They were completely bare now. There was no stopping this. She’d be his again. Maybe not her heart, but certainly her body. And after this, he’d never ask her for it again. So technically, she’d be free. He wouldn’t collar her like Jax had.
Stepping close, his erection brushed her thighs and she faltered, catching herself on the counter.
“Is this something that frightens you?”
She shook her head. “No, but…” Her teeth came down on her bottom lip, stopping the rest.
Cael frowned. “But what?”
She shook her head, looking away. Cael pulled her back to standing and slowly, carefully resumed his grip on her throat. There was no pressure, just his thumb stroking the soft column to calm her.
“But what?” he asked again.
She blinked once and when her eyes opened, they were full of guilt and misery. “Jax only ever took me from behind.”
Like a bitch; never like a woman.
Part of him was glad. Jax didn’t deserve having her body pressed against his, face to face, intimately. But his treatment had left terrible memories. And for that, Cael’s wolf raged. He’d travel to hell just to kill him again, if it was possible.
He lowered his mouth to whisper directly into her ear. “Then I will take you from behind now, and give you a better memory.” His lips brushed the skin under her ear and she relaxed against him.
He gathered her hair in one fist, pulling her head to the side revealing the mating mark at the curve of her shoulder. His eyes narrowed on it and a growl burst from his throat causing Isabesh to jump.
“I’m going to bite a new mark, Isa. Right through this one, and you won’t have to think about his ever again.” He hadn’t planned on that part of it, but now, he realized it was necessary. He wouldn’t leave any part of that monster on her body.
He draped her hair over one delicate shoulder, his eye catching on the way it covered one beautiful breast. His gaze went to her darkened eyes.
“Is your wolf fighting?” He had to know. If her animal was resisting, he didn’t know how he’d handle it.
“She wants you more than I do.”
Cael broke away from the mirror to look at her actual face. Though he only got her profile, he could see how much that admission cost her.
Enough talking.
He dragged his hand down the length of her back, noticing the chill bumps that rose to greet his touch. He used his nails to lightly scratch a trail. Moving past her ass, he kept going, finally touching the place he’d dreamed about for too long.
He reached between her legs, feeling her wetness coat his fingers and hearing her sharp gasp, but he didn’t stop there. He found the swollen bundle that would give her the most intense pleasure and circled it with the tip of his finger.
Isabesh spasmed at the first touch, her hands flying up to grip the forearm of the hand around her neck.
“Cael, you don’t need to—”
“I need to.”
He pressed harder, circled faster. She wouldn’t take this away from him.
A sound erupted from her throat, a cross between a moan and a sob. He wished they were in a position where he could kiss that sound away. Devour it. Instead, he settled for pressing his lips to the flushed skin of her neck.
He continued with the gentle touches but she was having trouble letting go.
“When was the last time you came, Isa?”
She shook her head, denying him an answer. And though it seemed important, there were other pressing matters.
“I’ll get the answer from you later. You can bet on that. But right now, I want your orgasm.” She stiffened, her nails digging into his arm in the most delicious way. “Come for me,” he whispered.
He’d accept nothing less.
She went completely still, her mouth open on a gasp…
And then she soared, flying high without ever leaving his arms.
***
Isabesh sailed higher than she ever had, floating on regrets and failures, but somehow they were being rewritten. Cael was the new author. She’d never be able to thank him enough for what he was doing. She’d never be able to make things right. But he knew that, and didn’t care. He was willing to help her anyway.
In that moment, she loved him more than was within the realm of possibility. No matter what revenge he had in store for her later, she’d take it gladly. She’d do her time. Anything to make things easier for this man who had every right to be angry, yet treated her so gently.
He breathed heavily against her neck, his heat washing over her, warming her inside as much as outside. He pulled his hand from between her legs and his hardness jutted against her backside. She flinched. A knee-jerk reaction.
“Shh,” he murmured, his thumb still caressing the side of her throat. “Get used to the way it feels. See? Heavy. Hard. But never dangerous.”