The look on Rathe's face was a mixture of irritation and disbelief. "You bloody don't know even now?" He raked a hand through his hair. "I need you too much, Mary. I'm going out of my mind, waiting for you to heal. So there's a limit to what I can expose myself to."
The words had her swallowing, but the knowledge that came with it also brought a heady sensation, making her feel so beautiful and powerful at the same time.
She looked down when he took a step back from the bed, blushing when she saw that she did not have a stitch of clothing on.
"Beautiful," he whispered in a guttural tone.
She blushed, every part of her turning pink and it was his turn to laugh, that same rich dark sound she just could not get enough of.
"I'm not really beautiful," she told him.
"Yes. You are. My beautiful pearl."
Even with her face flushed with color, she persevered with what she wanted to say. "I … want … " She took a deep breath. "I want to see you naked, too."
He … blinked.
She nodded profusely. "I want to."
He said dryly, "I'm almost convinced."
"I mean it," Mary insisted. "I'm just too shy to … " She suddenly realized that they were having a conversation while she was naked and he was not. She started to cross her arms over her chest but stopped when he shook his head sharply.
"It's mine, my little pearl, and that means I have the right to please myself with the sight of your naked body whenever I want to."
She asked softly, "And it pleases you really?" She just couldn't understand what made her so different from probably the thousands of women who had tried to seduce and claim the Duke of Flanders … and failed.
"More than you'll ever know," he said roughly.
"Then … " She swallowed. "Let me please you."
His eyes widened.
"I know I'm not yet fully capable of moving, but … " She looked at him almost pleadingly. "I know you can figure out a way. I want to please you."
Rathe bit back a groan at her words. "You don't know what you're saying, little pearl."
"I know." She pointed to her body. "I feel it here, I know it here. I just need to make it real." She looked at him again, her desire making her eyes bright. "Please?"
Bloody hell.
How could he ever resist her when she was pleading with him like that?
Without a word, he pulled his sweater over his head and threw it on the floor. In seconds, he had also unzipped himself, leaving him in black briefs.
Mary gulped at the sight.
Oh dear.
He was … gorgeous.
He really was the most beautiful man on earth.
Surely there could be no one to compare to Rathe. His coldness and hardness both added to his attraction, turning him into a sculpture of perfection that would never yield. He could give any woman pleasure just by letting them look at him, but for a woman to give him pleasure? It almost felt impossible, a mortal pleasing a god like him.
But when he took off his briefs as well, revealing the state of his arousal, Mary saw for herself that the impossible had become possible.
His cock was fully engorged, thrusting up proudly. It was terrifying and amazing at the same time, the way his cock seemed to have a life of its own. It moved. It bulged. It throbbed. How in the world would it fit inside her?
She gulped again. And to think she had begged him to let her please him. Now she just wasn't sure at all. She might end up choking to death if she tried kissing … that.
The fear and wonder in Mary's innocent eyes only made him harder. "Mary," he growled.
"Y-yes?"
"You can still change your mind."
It was obvious that he would kill himself if she did, but the fact that he offered – that he gave her a chance to retreat strengthened her resolve. This was going to work. She didn't care what she had to do, but it would work.
Licking her dry lips, she said, "Teach me."
He walked slowly towards her, not one part of his body embarrassed of his nakedness. But then why should he be? He was, in a nutshell, all that a man should ever be. Those strong shoulders, the broad chest, those muscular thighs, and his flat washboard abs. And of course there was his cock---
Rathe stopped next to her bed, his cock brushing against her arm and she gasped, the heat of it shocking her.
"Touch it, little pearl."
She turned to him, careful not to make any movements that would cause her ribs to ache. She touched the head of his cock first, swallowing at the way drops of wetness came out of the slit, as if confirming his desire for her.
Mary played with the head of his cock, taking pleasure in the way Rathe drew in his breath with every touch she made. And when she finally found the courage to curl her fingers around the length of him, Rathe groaned out loud. And as she stroked him, he began thrusting in her hand.
The pleasure he experienced with Mary just giving him a hand job, and not a very experienced one at that, was incredible. He had to grip the headboard of the bed to keep his balance, if not, he would be---
He gasped, his gaze jerking down to where she had faced him and swallowed his cock.
"Mary?"
She answered by trying to swallow more of his length.
Bloody, bloody hell.
He gripped her hair and began to guide her, teaching Mary how to please him more because it was what she seemed to want. She eagerly followed, and her unhidden excitement added to the agonizing pleasure of her mouth working on his cock.
More … more … more …
Soon, he forgot all about being gentle, his cock moving faster and harder in and out of her mouth. Soon, she was clutching his bare butt, nails digging into the cheeks as she sought to balance herself while he kept thrusting his cock into her mouth.
"I'm about to come."
She didn't answer, only sucking him harder.
He came with a roar, his body shuddering as the seed poured out of him and into her mouth. He looked down at her in a daze, unable to believe how she was doing her best to swallow all of it.
His chest contracted. Expanded. Contracted.
Fuck, fuck, fuck.
He felt too much for her now.
This was so bloody wrong.
When he was spent, he pulled away abruptly and left her there without a word.
Chapter Nine
"Are you sure you'll be all right from here?" Teddy asked, his gaze worried as he closed the door of the Rolls Royce after her. It had been a week since she had moved to her new home, a week since Rathe had left her feeling like a cheap and unwanted whore, a week of crying as she silently waited for him to call and give her a sign that they were still … okay.
But there was none. She hadn't seen or heard from him for a week. All she had gotten was a curt text message about Teddy being her bodyguard and that he was to be with her at all times.
A week …
She had a sudden urge to cry again, but she couldn't. She shouldn't. She was back in school now, and she had to work hard to make her life normal again.
Forcing a smile for Teddy's sake, she said, "I'm good." And she was. The bandages were gone, but she still had to be careful with her every movement. Thankfully, her ankle was completely healed now, allowing her to walk freely.
"I'll be outside your room later. Remember, you're not to talk anyone and if you find anyone or anything suspicious, you go to the first safe place you can reach and you call me."
She nodded, rolling her eyes. "We've been over that so many times already."
"Yes, well, we can't be too careful. The arsehole who hurt you is still out there."
"I really don't think he's going to come back for me. There's a warrant out for him---"
Teddy shook his head. The duke was right. Mary was painfully innocent in many ways, terrifyingly so even. Of course her stepfather would come back for her. She was an obsession, and worse, he had a reason to hanker for revenge. It was only a matter of time before he made his move. Men like him always did, and when they were smarter than usual – which unfortunately all evidence suggested he was so – it would be a lightning-fast move, full of deceit and poison. If they were not careful, they may not be able to rescue Mary the second time around.
As she walked to her class, which was Professor Byron's, she felt her phone beep inside her bag. Taking it out, Mary saw that it was an email from Saffi.
Hey! Sorry I've been out of touch – I'm in the Maldives right now and OMG you won't believe the kind of marine life they have here.
Below the words were a series of underwater photographs that had Mary smiling since most of it featured either a resigned-looking Staffan or a blissful Saffi.
Hope you're doing well there! Let me know if there's anything you need from me, k?
I miss you lots!
Tears struck her eyes as she returned the phone to her bag. Saffi would expect a reply and she intended to give the older girl one – but later, much, much later. She had to figure out how to lie about her life first.