Could she survive this?
Her breath escaped in a long, tortured moan.
“Please, Gideon, please
…”
Did he reply? Her ears were deaf to all but the endless clamor of desire.
Still, he moved inside her.
She whimpered and bit down on her lip until she tasted blood. She closed her eyes, helplessly seeking refuge in hot darkness.
The pressure climbed higher. She felt like she burst out of her skin. She felt like her bones crumbled to dust. She felt as if the world must end any second. In a blinding, endless cataclysm.
The unceasing friction between her legs was maddening. She shifted, seeking freedom from torment.
She opened blurred eyes and saw his face change.
“Now,” he growled.
One mighty thrust, and the ceaseless anticipation peaked, broke, scattered in shards of flaming rapture. She dived through darkness into a landscape of shimmering light.
Her body spasmed in an unbearable wave. She screamed as pleasure threatened to crush her. Vaguely, through her crisis, she was aware of Gideon’s groaning release.
For an eternity, she remained suspended, stretched on a rack of infinite joy. Doused with unearthly pleasure that made her cry aloud in delight. Her nails dug hard into his back as she clung to him like a rock in a sea of fire.
Dazed, changed, amazed, she returned to the world to find Gideon kissing her face, her neck, her shoulders. Tenderly. Sweetly. The sweetness all the more poignant for the violent storm they’d passed through.
“You’re so beautiful,” he whispered, glancing kisses across her cheeks and nose and forehead. Kisses like the enchanting ones he’d given her this afternoon.
For a long moment, she lay acquiescent. Her chest heaved as she sucked great breaths into empty lungs. Her muscles trembled with reaction.
Then she lifted her face toward him for more kisses. The innocence pleased her, warmed her to the heart. Even as his body rested in hers, and she quaked after that earth-shattering climax.
Gideon rolled to the side, taking her with him, still kissing her. Softly, he separated from her. She stifled a whimper of discomfort. After the uninhibited passion, she ached. Every muscle was tired, tested to its limit.
She’d never felt so good.
“Are you all right?” he murmured against her neck. His arms encircled her loosely, and his hands rubbed lazy circles on her bare back.
How could she describe the wonders she’d discovered? Words were inadequate to convey the glory. When he raised his head, she kissed his mouth very gently, trying to say with action what speech could not.
Oh, such joy to touch him freely, naturally.
His mouth moved upon hers. The kiss was warm, comforting. A thousand miles from his turbulent lovemaking.
Slowly, reluctantly, she drew away. “It was beyond anything I imagined.”
His fingers combed through her tangled hair. Like every gesture in this glowing aftermath, his touch was tender.
His expression became serious, and his hand cupped her face. For a long moment, he stared into her eyes. “It’s not always like this, Charis.” He paused, and she saw him swallow. “I’ve never known anything to match what we just shared.”
She blinked away tears. Her heart was so full, she thought it must burst. “I’m glad,” she said in a thick voice. “I want you to be mine forever.”
A shadow crossed his face, and with it, a hairline crack appeared on the shining surface of Charis’s satisfaction. “Let’s not tempt fate.”
He bent to nuzzle her neck. Heat flared as he bit down on a sensitive nerve running up from her shoulder. She closed her eyes in willing surrender. But even as need surged, his answer troubled her heart.