Though most were intimidated by Adam and gave in to whatever he wanted, Cordray shoved the man aside so he could help Rory through her first moments of wakefulness. He leaned over the bed, casting aside Benjamin’s command that he wouldn’t touch her. The moment her eyelids fluttered, he knew he didn’t have the self-control to step back. He was gentle with her, holding her hand and lifting it to his cheek. It was an intimate touch, and one they’d done many times before when they were alone. Cordray needed to be near her, to ease some of the pain life had heaped on her lovely head. “Hey, Story. What’s your Rory?” he asked with a small smile that was meant just for her. Though he still had questions about her attacker, and the dangerous nature of her title, her needs came first.
“What? Are we… I don’t…” She blinked hazily until her eyes finally were able to focus on his – bright brown pools that shone only for her. “Cord,” she breathed, and the sound was laced with relief at the sight of his face.
Benjamin threw his arms in the air. “Well, that didn’t last long. So much for you keeping your distance.”
Cordray held himself back for two whole seconds. Three. Four. On the fifth, he decided she was cogent enough to be able to push him away if his advances were unwanted. Slowly and with so much longing, he could scarcely be parted from her a moment longer, Cordray closed the breath of a gap between them. He lifted her under her torso a few inches, and gently brushed his lips to hers.
Her lips were soft, and after the shock wore off, moved easily with his – as if they’d been kissing for years, but were still enjoying the fruits of their first time. Cordray moved slowly, knowing she was something to be cherished instead of conquered and kept. But he wanted to keep her – to himself, safe, and in his arms.
He let out a vulnerable bleat when her hand rose clumsily to touch on his cheek. Every time she touched him, it roused an exposed nerve that came from living a life so isolated from society. The need for her touch burned raw inside of him, so he leaned in, silently begging for more – ever more. Neither of them cared that they had a stunned audience. They were entranced that something so magical had happened to them.
When his tongue lightly swept across hers, Rory’s legs curled up under the satin comforter, her body responding far easier to him than either of them would’ve thought possible so soon after her eyelids opened. She arched her back as his kiss sent sensation to the muted parts of her, awakening her senses and making them both crave more.
Soon she was sitting up on her own in the bed. His kiss was like caffeine to her system – rousing her and focusing her foggy mind. When Adam and Benjamin slipped out to give them some privacy, Rory tugged on Cordray’s collar, giving in to the longing that never went away. They dedicated that slice of time to exploring, to unwinding, and to playing. The world slowed, and for a few precious and blissful moments, there was only them, and only this kiss.
Cordray didn’t know how or why he could be expected to resist the pull she had on him. Finally allowing himself to give in to the desire he’d been tucking away for the past two hours felt like the first breath he’d ever had. Cordray inhaled the sweet, subtle fragrance of her hair as he lightly tugged on the raven waves that had enticed him at every turn. He didn’t mean to bite down on her lip, but the sensation only pushed them further and further past the point of no return.
The kiss came to a crest when Rory swooned, her heart working hard to keep up with her libido. She went limp in his arms, though she didn’t go completely under.
Cordray laid her back down and kissed her forehead, sitting on the edge of the bed next to her. “Easy, easy. Are you alright? I’m sorry. That was all me.”
Rory’s lashes fluttered as she held on to consciousness. “Cord,” she whispered, her voice falling softly around them. Then as her world came more into focus, she glanced around the room with a frown. “Why are we here?” Then her eyes widened when it dawned on her that there was no way he could be at Adam’s haunted castle and not have been introduced to the mentally unstable man. “Whatever Adam said, I apologize. He can be… He’s not well.”
Cordray responded by leaning over and stroking her lips with his, too sedated by their kiss to care about much else.