Page 42 of Dearest Protector

Completely lost, I threaded my fingers through his damp hair and held onto him to ground myself.

I didn’t justwantthis man.

Ineededhim, and I couldn’t get close enough to satisfy that craving.

A whimper tried to escape from my throat, but Ben had total control, and nothing was going to stop his exploration of my mouth or his marauding tongue.

Not that I wanted him to stop.

I felt like I’d die on the spot if he suddenly ceased giving me this kind of pleasure.

I urged him onward, kissing him back with a fierceness that I couldn’t contain.

Closer! God, I need to get closer!

I moved enough to straddle his body, and when I ground my hips against his groin in my attempt to fuse our bodies together, there was no hiding how much Ben wanted me, too.

His cock was big, hot, and so hard that it made me almost frantic to find out what it would feel like if he fucked me.

“Christ, Ariel, you’re killing me,” Ben rasped as he released my mouth so we could both take a breath.

“Yes,” I panted as his lips trailed from my temple to the sensitive skin at my neck. “More.”

Against all odds, Ben Blackwood actuallywanted me, and I was drowning in the joy that knowledge gave me.

This wasbetterthan my fantasies, and I couldn’t bear to lose the heady sensations.

My nipples were so hard that it was almost painful every time I moved against his bare chest, and my core clenched with a desperate need to get him inside me. It was the only thing that was going to satisfy the yearning that had swallowed me whole.

I reached between us, desperate to touch his cock, to explore the hard length of him.

“Don’t,” he commanded as he grasped my wrist, his voice harsh.

“I want to touch you,” I whispered in a shaky voice full of desire.

“If you do, I’m fucked, and you will be, too,” he said tersely against my neck. “And this is not going to happen like this. Relax, sweetheart.”

How in the hell could I possibly relax?

My body was on fire, and Ben was the only one capable of extinguishing the flames.

He wrapped his arms around me protectively and just held me, staying immobile, his mouth near my temple.

I could feel the harshness of his breath against my face in a ragged tempo that matched my own.

I wasn’t sure how long we stayed like that, Ben simply holding me tightly until my body stopped shuddering with desire.

Finally, once we were breathing normally again, he grumbled, “Be careful what you ask me to do next time. I might not be able to stop.”

A few minutes later, he gently lifted me off his body, held out a hand, and helped me out of the hot tub like that earth-shattering encounter had never happened.

Chapter 10

Ariel

Ahalf-hour later, the near silence between Ben and me was so uncomfortable that I wanted to weep.

We’d been so close, but suddenly, it was as though we had absolutely nothing to say to each other.

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