Everything female in her melted as his rough whisper sent shivers cascading down her spine. She turned to him, met his blue gaze, and saw nothing but intense sincerity in his eyes.
He wasn’t feeding her a line—then again, she hadn’t really expected that from him. Vaughn didn’t do cheesy pick-up lines. He only opened his mouth when he had something to say, and then he only said exactly what was on his mind.
And he wanted to make love to her.
Make love.
Sex had never been about love for her. At one time, years ago, she’d thought she’d been in love, but she’d been young and stupid and so easily fooled. Ever since, sex was never more than a physical itch to be scratched or a form of power or manipulation. Yes, sex could be fun. It could be dirty, even occasionally be sweet, but never more than that. And it could never, ever be about love.
She wanted it to be more.
Just this one time. With him.
Vaughn cupped a hand around the back of her neck and drew her in close until their lips were nearly touching. His breath smelled of mint from his toothpaste, and she imagined if she lifted up on her toes and closed the distance between them, the taste would also be lingering on his lips.
“Let’s go to bed,” he said, grazing his mouth over hers.
“Yes.” She closed her eyes and sank into his kiss. “Make love to me, Vaughn.”
Chapter Twelve
Vaughn had never expected to hear those words from her. Even when he’d been in the hospital, doped up on pain meds, and had experienced some of the craziest lovesick dreams of his life, she’d never said those words.
And now that she had, he was…
Nervous.
Which was just plain fucking stupid. He knew sex, considered himself good at it. He could read a woman’s body like a navigational chart, had made a study of it—and hers in particular. He knew how to make her scream and what made her come, but the moment she asked him to make love to her, all of that knowledge vanished. Forget the fact they’d just finished having sex not even twenty minutes ago. It was suddenly like he was a teenager again, fumbling around a woman’s body for the first time.
His heart bounced around erratically as he led her into the bedroom. He sat her on the end of the bed and wordlessly knelt in front of her, gently parting her thighs with shaking hands. If he were going to make love to her, it would be with his mouth and then his body. He wanted to savor every second.
She was already wet. He leaned in and tasted her with one long sweep of his tongue before focusing all of his attention on the little nub that always made her rocket. With a throaty moan, she fell back on the bed as her body bowed toward his mouth.
“That’s it, vixen.” He licked his lips, then went in for another taste. “Come in my mouth.”
“Oh…Vaughn!” His name was a half sob, half gasp. He reached up, found her hand clawing at the duvet, and entwined their fingers.
“Yeah, I’m right here with you, vixen.” He kissed her thigh and slid two fingers into her, working them in and out while he went back to circling her clit with his tongue. He felt her coil tighter and tighter, her legs shaking, and he didn’t let up on his assault. And then it was like a cork popped, and all the tension drained out of her on a soft, sexy moan. He didn’t release her right away but continued his lazy exploration with his tongue until she was panting again.
He was perfectly happy to stay there between her thighs, coaxing her to orgasm again and again with his mouth, but his own need for release was becoming painful, and he wanted inside her. He left her long enough to put a condom on, then returned to the bed and crawled up her body, trailing kisses along her soft skin as he went.
He paused where his trident lay between her breasts, and the surge of primal satisfaction at seeing it there made him grin. “Definitely looks better on you. Right here, between these beauties.” He cupped her breasts, rasped his thumbs over her nipples.
“Hey, SEAL.” She smiled down at him. “Get up here and kiss me.”
“Ma’am, yes, ma’am.” He planted a kiss on the trident, then shoved himself up to take her mouth. She tasted faintly of toothpaste, but under that was a crisp tartness that was all her. He delved his fingers into her hair and took his time with the kiss, drinking her in while he positioned himself at her entrance.
She yielded to him, but there was something different this time than all the other times before it. For once, she was completely open to him, body and soul, and he froze at the realization.
She wound her arms around his neck and pulled him in closer so that every part of their bodies touched. “Don’t stop.”
“Oh, vixen, you couldn’t pay me to.” He laced their hands together, pressed his forehead to hers, and rocked his hips.