Temptation's Heat by Michelle Zink Read Free Book Online Page B

hold out.
    She was breathing hard and fast, her body rigid with a need that matched his. He reached for the lace bra, tearing it from her with an impatient tug. He tossed the strip of black fabric aside and lowered his mouth to her nipple. She gasped as he took it into his mouth. He sucked and teased, letting his tongue circle the hard little bud while his hand traveled the length of her body, exploring the dip of her waist, the full curve of her hip fitting perfectly in his palm. She was like the glaive in his hands, opening up under the magic of his touch.
    He pulled away, leaving the nipple glistening as he let his lips travel the length of her abdomen. He marveled at the flat plane of her stomach as he touched his tongue to it. Then he moved lower, spreading her legs, revealing the milky skin of her inner thighs.
    A jolt of need rocked his body when the scent of her desire hit him. Musky and sweet, it brought his orgasm to the very tip of his shaft, begging for release.
    But, by God, he was going to taste her before he took her.
    He kissed and nibbled his way up her thighs, lapping at the center of her, softly at first, exploring the folds of her flowering womanhood until she was slippery with wetness. Her fingers were entwined in his hair, holding him right where she wanted him. Right where he wanted to be. He took her little nub into his mouth, sucking and licking until she arched her back, pressed her hips up and into his mouth, coming for him over and over again, pulsing against his tongue as she cried out.
    “More,” she gasped. “More.”
    “There’s more, Scarlet,” he said gruffly, kissing his way back up her body, his sensitive tip resting against the sweet wetness between her legs. “So much more.”
    He pulled away, groaning. “Condom?”
    She gestured to the bedside table. He opened the drawer and pulled out the foil packet. When he was done, he lowered his lips to hers, the taste of her mouth, her skin, the slickness between her legs, mingling in their kiss.
    He pillaged her mouth as he slid slowly into her, every inch a tortuous ecstasy until he was enveloped in her tight heat. He held still, trying to check his desire to thrust into her over and over again, as she gasped against his mouth.
    When he was sure he had himself under control, his desire coiled tightly under his skin, he began to move, sliding in and out of her sweet wetness, slowly at first and then more quickly as she matched him, her body urging him on, her moans echoing through the room.
    She was made for him. He filled every crevasse of her heat, his shaft rubbing against the little bud between her thighs with every thrust until she was so tight and hot she set him on fire from the inside out. He held back until he felt her fall over the edge, her body rocking as the orgasm rolled through her body, tightening around him with wave-after-wave as she clung to him like a life raft in a roiling sea.
    He lowered his head to her neck, breathing in the scent of their passion as he filled her with his desire.

Eighteen
    Scarlet lay tucked into the crook of Rowen’s arm as he slept, watching the candlelight cast shadows on his strong face, her mind and heart at war.
    Falling in love wasn’t part of the deal. Especially not with someone in the Guard.
    This had been a mistake. A beautiful one while it lasted, but a mistake nonetheless. The urge to get away was overwhelming, and she dressed quietly before leaving the apartment. She didn’t know where she was going, what she was doing. She only knew that she had to escape the confines of her growing feelings for this man who had fought his way into her heart without warning.
    She hadn’t gotten far when her cell phone vibrated in her pocket. She looked at the display, surprised to see DISPATCH splayed across the screen.
    “Hello?” she said into the phone. “Is everything okay?”
    “Your father is fine, Miss Montgomery.” She recognized the puzzled voice as belonging to Miranda, one of the