Page 55 of The Stallion & The Tigress
“I wasn’t wiggling,” she insisted, andpurposely wiggled her backside against him.“I was cold.”Sheburrowed her buttocks into the curve between his belly and histhighs.“Why does it bother you so much more tonight than lastnight?”
“I was too tired to do anything about it lastnight.”
“And this morning?”
“I told you, men wake up that way quiteoften.”
“No.”She shook her head, and her bodyflushed from her head to her toes.“I mean this morning in thestream, when you stormed away from me after we—”
“Stood skin to skin and kissed.”
She nodded, the bedroll rough and painfulagainst her still bruised cheek, which was nothing compared to thesting of her bruised pride.
His silence had her ready to jump up andspend the night high in a tree as far away from him as she couldsafely be.Then he placed his arm around her and pulled her intight.
“What do you think happened this morning?”hewhispered in her ear, his voice low and rough.
“I think you didn’t want me after all.”
He laughed so sharp and quick that heactually barked.“Is that how you think a man who doesn’t want awoman responds?”He nipped the tender skin at the back of her neckand nuzzled her nape.“I want you, my tigress.I’ve wanted youevery cursed moment of every cursed day and night since I laid eyeson you.”He growled low, nudging her backside with his hardeninglength.“I want you so badly it hurts.”
“Then why did you walk away?Why were you soangry with me?”
“I was angry with myself.I knew better, andI let my wanting you put you in harm’s way.”
In a long slow sigh, she let out the breathshe’d been holding since he had walked away from her in the stream.Aleksi rolled his forehead between her shoulder blades.
“If those crows and that stag hadn’tinterrupted us, I wouldn’t’ve had the will to stop.”His voice grewlow and his cock grew rigid.“I would’ve laid you down on the grassat the river’s edge and made love to you until we both were spent,heedless of the dangers all around us.”
“And now?”She knew she was being brazen, butshe didn’t care.All she cared about was the feel of Aleksi’s big,warm hand cupping her breast.
His thumb rubbed her nipple, and she gaspedwith pleasure.
“Now we are still in great danger,” hewhispered hotly.He kissed her neck where it met her shoulder, histhumb continuing its tantalizing circle around her beaded nipple.“We are in great danger of crossing a line that once crossed cannotbe redrawn.”
She rolled to face him, the heat in her bodyreflected in his gaze.“Who would know besides us?”she asked, hervoice lower and deeper than usual.
His thumb stopped its delicious circling, andhe held her by the shoulders, looking her straight in the eyes.“Your future husband would, whoever the lucky bastard of a princeturns out to be.”
Aleksi craned his neck from side to side asthey reached the mountain pass in the late afternoon, trying towork out the kinks from sleeping with his back propped up against atree’s trunk.The almost constant ache in his loins was not soeasily assuaged.
He rolled his shoulders and felt Sahar’s headloll between them, her soft snore telling him she was finallysleeping after sitting rigidly behind him for most of the day.Heheld her clasped hands at his belly tighter, to keep her fromsliding off of Z onto the damp ground.She’d tossed and turned asmuch as Aleksi had last night, neither of them getting much, if anysleep.
He snorted at his confession of wanting hermore than anyone, and at his “noble” restraint.Z spooked anddanced, causing Aleksi to pull up on the stallion’s reins.Saharsnuffled and pressed closer.He held his body as still as possibleas she settled, chuckling quietly.He’d do to the same with Kiskastaying in one position until his limbs grew numb lest he disturbthe little tyrant.It seemed he was doomed to serve as a fool andlackey for kittens and tigresses in his attempt to protect themfrom weasels and wolves.
He’d been terrified when he realized she’dbeen abducted.Then, after he’d rescued her, when he finally hadher panting and willing in his arms, he’d stopped them before theywent too far.
Mostly—and in spite of what he’d told her—itwas because he was scared.Scared that once he had her, he would gofrom want to need to nothing.A bastard and a princess had nofuture.He’d lied when he’d told her they were nothing to eachother.
She was everything to him.
Which was why he was doing her bidding toreclaim Lasair and take two worthless princes as captives to try tostop a war from starting between the southern tribes.Meanwhile,Serge and Pyotr were in King Asad’s city, trading horses, gettingstarted in the new life they’d dreamed and planned for.A life thatwould always have a Sahar-sized hole in it.Still, there would besome solace in showing up at the gate to his father’s palace with apurse full of gold and a string of fine broodmares.
As long as his father was alive to seeit.
Aleksi had tried not to think of his fatherbeing ill.Unable to do anything to remedy whatever ailed hisfather from here, he’d pushed that worry to the back of his mind,which had been filled first with running the race, and then withfinding Sahar and keeping her safe, and now with saving Lasair andcapturing Yago and Taweel.He hoped Anastasia hadn’t been lyingthat their father’s illness was trifling.He trusted her about asmuch as he trusted the Wolf.
Right now, he needed to concentrate oncatching the Wolf and getting Sahar home, safe and sound with hervirginity intact.
