Total pages in book: 134
Estimated words: 126030 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 630(@200wpm)___ 504(@250wpm)___ 420(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 126030 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 630(@200wpm)___ 504(@250wpm)___ 420(@300wpm)
She crinkled her nose and grinned. She liked this strange new facet of his personality, liked the job of tormenter almost as much as she liked it when he held her throat and whispered threats in her ear.
That surely couldn’t be normal. But then, what in her life had ever been normal? Besides, he liked those things, too. She wasn’t the only odd one.
Butterflies filled her belly. “Okay.” She set the dish on the end table and bounded out to get a fork and something to drink.
With a fork tucked in her back pocket, she carried a glass of milk in one hand and a water in the other. She didn’t know which he’d prefer. Maybe both.
He’d scooted up in the bed to eat. Lines of pain still creased his face, and his hurt arm was tucked close to his side. He still hadn’t opened his eyes.
“Here.” She set down the drinks and moved in to fix his pillows. She used one arm to slide under his wide shoulders before lifting and adjusting. “Better?”
He let out a breath he’d obviously been holding against the pain. “Yes, thank you.”
“You couldn’t handle a little more annoyance to get some much-needed healing?”
His breathing was deep and slow, managing the pain. “Indigo is a very sweet person, and I’m sure she has a great sense of humor, but when I am in pain, I want everyone to shut the hell up and leave me alone. I didn’t want to hurt her feelings and have her hold a grudge against me. She might try to kill me next time, rather than healing me, so I figured it was better for me to suffer in silence. When Jessie wakes up, she’ll feel this and heal me from a distance. I much prefer that approach. Please don’t tell Niamh any of this. She has been searching for things that rile me up and she’d have a field day with this one.”
Nessa laughed and pulled out the fork. “Your secret is safe with me.” She pulled the cloth away from the lava cake, hesitating when he didn’t open his eyes or reach for the plate. “Uhhm, you did want some, right?”
He opened his mouth expectantly, and an array of sparks danced up her middle.
“Oh,” she said, blinking at the fork in her hand, then the plate, then his opened mouth. “Okay.”
She sat on the edge of the bed, mindful not to crush his wing. The fork slid past the cake portion and through the soft, dense middle.
“Dang,” she murmured, hesitating.
“What?”
“You’re supposed to serve this when it’s warm so that the chocolate inside oozes out. It’s gotten cold now, and the middle has firmed up.”
“Will it still taste good?”
“Yes, it—“
“Then I don’t care.”
She smiled at his eagerness and finished cutting a piece. His lips parted again, and she gently rubbed the fork against his bottom lip, so he’d open a little wider. He complied and she delicately slipped the bite into his mouth.
Those lush lips closed over the metal tines. She watched them with a strange fervor, foreign in its intensity, as she pulled the fork free. He chewed for a moment, then groaned softly, his jaw movement pausing. He was savoring the flavor.
“That is incredible, Natasha,” he finally said, swallowing. “Unbelievable. You should challenge Austin with that. You’d win, hands down. Nothing can compare.”
She smiled with pride and cut out another bite.
“Larger,” he said.
“What?”
“You’re going to do the same size bite you just did, right?” He paused. “Make it bigger. I want more in my mouth at one time.”
Her stomach flipped over, and her core wound up tightly. He wasn’t trying to be sexual, but her body clearly didn’t know that.
Struggling to level out her suddenly accelerated breathing, she did as he said. Her focus once again turned razor sharp as she watched his lips skim along the chocolate-covered metal. His groan this time was indulgent. Intoxicating, almost. He savored the flavor before opening his mouth for more.
She complied, leaning closer, this time running the fork along his bottom lip before giving him the bite. His lips continued to stay closed. He ate it as he had, and then his tongue came out to run along his lip, cleaning away the chocolate.
Great god almighty, he was so incredibly sexy. This was so incredibly sexy, feeding him a dessert she’d made while he let her take and keep all the control. She’d realized before that she liked when he took the dominant lead, and she still did, but this was highly sensual, as well. It was its own kind of thrill. Which was a strange realization because she’d often taken the lead with men. She usually called the shots and chose the pace, but it had never felt like this, so electric.
Maybe because those other men hadn’t been so mysterious and insanely dangerous. It was almost like Tristan was allowing her to play, and at any moment he could snap and take back the reins. She was being a naughty little mouse while the cat was indisposed.