Rebel Heat by Cyndi Friberg

pushed her legs apart and knelt between them, opening her body to his heated gaze.
    “I want to be inside you so badly I can hardly breathe.” His voice was so tight he sounded strangled by the confession. “But release me now and I’ll return your clothes instead.”
    The power struggle was already lost. He’d issued an ultimatum to which she could never surrender. Each of his skillful caresses only compounded her shame, her failure. She wanted it over as quickly as possible. “I’m not a cringing virgin. You’re not going to terrify me with threats of sex. Do your worst or leave me alone. I want to get some sleep.”
    He arched over her, supporting himself on one forearm as he pressed his other hand to the side of her face. “You misunderstand my intention. This won’t be over quickly. I will arouse you with my fingers and my mouth. I will know your taste as well as the softness of every part of your delightful body. It will take hours before I am finally ready to thrust inside you and do my worst .”
    Her heart fluttered in her chest, but she honestly couldn’t tell if it was fear or anticipation. “But you need to build your lust not mine.”
    His thumb traced her lower lip as his penetrating gaze stared into hers. “There is nothing more arousing than watching a woman come and knowing I’m responsible for her pleasure.”
    Dread washed over her, momentarily cooling her wayward body. It was easy to justify simple surrender. Fighting him had accomplished nothing. Her goal now had to be survival and escape, which meant she had to make it through tonight without physical damage. A sprained ankle or broken wrist would greatly hinder her escape. But how did she justify wanting him, craving each and every pleasure he’d mentioned?
    He lowered his head and kissed one corner of her mouth and then the other. His breath warmed her cool skin and rekindled sensations she thought she’d banished. Her lips trembled as her pulse ramped up to an even faster rhythm. She felt restless and needy, almost drugged.
    His body shifted, his hips pressing into hers as his chest lightly grazed her beaded nipples. He rested on both forearms now, his hands framing her face. His image filled her vision and his scent drifted through her nose, sinking deeper with each anxious breath. He brushed his lips back and forth over hers, teasing her, awakening her responses.
    “I know this isn’t what you want,” he whispered against her lips. “But I also know you’re wet and this isn’t the first time my touch has aroused you.”
    Before she could protest or argue, he sealed his mouth over hers. His lips pressed then slid, caressing as he urged her mouth open. She clenched her hands and remained perfectly still. Allowing this because she had no other choice was a legitimate strategy. Losing herself in these sensations was…weak.
    She jerked her head to the side, panting harshly. “I can’t stop you from touching me, but I don’t want to kiss you.”
    He turned her head back around as challenge hardened his expression. “Why? You enjoyed kissing me before.”
    “This is war.” She stared past him, refusing to meet his gaze. “It’s a twisted sort of battle. I can’t enjoy anything about it.”
    A warm chuckle rumbled through his chest. “You keep telling yourself that, morautu .”
    Then his mouth was on hers again and his tongue swept back and forth, easing farther inward with each pass. Bite him. Prove that you mean what you say. Make him listen.
    He advanced slowly, completely focused on the kiss. His fingers stroked the side of her face as his sensual assault on her mouth progressed. She couldn’t bring herself to bite him, so she tried to remain passive, utterly uninvolved in what he was doing. But his tongue stroked over hers then curled around it, the invitation unmistakable. She was already defeated. Why couldn’t that be enough?
    “Kiss me, Morgan,” he whispered. “I want your tongue in my mouth.”
    Temptation