She liked that too. Watching him roll on the condom was hot. She didn't know why, but she just seeing the glove come over his cock was exciting--although she was greedy enough to want to know how he felt inside her without it.
He caught her bottom in his hands and pressed the broad head of his cock to her entrance. He felt a lot bigger than his two fingers had.
"Just relax, Zara. You're giving yourself to me. Your body is a gift I'll always treasure. You'll never have to worry that I'll forget about taking care of it or you. Even now, this first time when we both know it's going to be a little uncomfortable, I'll make certain you feel pleasure."
His voice was so gravelly it was almost harsh, but it moved over her skin like the touch of fingers. Eyes on his, she nodded as he pushed steadily through her tight folds. She did her best not to tense up, but the burn wasn't a good one. She felt stretched beyond what she could handle. She shook her head. "I don't think this is going to work." She wanted it to, but it really did sting. Okay--hurt.
"I'll fit, princess. You were made for me. It's just difficult at first."
He retreated and then pushed in a second time. Slowly. Steadily. She couldn't decide if the sting was better or worse. The third time, he pulled out, replaced his cock with his mouth, and she nearly came apart again. Liquid heat nearly dripped like honey. Then his cock was back, and this time it was easier with her sheath slick.
He caught her buttocks in his hands, pausing. "Keep your eyes on mine. I want you to pinch your nipples hard. Right now."
She obeyed and he surged forward. Fire flashed straight to her sex, mixing with the blast of pain as he took her innocence. Then he was all the way in, buried deep, and she surrounded him. She felt every inch of him. His girth stretching her madly. The long thick vein. The way his cock pulsed with energy and hunger. Every one of his heartbeats. She didn't take her eyes from his, but she breathed deeply, trying to decide if she wanted to cry or beg him to move.
He remained very still, her muscles clutching him tightly, holding him in a vise. She didn't look away from his eyes, obeying his directive, feeling held by him, feeling soothed by the way his gaze held hers. The stinging and burning subsided slowly and her muscles began to ease their panicked grip on him.
"Feel better?"
There was pure gravel in his voice. The sound moved over her, stroking her skin, bringing her body to a fever pitch. His eyes were so intense for a moment she couldn't find her own voice to answer him. He looked like sin incarnate. If he was the devil, and she knew he wasn't from heaven, she wanted to burn in hell with him.
She nodded.
"Baby, I want to hold you, but if I lie on you, my hips are going to be cradled in yours and those lacerations might tear open even more. Just keep looking at me." Now his voice slid over her like velvet. She shivered. Trembled. Was desperate for something out of reach that only he could provide.
She nodded again, moving her hips experimentally. That got her a smile from him and it took what remained of her breath away. She noticed he didn't do it that often around anyone else, and that made it all the more sensual and intimate.
Gino stared down at the woman who had somehow wrapped herself around his heart. He didn't know how it had happened or even when, only that he couldn't do without her. She was beautiful to him, physically astoundingly gorgeous, but more than her looks, she was everything he wanted in a woman. He'd never considered that his dream woman really existed, or that if she did, he would find her.
Gino had no real respect for authority. He was the authority. Arrogant, yeah. Completely confident. Absolutely. Dominant. No question. He could be as cold as ice, not feeling a thing. He didn't mind what others thought of him and he didn't mind fucking someone up.
Zara was intelligent and had a sense of humor. She was soft inside. Empathetic. Sweet as candy. She followed his lead without hesitation. She never wanted to hurt a single soul. He was the complete opposite of her. She was quiet and soothed the demon in him, when he wanted to do violence to the world in general.
He wanted his woman to be his. He didn't want to share her with the rest of the world. Not in the sense that Zara couldn't go out and share her work, he'd be proud of her for that. It was about her focus. Her center. He needed to be that for her--and he was. He needed to be able to tell her what to do at times and have her do it just because she wanted to please him. He needed her trust in him. It was a lot to ask of a woman and he knew that. In return, he would give her anything and everything. He had the means and the desire. He needed to know he was her obsession, just as she was his. Maybe it was a fucked-up way to love, but it was his way.
He waited until he felt the viselike grip of her tight inner muscles relax their hold on his cock. Taking a breath, watching her closely, he withdrew slowly, feeling the friction around his shaft. The pleasure/pain was almost too much. It felt like a thousand fingers gripped him tightly and massaged. Her eyes widened, and he surged forward. Her mouth opened in shock. Her breasts gave a sexy jolt, jiggling for him, drawing his attention so he wanted to fill his mouth with her.
Moving in her body was paradise. Fire radiated from his groin, spreading out of control down his thighs and up to his belly. Flames rolled there, hotter than hell, hotter than anything he'd ever experienced. He knew she would be like this--surrounding him with that silken fist that was so tight he thought his head might explode.
Every time he withdrew to thrust forward, he wasn't certain if his cock could make its way through her sheath until he was buried deep. He was as gentle as possible, when he wanted to throw caution to the wind and drive home over and over, as hard and fast and as deep as possible. This was all for her. He tried to make it that way, but it was almost impossible when she was practically strangling his shaft. The head of his cock felt like it might explode. He could feel each surge of hot liquid as he pushed deep.
Her face and body flushed. Her eyes had gone wide with a kind of shock. Her hair had come loose, or maybe he'd pulled it free, and it was all around her, spread on the blanket like red flames glinting at him in the sun. Her body nearly glowed from the water, humidity and beads of sweat. Every hard thrust had her breasts jolting, the action drawing his attention to the curves of her body and the way his cock disappeared into her. Was swallowed whole. He fucking loved that. He felt every breath she took right through his cock. Every movement of her body, that was how tightly she gripped him.
Lightning streaked through his body, lashing his cock. He'd never been restrained. Not ever. When he took a woman, he took her hard. He satisfied the needs of his body, the violence that was always with him and always would be. He would take her the way he needed, he knew that, but not until she was ready. Right now, with his body a firestorm burning through him, he fought to make it right for her. To make it good for her. She mattered to him, and he was determined to stay in control to give her this.
Zara was the one woman who could bring him to his knees, figuratively and literally. His body trembled, trying to hold back. Looking at her spread out before him, the trust in her eyes, the rising pleasure, feeling those tight muscles begin to clamp down harder, more urgently, sent a firestorm sweeping over his cock and up through his body.
A shiver of awareness crept down his spine. He loved her. He was so in love with this woman. Zara Hightower. It hadn't been instant, even though they'd been together a few short weeks, but they'd spent just about every minute of every day together. Ordinarily, that would have driven him crazy. Now, he couldn't imagine being without her and when he was away, he thought about her all time. She would always be his obsession, his one and only love.
Her breath hitched. She was close. "Keep looking at me, baby. When I tell you, let go. Not before. Hold on until I say."
He wanted to watch her give that to him, see the beauty on her face. He wanted to know she'd hold on, even as inexperienced as she was just, because he asked. He wanted to feel her body take his, sweep him up in the sensual, overwhelming tsunami overtaking her.
Her fists clenched in the ground blankets, fingers dragging the material into her palm. Her head thrashed from side to side and little chanting sobs--his name and "please" escaped--but through it all, she never once took her gaze from his. Fuck. He loved her all the more for that. There was power and a feeling of humbleness. She was his, but it was her choice. Always her choice. This incredible woman had chosen him.
"Now, baby. Let go for me."
Her breath hissed out of her lungs in a rush along with a small scream that stilled the insects droning around them. Her sheath bit down hard on his cock, the hot, silken muscles milking him, forcing his seed to erupt like a volcano, bursting from him in powerful jets. Lights played behind his eyes and pure, fiery, pleasure danced down his spine, up his legs and through his chest while her body drained him dry. It was an unexpectedly explosive reaction for him when he'd been so careful to be gentle, even tender with her.
He fought to get his breathing back as the fire subsided, the flames receding from his spine, dancing their way back to his roaring cock. He waited until the last possible aftershock of her body, wanting to experience all of it with her. Every second he could get. Every tiny feeling. All the while he watched her face for signs of discomfort.
Very slowly, he pulled out, seeing the evidence of her innocence staining the condom. He knotted it and set it aside to take away. He didn't believe in ever leaving indication of his passing out in the swamp. Stretching out next to her, he wrapped his arm around her waist and kissed her. God, he loved kissing her.
"You all right, princess?" He lifted his head to look at her.
She bit her lip and nodded, but her gaze slipped away from his. He didn't like that, but he didn't call her on it.
"I had no idea it would feel like that. That was more than amazing, it was beautiful. Once I got used to your size, it didn't hurt at all. I had no idea what I was missing."
She sat up slowly, and he let her. Let her scoot a little distance from him. She was still within arm's length so he wasn't concerned; he knew he could get to her if she tried to escape. He just waited until she let him know what was bothering her, and something clearly was.
"You're very good at this, aren't you?" she finally ventured.
He knew immediately he had to be careful. He promised himself he would always give her honesty, even if it meant they'd have to work through scary issues. He didn't make the mistake of giving her a smug grin or one hint of cockiness. To her, this wasn't humorous. "What are you getting at, baby?"
"That you've had a lot of experience."
"I'm not going to lie to you, Zara, I've certainly had my share of women. For one thing, I've got money. Women like money, and the thought of marrying it spread a lot of legs."
She winced and drew her knees up tight to her chest. "That doesn't sound very nice."
"I told you, I'm not a nice man. Yeah, I definitely went through a lot of women. It was easy. Eventually, it got old, so there weren't so many lately, just enough to give me relief when I needed it." He cupped the side of her face, his thumb sliding over her lower lip. "I don't cheat. I'm not a cheater, and I wouldn't do that to you. There's no divorce unless I'm physically or mentally abusive, in which case you take your ass straight to the men in my unit and let them know what's going on. Or if I cheat. I do that baby, and you're welcome to take me to the cleaners."
"I don't know what that means."
"It means you'll be set for life. I may have had a lot of experience, Zara, but there aren't going to be other women for me. I swear that to you. I don't need variety, that was never the reason I screwed around a lot."
She moistened her lips. "I don't have any experience. You're really good at this, Gino, but you have to tell me what to do half the time. You're the first man I ever kissed."
Gino leaned closer, this time brushing his mouth gently over hers. He told her the strict truth and hoped she could hear the honesty in his voice. "No other man ever gets your taste in his mouth. He never gets your kisses. He doesn't get any part of your body. I fucking love that, baby. Never thought in those terms before, but realize that you're only mine. No one else came before me and no one is coming after me. You're a gift, Zara, an unexpected treasure. A man like me likes to give instructions to his woman. I like to tell you what to do and watch you do it. It's hotter than hell."
"It is?"
If his woman needed reassurance then he was giving it to her. "Absolutely. I know that makes me kind of a prick, when I've had other women, but I love that you're mine alone. I love that I have something that is all mine. Just mine. I get off on telling you what to do in the bedroom, princess. It makes me hard as a rock. Just thinking about telling you what to do, teaching you things that will blow your mind makes me harder than I've ever been. You're perfect for me."
She gave him a tentative smile. "I think you're perfect for me." She looked up at him, suddenly shy. "When I'm with you, Gino, I feel so much more than I ever have been or thought I could be."
He caught her face in his hands. Looked into her eyes. Wanting her to see him. To know he spoke the absolute truth. "When I'm with you, Zara, I'm so much better. I've got things inside me, dark places, cold places, demons screaming to be let loose, but when I'm close to you, they're asleep. You have magic and you give it all to me. Thank you for that. Thank you for giving yourself to me. I know it has to be scary, so just know I appreciate it."
He took her mouth. That sweet curve that left him needing to kiss her every time he saw it. Or needing to feel her lips wrapped around his cock whenever he thought of them.
They spent the next few hours making out, talking, laughing, eating, cooling off in the pool and using the last condom in his wallet. He was even more careful, not wanting her to get sore. By the time the sun had set, he was ready to get her home and into a bathtub. He wasn't in the least bit sated. The more he took her, the more he knew he had to have her. Loving her and obsessing over her were intertwined until he wasn't certain where one started and the other left off. He only knew he was a lucky man and he didn't intend to blow it.
13
"Y
ou know, princess, we're building something here together, right?" Gino regarded Zara from over the top of his coffee mug. He found waking up to her was something he'd grown addicted to and he wanted confirmation from her that she knew this was going to be a long-lasting thing between them. He thought he'd made himself clear, but he wasn't taking chances. "I know this relationship is new and you don't have a lot of experience, but I'm talking permanent. I would definitely have a difficult time if you suddenly decided to play the field."
She put her teacup on the small table beside the bed and frowned at him. "Play the field?" she echoed. "As in another man? I don't want another man." That shocked her.
"That's just as well. I can be a complete bastard when I'm jealous. You might want to keep that in mind."
"I can't imagine you being a complete bastard about anything." She wiggled her toes and smiled up at him. "I can wiggle them without pain, which feels like a miracle. Nonny's poultices really are helping."
Gino put down his coffee and went to the floor to lift her feet up, so he could inspect them for healing. "I want Joe to take a look at your feet," he said, frowning. He slid his thumb over the top of her foot in a little caress. The bruises were gone and the lacerations had closed so there were only thin red lines to remind him that a monster had hurt his woman.
He dreamt about it sometimes, while he lay next to her. He dreamt he caught up with Bolan Zhu and had him alone in a place where no one could get to them before he had time to show him what it was like to hurt like that.
"Joe's a psychic healer. I'm not certain how he does it, but he heals from the inside out."
"Do you think he can help?"
"We can ask." He wanted her feet healed. Resting the tendons was helping, but she could mess up all their work by doing one wrong thing. She was becoming restless, having difficulty remembering not to put her weight on her feet. He could
n't blame her. It had been weeks and she was still having to be carried everywhere. She detested that.
Zara looked down at Gino where he crouched near her feet and met his eyes. The impact was like a punch to her heart. She had never really had the slightest interest in a man, and now she was completely enamored with Gino. Sleeping in the same bed with him had taken on an entirely new meaning now that he no longer considered her fragile. He'd taken her twice in the night and once in the morning.
She was becoming addicted to him and to the sex, because just looking at him turned her inside out. But she didn't like keeping anything from him. She didn't even know why. The smallest thing made her want to blurt out a confession. That didn't make sense when she was used to only sharing with Bellisia and Shylah.
"Baby, talk to me. I hate that look on your face."
She dared to push at the black, wavy hair spilling every which way. She liked that his hair was unruly. He was always so cool. Calm. Everything she wasn't. "It's just that I can hardly breathe without you, and it doesn't make sense. I don't want to be one of those clingy, needy women who can't make a decision without their man, but I'm terrified I'm really that woman."
His hands slid over her feet with exquisite gentleness. "You were made for me, Zara. We fit for a reason. You're hell on wheels when you're doing your research or talking about your ideas in your chosen field. I'm proud of you for that, but I don't want you making household decisions without me. Our home will be sacred. Ours. What we do there belongs to us and no one else. Our relationship is for us alone, no one else belongs in our choices. I like you clingy and needy. I like that you want to talk over decisions. That's a good thing, not a bad one."