by Bethany Aan
He was grinning down at her, highly amused at her reaction.
“You really should learn to shield,” he informed her with a husky growl. “Though I quite enjoyed the idea you had with your tongue. That bears further investigation, when you are up to it.”
Ri groaned and covered her flaming face with her hands.
“Can I blame it on the pain-killers?” she asked him from behind her palms. He chuckled and she sensed him shaking his head as he stepped over the wall of the tub, his long legs brushing against her arms.
“You could,” he allowed, “If you had received any recently. But you haven’t, so I’m going to take your wonderfully naughty thoughts as a compliment, and we will explore them together later. For now… let us see just how clean we can get you.”
He helped her to sit forward and, surprising her, sank into the bath behind her. It took just a moment for him to lift and shift her until she was comfortably leaning back against his chest, bare skin to bare skin. She allowed herself to relax, let him take her full weight, trusting him as she hadn’t trusted anyone, ever. She breathed raggedly at the feeling of his considerable strength supporting her. It was so nice, for once, to not have to be the strong one.
Hunter’s arms came around her to cup water and gently dribble it over her breasts, her shoulders, her head. He urged her to lean her head back against him, so that the water wouldn’t get into her eyes, then cupped and dropped the water repeatedly, until her hair was lying in wet, silky ropes over her shoulder. His long fingers combed out some of the snarls, brushing all of the strands away from her neck and into a smooth sheet down her chest. They were both silent as he ran his fingers through the curls again and again, his fingertips brushing delicately over her nipple with each pass. His breath sucked in at the same time hers did with each little caress. Through their mental bond, he could feel what she was feeling, knew what she wanted at the same time she did… and she could feel his growing excitement, the supreme control he was exerting over himself.
She felt his breath on her neck a moment before his lips found the incredibly sensitive patch just behind her ear. A tiny shuddering moan escaped her and her head fell to the side, giving him greater access. His arms came around her shoulders, hugging her to him, his body tightening as he tasted and smelled her flesh, committed it to memory.
“Hunter!” she cried out softly, her body shifting against his, though she willed herself to stay still. She wanted more, but he wasn’t sure that was a good idea, as hurt as she still was. But then he realized that he would know when to stop, thanks to their mental connection. Deciding to see how far she was able to go, he moved to explore her ear-lobe, sucking gently on it and delighting in her helpless little sighs. His breath whispered hotly into her ear as his tongue slowly explored the delicate little shell.
At the same time, Hunter reached over and blindly found the soap. Lifting the bottle, he sat back just a bit and drizzled some of the oil-soap over her head. She giggled in surprise at the cool soap hitting her warm head, then sucked in a breath as his long, sure fingers began massaging her scalp, working the suds through her wavy locks. The enjoyment she got from that caress was not sexual, which startled Hunter for a moment. But when he touched her mind, he understood that she was enjoying his casual touches just as much as his other caresses and that warmed his heart. Good relationships weren’t built just on sex, but on the intimacy created by the moments shared when sex was not involved. He had learned that many years ago, and he sensed that Ri knew it, as well. He smiled a bit fiercely, blocking the thought that he might be able to completely seduce her without making love to her, simply by touching and cherishing her while she was unable to have sex.
He continued massaging her scalp, then worked his way down behind her ears, and along the tight muscles of her neck, knowing that she needed the deep touch more than the cleansing. Her soft moans and gasps guided his hands. When he felt she had loosened up enough for now, he tipped her head back on his shoulder once more and slowly rinsed the soap from her tresses. Then he expertly piled the mass of curls up on top of her head, twisting it a bit and tucking the ends in so that it would hopefully stay in place.
“I… I can probably handle it from here,” she tried again, but he smiled at the hesitancy in her voice, felt her intense reluctance to have these moments end. He kissed the tender spot just behind her ear and chuckled.
“That might not be wise. I believe that having you try to do this yourself will undo all the relaxing we’ve accomplished,” he murmured playfully into her ear, allowing his lips to brush the sensitive flesh there. He delighted in the tiny shiver that moved through her, the goose-bumps that rose on her arms and chest. “Just relax, little warrior. Lean back and let me be your hands.”
“My hands would be doing something very, very naughty right now,” she muttered, thinking he might not hear. But he did. Without warning, his big hands moved to cup her breasts, his thumbs and forefingers tweaking her nipples, drawing out a cry of surprise and wonder from her.
“Would they be doing something like that?” he asked, his lips tantalizing her ear with each word. She nodded, her hands moving to grip his thighs on either side of her, holding onto him. He chuckled somewhat darkly, the sound sending anticipation thrumming through her. “Such naughty, naughty hands you have, little Ri!”
“Oh, god, yes!” she breathed, her back arching a bit as his fingers skillfully plucked and pulled on her. The sensations arrowing through her body were translated into him, heightening his own need. He hissed in reaction, his shaft throbbing painfully against her back. This was for her, not him, he reminded himself over and over again. This bath was an excuse to get her used to his touch, to make her long for him. But he was the one being seduced… by her sweet cries, her sinuous writhing as she tried to alleviate the ache building between her thighs.
His hands tightened a bit fiercely on her breasts for a moment, drawing a startled gasp from her, then he relented and massaged them gently in apology. The dichotomy of near-pain and gentleness drew a long, shuddering sigh from deep within her. She was stunned at how powerful it was, her agile mind making connections between what she’d just experienced and the things she’d read over the years. Hunter filed the information away for later use, a feral smile on his face.
Taking up the bottle of soap, he poured a bit over her collarbones and spent the next several minutes thoroughly washing every inch of her torso, arms, neck, and face. He urged her to sit forward and soaped his hands before sliding them slowly, firmly, over her smooth back. The sight of all that bare, creamy flesh was like a punch to his gut.
She was not Thorsani, but she rose to his passion and her own as though she had the spirit of the cat in her. He took in every tiny detail of her, each little freckle, traced the incredibly fine trail of light down leading from the nape of her neck down to the top her back. He explored each gentle bump of her spine, following its course beneath the water, until his hands encountered the sweet little dimples at the base of her spine. She arched and shivered when he carefully used his thumbs to relax the muscles around those dimples, his long fingers clasping her hips as he did so.
As she shuddered exquisitely from the massaging, his hands moved up, very tenderly rubbing the soap into her skin over her damaged ribs. He used their bond to be sure he didn’t press too hard on her wounds, made sure to touch the places that she couldn’t ask him to touch.
He sensed her sincere enjoyment of the back rub and made a mental note to be sure to rub her down every chance he got. It seemed his little warrior liked being petted. A grin locked itself onto his face as he rinsed her back, then had her lean back once more so he could rinse everything else he’d just washed.
His heart pounded when he took the soap up again and liberally spread it on his hands, then started at her belly and began a sensual journey downward, his hands massaging and petting as he washed her, explored her. Just as his fingers reached the crease where belly met thigh, his fingers delving determinedly thro
ugh her curls toward her slit, an alarm went off from the com unit.
Cursing fiercely, Hunter quickly rinsed his hands and lunged from the bath, slapping a com button by the sink. “Report,” he barked.
Ri watched him, her brain fogged with the passion he’d been building in her. She was too lost to lingering sensation to register the words coming through the com, but she felt Hunter’s supreme frustration as he growled out that he’d be there immediately.
His entire body shook from having been interrupted in his seduction. His fingers still tingled with the feeling of her wet curls wrapping around them, the memory of her slick folds grazing his fingertips. For a long moment, he fought to control himself. Finally, he gave Ri a pained grimace of apology.
“I’m sorry, love,” he said quietly, kneeling beside her long enough to stroke a finger down her clean, delicately blushing cheek. “I have to go. I suppose this is one of the dangers of being in charge.”
“It’s… okay,” she breathed, kissing his finger. “I understand.”
He sat back on his heels, sighing roughly as he quickly pulled his damp hair back and secured it into the leather thongs once more. She watched hungrily as he fought his way into his clothes, the leather pulling roughly against his wet skin.
“Jace will be home shortly. Just relax until he is here, and he will help you out of the bath and get you dressed. I will be back as soon as I find out what’s going on, and we’ll have dinner.”
“Go, Hunter. I will be fine,” she assured him, smiling gently at him. His warm gaze lingered on her lips for a moment.
“This is not over, little one,” he whispered. “I believe that bath time will be filled with enjoyment, for both of us, for many years to come.”
Before she could think to protest the ‘years to come’ part, he leaned forward and distracted her with a kiss so hot that it curled her toes into the soft moss carpeting the tub. He stood and reluctantly left her to her bath, his mental caress letting her know just how much he regretted the interruption.
Arianna relaxed back into the tub, gustily blowing her drying bangs from her eyes in frustration. Damn, the man packed a sexual wallop! She had no doubt whatsoever that he’d stopped simply because of that alarm. Maybe he would have stopped because he didn’t wish to hurt her. There was no telling where this bath might have led, had that call not come in. She had felt the hunger rolling off of him in waves, knew that he truly did want her. Very painfully so! She knew the feeling well, and not just because she’d been in his mind. Her body was throbbing with the need to have him touching her again.
Tentatively, she reached down to touch herself, but stopped after only a moment. It wasn’t the same, and she certainly wasn’t going to get herself off, when there was an incredible hunk of a man willing to do so for her. Two, if they had been serious about her taking both Hunter and Jace as her mates. Yes, with two men willing to do the honors, she shouldn’t have to ever touch herself again.
As she finished her bath, her desire cooled a bit, as did her frustration. Leaning back against the soft lichen, she grinned up at the ceiling, remembering the heat in his eyes, the way his body trembled in his monumental effort to control his passion, to keep his touch gentle when he wanted so much more.
For the first time in her life, Arianna felt like maybe she really was a desirable, sexy woman, that she had the power to bring such a large, beautiful hunk of a man to his knees.
“Well, who knew?” she whispered happily to herself.
Once scrubbed, soaked, and shampooed, Arianna felt much more like her old self. She’d heard both men return a bit ago, but had wanted to linger until the water turned tepid. Sighing, realizing that the peaceful interlude of the bath was over, she called out to for help, since she knew both men would get angry if she didn’t. She pulled the stopper on the drain and used the shower wand to run fresh, warm water over her body for a moment, letting it take away the last of the dirty feeling she’d had from the group memory. While the memories still had the power to make her shudder, they no longer made her feel filthy, and that had been the goal of the bath. That, and she just really needed one.
It was Jace that answered her call as she was gingerly getting to her feet.
Ri blinked at him in surprise, blushing. He grinned wickedly, leaning against the door jamb and allowing his admiring gaze to wander very slowly down her form. He wore only his leather pants. She’d noticed that these Thorsani men tended to want to wear as little as possible when in their private quarters. His sleekly muscled chest shone from the moisture still hanging in the air, making him glisten like he’d been exercising.
Her breath caught. He was so handsome, so strong and sure, yet his touch was so very gentle with her, his long fingers delicate when they needed to be. He was so serious when he was in ‘doctor mode’, but so incredibly playful and smiling when he could just be himself. And he could shift from one to the other in a blink, which kept Ri guessing, kept her surprised each time it happened. It was stimulating, exciting.
Now he was looking very playful, his arms crossed over his chest, one leg cocked over the other, a nonchalant pose that didn’t fool her one bit. Like the cat he resembled, she knew that he could, and would, pounce at any moment. There was a barely-leashed intensity to him that, unlike his brother, could slip free in a split-second, taking him from careful doctor to formidable warrior in a heartbeat. Hunter would analyze a situation, then react, she knew. Jace was prepared to react instantly, his body constantly poised for quick movement. It probably saved lives in an emergency situation.
But this moment, he seemed relaxed. His eyes roamed her leisurely, taking in her full breasts with the hardening nipples, her long wet hair, which was slipping down from her head to uncoil over her breast. His gaze locked to those wet strands and she didn’t need Reader skills to know that he wanted to lap the moisture from her skin where tiny rivulets of water streamed down the slope of her breast, pooling and dropping from her nipple.
She had to remind herself that he had already seen her naked. He was her doctor… and she very vividly remembered his interest in the sensitivity of her breasts and nipples. With that thought, the little traitors decided to wake up and take a look around. She felt heat rise in her chest, her face going up in flames as his gaze sharpened on her nipples and he straightened, stepping over to the tub.
“Hunter is making dinner,” Jace said, offering the feeble excuse for why he was there. His unrepentant grin assured her that he knew she’d know just how feeble the excuse was, and didn’t care. “I didn’t want to interrupt him.”
“You just wanted to see me naked,” she said, narrowing her gaze on him as he chuckled, wiggling his eyebrows and leering down at her breasts.
“And I did.” He laughed. She smacked his arm, fighting back her own amusement. It was really hard to be self-conscious and embarrassed with him looking at her with such unveiled enthusiasm. His humor was contagious, as was his hunger. How the hell could she possibly go from wanting Hunter so badly, to wanting to explore the same things with Jace, in the space of an hour? Was she that much of a degenerate? The thought gave her pause, but Jace didn’t allow her time to focus on it.
Grabbing a huge, fluffy towel from a stack by the sink, he wrapped her securely and pulled her up against his chest. Lifting her easily over the lip of the tub, he sat her on the counter and commenced drying her off, very slowly. He dragged the cloth over every inch of her body, rubbing gently to ensure he got all the moisture off of her. Within moments, she was having trouble breathing.
This was crazy! She’d just been turned into a puddle of goo by his brother less than an hour ago, and now Jace was sending her arousal sky-rocketing again. What in the world was wrong with her? How could she be just as turned on by one as the other? There had to be something defective in her brain.
“Jace,” she whispered, watching as he palmed the towel in his big hand, “What are you doing?”
“Drying you off,” he told her innocently. When he brought th
e cloth up to her breasts again, she grasped his arm and stopped him.
“No, really,” she said quietly. “You know I could do this myself.”
He watched her carefully for long moments, then reached up, tucking a moist lock of hair behind her ear. His touch lingered there, his thumb rubbing over the vein pulsing strongly in her neck. He sighed, leaning both hands on the counter at her hips, enveloping her. His face was so close, his lips so very near to hers.
“I was thinking about the other day in the medical center,” he said, his conversational tone at odds with the heat in his eyes and the waves of hunger rolling over her. “How responsive your nipples were to my touch. I got to thinking about that, and the fact that while our species may be compatible for mating, there is no way of telling how the touch of our men will affect your women. For instance, our women have thicker nipples, because our babes are born with several teeth already in place. But that means that our women don’t respond to as light a touch as you did.”
Ri’s heart was pounding with his frankly sensual gaze, but she nodded her understanding. He truly was curious about the physiological differences, and willing to use that curiosity as a valid, if thin excuse to touch her. Arianna fought the grin tugging at her lips as his expression grew serious, though his eyes danced with playfulness.
“So I was thinking that, purely in the name of science, it would behoove us, as their leaders, to experiment a bit, find out just what your tolerances are, and then inform the men of our findings, to make sure that none of your girls get hurt the first time they make love with our men.”
“For science,” Ri confirmed, proud of being able to hold a straight face. His lips twitched with mirth.
“Of course!” he assured her, leaning back up, splaying a wide hand over his heart, proclaiming his sincerity. “You don’t think I would actually enjoy this kind of thing, do you? I’m a professional, Commander! I’m merely searching for answers about the newest sentient species in our midst. It would be the height of irresponsibility on my part to allow our men loose on your women without being properly informed about the dangers that might arise.”
