Bast had climbed into a soul driving on empty, lost in self-pity and without a future. She’d been living hour to hour, not even day to day. Without Richard to care for, she’d wondered if caring for herself was worth the time and effort. Yet something within must have known what was coming. It must have known there were men like Sebastian out in the real world. She only had to wait for just a little while longer. Take her pills just one more day. Do everything in her power to just be. Not to give in. And her reward would come in a package of brawn and beauty and strength.
And here he was. Kissing her. Touching her. Perhaps even caring for her.
It was too much. Too soon. What they were doing, this tentative introduction to a real relationship, made promises she’d never be able to keep. For her sanity and for his, she would have to maintain a distance. They could be lovers—would be—but no matter how close he tried to get to her, she would remember to take a deep breath and a step back.
Yet... The here and now. That was her mantra.
Sebastian’s hands slid down her breasts, stopping just long enough to send a spark of pleasure with a single flick of his thumb over nipples so tight they almost hurt. Her spine arched of its own volition, her hips rocking to hold him even closer. To lure him.
Her lips parted, ready to urge him to put her out of this misery of sensation zipping beneath her skin. She tightened her fingers on his strong forearms. Studied him from behind a dreamy gaze. “Yes.”
His lips curved into a mischievous grin. “I think I like you like this.” That decadent mouth brushed over hers then nuzzled her chin. “So wet. So...mine.”
“Oh?” Alice wasn’t so far gone that the arrogance of his words flew past her. “Who’s more ready?” she asked, hand sliding between them. She wrapped it around the spongy tip of his cock, gently squeezing as she did. As she expected, Sebastian’s hips involuntarily lowered, the rest of his body taut and on the verge of trembling.
His eyes went brilliant. Feral.
There was a sudden snap of his wings, a dark canopy spread wide to blanket their bodies. Hands that were devout in their exploration became possessive. Sharp sensation scraped over her breast, the tips of his fingers now honed to a fine edge. Alice almost looked down, the alteration to his anatomy not unnoticed, but Sebastian pushed one thigh higher, baring her wide open to him. He gripped beneath her hip, tilting her pelvis toward him.
The sudden scent of smoke saturated her senses, and Sebastian’s low growl sent a wild burst of exhilaration through her. Alice opened her mouth to question the change or maybe to talk down the primal compulsion, but the bittersweet push of his body into hers captured her words.
“My God,” she moaned, holding on to his shoulders. The bands of muscle became an anchor, keeping her from drowning beneath a torrential pleasure. Her eyes slipped closed as he filled her. Completed her.
Breath stuttered out of a chest rapidly rising and falling. Her heartbeat pounded wildly.
By the time he’d seated himself fully within her, every part of Alice’s body seemed hyperaware. His groin pressed against her clit, sending ecstasy bursting out of the sensitive nub. The tension humming beneath his muscles felt alive beneath her fingers. The heat of his gaze as Sebastian gazed down on her could set her aflame. And when he started to rock, the rhythmic push-pull of his body entering and leaving hers, Alice came undone.
Sebastian held her tightly as they fucked, his mouth raining kisses down on hers. She tasted the smoky-sweetness of his breath. He teased her with warm, sweet murmurings and a ravenous hunger that threatened to consume her. The contrast of sound, of sensation, of taste, of smells; it was both heaven and hell. A thing she craved.
A powerful rush filled her veins and Alice screamed as an orgasm buried her beneath its weight. Her body tightened, muscles locked and no longer under her control. It came out of nowhere, blinding her. Binding her to him. It spurred Sebastian, and he drove into her faster. Again and again.
“This is how I’ve needed you,” Sebastian murmured. His hot breath caressed her ear as he whispered. “Beneath me. Trembling. I belong here.”