Claimed: Gowns & Crowns, Book 3 Read Free

murmured against her skin, and he didn’t mistake the shudder that rippled through her. “I haven’t tasted sunshine in some time, I’m afraid.”
    “I—”
    He lifted his head. Nicki’s eyes had widened, her mouth soft and inviting, her skin flushed.
    “I want to taste more of it, if you don’t mind.”
    Not waiting for her to counter, he leaned forward and brushed her lips with his.

Chapter Two
    Nicki’s head felt too light and her legs too heavy as Stefan deepened the kiss, her body strangely unsteady as he kept the grip on her right hand and pulled her close. She had kissed him, sure, but it had been more to scare the idiot off, not egg him on.
    But this…
    She didn’t want to scare him off from this. Not quite yet.
    And Stefan seemed on board with that plan, apparently oblivious to the fact that they were on a public beach in front of God, the world, and everyone. Nicki fought for sanity, but all she wanted to do was keep going, keep pushing, to see how far they could take this moment, how far the very proper diplomat would be willing to go. Kristos and Emmaline had met on a beach, after all, but while they’d had to be circumspect because of his royal stature, Stefan didn’t have those restrictions. He was royalty, sure, but he wasn’t…
    “I think you’re thinking too much,” he murmured as Nicki caught her breath. One of Stefan’s hands had snaked around her back, and he pressed against her. The heavy muscles of his chest against her breasts her made her nipples go hard and alert despite the thick fabric of her jog bra. She’d dressed for running, not seduction, and the result was a curiously muted and wholly infuriating sensation, her body demanding more….more. Whatever Stefan would be willing to give. Which was impossible and stupid and pointless and yet—
    Screw it.
    Angling her face toward him, Nicki surrendered.
    Stefan met her more than halfway. His mouth was hard and firm against hers, his hands tightening to pull her close, despite the sand and sweat caking her skin, despite the tangle of nets around their feet. Her heart thudded heavily in her chest, but not too fast, not too hard, and she groaned with very real relief against his mouth. Stefan tasted of salt and heat and she wanted to wrap herself in the moment and hold it tight, a barrier against the outside world.
    Nicki lifted both hands to his shoulders, pulling herself closer to him. He was a fair amount bigger than she was, but their bodies fit together perfectly. His chest and abs were hard, the thin fabric of his running shirt pressed tightly against them and leaving nothing to the imagination. As he arched her back and moved his mouth from her lips to her cheek to her chin, he pulled her over on top of him and rolled to his back. Suddenly she was straddling his lap, his body rock hard, her knees sinking down into the sand alongside his hips as his hands locked into place. Stefan’s eyes were dark, intent, and they fixed on her with unmistakable need.
    “Kiss me again,” he rasped.
    She leaned down into him, and for one precious moment she poured everything she had into that kiss. All her wants, needs, desires, fears—all the things Stefan knew nothing about, could never know anything about. For that beautiful second, suspended in time, she was as free as she’d ever been in her adult life, ever since she’d learned that life could be taken from her at any moment, ever since—
    Stefan jerked himself away from her like a man who’d been ripped free of an oxygen tank, his eyes startled as he re-focused on her.
    “What?” Nicki said. “You didn’t want to be kissed back?”
    He stared at her, his expression becoming one of intrigue…and desire. “I think, Nicki Clark, you turn everything into a competition. It makes me wonder what else beyond kissing I should be training for.”
    The unexpected heat in Stefan’s words made her blink—but not as much as the shift of movement behind him. On the edge of the beach,