She beamed at me, and I marveled at how damn beautiful she was. The urge to mark her inside, like I had outside, returned with a vengeance. I pushed one leg off the couch and knelt on the floor between her thighs. I didn’t waste any time burying my face in her pussy, drinking down every drop of her arousal. She tasted like heaven. Even sweeter here than anywhere else. It was like licking the frosting off of a cupcake. I didn’t know when I’d developed such a sweet tooth but I’d been right, this was definitely my new favorite dessert.

  I sucked and bit on her clit in between long licks. Soon, she was crying out and her hips were undulating, begging for completion.

  I worked one finger inside her and groaned. “You’re tight as fuck, baby. I have to get you ready before I put my big cock inside you.” With my hand and mouth, I pushed her over the edge into a screaming orgasm. I immediately popped up and clapped a hand over her mouth. “Your sounds are for my ears only,” I barked. “I want to hear you. Making you scream my name is hot as fuck. But you’re going to have to save it for when we are in our bed and not surrounded by my employees. Can you do that for me?”

  Ariel was barely coherent as her orgasm washed over her, but she managed to nod. So, I went back to the task at hand. I carefully slipped two fingers into her pussy this time. As I ate, I used them to stretch her. Eventually, I added a third and made her come once more. She bit her lip hard to keep quiet, and I praised her softly as I licked her until her shudders subsided.

  I’d have to go slow, but I was confident she was ready to take my dick. I kissed her mound one last time before standing and shucking my boxers. My cock was covered in pearly white come from steadily leaking while I ate her out.

  The bit I’d dripped earlier was dried on Ariel’s skin, and it made me want to cover her in my seed so every inch of her carried the proof that she was mine. But I wanted to fill her pussy more.

  I bent over her and plucked and twisted her nipples while I rubbed the tip of my dick along her seam. Ariel shivered and arched her back at the same time that she bucked her pelvis. Finally, I pressed the fat head of my cock in her little hole. I sat up and slowly, inch by inch, I pushed inside. I frequently stopped to allow her to stretch and adjust to my size. “You’re doing so good, baby,” I praised her as I used my thumb to rub circles on her clit.

  When I felt the thin barrier of her virginity, I cringed at the thought of causing her pain. “Play with your nipples for me, baby,” I instructed. “Good girl.” There was no other way though, so I surged forward without warning, not giving her the opportunity to fret over it. She sucked in a breath and froze for a moment, tears forming at the corners of her eyes. I wanted to lean over and kiss away the pain, but I was buried to the hilt and her pussy had me in a vice grip. If I moved now, I wouldn’t be able to stop myself from thrusting and riding her hard before she could handle it.

  “Just breathe, Ariel, the pain will pass.”

  She took another deep inhale, then her hips shifted just a fraction of a centimeter. I clenched my jaw as pleasure shot up my cock, testing my tenuous restraint.

  “I think it’s okay now. I”—I rocked against her—“Oh!” I did it again and she moaned, her hands clenching the armrest so hard her knuckles were white.

  I held still for another moment and waited for her glazed eyes to meet mine. “Who does this pussy belong to, Ariel?” I demanded.

  “You,” she whimpered.

  I rocked against her again. “That’s right. When you let me inside you, gave me your cherry, you sealed your fate. You. Are. Mine.”

  When she tilted her pussy up and clamped her walls down, that was it. I was lost to my hunger and need. I began to drive in and out, faster and harder until I was pounding her into the couch. She couldn’t keep her mouth in check anymore, so I covered it with one hand and used the other to spread her southern lips so I could watch my cock disappear inside her pussy, coming out covered in her sticky juices.

  I was right on the edge, and I could see in her expression and feel in the tightening of her pussy that she was almost there as well. Come was already escaping inside her and it was at that moment I realized, I wanted to fill her womb until it was overflowing with my seed. I wanted to do it over and over until one of my boys took root. I wanted to put my baby inside my little mermaid.

  I paused and took my hand from her mouth to plunge it into her hair, grasping it in my fist and positioning her head so I could look right into her face. “Are you on anything?”

  Her eyes went wide, and she shook her head. “Crap. No, I didn’t have a reason.”

  “You still don’t,” I barked. “I’m not pulling out, little mermaid.”

  She opened her mouth, but I cut her off before she could say anything. “This isn’t up for discussion, Ariel. There will never be anything between us.”

  I pulled back and thrust deep and hard, making her cry out in ecstasy. “Now. Come, baby. Milk my cock of every drop of come so you’re bursting with my seed.” Her eyes rolled to the back of her head on my next thrust, her pussy gloving me so tight it was painful. But the pain only added to the acute pleasure I experienced each time I fought to move in and out.

  “Your pussy likes the idea of sucking my dick dry,” I groaned, throwing my head back and speeding up again. “Fuck, yeah. Your head may not admit it yet, but your body knows what you want. It’s begging for my baby batter.” My pace became wild and undisciplined, my mating instincts taking over. “Oh, fuck! Fuck! Squeeze that pussy, baby. Fuck, yeah.”

  “Maddox!” Ariel keened, turning her head into her arm to muffle her cry. “Yes! Yes! OH! OH! I’m going to—"

  She clamped down one last time before she detonated, shattering into a million pieces and her mouth opened in a silent scream. I followed right behind her, roaring as I exploded, blowing my load so fucking hard I saw stars.

  Chapter 5

  Ariel

  I was still panting when Maddox rolled us over and settled me on his chest. My body was limp, and my mind was in a daze. I figured that three intense orgasms and losing your virginity were bound to do that to a girl. Being new to all of this, I wasn’t sure how I was supposed to act. The only thing I could come up with was...“Wow.”

  “Damn fucking straight, baby.” His arms tightened around me as he pressed a kiss to the top of my head. “I expected it to be good, but holy fuck that was incredible.”

  My lips curved up in a tiny grin of pure feminine satisfaction. “Incredible, huh?”

  “You’re so fucking sexy when you’re being cocky about how hard you made me come.” He shifted me in his arms and claimed my mouth in a deep kiss that left me breathless. “But if you don’t tone that shit down, I might not be able to resist the temptation to sink back inside you while you’re still sore. And that’d be a damn shame because the last thing I ever want to do is hurt you.”

  Him mentioning the ache between my legs made my cheeks fill with heat, and I buried my face in his chest as I confirmed, “Yeah, I think I need a little recovery time.”

  “As sexy as your blush is, you never need to feel embarrassed around me.” He brushed his knuckles against the side of my face before tilting my head up. “Come home with me so I can pamper you a little, baby.”

  “Okay.” My answer was whisper soft because I was feeling a little shy after what we’d just done together on his couch. But it must’ve been enough for him because he lifted me up and set me on my feet. Then he leaned over to grab my clothes off the floor and handed them to me. Well, almost all of them. He tucked my panties in the pocket of his jeans before pulling them on. “Hey! I need those.”

  “I’m just keeping them safe for you while they dry.” The sexy devil had the nerve to wink at me as he added, “I’m no expert, but I figured that no panties are probably better than walking around in a drenched pair.”

  Darn it! The man had a point. I wasn’t looking forward to putting them back on while they were still wet. “Whatever,” I muttered as I put the rest of my clothes on.

  Once we were both dressed, he gave me one last kiss before leading me over to the door. When his hand wrapped around the knob, my cheeks filled with heat. Maddox paused to ask, “What’s wrong, baby?”

  “They’re going to know what we were doing back here.” I smoothed down the front of my shirt before running my fingers through my hair. “I’ve never done the walk of shame before, let alone past a guy’s employees after we had sex in his office.”

  Maddox backed me against the door, his hands pressing against the hard surface on both sides of my head as he growled, “First of all, this isn’t a walk of shame, and I’m not just some guy.”

  “I’m sorry if I worded that badly.” I sighed and pointed between us. “But this is all new to me, and I’m not really sure how I’m supposed to act.”

  Some of the heat melted out of Maddox’s eyes, and he brushed his lips over mine. “Like yourself, baby. That’s all I need from you. Be yourself.”

  “Right. Got it.” I heaved a deep breath and straightened my spine. “I can do that, so I guess I’m ready to go.”

  “Not until I make this clear, too.” He kept me caged in as he continued, “My crew is not going to give you any shit. They might be surprised because I don’t let anyone but employees in my office, though I’m sure they’ve all already heard about how I did your ink in my private studio, which is another thing I don’t do. But if they’re smart—which they are because I only hire the best—they’ll get what that means and treat you with the respect you deserve as my woman. If not, they’ll lose their jobs because no way in hell would I ever put up with anyone making you feel uncomfortable when you’re in my shop.”

  “Wow. Okay.” I blinked up at him in shock for a moment as the magnitude of what he said sunk in. There was no mistaking the sincerity in his eyes; he really would fire someone for embarrassing me. I didn’t want it to actually happen to anyone because I’d hate to be the reason someone lost their job, but it was a heck of a way for Maddox to make it clear that he was serious about this thing between the two of us, as new as it was. “I guess I don’t have anything to worry about. Lead the way, big guy.”

  He took a couple of steps back, tugging me along with him. Then he opened the door, laced his fingers through mine, and walked me towards the front of the parlor. We stopped at three stations, and he introduced me to each of the tattoo artists. He’d been right about nobody saying anything bad, but I did get a lot of curious stares. When we made it to the reception area, Wendy flashed me a big grin and gave me the thumbs-up sign before we headed out to the parking lot.

  I started to head to the left, but Maddox tugged me to the right. I pointed at my car and protested, “I need my car in the morning so I can get to work. It makes more sense for me to follow you to your place.”

  “Nope.” Maddox kept on going, and I practically growled at his one-word answer. It wasn’t until we got to his black Dodge Challenger and he opened the door that he added, “I want your ass in my car the first time you come to my house.”

  “Then you’re going to be stuck waking up super early to drive me back here,” I grumbled as I climbed inside his car.

  He chuckled and shook his head. “Like I would let you get up and leave without waking up, even with your car in my garage.”

  “Let me?” If he wasn’t so hot and waking up with me wasn’t a nice thing to do, I’d almost be mad at him, I thought to myself after he closed the door and rounded the car to get in the driver’s side.

  “Do you drive all your girlfriends to your house the first time?” I snipped.

  “Never taken a woman to my house,” he said as he started the car. I didn’t know what to say to that, so I just settled back in my seat and enjoyed the warmth that bloomed in my chest from his words.

  The rumble and vibration of the engine had me drifting off to sleep before we were a mile down the street. I didn’t wake up again until Maddox nudged my shoulder as he pulled into his neighborhood. “Wake up, baby. We’re almost there.”

  After he pulled into the garage, he gave me a quick tour of the place. It wasn’t at all what I expected for a bachelor pad. The two-story house was in a small subdivision near Red Rock Canyon, about twenty-five minutes away from the Strip. It had a nice sized yard in back and was decorated in mostly blues and greys, with hardwood floors and touches of chrome. It had a masculine vibe, but it was so well put together that it was obvious he’d put a lot of time and thought into it. “Your home is gorgeous.”

  “You like it?” His eyes gleamed with pleasure.

  It felt like my opinion about his place really mattered to him, which made butterflies swirl in my belly. “Yeah.”

  “Good, that’ll make things easier. If you’d hated the place, I would’ve had to call my realtor so we could go house hunting tomorrow instead of just having the movers bring your stuff over.”

  My head jerked back in surprise. “Realtor? Movers? I feel like I missed something here.”

  “I’m going to move you in with me tomorrow. I’d do it tonight, but you wore me the fuck out.” He grinned before bending his head to brush his lips against mine and then added, “And I’ve already got you here, so it’s not like one night will make much of a difference.”

  Was that why he was worried about me liking his house? Because he wanted me to move in with him? Tomorrow?!

  “Do you even hear what you’re saying?” I paced over to the French doors looking out on his back yard and stared at the incredible view of Red Rock Canyon in the distance. “You shouldn’t be thinking about how you’re okay waiting one night before I move in when it’s the very same day that we met!”

  “I know exactly what I’m saying.” He prowled over to stand behind me, wrapping his arms around my body and resting his head on the top of mine. “Did you already forget the part where I told you that you’re mine and you agreed? Because I’m more than willing to demonstrate that fact again if you need me to.”

  I tilted my head to the side, giving serious consideration to his offer even though I was a little disturbed by the lightning speed at which he was moving. But I didn’t think any hot-blooded woman would blame me because of all that was Maddox Holt. The tattooed, sexy, bad boy on the outside who was also an artistic genius and owned a successful business. Had a beautiful home. Was unafraid of commitment. And gave mind-blowing orgasms.

  However, just because he seemed to be the perfect man—at least for me—didn’t mean that I should jump into living together less than twenty-four hours after we met. Or let him distract me from what we were talking about. No matter how tempted I was. “I don’t need a demonstration. Not when I’m a little sore from...um...you know.”

  He pulled my hair back from my ear and brushed his lips against it as his other hand moved up to cup my breast. “From when I busted your cherry with my big, fat cock?”

  “Uh huh,” I breathed as I shivered.

  “The ache you’re feeling in your tight, little pussy should serve as a reminder that you’re mine since there was no going back after you let me inside you.” His hand slipped down to cup me, and I let out a little whimper. “And part of being mine is living with me.”

  He was making it oh-so hard for me to disagree, but I still managed to moan, “No.”

  “What if I double dog dared you to do it?”

  I turned in his arms and stared up into his gorgeous blue eyes as I explained, “Sorry. Nice try, but it doesn’t work that way. I’m only required to accept double dog dares from my sisters.”

  Chapter 6

  Maddox

  “Is that so?” I pressed another kiss to the soft skin of Ariel’s exposed neck. My lips tipped up when she shivered again. I was tempted to convince her by making her scream the right answer over and over, but I wanted a more binding agreement than coercing a yes during sex. And, I was doing my best to remind my depraved, lust-ruled devil inside me that she was sore and needed a break. Even though I couldn’t really blame him for being eager for another round of what I was sure was the best sex anyone had ever had.

  “Yes,” Ariel said in a shaky voice. I could tell that her conviction was wavering, but I decided to hedge my bets. I wasn’t one hundred percent certain my plan would work, but I was more confident than not. Belle had seemed to be on board with my relationship with her sister, and I knew all about her whirlwind romance with Griffith.

  “We’ll see about that, baby,” I murmured. Reluctantly, I removed my arms from around Ariel, then immediately threaded my fingers through hers. I led the way from the living room to the kitchen and up the back set of stairs. There was a landing connecting the front set, before they converged into one set of steps to the second floor. I always liked the idea of being able to reach the upstairs faster, no matter where you were in the house because the kids’ bedrooms were right at the top.

  The master suite was situated at the end of the hall, taking up almost the entire right side of the house on the upper floor. With the exception of a smaller room that connected to ours, which I intended to turn into a nursery.

  We kept walking until we reached a small alcove with a love seat and an overstuffed chair in front of a large picture window. I dug my cell from my pocket before sitting and tugging Ariel down onto my lap. She snuggled into my chest and sighed when I began to rub circles on her back. With my other hand, I turned on my phone and used my thumb to scroll through my contacts until I found the right one and hit send.

  “I wasn’t sure you were still alive,” Griffith chuckled in lieu of a greeting. “Ariel was pissed as hell when she stormed out of here.”

  “I can be pretty fucking convincing when I want to be,” I drawled. Ariel smacked my chest lightly, and I glanced down at her with a raised brow. She was frowning up at me but after a second, she rolled her eyes and shrugged. “Yeah, okay,” she grumbled before relaxing back into me. So damn adorable, I thought with a smirk.