Her inner muscles clenched around him as if to prove her point.
The sensation nearly undid Malcolm completely.He closed his eyes, desperately trying to hold back the tide of his release.When he opened them again, he found Larissa watching him intently, her gaze both challenging and vulnerable.
Malcolm’s control finally snapped.With a guttural roar, he arched up, driving himself deeper into Larissa as his release crashed over him.“Fuck, Larissa!”he bellowed, his cock pulsing as he emptied himself inside her.
The intensity of his climax seemed to trigger Larissa’s own.She cried out, her usual composure shattering as her inner walls clamped down on him rhythmically.
“That’s it,” Malcolm growled, gripping her hips tightly as he thrust up to meet her, prolonging their shared pleasure.“Let go for me, sweetheart.”
Larissa’s body trembled above him, her usual calculated demeanor giving way to raw, uninhibited passion.Malcolm watched in awe as she came undone, her lithe form bathed in a sheen of sweat, her face a mask of pure bliss.
“God, you’re beautiful,” he murmured, unable to stop the words from escaping.
Larissa’s eyes snapped to his, a flicker of vulnerability passing through them before her usual wry smirk returned.“Careful,” she panted, still riding out the aftershocks of her orgasm.“Or I might think you’re getting sentimental.”
Malcolm chuckled, feeling both sated and strangely energized.“Never,” he replied with a roguish grin.“Just stating facts.You know how I feel about strategy and intel.”
Larissa’s head dropped to Malcolm’s shoulder, her breath coming in ragged gasps against his skin.The scent of her, of them—the heady mix of her natural fragrance, their sweat, and their combined arousal—swirled around them and made his head swim.
“You okay there, strategist?”Malcolm asked.“Looks like all that planning didn’t prepare you for the real thing.”
Larissa’s lips curved against his shoulder in what he assumed was a smirk.“Don’t get cocky,” she murmured.“This changes nothing.”
Malcolm wrapped his hands around her waist, gripping tightly as if she might disappear.He pulled her flush against him, savoring the feeling of her soft curves pressed to his hard planes.
“Keep telling yourself that,” he said, though his tone lacked its usual competitive edge.Instead, a note of tenderness crept in, unbidden.“But I’m not letting you go that easy.”
Larissa tensed slightly in his arms, and Malcolm cursed inwardly.
He hadn’t meant to reveal so much, to show his hand.Was this thing between them supposed to be just physical?A way to work out their rivalry?Was that what she thought?
But as he held her, the two of them still joined intimately, Malcolm knew he didn’t want to let her go.
Not now, not ever.
CHAPTER 24
HOURS LATER, LARISSA LAYin Malcolm’s arms, her body still humming with pleasure.The soft cotton sheets of Malcolm’s bed—where they’d eventually moved—were cool against her flushed skin, a pleasant contrast to the warmth radiating from Malcolm’s body, threatening to lull her into sleep.
But Larissa’s mind was far too active for rest.She traced lazy patterns on Malcolm’s chest, marveling at the play of muscles beneath her fingertips.His scent enveloped her, and it made her wolf want to howl with joy.
In this moment of contentment, wrapped in Malcolm’s embrace, Larissa finally allowed herself to acknowledge what she’d been denying for so long.
They were bound together—and not merely by competition.
By something much stronger.Much more permanent.
It thrummed between them, an invisible thread connecting their very souls.Now that she’d stopped fighting it, Larissa could feel its strength, its rightness.
It was as if a missing piece of herself had finally clicked into place.
“I can hear you thinking,” Malcolm murmured, his voice rough with satisfaction.He pressed a kiss to the top of her head, his lips lingering in her hair.
Larissa tilted her head up, meeting his gaze.Malcolm’s eyes were heavy-lidded, postcoital bliss and amused curiosity evident in their depths.The sight sent a fresh wave of desire coursing through her.
“Just processing,” she replied, trying for nonchalance.But her voice came out huskier than intended, betraying the depth of her emotions.
Malcolm’s lips curved into a knowing smile.“Processing what, exactly?”
