Free A Breath of Scandal by Connie Mason Page B

he reared up from the bed and began tearing off his clothing. Lara watched in fascination as buttons went flying. Moments later he stood before her naked, his bandages starkly white against his magnificent body, now bared for her visual pleasure. Her gaze fell to his engorged staff. It rose full and thick from a nest of dark springy curls.
    Lara’s mouth flew open. Something that swollen and rigid would never fit inside her. He’d rip her apart. Panic surged through her and she tried to roll away, but she was pressed back against the mattress by the weight of Drago’s body as he spread her legs and lowered himself between them. She was momentarily distracted when he kissed her, and of course she had to kiss him back. Then his tongue was grappling with hers and she lost her wits, until she felt his hardness probing between her legs. She stiffened; her eyes flew open.
    The heat and heaviness of his own naked need made Julian oblivious to Lara’s apparent fear as he pressed inexorably forward and inward, taking his time, wanting to prolong the pleasure. He felt her sheath stretch to accommodate him and flexed his hips, driving himself deeper. He couldn’t ever recall being so hard, so rigid, so needy. He was too far steeped in lust to notice that her body was tense, or that fear had replaced the passion-glazed brilliance of her eyes.
    She whimpered and he glanced down at her, puzzled.
    “Am I hurting you? Am I larger than your other lovers?”
    “There have been no other lovers.”
    Julian laughed. “Don’t lie. I doubt there is a Gypsy woman past the age of thirteen still in possession of her virginity. Gypsies are notoriously promiscuous.”
    “How many Gypsy women do you know?” Lara challenged.
    She had him there. He knew damn little about Gypsies. Most of it was hearsay. But he’d learn the truth for himself in another moment. All he had to do was flex his hips and …
    He broke through the shield of her innocence in one bold thrust. He froze, staring down at her in disbelief.
    “Bloody hell! You
are
a virgin.” He was more angry than pleased. Seducing virgins wasn’t his style.
    Her eyes were shiny bright with unshed tears. “Not anymore,” she said on a sob.
    The pitiful sound tugged at his conscience and put a fine edge to his anger. He held himself rigid inside her. “ ’Tis too late for regrets. If you didn’t want this you should have told me.”
    Her chin shot upward. “We’re married. ’Tis my understanding that this is what husbands and wives do.”
    His voice was taut with tension, his control was slowly eroding. “Damnation!
You
may be married but I am not. I would not be making love to you had I known you were a virgin. I am already inside you, however, so I will carry this to a satisfying conclusion for both of us. I promised to give you pleasure and I meant it. Does it still hurt?”
    “A little. You’re so big.”
    “Relax.” He pressed deeper, then retreated. “Can you feel the friction?” She nodded. “Good.” He thrust again. “Concentrate on it and let the sensations build.”
    He shoved more of himself inside her, moving in and out, once, twice, again. He heard her drag in a shuddering breath and felt her body lose some of its rigidity. Sweat dotted his brow as he gradually increased the movement of his hips. He felt her first tentative response and thanked God, for he was quickly losing what little remained of his control. Then suddenly she caught fire, rising up eagerly to meet his rhythm as he thrust and withdrew forcefully inside her.
    Lara felt the pain dissolving, replaced by a far more pleasant sensation as Drago moved inside her. He was huge. Yet somehow she was able to stretch to fit him, to take more of him. She concentrated on the splendid friction he was creating inside her, on the building tension, on the dazzling sensations spearing through her body. She heard someone moan, and was startled to recognize the voice as her own. She glanced up to see if Drago had