She straightened slowly. Stepping back, she thrust her hands through her hair and piled it on top of her head. Arching her back, Vash posed like a ’50s pinup.
He breathed roughly, his hands fisting around the ends of the armrests. “My god, Vashti…”
It was the note of awed pleasure in his voice that pierced her, slicing through her defenses to strike the tender places within. A shiver moved through her.
“You’re so damn gorgeous,” he growled. “Lush and curvy. Fucking perfect. And you’re so strong. Strong and tough.”
There was possession in the way he spoke. And she relished that, which confused her. She was a woman who took care of herself. Always had been. Char had known that about her and hadn’t been territorial. She had a job to do, one that outranked his, and he’d stayed to the side and let her do it, fol owing her commands when she gave them to him. That’s what she needed from her mate, what she wanted…Support. Acceptance.
Yet Elijah’s dominant streak turned her on like crazy.
Turning slowly, she hid how shaken she was by presenting him with her back.
“Come closer. Back up to me,” he ordered, reminding her that he’d never stand to the side. He would always require her surrender, even as he praised and admired her strength and toughness.
His splayed hand caressed the length of her back, gentling her. “Bend over.”
Knowing how exposed she’d be in the position he wanted her in, she leaned forward slowly, widening the spread of her legs to better support her canted weight. His hands cupped the backs of her thighs in the crease just below the curve of her bu**ocks. His thumbs rubbed gently over the lips of her sex, parting her, opening her to his gaze.
“Mmm…you’re wet and soft already.”
She swal owed hard, then bit her lip to stifle a moan. His breath fanned hot and humid over her most sensitive flesh. Her hands went to her knees, adding support to keep her from toppling onto her face.
“I’l make you wetter,” he promised darkly, the moment before he licked leisurely across her swol en cleft.
She gasped, the sound overly loud in the quiet room. It was exciting to be wil ing and ready for him. Bereft of control.
His tongue swiped over her again. The texture was rougher than before, like wet velvet, and the reach longer. She moaned in delight, wondering if he’d made that slight shift in form for her pleasure or his. Either was equal y arousing. The last time they’d been together, he’d arranged her the way he wanted her and taken her. Taken what he needed, how he needed it, and expected her to find her pleasure in giving it to him. Which she had. She’d never come so hard or often, never experienced ecstasy so fierce and wild. No boundaries. No limits.
His groan vibrated against her. “Your taste drives me insane. I could eat you for hours. Days. Lick up every sweet, creamy drop of you.”
The next glide of his tongue teased her slick opening, rimming it in leisurely circles that had her straining toward him. He kept her in place with his easy grip, nudging her clitoris with the tip of his tongue and humming a soft chastisement.
“Elijah,” she complained.
“Elijah…what?”
Her teeth grit. “Elijah, please.”
“Please…what?”
She couldn’t stop the frustrated noise that escaped her. “Please don’t be an ass.”
“But I can’t rush,” he said smoothly, “or I might overly exert myself and break my promise.”
“Using your tongue?”
When she attempted to straighten, he kept her in place with a hand at the smal of her back. “Is it so difficult, letting me take the lead?”
“Yes.” No. That was what chafed the most. Sure, he was an Alpha, but he wasn’t her Alpha. And for her people, she was damn near the Alpha.
What would they think if they could see her now?
“Even though doing so brings you pleasure?” he prodded.
Vash looked at him over her shoulder. He was looking right back at her, not at the slick hot flesh quivering for more of his attention. Prurient interest would have soothed her, oddly. His focus on her reactions and her emotions was far more intimate.
“I’m not one of the countless bitches sniffing around after you,” she snapped. “Subservience isn’t in my nature.”