I ran my tongue across my parched lips, my heart slamming so violently against my rib cage, I was sure he could hear it. My eyes lingered on the ridges of his abdomen through his shirt, then drifted higher to where his chest rose and fell with quickened breaths.
Looking at him stole the air from my lungs.
My ears started ringing, and when he whispered something about getting the all clear from my MRI results, I squeezed my thighs together.
We both knew what it meant.
Despite every thundering beat urging caution, I couldn’t deny him. I didn’t want to.
I kept thinking about Amelie’s words—tabula rasa. I thought about what it meant to have a blank slate and start fresh. For so long, my past colored my choices and my restrictions. The notion of simply wanting and taking was alien. Not to mention, who was lucky enough to experience their first time twice? God, I wanted to remember sex.
“I can’t wait anymore,” he growled, his voice so deep and rough it barely sounded like words. “I need you.”
Caden rounded the car with me in his arms, opened the back seat door, and tossed me inside. This was really happening. My body trembled at the edge of something primal as he jerked his jacket off and tugged at his shirt before climbing in. He practically ripped off my clothes until we were both left panting and staring at our naked forms.
His eyes studied my body like I was the center of his universe. For all his dominance and possessiveness, the way he stared at me, the way his fingers trembled against my skin, told a different story. That I held power over him, unlike anyone else.
I tilted my head back, my gaze traveling slowly up the towering expanse of his body. Every inch of him radiated raw power—from the carved definition of his thighs to the broad sweep of his shoulders. Reality blurred at the edges as I stared at every magnificent inch of him, overwhelmed by his nakedness. The evidence of his desire jutted proudly between his legs, the same impressive thickness my lips had stretched around earlier tonight. His length nearly reached his navel.
I gulped. “You’re too big.”
Caden chuckled low in his throat. And fuck, why was that so sexy?
My gaze dropped to his erection, glistening at the crown as he drew his hand slowly over himself, the fluid easing his movements. I wasn’t kidding, he was too big.
At my dreaded expression, some of his amusement seeped out.
“I’ll try to be gentle.” He wasn’t speaking to me but rather reminding himself to fight his instincts. Whatever came next would reduce us both to animals of pure instinct and probably leave marks on both my body and soul.
I wasn’t some fragile girl anymore. I craved the uninhibited Caden I’d glimpsed earlier, the one who’d taken and claimed my mouth without hesitation.
“Don’t be.” I couldn’t look away from Caden’s wild eyes, my breath catching in my throat.
“Then turn around.” His throaty voice vibrated with authority, awakening something biblical within me.
I shifted in the seat so I was on all fours with my forehead leaning against the window. The seat was slick under my palms and knees, smelling faintly of wax and leather.
I was completely naked and offering myself up to this man. My nipples hardened to tight peaks, skin flushed hot, wetness gathering between my thighs. My pulse hammered through my swollen clit, and I burned for him as if I’d never been touched before.
All spread out before him, I glanced back at Caden with an invitation in my eyes.
A sound escaped him—part hunger, part possession—and I watched his body respond, pulsing with need, the wet heat of his desire dripping against the back of my thigh.
I couldn’t tear my eyes from him. The sheer size of his dick was intimidating. I imagined the stretch as he filled me. I knew it would hurt, but I craved it with every fiber of my being.
“Rose.” His voice dropped to a rasp. “I need you.” The words slipped between clenched teeth, his control visibly fracturing.
He dropped to his knees behind me, and a moan escaped my lips. His rough hands claimed my flesh, and I arched my back. Savage need flashed in his eyes. When his hand wrapped around himself, I couldn’t help the small gasp that escaped me as he began to stroke, slow and deliberate.
My limbs trembled, my skin feverish with anticipation. His eyes raked down my body, claiming every inch with his gaze.
“You’re mine,” he growled, fingers digging into my flesh with each possessive squeeze. I watched him over my shoulder. His eyes darkened as they locked with mine. “Finding you has made me lose my mind, baby.” The muscle in his jaw twitched as he inhaled deeply. “I want to go slow, but I can’t promise to hold back for long.”
The raw hunger in his voice made me swallow.
I gave him a silent nod. His knee nudged between my thighs, opening me to him. He pulled back slightly, his gaze dropping to where I was exposed and waiting.
“Fuck, you’re soaked for me.”