would be to roll over and touch him. Beneath the smell of the soap, she caught the faint aroma of ginger and realized it was coming from him.
Her mouth went dry at the possibility, and her pulse picked up. She imagined running her fingers down his chest, between the ridges of his abs, and through the patch of hair leading to his jeans.
An ache spread between her legs, and it took all she had not to moan like the clerk. Her nipples puckered as she labored to control her breathing.
Lucien sensed the change in her as the rise and fall of her chest came faster and her inherent, pomegranate aroma increased. Unable to resist, he rested his hand against her side again. This time, when she stiffened, he didn’t remove his hand.
Instead, he slid it lower to her hip; her breath sucked in, and the scent of her arousal on the air increased. She was upset about something, but she wanted him, and he wanted her. He’d just jerked off, but his cock became rock-hard again as he imagined caressing every inch of her silken flesh.
With subtle pressure on her hip, he turned her toward him, and she didn’t resist. When she was on her back, her head turned toward him, and her damp hair spilled across her face as her cognac-colored eyes met his. Her pupils dilated, and her pulse fluttered in her neck.
His fangs extended as he pictured tasting her again. She’d been pure ambrosia, and he would give anything to have her blood filling him while his shaft filled her.
He held her gaze as his fingers slipped beneath her shirt to the silken skin of her flat belly. She didn’t protest, and her mouth parted when his hand slid lower to the waistband of her jeans.
With deft fingers, he slid the button free and pushed the zipper down while he waited for her to stop him. She didn’t stop him, and when his hand slid inside her underwear, her eyes started to close.
“Look at me,” he commanded.
At his words, Callie’s eyes flew open, and she met his fiery gaze as his finger found her clit. He stroked it with an expertise that caused her body to quiver in response. This was a bad idea, but unable to stop herself, she melted beneath his touch.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Lucien propped his head on his palm as his fingers slid through her wetness as his dick strained against his jeans. “Tell me what’s bothering you,” he said as he teased her with a finger.
She gasped, and her hips rose toward him. He worried his words might push her away, but he suspected she was as far gone to him as he was to her, and he needed answers.
He watched her every reaction as he learned what she enjoyed the most. When he stretched her further and slid another finger into her, her eyes started to close again.
“Keep looking at me,” he said.
They opened again, and when they met his, he saw the ecstasy and uncertainty in her gaze. He despised that uncertainty. Determined to make sure she had nothing but faith in him, he teased her as he listened to her sounds of pleasure and her hips matched the rhythm of his hand.
He watched her with an intensity that Callie found as unnerving as she did exciting. No one had ever studied her with such possessive, raw desire. She’d always felt a little self-conscious with her past partners, but she didn’t with him.
It was impossible to feel self-conscious when he was looking at her like she was the most beautiful woman on earth.
He edged closer and pulled his hand away. She groaned in disappointment until he gripped the waistband of her jeans and started tugging them down her hips. He held her eyes the entire time, and though she knew this was a hideously bad idea, her ass lifted off the bed so he could pull the jeans lower.
He tossed aside her pants and settled beside her again. “Tell me what’s bothering you,” he said as he ran his hand up her thigh.
Unable to tolerate not seeing her, he pulled back the blankets to drink in her long, taut thighs and the patch of trimmed, black curls between her legs. He couldn’t stop touching her as he took in her beauty, but he required answers.
“Tell me what upset you,” he commanded.
Callie gulped as his eyes devoured her and something in his gaze sent a shiver down her back. The ravenous way he