Dante couldn’t believe Ella had actually asked him. He’d been waiting, his body tortured by the sweet scent of her in the air, the little glances she was giving him. But he had to make sure she was in it all the way. That it was her choice. Because she was already nervous enough about men and touch, and he didn’t want to add to that. He wanted every interaction between them to only increase her trust in him.

And at the same time, the gold dragon had been wanting to pleasure his mate ever since he’d laid eyes on her. And now that she’d agreed to at least one night, Dante was going to make sure he made it a night so good she’d want to experience a thousand times more.

No more playing. No more agonized waiting. No more awkward glances and sexual tension.

Just pleasure.

Dante undid the buttons of Ella’s soft sleep shirt quickly, revealing a white camisole beneath it. In the fabric, he could make out her nipples, and he eagerly kissed them over the soft cotton, making Ella moan with desire.

He’d never been so hungry for a woman in his entire life. For Ella, he was insatiable.

For a moment, he kissed along the edge of the fabric along her collarbone, teasing it with his teeth as she watched eagerly. Then he pulled it up and held both her breasts in his hands, squeezing the silky flesh gently.

He could see the slight flush of her cheeks despite her tanned skin, which satisfied Dante, since any sign of her arousal was perfection to him. And as he pressed his thumbs lightly over her nipples, she writhed beneath him, twisting slightly into the thick bedsheets. Her scent, floral and spicy, filled the air around them. And even though Dante had previously never much been one to obsess over olfactory experiences, Ella’s scent was as unique as it was arousing and only further confirmed what he’d already known all along.

Mate, the dragon beneath his conscious mind growled possessively.

But as much as he wanted to jump all the way and take the first step into fully claiming Ella, Dante knew he was getting way ahead of himself thinking that.

No, he would pleasure Ella fully, satiate her present desires, but leave her wanting more. Give her a taste, so to speak, of the pleasure he could offer. And in the meantime, it would give them time to deepen their emotional connection so when the time was right, he would reveal his true self to her and then make her his forever.

He lowered himself to one nipple, kissing it and then suckling it while he squeezed the creamy flesh with one hand. Beneath him her curvaceous perfection tantalized him, the feel of her hips on his thighs making him even harder than he already was.

On many occasions, he’d imagined what her curves looked like beneath the unflattering clothes she wore. He wished she knew how beautiful she was and that there was no need to hide anything.

Well, except this. This gorgeous, soft nakedness was only for him. He’d kill anyone else for looking.

While his left hand continued to caress her breasts, taking in the feel of her skin and committing it to memory, his right hand teased at the hem of her pajama pants, and he caught a glimpse of the white lace underwear she wore beneath.

But he didn’t jump into it, instead gauging her reaction, watching for any fear or hesitation on her part before he did more for her. But she didn’t pull back, didn’t shrink away from his invitation as he feared she might.

And without even needing to ask, he heard her thoughts, piercing the heated silence between them like a bell sounding in the distance.

Don’t stop.

Without hesitating, his hand delved beneath her pants, finding her center and stroking along it. Her pleasure immediately intensified, and her hips bucked against him in arousal.

So hot.

He went slowly, but didn’t stop, working into metered rhythm as his fingers played over the soft fabric between her folds and across her clit. At her sides, her hands clenched the bedsheets, holding tightly.

In the room, the single light of the lamp on Dante’s nightstand cast long shadows over everything, illuminating the silhouette of Ella’s gorgeous body beneath him in stark relief.

Then Dante flicked his finger against her clit, and she came for the first time with him.

It was subtle at first, her body warming and tensing as she closed her eyes, shutting out the world around them. And then in an instant, it escalated into a fevered intensity, everything going off inside her as she struggled to stifle her moans and cries of release.

Wanting to keep everything to himself, Dante covered her mouth with his, stroking inside with his tongue and deepening her orgasm even further as her hands dug into his shoulders, a welcome sensation and evidence of the pleasure Dante knew he alone could give Ella.

For what seemed like forever, she came until finally relaxing in his arms and onto the bed once more.

“That was…” Ella said, trailing off.

“Only a taste.”

Before she could respond through the haze of post-release satisfaction, Dante grabbed the edge of her pants and panties in both hands, then slowly pulled them off, revealing her lower half to him and leaving her mostly naked on the bed.

“So embarrassing,” she said, covering her eyes and flushing.

“So perfect,” Dante responded.

With care, he spread her legs, then lowered himself to her, committed to showing her just how deeply his desire for her ran, just how precious her pleasure was to him, how badly he wanted her.

He licked her center, a single stroke, and she gasped with delight, a harsh rush of air that made him want to do it a thousand more times before the night was over.

Like before, he went slowly, using his warm breath to accentuate the feel of his tongue on her clit. After the first few touches, where her body seem to jolt slightly from the power of it, she began to relax into it. Instead of gasps, she let out long, pleasured moans as he licked, then made small, languorous circles around the tiny nub, then alternated direction.

When Ella came the second time, Dante came over her, letting her hold him so she knew he would be there. Like he would always be there for her from here on out. And then the third time, as orgasm crashed through her from the heat and the wetness and the arousal, he didn’t move, instead watching with marvel as the powerful sensation coursed through his mate like an earthquake.

For Dante, all the physical emblems of wealth and status this world had to offer paled in comparison to having his mate with him, here and now.

Once her body had reset, he went back to pleasuring her, going faster as he listened to her body’s wants. And as he did, his hands found her breasts, her stomach, her sides, as eager to touch her as she was eager to be touched. Her hair had long come free of the band that held it back in its ponytail, and it splayed over the pillow beneath her in its beautiful glory.

Dante knew she was exhausted. Knew she was at the end of her rope, at least for tonight. Tomorrow would be a new day with new possibilities. And even though they wouldn’t go all the way, he would be making his mark, staking his claim in her heart so that hopefully, someday soon, she could belong to him and he could protect her and keep her forever.

He stroked faster and faster, his tongue an instrument of Ella’s pleasure as her hands found his and grasped them tightly, so small in comparison to his own. Dante could tell she was holding off, trying to make it last, and it only made him more eager to make her come as hard and as fast as possible.

And to his surprise, his little minx was doing an impressive job of it. But as he felt her reach the very limit, he licked one last time over her, finishing with a long kiss directly over her center, and that tipped her over the edge.

This time she called out his name to the room, holding back her breath as the words left her lips between forceful moans that Ella tried her best to suppress by burying herself into his shoulder.

Next time, Dante would have to make sure they did this someplace where she could be as loud as she wanted without her family around.

She came harder than ever before, her writhing as erotic as it was gratifying for Dante. And when she was finally done, he helped her put her clothes back on, then pulled the sheets around them and turned the light off.

And he pulled Ella close to him, encircling himself around her and holding her tight. At first, she seemed a little tense, but then she slowly relaxed in his arms, her breathing returning to normal.

“That was wonderful,” she murmured. “I didn’t know it would make me so sleepy.”

He grinned. “That means I did it right.”

“You weren’t lying,” she said with a yawn, stretching slightly, showing off her curvy little body in his arms in the slight glow of moonlight through the slats of the closed blinds on the window.

She was so gorgeous.

After a moment, she pulled the sheet in around her again and looked behind her nervously.

He gathered her close again, enclosing her in his warmth. He pressed a kiss to the side of her forehead. “You’re safe with me, love. Nothing can ever happen when I’m around. And if you ever call me, I’ll rush to your side.”

She squirmed happily against him, and he wondered at it, at how amazing it was that somehow he could please this gorgeous, smart, powerful woman who had no idea how beautiful she really was.

By the time he won her, hopefully she would know.

He kissed her head again and waited for her to fall asleep in his arms.