Before she could think about it for too long and lose both her courage and her desire, she pushed Brian onto his back and straddled him. Arianna ignored his questioning look and began to kiss her way down his strong body. She felt him tense when she nipped his taut stomach but the way he clenched his hands in her hair told her that it was not a sign of rejection. The groan that rumbled in his chest when she settled between his long legs and ran her tongue up the hard length of him was all the encouragement she needed.
Brian closed his eyes and then quickly opened them again, wanting to watch Arianna as she made love to him with her mouth. When she took him into her mouth he knew he would not be able to enjoy the pleasure she gave him for too long. It was too intense. Gritting his teeth when the need for release built to the point of pain, he grabbed her under her arms and pulled her up his body. He had to hold on to her firmly when she tried to move off him to lie on her back.
“Nay, lass, ye will ride me tonight,” he said.
“Ye want me on top?”
She sounded so stunned he knew that Claud had never had her do more than lie beneath him. “Och, aye, love. I want ye on top and I want to be seated deep inside ye. Now.”
He had to help her in the beginning but he did not mind, despite his desperate need. It was just more proof that she had no experience in such things, her surprised wonder as clear to see as it was when he had shown her they could make love standing up, as well as when he had made love to her with his mouth. The fact that he was sharing things with her that she had never shared with that thrice-cursed Claud pleased him beyond words. Before he could worry about why that should be, however, Arianna began to reveal a true skill at riding her man. Brian rapidly lost all ability to think about anything save for the pleasure she gave him.
Arianna was drowsy, so pleasantly sated she did not even flinch when Brian cleaned her of the remnants of their lovemaking. The moment he got back beneath the bedcovers and took her into his arms, she curled up against his warmth with a happy sigh. There was a chance she would be embarrassed by her behavior in the morning but she promised herself that she would do her best to fight it. She was a grown woman, a widow, enjoying her lover, and she should not be blushing like a virgin over any pleasure they shared.
“Ye didnae aggravate any of your wounds, did ye?” asked Brian as he idly stroked her back.
“Nary a one,” she replied.
“Thank ye, love.”
“For nay aggravating my wounds?”
He laughed. “Nay, for the pleasure ye gave me.”
“Ah. I think it was my pleasure, too,” she whispered.
“Good. Ye shouldnae do anything unless the pleasure of it can be shared.” He kissed the top of her head. “Sleep, love. Ye need your rest now.”
It was not long before she was asleep, her body going limp against his. Brian stared up at the ceiling and tried very hard not to think about how soon she would be gone from his life.
Chapter 15
Brian eased the bedcovers down and looked at a soundly sleeping Arianna from head to toe. She was beautiful but he knew it might be a long time before she believed anyone who told her so. Passion eased her shyness and stilled the worry in her mind that her body was flawed, but he wanted her to revel in the fact that she was a passionate woman. He wanted her completely free of the chains of doubt Claud had wrapped her in. The sudden thought that he would be freeing that passionate woman only to send her to another man was one he ruthlessly banished.
From her plump breasts crested with pink nipples to her tiny waist, rounded hips, and long, slender legs, she was a delight to his eyes. He almost grinned for he truly did find her small feet attractive with those long toes. The tidy patch of red curls between her slim thighs drew his attention and he slid down her body to kiss her there.
Arianna woke to hear herself panting, her stomach knotted tight with desire. Brian was kissing her down there again, she thought, but passion had already banished her shock over such intimacy. Instead, she reached down to curl her fingers in his thick, black hair and a heartbeat later cried out his name as that knot of desire broke, sending pure fire through her body. She was still reeling from the force of her release when he joined their bodies with one hard thrust. Arianna clung to him as he sent her soaring again and, this time, shattered with her.
The pleasant lethargy of satiation was just beginning to fade when Brian eased out of her arms. “Ah, time to leave?”
“Aye, love, I fear so.” He brushed a kiss over her lips, slipped out of bed, and disappeared behind the privacy screen.
The moment Brian came back out from behind the screen, Arianna tugged the bedcovers up over her breasts and sat up to watch him dress with a swift efficiency she could only envy. “We could try riding hard to begin with so that we make better time on the journey.”
He glanced over his shoulder at her as he laced on his boots. “I am nay sure ye are healed enough for that.”
“I promise to tell ye the verra moment I suffer any discomfort from the pace we set.”