She took a final step, bringing her directly in front of him and raised her right hand, stopping millimeters from his bare left pec. “May I? Artwork this perfect needs to be touched to be fully appreciated.”

As if he’d say no. But he did have a caveat. “Anything you do to me, I get to do to you.”

“I guess that’s fair.”

She lowered her hand, and he felt a ripple of disappointment. Maybe he should have let her play without rules. But then she bent her head and licked his nipple.

Heat shot through his body. He groaned. “I mean it. Anything you do, I do back.”

She smiled. “I’m counting on it.” She licked him again, the tip of her tongue teasing his nipple, then she blew on the damp peak. Finally, she placed a hand on his chest and explored his pecs, her palm pressing down while her fingers lightly touched each contour. She thumbed his nipple, then licked him again, this time tasting the light hair over his sternum.

“If only I had strawberry ice cream.”

He laughed. Damn, he’d kill for a pint right now.

Her other hand joined the fun, and he groaned again as she explored his skin. He was going to do the same thing to her.

Rules were rules.

He would cup her perfect breasts and suck on her nipples, tease her in all the magnificent ways she teased him.

Her hand dipped lower, tracing his abs. She made a soft humming sound, then paused and looked up at him.

He smiled. “Is it my turn now?”

She shook her head. “Not yet.” She looked into his eyes and bit her bottom lip as she traced the top of the towel where it was held in place by tension and a tucked down corner. With a flick of her fingers, the towel fell, revealing his heavy erection that surged up as she lightly traced him from tip to base with her index finger.

His groan had turned into a harsh sound as he held himself in check. He would not thrust into her exploring hand, no matter how much he wanted to. “We should probably stop here.”

“You want me to stop?”

“No.”

“What if I do this?” Her hand slid down the shaft and wrapped around the base of his hard prick. Her warm palm was tight and smooth as she stroked his heavy length. He couldn’t help it and rocked his hips in a motion as old as time. His breathing had gone rapid and shallow. “Kira.” Her name was a warning. She might break his control.

“Do you want to put this inside me, Rand?” She stroked him as she said the words.

“Desperately.”

Her smile widened and she licked her lips and then she dropped to her knees. She took him into her mouth. His entire body coiled at the pleasure of her tongue running along his length as she sucked. “Everything you do to me, I get to do to you.”

Her response was to suck harder and take him deep into the back of her throat.

He threaded his fingers through her hair as he rocked his hips and planned how he would take her pussy with his mouth and suck and lick and make her moan.

He watched his cock slide into and out of her mouth, feasting on the sight of her feasting on him.

He’d had this fantasy so many times since December. But it was only the start, and he wanted everything. He pulled back, extracting himself from her mouth. He pulled her to her feet, kissed her mouth, his tongue going deep before he pulled back and said, “My turn now.”

As she’d done, he started with her breasts. But first he licked her through the satin camisole. The wet fabric clung to her as her nipples hardened. He blew on the peaks, then licked her again.

He found the hem of the light top and pulled it over her head, then tossed it to the floor. Kira’s breasts were round and perfect. He cupped one in each hand and licked and sucked as she made soft sounds of pleasure.

He scooped her up and set her on the center of the bed. She was gorgeous as she lay there, topless. But while her satin pants were sexy, they were also in the way. He pulled them off. She wore nothing underneath. She was as naked as he was.

He crawled up her body, sliding between her legs until his face was even with her breasts. Then he explored with fingers and mouth, moving ever lower. He licked her navel and nipped at her hips and rounded belly. His tongue traced her hipbones and moved ever closer to the juncture of her thighs. He spread her legs with one hand then tasted her as his fingers explored.

She bucked against him when his tongue stroked her clit. She made a sound that would fuel his fantasies for years. He sucked on her and slid a finger inside. She spread her knees wider, giving herself over to his mouth and touch.

He started with one, but now had two fingers inside her, thrusting in time with the stroke of his tongue on her clitoris.

She panted and mewed and made the sexiest sounds as he brought her closer and closer to the brink. She’d fully surrendered to the moment, her body coiling tight as he increased the pressure with his tongue and fingers, bearing down on her pubis inside and out.

Her fingers gripped his hair, and she pulled, just enough to trigger a sensation that tightened his balls and made his cock impossibly hard. And then she broke, shrieking and locking her hips as she came, her body pulling back from his abrasive tongue and thrusting fingers.

He raised his head and gazed down at her, splayed beneath him. She was beautiful and spent, and he could stop here knowing he’d given her the ultimate pleasure.

“You are so fucking beautiful. All the time. But especially right now.”

She panted and laughed. “I don’t think I’ve ever felt as beautiful as I do right now, with you looking at me like that.”

He lowered himself to kiss her, without putting his weight on her body. His cock was thick and hard between them, pressing against her pelvis while his balls settled in the V of her thighs. He gently rocked his hips as he kissed her, then raised his head. “I have condoms. But we can stop here if you want.”

One hand cupped his cheek, while the other hand slid down his chest and abs, eventually finding his hard cock. She wrapped her fingers around him and stroked him from base to tip. “I need to feel you inside me.”

Oh thank god.

He kissed her again, then reluctantly pulled back from her hand. Condom. Must get a condom. He rose from the bed, went to the bathroom, and grabbed the pack of condoms from his Dopp kit.

When he returned to the bedroom, Kira was sitting up against the headboard. Her legs were only slightly spread. Her hair, which had dried since her earlier shower, was mussed and sexy as hell. Her gaze swept him from head to toe as he crawled across the mattress to join her. Her voice was husky and her eyes hot. “You have no idea how many times I’ve imagined this.”

“If it’s anywhere near as often as I have, it’s a lot.”

She ran a hand over his chest. He loved the way she couldn’t seem to stop touching him. “You’re even more perfect than I imagined.”

And then there was the way she looked at him. It made his heart pound. “So what brought this on? Was it the dedication, or the fact that I was only wearing a towel when I entered the room?”

“The towel. Holy crap, your body is perfect.”

“So all this time, all I had to do to seduce you was take off my shirt?”

“Apparently. Well, and follow me to Malta.”

“Kira, I’m pretty sure I’ll follow you anywhere.”

She smiled then, and for Rand, it felt like he’d just received the perfect gift he hadn’t even known he needed. But he had known he needed Kira. He just hadn’t known how much.

“I want to make love to you. To be as close to you as possible. To feel your tight heat around me and get lost in you.”