Damnation, the taste of her was to die for—all silken, tart sweetness, much like the apples she smelled like. Their coupling in the woods had been fierce and frantic, and there’d barely been any time to appreciate her form. But now, he reveled in the beauty of her feminine shape, the fragrant scent that lit his body on fire, and the sublime banquet that would send him quite happily to his maker with that as his last meal on his tongue. He’d seen her beneath the water in her bath, but those glimpses had only hinted at the perfection of her.

Valentine’s cock was so distended, it hurt to move, but he stood anyway, wincing as his sensitive shaft grazed against the constraining fabric. He was certain he’d soiled the crotch of his trousers with the amount of fluid he’d leaked while gorging himself on her.

Languid, passion-drenched dark-blue eyes met his, even as reality intruded between them, the haze of lust clearing somewhat. It didn’t diminish his arousal, but his ardor retreated. Valentine had no reasoning or excuses for what he’d just done—the untenable position he’d placed them both in, and this time, with no acceptable justification. They had both known exactly what they were doing.

He exhaled. He’d come out here to clear the air, to remove her from her vexing sycophants, and instead he’d made yet another unspeakable mistake. Ever his fate, it seemed, whenever he was around her. He opened his mouth at the same time she spoke, probably to make the same apologies he was about to.

“I need you inside me.”

Valentine blinked. Had he heard that right? “I beg your pardon?”

“You gave the orders before,” she said huskily. She lifted one heel and swung it around his legs. The other wrapped around the back of his thigh, propelling him forward so that his swollen groin pressed right up against her center. When she hooked her calves over his hips, they both groaned. “And I obeyed you without question. Now it’s your turn. Unfasten your trousers and fill me.”

Heaven help him, her words.

“Bronwyn, we—”

“Damn it, Thornbury, if you’re about to tell me that we can’t do this, so help me, I will pitch you over the side of this ship and let the sharks have their way with you.” She tightened her muscles, dragging her core over him again. “And I guarantee you that it won’t be as pleasurable as if you let me have my way.”