Chapter Twenty-Five
Sophia blinked as a hot lump clogged her throat. Nobody had ever said that to her. She was the girl who got up every time she fell, who pasted on a smile and moved on like nothing had happened. She wasn’t supposed to hurt or shed tears.
But somehow this man, who people said had ice water in his veins, seemed to know what outwardly sympathetic people didn’t.
Her legs grew shaky, and she fell to her knees, bringing their bodies closer. Her small hands cradled his cheeks, and she sought his mouth. Her hard nipples stabbed against his chest, and her fingers undid his shirt buttons, pushing the garment out of the way. Electric shocks went through her body when her hands touched his bare chest. Who would’ve thought that simple skin-to-skin contact could feel this good?
He dragged his hand along the smooth line of her body until his fingers brushed between her legs. She was unbelievably wet and hot down there, but she didn’t feel any shame, not when he looked at her with such naked desire.
His thumb circled over her swollen clit. A small cry tore from her, her teeth biting into her lower lip.
“You’re fucking gorgeous,” he whispered against her jaw line as he peppered it with feathery kisses.
“You make me feel gorgeous. Whole.”
With him, she wasn’t the damaged girl with broken dreams. She was a woman desired, a woman on her way to figuring out the rest of her life.
He picked her up and deposited her in the center of the bed. Impatiently he shrugged out of his shirt. The rest of his clothes received the same careless treatment. He kneeled on the bed and picked her foot up.
Self-consciousness suddenly shot through her. Her feet had gotten better, but they were awful from years of abuse. And she hated the thought of having them compared to his other women, who undoubtedly had soft, well-cared for feet—
Dane pressed a thumb into her instep. “Relax,” he murmured.
Sophia bit back a moan. That felt amazing.
“I like everything about you.”
“You’re such a liar,” she said, her voice breathless. “I’m not blind to my…deficiencies.”
“You’ve done interesting things with your life. It’s no shame your body bears the marks.” He pressed a hot kiss against her not-so-straight ankle.
Her heart knocked against its ribcage. How could he talk to her like this? He was the last one she’d expected to say something so sweet. Knowing how he hated lies and pretenses, she knew he meant everything.
He showed the same tender, sexy care to her other leg, then slowly moved upward, her ankles resting on his shoulders, then her knees, licking and loving every inch of her along the way.
Her nerves jittered in anticipation.
His breath fanned over her clit, and she bit her lower lip. She didn’t dare move or make any sound lest this was a dream. This might be the part where she woke up.
He covered her with his mouth and her body surged with pleasure. Before she could muffle herself with a hand, he gripped her wrists.
“Let me hear you,” he said, then pulled her clit into his mouth.
She was completely exposed, her legs wide apart. His wicked mouth and tongue moved along her dripping flesh, lapping up every drop. Her hands twisted around the sheets underneath. She couldn’t stop her breathless whimpers.
“Please—”
“Don’t waste your hands,” he said. “Play with your tits. Make yourself feel even better.”
Heat suffused her face and torso, and at first she didn’t move. But when he merely waited while gently breathing over her, she couldn’t help herself. She cupped her breasts, kneading them. “Dane…”
“Pinch your nipples,” he ordered as he pushed a finger into her. When she hesitated, he stopped, making her cry out in protest. “Show me how you pleasure your body. Now.”
* * *
Dane held himself back. The sweet taste of her on his tongue was urging him to go back down on her, but he wanted to see how she’d made herself come that night.
It was her birthday, for fuck’s sake, and he should just give her everything now, but he was a selfish bastard.
She squeezed her breasts, then pinched the tips with her forefinger and thumb. The nipples reddened, and when she let go, they stayed tightly puckered.
Her dark and lust-glazed eyes made his blood boil. Unable to wait even a moment longer, he devoured her flesh. A delicious gasp from her parted lips drove him forward, and he fucked her with his tongue while using a slick finger to press against her tight rosette.
She let out a sharp cry, her back arching. Her muscles contracted tightly around him. Blood pounded in his cock, so hard he could have used it to hammer railroad spikes.
She pulled him up for a kiss, gripping him with desperation. “I want to feel you inside me,” she whispered. “Now. I feel like I’ve waited forever.”