“You drive me crazy, you know that?” I whispered, trailing slow kisses from behind her ear, back down her neck, from the hollow of her throat to her delicate little collarbones. Breathing in her mossy, lemon sunshine—the decadent, sparkling sweetness of her skin.
The very essence of this woman had always compelled me, from the very first moment I laid eyes on her. She wasintoxicating.
“Yeah?” she murmured.
“Fuckinginsane, actually,” I corrected as I slipped one hand underneath her dress, drifting up her leg with a long, languid stroke.
“That,” Arken gasped as my fingertips ghosted the apex of her thighs, “is a very mutual sentiment, Vistarii.”
I smirked, teasing softly at the cotton and lace between Arken and my fingertips. The fabric was still fucking soaked from my earlier exploitations, and I felt my cock twitch in response to the discovery.
“That so? Tell me more about that sentiment, Asher. Say more words, if you will.”
Arken snorted. “Don’t act like you don’t already know.”
“Know what?” I asked, feigning innocence.
“Donotpretend like you’re not well aware of your effect on other people.”
“I don’t give a damn how I affectother people,” I replied, nipping at her lower lip affectionately before rolling over to my back. “Just you.”
Only you, Arken. It’s only ever been you.
She groaned, and whether it was in annoyance or pleasure was actually hard to distinguish. If I had to guess, it was a bit of both—because I was a bastard like that.
“What do you want to know?” Arken sighed sweetly, tucking one forearm behind her head. The other curled behindmyhead, allowing her fingers to play with my hair absent-mindedly as she, too, decided to close her eyes and absorb the sunshine.
“Oh, I thought I was quite clear,” I purred, squeezing just above her knee. “I want to know exactlyhowI drive you insane. In explicit detail, if I may be so bold. Consider it research and development.”
“Research and development of your ego, perhaps,” she said. “You preening peacock.”
I grinned, feeling deeply at ease as I watched the wispy clouds drift by overhead. The blue sky was crowned by the boughs of the surrounding woods, as if we were enfolded in our own little world this afternoon. And what I wouldn’t give for that to be the case.
“Perhaps,” I concurred.
I was a vain bastard; I’d give her that. But in truth, it washerpraise,herattention,herattraction to me that did the most unspeakable things to my ego. And I was a greedy, selfish man who wanted more of it, constantly—always.
“Hmm,” Arken mused, glancing down at where my hand still rested on her exposed thigh, where I’d left her skirt upturned for easier access to her bare skin. My thumb was still stroking the softness of the skin just above her knee, taking a brief break from more direct forms of torment. “Thatwould be one of the ways.”
“What’s that?”
“The way you touch me,” she sighed. “Like it’s instinctive, somehow. Like finding every spot that makes me shiver is just…second nature to you.”
Because it is instinctive, sweetheart. Everything about touching you comes naturally to me.
“You touch me like you’re not even consciously choosing to do so half the time,” Arken continued. She had to be exceptionally at ease right now, because I could detect no shyness, no hint of hesitation as the confession spilled forth. “I swear, sometimes it feels like you just…”
Ah, there it is. The nervous pause. The lip bite.
“Just what?” I teased gently, nudging her with my shoulder.
She opened her eyes, tilting her head toward mine, meeting my gaze for a moment. “It feels like you can’t help yourself, andthatis what drives me insane.”
Ah.It would appear I did certain things to my Little Conduit’s ego, too.
Good.
“That’s because I can’t,” I rasped, the raw honesty crawling its way out of my throat whether I liked it or not. The urge to match Arken’s vulnerability was a dangerous one, but oh, so satisfying when the words met their mark. Like now.