She had him in her mouth, and he gripped the duvet, clutching it as if it could save him. It was too late for him, he had gone over the cliff like a cartoon cat, holding onto a daisy at the edge for dear life, plinking the petals off one by one. She loves me, she loves me not, she loves me, I love her, I will love her forever …

She was above him now, her face hovering close to his. As she lowered herself slowly upon him she stared into his eyes, and he could tell she was lost in ecstasy, too. Now that he was fully inside her, she halted for a moment, this beautiful, mysterious creature who had caught him, and he knew the second she started again, he would burst.

In one quick motion, he rolled her over onto her back, thrust his hips forward, and she moaned his name, “Alexia!”

That was his undoing, his name on her lips. He thrust again and again, and she cried out loudly as he brought them both to the brink, gasping her name. “Anna!”

If this was what it meant to be the prey, then he wanted to die by her tooth and claw over and over again. Vronsky rolled off her and stared at the ceiling, little shiny dots flashing in his eyes like he’d just looked directly into the sun.

“Alexia…” she whispered, rolling onto her side so she could observe him, her hands tracing the soft blond hair running up his belly.

He rolled onto his side so that they were facing each other. Words no longer mattered; nothing mattered except for them right now basking in the afterglow of their first time. He touched her face and kissed her, because that was the only instinct he possessed.

She loved the way he kissed her, his hunger everpresent, and she felt the same hunger when she kissed him back, as if she had no idea which of them was devouring the other, so equal was their passion for each other. She had had sex before, but not like this. She didn’t even know where her boldness came from when she climbed up on him, the throbbing ache of her desire was so great. It was the purest form of lust she had ever felt, and the wave that followed when he rolled her over, thrusting into her, releasing everything she had ever held back was like a tidal wave obliterating her life into two separate time periods, B.V. (Before Vronsky) and A.V. (After Vronsky).

And then he reached for her again.

VII