Breaking the Ice by Esme Taylor

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Hettie

I had just opened my eyes from my peaceful spot underwater, when I saw something in the corner of my vision. I looked upwards and spotted Reid as he jumped, fully clothed, into the pool. Reaching down, his eyes flashing wildly, he grabbed me firmly by my shoulders and wrenched me upwards to the surface.

“Reid, what the hell are you doing?” I spluttered as I wiped the water from my eyes.

“Fuck, Etta! Are you okay?” he asked, his grip still firmly on my arms as if he was scared to let me go.

“I’m fine. I was just underwater, clearing my mind. What did you think had happened?”

“I th––I thought––well, you ate all that pasta and drank wine. You shouldn’t have gone in the pool so quickly. I thought…” his words faded as if he were unable to finish his sentence.

He closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. “I hate water. I saw you and thought something had happened. I thought…” His breathing was erratic as he tried to explain.

This time I was the one to interrupt him. It was clear by the worry etched across his features what he had thought. “Hey… it’s okay. I’m okay. I like being underwater. It’s calming. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.” Unmoving, he stared at me as if he were afraid I might disappear.

“Come on, let’s get you out of here, Viking, before your pants shrink and you can’t get them off,” I insisted as I pulled his massive, fully dressed form to the side of the pool and watched as he climbed out of the water. Once we were out, he grabbed one of the towels from where I had placed it on the bench and wrapped it around me tightly.

“I thought I’d lost you, Etta,” he choked, his words filled with emotion. Before I could say anything, he wrapped me in his dripping arms and pulled me into his soaking t-shirt.

“I’m fine. I promise. Come on, let’s get you dried off,” I suggested as I took him by the hand and led him from the room.

He nodded, following me quietly through the house and up the stairs. When we reached the top of the landing, I turned to the right and Reid turned to the left as I closed my bedroom door behind me.

◆◆◆

As if in a daze, I wandered into the bathroom and turned on the shower, keen on warming up from the cold water and shock of being pulled from my underwater cocoon. Absentmindedly, I peeled off my bikini top and checked that the water wasn’t too warm before kicking off my wet bottoms and stepping under the water.

The heat from the water instantly warmed my skin, but I still couldn’t shake the feeling I’d gotten from seeing the panic––no, the terror––on Reid’s face when he’d found me.

I closed my eyes and allowed the water to cascade over me, my mind swirling with unanswered questions. Did he really think I’d drowned? Had something happened to him to make him so afraid? Is that why he doesn’t like water?

I was so lost in thought that I didn’t even hear Reid enter the room. It wasn’t until he stepped into the shower and his arms wrapped around my waist, pulling me against him, that I realized I was no longer alone.

I gasped at the feeling of his rock-solid erection pressed into my lower back.

“Etta,” he growled into my ear, his scruff tickling my neck, making my nipples instantly hard.

He took my hand in his, entwining our fingers together before bringing them up to his lips and kissing them lightly. “I thought I’d lost you. And now, I want you to make it up to me by screaming my name while I’m buried deep inside of you.” The low grumble of his words sent a rush of excitement through my body like verbal foreplay.

Releasing my hand, he trailed the fingers of his right hand over my stomach and up to my breast, twisting my nipple with just enough force that it sent a shot of pleasure to my aching clit. Meanwhile, his other hand slipped down my waist to my hip, pulling my body closer as he rubbed his thick shaft up against my wet cheeks.

Desperate to touch him, I turned around, only to be met with his huge, solid chest. My eyes immediately fell to the large tattoo on the left side, over his heart, but before I could question it, he tilted my chin up so that my eyes met his. My breath hitched as he bent down and kissed me gently, his lips a featherlight touch.

Butterflies flooded my stomach. I wasn’t sure if it was from the lightness of his kiss, or because I’d never had a kiss quite like this one.

Our kiss deepened and our tongues collided. As if we were both trying to express everything we had felt over the last few days with our mouths. Reid buried his hand in my hair and pulled me in closer. Wanting to be as close to him as possible, I dug my fingers into his rock-hard ass and held him to me, his cock pressing into my stomach.

I ran my hands up his back and over his chest before slipping down over his perfectly formed abs, moaning into his mouth when I reached that deep V etched into his hips. Just knowing where it was pointing and how close I was to his engorged cock nearly had me coming undone.

“I want to do so many things to you, Etta. But I have every intention of taking my time. I want to touch every part of you and this isn’t exactly the easiest place to do that,” his voice husky as he spoke before he kissed me gently as he reached behind himself and turned off the water.

I admired every taut muscle in his perfectly sculpted body as he stepped out of the shower, droplets of water clinging to him. He pulled a fluffy white towel from the heated towel bar, wrapping it around my body. Could he be any sexier? I thought to myself as I watched him secure a towel around his waist.

I was so distracted by this perfect Viking in front of me that I didn’t even notice him leaning into the shower until he had scooped me up into his arms like I weighed nothing. As if they had a mind of their own, my legs encircled his waist and held me to him as he carried me to his bedroom.

I knew what was about to happen, but I also knew I should try to protect my heart and stop it before it began. Unfortunately, that was made more difficult by the way my body was crying out, begging for him to give me everything I craved. Deciding to ignore the nagging worries and Max’s warning screaming at the back of my brain, I surrendered to his lips.

Thanks to his Viking-like gait, it only took a couple of seconds to reach his bed. And by that time, the need to have him touch me reverberated over my skin like dancing fire. Gently lying me on his giant bed, something felt different from the other times I had been in his bed with him. Every nerve ending was on high alert. My body silently begged for his touch.

In one swift motion, he pulled the towel from my body, leaving me naked and fully exposed. “Are you ready for me, Etta?” he studied me for a moment. “Because once we do this, there’s no going back,” his deep voice rumbled. My sex clenched with desire as I nodded, too overwhelmed by how my body was reacting to him to find the words.

Reid’s perfectly sculpted body settled over mine, resting his full weight on his elbows as he caged me in with his massive arms. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath as he nudged my legs apart with his knees. Desperate to feel him inside of me, they fell open without a second thought.

“Look at me, Etta,” Reid whispered. When I opened my eyes, I was taken aback by the intense icy blue eyes staring at me as the head of his erection brushed against me through his towel.

Running my fingers through his wet hair, I pulled him down and pressed my lips to his. Our kiss was deep and frantic, tongues crashing together, stealing the breath from my chest. He moaned into my mouth as his hands cupped my breasts. Slowly, his hands slipped down my overstimulated body, exploring every inch of my flesh, his mouth followed closely behind. Hands, tongue, teeth, lips. He consumed every part of me with an expertise that sent a flood of excitement pooling between my legs.

My body was writhing beneath him from the sexual onslaught I was experiencing. It was something I hadn’t felt in a long time. In fact I’d never felt like this before. Hips bucking wildly, I was in desperate search of more. More of him.

His lips traced kisses down my body, across my hip until I felt him smile against the sensitive flesh of my inner thigh. He ran his scruff-covered chin up and down its length while pushing my hips firmly to the bed.

“Reid?” I moaned, unsure what I was even asking for. Luckily for me, he knew exactly what my body longed for.

Sinking his finger deep inside of me, my back arched into his touch as he groaned loudly. “Fuck. You’re so tight and wet, Etta. God, you feel amazing. I want to taste you. I want to feel you come on my face.” I gasped at the honesty of his words.

No one had ever gone down on me before. The mere thought of him down there, worshiping me… it brought out something primal in me.

I wanted him so much that I couldn’t think straight. But as I closed my eyes to enjoy the feeling of him between my legs, doubt washed over me. Is my body too soft? Too curvy? Will my lack of experience be a disappointment? Maybe now that he has seen me naked he’s regretting what’s happening between us.

“Eyes on me, Etta.” His voice was low and demanding. I obeyed, looking down at him between my legs.

“Never doubt how beautiful you are. How beautiful I think you are. After all, Etta means beautiful goddess. And you… you are my Etta. From the moment I saw you, you’ve enchanted me. You are perfect in every way. Don’t hide yourself from me. Ever. Do you hear me?” As the words left his lips, I felt my heart crack open, and I began to fall.

Fall into love?

Fall into lust?

Fall into Viking sex heaven?

I wasn’t sure where I was falling, but something inside me had shifted.

To be worshiped and adored by a man like him felt like something that only happened in the romance novels I loved to read.

Unable to speak, I nodded as he smiled a beautiful, naughty smile. Twisting the sheets beneath me in anticipation, I knew that whatever was going to happen next was going to be more than I’d ever experienced. In truth, this man was more than I could have ever dreamed.

His icy eyes remained fixed on me as his mouth moved down further. Kissing my hip bones, he briefly skimmed over my sex before moving back to my thighs. His close proximity to my clit made me pulsate with anticipation, the wetness between my legs growing. The need to have him inside of me was almost unbearable.

“Reid, please,” I begged.

“Please what, Etta?” He was so close that his low voice vibrated into my folds. His warm breath between my legs was almost too much to bear.

“I need to feel you.” I said as my body squirmed beneath him.

“All in good time,” he assured, running his fingers up and down my inner thigh, closer and closer to my sex with each stroke.

I was on the verge of exploding when he unexpectedly buried his beautiful face in between my legs, skimming my clit with his tongue.

“Oh, God,” I moaned, the feeling so intense that my body tensed and my breath hitched. I bit down on my lower lip as the sensations built with each flick of his tongue.

The assault on my swollen bundle of nerves was unforgiving. Just when I thought I couldn’t take any more, he inserted two fingers inside of me. I yelled out in pleasure as my hips rocked against him, riding his hand while burying my fingers in his hair and pulling him deeper into me. Everything around us fell away, the sound of my arousal echoing around the room.

As if sensing how close I was, Reid twisted his fingers upward and pressed on what I could only assume was that elusive ‘G-spot’ I’d heard about so many times, but never actually experienced. An unexpected orgasm ripped through me like a raging tsunami as my back arched, hips rising to meet the continued thrusts of his fingers while his tongue flattened against my clit, intensifying everything I was feeling.

My vision blurred as my body convulsed and I swear I saw shooting stars and exploding supernovas. Every nerve ending in my body felt as though it was on fire as I rode wave after wave of my orgasm. As the sensations grew, I began to worry I’d pass out, but I didn’t want this feeling to ever end.

The storm finally slowed as I rode out the final moments of the best orgasm I’d ever experienced. Reid groaned as he withdrew his fingers from me and he moved back up my body, biting my nipple as he passed.

Face to face, I could see his icy eyes had darkened, a look of pure desire reflected in their depths. But that wasn’t the only thing I noticed. As he leaned in to kiss me, I could see the glistening of my juices covering his lips and the stubble on his chin. I’d always thought being touched like that was too intimate and embarrassing, but tasting myself on his lips, knowing what he'd just done to me, may have been the most erotic thing I’d ever done. And I’d do it all again in a heartbeat.