Slow and easy. No rushing. That was his plan. At least it was until she uttered those words. After that, all his plans went right out the airlock. He fisted her hair in his hands and kissed her hard. She moaned and tightened her grip on his shirt, popping open another fastening. He slanted his mouth over hers, devouring her every breath as he eased one hand out of her hair and let it drift up her back until he found the clasp on the dress. A light tug was all it took to undo it, leaving her back bare beneath his questing fingers.

Soft skin. Warmth. The taste of wine and spices. The silken weight of her hair between his fingers. He memorized every detail, branding her onto his senses so that no matter what happened, he would never forget this moment.

She squirmed in his lap, and he had to bite back a groan. “You keep moving like that and the only thing I’m going to be eating for dinner is you.”

Her laughter filled the room. “I thought shortcake was for dessert.”

He growled and kissed her again. His tongue danced with hers as they ground their bodies together. He let his hand glide down her body until he reached the bare skin of her legs. Her squirming had rucked the fabric high on her thighs and he slid his hand beneath her skirt, pushing it higher. Her legs parted in silent invitation, and he let his hand move higher, not stopping until he brushed against something that damned near stopped his heart. “You’re not wearing underwear.”

“I don’t own any.”

“You’re telling me that all this time, you’ve been bare-assed under your pants? Veth, woman. If I had known that…”

“I was wearing pants, so I wasn’t baring anything.” She wiggled against him, pressing against his rock-hard cock until he was tempted to tear her dress off and fuck her right there on the chair.

“Well, you’re going to be bare in about ten seconds. Hop up. Arms over your head. Now.”

She was laughing as she left his lap and raised her arms, her green eyes bright with desire and amusement. “There was a time I found your bossy ways really fraxxing annoying.”

He let go of her hair and caught the bottom of her dress in both hands. “And how do you feel about my bossy ways now?”

“Sexy… and still somewhat annoying. But mostly sexy.”

“Only mostly sexy? I clearly need to up my game.” He stood, stripping her out of her dress with a quick lift of his hands and tossed it aside without a care for where it landed. All he cared about was her. He ached to have her back in his arms, but he held back because he wanted to see her, first. All of her. Naked. Beautiful. Bathed in the light of the planet spinning beneath their feet. She was stunning. From the slender lines of her legs to the gentle rise of her breasts that peeked out from beneath the tumbled curtain of long black hair. He’d thought about this moment often enough but having her here in the flesh was so much better than any daydream he’d conjured.

She didn’t wait for him to come to her. She covered the distance between them herself and started undoing the fastenings on his tunic with nimble fingers. “Standing rule. If I’m naked, you’re naked.”

“I like that rule.” He shrugged out of his top the moment she had it undone and let it fall to the floor. Her hands rose to his chest, stroking over his skin with a hunger that made his blood roar in his ears and his cock turn to steel.

“So strong,” she murmured.

He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her in tight to his body before admitting the truth he’d denied since the beginning. “Not when it comes to you.”

Tyra was flying high on a heady rush of desire and happiness. At his quiet confession, she threw her arms around his neck and rose up on her toes, but his head was still too high for her to land a kiss anywhere but his chest. “If this isn’t a one-night thing, I’m going to need stilts.”

He cupped her ass in his big hands and lifted her into the air, high enough she could look into his eyes. “This is not a one-night fling. I don’t know what it will be or how long we’ll have, but when tomorrow comes, I’m still going to want you in my life.”

“Good because the next rule is this: no more disappearing acts. If you want out, all you have to do is say so. If you vanish on me again, I won’t be here when you come back.”

“I’m not going anywhere, shortcake.” He set her down on the edge of the console they were using as a table and stepped between her thighs so that he towered over her.

Veth, she loved the way he did that, moving so close that he was all she could see, all she could feel. He was dangerous, but not to her. Her heart had known that from the first moment they’d met, and she had chosen to trust him with her life.

“Sergeant Strak, you’re already in violation of our first rule.” She curled two fingers into the waistband of his pants and tugged. “Why are you still dressed?”

“I got distracted.” He cupped her breasts in his big hands, stroking her nipples with his thumbs as he leaned in to kiss her. It was a hard, hungry kiss. Mouths open. Tongues tangled. She let herself get lost in the moment, letting go of his pants and wrapping her arms around his waist to cling to him as her world went up in flames.

When he finally lifted his head again, she tried to follow his mouth with hers, not wanting the kisses to end. It wasn’t until his hands touched her knees and he coaxed her thighs apart that she stopped trying and leaned back instead. She placed her hands on the table behind her as he parted her legs, baring all of her to his gaze.

He dropped to his knees and pressed an open-mouthed kiss to one inner thigh, letting his fangs skim over her skin before lifting his head to stare up at her. “It’s time for dessert.”

She barely had time to nod before he bowed his head and pressed his face into her pussy, parting her labia with his fingers as he sought the pearl of her clit with his tongue. Her next breath came out in an explosive gasp as pleasure poured through her. If she’d been on fire before, now she was standing in the heart of a star. She let her head fall back, closing her eyes as she gave herself over to Dante’s talented touch.

He was a man on a mission, using all his skill to bring her to the brink of orgasm. He sucked on her clit, using his tongue to tease and torment her until she was trembling and breathless. Only then did he slip a thick finger inside her, then another, fucking her with his hand, pushing her closer to the edge of release without letting her reach it.

“Dante, please. I need…”

He hummed in affirmation, his mouth and fingers working faster now. She became a creature of pure sensation, riding endless waves of pleasure. One of his fangs grazed a tender spot, and she cried out in pleasure, only to have him stop.

“Sorry, sweetheart.”

She opened her eyes and lifted her head to look down at him. “Don’t apologize. Do it again.”

The look he gave her was hot enough to melt hull plating. “As my lady wishes.”

He buried his face into her slick folds again, this time baring his fangs just enough she could feel them grazing her swollen flesh. She started to come, her thighs closing around his head as her release loomed. He sucked her clit into his mouth once more, closing his teeth on it with just enough pressure to send her senses spinning as she rocketed into orgasm.

She was still trying to catch her breath when he rose to his feet, gathering her into his arms for a long, torrid kiss. “You are perfection,” he whispered against her lips.

“I’m not, but I’m glad you think so.”

“I know so.” He nipped her lower lip as he moved away from her, undoing his pants and stepping out of them with an eagerness that echoed her own.

She stayed where she was and tried to gather her scattered wits as he shucked off the last of his clothes. His legs were as heavily muscled as the rest of him, thick, hard, as if they were carved from stone. His cock was as big as the rest of him, and her breath caught in her throat.

He stepped in close again. “Relocation time.”

“What? Where are we going? We’re naked, remember?”

“I am acutely aware that you are naked right now, which is why we’re moving. Just hold on and trust me, baby.”

She reached up and took hold of his shoulders. “I can do that.”

He lifted her easily, cradling her against his chest as he turned and strode across the room to one of the reclining chairs facing the windows. He sat and settled her into his lap so she faced away from him, her legs straddling his. His cock pressed against her ass, and she gave a deliberate wiggle before turning her head to glance back at him. “I don’t see how this is an improvement.”

“I have a plan. You’ll see.” He nuzzled her hair, then swept it off her neck, kissing his way down the back of her neck, not stopping until he reached her shoulder. His gentle kisses and the warm caress of his breath on her skin sent a flurry of goosebumps chasing down her back. His hands covered her breasts again, teasing her nipples with light pinches until they were hard as diamonds and every touch sent a pulse of need straight to her clit.

“This is fun, but what if I want to get my hands on you, too?”

He nipped the tender flesh at the top of her shoulder. “You will, later. You spend your life taking care of everyone else, sweetheart. Just this once, lie back and let someone take care of you.”

She couldn’t remember the last time that had happened. She covered one of his hands with hers and squeezed. “I’ll try.”

“That’s all I can ask.”

Dante toyed with her breasts for a few more minutes, until she was half out of her mind with need. She reached for her pussy, but he caught her wrist and pulled her hand away. “Nope. Not tonight. Tonight all of your pleasure belongs to me. Whatever you need, sweetheart, all you have to do is ask.”

She caught his gaze in their reflection. He looked at her with almost predatory hunger, and it sent a dark thrill right down to her soul. “I want you inside me, Dante. I want you to fuck me until neither of us can move.”

He uttered a low, primal growl that rolled through her like a rocket lifting off. “Fraxx, yes. That’s what I want, too.”

She was on her feet a half-second later, and back in his arms a moment after that, only this time, facing him, her thighs spread wide to straddle him. His cock was caught between her slick thighs, the broad head only a few inches from where she needed him to be. She rose and reached for him but froze when he shook his head.

“No touching,” he reminded her.

“You’re dangerously close to the line between sexy and annoying.” She set her hands on his shoulders and leaned in to kiss him.

“Liar,” he whispered before taking her mouth in a long, heated kiss. His tongue slid into her mouth at the same moment he moved into position, the wide head of his cock pressing against her entrance.

She didn’t hesitate, lowering herself down on his shaft in one steady motion that had him groaning aloud. She didn’t stop until he was buried to the hilt inside her, his thick length stretching her inner walls just enough to add a bite of pain to the pleasure coursing through her.

“So much for slow and easy,” he muttered when he finally broke their kiss.

“Nothing about us has ever been easy. Why start now?”

“I’m starting to think you are the perfect woman for me.” Dante reached down to flick a lever on the chair. The chair dropped back, tipping her forward and opening a gap between their bodies. His hands landed on her hips, gripping her tightly as he lifted her a few inches above him and held her there. “Hang on to me, Shortcake, and try to keep up.”

Her snarky retort was cut off by a gasp as he thrust upward, filling her completely before withdrawing and doing it again and then again. He kept her suspended above him as he fucked her, her position preventing her from doing anything but enjoy the hard, rhythmic joining of their bodies. His biceps bulged with the effort it took to hold her airborne and she ran her hands over his upper arms, chest, and shoulders, loving the way his body flexed and moved beneath her fingers.

She needed him. The realization dawned as she leaned in to kiss him and found herself staring into his deep blue eyes. This went beyond attraction, beyond the passion that burned between them. This was something more, or at least, it could be. She pushed the thought away and finished the kiss instead. It was too soon to be thinking about futures and possibilities. All they had was this moment, and she wanted to make it memorable.

They chased each other across the heights of pleasure, and when he finally lowered her and let go of her hips, she rode him hard, until the friction between had them both sweat-slicked and panting.

He reached between them and pressed a calloused fingertip to her clit, rubbing it hard as his cock thickened and jerked deep inside her. “Come with me,” he told her in a voice barely this side of a command.

She would never admit it was his voice that sent her over the edge, but she came within seconds, her orgasm hurtling into high orbit as he arched his back, lifting them both off the chair as he came. In the aftermath, she collapsed on top of him, heart racing and her breath coming in ragged gasps. She lay across his chest, too spent to move, listening to his heartbeat as it thundered against his ribs.

When his arms wrapped around her, she uttered a contented sigh that came straight from her soul. “S’good.”

“Very good. Right now you could ask me for anything in the universe, and I’d promise you to get you two by the time you woke up.”

She laughed. “Right now, I’ve got almost everything I need for my life to be perfect.”

“Only almost? What’s missing? What can I get for you to make it perfect?”

She nuzzled his chest. “You can answer one simple question. Why do they call you Buttercup?”

He swore under his breath in a language she didn’t recognize. “Promise me you won’t tell Magi?”

She raised her head just enough to be able to nod in agreement. “I promise.”

“I used to have a tattoo on my bicep.” He reached around her to tap his right arm. “Right here. I got it for Tish. She used to wear these little yellow flowers in her hair all the time. She’d pick them off the side of the road. They weren’t real buttercups, but that’s what the locals called them, so I nicknamed her Buttercup. When we got married, I got those flowers tattooed on my arm. A big bunch of them, all bright fraxxing yellow and tied up with this stupid bow with her name on it.”

“That sounds sweet.” She touched his bicep, right where he’d indicated the tattoo had been. There was an ornately stylized drawing of some kind of predatory, vaguely feline animal there now.

“My fellow trainees thought it was hilarious.”

“And they started calling you Buttercup.” She winced. “That can’t have been easy to deal with when Tish left.”

“It wasn’t. I…let my anger get the better of me too many times back then. It nearly cost me my career before I settled down.”

“This is you settled down? I’ve seen you charge into a fight against three armed men with nothing but your fists and a smile. If this is you settled, I can’t imagine what you were like before.”

His laughter rumbled up from his chest. “I’ll tell you about my wild days another time. For now, I think we should probably enjoy our dinner.”

“But then our date will be over. I’m not sure I’m ready for that to happen.”

He shook his head. “Over? Not even close. There’s dinner, dessert, and then I’m taking you back to my room and keeping you there until morning. I finally have you right where I want you, there’s no way I’m giving that up anytime soon.”

“The last time we spent the night together, you let me sleep all night and then stopped talking to me. This time will be different, right?”

“That was a younger, dumber version of me.” He pointed his thumb at his chest and winked at her. “The new and improved version has plans for you tonight, and they don’t involve much sleeping.”

“That sounds good to me.” In fact, it sounded perfect. After everything they’d been through, getting lost in each other was the best therapy she could think of, for both of them.