RUBY
The elevator doors slid open with a soft chime, spilling us into the private penthouse suite. My head was spinning, but I was determined, it was now or never. I glanced at the man beside me. He wore a serious look and for a minute, I wasn't sure if he was just guiding me to a resting area or shared the same thoughts as I do. I hope he wouldn't change his mind once he realized how inexperienced I was.
My nerves were starting to fail me. I wished I had more wine. I leaned into the man and before he could take a single step, my hands clutched his shirt as if I needed him to breathe and pressed my lips pressed against his cheeks which then turn into a full blown kiss. This kiss was messy and urgent, a low groan escaped his chest. I could feel him stiffening. Whitney said to have fun, and I intend to do just that even if I end up regretting my choice tomorrow.
The kiss, if he was paying any attention, he would notice my inexperience but he kissed me back, deepening it. As we moved towards the bed, one of his hands cupped my breast, and the other slid to my waist, pulling me tightly against him. My body yielded to his every touch.
I was hesitant at first, but became bolder, because for me, every second was a new discovery. And I felt him pause, pulling back slightly, he rested his forehead against mine as we catch our breath, a sensation I had never known before washed over me.
“Sweetheart,” he murmured, in a rough voice, “You can still walk away, if we go further… it won’t be gentle.”
I smiled up at him, even when every part of me screamed for me to take the chance and run, my lips felt tender, already swollen from his kisses, I reached up to kiss him again.
“Ruby,” I said because it suddenly became important to me for him to know my name.
He smirked, brushing his lips against mine. “You’re drunk, Ruby.”
“That I know,” I whispered, my voice, a little too thick. “And that was why I can do this.”
I said and kissed him again, slowly. His chest rumbled with something close to a growl, his hands curved around my hips, steadying me from swaying.
“You should stop while you still can,” he warned, his voice dark and husky. “Because if it goes on, I won't be able to stop even if you beg me.”
Oh, he is a gentleman alright, because he kept giving me a choice. I laughed softly, filled with a courage I didn’t have when sober. Trailing my lips along his jaw, he groaned with need. “Then I won't beg,” I murmured, “I want to experience it all tonight.”
*****
The words hit Ethan like a spark to dry tinder. His wolf surged forward, scraping inside his chest and urging him to take her.
His control wavered. Every instinct screamed to give in. To taste her fully, to feel her beneath him and drown in the sweetness she offered so recklessly.
But even as his lips found hers again, both hungry and consuming, some part of him held tight to the promise he’d made to himself: If she hesitated, or whispers the word stop then, he will end it.
But she wasn’t stopping, pulling him closer.
And Ethan Blackwood, was letting her lead him.
“Let me know if you want to pull out,” he murmured against her lips, his tone low and edged with hunger.
Then he took the lead, his hand slid slowly beneath the hem of her dress, rough fingertips brushing the silk of her thigh. She jolted, her breath hitching, then giggled, a nervous little sound that only made his wolf growl with impatience.
He pulled back slightly, searching her face in the dim glow of the penthouse lights. Her eyes were wide, unfocused, and trembling.
“Ruby,” he said, his voice firmer this time. “You need to tell me. Yes or no.”
She nodded, quick, shutting her eyes as if that made it easier to surrender.
Ethan’s jaw flexed. It wasn’t the kind of answer he wanted. His wolf wanted a clear claim but the man in him, seasoned by too many careless nights knew the difference between playful nerves and a woman who didn’t understand what she was agreeing to.
When she tilted her face back toward him and kissed him again, softer and full of need, it was impossible to resist.
His restraint cracked, his mouth devoured hers, harder and hungrier this time, his hand traveling higher as her body arched into his touch. She shivered beneath him, clutching his shirt like she might fall if she let go.
It was pure heat. Ethan's fingers found her core, and when he pressed against the soft fabric of her underwear, he felt how wet she was. A loud moan escaped her lips, a sound that drove him over the edge. Her eyes snapped open when he stroked her, and in their depths, he saw a question, maybe a hint of resistance.
"Should I stop?" he asked.
She shook her head, biting her lip.
"Don't stop," she whispered in the most seductive voice he had ever heard, and whatever restraint he was desperately trying to hold on to evaporated.
She moaned loudly with every touch, a sound that tore through him, low and sweet, and Ethan swore under his breath.
He covered her mouth with his, swallowing the sound of her gasp as his fingers stroked her slick heat with deliberate care. She clutched at his shoulders, her body jerking against him, caught between nerves and want.
With his other hand, he tugged at the zipper of her dress, dragging it slowly down her back. The fabric slid over her skin, revealing her soft pale body, and his hunger roared to life. He wanted her more than he had ever wanted anyone before because she was sweetness and fire tangled together, and she was his to unravel.
His wolf prowled beneath his skin, restless, agitated, stirred by the taste of her moans and the scent of her arousal. Ethan forced him down, he focus on the way her breath quickened as the dress slipped lower and noticed the way she trembled but didn’t pull away.
“Sweetheart,” he rasped against her lips, “you have no idea what you’re doing to me.”
Ruby’s thoughts were a blur, her mind begging her to stop but she was no longer in control of her body. His hand was rubbing lazy circles over her pulsing folds, and every touch sent sparks shooting straight to her core. And the moment his mouth closed around her breast, she gasped, arching into him, her nails digging into his shoulders. It was sweet and wicked, and all those alarms drowned under the wave of pleasure crashing through her.
“Please...” she breathed, though she wasn’t sure if it was a plea for him to stop or to keep going.
“Shhh,” he murmured against her skin, his tongue flicking over her n****e. “I’ve got you.”
Her body trembled as the pressure built inside her, coiling tight, almost unbearable. She was so close to her release and then suddenly, he slowed. His fingers eased, his lips left her breast, and he pulled back just enough to look into her eyes.
Her whimper was desperate, almost broken. “Why did you stop?”
He smirked, the kind of smug, devastating grin that made her want to slap him and kiss him all at once. “Because I want to see how much you want it.”
Her body throbbed, pulsing with frustration, and yet the hunger in his eyes told her this was no accident, he was teasing her, prolonging and dragging it out until she couldn’t think straight. And damn him, it was working.
“I—” she swallowed, her cheeks burning. “I want it.”
“How much?” His voice dropped, low and husky, his hand pressing just enough against her slick heat to make her moan.
Ruby squeezed her eyes shut, her last shred of self-control unraveling. “More than anything,” she whispered.
That was all he needed. His mouth captured hers again, greedy and relentless. With a low growl, he tore open the button of his trousers and shoved them down, revealing himself in full, hard and straining. Ruby’s eyes widened, her lips parting in shock as her gaze darted down.
“Oh my God,” she whispered without thinking. She had seen pictures, videos even, but nothing prepared her for the sheer size of him. For a second, fear flickered in her chest. Could she even handle that?
Ethan caught the look on her face and smirked. “Don’t be scared,” he murmured, lowering himself over her, his length brushing against her slick folds. “I’ll make it good for you.”
The teasing contact made her shudder, her nails curling into the sheets. Every brush against her core sent sparks of heat shooting through her, and when the tip pressed against her entrance, she instinctively stiffened.
“You’re so tight,” he muttered, voice rough with restraint. He pushed in slowly, carefully, stretching her inch by inch.
Ruby gasped, her body instinctively clenching around him. Her chest heaved as the unfamiliar pressure built. A lone tear escaped the corner of her eye as she focused on the pleasure, enduring the pain. Her mind screamed that this was too much, too sudden, but her body betrayed her, arching up and silently begging for more.
Ethan bent closer, his lips grazing her ear. “Relax, Ruby. Let me in.”
Her breath hitched. She nodded, though she couldn’t form the words, bracing herself as he eased deeper inside. The burn gave way to a fullness she had never known, overwhelming and electrifying all at once.
Her fingers clutched at his back, her legs trembling as he filled her. "P... please…” she whispered, a broken plea she didn’t even understand herself.
He stilled for a moment, giving her time to adjust, his jaw clenched as if holding himself back. “Damn, you feel incredible,” he groaned, his control hanging by a thread.
He began to move, slow at first, rhythmic and deliberate, savoring the way she clenched around him. Ruby gasped with every thrust, her nails dragging across his back as if she couldn’t hold herself together. Her moans filled the room, sultry and raw, urging him faster, deeper.
Ethan’s jaw tightened as he lost himself in the rhythm. The pleasure was sharp, consuming, almost dangerous. Each time she whispered in that breathy, seductive voice, it pushed him over the edge. And as his release built, his focus shifted to her smooth slender neck, delicate, and radiating with a scent that stirred something in him.
Ethan's wolf roared inside him, a need more feral than lust clawing its way forward. He barely realized his fangs had elongated.
With a guttural growl, he sank his canines into the soft spot at her neck. Ruby gasped, a sharp cry escaping her lips at the sudden pain, but instead of pulling away, her body arched into him, pleasure mixing with the sting in ways she didn’t understand.
At that exact moment, Ethan’s release ripped through him. He thrust hard, burying himself deep as he groaned against her skin, the taste of her blood on his tongue, the heat of her body dragging him into an earth-shattering climax.
Ruby clung to him, half in pain, half in ecstasy, her moans breaking into breathless whimpers. It was too much, overwhelming, and when it finally ebbed she lay limp beneath him, dazed and unaware of the significance of what just happened. Her lips curved in a small smile, her eyes half-closed. “That was… amazing,” she murmured, not even realizing she had just given herself to a man whose world was far darker and far more dangerous than she could imagine.