Page 12 (1/2)

"No apologies"

Grateful that he wasn’t pressuring her into anything--even though she was now his lawfully wedded wife--she said, "I want--"

Oh God, she was such a novice at all of this that she didn’t even kno to get the words out

"You want to sleep with me"

Thankful that he clearly didn’t have the sa you back?"

Again, she nodded

"How many lovers have you had, Anna?"

She flushed at his question "Two," she said in a voice that was barelywith the with you"

The words were out before she realized they were cohter

"You’re special to ainst her lips and this time when he kissed her, she was able to sink into it a little ive you pleasure, Anna, more pleasure than you’ve ever known Will you let h her veins like a drug "I want to, Cole" And she did God, how she did "But what if I freak out again?"

"Will you trust me to make sure that doesn’t happen?"

She had no reason to trust him, nohen she didn’t know any more about hi in his eyes, in the way he’d touched her so far tonight, in the way he’d kissed her, that had her feeling cherished

Adored

No one had ever made her feel that way before Not just the sexual part, which ay off any chart she’d ever had, but the safety part

Cole ht is only the beginning There’s so ood I can make you feel"

She couldn’t hold back a shiver at his words His arh that she could walk away at any o His erection throbbed hard and thick against her belly even through his pants, and she wanted what he promised

Badly

But now she knew for sure that she couldn’t do it on her own Not without hi her

Not without trusting hi would be the craziest thing she’d ever done, but now she knew she rong

Sleeping with Cole, trusting hi hi it for herself--was far crazier

"I’ll trust you, Cole"

The relief that flashed across his features was quickly replaced with a darker, deeper desire than she’d seen yet

He was halfway to kissing her when she found herself saying, "But please, don’t betray my trust Please don’t hurt me"

He stilled a breath away from her mouth "I don’t want to hurt you, Anna"

Her brain tried to tell her it wasn’t the pro for, but before she could fully hold onto the warning, he was picking her up again and kissing her as he carried her back inside

Into his bedroom