Page 99 of Crimson Kingdom

I reached out, tugging his jacket down over his shoulders. My fingers went to the laces of his shirt, laces I had wanted to undo so many times before.

When his shirt had joined my dress on the floor, he pulled me against his solid chest, pressing his mouth firmly against mine before skating his lips down to my neck.

The feel of his hands on my exposed back and his lips on my skin was enough to make my knees give out.

I wrapped my arms around his neck, and he picked me up with two firm hands on my thighs, walking us over to the bed. Gently, he lowered me on top of the blankets, his lips meeting mine once more.

I greedily soaked in his kisses, in the feeling of rightness and wholeness and completion that washed over me whenever I was this close to him.

True to his word, he did explore every inch of my body. With his hands. His mouth. His tongue.

He seemed to know instinctively where to linger and where to sweep past. All I could think was that dancing was the least of how our bodies were in sync.

Finally, he kissed his way up to my lips, then backed just barely away, his gaze boring into mine with a question.

I gave him a single, solid dip of my chin, more sure in this moment than I had ever been about anything before.

There was a sharp, searing pain, and I gasped, my fingernails digging into his shoulders.

Evander went still, concern widening his eyes.

“Lemmikki,” he breathed. “Do you want me to st--”

“No,” I cut him off. “Don’t stop.”

The pain was subsiding already, my body adjusting to the feel of his and making room for another feeling entirely. Being this close to him...it was everything.

He bent his head down to kiss me tenderly, moving slowly once more.

I let out another gasp against his lips, but this time, it wasn’t from the pain.

And there was no more talk of stopping after that.

Wan shafts of light streamed through the drapes, enough to highlight the perfect, chiseled lines of Evander’s face.

It was one of the rare times I had seen him sleeping, and I couldn’t help but trace the lines of his forehead, his cheeks, his nose, and his lips.

He stirred, his hand coming up to cover mine. Gently, he kissed each one of my fingers. Even the simple gesture sent heat thrumming through my entire body.

I leaned over, my hair spilling onto his chest as I lightly peppered his face with kisses before going purposefully to his mouth.

“Der’mo, Lemmikki.” There was amusement in his gravelly morning voice, and his eyes were still closed. “Aren’t you sore?”

It was a fair question, considering we had only fallen asleep a couple of hours ago.

“No,” I fibbed.

I was, but I wasn’t going to let that stop me from being with myhusband. He opened his eyes at last, and they sparkled with mirth.

“Terrible liar,” he reminded me.

I pursed my lips irritably, and he let out a low, ridiculously sexy chuckle.

“Well, I’m fine, but if you aren’t up to the task…” I trailed off, and he raised a challenging eyebrow.

“I am always up to the task, Lemmikki, particularly whenever my wife is in the room.”

Every part of me warmed when he called me his wife.