The Dragon's Match

XXXVII

XXXVII

＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚ ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊

A rush swept through Lillian when her lips crushed against Aëghan's; something hot and heady and wholly intoxicating, yet similarly comforting, barrelled through her with the force of a torrential rapid.

Kissing him, feeling his lips cover hers as his body curled around her, was akin to coming home, to feeling safe, even if her equilibrium was veered off-centre. A shudder ran through them both when his tongue swept boldly into her mouth, the cost of being separated and loss of intimacy for the past three days felt keenly through the persistent searing of the brand encircling her upper arm. She leaned into him, supported, as her arms swept around his broad shoulders, feeling his fingers shift along her length to settle at her waist.

Then he tightened his hold, shifting her easily so that she was manoeuvred on the edge of her desk. A startled gasp left her, his lips curling into an indulgent smile against hers, but then he was kissing her fervently once more, a gruff sound leaving his chest when she nipped his lip between her teeth. Her bottom slid backwards until she was hitched, her thighs flanking his, her fingertips raking down the corrugated expanse of his naked chest.

His mouth tore away from hers abruptly, and when Lillian opened her eyes, she couldn't mistake the question in his own, the undeniable heat and need darkening their impenetrable depths.

Her heart clenched and clamoured in her chest, her skin flushed with the demands of her body that wanted this male with a fervour that made her dizzy. "Aëghan," she breathed, or whimpered- she hardly knew at that moment how she formulated speech. Her fingers splayed wide against his ribs and she marvelled at the shift and play of muscle there, momentarily distracted-

He caught her chin gently, capturing her attention once more. "I desire you more than anything in this world and the next," Aëghan told her softly, "but I will understand if you wish to wait until you are able to wholly trust me once more."

She shook her head vehemently. "No." Her thighs clamped about his, her skirts pulling taut. "I want you, I trust you- it was never an issue of trust. It was an issue of what parts of you I could have... of which parts of you I could never have- and I was selfish, for wanting it all and being unable to settle for the parts you could give me."

"You could never be selfish," he murmured, his fingers dropping and working over the front buttons of the heavy woollen coat she wore. It draped open in no time, and he began to ease her arms free from the sleeves, leaving the hefty fabric to pool behind her. "You have every right to demand all of it from me. And I am more than willing to give it to you." His gaze grew warm, making her stomach flutter with anticipation. With deliberate slowness, never removing his gaze from hers, Aëghan's fingers moved to her sides, his thumbs swiping teasingly under her breasts as they passed to her back, and there he began to unfasten the row of tiny buttons that trailed down her spine. "You only need to tell me, again and again, exactly what it is that you want."

She gnawed her bottom lip, the material of her gown beginning to loosen about her shoulders. When he had finished his quest at her back, he found the sleeves at her shoulders and pulled them down. Cool air touched her skin where she was now exposed, and she shifted closer to him. "You," she breathed. "I want you. I'll always want you- again and again."

His grin was wicked and indulgent, and Lillian realised just then how much she adored seeing his lips curl into that familiar smirk. It was unequivocally Aëghan, unapologetic and shameless. "Just not enough to marry me," he teased.

She smiled, reaching for him, forcing him to step closer and become hindered by the skirts that separated them. His hands dropped to her thighs, his fingers curling in the soft fabric there. "I never said I wouldn't," she told him wryly. "I just never said when."