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He stilled them with his own A brief, tender kiss that loosened every joint in her body And now she tre her jaw, he broke the kiss A breeze, ribbon-thin and cool as satin, rushed between their lips, only to be chased away by his hot, urgent whisper: "I want you"

This ti He lowered himself onto her, and Sophia thrilled to the way her body instinctively ue, her breasts flattening under his chest, her thighs gripping his hips as he insinuated his legs between hers And, oh God--when his hips forced her thighs wide and the hard ridge of his arousal pressed hoh the layers of trousers and chemise--she was already softened and wet for hiround his hips against hers, and shelike the feel of this, his body hard and eager and crushed against hers Knowing that she’d made hi--not pride or money or lies--could keep hi up to his knees His shirt fluttered up over his head, a white sail caught in the ht and swept away into shadow He reached between the the cord of his trousers As he worked the knot, the back of his hand brushed against her h When he finished, she bent her knees and hooked her toes under the loosened waistband He leaned over her again, and she slowly dragged the trousers down over his hips, savoring the feel of hard muscle and downy hair under the arches of her feet She felt his erection spring free and brush against her thigh They moaned in unison And that was the final leisurely caress They moved quickly now--to seize this time, this pleasure, this chance, before it could slip away into the night He kicked off his trousers, and together they tussled with her che it over her head

"Gray," she whispered, reaching for him in the dark

"I want you" He buried his face in her hair as they tumbled back onto the pillows "God, hoant you I want to kiss you" He pressed his lips to her ear, her neck, the small notch at the base of her throat "Touch you" His hands, rough with fresh calluses, roareedy handfuls of flesh "Lick you"

Sophia shivered at the ue ooseflesh rose up in the wake of his tongue as he traced the slope of her collarbone

"I want to suckle you," hedown her body to draw her nipple into his ently at first, holding the tight bud firhtly over the peak Sparks danced over her skin with each teasing caress Then he sucked harder, catching her nipple between his teeth, and pleasure ing her fingernails into his scalp--whether to wrench him away or hold him there forever, she didn’t know

Then he released her nipple, and his rough chin scraped against her breast She opened her eyes to find hi her intently in the darkness, as if counting her shallow breaths Dark-blue eyes reflected tiny silver ers toyed with her other nipple, pinching and rolling it until she bit back a e of his voice frayed "I want to taste you Letone arhs Sophia gasped as he raised his shoulders, pushing her knees to her hips and spreading her legs wide Her eyes squeezed shut Never had she felt so naked, so exposed She gave thanks for the robe of shadow night afforded her

The darkness did not hinder Gray His ue delved into the cleft of her sex

"Shhh" The rush of his breath caressed herslowly, she willed herself to relax "Yes"

He bent his head again, learning her body with histhe center of her pleasure How could such tender, gentle exploration give rise to sensations so unbearably acute? His hands tightened over her hips, holding her dohile his lips and tongue teased her ue dipped inside her, she cried out

The cli out from her center And even as the treently suckling her swollen flesh

"Gray," she panted, tugging on his hair "Gray, please"

He unthreaded his ars and kissed his way up her belly before sitting back on his heels "I want you" He pushed her knees wide "I want to know that you will never spread these legs for another hs and pushed into her, an inch Sophia whiht her hands in his, interlacing their fingers Her ar her hands to the pillow

"I want to know that no other man will ever have this" He pushed in a bit further

It wasn’t enough Sophia strained toward his over his

"Gray Oh, God More"

He thrust into her roughly, his fingers tightening over hers "I want you to know that you arehimself to the hilt "Mine" Thrust "Mine"

Sophia’s body sang under his tender assault, even as her heart ached She longed to wrap her arms around him, draw him close Whisper promises into his ear and hold him until he understood not just that she was his, but that he was hers He was striving so hard to conquer her, but she knew all he wanted, in his heart, was to be clairips as he pushed into her, again and again Sweat beaded on his brow, dripping onto her breasts and her neck The bed protested his every stroke, and shebreaths broke up his words; he punctuated each phrase with a thrust "I want you … to be htly over his hips, e him the only way she could "Always"

"I want to fill you with my seed I want you to bear my child" His pace quickened; his eyes squeezed shut

"Gray," she gasped, feeling a rush of pleasure as he tilted his hips Now his pelvis ground against hers, lifting her to a higher plane of ecstasy with each deep thrust Herup and up

"I want you," he growled, his fingers tightening over hers "I want the truth"

He froze Tie of an abyss

"I want the truth," he repeated, pushing into her again Then he stopped, co her, pressing hard against her wo his face in her neck

"God, sweet, can’t you understand? I want you All of you I want to know you, inside and out I want you to know e that, I swear to you You can tellhands, she cradled his head "I love you"