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“Darling, I want you…but we need an
actual
bed,” he moaned against her mouth.

His exploring hands and near-frantic kisses heightened the throb of desire between her legs. She was a live wire, and one touch in the right spot and would set her off. Her hands scrambled over his clothes, trying to find a way to get to his skin, remembering all too well how he looked in nothing but boxers.

“No bed,” she clawed at him. “Here, now—”

M
aybe I need to take the edge off you.”

His husky words were Kat’s only warning before he jerked her legs apart. He held onto the back of her neck with one hand, while his other slid up her inner thigh, pushing her dress up to her hips. Then he cupped her mound, the heat of his palm against her throbbing clit making her jerk and gasp.

“You like that?” Tristan rubbed her clit through her panties, swirling a fingertip over the nub. It was almost
too
sensitive.

Kat’s hands slipped beneath his shirt. She raked her nails down his back at the same moment he dipped a finger past her panties and stroked her opening.

God, his voice, he could say anything with that accent—like a dirty-talking Knight of the Round Table or something—and she’d explode. A desperate moan escaped her. How had she gone straight to Arthurian erotic fantasies with him?

“I need the words, darling. Be that naughty little kitty Kat for me.”

Another wonderful, wicked stroke of his thumb, a feather of his lips on her jaw, and a slight squeeze on her neck, all reminded her how helpless she was to resist anything he wanted to do to her. He was a true British bad boy, and it was turning on everything inside her.

“Tristan,
please
,” she panted, her hips canting in the direction of his finger.

“Please what? Say it for me, Kat,” he ordered. His hand at the nape of her neck fisted in her hair, jerking slightly on the strands, giving her a hint of pain, which only made her skin flush with an unbearable heat.

She was too shy to demand he fuck her with his fingers, too embarrassed to be so bold. But she wanted to be able to tell him exactly what he should do to her to make her come, not that he needed any hints. It was like the man could read her mind. In silent begging, she shifted her body closer and finally pleaded with him, “Touch me,
harder
.”

With a gentle nip at her lips, he did exactly what she wanted and thrust one finger into her. The world seemed to blossom with new colors, and everything started to spin.

“Oh, God!” she hissed and writhed against his hand, so close to coming.

He nuzzled her neck, leaving hot, teasing kisses as he caged her body against his with one arm while his other hand began to slowly fuck her. Each slow, deliberate penetration of that one finger was devastating and perfect, like the night in her dorm room only a thousand times stronger.

“There’s so much I want to do to you, little kitty Kat,” he purred in that soft, velvety accent.

It was all she needed. A sudden explosion of pleasure overtook her, and she spasmed around his finger. Her teeth sank into his shirt-clad shoulder as she rode the intense orgasm.

“Bloody hell,” he muttered, panting against her ear. “You’re destroying my self-control.” He chuckled, before he nibbled her neck. “You’re going to unman me, at this rate.”

She laughed. Unman the sexiest guy she’d ever met?
Unlikely.

He kissed her again, taking his time with leisurely licks and nips. His finger was still inside her, drawing out the trembling aftershocks of pleasure. Her muscles clamped down on him again and again, trying to keep him there.

A wave of shyness hit her, and she buried her face against his chest, her hands still stroking the hot muscles beneath his black shirt. Reality crept back bit by bit as the high of her orgasm faded, and she realized she was sitting on the edge of an antique desk in a fire-lit library with Tristan standing between her thighs. It was wanton, sexy, and Kat couldn’t help but feel strange because she’d never dreamed she’d be
this
kind of woman.

She was the girl who stayed at home and did her homework, went to bed early, got to class and just…worked. But here she was with Tristan, and he was opening up a new, darker side to her, one that felt older, more aware of the world and of what a man and woman could be together. A shiver rippled through her.

“Are you all right?” he asked, and buried his face against the crown of her hair.

“Yes.” She smiled up at him and wriggled to get closer. “You’re so hot.”

“Need me to warm you up?” he asked, his low, rumbling laugh creating a new ripple of excitement and contentment inside her.

“Hmm, that would be nice.” She pressed her cheek against his throat, breathing in his clean, dark scent. It was addictive. She wanted to bottle up that scent and take it everywhere.

When he withdrew his hand from between her thighs, she hated the emptiness.

With a little wicked grin, Tristan raised his finger to his lips, sucking it, his eyes briefly closing as he tasted…her. God, he was licking his finger, the one that had been inside her.

“I always knew you’d taste sweet.” He opened his eyes and stared at her with a hungry intensity that made her entire body ripple with another mini-orgasm.

He pulled her dress down her legs, and she slid off the desk. For a second she worried that the night was over, but when she looked up at his face and saw the fire in his gaze and the wicked tilt of his lips in a sinful smile, she knew things were far from over.

“What do you say we try a bed this time?”

Tristan held out a hand, and she tucked her fingers into his. He gave a little tug, and she followed him out of the study. Music and laughter echoed up from the hallway near the stairs, but Kat could barely hear it above the wild pounding of her heart. They walked down the hallway, and he stopped at a room, opening the door. The dark interior was inviting rather than frightening.

“Your bedroom?” she asked.

She could barely believe that this was going to happen. She was going to have sex with Tristan in his room. Her first time…with him, with any man. But with him, it meant everything.

“Yes.” He grasped the little brass key sticking out of the door and, with a slow turn, locked her inside with him. Another skitter of her pulse, and she had to swallow to keep calm. How could he make her feel a little scared and so wildly excited at the same time?

She stood there taking in the room while he disappeared into the connecting bathroom and ran water in the sink as he washed his hands.

The large four-poster bed was made of rich dark wood, the posts carved with leaves and swirling vines. Kat bent and unzipped her ankle boots, sliding them off. She stood by the foot of the bed and wriggled her toes in the thick cream carpet.

Everything in the room was rich and decadent, but also understated. From the navy blue silk coverlet and the thick pillows piled invitingly on the bed, to the black-and-white photographs of Cambridge that hung on the walls, Tristan had quite a room.

“What do you think?” Tristan came up behind her, his hands settling on her hips.

Kat turned her head and rubbed it against him. It was so hard to think straight when he was touching her, and even harder knowing they were going to…

“It’s a lot better than my dorm room…”

Bigger bed. Softer sheets. I can do this. I want to do this.

He pressed his cheek against the crown of her hair before his hands tugged at the zipper of her dress.

“I missed you,” he whispered. The way he said it, with a mixture of confession and epiphany, made it seem as though he was surprised to admit it.

“I missed you, too,” she admitted. “I’m sorry about what I said.” She held her breath.

His hands froze in the middle of pulling down her dress.

“Why?”

Kat reached up to shimmy her dress down her shoulders. It dropped to the floor, and she stepped out of it. Would talking about this make things worse? It would probably kill the moment, but she owed him an apology.

“I’m sorry for judging you. I should’ve given you a fair chance.” Kat rotated in his arms, aware she was wearing nothing but a black bra and panties. She hoped—no, she prayed—he’d still want her.

His eyes raked down her body, and she clenched her thighs together at the hot hunger she saw in his gaze.

“Consider it forgiven. Before I met you…I was that kind of man. But no longer. Not while I’m with
you
.” Tristan cupped her face, and their gazes locked. Then he began to press teasing, soft kisses on her, his hands stroking her hair, making her shiver even as he tamed her frantically beating heart.

She held her breath and then nodded. “Please don’t hurt me. If we do this, I want you to promise me that.” She meant emotionally, he had to know that. She wasn’t afraid he’d hurt her physically.

Tristan gripped the back of her neck, holding her still so she couldn’t shy away during the most vulnerable moment of her life.

“I can’t erase my past, and sometimes it resurfaces. If you can trust me, nothing will hurt you while we’re together.” His promise was a husky whisper, but his eyes were sharp with sincerity.

Kat tried not to think about his past, his playboy reputation, and the scores of women he’d been with before. It was a little easier, at least right now, to push it all aside because she
wanted
to trust him.

“Okay.” With a smile, she gripped the bottom of his T-shirt and tugged it up. He helped her lift the fabric off, and he tossed it away. But when she reached for his jeans, he caught her hands.

“Leave them. If we don’t, I’ll be inside you too soon, and I want to fuck you all night, darling. Don’t test me until I’ve regained some control.”

His words made her shiver. She’d never cared all that much for the word
fuck
but when Tristan said it to her…it made her skin burn and clit pulse in time with her wild heartbeat.

Tristan lifted her up by her waist and carried her the short distance to the bed. He tossed her onto her back, but before she could react, he’d crawled up her body, only pausing to unfasten the button of his jeans. But he didn’t remove them. The promise of unbuttoned denim was somehow hotter. God, what this man did to her.

When he noticed her watching him, he grinned. “The last thing I need is one bloody button stopping me once I’m ready to be inside you.”

Her face flamed, and she ducked her head. He placed a kiss over her brow and nudged her knees apart with one of his.

“Can we get beneath the covers?” Kat asked. This was her first time a man was seeing her naked, and she wanted to hide as much as possible.

Tristan was watching her with a concerned expression in his eyes. “Are you cold?”

When she shook her head, he raised a brow. “Then, no. I want to see you, Kat. Every inch of you. Covers are for later,
much
later. When it’s time to sleep.”

“But—”

He kissed away all of her protests. She clung to his broad shoulders, encouraging him to put more of his weight on top of her. It was a good feeling, his hot, hard body over hers, pressing her down into the soft bed. Tiny shivers of excitement rippled through her.

“Maybe I should warm you up,” he teased.

She couldn’t help but beam at him. She was so nervous that it felt like every muscle inside her was shaking, but she wanted him, and that desire battled against her nerves.

“Tristan, I haven’t done a whole lot,” she whispered.

“I know, darling.”

How could he soothe and entice her at the same time with so simple a reassurance?

“I haven’t done
this
at all, remember?” She closed her eyes, then opened them again, ready to face him and however he might react.

He touched her cheek. “Kat, we don’t have to do this if you’re not ready.”

She let out a soft husky laugh. “I want this and I’m ready, I’m just nervous. What if I’m not good at it? You’ve been with so many other girls who were probably great in bed…” What if she didn’t measure up? The idea was enough to start cooling her fires.

The flames of desire in his eyes simmered to a softer, low-burning heat. “You’re not simply a notch in my bedpost. Do you understand? We do this if and when you’re ready.”

Her heart fluttered, and she was too afraid to hope. “Do you mean that?”

With a little smile, he laughed. “Yes, I do. I can’t figure out why, but you’re important to me, Kat. So if you aren’t ready for this, we can take it slow, even if it bloody well kills me.” His chuckle was rough, as though he were clinging to the last shreds of his control.

God, how she loved knowing she put him on the edge like that.

“And if I do want to do this?” She slid closer to him on the bed.

Tristan grinned. “Then we do it, however you want.”

Kat leaned forward and kissed him. “Let’s do this.”

“You trust me?” he asked her.

“I do.” She ran her fingertips along his clean-shaven jaw, admiring how soft his skin was, and knowing it would tickle her in a few hours when a beard started to shadow his jaw again.

“Then touch me, mark me, do anything you want. I’ll make this a night to remember,” he promised.

After that, words weren’t needed. He tugged the cups of her bra down, revealing her breasts. He licked, then sucked at each nipple, teasing the tips until they were so sensitive even his warm exhalations against them drew a whimper from her.

Kat had never known her instincts could be so strong, but they took over.

She arched up, thrusting her breasts deeper into his waiting mouth. Her hands roamed his back, shaping the smooth, hard contours of his shoulder blades, the indentation of his spine. Closing her eyes, she embraced every sensation from the muted music of the party below, the slide of her skin on the sheets, and the way her body fit Tristan’s.

One of his hands cupped her ass. With a little sting against her skin, he ripped her panties off and tossed them aside, growling against her breasts as he did so. There was an animal side to him, one that excited and fascinated her. The cool, seductive British sex god turned into a raw sensual beast. The realization only made her wetter.

She tried to clamp her thighs together. He answered with a low groan of approval and bit one of her nipples. Her nails sank into his back, dragging down his shoulder blades as an orgasm started to build inside her. Kat raised her hips, rubbing her clit against the hard ridge behind his jeans.

Kat bit her bottom lip, holding in all the sounds that she wanted to make. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she was all too aware that her friends and his were downstairs partying. The last thing either of them wanted was to be overheard by anyone who might venture down the hall. She rocked her body up, desperate to get closer.