A soft nip of his teeth
caused her to arch upward, thrusting her chest toward Blue’s mouth.
He rewarded her with a quick kiss to one nipple, then buried his
face between her breasts and licked his way down her belly. She
liked that well enough, twisting beneath his gentle onslaught. She
stiffened, though, as he approached his goal. Her hand tried to
cover that, too.

He paused, then settled between her thighs.
His hands idly stroked her hips as he gazed up at her. She looked
tensely back.

“Put a couple of pillows behind your head,”
he instructed.

“Why?” she asked.

He just gazed at her until she complied,
allowing him to help her. “Good, now I’ll walk you through
this.”

Her eyes widened at his words and she tried
to squirm away. He easily held her still until her thrashing
stopped, then met her eyes. “We’re going through this together. I
want you to see what I do, to know I’m only going to give you
pleasure.”

“It…it seems so…wrong,” she whispered.

He smiled against her soft inner thigh,
knowing she could feel his mouth curve. “It brings me pleasure. It
will bring you great pleasure.” He met her eyes and said softly, “I
like the taste, honey.”

She shivered at his endearment. Her head
fell back, and her eyes closed.

He smiled and reached up to tweak her
nipple. Her eyes popped back open. “Watch, darlin’,” he commanded.
“I want you to acknowledge what I’m doing. I want you to give up
your fear.”

He gently parted her, then leaned forward
and gave her most sensitive petal a little lap. She flinched, but
not in pain. Her breath caught.

He kissed her, then spread her farther with
his fingers and placed a soft, deliberate kiss there, too. She
exhaled with a shaky little hiss. He inserted his tongue slowly
inside and took a deliberate taste of pure woman. She collapsed on
the bed, her eyes closed with the intensity of this new pleasure,
but he didn’t mind that she wasn’t watching now that he’d gotten
what he wanted. Her legs had fallen open to him; her fear had
faded. This was what he had intended.

Yes, this first time he wanted her boneless
under him. He didn’t want her thrashing and tense, not even in
passion. Not yet. For now, he wanted her soft and open, drenchingly
wet to ease his way. He didn’t want to hurt her.

Patiently, he coaxed her with his mouth,
soothing when she got too intense, encouraging her soft pants and
helpless little hip thrusts. When she’d tossed the pillows aside
and was thrusting insistently against his mouth, he moved up and
slipped inside her. She was breached before she realized his
intent.

Gem gasped as she felt him slide inside. Her
eyes wide, she stiffened at the feel of the huge thing inside her.
Her legs wouldn’t close; Blue was wedged too deep. It hurt, but not
as much as she’d feared or heard. There was something else there
with the burning: a deep need to move.

She and Blue got rid of the pillows.

He rocked her with his body and she sucked
in air. His tongue teasing along her neck made her quiver. By the
time his mouth dropped to her breasts, she was squirming under him,
wordlessly begging him to move.

He took her nipple in his mouth and gave a
tiny thrust. She tightened her legs on him and held on tight. He
growled his pleasure and began a slow, easy rhythm that made her
hotter than exploding rocket fuel. Her nails scored his back,
though she tried not to hurt him. The pleasure built and built…

A scream tore from her throat as climax hit
hard and fast. She was unprepared for the intensity, or for his
matching shout. It hurt when he lost control and pounded into her,
but she was unable and unwilling to stop. Having him there, in her,
with her…There was nothing finer in the world.

Finally he came to a shuddering stop. He
supported his weight but wouldn’t move off her. “Do you mind, baby?
I don’t want to give this up.”

Mind? Was he crazy? “Stay,” she said, and it
took an effort.

He smiled against her neck. “Not too bad,
was I?”

She grunted.

His smile grew, and that wasn’t all. He
hummed in satisfaction as he moved in her.

Her eyes opened in surprise. “Now?”

“Apparently.” He nibbled on her breasts and
took the nipples in his mouth the way she liked. Any protests she
might have had raised died unspoken, though she did wince.

He paused.

“No.” She shivered under him and took a firm
grip of his butt. He didn’t seem capable of argument.

Some hours later, Gem opened her eyes and
hummed sleepily. Who’d known naked skin felt so good against satin?
Better yet was the warmth of the man against her back. He’d shown
her the pleasure of many new sensations that afternoon. Thanks to
him, she’d discovered the feel of leashed power as a man moved over
her, the patience a man could share. Seeing that side of him had
been a gift in itself. Who’d believe her if she told him how tender
Blue could be? Lovemaking could be such a revelation.

Her husband’s arm draped over her stomach,
pulled her back into a gentle hug. “Good morning…or whatever time
it is. Sleep well?”

She made a sound of agreement and rolled
onto her back, only to wince. It wasn’t just the tenderness inside
her sex; some of the muscles they’d worked had never been used
before.

He smiled and gently combed his fingers
through her hair. “Sorry about that. A hot bath will help. Why
don’t I get it started?”

He rolled out of bed and sauntered toward
the bath, unconcerned with his nakedness. She discreetly peeked
even as she drew the covers over her own chest. Nakedness was still
foreign to her.

Hunger was an old friend, though, and she
finally slipped out of bed, using his discarded shirt as a
covering. She was standing at the table, one hand holding his shirt
closed and the other popping berries into her mouth. He leaned a
hand against the low dresser and grinned. “Now that’s a view.”

She flushed and glanced away from all that
bare skin. “I was hungry.”

He sauntered closer and wrapped her in a
hug. “Let’s take these with us, then. You can feed me while I show
you how much fun soap can be. Afterward, we can order room
service.” He picked up the bowl and coaxed her into the bathroom
and out of his shirt.

Room service didn’t come until much, much
later.

They enjoyed a leisurely meal while watching
the sun set through the open window. He’d thrown on some pants, but
wouldn’t let her wear anything other than his shirt. A warm breeze
teased the curtains, bringing the scent of flowers. It was a
perfect evening.

“I think I’m going to have to plant lots of
flowers on the farm,” Blue said thoughtfully. “And we’ll definitely
need a room with big windows.”

She glanced at him with mild surprise. “You
want to live there?”

“At least part of the time. You might like
to get away from your sisters, and I might like to steal you away
from the business sometimes.”

“Hm. I hadn’t thought about it.” Didn’t want
to, if the truth were known. There was enough going on for the
moment.

“Think about it later,” he advised. “We can
go over plans together when we want. I’d like time to daydream with
you first.”

She smiled. “That’s different. I’m used to
having time limits imposed on me. Everyone wants things decided
yesterday.”

He grinned and hooked his foot around her
ankle playfully. “You want a time limit? Take a couple of years,
for all I care. It’s not as if we’ll be homeless in the
meantime.”

She closed her eyes in blissful pleasure.
His foot was stroking her calf. “I’m tempted to move in here
permanently.”

“Might be a good idea. Your sisters won’t
appreciate our keeping them up at night. You’re a noisy novice,” he
said with a wink.

“Novice? Are you looking for a black eye?”
she demanded. “It didn’t seem that complicated to me.”

He smirked, just to tease her. “You can’t
claim experience until you’ve done it with handcuffs; twice.”

“Twice?” she choked. Sarcasm was difficult
to pull off when wearing a blush.

For an answer, he leaned forward, a definite
glint in his eye. “First, I would close the curtains…or maybe not.
This is my daydream, after all. After that, I’d take you to the
bed…”

His words conjured up a fantasy, and it was
as erotic as performing the act. Gem squirmed as her mind took her
into his dream. His tale had them headed for the bed.

The first time involved a strip search. When
he was satisfied she wasn’t hiding anything, he cuffed her hands
behind her back and bent her over the bed.

The second time had her on her back with her
hands cuffed to the headboard. He really took his time then.

The third time (yes, there was a third time;
he was
very
inventive) had her on top with her hands cuffed
behind her. Since he’d toyed with her for a good half hour
beforehand, there was a long pause before she was allowed full
penetration, and she was desperate for it. She made little
whimpering sounds and tried not to thrash as he slowly lowered her
onto him. Wet and slick, she was able to ignore any tightness of
her body. He’d made her so crazy by then, she would have bit him if
he’d suggested they stop.

Blue cupped her hips in his hands and guided
her onto him. With her hands behind her back, her breasts thrust
forward, she was helpless to prevent his teasing tweaks. With a
wild cry she threw herself down and kissed him desperately until he
grabbed her hips and finished them with a few wild thrusts.

Gem drew a trembling breath at the
culmination of his story, frustrated that they hadn’t yet acted out
any of his words . She was aching in the place he’d so thoroughly
described. When his fingers came exploring in truth, there was
plenty of dampness there. Blue smiled and closed the curtains, then
had her climb onto his lap.

She was ready to concede she wouldn’t be
able to walk to the kitchens for a long while yet to come.

Even newlyweds couldn’t make love forever,
so they ventured outside the next day. Not that Gem did any work.
Even if the inn had been beset by several serious financial
concerns, she would have been useless to help. Her new husband
occupied her every thought, her every moment. Her marriage so far
felt like being trapped in one eternal, wondrous daydream. Every
time their eyes met, sparks would fly.

Life was very, very good.

Chapter 22

Sometime on the third day, Gem got restless.
Unused to so much inactivity (or at least activity of an entirely
pleasant sort) she started to involve herself again in business.
She chose little things, of course, activities she could drop on a
whim; or at the crook of Blue’s finger. One had to have priorities,
after all.

Xera had waited a bit to announce her
pending departure. “The ship leaves next week,” she informed her
sisters over breakfast. “It seems like I’ve waited forever.”

Gem felt a bit of sadness, but it was
tempered by Blue’s presence. With him there, change didn’t feel so
bad. “I’m happy for you. Is there anything special you’d like to do
over the next few days? It might be a while until you get back
home.”

Xera didn’t answer right away. They all knew
it would be difficult to do anything in public. Though the media
were less persistent than before, scandal-mongering reporters still
dogged their steps. Not only did she have to deal with those
Polaris inhabitants who shunned her, but also some merchants felt
free to ban her from their premises. Serving women with reputations
was bad business, they claimed.

After a moment of thought, Xera suggested,
“Why don’t we find Brandy and ask her for suggestions? We could
have a family night, maybe even a party with just us and a few
staff.” Staff were a safe bet, for any who’d had problems with the
scandal had already quit.

“We could invite Match, Zsak and Azor,” Gem
suggested.

“You think Azor would come?” Xera seemed
skeptical.

Gem shrugged and glanced sheepishly at Blue.
“He’s growing on me. Maybe I pity him. Believe it or not, he seems
kind of lonely.”

Blue choked on his drink. When he could
speak, he warned her, “Don’t ever tell him that! I don’t think his
ego could take it.”