Chapter 9
Rhys burst through the doors to Arianna’s suite. When he didn’t find her in the bed as he’d expected, he almost ran out of the room. “She’s gone!” he growled to his guards. “Where did she go?”
A soft hand touched his arm. He swung around, already in battle mode since he hadn’t found Arianna in bed waiting for him. When he saw her, all of that soft hair tousled and looking beautiful if sleepy, he couldn’t hold back. He simply swept her up into his arms and kicked the doors closed.
“What’s wrong?” she asked as he carried her into the bedroom.
“It’s done,” he swept the silk robe off her shoulders. “Your father’s kidnappers are in prison, awaiting trial. It was the project manager and engineer, just as we’d suspected, but my Oil Minister was behind it all. I hadn’t seen him for several weeks, so I hadn’t even considered him to be the culprit, but we found him at the third pumping site today and he was beating one of the workers for not saying the right thing when we questioned him the other day.”
“Why did they kidnap my father though?” she asked.
“Because they thought he’d figured out what they were doing. He’d been looking at the rigging. They’d created a valve that transferred small amounts of oil towards a separate area where they would transport it and sell it. They were making millions off of the stolen oil.”
Arianna gasped, but wasn’t sure if that was because he’d stripped off her robe or because of his news. Both were equally startling.
But he didn’t move. When she’d been naked and in his arms in the past, his hands and mouth, good grief, his whole body made love to her. But at this moment, he was just holding her, his hands pressing her body against his as if…as if…!
“What happened?” she demanded, tightening her arms around him, sensing that something horrible had happened. “Tell me,” she whispered.
He kissed her neck, burying his nose in her hair. “They told me what they’d planned to do to you, Arianna. They were going to…”
She pressed her fingers to his lips. “They didn’t,” she told him firmly. Taking his hand, she kissed his palm. “They didn’t touch me.”
He shuddered in her arms, his face hidden in her hair. That was when she knew that she’d have to take over. “They didn’t touch me. Your guards kept me safe. Right here,” she explained. With gentle hands, she stripped off his clothes. When he was completely naked, she pushed at his shoulders, pushing him so that he was flat on his back, laid out on the bed. Grabbing a condom from the drawer, she shifted so that she was straddling his waist. Instantly, his erection came to life and she wrapped her hands around his shaft as she kissed his chest, his arms, sliding her mouth down his muscular body. Arianna didn’t speak again, simply used her hands and her mouth to prove to him that no one had harmed her.
When she took him into her mouth, heard his growl, Arianna knew that she’d finally convinced him. She also knew that he wasn’t going to last very long. Taking the condom, she quickly rolled it down over his shaft, teasing him throughout the whole process.
“Did you mean what you said this morning?” she asked, still a bit nervous, needing confirmation.
“Yes! Damn, Arianna. I love you!” His hands moved over her, cupping her bottom. “I couldn’t get back here fast enough. I had to know that you were okay. That they hadn’t…”
Her smile was warm and welcoming. Reassuring. “You’re my man,” she whispered to him as she poised herself over his erection. She was already wet and ready for him, so when she pressed her body down over his, she felt her core relax, adjust as he filled up her body. It took a few strokes, but eventually, she had him fully encased in her heat. “Now,” she told him as she braced her hands on his muscular chest. “Now you’re going to accept that nothing happened to me.” She took his hands and placed them on her breasts, gasping when his thumbs rubbed over the taut points. “Yes,” she sighed, closing her eyes as she rode him. Over and over, she pressed herself down onto his shaft, her body tightening around his erection, then releasing as she eased up.
Arianna knew that he was close, but so was she. She just couldn’t seem to get both of them over the edge. “Now, Rhys,” she gasped.
He lifted her off him. She had no idea what he was about to do until he lifted her physically and she was poised over his mouth. Rhys didn’t hesitate as he licked her folds and she screamed, her body arching into his mouth, silently begging him to work his magic. “So close! Please help me!”
And he did! Good grief, did he help her! She braced her hands on the headboard as his hands pulled her hips into his iron grasp, then his mouth closed over her nubbin and sucked! Hard! His tongue flicked against that bundle of nerves and she screamed, rocking against his mouth as her orgasm hit her hard and fast.
But it wasn’t over. Before her climax had slowed, she found herself on her back, Rhys towering over her as he pulled her legs so that they were draped over his arms. Then he thrust into her, causing another climax to rock her body. Over and over again, he pounded into her, she had no recourse but to endure the endless round of orgasms as he pleasured her. When he finally found his own release, she was almost in pain from the seemingly countless climaxes, although, in truth, she’d probably only climaxed three or four times. They’d been one on top of each other, so she’d been about out of her mind by the time he collapsed on top of her.
Ever mindful of his size, he rolled over and pulled her close as both of them struggled to catch their breath.