"You want it all the way off?" she whispered in confusion. "Is that the usual—?"
"Raise your arms," Alec said, wavering between amusement and white-hot, greedy impatience. The impatience won out, for suddenly he could not get the gown off her fast enough. He found that his raging desire had made him surprisingly awkward at the simple task. Don't be rough with her, he had to warn himself, forcing himself to be patient. He was ready for her right now, his manhood aching and taut with the desire to thrust into her without prelude… no, he could not allow himself to do that. He had to make her want him just as much as he wanted her.
As his warm hands slid over her, Mira moaned and shifted involuntarily; she had never felt so vulnerable to another human being in her life. Alec dwarfed the feminine surroundings, the frills and ruffles of the bed hangings, his very presence seeming to be an invasion of the small turret room. He shed his robe, and his broad shoulders blocked out everything in her view as
'->ent over her-He pulled her against his body, his hands splaying over her back and pressing her close, his mouth searching the sensitive hollow just beneath her jaw. "Mira," he said with a slight catch in his voice, "I've never wanted anyone this much."
"I want you," she replied softly, nuzzling behind his ear, arching her naked body up to his eagerly, her heart overflowing with love.
"From the moment I first saw you… I couldn't believe how beautiful you were… and you put me through such hell—"
"I didn't mean to."
"I couldn't bear the thought of anyone else having you."
"No one ever has," she said, and he rolled her onto her back in order to look down at her face.
"What?" he whispered.
"I want you to be the first… I want…" She couldn't finish what she had been trying to say because his mouth was on hers and he was caressing her with dizzying slowness; sweet, vibrant sensations seemed to spill from his fingers wherever they wandered. His hand cupped over the curve of her breast and rotated in an exquisitely light touch until her nipple contracted firmly in his palm. Mira gasped, her chest lifting up to his hand… his thumb rubbed over the hardening peak, and he teased the corners of her mouth with small kisses.
His dark head moved down her neck to the highest curve of her breast, his tongue darting out to taste the fragrant flesh. His deep, irregular breath fanned out over her skin, and then his mouth took custody of the sensitive, aroused nipple, enclosing her in wet heat. Mira was floating in an ocean of pleasure, liquid pleasure that invaded every pore and opening of her body. Impatiently she writhed and groaned his name, straining in the grasp of sensations she had never felt before. She made a weak protest as Alec lifted his head, "Easy…" he said softly, stroking the curve of her waist and hip in a soothing motion. "Patience, sweet
. . let me love you slowly… we have enough time." Breathing hard, she forced herself to relax, releasing her tight grip on his shoulders. Slowly his mouth slid back to the throbbing peak of her breast, and she curled her arms around his neck, pressing her face against the silkiness of his raven hair.
"Alec," she sobbed, and his tongue explored the sensitive hardness of her nipple with velvet strokes, tickling, caressing, arousing. He showed her a new kind of communication, with words, soft kisses, slow and exploratory caresses. As the minutes drifted by in a thick haze of pleasure, Mira thought dazedly that Alec knew her better than anyone had ever known her before.
"I'm going to take care of you from now on," he whispered, his dark hands moving over her pale-skinned body like a shadow rippling over the winter snow. "I told you that you'd be mine eventually… and you'll never be sorry. I know you, and I know how to make you happy—"
"Don't… please don't make any promises," she said, turning her face into the pillow.
"Oh, but I'm going to," he murmured, nibbling along the side of her neck. "You'll have to learn to accept them… because I always keep my promises."
"There are things you don't know about me—"
"They don't matter. All that matters is that I want you… I did the very first moment I saw you… you, with your Gypsy hair and big brown eyes and teasing smile. I wanted to know everything about you, bow you tasted, how you felt…"
His large hand slid from the base of her neck to the valley between her breasts, his thumb caressing her skin lightly. Mira flushed as his fingers trailed down to her stomach; he touched her as if he owned her, he seemed to know the secrets of her body. She gasped as