Vanquished by the Viking Read Online Free PDF Page A

irrefutable proof of her readiness for him between her thighs.
    Positioning himself there, he raised up on his elbows to take his weight. To help himself go slowly. She peered up at him with gray eyes both demanding and trusting. More than anything, he wanted to be worthy of that trust. But aye, he could not wait to satisfy the hunger.
    Pressing forward, he felt her nails dig into his shoulders and wished he could take the hurt from her. Instead, he lowered his mouth to her breast, distracting her with the kiss he’d discovered she liked best there. When her back was arched for more, he palmed her thigh and thrust deeper, piercing her maidenhead swiftly.
    She did not cry out, but he felt her wince somehow, her body retreating ever so slightly from his.
    “I’m sorry.” He wrapped his arms around her, kissing the hollow between her neck and her shoulder. “Sometimes the sting is easier when it is brief.”
    He felt her nod, her soft cheek rubbing against his temple.
    “It is receding,” she acknowledged. “I am not the fragile sort, remember?”
    “I could not forget.” He stroked her hair from her face, warmed by her easy jest even as he vowed to give her more comforts in a life that had been full of hardship.
    “Show me the rest,” she murmured, her fingers easing their grip on his shoulders, her legs relaxing. “Bring me back the pleasure, if it is not too late to recapture it.”
    She could not have challenged him more if she’d been in armor and tossed her gauntlet at his jaw. But it was the very best kind of dare.
    “It is not too late, I promise.” He moved slowly inside her, and when she did not seem plagued with soreness, he hastened his pace.
    Studying her expression, feeling the way she moved beneath him, he began to see what pleased her. With ruthless effort, he focused solely on her pleasure, trying not to notice the way her tight sheath squeezed him or the way her hips rocked when she approved of his movements.
    But then, when her heels dug into his flanks, he was hard pressed not to notice.
    “It is wondrous,” she gasped, breathless and excited. “I can almost—oh!”
    Her release came over her in an instant, her back bowing with the waves of sensation. He scarcely had time to enjoy the surprise in her expression, his own finish surging through him so hard he shouted her name to the heavens.
    Her inner muscles squeezed him over and over again, her body milking every last scrap of pleasure from his. When at last the aftershocks slowed, he was empty. Replete. So thoroughly spent he was forced to lie by her side to recover himself.
    He wrapped the fur pelt about her shoulders and turned her toward him, cradling her head on his arm. Lying together in the subtly swaying boat, his heartbeat seemed to match pace with hers. The cinnamon scent of her hair mingled with the sea breeze as the rightness of the moment wrapped around him.
    Reinn had claimed her. Not just for the moment. But forever. For keeps.
    While the knowledge pleased his heart, he knew that taking his brother’s intended bride was no small transgression. Gunnar would not let her go lightly. Yet for Reinn, there could be no other choice. Eva belonged to him and with him.
    They’d just proven that in the most elemental manner possible. All that remained was challenging his brother for the woman who’d captured his heart that first moment in her father’s great hall.
    * * *
    “Must we dress so soon?” Eva asked some long moments afterward as Reinn donned his tunic and handed her the wrinkled kirtle she’d worn.
    Perhaps her question was unladylike. Having discovered the kind of astounding feelings that could be elicited from their union, she longed to experience them again and again. Besides, his body was a wonder to behold and she would have preferred looking upon him awhile longer.
    Ladylike or not, however, her question roused a smile from her fierce Norse warrior.
    “I wish we did not have to,” Reinn agreed. “But you will