Seduced by the Gladiator by Lauren Hawkeye

grimly, then in one smooth motion inserted his finger fully inside of me. I gripped the edges of the wooden bath until my knuckles turned white.
    “Having physical acts forced upon you does not take away from your purity, Lilia. I know this better than most.” His eyes darkening, he gripped my hip with his free hand and began to work his finger in and out of me. “And I suspect that no one has ever shown you the pure pleasure that can be had between two people who mutually consent to it.”
    I could not speak, for all of my attention was forced on his finger, which was working in and out of me in a steady rhythm. My clit throbbed, desperate for the same touch.
    “I do not know how you can think that I am pure. I have been touched by more hands than you can imagine. I have killed. I will kill again.” It was important to me that he know these things before we went any further.
    Again that formidable smile appeared. I gasped when, with one quick motion, he removed his finger and pulled me from the edge of the bath. I landed in the heated water beside him with a splash, droplets peppering my face and hair.
    “Perhaps you are trying to convince me that you do not need to be treated with gentleness.” His words were a growl, and as he spoke, he reached down and clasped my calves. Strong hands guided my legs around his waist with sure movements, even as he took care to avoid my injured ankle.
    Before I could catch my breath, I found my back pressed against the wooden slats of the tub, the hardness of his cock pressed against my entrance.
    My insides liquefied. This, I could wrap my thoughts around—two bodies finding heat in each other. The gentleness, the kindness, had been too much, but this . . .
    This was what I wanted.
    I arched my hips, and felt the swollen head of his cock slip inside of me. I inhaled sharply, my fingers digging into his shoulders, where I held tightly for support.
    “Be sure.” Christus pressed his forehead against my own, then brushed his lips against mine. I sank my teeth into the corded muscle of his neck in response, felt his erection jerk inside of me in response.
    “I am sure.” I had barely finished speaking when he had seated himself inside of me, his action hard yet not rough. I exhaled equally hard, stilling for a moment to adjust myself to the strange sensation of him inside of me. Muscles that had long gone unused stretched to accommodate his length, his girth, and I felt liquid heat pool in anticipation of what was to come.
    “Are you all right?” Turning his head, his voice unsteady, Christus lowered his hands to the globes of my ass and squeezed.
    I found myself unable to meet his stare. Again flushing, I buried my face in his neck, speaking directly into his ear.
    “We must be quick.” I held perfectly still, unsure of myself in a way that I never was. He held still as well, seeming to wait for my orders.
    “I . . . please.” I felt those fingers squeeze me again, kneading my flesh, bringing nerve endings to life.
    There was a brief moment in which I thought of how strange it was to feel nothing but desire. And then he slammed into me with all of the strength that was coiled into his muscles, and I could not think at all.
    My back, still partially covered by the leather band covering my chest, hit the wooden side of the tub flat. I could feel the knot in the leather of my top and tried with one hand to release it.
    I wanted to be skin to skin with Christus. I wanted to milk every little bit of sensation that I could from this encounter, because I knew that, once it was over, I could not afford to repeat it.
    “No.” One large hand fisted in the front of the leather band, pulling until the knot released. The wet leather was flung over the side of the tub, and I heard it land with a wet slap on the floor beneath.
    My nipples were hard as rocks and abraded his chest. I arched my back, offering them to him.
    “Lilia.” Leaving me to hold on to him myself, he filled his