Roman's Vow (Riley's Pride #4) - Sandra R Neeley Page 0,92

when he’d stripped himself bare. His bright blue eyes were the same bright blue eyes that she’d seen every night while struggling to sleep in her cell, the fact that they were practically glowing didn’t make them any less the same eyes that she’d dreamed of. Her last thought as she let go of the last shred of civilized thought was that he’d promised not to hurt her, and then she let herself go, lifting her hips to meet his every thrust. Talie couldn’t speak, she couldn’t protest, she couldn’t vocalize anything at all. All she could do was ride the wave of ecstasy that he forced through her body with each and every thrust.

Roman felt her body convulse around his cock. She tightened around him as tiny contractions deep inside her massaged his cock until he couldn’t hold back anymore. As Talie screamed his name, her back arched and as her head was thrown back exposing her neck to him as he forced yet another orgasm from her, he slammed himself into her one last time and snarled her name as he filled her full of stream after stream of his release. It took minutes for him to finally stop coming. Once he did, he was breathing heavily, resting his forehead against the pillow next to her head. Slowly he regained some semblance of thought and lifted his head, kissing her temple, her cheek, her neck, and finally the bottom of her breast where he’d nipped her. There he soothed the sting with his tongue until it stopped burning.

Satisfied, he slipped his arm beneath Talie and held her to him while he turned them once again to have her on top of him. He arranged her body, with him still inside her, to lie atop his, then he snagged the sheet with his foot and lifted it until he could reach it and pulled it up to cover their bodies. He put his arms around his mate and held her close as he waited for her breathing to return to normal.

Talie lay on top of Roman with her eyes closed and her cheek against his chest. She knew she’d just experienced something most people would never know. She’d had the best, most amazing sex of her life and she wasn’t quite willing to leave that place of afterglow yet.

“Are you alright?” Roman finally asked.

“Shh,” she said quietly. “Afterglow…”

Roman chuckled, and started running his hands up and down her back. Talie practically purred, moving her body like a cat stretching to get his hands to stroke her back where she wanted it most. “You like that,” he said.

“I think my back is the most sensitive part of me sometimes,” she whispered.

“Then I’ll give it lots of attention,” he said, still lightly scratching her with his short nails.

Talie lay there until she couldn’t ignore the issue that kept nagging at her mind any longer. “Roman?” she asked.

He knew from the tone in her voice she’d reconciled enough of what she’d seen of him and what they’d done to be ready to ask him what she saw. “I will never hurt you,” he said.

Talie lay with her head still on his chest, not looking at him. She felt his chest vibrating when he spoke and raised a hand to stroke across the hair there beside her face. “I know that,” she answered.

“I’m just like other men, only better,” he said, hoping against hope that she wouldn’t reject him when he had to tell her the truth.

“You said that before,” she said.

“It’s the truth,” Roman answered.

Talie took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “What did I see, Roman?” she asked.

He didn’t answer right away. He simply lay there beneath her, holding her close with his eyes closed, praying she’d understand and he wouldn’t lose the best thing he’d ever had, the only woman he’d ever truly wanted.

“Roman?” she prompted.

Quietly, softly, Roman began to speak. “There are people like us all over the world going about our everyday lives, going to work, raising families. The only difference is we can shapeshift. Some call us skin walkers, but most call us shifters. Most humans believe we’re the stuff of legends and myths. But we’re real.”

Talie sat up and pushed her hair away from her face as she looked down at Roman. “Like those romance books you sent me,” she said.

Roman nodded. “Exactly. I was hoping that you’d find the idea at the very least intriguing and not fear me so much when you