"Men have those sorts of reactions regardless of whether or not they like the body in question," I protested.
His eyes narrowed. "Who told you that?"
I freed a hand enough to make a vague gesture. "Everyone knows that. Men are ruled by their pe nises. Women are different. There's a huge market of relationship books that explain the ins and outs of it. So to speak."
"That's one of the most unfounded and insulting things I've ever heard you say, but I am willing to overlook it if you will forget such a ridiculous idea. Men aren't just sex machines, Pia. We have feelings, too."
"I never meant to imply you didn't-"
"Yes, you did." He paused a moment, his mouth so close to mine I had to literally curl my fingers into a fist to keep from grabbing his head. "There may be some people who enjoy sex for sex's sake-both men and women-but I assure you that I am not included in their number. I like the way you look. I like your body. I very much wish to make love to you."
I searched his eyes, looking for any sign of deceit.
Such a nice image you have of me. I am not lying to you. I couldn't, even if I wanted to, and I don't.
You couldn't? I asked, my toes curling with the sensation of intimacy that speaking thus brought with it.
No. You are my Beloved. I can't harm you, lie to you, or deceive you in any manner. So you can believe me when I say that I do not find you anything but physically appealing.
"Then you must be a truly exceptional man," I couldn't help saying.
He said nothing, just released my butt in order to strip the shrug from my shoulders. He stared at the front of the sundress for a moment before unbuttoning the bodice, his long fingers brushing gently against my flesh.
I shivered, but not with cold.
"I can assure you that no man would find your breasts anything but magnificent," he murmured, deftly unhooking the front of my bra to release my boobs.
I clutched his shoulders and moaned as his hot breath swept into the valley between them.
"The memory of them has remained with me the last two months," he murmured, his mouth closing on one suddenly aching nipple.
"It has?" I asked, gasping as his tongue made a long, slow swipe. "Oh, dear God, do that again."
He did, releasing my breast to kiss a hot, steaming path over to where my other boob waited impatiently for its turn. "They haunted my sleep. I could taste them, feel them, feel the silky softness of them and the warmth of them in my hands."
The slight stubble of an evening growth of beard was pleasantly abrasive on my now highly sensitized flesh. I shivered as he rubbed his cheek along the underside of my breast before catching the tip gently in between his teeth.
I moaned again, my fingers digging deeper into his shoulders, my mind filled with the sensations his mouth was generating.
"I do not normally like perfume on my woman, but this one pleases me," he murmured against my flesh.
"It's not really a perfume. It's an amber oil called Love Me," I answered, sliding my hands down his back, letting my fingers dance down the swells of muscle.
"Is the name a command or a desire?"
"Whichever you want," I said, dipping my head to nibble on his shoulder. "I got it in a sample pack."
"I will get you more," he said, his mouth moving upward as his fingers continued to unbutton the front of my dress.
I made a noise of protest, uncomfortable despite his assurances, but my objection was short-lived as he leaned into me, his hands sliding my dress down over my hips. I melted, I positively melted against him, shivering from the feeling of his chest rubbing against mine.
I gasped as he suddenly grabbed the backs of both of my thighs, hoisting me up and pulling my legs around him in one move. His mouth closed on mine as he pushed me against the wall, the coldness of the wall contrasting with the heat of his body. He groaned when I suckled the tongue that was twining itself around mine, a deep groan that started in his chest and reverberated out until it thrummed through me.
He moved sinuously against me, his chest hair teasing and tormenting my breasts. I slid my hands up his back and around to his sides.
Touch me , he begged, and for a moment I was flooded with images and sensations that I recognized as coming from him, not me. They stopped almost immediately, leaving me dazed, feeling as if I'd been locked into a dark room, away from a source of blinding light.
I slid down his body until I was standing again, my hands tracing a tantalizing path around to his belly. You've lost too much weight , I murmured to him. I liked you better before.