by Lucy Leroux
Again she shook her head, and satisfaction rushed through him.
“You were my first kiss the other night,” she confessed in a whisper.
Calen froze in his tracks. Old fantasies flooded his mind and his cock twitched as his blood started pounding in his veins. It was like a switch had been flipped. He wasn’t simply hungry for her now. Suddenly, he was ravenous. He wanted to be inside her this second, but her confession made that impossible. Later tonight was better—he would take Maia in his bed. She was almost completely healed. If he was gentle with her, he could move her into his room immediately.
The idea of sharing a room with Maia helped him take control of himself.
Calen focused on her again, circling and teasing until he was able to wring a loud gasp from her. He could feel the throb deep inside as her whole body clenched down on his hand. She bucked and gasped aloud before slumping back in the seat, her body hot and silky around his fingers.
Slowly he withdrew his hand, petting Maia gently over her panties as he waited for her to recover. When she couldn’t catch her breath, he quickly wiped his hands on a handkerchief from the bar and put an arm around her shoulder, cuddling her closer to him.
Maia was still shivering from the aftershocks of her release. He felt each tremor deep in his groin. The impulse to take her home right now was strong. But he’d promised her a night out. And he was too hot for her right now. An evening out was a much better plan. It would give him some time to cool off.
He kissed Maia softly. “Okay now?”
She nodded yes this time, and he smiled. His fairy seemed to lose the power of speech when he touched her. Maia was usually so articulate, a detail he loved about her. But he might love her inability to speak right now a bit more, and her completely untrained response to his touch.
“So, I’m the first person to make you come?” he confirmed, looking down into her flushed face.
“Other than me you mean?” she replied, making him laugh.
“Yeah, other than you,” he said with a grin.
“Yes,” she whispered. “My first everything.”
Pleased beyond measure, he leaned down to whisper in her ear. “I’m gonna want to see that sometime soon,” he told her.
“See what?” she asked, confused.
“I want to see you touch yourself.”
“Oh, God,” Maia said blushing a rosier red.
She covered her face with her hands, and his hearty laugh filled the air.
****
Calen had a way of making Maia feel like she was the only woman in the room. He completely ignored all the other women in the restaurant, despite the fact half of them gave him openly covetous looks. Even their waitress, a woman well into her forties, couldn’t stop from flirting with him. It was enough to give a girl a complex.
The way he’d touched her in the car excited and unnerved her at the same time. In the dim light of the restaurant, she studied his sculpted cheekbones and soft, full lower lip. He caught her eye and she looked down at her plate bashfully.
I don’t know if I can do this. She wasn’t equipped to deal with this man. He was so handsome—not to mention blunt and aggressive. She could sense that about him, despite how he’d taken care of her. Nothing in her past experience, which was nil where men were concerned, had prepared her for someone like him.
But what choice did she have? Did she even want a choice? She was twenty-three now and still a virgin. Not by choice, either. More of a lack of opportunity...
Eventually, Calen’s single-minded attention on her was enough to distract her from the eyes watching them, or rather watching him. He wanted to hear all about her day and on her boss’s reaction to her news.
He questioned her closely, unsurprised by her boss’s apparent dismay to her possible nuptials. “You think he’s going to leave it alone? He won’t do anything stupid like calling in the FBI, will he?”
“No, he promised as long as I wasn’t doing anything—” she cut herself off, trying to decide how to explain her boss’ concern.
“Anything what?” he asked, watching her through narrowed eyes.
“Anything against my will,” she said finally with an apologetic shrug. “I assured him I wasn’t, and he seemed okay with that.”
Calen nodded in understanding. He didn’t say anything else about it for the rest of dinner.
****
He was starting to rethink his plan to seduce Maia that night. Her comment about not acting against her will was a dig to his conscience. If he rushed her into bed, he couldn’t guarantee she would be doing it by choice, instead of giving in to what he wanted her to do.
Given Maia’s inexperience, it would be easy to get her into bed. She would be putty in his hands. But he didn’t want to compel her into it, or worse, have her give herself to him out of a sense of obligation. He did want her, but he wanted her willing, so hot for him she would combust. And he was pretty sure he would do the same. It had been touch and go there in the car. He had been ready to go up in flames just from watching her climax.
That kind of response was uncharacteristic of him. But he was quickly learning that living with a fairy meant things weren’t going to be normal. And unless he wanted to lose his head completely, he needed to get a grip. Postponing until he was used to having Maia around would be better. However, he wasn’t prepared to lose all the ground he had gained tonight.
When they returned to the penthouse he took her hand. “Maia I would like it if you moved into my room tonight.”
She whirled around, shocked features colliding with his. Her little mouth was a round O. So adorable.
“Just to sleep,” he assured her. “For now,” he couldn’t resist adding.
Maia closed her mouth. “Why just to sleep?” she asked slowly, surprising him.
He gave her a rueful grin, “Because you decided to go back to work this week. And what I have planned for you will take much more than one night.”
“Oh,” Maia said, red staining her cheeks. “All right,” she said finally. “I’ll sleep in your room tonight.”
“Good,” he said softly before straightening and walking away with an easy stride.
“Where are you going?” she asked with a frown.
“To take a cold shower,” he said, walking backwards to maintain eye contact.
Maia cocked her head at him, giving him a steady challenging look. “Okay, I’m going to go change.”
****
Was she trying to kill him?
Calen had put on boxer briefs after his cold shower, satisfied that he was in control. He wrapped a towel around his shoulders and walked into his bedroom to find Maia already in his bed—and all that bravado went out the window when he saw what she was wearing.
It was a short dusky blue nightgown—one he had picked out himself from photos his personal shopper had emailed him. He had made an excellent choice. The flowing gown made her eyes look bluer, and her skin shone like a pearl against it. Her orange-gold hair was loose around her shoulders, and she was watching him with a hint of a mischievous expression.
It was, to his knowledge, the first time she’d worn one of the nightgowns he’d given her. Why could she be wearing one of his old t-shirts again?
Calen silently acknowledged it wouldn’t have made a difference. “You like to play with fire, nymph,” he growled, dropping the towel as he climbed into bed next to her.
Her eyes were huge as she took in his bare chest. In response, it puffed out. He had never been prouder of his six-pack than he was at that moment. Hungry now, he reached for Maia and gave her a hard possessive kiss. With a feather light touch, he reached out and stroked the top of her décolletage with a brush of his finger, and she shivered.
Shit. He had intended on being noble and self-sacrificing tonight, but she was making it damn hard. Pun intended.
He’d no sooner touched the silky softness of her short nightgown than his instinct took over and he grabbed her and pulled her on top of him. Maia gave
a little squeal before his lips met hers, and she shifted on top of him. With a herculean effort, he took one last taste and then bodily set her aside.
“Be good or prepare to lose every single one of your virginities right now,” he growled.
“Every single one?” She giggled. “There’s only one technically. Isn’t there?”
He tweaked her nose and laughed. “So innocent. Unless there’s something you want to tell me.”
“No. At least I don’t think so. Care to explain the third? Cause I think I know the second and no...I haven’t done that either. You know that.”
“Well,” he said, running his hand down her body and over her pert little rear. He caressed the taught little cheeks and then ran his finger over the silky cloth over her rear entrance. “I would be most surprised if you weren’t also a virgin here.”
Maia turned beet red, blushing hotly over her face and chest as she pulled away. “Oh,” she said, looking away.
The playful sexual tension in the air dissipated until it was just tension. Calen noticed the shift and took her chin in her hand until she looked up at him again.
“Hey, don’t worry. I’m not really into that. I was joking.” Maia frowned at him and he backtracked. “Okay, so not completely. I’m a little too into the idea of initiating you into everything but you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do.”
She nodded but still wouldn’t look at him. “I don’t know. Maybe it’s nice. Sorry. I feel stupid now.”
And he felt like crap. He nuzzled her hair. “Don’t be embarrassed. I love your innocence.”
“Mmmhh,” Maia mumbled, avoiding his eyes.
“Mmh what?” Calen asked, tugging on a lock of her hair until she looked at him.
She sucked in a breath and then let it out. “What if that’s all that you like about me? You do realize you can only take my virginity once right?”
He couldn’t stop from chuckling. “Is that what you’re worried about?”
Maia shifted uncomfortably. “Liam may have mentioned something about your DVD collection,” she said slowly.
Calen sat up. “What DVD collection?”
“Your collection. He mentioned that something in it might explain your interest in me. Why it is that you’re willing to have me around…”
Maia lapsed into silence. She peeked at him from under her lashes, an uncertain look mixed with curiosity. It made him want to soothe her, and simultaneously pull her underneath him so he could have his wicked way with her.
“I see,” he said eventually, trying very hard not to laugh.
Damn Liam and his big mouth.
****
Maia watched Calen quietly. His mouth was twisting and quirking like he was fighting a smile. The anxiety she had been experiencing started to fade, but her confusion was growing. What was so funny?
Eventually Calen snorted a little and got up off the bed. “Come with me,” he said, extending a hand.
She stared at it, lips pursed before reaching out and using it to lever herself up. He shifted his hand to cup her backside to guide her out of the bedroom.
“Where are we going?”
“You’ll see.”
They made their way through the marbled hallway on bare feet. It should have been cold, but Calen had explained that the stones were heated by coils underneath the floor. When he bypassed the living room and the shelves of DVDs and Blue-ray disks, she shot him a questioning look, but he merely shook his head and led her to his office, flipping on the lights as he went.
“Over here,” he said moving to the desk.
Maia looked around the room. There was no flat screen in here. Did he only watch porn on his laptop? Mentally fortifying herself she stepped around the desk to face the screen.
“Turn around nymph,” Calen said, a little flatly.
She spun on her heel to face the shelf of leather-bound books behind her. He was running a hand over his face.
“What am I looking for?” she asked, her bewilderment clear in her tone.
Calen rubbed the back of his neck. “This is my collection,” he said, gesturing to the books on the shelf behind the desk.
Her brow wrinkled. “What?”
“It’s not a DVD collection. And I did not buy all of these. I did, however, buy a lot of them. Most of them. Only my closest friends know about this. A few of the brave bastards have even given some of these to me as gifts. It’s not something I advertise to outsiders. Or to my family. In fact, I’m going to ask you to not mention this to your friends.”
Maia looked at him with wide eyes and then at the volumes on the shelf. Most of the books looked old, like antiques. “Oh, sorry. When Liam said collection, I assumed it was DVDs. So, um, is this like vintage porn?” she asked.
Calen made a sound half-way between a cough and choking. “It’s not a porn collection. Although if you ask Liam, he’d lie and say he caught me jacking off to a picture in one of these. I did not do that by the way,” he said waving a finger in her face for emphasis. “He’s a fucking liar, and you should never believe a word he says,” he instructed as he pulled down a book with a bookmark sticking out of it.
Maia couldn’t stifle a giggle as she took the book from him. She didn’t believe him for a second. Flipping open the book to the page marked by the leather bookmark, her breath caught.
It was a stunning illustration of a fairy princess wearing a green and silver gown in a dark forest. The fairy had red-orange hair and blue-green eyes. Startled, she raised her eyes to Calen’s face, but he wasn’t looking at her. He was staring at the ceiling, and if she didn’t know any better, she would have sworn he was blushing.
Maia set down the book and picked up another one with a bookmark sticking out of it. Another fey, a wood nymph with the same hair color was kneeling by a stream. She pulled down another book with a bookmark from the bookcase. This one was more elf than fairy, and she had brown hair, but her features looked similar to hers. Excited and blushing faintly, she scanned the other titles.
A Hystorie of the Fey and The Fairie in England were next to a leather bound volume of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. A book called Reflections on the The Cottingley Fairies was the newest-looking book. Most of the others looked like antiques. She took down another one with a bookmark. Another fey look-alike with red-gold hair. Not feeling entirely steady, she sat down heavily in Calen’s big leather desk chair.
She frowned at him. “Why don’t the other women—the ones you were photographed with—why don’t they look like this?”
Calen searched for the right answer. “I dated what was around me. And this,” he gestured to the open books on his desk. “This isn’t a thing for me. Or at least I didn’t think it was until I saw you.”
Heat coursed down her body, and she dropped her eyes to avoid the intensity of his gaze. A minute passed before she sneaked a look at him and found him still staring down at her.
“Well,” she said finally before crossing her arms. “If it’s not a thing, then why do you have all of these?” she asked, gesturing to the bookcase.
He shrugged. “I was always looking for elves and fairies in the garden when I was a little kid. I really believed in them. Not sure where it came from. I hadn’t quite outgrown the phase when I started school. When I made friends with Liam, I made him go hunting fairies with me. Even at five years old that punk was humoring me. He didn’t believe at all, but for my birthday that year, he stole this from the public library,” he said, pointing to The Fairy Catalogue. The sticker with the Dewey decimal location was still on the spine. “And even though I grew up and no longer believe in fairies, I still buy these. Most of these volumes are antiques, Victorian era. Some are older than that. It’s a hobby. One you are never ever allowed to tell anyone about.”
Feeling wicked, Maia gave him a huge smile. But it must not have appeared as innocent as she intended because Calen crossed his arms and scowled a little.
“I’m serious about that,” he said. “I will spank you
if you ever breathe a word of it. I will probably spank you in any case because the mental images that suddenly crept into my head are just too good. Now...do you feel better or worse?”
Maia thought about it. “Better.”
“About the spanking or about us?”
“About us,” she laughed. “Although growing up looking like an elf was torture.”
“I bet you were adorable.”
“Not according to the boy in the third grade who pelted me with miniature candy canes,” she huffed.
Putting an arm around her, Calen guided her back to the bedroom. “That boy was in love with you.”
Maia scoffed. “His name was John, and he used to terrorize me.”
“He was in love with you.” His tone was superior and sure.
“He put glue in my hair and nearly blinded me with glitter!” she protested.
Calen froze. “What is his last name? I will find him and kick his ass,” he said, stopping short and growling.
Maia ducked her head, a warm fuzzy feeling growing in the pit of her stomach. “I’m not going to tell you now.” She laughed.
But it was nice knowing he was protective of her. No one had ever defended her before. And except for her mother, no one had ever tried to take care of her.
“You will tell me, or I will spank you,” he said seriously.
Maia grinned at him and then threw herself into his arms. Looking surprised but pleased, he held her close against him before letting her go.
“We need to go to bed now,” he said regretfully.
She nodded and they went back to the bedroom. Slipping into bed, she pulled up the covers to her chin. Calen drew them up to his waist, leaving his impressive chest in view. But she wasn’t as intimidated by it anymore. In fact, for the first time, she felt almost comfortable around him.
Chapter 14
Timur slammed his fist against the door of the bathroom stall over and over again until the metal was bent and smeared with blood.
That bitch was supposed to be his! For what she had seen, she wasn’t allowed any other future. He was supposed to be the one fucking her, marking her. He had been eager to carve his name on that pristine white skin. It had been so soft, the perfect canvas. The girl would have begged him, pleaded for her life with those big jewel eyes. She wouldn’t have lasted long, but their short time together would have been satisfying.
