Page 89 of Only in Moonlight
He chuckled but obeyed, undressing with the same deliberate care he’d shown me. I swallowed as I watched him, each garment falling away to reveal his muscular form. Bandages were still wrapped around his abdomen and shoulder, protecting the wounds from Drudon’s blade and the guards’ arrows. Blood no longer stained them, though. The wounds would heal, both the physical ones and the others inside him.
He came close enough that I could feel the heat radiating from his body. “Surrender.”
I held out my wrists, pulse hammering in my throat. “I guess I’m at your mercy.”
“Then lie on the bed,” he commanded softly.
I obeyed. The silken sheets were cool against my skin, a stark contrast to the heat building between us. He guided my arms above my head and looped the chain through the headboard. His eyes darkened as he secured the shackles, testing them gently to ensure they didn’t constrict me too tightly.
“Comfortable?” he asked, the role dropping away for a moment.
“Perfect,” I assured him.
The game resumed as he stepped back to study his handiwork. “Much better. Now I can properly interrogate my prisoner.”
“I’ll never tell you anything,” I said.
“We’ll see about that.” He traced his fingers lightly up my stomach. “I have ways of making criminals talk.”
Then the torture began. He caressed my breasts, stroking and teasing my nipples until I bit my lower lip to keep from crying out. His hands explored every inch of me, and when he moved to the junction of my thighs, a whimper escaped my lips. Pure, overwhelming pleasure washed over me, erasing time and leaving only the intense present.
When he pulled away, I was breathing like I’d just outrun the guards, my skin slick with sweat. Valen reached into the drawer of the nightstand and pulled out a sheath of pliable white cloth. I watched in anticipation as he slid it onto his erection.
“This will prevent pregnancy.”
I nodded, relieved. Some men who visited the brothel used something similar to protect themselves, though nothing so sleek-looking. But Valen wasn’t thinking of keeping himself safe from diseases; he was thinking of me. That I could rely on him to do that, to keep me safe… It was a wonderful feeling.
Then he climbed onto the bed with me, skin against skin, and I thought I might die from the sheer perfection of it.
“My clever, impossible thief,” he whispered as he settled between my thighs.
“My noble, ridiculous knight,” I whispered back.
“Are you ready?”
“Take off the manacles first.”
He did as I asked, and having my arms free made me feel more at ease.
“Ready,” I said.
As carefully and tenderly as he entered me, it still hurt. I’d expected that, though, and his whispered comforts eased the pain. We rocked against each other awkwardly at first, but then we found our rhythm, and I forgot all about the pain. Pleasure obliterated it.
We moved together with the urgency of people who’d almost lost everything, every touch and kiss a declaration, every shared breath a promise. His amorous touches made every sensation sharper, but it was the look in his eyes that truly undid me—wonder and love and something close to worship.
All the fear and doubt and near-losses melted away, and I came—startlingly hard and fast. Valen grunted atop me as he thrust harder, his own climax taking him a few moments later. Then he sagged, propping himself up on his arms so he wouldn’t crush me. Hearts racing, foreheads pressed together, we tried to remember how to breathe.
Later, as we lay tangled in the silk sheets, I traced lazy patterns on his chest and marveled at how right this felt. How perfectly we fit together despite all our differences. And to think we would have never come together if I hadn’t stolen Tullus’s fortune, if Valen hadn’t caught me and wanted my skills for another heist.
“We should steal something else sometime,” I said.
He laughed.
Epilogue
Valen
Three months later…
