Free The Hellion (The Lady Knights of Barony Book One ) by Elise Marion Page B

him. She’d seemed on the verge of tears for the boy nobody had wanted.
    Then she’d gone and called him despicable and damn her, she was right. He was a cad and he was no good, but Julian had been hoping she could see past all of that. Julian had been foolish enough to think that for even one moment, she could see something else in him.
    Then she’d gone and called him despicable and licked her lips. Those delicious, full lips of hers had called to him and her sweet little tongue had teased him.
    Lady Ava Longley had no idea what she’d just done and if he had been willing to admit it, he didn’t understand the full ramifications himself. He only knew what he wanted right then and there and that was Ava, spread out beneath him.
    In an instant, he reversed their positions and pinned her to the ground, his hands leaving her arms to tangle in her hair. Her silken, wavy locks wrapped around his fingers and her body fit up against him like two pieces of a puzzle coming together. Julian groaned at the contact, more aware than ever of the fact that she was not wearing undergarments. For the moment, he was grateful that she’d left her shift drying on the rocks beside her shapeless gown. He hoped a bird would fly away with it by morning.
    For now, her current ensemble offered him access to the body he’d been dreaming of since he’d taken her up into the saddle in front of him. His palms moved down over her shoulders to the curve of full breasts. His fingers raked over her rib cage and his hands grasped her waist. They paused at her hips, enjoying the feel of them as he pressed her more intimately against the pulsating ridge between his legs.
    The roaring in his ears blocked out all thought as he ravaged her mouth completely. He was not gentle, but then she didn’t seem to want him to be. Ava clawed at him like a wildcat, gripping his shoulders before threading her hands in his hair. She tilted his head and mastered his lips the same way he did hers, thoroughly tasting him. She gave as well as she took, reminding him that she was no delicate flower. No blushing maiden, Ava Longley. She quivered against him in supplication, yet conquered their kiss with an alluring kind of dominance.
    Suddenly, he felt the prick of a knife against his side. He stilled, his breath caught in his lungs as he realized that Ava had the tip of his own dagger pressed against his ribs. The jab had been just enough to draw a drop of blood and halt his seductive progress. His eyes flew open and he found himself staring into hers. They were brewing with furious storm clouds.
    Her breath was moving rapidly in and out of her lungs, reminding him that her breasts were pressed tightly up against his chest. Despite the fact that she had a knife pressed into his side, he found the friction arousing. He flexed his hips against hers and lowered his head toward hers again, his eyes issuing a direct challenge.
    “Do it,” he whispered, watching her face for any flicker of emotion. From where he sat, she looked every bit the acclaimed warrior that she was. He knew that if she really wanted to, she could drive the knife deep into his side before he even had a chance at snatching her hand away. So, he simply watched her, refusing to show even an ounce of trepidation.
    “Do it,” he repeated, daring her to do her worst. He would deserve it for being such a fool. Julian never should have kissed her, never should have allowed her appearance to cause him to forget what she really was, an annoying hellcat with a violent streak.
    Her nostrils flared and she twisted the knife, just enough to cause him to wince in pain. “I could kill you right now, but I won’t,” she hissed. “I am a lady knight and I fight honorably. Don’t do me the disservice of underestimating me as an opponent and don’t think to prove your dominance as a man over me either. I am not interested in what you have to offer. Why should I be? You are not a bastard by birth, Julian, but you are