The Devil You Know by Victoria Vane

thigh
    and a portion of torso left the other half of him bare to her ravenous gaze.
    She devoured the vision of lean, sculpted muscles that closely resembled
    a god manifested in all his masculine splendor.
    “Enter these arms, for since thou thought’st it best not to dream
    all my dream, let’s act the rest. You are called forth from my dream,” he
    whispered. “I knew you would come.”
    She stepped back with a gasp. “But how could you know that?”
    “Because this is ineludible, you and I. You can’t escape it.” He
    reached out a hand, his voice husky with desire. “Come to me now, my
    magnificent huntress.”
    The words were an irresistible magnetic lure that drew her to him.
    Untying the sash at her waist, the silk wrapper slithered from her shoul-
    ders to pool softly at her feet.
    His pupils flared beneath sleep-heavy lids as she stood before him,
    unabashed in her nakedness. She let him look his fill, his lazy inspection
    sending mixed anticipation and trepidation washing over her in tiny
    waves. He peeled back the sheet and sat up. Her gaze was riveted at once
    to the jutting proof of his arousal. She licked her lips, the wicked promise
    of unknown delights filling her with a sharp-edged hunger.
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    The Devil You Know
    He drew her into his arms, and the game began. Their mouths met
    and melded, his tongue darted over her lips, his teeth grazing them light-
    ly. He pulled on the lower, sucking it into his mouth and then urged her
    to open to a hungry, breath-stealing match of capture and release that
    heated her blood. Their tongues met in a simulated lovers’ dance that
    became an explosion of sublime sensation, sending blazing jolts to her
    belly and a hot pool of moisture between her thighs.
    He cupped her breast, teasing her nipple with his thumb. His mouth
    broke away from hers to ply hot, open kisses to her throat that left her
    gasping. Of their own volition, her hands engaged in a tactile explora-
    tion of his body, reveling in the erotic abrasiveness of his coarse hair
    against her own smooth skin. She roamed his hard chest, the rigid plain
    of his stomach, the powerful thigh muscles that now encased her hips,
    pulling her closer, tighter, and anchoring her against him until she could
    feel the hot pulse of his jutting manhood against her most private place.
    He took her hand in his, guiding her to his rigid staff and enclosed
    her fingers about it. It was thick and hard and hot and pulsing. “I make
    no secret of how much I want you,” he said, low and hoarse. “Tell me you
    do, too, Diana. Say you want to take me into your body.”
    “But I’m here,” she whispered. “Is that not proof enough?”
    “No.” He released her hand, but his probing gaze kept her captive.
    “Though I would worship you with my body, only you are in control of
    your pleasure. You must tell me you want this.”
    She licked her lips, her breathing coming in ragged puffs.
    “You have only to say yes, Diana, and I will lay paradise at your
    feet.”At last, a reply sounded from her throat. “Yes.”
    He caught the whispered exhalation with his mouth. His hands slid
    down her back to palm and squeeze her buttocks. He lowered his head to
    her breast, kissing, gently biting, his tongue rasping her nipple, sending
    racking rivulets of pleasure to her womb. As her arousal rapidly esca-
    lated to a blinding need to feel the hot, hard length of him in her passage,
    she writhed and ground against him with a fierce cry.
    Diana awoke with a sob, her body fevered, her sheets dis-
    carded, and her night rail tangled about her waist. She lay in this
    heightened state of arousal, panting, disoriented, and aching to
    her very core, until at last, she sought her own release.
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Chapter Five
    Diana returned to her apartments after breakfast, appalled at
    the state of her bedchamber. Stockings, fans, and various other
    personal articles were strewn about the room. The clothespress
    hung open, and the drawers of the highboy