Total pages in book: 179
Estimated words: 169943 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 850(@200wpm)___ 680(@250wpm)___ 566(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 169943 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 850(@200wpm)___ 680(@250wpm)___ 566(@300wpm)
“You know I would.” If bulls could purr, I’d be purring right now.
She gets to her feet and tugs at the front of her boxy blouse, at the brown buttons that line the front. It’s the most unflattering of garments on her, but I know what she looks like underneath. I know what she looks like wet. The guild uniform is just a tease. “If I was a bolder sort, I’d make a joke that I welcome critiques.” Aspeth gives me a nervous little half smile, glancing up. “But I confess that I’m an absolute ninny when it comes to my body. If you find something repugnant, please don’t tell me about it. I’m nervous as it is.”
As if I’d ever tell her that she was anything but splendid.
She fiddles with one of the buttons and then glances back at the bed. “Should I be sitting or standing?”
“You should be however you’re comfortable.”
“So in the library with a book upon my lap, then?” she jokes, tossing her blouse to the floor. Next go her boots and stockings, then the trousers she wears. She strips it all off methodically, and when she’s down to nothing but a corset and her thin chemise, she pulls her hair down from its pinned bun and shakes it loose. With trembling hands, she pulls the laces free of her corset and tosses it aside. Her chemise follows after it a moment later.
Then she slides back onto the bed and lies atop it like a corpse at a viewing, her legs tightly together, hands folded at her waist, eyes closed.
It’s not the sexiest of positions, but I’d have to be an idiot not to realize how unsettled she is. I move toward the foot of the bed, giving her space, and eye her pale, plump legs. I like them. I like the rounded curve of her calves, her delicate ankles, and her large feet. She’s tall and solid and made as such, and I’m dying to skim my hand up one strong, thick thigh so I can watch her legs part.
But I can tell she’s nervous. It’s the whole corpse thing, her eyes squeezed shut as if she expects me to take her measurements with a tailor’s tape and tsk over what I find. I curl my fingers around her ankle, lifting it up, and rub her foot.
Her gaze flies open. “Oh—”
“It’s fine,” I tell her. “You’re fine. We’re just a naked married couple in our room together. There’s nothing to be nervous about.”
“Says you. You’re beautiful.” She watches my hands move over her foot, her gaze heavy-lidded. “You’re covered in muscle. I don’t think I have a single one.”
I bite back the laughter that threatens to huff out of me. “I’m pretty sure I spotted one. At least one.” I let my gaze move over her again, lingering at the gentle swell of her belly. She’s soft here, too, an indication of her pampered life, but I rather like it. I like the thought of cuddling up to pillowy softness in a wife. Her breasts are just as large as I expected them to be. Flat on her back, they pull toward her arms, her nipples dark and prominent and tight. All of her looks soft and touchable, and I can’t stop staring.
“There we go,” I tease. “There’s a muscle.”
She laughs, trying to crane her head to gaze at the foot I’m holding near my chest. “Where?”
I lean in, nuzzling her ankle. “Right here.”
Aspeth whimpers, the sound soft and utterly enticing.
“Is this all right?” I ask, even as I run my muzzle against her soft skin. “Or should I stop?”
“I’m fine,” she promises, breathless. Her fingers twist in the blankets at her sides and she watches me with parted lips. “You…my…this is fine. All fine.”
I drag my mouth against her skin. She’s so damned soft. So pettable. “I wanted you to touch me the other day. All you did was look.”
“Oh,” Aspeth breathes, and her flush goes right down to her pretty tits. They jiggle as she shivers, her nipples tightening, and I nip at her calf. “I wasn’t bold enough. Not yet.”
“I’m bold,” I tell her bluntly. “Can I touch you more? Or are you not ready for that yet?”
The look in her eyes grows soft. Sensual. Her hands clench the blankets again. “You can touch me.”
Good. Because I’m aching, my cock as hard as stone. This is about easing her into pleasure, though, and I’m dying to touch her. I want to run my hands all over her skin, to feel her quiver when I caress her. I want to show her what it’s like to be in bed with a Taurian. That she’s not going to miss out on a single thing. That I can make her feel better than any human can, if she’ll just give me a chance.