Free What the Earl Desires by Aliyah Burke

her long to sink her hands into it and hold him closer to her.
    “You smell like spiced roses and vanilla, Najja. Do you know how much it affects me?” His voice pitched low, darkly sensual and full of the promise of endless passion.
    “No,” she whispered digging her fingers into the wood behind her.
    Without preamble, he captured the hand he’d previously kissed and brought it back between them, to rest against his breeches and the hardness contained in them. “How about now?”
    Her fingers flexed around his shaft eliciting a guttural groan from him. “Yes luv, just like that.”
    She felt feverish. All she could think about was stripping off his clothes and seeing how he looked in the flesh. Dropping to her knees and servicing him as she’d seen women do for the sultan and his men. She squeezed again and moved her hand slightly up and down. His moan empowered her.
    Colin nibbled along her neck, one hand settled over her breast and he teased the tip into a hard point. Her fingers around him tightened and he expelled another harsh encouragement.
    You are not allowed to have emotions. You have a job to do. Nothing else. Father’s words reverberated through her and she stiffened.
    He backed off, confusion in his eyes, although his hand continued to massage her breast. “What is it?”
    “You…you came for a kiss,” she said withdrawing her touch from him. “This is not a kiss.”
    “It leads to kisses.”
    She wavered.
    He backed away from her and sat on the side of her bed, dominating the mattress with his size alone. His white shirt, black breeches, and golden skin all blended perfectly with the blue shades making up the room. It didn’t matter the room was almost completely shrouded in darkness, she could see him.
    “Come here to me, luv.”
    The silken command moved over her, creating even more of a maelstrom within.
    “I thought you wanted your kiss.”
    “I do.” He tilted his head to the side. “And I will be having it as soon as you come over here.”
    “To the bed?” Lord, she sounded like a dupe.
    He chuckled but the sound didn’t put her at ease. It was as if he enjoyed tormenting her. “To the bed.” He waggled the fingers on one strong hand. “Come, Najja. Our agreement was the time and place of my choosing. The time is now and the place I choose is here, the bed.”
    So he had. Forcing movement into her legs, she trod over the thick Turkish carpet to pause before him. With him seated, they were almost eye to eye. Lord, he was large, the firm physique definite proof of his active life. And for the moment he was here, for her.
    Colin gripped her hips and drew her between muscular legs until the bed prevented her from progressing further. She gulped, his heated touch seared her. Ever so slowly his hands left her hips and slid up her bare arms. The hair on her arms stood on end as his callused palms moved up, higher and higher.
    She felt exposed. Vulnerable. Out of her depths. It wasn’t as if she’d not been in this type of situation before…well, she had not. Bedchambers were one thing but being in them with a man like Mr. Faulkner, entirely different. All her training as a seductress vanished the moment he came in her thoughts. She felt untried. Virginal.
    You are a virgin , her mind reminded her.
    A fact Father never knew. Some days even she couldn’t recall that. But she had enough intimate knowledge of herbs and drugs to always ensure she never had to go through the actual mating with a male. And until this one before her now, she’d never wished to.
    “What are you thinking so hard about, luv?” he asked in a sotto voice, his fingers moving in deliciously simple yet most distracting circles upon her upper arms.
    “I am here as requested, Mr. Faulkner. Perhaps we should get this over with.”
    The green of his eyes hardened with anger and she mentally cursed her wayward tongue. Men and their egos.
    “Colin. In a rush?” he asked, words clipped with fury.
    She longed to sink