Page 59 of Fifty First Times (Sharing You 0.40)
“May I?” he whispered against her lips.
Lyra blinked open her eyes.
She couldn’t believe he’d asked for permission. They’d handfasted under the terms of her father’s surrender. She belonged to Kai—his to command. But he held there, patiently awaiting her response. His breaths came quick and shallow against her mouth as desperation played over his features.
He was nervous, too.
Lyra’s heart melted a little. It seemed they had more in common than she thought.
“Yes,” she told him. “You may.”
So he kissed her, slow and sweet, for the very first time.
The sweep of his lips was indescribably soft, one brush and then another, growing firm as the seconds passed. He skimmed the tip of his tongue along her upper lip, and when she opened to him, he explored her with shallow licks that drew her out, tempting her to taste him in return.
And she did.
The flavor of summer cider lingered inside his mouth, intoxicating when blended with the musky male scent of his skin.
It went on like this, their tongues lightly seeking and curling, until the kiss turned urgent. Their breaths came in stolen gasps, their mouths moving in desperation as they drew closer. Kai’s hands traveled over her exposed back, grasping at her as if to pull her inside him. She felt his kiss all over, warming her in places that had never before come alive.
He drew back, panting, his eyelids heavy when he asked, “More?”
Lyra licked her swollen lips and nodded. She didn’t know what he meant, but whatever he was offering, she wanted it.
He pressed his lips to her ear and kissed a trail down the side of her neck. When he reached the middle of her shoulder, an embarrassing groan of pleasure arose from Lyra’s throat. Her cheeks flushed, but the sound seemed to please Kai. With a growl of his own, he suckled the spot, alternately ravaging it with the scrape of his teeth while Lyra let her head go slack to give him free rein. The sounds of her ragged sighs filled the room, but she no longer cared. She never imagined anything could feel this exquisite.
He sat up and frowned, then rubbed his thumb over her shoulder. His voice was low and husky. “I’ve marked you. Your skin is more delicate than I’m accustomed to. I shouldn’t have been so rough.”
She hated for him to stop. Reaching to cup his cheek, she allowed herself to explore the scratch of his whiskers against her palm. Her skin was pale against his dark complexion, but he didn’t seem so foreign now. In fact, the contrast was beautiful.
“I don’t mind,” she told him. “You can do it again if you like.”
“But I left a bruise.”
She swept her hair to the opposite shoulder and teased, “Then perhaps I need one here to match?”
Lips quirking in a grin, he dipped his mouth to the bend of her neck, but softer now, like he feared he might break her. He drove her to insanity with his teasing feather licks, and when he pulled back, she was dizzy with new sensations.
“More?”
Kai’s fingertips bit into her upper arms, but despite his brief lapse in control, there was such kindness within him. More than she had ever expected. The mystery of what they would do next sent a shiver of fear down her spine, but Lyra trusted that he would guide her through it with the greatest of care.
“Yes,” she told him in a voice barely recognizable as her own. She wanted more of the hot rush through her veins, more of the distraction from homesickness and worry.
She wanted more of Kai.
He helped her stand from the bed and pushed her heavy silk robes over her hips, where the panels landed on the carpet with a light whoosh. He cradled her waist between his hands and gazed at her reverently, taking in the dip of her navel and the outside swell of her thighs. But in nothing but a pair of nearly transparent linen shorts, Lyra felt overexposed. She crossed both arms over her chest and wished she could hide.
He must have read the anxiety on her face, because he moved aside to peel back the blankets for her. The night was warm, so he discarded the heaviest covers, leaving behind one thin sheet. It was enough. She climbed in and scooted to the middle of the bed, then pulled up the fabric to conceal her chest. There seemed to be too many cushions about, and she wasn’t sure if she should sit back against them or lie flat.
She looked to Kai for guidance.
Kneeling on all fours, he reached behind her and flung every last pillow to the floor. When he crawled beneath the sheet, he lay on his side facing her, his head resting beneath one curled arm. She mirrored his position and fisted the bedsheet as a prickling of uncertainty crept over her. The candlelight cast shadows beneath Kai’s cheekbones, making him seem far older than his twenty-one years. She had felt so brave with his face buried at her throat, but now that the rush of desire had slowed, she couldn’t hold his gaze.
“Come here.” He loosened her grip and took one hand between both of his. When she wriggled nearer, he peered at her intently. “I promise I’ll do my best not to hurt you.”
Lyra’s muscles tensed. She had heard rumors that a maiden’s first time was a painful experience, though she didn’t fully understand why. Friends who’d handfasted ahead of her had teased about not being able to sit down the next day. But when Lyra had gathered enough courage to ask her mother, the woman had replied with a cryptic Be generous with him, and he’ll be generous with you.
