Page 41 of The Shipwreck
He grinned at her again, and the fond shimmer in his eyes made her return his smile.Suddenly she felt more than just the sharp heat of lust and longing.There was also a gentle warmth like that of a banked fire.And as he continued to hold her gaze, she sensed he could easily stir the coals of that fire to life.
His eyes lowered to her mouth, and already she longed to taste him again.As if drawn to him by the force of his will, she closed her eyes and leaned toward him.
This time she made no demands of him, but let him lead.His kiss was tender and tentative, like the touch of a honeybee upon a blossom, and soon a pleasant buzzing filled her head.Again and again he sampled the nectar from her lips, until she ached for more.
As she gasped against his mouth, he deftly loosened the laces of her kirtle and slipped it from her shoulders.When it caught on the points of her breasts, he freed it, sliding one fingertip under the linen.When his knuckle grazed her nipple, desire welled in her like the swelling of an ocean wave, submerging her in its powerful current.
She clenched her thighs around his hips and moved against him.But he refused to engage her yet, focusing instead on her bared bosom.He kissed his way down her throat and across her breast, pausing as he reached the inch-long strip of puckered flesh there.
“Your battle scar?”he murmured.
She nodded, and he traced its length with his tongue before blazing a searing trail toward her nipple.When he sucked softly there, she cried out in wonder at the divine sensation.
Then, just when she thought she would burst from pleasure, he moved to her other breast, lavishing it with equal attention.Moans issued from her throat unbidden, and her fingers tangled in his hair as if to keep him close.
While she reveled in a languorous haze, his hand delved beneath her skirts, traveling up her thigh with silky stealth.Even knowing where he was headed couldn’t prepare her for the shock that rocked her when the tip of his finger touched her at the spot where their bodies joined.
He rubbed gently there, and she squeezed her eyes shut, caught in a paralyzing tide of euphoria.She arched against him, elated yet languishing, knowing she wanted something more, something she could neither define nor understand.
This was far more potent than the intoxication of his surrender.It was a savage craving that satiated and tormented her all at once.Lost in a fog of emotions, she was nonetheless compelled to sail onward.
It was only when his arm wrapped around her shoulders and his thigh curved possessively over her buttock, when he tried to roll her onto her back, that she stiffened.
Only once had a man ever dominated her.And that had been against her will.After she’d been raped, she’d never allowed a man to toss her onto her back.She’d been helpless once.She’d vowed never to be so again.
“Nay!”She dug her nails into his shoulders, ready to resist with all her might.
To her surprise, he responded immediately, relaxing his grip on her and withdrawing his hands.She searched his face, wondering what game he played.
But there was only patient affection in his eyes.And as he lay submissively beneath her, giving her time to reason, she was forced to confront her demons.It wasn’t long before she realized the truth—those demons clearly existed only in her imagination.
Brandr was not a berserker.He had no desire to hurt her, to demean her, to dominate her.He obviously cared for her.He’d confessed his love.He’d bared his soul to her.Hell, he’d even offered to fight for her.Why, then, was she reluctant to cede the tiniest bit of control to him?
If anyone was obsessed with power, Avril realized, it was she.After all, she’d held him prisoner.She’d kept him at her mercy.She’d had her way with him.What more did she want?Must he grovel at her feet, yielding to her in every way?
At her brooding silence, he smiled ruefully.“Maybe you don’t truly care for me.”
She frowned.How could he think that?She’d practically saved his life.She’d fed him and housed him.She’d set his arm.She’d protected him from her neighbor.How could she not care for the man who had promised to get her castle back?“Of course I do.”
“But do you trust me?”
She bit her lip.It was true she’d learned to be wary when it came to trusting men.And yet Brandr had done nothing to deserve her mistrust.Even when she thought he’d betrayed her, he’d only been trying to protect her.She looked into his expectant eyes—eyes as beautiful and unclouded as a summer sky—and then lowered her gaze to his inviting mouth.
She couldn’t let the damned berserker who’d raped her win.She couldn’t let her wretched brothers win.She wouldn’t let what had happened to her in the past ruin her chances at happiness in the future.
“Kiss me again,” she murmured, certain that shedidtrust him after all.
His touch was tender and coaxing, soothing and arousing all at once.He cradled her chin and kissed her with care, as if she were a brittle seashell.He stroked her hair with the gentle caress of the ocean combing the kelp.His fingers swept over her like the incoming tide washing across the shore, exploring higher and farther with subtle stealth.
And this time, when she willingly rolled onto her back, it felt as natural as turning over in the sea on an afternoon swim.And though he rose above her, as massive and menacing as an ocean wave, she felt no panic.He moved with the steady languor of the sea, rocking her gently along the current until they floated there together in rising bliss.
Before long, she realized this was like no other voyage she’d taken.The sensual weight of his hips, the tantalizing touch of his hands, the fiery caress of his tongue took her to a place she’d never been before.Her breath expanded as an ember sparked within her, filling her with glowing heat.Her body moved of its own accord, squirming in pleasure.Her fingers pressed into the supple muscle of his buttocks, urging him closer, and when that wasn’t enough, she wrapped her legs around him, arching up against the divine pressure of his belly.She closed her eyes tightly, relishing the erotic delight of his flesh on hers as he teased her lust to a fine point.
Farther and farther into uncharted waters they sailed, and Avril clung to him, half-afraid, half-obsessed, seeking…seeking…
“Look at me,” he suddenly breathed.
She couldn’t.She’d never felt so vulnerable, so exposed.If she let him glimpse the helplessness in her eyes…
