Demon by My Side(35)

Darcy shivered at his hot breath against her sensitive skin.

“Are you pretending how much you want me?” he asked her.

She shook her head.

“Then don’t doubt my desire for you.”

Her heart warmed at his words. Maybe she was foolish to believe him but looking up into his dark gaze she didn’t think he was lying. The kind of lust she felt from him couldn’t be faked. This once, she’d take a chance on the demon.

“Okay,” she breathed. “But no sex. We need to set some ground rules.”

“So many ways to interpret that restriction.”

“Intercourse,” she declared, feeling her cheeks heat. “I’m not sleeping with you.” That was a risk she couldn’t take. If she stepped off that cliff, she wasn’t sure she’d be able to keep her burgeoning feelings for him in check. Above all, she needed to stay clearheaded about this man.

“I like to play,” he replied. “And I’ll follow your rules. This time.”

“Promise?” She undulated under him, needing to feel their bodies touch. How could she expect him to play by her rules when she didn’t even follow them?

“I can put your needs first,” he replied. “Let me prove it.”

She nodded before she could think better of it. What was she doing? There were a million reasons to stop this right here, right now.

Suddenly she couldn’t think of one.

“Okay,” she whispered. “Fine. Just don’t leave me like this.”

“I’m here.” He pressed a hot kiss to her throat. “I’m not going anywhere. Ever.”

If only she could believe the promise. But that didn’t matter. Not right now.

His drew his mouth along her neckline, licking at the tender flesh. Darcy grabbed the T-shirt and pulled it over her head without hesitation. The material fluttered to the ground as her demon looked up at her with flames licking in his eyes. This once, she knew they weren’t born of anger.

Lying nearly naked beneath him she felt a moment’s hesitation. She wasn’t a woman who enjoyed being vulnerable, and right now that was exactly how she felt. Drawing in a deep breath, she looked up at her lover and froze. As he stared down at her, the lust in his eyes nearly burned her with its intensity. Under his gaze, there was no room for nerves. His desire made her strong.

His finger traced the outline of her bra, teasing her with the light touches.

“Please,” she begged as he pulled the lacy material from her body. She mourned the loss of the protection for all of a second before opening herself up to her lover.

“Jaral,” she tried, but he pinned her arms above her head and lowered his mouth to her breasts. When his hot tongue licked over a hardened nipple she nearly cried out in ecstasy. He teased her with expert touches while she was helpless to respond. When teeth rasped gently over the sensitive tip she arched from the bed.

“Gods,” she whispered. “More, please.”

She felt his hot breath against her skin as he chuckled. “As you wish.”

His sucked a nipple into his mouth, teasing it with his tongue. Darcy writhed beneath him. Pleasure surged through her as she enjoyed her lover’s clever hands. She never wanted him to stop.

Except she wanted to touch him in return. She strained against his hold but there was no budging him.

“Let me go,” she begged. “I want to touch you too.”

Her hands were released instantly and she wasted no time exploring the man before her. Stripping his shirt from his body, she drew her fingers down his naked chest. He hissed in a breath as she lightly traced the contoured muscles, moving lower.

She pressed her mouth to his chest and he hissed at the contact. Darcy played with him, loving that she had the power to make him tense in pleasure. This strong warrior was invincible everywhere but here. Here she was just as strong as him, if not more so. Here she could dominate.

Her hand slid down to his jeans. She stroked his hard erection through the rough material and was rewarded with his shudder of pleasure.

“Off,” she whispered to him, moving to the clasp.

“No.” He caught her hand to stop her questing fingers. “You laid out the rules. Any more of that, darling, and there’s no way I’ll be able to walk away from this. I’ll have to be inside you.”

“Okay,” she agreed, reaching for him once more.

Jaral groaned in her ear. “You are making it damn hard to do the right thing.”

She grinned in reply. There were numerous reasons not to sleep with him but she wanted to ignore them all.

“Here’s how this will go,” he told her, unzipping her jeans. “I’m going to prove to you I can be trusted. And as a reward, you will let me taste you.”