Tapestries 05 - Embroidered Fantasies (7 page)

He traced the full curve of her bottom lip with his tongue. She tasted sweet. She sucked in a breath, parting her lips, and he dipped inside. A brief touch. Light.

Undemanding.

It was the hardest thing he’d ever done. The muscles in his arms ached he was clenching them so tight to keep from tugging her into his arms. She made another small sound of desire and the pressure of her mouth increased as she shifted closer to him.

Radnor wanted to roar in triumph. He parted his lips, inviting her to explore his mouth. Like a skittish foal, she hesitated before dipping her tongue inside. He touched his tongue to hers and she withdrew. Radnor kept the kiss gentle and seconds later, she was back, this time going deeper.

Unable to resist, he raised one hand and cupped the back of her head. Again, he kept the pressure light. Simply touching her. Demanding nothing. Her hair was soft. He longed to bury his fingers in it and deepen the kiss.

He felt the lightest pressure on his chest. He caught his breath but didn’t move. Her fingertips played over the hard muscles of his chest before trailing over his biceps.

Roxanne examined his armbands briefly before drifting upward to stroke his neck.

His cock was as hard as stone. His balls were heavy, aching for release. There was no way to hide the bulge pressing at the front placket of his pants and he didn’t even try. She needed to know he wanted her, needed to become accustomed to his body, his touch.

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He leaned back and their lips parted. She opened her eyes and blinked, looking as shocked as he felt. The sexual connection between them was undeniable. Radnor wanted Roxanne with a depth of need that shook him to his core. Never in his life had he allowed himself to want something as much as he wanted her.

It was disconcerting. But there was no denying it. The tapestry had brought her here and it was up to him, and Sednar, to find a way to keep her here. That meant convincing her to stay. From all he’d learned about the tapestry, the woman had the final choice if she stayed or went back to wherever she came from. The man could do nothing to stop her. That was the magic of the tapestry.

She cleared her throat. “That was…” She raised her fingers to her mouth and touched her lips. “That shouldn’t have happened.”

“You liked it.” He would not let her deny her pleasure or the connection that existed between them.

She frowned at him, creating little lines on her brow. “That’s beside the point.” Radnor touched the spot between her eyes and smoothed away the creases. He shook his head at her stubborn refusal to admit to the sexual spark that flared between them. “That is the point. You are here now and I will protect you.”

“Don’t you understand?” She spoke slowly, as if to a child. “This isn’t real.” He grinned in spite of the seriousness of the situation. “If it’s only a dream, you won’t mind if I do this.” Taking advantage of the moment, he leaned forward and captured her mouth, kissing her the way he longed to. His tongue surged between her lips, exploring the moist cavern of her mouth. He used his hand on the back of her head, tilting it so he had a better angle of penetration.

Roxanne moaned, her tongue tangling with his. Pleasure shot through him as she returned his caress. She was so sweet, like nothing he’d ever tasted in his life. Better than the finest wine, sweeter than the juiciest fruit.

Her unique scent surrounded him, a combination of flowers and warm, willing woman. She smelled like a dream long buried, like hope. Her pussy would taste even sweeter, with a hint of spice. He’d sampled her cream in his dream and knew the reality of it would be even better.

He placed his hand on her ankle. Her leg jerked slightly but she didn’t object.

Radnor kept kissing her as he ran his hand over her calf and knee. He slipped his hand beneath the strange-colored tunic she wore. Her skin was smooth and inviting. She shifted restlessly beside him.

He paused, not going any higher. She froze beneath his hand, quivering with indecision. He could almost hear her thoughts as she debated letting him go further or pushing him away.

She tore her lips from his. “I don’t understand any of this.” The confusion in her voice went straight to his soul and he sought to reassure her.

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“All you have to do is enjoy the pleasure I want to give you.” He rubbed her leg, moving no more than an inch upward before moving back down, settling her like he would a skittish mare. He didn’t want to spook her any more than she already was.

“I want to touch every inch of your body. I want to uncover your breasts and tease your nipples into hard buds. I want to bury my face between your thighs and feast on your sweet flesh until you scream with pleasure.” Radnor stared into her smoky gray eyes, willing her to agree. “All you have to do is say yes.” He wanted to stake his claim now before Sednar met her. He knew without a doubt that Sednar would put up a fierce fight for her affections. How could he not?

By rights, he should scoop Roxanne into his arms and take her into the keep. She had a bump and a slight gash on her temple. Not life-threatening, but it needed tending.

If he were a decent man, he’d be more concerned with making her comfortable and seeing to her needs instead of wanting to fuck her.

But he’d never claimed to be a decent man. He was a hard man with rough ways.

He’d learned to fight for what he wanted and he wanted Roxanne with a fierce longing that threatened to choke him.

His pulse pounded in his temple as he watched her. She was a miracle and his first inclination was to snatch her away and lock her in the tower room, pleasuring her until she couldn’t even think of leaving him.

He dragged a hand though his hair and huffed out a deep breath. If he did that, he’d be no better than his older brothers had been. He’d be an animal. Old hurts rose to the fore as he remembered his sister and his mother. He’d been unable to protect them as much as he’d wanted. But he could protect Roxanne from anyone who dared to try to hurt her. He could also protect her from himself.

Slowly, he removed his hand from her leg and sat back to give her some space.

Roxanne’s mouth was open and he could see the shock in her eyes. And no wonder.

He’d barely met her and he’d told her in very graphic details what he wanted to do to her. What woman wouldn’t be afraid? Especially one who was already on the run from a man.

He almost growled at the thought of her ex-husband hurting her. Radnor wanted to meet the man who would do such a thing and make him pay for his crimes. Roxanne didn’t know him, didn’t understand that he’d never hurt her. The problem was he had only three days to make her understand, to get her to want to stay.

He stood abruptly and held out his hand. “Come. I will take you inside. You can bathe and have your head injury tended to. Then you will eat and rest before you meet my brother.”

“Brother.” Her word was little more than a whisper. Her eyes grew larger as her face got paler. “Is he about your size with brown hair and two skinny braids framing either side of his face?”

Radnor nodded.

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“I really am dreaming.” She sounded more bemused than afraid, for which he was grateful. He hated to do anything to make her fearful, but he couldn’t allow her to go on lying to herself.

“No. You’re not dreaming, Roxanne. The tapestry is magic. It has brought you to the land of Javara. You are not the first woman it has brought to our world. It has been going on for generations. Here, woman are scarce and are treasured. Brothers compete to win the right to marry a woman. Only one brother can marry her and claim her children as his own. The other brothers get one night a week in her bed and vow to take care of her if her husband dies. There are no more than three brothers to a woman.

There is only Sednar and myself. And he will want you as much as I do.” 39

Roxanne’s head was spinning. One minute Radnor was kissing her senseless. The next he’d pulled away and was looking more fierce than ever as he told a crazy tale of a magic tapestry, a strange world and brothers who competed for a woman’s affection.

Did she believe any of this? For a dream, it was damn real. Her head throbbed from her fall. Her breasts and her pussy ached with sexual need. Her leg still tingled from where he’d touched her and her lips felt swollen and damp from his kisses. She’d gone from fighting for her life to being immersed in sexual pleasure.

In some ways it wasn’t so far-fetched. One intense emotion had been swapped for another. Fleeing from death made her want to celebrate life in the most elemental way.

That was a very human and natural reaction. And since it was her dream, she’d much rather be kissing a hunk like Radnor than fighting with her ex for her life.

But the things he’d said to her. She lifted her hand and fanned her face, feeling the heat climbing over it. He’d been quite explicit about what he wanted to do to her.

Radnor’s words still echoed in her mind. Bury his face between her thighs and feast on her sweet flesh until she screamed with pleasure. Just like her dream from last night.

A thought occurred to her. Compete. Did she really want to know? “Umm, what do you mean, compete?”

Radnor’s gaze was fierce as he watched her. A sense of determination surrounded him. “Sexually.”

Her mouth dropped open and she shook her head in denial. Surely he couldn’t mean what she thought he did.

He plowed forward, ignoring her denial. “We will take you to bed, separately and together, and pleasure you. That way you will be able to choose which brother you like better.”

“That’s…” she struggled to find the right words, “that’s crazy.” At least that’s what her brain was saying. Her body was thrumming with sexual arousal, as though it had decided to embrace this dream to the fullest and take advantage of what was being offered.

Radnor’s lips pulled into a thin line. He propped his hands on his hips. He looked huge standing over her. She realized she was still reclining on the bales of hay, her dress riding up, exposing a large amount of bare thigh. She scrambled to her feet and shoved the pink polyester down to cover herself. It wasn’t a soft bed anyway and the stiff blades of grass were sticking into her bare legs and scratching her arms.

“Not crazy,” he said, his voice low and controlled. “It is simply the way things are here.”

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This was the strangest dream she’d ever had. It was very real. If the situation in her real life wasn’t so dire, she might like to stick around and see where things went. But she didn’t have that luxury.

She tried to reason with him. “Okay, let’s just say for the sake of argument, I believe this is real. I didn’t ask for this. What if I want to go home?” Roxanne backed up a step as Radnor stirred restlessly in front of her. He seemed to become even bigger, every muscle in his arms rippling as he crossed his arms over his chest. “The tapestry will appear again on the third day. You will then have to make your choice. Go or stay.”

She shook her head, making it throb. This was crazy. Totally unbelievable. Three days. She didn’t have three days. Not even in a dream. She had to wake up this very moment. Now.

She scrunched her eyes together and concentrated fiercely on waking. She opened her eyes to find herself still in her dream world. Try as she might, nothing happened.

She was still standing in a large, stone structure, her bare feet on the smooth ground and several strands of hay stuck to her uniform.

The sweet smell of the hay and the darker, lusher scent of hot male wafted around her. The sound of her breathing got louder with each passing second. There was still an incredibly handsome and extremely large man standing in front of her. It all seemed so real even though she knew it wasn’t. It couldn’t be.

She was probably lying unconscious in her apartment. Or worse, maybe even now she was stuffed in the front seat of Michael’s vehicle as he drove her back to Nevada.

Maybe even the trunk, depending on what he was driving and his mood. She had to wake up.

Closing her eyes, she concentrated with all her strength. She tightened her fists by her sides and hunched her shoulders. “Wake up. Wake up,” she commanded herself.

She opened her eyes and Radnor was still standing there watching her. There was an aura of sadness about him she hadn’t seen there before and, somehow, she knew she was responsible for it.

“I’m sorry,” she began, willing him to understand. “But this isn’t real.” She darted around him, searching for an exit. “I have to wake up. I have to get back home.” He didn’t stop her as she ran through the opening behind him. Roxanne glanced around. The building was obviously a barn even though it seemed to be empty. Where were the horses? There was no time to ask questions. She had to wake up. There was an entrance at the far end and she hurried toward it. She could see the light. Maybe when she got there, she’d be back to reality.

Not that she really wanted to go back there, but she had no choice. She couldn’t live in a dream. She had to fight for her life. Michael was going to kill her. If not now, then at some point down the road. She had to wake up, had to get her wits about her. There was no white knight in shining armor to save her. Not even a warrior with a naked chest and a very large sword. There was only herself.

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She ignored the pang in her heart. If only Radnor were real. If only men like him truly existed, she might not have to fight alone. But it was only a dream.

She was very aware of Radnor keeping pace with her as she made her way toward the door. For such a big man, he moved with uncommon grace and speed, making little noise. But it made an odd kind of sense considering this was all just a figment of her imagination.

The floor was cool and rough beneath her feet. She was still dressed exactly as she’d been when Michael had found her. She’d much rather be wearing jeans and sneakers than a pink polyester uniform and no shoes. You’d think since it was her dream she could change that. Maybe she could do something about that if she thought hard enough.

Before she could even attempt to change her clothing she reached the door. She came to a dead stop, swaying where she stood. Radnor’s arm snaked around her from behind, keeping her upright. She was glad for his strength and support. Without it, she might have ended up flat on her bottom.