Free Under the Lash by Carolyn Faulkner Page A

fight.”
    “Gun shot.”
    “Knife fight.”
    The last one she found before she stopped cataloging all of his scars was a long line that looked uncomfortably like a burn, and she was amazed to see him turn bright red when she looked at him with curiosity in her eyes.
    “That one...well, that one was the result of a misunderstanding between myself and a...lady friend of mine. She took a hot poker to my ass and missed.” But she did leave a good sized remembrance of herself on his side, instead.
    Sick of having her ferreting out all of his flaws – especially when he could find none on her fair skin and also because as far as he was concerned if they got close enough to leave a scar, then he’d done something very wrong during the battle and he wasn’t very fond of being reminded about his mistakes – he brought those wandering fingertips right to where he’d intended they go in the first place – his nipples.
    Surprised to find that he would enjoy that as much as she had, Cassie nevertheless began to touch and flick and rub him at least as eagerly as he had her. Not with quite as much skill, but with a surprising amount of raw talent, goosed on in very much the same way as he was by her, following the sounds of his caught breaths and long, low growls.
    Unfortunately, as much as Anjel would have loved to allow her to indulge herself more fully in that particular pursuit, he knew he wasn’t going to be able to last very long – if at all, he realized suddenly.
    When he moved, it was so lightening fast for such a big man that she was startled out of her reverie. She had been very thoroughly enjoying herself, teasing and tempting him and learning what it was to touch him.
    Suddenly they were no longer on their sides. She found herself pressed flat on her back, her bottom squashed uncomfortably into the bed as he positioned himself carefully between her parted legs, his sheer size forcing them almost painfully wide. He can’t keep himself from slipping just slightly inside her, his cock overeager to be buried within her woman’s warmth, and it was only then that he felt that small barrier that really shouldn’t – definitely should not – have been there.
    But there was no hope for it once he got a taste of her sweet, unbearably tight innocence. It was all he could do to reach down and slip his arms behind her knees, forcing her to open herself even further to his invasion and literally suspending her in mid air so he could mount her with as little interference from her as possible. His voice a desperate, guttural thing, with desire sharpening its claws on his back, he ground out, “It’s going to hurt a bit. Just . . .” he had been going to say, “Try to relax,” but then he realized just how stupid it would be to say that to her and changed his mind. “It won’t hurt for long, I promise. Just don’t fight me. It will only make it harder on yours – ”
    Whether or not she was ready, he was; he could hold himself back no longer. Anjel tried to console himself with the fact that she was most definitely ready, even if she didn’t realize it herself, based on the copious amount of lubrication she was naturally producing. And although he did his level best not to ramrod himself into her, the reality was that it wasn’t much better than that. He was much too far gone. If he had known how completely chaste she was, he could have made things better for her – much better – but it was too late now.
    As he wasn’t able to take the time with her that he would have preferred in this situation, Anjel decided that the best thing to do was to get it over with in one swift movement, rather than prolonging her pain. So he made sure that he was as well positioned as he could be, and, with a quick glance up to see how she was begging him not to hurt her with her eyes and biting her lip till he could see blood, he plunged inside her, to the hilt, all at once. He heard her tiny, strangled scream and saw her press the