by Lynn Crain
Yet, this human woman made him feel more alive than he’d ever felt all the days of his life. He remembered the day she had been born. She was only a few months younger than Bevan’s and Janice’s second son. Then when she was christened in church long ago, an interesting glimmer shone in her eyes. In that moment, he realized he would need to stay as far away from her if possible.
He had left his elven post of protector to other elves and wandered the world doing additional council bidding because he didn’t want to be chosen as her protector. He had been successful in staying away until the night he had heard her bloodcurdling scream. Her voice had been different from all the other times he inadvertently listened to her through the years. This time she needed him. And he was there in an instant, pulled from the place he had been to where she was. And she had been in danger. Grave danger.
When he had arrived, he didn’t show himself right away for two reasons. First, he had been disoriented from being jerked through space and time so unceremoniously. He knew of attuned protectors and their human subjects, but he’d never thought the situation would happen to him. He had spent too much time on projects where the council sent him.
Now, here he remained where he swore he would never be. Ronan never wanted to see Giselle as a woman, to smell her clean, fresh female scent. Doing so would only bring him heartache. Those womanly attributes would make him want a life he shouldn’t have.
The second reason was more survival instinct than anything. He needed to know the situation. And it had been bad. The man in question had smashed her beautiful face with his fist more than once. As if a fist in the face hadn’t been enough, he pummeled her abdomen a couple of times. It was only when the gun was drawn Giselle had managed to scream, such as it was, a horrible gurgling sound. His command over the elements was good. He caught up on all the events in mere seconds, which had played for more than fifteen minutes in Giselle’s world.
Her face still reflected some of the bruising, but he couldn’t get the look of her terror out of his mind. He had almost failed his charge, the one the council had wanted him to watch from her birth. They didn’t know why he had left in the first place. But then again, he couldn’t comprehend a lot of things about this particular elven family, least of all the pull Giselle held over him. And he never understood why the council hadn’t assigned her to someone else. Did they know something he didn’t?
“I’ve seen you and know who you are.” He stood over her again. If he knew what was good for him, he would walk away and never return. “I know you’re trouble with a capital T and that says it all.”
Her eyes went wide at his last comment. The wheels seemed to turn in her mind. He had been told about her legendary temper, but had not seen it since her attack. In essence, they had won by making her a fearful woman, afraid to step outside of her home because she thought the world was a horrible place. Maybe if he pushed her away, made her dislike of him surface, she’d get back to who she had been and he’d return to do the council’s bidding.
She half-rose off the sofa. “How dare you?”
He took a step closer. “I dare, lady.”
“Damn you.” She quaked all over and raised her hands. “Damn you.” She pounded his chest with both fists, again and again until the fight went out of her. Her body convulsed with sobs.
His hands went to her shoulders to rub away her tension. “Giselle, you’re okay now. You’ll be fine.”
She looked up at him, pain etched his face. “What do you care?” She thrust him away with the flat of her palms.
He was taken aback by her strength, but wouldn’t let go. “You don’t have to shove me away because you’re angry at the world.”
Surprise flickered in her eyes. “Angry at the world? No, Ronan, I’m angry with you.”
“With me?” He was surprised. He had acted like a professional, like an elf should when his charge was human. Maybe he had pushed a little too hard, but he thought it would help her in the long run by making her remember who she was.
“With you.” She shrugged her shoulders, trying to remove his hands.
But he couldn’t let go. “Why? I’ve done nothing to you except be here to make sure no one attacks you again. And tried to bring you back to the world of the living.”
She chewed her bottom lip as if deciding what to say. When she did speak, it was in a low whisper and he had to lean closer to her to hear. “If all I am to you is a responsibility you don’t want, why do you always smell so good? Why do you always look so damn sexy? Get away from me if all you want is to teach me a lesson. I’ve had enough lessons in my life.”
He dropped his hands to his sides. This was his moment of truth, time for a decision, to be with her or to deny himself. “What are you talking about?”
“Huh.” Her wry gaze gave him the once over. “Go away. I don’t want you around because you need to be. Be here because you want to and no other reason. Even if we never…”
Giselle tried to shove past him, but he wasn’t giving up so easily. She had to get it all out so she—they could move forward. Making up his mind in a split second, he knew what he had to do. It was her wellbeing that mattered, not his. He grabbed her arm and pulled her so she faced away from him. Her perfume wafted up and drifted through his senses, a warm earthy smell, so unlike what he thought she would wear. He was lost. He leaned in. Her hair touched his face as light as an angel’s wing. “What is it you want, Giselle?”
His deep voice, laced with desire, touched her to her very core. “Who wants to know? Ronan, the protector or Ronan, the man?” she whispered.
Ronan stood there for a moment and realized that was the crux of his problem. He never wanted her to see him as anything but protector, man was never to enter the equation. But what was he to this woman? What did he want to be? Without a doubt, he realized what he wanted to be. He slid his hand up her arm and caressed her neck in gentle strokes. “Tha mi airson sibh. Cha’n urrainn domh t’àideadh tuilleadh.”
He gently touched her exposed flesh with his lips. She tasted like the nectar of the gods. And he could get so lost in her. He reached his other hand around her body and stroked her breast through the silky material of her party dress, not caring what it cost. He had to touch her body, had to feel her response. She pushed her back into him.
He pressed himself into her feminine softness and his body had a mind of its own, his cock hardening with each touch against her butt. Ronan moved his hand down to cup her crotch, stroking her through the thin material. The urge to taste her overtook him and he twirled her around. For a moment, he gazed into her heavy-lidded eyes before swooping down to claim her lips.
Chapter 2
His touch wasn’t tentative, not that she expected it to be. No, Giselle knew this man had always taken what he wanted first, then asked questions later. But this time was different and how she could tell was a mystery to her. An action she had done flipped a switch in him. Nothing would ever be the same in her life.
She opened her mouth to him. She wanted to open herself to this man and wanted to give who she was to him forever, she didn’t care he was an elf sent to protect her or not. Her parents would be appalled to know she had thoughts like this, but since her attack, she was different. And whether they believed it or not, she changed in a good way. And her family of elves had to be protected at all costs.
He tasted like a fine liqueur, all warm and spicy. His tongue moved in to plunge her depths as his beard scraped her delicate skin. Giselle gave as good as she got, pulling in his bottom lip and nipping before releasing it. She tilted her head back and watched his blue eyes grow darker with desire. She wanted him to fuck her senseless more than anything in the world. She needed him to touch her, be in her, to feel the release of the sexual tension, which had been building between them since her attack and he had announced he would always be there to protect her.
In this moment, she wanted no more than to get under the man’s skin. She wanted him to know what he had become to her. Moving he
r hands up his body, she thought about how he turned her on like no other. She reached under his shirt and caressed the hard muscles, going slowly up to his nipples and tweaking them. A gasp from him made her spirit soar.
Giselle pulled him closer and felt his hard shaft press into her soft stomach. She wanted to touch him, caress him into the frenzy she suffered. Wanting to feel him everywhere, she reached around his body with one hand, grabbed his hard bottom and tugged him close.
Ronan pulled back and his eyes smoldered with passion. Everywhere his gaze touched ignited a desire in her, which needed unleashing. Pushing her slowly back toward the couch, he maneuvered her to where her only choice was to sit. He stood over her like some god of old, powerful and so virulent in his want. “Your clothes need to be off your body,” he whispered. “Stand up, I want to remove them.”
“You just made me sit.” It didn’t matter because he wanted her. She stood and watched his face for a moment. “All right. I’m up.”
“Turn around.”
His hands went to the top of her dress and slowly zipped it down her back, making sure he touched her hot skin all the way down. She realized when the coolness of the night hit her skin, how vulnerable she was, not only to his physical touch, but to the emotional one as well. She had only been with one man in her life. A fiancé who had wanted her money it seemed and had given her up for a wealthier prize. The breakup had devastated her and she vowed never again. The relationship had been over six years ago.
Holding her dress up in the front, she breathed deeply, trying not to tremble with all she felt. “Now what?”
“I know you’re holding it in the front. Let go.”
Closing her eyes, she let the flimsy material slide from her body to pool in a mound around her feet. Her matching bra, panty, garter and hose were all covering her from him. She wondered what would come next when sensation after sensation flowed into her as his hands seemed to touch her everywhere.
He turned her around. His gaze scanned the length of her body, took in the scanty underwear and his eyes darkened. “I want it all gone.”
She wanted to feel braver than she did. “If you want it off, you’ll have to make it happen.” She swallowed hard and watched the surprise flit across his face. “Because I want yours gone, too, and I’m sure you’re going to make me take your clothes from your body.”
He swooped down on her again, like a predator with his prey, taking charge of her mouth. Nipping. Kissing. Making her want even more. Her hands went under his shirt and caressed his back. The muscles rippled at her touch. It was good to know she affected him in some small way.
Reaching around her, her bra was effortlessly undone, his hands went to her breasts, kneading them as he leaned down and brought one responsive, swollen bud into his mouth. She arched into him as he rolled his tongue along the hard nib, sucking ever so slightly.
“Ronan,” she groaned. “If we stay in the living room, you need to turn off the lights.”
Ronan swung her up into his arms, then strode through the penthouse toward her bedroom. “Only I get to see you as you are now.” He sat her on the edge of her king bed, pushed her down gently. His mouth took in her other nipple, tweaking the first before going even lower to continue its assault down her stomach while his hands sustained their exquisite torture of her breasts. He hovered over her crotch, breath hot as his rough bearded chin rubbed the soft skin right above her underwear. “I want this gone as well.” His thumbs hooked under the edge of lace.
She was surprised by his actions as his husky voice made her shiver. “Ronan, it’s been a long time. I’ve never…” her voice came in short gasps.
“You’ll like it.”
She placed her hands on his larger ones, stopped him and closed her eyes. “I’m—I’m sure I will. Give me a moment to take it all in.”
He stopped moving his hands on her body and looked up at her from his position on the floor. “You don’t want this?”
Giselle lifted the corners of her mouth. “No, that’s not it. I want to make sure you want this.”
He was still for a few moments, his breathing raspy. “I want this.”
His statement was solid, brooked no argument. He wanted her. And finally, she could yield to a searing desire that had been growing since he rescued her from harm on a night long ago. He was all she wanted, had ever wanted. Why was she just now seeing it?
Maybe because I’d never seen him before my rescue.
“Relax. This will be wonderful.”
She gave a low, hallow chuckle, trying to break the tension, thinking she would return the favor the first moment she got. For now, she was lost in sensation. She closed her eyes. He touched her most intimate places. His tongue circled her belly button, followed by tiny nip-kisses, going down further still to caress her hip. Then he pulled the lace away, exposing the tip of her shaved crotch.
“Smooth. Interesting. Do all human women do this?”
She was brought out of her sensual thoughts. “What?”
He looked up at her face, a wry smile on his. “Shave.”
She shook her head to get her bearings. “Sometimes. They did it in the hospital when they were afraid my hip bones were cracked and I’ve kept it up.” She shuddered then, trying hard not to think of that night.
“I’ll make you forget what happened to you.”
Ronan pulled her underwear down her legs and tossed them in the corner. Spreading her legs, his hot breath rained down on her crotch for a moment before he replaced it with his tongue. His tongue licked her first top to bottom, then his mouth suckled her labia, opening those lips with that same fiery tongue. His fingers ran smoothly over her clit, downward, then back up again, causing her to quiver in pleasure.
Bliss came in wave upon wave as she experienced for the first time an intimate touch from someone with whom she shared a deep attachment. She reached down and pulled his head closer while his tongue rolled her hard nub again and again. Her breathe came in long moans. She would wait to ride the pleasure wave to completion because Ronan would pull every sensation he could from her body.
She glanced down and saw he watched her with hooded eyes as he started to work her body not only with his mouth, but his fingers. One, then two fingers slid into her, moving her closer to fulfillment, to eliciting tortured moans from her pleasure.
Again, Giselle reached out and brought him closer to her traitorous body, wanting the sensations to last as long as possible. Another moan of ecstasy slipped from her lips and her body had its sexual reawakening. Heat moved under her skin as her orgasm built.
“Stop. I want you out of your clothes,” she said, breathless and gave a slight tug on his hair. “I want it all.”
His chuckle reverberated to her. “Saucy wench.”
He leaned back to take off his shirt when Giselle sat up and stopped him. “Let me.” When it appeared he wouldn’t comply, she added, “Please.”
A quick nod from the man had her running her hands under his shirt, tugging on it. “Bend down.” He complied with her wishes and she pulled his shirt over his head, exposing his lips. She kissed him hard, nipping gently before swirling her tongue against his. “Nice.”
“Giselle,” he growled.
She gave a low laugh before she continued to remove his shirt. Tossing it into the corner, her hands went to his pants, but she hesitated a moment.
“I want this. Tha mi airson sibh. I want you.” He grabbed her hair and pulled her up to him, kissed her savagely. “And if you know nothing about me, know this, I never do what I don’t want.”
She slid down his body and nodded, hands going to his pants, unsnapping them to caress the flesh with her mouth. She pushed them down over his lean hips and wasn’t surprised to find he didn’t wear any underwear. Her hand couldn’t fit around the man’s penis as he was huge, semi-erect and uncircumcised. She licked her lips and grinned.
“Like what you see?”
His murmur sluiced down her body like hot honey, warm and sticky,
doing funny things to her insides. “I do.”
“Then for god’s sake, don’t stop.”
Giselle bent over him and took in the tip, rolling around the tip with her tongue, feeling it grow with her ministrations. She moved her hand along his shaft while it got even larger under her touch. Taking her other hand, she reached under his penis and grabbed his balls, giving them a light squeeze. A groan of satisfaction was her reward as she continued to lavish her attention on this particular area of his anatomy.
“That feels wonderful. Take me in as best you can, I want to feel you on my cock. You’re driving me crazy!”
Her tongue snaked out and touched the head of his cock, slowly rimming the edge again. The salty taste encouraged her to do things she had never considered with her ex-fiancé. She pulled more of his shaft into her willing mouth, spurred on by the moans she heard him utter in varying tones. Reaching around, she grabbed his butt cheeks and squeezed, reveling in the smoothness of the skin beneath her hands as Ronan trembled in response to her touch. This is what she had wanted, had waited for all her life. She pulled his large cock further into her mouth, feeling him throb on the back of her throat. She reveled in his apparent weakness since her mouth stroked response after response out of him.
Colors swirled above them. She had heard rumors about the magic that would churn around two lovers. She never thought she would be lucky enough to experience it.
“Stop, Giselle, you have to stop. Now.”
Chapter 3
She couldn’t believe her ears. “Did you tell me to stop?”
He cupped her head with his large hands. “Yes, but not for the reasons you’re thinking.”
She swallowed her hurt. “Then why?”
“I want the magic to happen when I’m in you, not when you’re sucking my cock. It will be special. Promise.”
