A Pledge of Passion (The Rules of Engagement #2)(36)

"Nick. Please . . ."

Before she understood what was happening, her entire body shuddered and racked with convulsive waves that pulled her into a black void of exquisite sensation. When the rapturous aftershocks had subsided, she found him looking intently down upon her. His pupils were dilated, and his breathing was ragged.

"What did you do to me?" she asked, breathless and dazed.

"I gave you a small taste of what can be when a man and woman join together."

"It was wondrous. But we didn't . . . I mean, you didn't . . ."

"No, I didn't," he said, his voice suddenly low and hoarse.

Once more, she found her logic and emotions at odds. "Was it really only touching that you desired, or was it your intent to ruin me?"

"If you are asking if this was a premeditated seduction, the answer is no, but I would be lying if I told you I didn't want you. My very being burns for you. Nevertheless, I won't force your hand, Mariah. I won't exploit your vulnerability."

"I know I shouldn't want this . . . but . . ."

"But?" Something different flared in his eyes.

"But I do. I want you, Nick. I want to feel everything that can be between us."

The words had barely passed her lips before he captured her mouth in a deep, drugging kiss that eradicated any further thought beyond his body and hers. Their hands were everywhere. Kissing and panting, they pulled at each other's clothes until only the thin linen of her shift and his shirt and breeches remained. As he drew back to strip them off, her gaze dropped to the tented space between his legs and then flickered back up to his face.

"Are you afraid?" he asked.

"A little. But also curious. Could I please see it?"

His mouth gave a wicked little twitch. "I'll only show you mine if you show me yours."

She licked her lips. "I suppose it's inevitable."

"Shall I go first?" he asked.

"If you please."

She watched intently as he unbuttoned his placket and removed his breeches. His lower legs were well-formed, muscular, and covered in dark hair all the way up to . . . Her earlier curiosity about his body was finally satisfied. He did indeed have a nest of dark hair at the base of his sex, but she was far more fascinated by the rigid member springing proudly upward from that nest. She suddenly recalled with a surge of panic what he intended to do with it. "It's . . . rather large, isn't it?"

It gently bounced and swayed as he stepped toward her. "I would like to think so," he replied with a smirk, "but it's probably quite average. Please, Mariah." He reached out for her hand. "I want you to touch me. Like I touched you."

Taking her hand in his, he wrapped her fingers around his hot flesh and then moved her hand slowly up and down his phallus. The skin was as soft as silk but felt like iron beneath—hot and pulsing iron. He squeezed her hand tighter and shut his eyes on a grimace. "Does it hurt?" she asked.

"No. It's pleasure."

"But you want more . . . pleasure."

"Yes," he hissed. "I want desperately to be inside you."

She licked her lips and met his gaze. "Then come inside me."

He released her hand slowly. "Are you very certain?"

"Yes. I am very certain." Her gaze locked with his, she reached for the hem of her shift. The moment she pulled it over her head, she felt the weight of his body sinking onto the divan.

He began with gentle caresses that sent tiny shivers over her skin. His mouth came into play, blazing a moist, hot trail over her body, lingering at her breasts, gently circling her nipples, teasing them with darting flicks of his tongue.

She arched into him with a moan, and he took her into his mouth, lightly clamping and tugging the taut peaks with his teeth, sending a rush of sensation to her core. She twined her fingers in his hair as he suckled as he had done before. With the same light caress of hands and mouth, he left her breasts to smooth over her belly, blazing a scorching path with his mouth, inciting soft, blissful sounds from her as he worked his way down her body. Once more, she felt the stroke of his hands on her thighs, moving to the sensitive inside, and then easing them apart.

She squeezed her eyes shut in preparation for the invasion, only to be shocked by a hot, wet swipe of his tongue. "Wh-what are you doing?" she squeaked.

"I'm going to make love to you with my mouth before I enter you."

He lowered once more to her sex, slowly and deliberately exploring her slick contours in a way that blinded her with pleasure. She whimpered for him to stop and at the same time clutched a hand to his head, squirming against him. He found her hidden nub and laved it with long licks, short flicks, and sinful swirls that made her buck and sob. Flushed and panting, she begged for an end to the exquisite torture. Just when she thought she would come apart again, he pulled away. Pressing one thigh between her legs, he moved back up her body to claim her mouth again in a salty, musky kiss, groaning into her mouth as he slid his sex into her wetness.

He reached down between them to guide the head of his phallus, creating new and breathtaking sensations as he slid it in and out of her slick folds. Instinctively, she moved her hips, increasing the friction until they were both panting.

She stiffened the moment he positioned the head at her entrance. He sealed his mouth to hers, swallowing her cry at the searing sensation as he plunged into her, breaching the maidenhead that had barred the entrance to her womb. She squeezed her eyes shut, bracing herself for more pain, but he remained perfectly still. Was this all there was to it? Was it done? Somehow she could not believe it was so.