by Mary Winter
“You don’t have to play the hostess with me,” he said, his hand not leaving her. “C’mon. I’ll help you.” Leaning down, he brushed his lips across her temple.
Ari closed the door. She longed to lean against him and feel his strong arms wrapping around her. Ever since their near make-out session on the beach, Thanos never left her side. He kept a hand on her arm, her hip, anywhere close by. The hum of his touch brought her to a state of low-level arousal, the flames ready to fan at any moment. Just the feel of his lips against her hair made her nipples harden in anticipation. Now that they stood inside her house, there was nothing to stop him from taking her.
Once inside the kitchen, Ari grabbed a couple of wine glasses from the rack beneath her counter. Not offering him a nightcap of tea or soda seemed childish when she had a good bottle of wine in the fridge and someone to share it with. She stepped away from him long enough to retrieve the bottle and open it, pouring generous amounts of the Shiraz into the goblets. “Here you go.” She offered him one of the glasses.
Thanos accepted it with a smile, and then when she had her glass in hand, raised it. “A toast.”
“To what?” Ari tried to hide her pleasure at his words. No man had ever toasted her before, and she felt certain before she heard him speak that he’d be offering a toast to her, or to them. Either way it would be horribly romantic and wonderful.
“To you. To us. To today.” Gently, he clinked his glass with hers.
“To us.” Ari sipped. “Thank you.” She gestured to the living room. “Shall we relax?”
“After you.” Thanos motioned for her to precede him, and Ari did, trying not to feel self-conscious. After the excitement on the beach, her leg ached. She sat on the couch, resting her foot on an ottoman, and set her drink on the table next to her. She quickly tapped the stereo’s remote and soft jazz filled the air. The tones reminded her of their first date and how it ended.
Thanos sat beside her, his arm stretched along the back of the couch. Occasionally he’d brush the back of her neck or her shoulder with his fingers, and Ari fought the shiver darting through her at his touch. He glanced at her leg. “Is it hurting?”
Ari fought a grimace. She hadn’t wanted him to notice, though as a medical doctor, he probably saw her slight limp. “Yeah, a bit.”
“Where does it hurt?” He set his drink on the other end table, then knelt next to the ottoman.
“My knee and thigh. My lower body was pretty banged up in the accident.”
Thanos slid the skirt up to her waist, baring her leg. In the light, the white scars crisscrossed her leg and thigh, working up toward her hip. “You were pinned in the car, weren’t you?”
Ari nodded, not wanting to remember that horrific night.
“It’s okay.” Lightly, he caressed her skin, working with the muscle. “Sometimes things don’t ever come back one hundred percent like they were. But I certainly couldn’t tell. Though if I pushed you, I hope you would have said something.”
Ari caught his gaze, and the concern there nearly took her breath away. His tender fingers traced a path from her knee to her hip and back again, stopping only at the edge of the scars and the purple swimsuit she still wore. “It’s okay,” she said again, then wondered why. “I push myself harder than you will, I suppose.” She gave him a wry grin and he nodded. She sensed he understood.
“I think you need someone to pamper you.” Leaning over, he followed a path with his lips that his fingers had taken, starting in the center of her knee and working up her thigh.
Her pussy tightened. Her breathing hitched.
Thanos paused where her thigh met her hip, swiped the crease with his tongue, then started back down again. With his hands on either side of her thigh he massaged the underside as he kissed and nibbled the top.
Ari leaned against the cushions. Her legs parted as he concentrated on the one spot, the stubborn ache forgotten. Gentle rubs and soft kisses combined to relax her the way no massage ever could. She wanted to lay back and let Thanos devour her. Surely that close to her pussy he could feel the heat, smell the rush of arousal that brought dewy moisture to her sex. If he did, he said nothing. She didn’t even dare to glance down at his trousers, not wanting to see how touching her affected him. Then, she’d want more.
At last he sat back on his heels and stared at her, eyes dark with desire. Ari licked her lips. She wanted to kiss him so bad she ached with it, but knew once her lips touched his she wouldn’t be content with just a kiss. No, she’d want it all.
“Why don’t we retire to the bedroom?” Her own boldness shocked her. “That way I can stretch out. It will make my knee feel better.”
Thanos traced the contours of her knee. “I don’t think you’ll be worrying about your knee when I’m done with you.” He rose to his feet and bent over her. “Here, wrap your arms around my neck.”
“I can walk,” she started to protest, then reached for him. After all, how often was it that a handsome man offered to carry her off to bed? Not damn often, that was for sure. Thanos slid his arms beneath her and cradled her against his chest.
Ari leaned her head against him, listening to the beat of his heart. It lulled her, just as his long strides brought her closer to the bedroom. At last, he brought her to her bed and laid her down, then quickly removed her shirt and skirt. She lay there in her purple one-piece suit and felt more exposed than if she’d been naked. The spandex clung to every curve, lifting her breasts, and drawing the attention to the flare of her hips. Reaching up, she slid a strap from her shoulder.
Thanos’s eyes widened. He quickly pulled off his shirt.
She drank in the sight of his bare chest with its mat of hair narrowing down to his belt. The hard planes drew her attention. Rising up on an elbow, she reached for him with the desire to caress each dip and hollow with her fingers.
Closing his fingers around her wrist, he pulled her hand away. “Not yet.” He knelt on the bed and turned his attention back to her legs.
Ari leaned back against the plush pillows as he kissed her knees. Both of them. With a gentle touch he lifted her leg and lavished attention on the sensitive hollows behind her knees. A bolt of arousal shot through her. She bit her lip, not wanting to cry out as he laved her with his tongue. Quick nibbles along her calf brought him to her feet, where he kissed each toe, before taking her foot in his big hands and began to massage.
Oh, it felt heavenly when he rolled her ankle, first one way then the next, before applying pressure to just the perfect places. Boneless, she lay against the bed, wanting him to touch her more intimately, yet not wanting the massage to end. She moaned as he worked his way back up her calves, carefully kneading taut muscle, and softened his touch around her knees. Not even the massage therapist her doctor recommended made her feel this good.
He licked and nibbled all the way to the edge of the suit, then reached for her hand. He mirrored his actions with her fingers and arms, working the muscles until all tension seeped from her body. She couldn’t restrain her soft sounds of pleasure, and against her skin, she felt Thanos’s smile.
“You’re wonderful, you know that?” she asked as he made his way up her arm to her shoulder.
Thanos kissed where her neck met her shoulder, then began to work his way to her earlobe.
Ari lay there, her entire body a mass of sensation. Fully relaxed from the massage, yet aching for more. Her nipples pebbled, clearly visible through the thin swimsuit material. Her pussy ached. She wished he’d kiss her there, lave her clit and labia with his talented tongue.
He drew her earlobe into his mouth and suckled.
Ari reached for him. She clenched her hands on his shoulders, clinging to him as if he were her anchor. His long legs tangled with hers, and the feel of his hair-roughed skin against her own only enhanced her pleasure. He was so masculine, so much like her dream, that it was too easy to close her eyes and imagine it was her dream lover instead of Thanos. Her eyes flew open. No, she wanted to know it was Thanos making
love to her, because God help her, she was making love to him.
* * * * *
Thanos felt the moment Ari surrendered to him. Only then did he splay his hand on her stomach and marvel at the fluttering of muscles beneath his palm. He slid his hand up to cup her breast, loving the full weight. Her nipple pressed against him, diamond-hard, and he smiled against her skin. He loved the fact he brought her to such a ready state of arousal, and in his mind, he called the mortals foolish for not seeing beyond her exterior to her inner beauty. For Ari was a most beautiful woman.
He exhaled, following her neck down to the shoulder straps of her suit. His cock jerked, confined behind boxer briefs and shorts. He ignored it. With Ari lying on the bed so sweet and responsive, he wanted to savor her.
Light licks and nibbles brought him along the slender column of her neck. A quick slide and her swimsuit strap slid off her shoulder. He laved the exposed skin with his tongue before dragging the material down. Ari shuddered beneath him. Her fingers clenched on his back; her thighs parting in silent invitation. He skimmed his teeth over her covered breast to wrap his lips around a turgid nipple.
Ari moaned.
The sound shot straight through him as he sucked on her tender flesh. Raising his head, he slid the strap off her other shoulder, then pulled the front of the suit down to free her breasts. He smiled at the invitation of those rounded globes with their dusky, pointed nipples. He licked one, drawing a gasp from Ari, before settling his lips around the same nipple and sucking. With teeth and tongue he teased her.
Ari arched her hips against him, and he fought against the urge to strip her and fuck her right there. The orange sunset cast rays of light through her bedroom windows, the lace curtains filtering it to a gauzy glow across her body. He loved her in this light, where her flesh became shadows and hollows. The thin white lines of her scars were still visible, but as he drew his tongue across a wide scar between her breasts to make it to her other nipple, he accepted them as part of her. Her scars did nothing to detract from her body. As he drew her other nipple into his mouth and sucked hard enough to hollow his cheeks, he hoped she believed it.
He skimmed his fingers along her sides, up and down, in tantalizing strokes that drew closer and closer to her pussy. A quick caress along her inner thigh, and he felt her heat. At last, he drew his fingers past her suit to her plump folds. Dewy moisture coated his skin. Her warm, tight heat beckoned him, and he had to slide a finger inside to sample her.
Ari moaned and clenched her fingers on his shoulders.
Thanos brushed a knuckle across her clit, loving the way she threatened to come apart in his arms. Tiny quivers darted through her thighs, and against his fingers, her vaginal muscles contracted. He dipped a finger inside.
A quick cry when he brushed his finger against her g-spot, then shudders ravaged her frame as she orgasmed. “Oh, God, Thanos,” she moaned. He plunged two fingers inside her, and felt her come from the inside. Her panting breaths, clenching fingers, even the way she arched her breasts against his lips, all of it hardened his cock to the point where he had to be inside her or he would burst.
But damn it, he was a god. He had control. Pulling away, he slid the suit off her body and dropped it beside the bed. His cock begged to be free, but not yet. One touch against her skin, and he might spill himself like an untrained teenager. No, this was for her, not him.
Thanos worked his way up her body until he settled his lips against her labia. A swipe of his tongue made her moan again, and soon he delved inside and swirled his tongue around her clit. Her fingers tangled in his hair, pulling him closer. He felt her desire in the way her thighs pressed against his face and held him to her. Her husky breathing and low moans as he speared her with a pointed tongue only made him want her more.
“Yes,” she moaned. “Yes!”
He fucked her with his mouth. The desire to feel her come apart against his lips drove him. Balls tightening against his body, he cupped his hands under her ass and tilted her closer. He wanted to give her this, had to give her this. No mortal before or since, he suspected, needed his healing touch the way Ari did. Her muscles rippled against his lips and tongue. A tiny nibble on her clit, and her low moan told him she was close to coming.
“Please,” Ari whimpered. “I want you inside me.”
Her pleading words undid the last of his control. He pulled away amid her soft whimpers long enough to shed shorts and underwear, then crawled back over her.
Eagerly, Ari parted her legs, tilting her hips so her wet pussy dragged across the head of his cock. Thanos bit back a groan. He held himself poised over her, his cockhead just breaching her folds. Leaning forward, he captured her lips in a bruising kiss. Ari returned his kiss with ardor, her tongue stroking along the length of his. Then, he plunged inside.
Her pussy fisting around him shred the last of his control. He thrust into her, sinking deep into her heat. Ari met him, her body straining toward his as he pulled back, then surged forward once more. She clamped her hands on his ass, her fingers digging into his flesh. He couldn’t help himself, not when her pussy fit his cock like a glove, and she gave everything to him.
The wet sounds of sex filled the room, the tang of desire on the air. Thanos drank it all in, even as he continued to kiss Ari, drinking in her as well. The slap of bodies surrounded them, and soon, too soon, she crested beneath him, fingers digging into his butt cheeks, pussy rippling around his cock. She tore her lips from his and cried out, body arched like a bowstring beneath him.
Thanos held himself still, feeling her pussy milking his cock. He wanted to remember this moment forever. Then, his own desire overrode him and he thrust inside her once more. She met him, eager to climb toward orgasm again. One stroke. Then another. Thanos feared he wouldn’t take her with him when he went. He shifted angles, reaching between her legs to find her clit. Rubbing it in his fingers, the first tremors began deep inside her.
With a groan, Thanos thrust again. He stiffened as his orgasm raced from the base of his spine. His body shook, yet he could do nothing but press his cock as deep inside her as it would go. His body pumped, and looking down at Ari, he’d never felt as complete in his life as he did in that moment.
After long moments he rolled to the side, pulling her against him. She murmured and snuggled. He stroked her hair, and for long moments just held her.
Chapter Five
Memories of a weekend spent in Thanos’s arms made the week pass quickly, and as she stood near the French doors at a lavish party, she wondered if she’d truly known the world in which he lived. He looked elegant in a tuxedo, the obviously tailored cut emphasizing his wide shoulders and narrow waist. That she intimately knew each muscle hidden beneath the expensive fabric heightened his attractiveness in her eyes.
He’d convinced her to wear what she called a “pre-accident” dress. He’d happened to see the strappy red number in her closet when she’d dressed early last Sunday morning. Wearing three-inch heels she knew she’d pay for in the morning, and showing a generous amount of skin, she found, for the first time, she forgot about her scars. One look at the heat in Thanos’s gaze as she modeled it for him was enough to tell her she was a desirable woman.
She sipped the last of her champagne, and then placed the flute on a passing waiter’s tray. Several medical colleagues had cornered Thanos, whisking him away into the corner. Not wanting to intrude, she’d told him she could fend for herself. A hand on her waist made her turn.
Thanos looked down at her, his gaze caressing her from head to toe. “I’m sorry they took me away from you. Hospital politics can be a maze of intrigue sometimes. But let’s not talk work even if you were admiring those floral arrangements,” he said with a grin.
She blushed, because the floral designer in her saw the graceful sweep of color, the arch of a lily or a spray of greenery to accent the entire arrangement.
“Let’s dance.” Gracefully, he steered her into the cleared area where several couples danced cheek to che
ek. A quartet played smoky jazz tunes. Thanos pulled her into his arms, and Ari nestled against his strong frame. With one hand clasped with hers and the other on her hip, he swayed in time to the music.
A part of her wished he’d take her dancing more often. He led effortlessly, as if he’d danced many times. Before her accident, she’d loved to dance, and the love hadn’t left. Being in Thanos’s arms made her think of the nights she used to go out to the clubs just for the sheer joy of dancing. She wanted that again, only with her handsome doctor on her arm.
The music changed, slowing into a number that made her think of tangled legs and silk sheets. The beat throbbed low in her body. Against her stomach, the ridge of Thanos’s cock pressed against her. He seemed unaffected by his arousal, while she wanted to wiggle in delight. Instead, his hand dipped to the small of her back, his fingers just touching her buttocks. The back of her dress dipped low, nearly to the base of her spine, with tiny straps crisscrossing her exposed flesh. Where he touched her skin, she burned.
“Glad I invited you?” Thanos asked. His lips hovered close to her ear, so close she felt his warm breath.
“Very glad,” she said as she pressed her head against his shoulder.
The song ended and the band announced a ten-minute break. Reluctantly, Thanos stepped away and steered her from the dance floor. He found a plush chair sitting out of the way and he directed her toward it. “Sit,” he said. “Your feet must be killing you.”
Ari shook her head. She’d forgotten all about the slight ache in the arch of her foot and the warning twinge in her knee. Now that Thanos mentioned it, the pain returned. She refused to give in to it. “I’m fine, thank you.”
“If you’re sure?”
His solicitous manner warmed her. “I’m fine, thank you.” She saw a group of his medical colleagues speaking to someone. “Why don’t you introduce me to your colleagues?”
“I’d be happy to, but don’t say I didn’t warn you. Shop talk will bore you to tears.”
