Troping Through the Snow by Alexa Riley

He slips into my mouth, and the kiss is slow and tentative, like he’s trying not to spook me. He’s taking his time, and before I know it, I’m kissing him back. I’m surprised by my own need as this sweet, tentative start turns heated and hard. It’s like a switch has been flipped, and then I pull back suddenly, gasping for air.

My mouth is tingling as I reach up and touch my lips. What the hell just happened? North’s hand slides out of my hair, and I realize at some point he must have pulled my ponytail out.

“I think we’re compatible.” He shifts, and it’s then that I notice I’m in his lap and straddling him. My hands grip his shoulders as he holds on to my hips, and somehow during all of this, I’ve clung to him without being conscious of my movements.

“I don’t know what happened.” I lick my lips, wondering how long we were kissing. The way my mouth is still tingling, it could have been hours. Any chill I felt is now gone, and I know it’s not because of the fire.

“What happened is that I was right. I’ll have the paperwork drawn up, and we’ll sign on the dotted line when we get out of here.”

“North.” I shake my head. “I don’t know.” I don’t want to get married to be someone’s buffer. Then again, it would be nice not having to watch women paw at him. That always drives me nuts.

“I love the way you say my name and how you draw it out.”

“Is that why you don’t like when I call you sir?” I ask.

I should move off his lap but I don’t. The sensation of his hard cock pressing into my sex feels too good. I’ve turned him on, and that beats any thrill I’ve ever gotten from those shoulder brushes. There’s no coming back from this night, and I know that now.

He tugs on the end of my hair and shakes his head. “No, when you call me sir, it makes me think of things I shouldn't. Things I’d never considered until that word passed between your lips.”

“Is it my accent?” I suggest.

“It’s all of you, Joy.”

I considered his offer, and it’s so damn tempting. I idly wonder what kind of husband North would make, but then, this is a marriage of convenience.

“Maybe this kiss was intense because it was ah…” I lick my lips, not wanting to admit this but knowing I have to if we’re taking this further. “It was my first.”

North tenses, and I wonder if that changes things. I’m sure he’s realizing there’s no way people are going to buy the two of us together.

“No one has ever kissed you before?” He says it like it’s the craziest thing he’s ever heard in his life and I shake my head.

In a flash, I’m on my back and pinned below him while his wide body hovers over mine.

“Maybe that’s why it was so intense?” I suggest again, but now my breathing is heavy.

“No, sweetness, that's not why.” His blue eyes are so much darker now.

North has my hands pinned above me as his big shadow looms over me. The man I’m staring up at isn’t the North I’m used to. I love the idea of seeing a side to him that others don’t, and that’s when the familiar thrill comes rushing back.

“I don’t understand. We’ll have sex but sleep in separate rooms?”

“You need to be used to my touch so yes, we’re going to have sex. We’ll work out the sleeping arrangements later, but for now, I need you.” He grinds his cock against me, and I can’t stop my gasp.

“Yes,” I moan when he does it again, and he takes it as confirmation.

I’m not sure if I’m agreeing to the sex or the marriage, but right now it’s probably both.





CHAPTER 6





NOTH





There’s too many thoughts flooding my brain all at once that I can’t fully grasp what’s happening, even though it feels like my hands are weighed down with concrete. I want to rip at Joy’s clothes and strip her bare, but it feels like my body isn’t listening to my brain.

I’ve thought of this moment, dreamed of it, for so long, and now that it’s finally here, I want to memorize all of it. The need to know every freckle and every perfect curve of her body is desperate and clawing at my insides. Part of me wants to hold her down and sink into her until I don’t know my name, but the one that’s in control is forcing me to go slow.

“Taste you,” is all I can manage to say, and I realize I’ve forgotten how to speak. The moment she told me yes, I lost the ability to do anything but love her.

My hands lift her off my lap and lay her back on the blanket in front of the fire. My mouth is frenzied as I unbutton her shirt and then descend on her like I’ve just hunted her down. I might as well be some kind of animal with the way I’m feasting on her skin, but it’s like I can’t get enough. The swell of her breasts is the appetizer, and I make sure to lick my plate clean.

“North, wait.”

Her words stop me, but then I realize her fingers are going to the front clasp of her bra and unhooking it for me. In all my dazed need, I was trying to rip it open, but this probably makes more sense.

When I see her tight nipples, there’s a growl in the back of my throat, and once again I’m on her. I suck one and then quickly move to the other as I greedily go back and forth. She’s whining with need, and without knowing it, I look down to see I’ve pinned her hips to the floor. She’s trying to find relief, but I’ve got her at my mercy, and I smile.