I’m leaving in a week. I’ll be damned if I miss a single opportunity to fulfill the promise held in the heated way he looked at me, touched me. If we’re not continuing the search tonight, then there’s no reason not to give in to the inferno of lust that makes it hard to breathe when I look at him.
Even so, it takes more courage than I want to admit to hold his gaze and pull my top over my head. I barely register his sharp inhale as I shimmy out of my shorts. The way this man looks at me should be illegal. His gaze sweeps over me as if he can’t take in my features fast enough, as if this is a gift I’ll snatch back at the last moment and he wants to imprint the image of me in his brain. It washes away the last of my hesitance. This is happening. We both want this to happen.
Instead of crawling on the bed, I sink to my knees, taking up the traditional submissive position.
“Cassandra,” Apollo murmurs. “We don’t have to.”
Gods, but I could fall in love with this man. I ignore that thought and shift my stance a little, arching my back and spreading my thighs. “We covered this. I don’t do anything I don’t want to do, and right now I want to do you.”
“You want to do me.” His lips quirk in a skeptical smile. “Is that so?”
“Yes.” I eye the hard length pressed against the front of his lounge pants. “I think you want to do me, too.”
He steps closer and sifts his fingers through my hair, tightening them abruptly at the back of my head. I jolt, but it doesn’t hurt. He’s just holding me immobile. He considers me. “You have your safe word. I will respect it, regardless of what we’re doing when you use it.”
I lick my lips. “I know.”
That reassures him. Of course it does. Any dominant worth their salt cares about their submissive’s needs. Not that I’m Apollo’s… I swallow hard. Best not to think about that. Best not to think about a number of things.
He tightens his grip on my hair, bending me backward a little. Apollo’s gaze coasts over my mouth, down my throat, to my breasts and belly. I start to tense, expecting self-consciousness to rise, but how can I feel self-conscious when he’s staring at me like a man who’s finally allowed to touch the one thing he’s craved for years?
“Apollo.”
“Don’t rush me.”
I smile and relax back against his hold. Instantly, he shifts from fisting my hair to cupping the back of my head. I let him take my weight a little and lift my chin. “You have me. What are you going to do with me?”
16
Apollo
A small voice in the back of my head whispers that I’m doing something unforgivable, but those warnings are washed away on a tide of desire so intense, it’s a wonder my knees don’t buckle.
Having Cassandra naked and kneeling at my feet is an experience I never thought to have for myself. I’m tempted to simply look at her for hours, but our time is limited.
Duty comes with the dawn.
I intend to have her coming plenty more times before that happens. I tug on her hair, careful to keep it tension rather than pain. “You can keep trying to provoke me, but I’ve told you what I like, Cassandra. Be a good girl and give it to me.”
She shivers. “I hate it when you do that. Enough talking. Let’s get to the foreplay.”
“Talking is the foreplay.” I prefer my kink with a softer touch, but anyone who’s experienced knows you can cut a person right down to their vulnerable center with words as easily as you can with a flogger. There’s nothing more satisfying than seeing my submissive fight between their pride demanding they stay silent and their knowledge that giving in will ensure I do exactly what they’re craving.
What we’re both craving.
She glares up at me, but it’s nowhere near her usual cutting expression, not when her eyes are heavy-lidded and she’s allowing herself to rest against my hold. Trusting me not to let her fall backward.
People tend to fill silences. It’s an impulse I’ve never shared. Silences can serve all sorts of purposes, and they are valuable for a number of reasons. Like this one. I can see the argument she’s having with herself. She wants to submit, but she’s not the type to hand that over freely without a fight.
I have no interest in fighting.
Cassandra will give me her submission, and she’ll do it gladly. She just needs a few moments to realize it.
She doesn’t make me wait long before huffing out a breath. “Okay, fine.” She stares up at me, a challenge in those big dark eyes. “I would very much like to suck your cock until you blow in my mouth.”
It takes everything I have to hold perfectly still and give her no reaction. “And then?”
“And then…” Her lips curve. “Then when you’ve had sufficient time to recover, I would very much like you to fuck me.”
Gods, this woman.
I tug her hair a little. Even if I can contain the majority of my reaction, the fact remains that she’s affecting me deeply. I like that even her submission has thorns. My voice is more than a little hoarse when I finally reply. “Earn it.”
“Excuse me?”
I jerk my chin down. “Suck my cock well and I’ll consider fucking you.”
Her jaw drops. “I don’t know if I want to tell you to fuck right off with that nonsense or come on the spot.”
“You want to do both, but you won’t tell me to fuck off, because you want me to make you come again.” There’s reward in the submission freely given. I could nudge her easily into doing what I want—what we both want—but this is significantly more satisfying. “Remember how well I rewarded you in the sitting room.”
She licks her lips, her eyes going hazy. “You barely asked anything of me there.”
“I wanted your words. Now I want your mouth.” I pull her hair a little. A reminder of what came before. A promise of what comes next. “And you want to please me, Cassandra.”
She reaches up and hooks her fingers in the waistband of my pants. “Don’t let it go to your head.”
“Always with the smart comments.” I allow her to tug me closer and ease my pants down my hips enough to free my cock. “Clever, spiteful Cassandra. Let’s put that mouth to good use.”
She wraps a fist around the base of my cock and licks her lips. I can hardly believe this is real. I’ve fantasized about this woman more times than I care to admit, but having her bend down and drag her tongue along the underside of my cock when I can still taste her on my lips?
I have to tilt my head back and stare at the ceiling while I fight for control. Cassandra, the little troublemaker, chuckles and then closes her mouth around my cock. She sucks me deep, not giving me a moment to adjust. Fuck, I’m not going to last long.
Even knowing it will fray my control further, I look down. She’s staring up at me, and the sight of her sucking my cock… I don’t mean to tighten my grip on her hair, but she moans in response and sucks me harder, faster.
“Gods,” I breathe. “You really want to earn that fucking.”
She eases off me and brushes my cock against her lips. “Fuck me, Apollo.” She flicks her tongue against me. “But not yet. I’m enjoying this.”