“Oh hell no,” she says, but her body betrays her, hips rising to meet mine.
I laugh, thrusting deeper. “It’s our first night as real lovers. I’ll go easy on you.”
I brace one hand on the mattress, using the other to cup her breast, lowering my head to take a nipple into my mouth. I continue to move inside her, setting a rhythm that has her moaning with each thrust.
Without breaking our connection, I roll us over so she’s on top, straddling me. “Ride me,” I tell her, my hands settling on her hips. “I want to see you in control, my Spider Queen. I’m yours to command.”
I watch as her expression changes, something like power flashing in her eyes. She begins to move, uncertain at first, so I guide her, showing her how to take her pleasure from me.
“You’re so beautiful,” I tell her, watching her breasts bounce with each movement. “It means everything to know you love me, even without the mate bond. This kind of love—chosen, not fated—it’s more powerful than any soul tie.”
I grip her hips tighter, helping her find the perfect rhythm. “I love you, Carla. I’ll give you the world. I pledge my life to you and our children. I will serve you, honor you, love you like the queen you are.”
Carla throws her head back, crying out as she comes again, her walls clenching around me. I feel every pulse, everycontraction, savoring the knowledge that I’m the one making her feel this way.
“No more,” she gasps, collapsing against me.
“Oh yes,” I counter, rolling us so she’s beneath me again. “One more. You’ve got one more in you.”
I lift her legs, spreading them wide as I drive into her again. I angle my hips, making sure to hit the spots that make her breath catch. Her head thrashes from side to side, and I smile as her eyes begin to lose focus, her mind hazy with pleasure.
I bring my fingers to her clit, circling the sensitive bundle of nerves as I continue thrusting. Her words become incoherent, a stream of pleas and curses that feed my ego and drive me harder.
“Yes,” I encourage her, feeling her body tensing beneath me. “Let yourself go, baby. Surrender to the passion.”
Her body goes limp, completely yielding to me, and I feel the pressure building. Her muscles contract around me, her breasts bouncing with each hard thrust, and then it happens.
Carla’s head falls back, her eyes widening as her mouth drops open. It’s the big one—the orgasm that has stars exploding behind her eyes. She grunts, taking in a sharp breath and holding it as I keep stroking in and out of her.
“Oh god,” she moans, her voice breaking. “Oh god, fuck, oh god, what are you doing to me?”
I throw my head back, sweat dripping from my chin as I pound into her, fighting back my own release as I work her through her pleasure. But it’s too much—with two more hard strokes, I come, crashing against her and burying my face in her neck.
Carla wraps her arms tightly around me, holding me close as we both struggle to catch our breath. I chuckle against her skin, feeling more satisfied than I have in centuries.
“I’m never letting you go,” she whispers, her voice thick with emotion.
I laugh, rolling onto my side and pulling her with me. “That’s just the spell of a good orgasm talking,” I tease. “But you’re right. You’re never letting me go, and I’m never leaving.”
I prop myself up on my elbow, looking down into her eyes. The love I see there makes my newly beating heart race. “I love you, Carla. I love you more than you’ll ever understand.”
She reaches up weakly, stroking my cheek. “I love you too,” she says, and the simple words nearly break me.
While it’s incredible that she loves me without the mate bond, I want her to feel it now more than ever. I want her to experience the fullness of what I feel for her, the connection that spans beyond time and space.
I pull her against me, arranging us comfortably under the covers. She rests her head on my chest, right over my heart.
“Sleep now,” I murmur, pressing a kiss to her forehead.
But Carla surprises me, pushing herself up to look at me, her eyes filled with mischief.
“I’m not tired yet,” she says, her voice husky from our lovemaking.
Before I can respond, she slides down my body, her lips leaving a trail of heat across my skin, my stomach, lower. I suck in a breath when I feel her mouth on me, warm and wet and perfect.
“Carla,” I groan, my hands finding their way into her wild curls.
She looks up at me, her green eyes meeting mine as she takes me deeper. The sight of her—my queen, my mate—pleasuring me this way nearly shatters my control. Her tongue swirls around the head of my dick, and my hips buck involuntarily.