She licked her lips and watched his pupils dilate as he tracked the motion of her tongue. “I—I don’t know.” She winced at her breathless stammer, feeling worse than a gawky moron.
Sam’s head descended until they were practically nose to nose. She stared into his eyes, mesmerized by the intensity in their depths. His irises were so dark, she’d at first assumed they were completely black, but up close, she saw they were actually a deep midnight blue.
“We can’t have you selling a bed you haven’t stamped a personal testimony on. What if the springs squeak?” His whiskey-smooth voice held an unmistakable hint of tease.
Before her brain produced a not entirely idiotic response, Sam’s mouth claimed hers. The same electric jolt of desire and apprehension she’d experienced in the ballroom slammed into her with renewed force. A moan slipped free before she could cage it. The sound must have encouraged Sam, because he re-angled his approach, his tongue delving past her lips as if it had every right to do so. She truly wished with every fiber in her being that it didn’t, but the heady pleasure Sam was delivering told a different story.
As if her arms possessed a will of their own, they circled his neck, her fingers threading through the thick softness of his hair. A part of her screamed in warning, reminding her she wasn’t supposed to be enjoying this. It was one thing to convince Sam she wanted to rip his clothes off and have her wicked way with him. She wasn’t supposed to actually want to do it.
It proved nearly impossible to keep that thought on track as Sam’s tongue glided along hers. Retreating slightly, he explored the edges of her teeth before he sucked on her bottom lip and started his lush oral treatment all over again. By the time he pulled back, her mouth felt swollen and thoroughly ravished. Her breath puffed in shallow, staccato bursts, and the soaked crotch of her panties clung to her throbbing flesh in damning proof of her insatiable desire for him.
Passion and fear warred inside her. She wanted—no, craved—the wet, slick rasp of Sam’s tongue on her everywhere. Her mouth, her breasts and painfully hard nipples. Her pussy. Oh goddess. She especially hungered to feel him there. And that was wrong. So very, very wrong.
Sam’s mouth abandoned hers and slid to the slope of her neck. His beard scruff tickled her skin, inciting a host of goose bumps. He scored his teeth along the pulse point beneath her ear before sucking the tender spot. A responding beat echoed in her clit, and she whimpered. Without warning he swept her into his arms. She clung to him, as much startled by the action as his obvious strength.
Before she even thought to protest, Sam strode the short distance to the daybed and tossed her into the middle of it. Decorative throw pillows tumbled to the ground as he stretched over her. Their bodies aligned in the most delicious way. She struggled to ignore that reality, but Sam seemed determined to prove exactly how traitorous her body could be. He cupped her breasts through the flimsy fabric of her Greek goddess gown, and she arched into him, her nipples obediently pebbling under his touch. His husky chuckle mocked her. Swirling his tongue in the sensitive hollow beneath her ear, he rolled his fingertips over her nipples. She nearly shot out of her skin.
“You’re incredibly responsive considering I haven’t even gotten you naked yet.” There was no mistaking the intent in his voice. Giving a low, sexy growl, he bunched the skirt of her costume in his hands and whisked it upward. Before she’d snapped to her senses, he’d tugged the dress completely off her, leaving her with only a skimpy G-string and matching bra to hide her from his hot, hungry gaze.
Milky moonlight poured through the window, revealing Sam’s unabashed stare as it roved her body, lingering everywhere, but especially on the faint shadow of her pubic hair beneath the sheer white mesh of her panties. Her hands automatically moved to cover her groin, and he used the opportunity to free the front clasp of her bra with a deft flick of his wrist. He separated the nylon cups and stared at her breasts.
Her heart hammered, making her dizzy. She’d never been this naked with a man. The realization was both exciting and scary. She attempted to shield her exposed flesh again, but Sam gripped her wrists in one hand and pinned them above her head.
Straddling her thighs, he lifted onto his knees and reached for something overhead. She craned her neck to see what he was up to and frowned when he snagged one of the tasseled curtain tiebacks draped over the folding silk screen tucked behind the daybed. Recalling the imprisoned state of her wrists, her eyes widened. No. He wouldn’t.
The wicked sparkle in his eyes quickly shot a hole in that pathetic theory. She jerked against his hold, earning his devilish chuckle. He braced her hands on the daybed’s brass rail and looped the tieback’s velvet cord around her joined wrists, securing them to the cold metal bar as easily as if she’d been a steer at a roping contest. Not exactly the most flattering way to picture herself, to be sure. “S-Sam, let me out of this, damn it.”
“No.”
“Please?” Soon as she was free, she’d kick his ass for making her beg.
“I’m not spending all night fielding your coy hiding games. For shit’s sake, you act like you’re a damn virgin or something.”
She glared at him. “Maybe I am.”
“Yeah, likely story, baby.”
She opened her mouth in order to correct him of his misassumption, but the words dried in her throat as Sam stripped out of his shirt. She’d seen him bare-chested before. It made absolutely no sense why her nipples should still tingle at the close-up view of the sleek, sculpted contours of his muscular torso and chiseled six-pack. Swallowing with great difficulty, she watched his hand trail in a lazy fashion down his washboard abs, following the thin peppering of silky hair that arrowed toward the waistband of his jeans. He released the buckle on his belt and withdrew the leather strap from the loops. His motions deliberate and slightly menacing, he anchored the belt around the top rail of the daybed.
Catching her wary look, he offered a smile that’d make a crocodile nervous. “Might need it later.”
What the hell have I agreed to? She gulped, her mind scrambling to produce a way out of her predicament. Right now would probably be an excellent time to work on that holding spell she’d considered earlier. Being strapped half naked to a bed while trying to perform it wasn’t usual protocol, but sometimes a gal just had to make do.
Without warning, Sam’s thumb flicked her nipple, and she jolted. “Oh goddess.”
“Not exactly, sweet Bella.” A carnal gleam glinting in his eyes, Sam lowered his head and sucked the distended nub into his mouth. The wet heat and luscious friction of his tongue were enough to send every sane, rational thought in her head packing.
She moaned and unconsciously bowed her back. Sam released her nipple with a succulent pop and concentrated his efforts on its mate. In less time than she cared to dwell on, he worked her into a panting, quivering wreck.
He abandoned her breasts and slid down the valley of her abdomen, his lips, teeth and tongue a maddening torment. By the time he settled between her thighs, her chest was heaving and embarrassing mewling noises escaped her throat. His mouth closed over her pussy, the tip of his tongue teasing her clit through her G-string’s soaked mesh. Her hips jerked, her body trembling. She frantically tried to concentrate on anything besides his incredibly tantalizing mouth, but that seemed as likely as remembering to breathe—a feat she was definitely having trouble with at the moment.