She was stunning! Tonight, she wore a simple gown of cream colored silk that skimmed along her body. The neckline showed off almost nothing of her cleavage, but the shadow gave him ideas. Delicious ideas.
“Sheik Lugar, I’d like to formally introduce you to my sister, Princess Aviera bin Saldira.”
Lugar took her hand, lifting it to his lips. “We’ve met,” he said, his voice low and husky as he pressed a gentle kiss to the back of her hand. He wanted to do so much more, especially when she blushed a soft pink at his kiss, but he stepped back, releasing her out of respect for Girad. “We saw each other at the United Nations conference last week.”
“Right,” Girad replied and Lugar suspected that he’d just passed a test. But he couldn’t take his eyes off Avi. They both seemed to need to take in the other’s appearance, looking for changes or some sort of silent message.
Girad started talking about something, but Lugar had no idea what. Avi moved over to the bar and requested a glass of white wine from the bartender, but she kept glancing at him over her shoulder.
Throughout dinner, Lugar struggled to keep up with his end of the conversation. But it was difficult, since he wanted to pull Aviera into his arms and demand to know what she’d been doing since he’d seen her last. He wanted to know she wasn’t sneaking out to rescue more abused animals and to ask her if there was any way that she might love him the way she loved her other abused beasts.
Avi glared at her brother, knowing exactly what he was doing. But not even his amused glances in her direction would shut him up. He kept bringing up one topic after another, completely aware that Lugar wasn’t paying him any attention.
“I think it’s time for you to leave,” Avi said pointedly to Girad.
Both men looked startled at her interruption, but Girad threw his head back, laughing.
Finally, he stood up. “I wondered how long it would take you to lose your patience,” he teased, planted a kiss on the top of her head. “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” he told her. As he passed by Lugar, he punched the guy in the arm. Hard.
“What the hell was that for?” Lugar demanded, focusing on Girad for the first time that evening.
Girad took his glass of port and turned towards the doorway. “That’s for all of the naughty things you’ve been thinking about doing to my sister.” And then he was gone.
Lugar turned to look at Avi and she smiled gently at him, trying to encourage him to relax. Although she wasn’t particularly relaxed either.
“Your brother just hit me and walked out of the room?”
She laughed and shrugged. “He’s a sexist jerk, but he knows it and tries to fight his inclinations.”
He tilted his head, still confused. “So…he’s okay with me kissing you tonight?”
Avi blushed. “You heard him. The limit is that I can’t do anything that he wouldn’t do.” She smiled. “That leaves open a great deal, don’t you think?”
He stood up and took her hand, pulling her into his arms. “Avi, I’ve been wanting to do this since I saw you earlier today,” and he kissed her. Hard!
Avi’s hands moved up around his neck, her fingers diving into his hair as she held him close, moaning when his tongue demanded entry.
A long time later, he lifted his head, staring into her eyes. “What am I going to do with you?” he groaned.
She beamed up at him. “Well, I have some pretty good ideas,” she replied cheekily.
He laughed, and he slid his hands down her waist to her hips. But suddenly, he stopped and pulled back. “No, this isn’t right,” he told her softly.
Avi blinked, confused. “Not right?” she looked up at him, trying to hide the hurt those words caused.
He saw the pain and took her hand again. “Not in the way you’re thinking, love,” he told her urgently. Then he sighed, dropping his hands and stepping away from her. “Avi…” he stopped, realizing that the servants were standing sentry at the doorway. “Come with me.” He took her hand, leading her out of the dining room. He didn’t stop until he pulled her into the suite he’d been assigned during his stay, closing the doors on the outraged expressions of her guards. “She’ll be safe,” he assured them.
Avi wanted to laugh, but she was still a bit shocked that he’d been so forward. In the palace, no less! The ladies who had been furious with her for being out at night with a man “un-chaperoned” would be livid if they knew that she was in that man’s private apartment!
It felt outrageously naughty but also…right.
“I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you, Avi.”
She smiled, his words warming her heart. “You’ve been on my mind a great deal as well.”
He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. “I never planned on seeing you again after New York.”
“Why is that?”
He frowned at her and Avi had to fight the urge to shrink back, to hide from the anger she saw there.
“Because of this,” he sighed. With both hands, he ripped his dress shirt open, revealing his tanned, muscular chest.
But this time, it wasn’t the muscles that caught her attention. It was the marks that crisscrossed his skin. It was almost as if someone had taken a knife and just…sliced him open, over and over again. “What in the world…!” she gasped, moving forward, her fingers reaching out to trace one of the silver lines. There were so many of them, hidden under dark hair amid the hard, ridged muscles.
“I’m the human version of your donkey, Avi. I’m scarred in more ways than you’ll ever understand.”
She looked up at him, her fingers still tracing the lines. “Tell me,” she whispered urgently.
Lugar hesitated. He hated remembering the ugly, pain filled nights and miserable days. But he couldn’t hold back. This was Aviera and she deserved to know everything before…before he asked her for everything back.
“I was about fourteen. My parents went on a trip to Canada to meet with their prime minister. I stayed home with my tutors and brother.” He paused and swallowed hard. “The kidnappers held me for five days until my guards rescued me.”
Avi’s heart ached for him and she wrapped her arms around his waist, pressing her lips to the middle of his chest. There weren’t any visible scars there, but she knew that they were underneath the skin.
“I’m a mess, Avi,” he sighed, wrapping his arms around her and holding her close.
“You’re not a mess, Lugar. You are an incredibly brave person to have survived something like that.”
“That’s not all,” he warned her.
Avi pulled back and looked up at him. “Show me everything.”
He hesitated for a moment, but Lugar knew that he’d have to show everything before they could move forward, before she could make a decision on his next question. So he released the knot on his tie and tossed it onto the floor, then pushed his shirt and jacket off. He stood there for a long moment, staring up at the ceiling while he allowed her time to look at his chest. When he turned around, he heard her gasp as she took in the marks on his back.
“They whipped you, didn’t they?” she asked, horrified.
He closed his eyes tightly, wishing that he didn’t look like such a monster. But the truth was, his kidnappers had been merciless. “Yes. Among other things.”
Then she did the oddest thing. Instead of pushing away in revulsion, Avi wrapped her arms around his waist and began pressing kisses to his back. Not in any pattern, but just…everywhere. Each kiss was like a fire against his skin, almost more painful than the memories of the whip’s lash. Every tender kiss felt like she was branding him with her own personal heat.
With a groan, he turned and took her into his arms. “I’m a mess, Avi. But is there any way that you might be able to overlook these marks?”
She shook her head and his thumb reached up, rubbing away the tear that snuck down her cheek. “No,” she whispered. “I won’t ever overlook them,” she told him softly.
His heart just about shattered. A pai
n unlike anything he’d ever felt stabbed his chest and he started to pull away. But she pressed herself against him more firmly. “I can’t ever overlook them, Lugar, because they made you who you are.”
“I’m not…” he started to say, not sure what she meant. Wasn’t she supposed to push him away? Why were her arms tightening around him?
“You are! You’re strong and powerful. You’re a survivor! And your past…these marks,” she whispered vehemently, “are what made you into the amazing ruler you are today.” She looked up at him, tears streaming down her cheeks now. “Those women…you rescued them because of what happened to you. They wouldn’t have survived if it hadn’t been for you and your team coming in to rescue them.” She lifted her hand to touch his cheek. “You’re strong because of what you went through. These marks,” her hand slid down his chest, “they don’t make you less of a man. They make you more incredibly handsome! They make you a more powerful man! You could have become bitter, mean, and evil. Instead, you’ve turned your past into a powerful force for good.”
He stared at her, barely able to believe what he was hearing. “I hope you meant that, Avi. Because you’re mine! You’ve been mine since that night in the village when you climbed onto that barrel, knowing that something was wrong!”
She hadn’t known that he’d seen her climbing up onto that barrel, but he didn’t give her a chance to respond. His mouth covered hers, kissing her as if his next breath depended on him taking it from her lungs.
Avi didn’t care. She needed him to touch her like this, she needed to take away the pain he must have felt all those years ago. She needed to make him happy over the next few decades. He hadn’t proposed to her, but Avi didn’t care. She’d loved this man since New York and she’d love him until the day she died.
Avi wasn’t aware of her dress slipping down over her body, but she gasped when she felt his hard, calloused hands sliding over her bare skin. For a moment, she was dizzy. Lugar swept her off her feet, and laid her gently down on the bed. For a moment, she watched as he pulled off the rest of his clothes, fascinated by the rippling muscles. He knelt on the bed, leaning over her, before he lowered himself so that his hard body hovered over hers. Avi reached up, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him down to press against her.
He kissed her until her head spun with desire. With deft fingers, he released the clasp on her bra, tossing it out of the way and then his mouth was there, covering her nipple, sucking and teasing and making her cry out with the heat of his mouth. It was too much and not enough. Never had she been so wrapped up in this kind of heat. Lugar was gentle, but demanding as his hands moved over her, teasing and touching, finding every spot on her body that made her groan as his mouth explored lower and lower. Pressing her legs wider, he nuzzled the soft skin of her belly, then moved lower still. Kissing and teasing, his fingers preceded his mouth. Avi wanted to tell him to stop, that this was too much but she couldn’t form words. Every time she tried to open her mouth, Lugar touched her in a new place, making her gasp.
So when his mouth moved over that nub, she arched her back in shock. It felt so good she tried to pull away. His firm hands wouldn’t give her mercy as his mouth captured her again, his tongue flicking while his fingers slid into her heat, driving her wild!
Without any warning, a huge wave of pleasure crashed over her and Avi clung to him, her body arching for a long moment, before she writhed under the onslaught of his mouth against the most intimate part of her.
With deep, gasping breaths, she tried to calm her racing heart as Lugar slowly moved up her body once again. She heard something rip, but couldn’t open her eyes to figure out what he was doing.
Then his hands were there again, making her skin sizzle with sensation. “I can’t, Lugar,” she whispered, shocked that her body felt all of those pelting needs again so quickly. “I just…”
“You don’t need to do anything,” he told her, nipping at the soft, sensitive skin of her neck. “Just let me show you.”
He pressed against her heat, pressing into her slightly before backing off. Then shifting into her inch by inch, deeper and deeper into her heat. When he was fully buried inside of her, Avi held her breath, trying to move, but his weight held her still. Not crushing her, but she couldn’t move like she wanted to.
“Look at me, Avi,” he ordered, his voice harsh as his hands held her still.
Avi blinked, looking up at him even as her hips shifted, needing to move but he was an immovable force. “Shouldn’t you…?” she arched, trying to get him to give her what her body clamored for.
“Look at me,” he said again, this time his command was softer. Well, as soft as his rough, deep voice could go. He was a big, powerful man and his “soft” was another man’s…well, she wasn’t going to think about other men. Not while she had Lugar buried intimately inside of her. So she lifted her gaze, looking him in the eye.
“Marry me, Aviera,” he murmured. It wasn’t a question, but nor was it an order.
“Yes,” she whispered, biting her lip at the intimacy of the moment.
His harsh features softened somewhat as a deep satisfaction flowed over him. Only then did he start moving. Slowly at first, but as her body tightened with each thrust, his movements became faster. Harder. More commanding. With each thrust, he carried her higher and higher until her body burst into a crest of heat and pleasure so intense, she cried out, arching into him. And still he continued to thrust, hard and fast and she felt another crest coming over her. She wanted to push him away but instead, Avi wrapped her legs around his waist, pulling her hips up against his, riding the edge of his desire. That’s when she felt him come to his own climax and she touched him, her fingers sliding against all of that raw, male power, reveling in the amazing sensations cascading over her.
A long time later, he stood up and walked to the bathroom, cleaning up before he came back to the bed. With a grunt, he pulled her into his arms until Avi was settled against him, her head resting against his chest.
She giggled as she heard his satisfied grunt, then felt his muscles tense and knew that he was looking down at her. She turned so that she could see his features. “Am I exactly how you want me now?’ she teased.
His eyes moved over her features. “No. If you were exactly how I wanted you, you’d have a diamond ring on your finger and I’d still be buried deep inside of you.” With that, he let his head fall back against the pillows while she laughed. He was certainly a bold man, she thought with intense satisfaction.
“So what happens next?” she asked, running her fingers over his chest. There were the ridges from his muscles as well as those from his scars. All were part of him, had made him the man he was today. She didn’t know enough about that man, but she smiled, thinking of all the years ahead of them to discover those mysteries. “You know that you’re going to have to build a bigger stable, right?” she asked.
He laughed. Or, she suspected that it was a laugh. It might have been a growl, Avi wasn’t sure.
“You’re not bringing that damn giraffe to my palace, Avi.”
Avi grinned in the darkness. Oh, he had no idea what was head of him.
His muscles tightened and she knew that he was trying to look at her again. This time, she didn’t turn her head, letting him guess at her expression.
“Avi? Did you hear me? We’re not bringing your giraffe. Jim or George or whatever you’ve named him…your giraffe stays here with your brother.”
Avi smiled and she suspected that he could feel her cheeks moving against his chest, but she didn’t look at him or even argue. She didn’t need to. If Lugar had any sort of conversation with her brother, he’d know that Avi was an expert at sneaking her animals to her home. Not only would Otis and George be coming with her, but she’d heard about an elephant that had been badly abused at a circus in Turkey. She’d already made arrangements with her team to fly out and see if there was some way she could save that elephant.
He was in for such a surprise!
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(Keep scrolling for a free novella!)
The Burling School
An Introduction
A Note from Elizabeth:
Dear reader – this novella has been updated so many times over the past several months and I keep adding new scenes to the story. Right now, it’s about 45 pages long – but it has not gone through my normal editing steps. For now, this story is free for everyone to read and enjoy – and I apologize for the typos. Once this series is over, I’ll polish this novella and release it to the retail sites, still for free, with all of the extra scenes included.
For now, this novella is to introduce you to the six ladies that attended The Burling School (I wish I’d named it something else – I really dislike ‘Burling’ now).
Enjoy – and please forgive the errors! I wasn’t intending to write this novella, but as usual, as I wrote the six full romance stories, this novella evolved in my mind.
Whitney’s Arrival
“You’re late, Ms. Dunworthy!” Ms. Hendricks announced, but without much heat. Her sharp eyes looked approvingly at the newest member of the teaching staff’s conservative, well-kept appearance as she hurried down the steps of the administrative building.
“I apologize, Ms. Hendricks,” Whitney Dunworthy replied as she rushed down the stone steps with as much dignity as her tardiness would allow, smoothing her conservative tweed skirt down over her hips before straightening once again. Glancing at the other teachers standing at attention, Whitney imitated their proud stance and eliminated all emotions from her features. This was her first year here as a teacher and she wanted to make a good impression, wanting to impress both the headmistress as well as the other faculty members. Obviously, arriving late wasn’t a good start but she’d make up for her tardiness by being the best teacher the school had ever hired!
“At least you are dressed appropriately,” Ms. Hendricks commented with approval. After a quick glance down the rest of the row of teachers and staff members, she moved away, walking to the front of the line where all of the faculty members were still standing stiff at attention. It was so similar to a drill Sargent’s efforts, Whitney had to smother her amusement.
Forbidden Seduction (The Diamond Club Book 12) Page 7
