Page 17 of Ashborne Forged

Her eyes were avid and as she knelt there, staring, I found myself wondering how I appeared to her.

I wasn’t wearing a stitch of clothing, and didn’t cover myself. She’d touched me and seemed thrilled by my body. But I knew most women were less excited by the sense of sight than—

“It’s much larger when you’re aroused,” she said tilting her head as she stared at my flaccid cock.

I wanted to bristle. Defend. But also, had to swallow laughter, because I didn’t think she understood the blow those words could be.

Please, God, could my brothers never learn that she’d said that out loud. She was making an observation. And I should answer it as such.

“Yes,” I said, clearing my throat. “Thank God, because it would get in the way, otherwise.”

She giggled. “I always wondered how men rode horses, with their dangles and their, um…” she waved a hand in the vicinity of my crotch and blushed.

“It’s not usually a problem unless we get thrown high and come down on the wrong angle,” I said with a chuckle.

To my delight, she grew thoughtful, and nodded, as if I’d answered her intelligently. Then she looked down again and her brows pinched into a V over her nose.

“Are they attached?” she asked.

I was confused and looked at myself, wondering what she saw. “I assure you, they’re all very firmly attached. Please don’t try to remove—”

“No, no. To each other, I mean.” She giggled again and shuffled a few inches closer, peering down at me. “Do you mind if I look?”

“Please, be my guest.” I was bemused, and thrilled when she tentatively took hold of my cock and lifted it, tilting her head to look underneath, while I told myself I was undisturbed at being examined like a horse.

“Not attached,” she declared. “Not quite. Interesting. My mother told me once that God gave men dangles so that we always had a grip by which to bring a man to his knees. But it seems like if we tried, we’d reach your handle first. Perhaps that’s why she called it that?”

“Handle? And dangles?”

She gave a sheepish grin. “The words my mother used when I was a child. And when the married women would speak to me, it seemed less embarrassing to use those words than… well, you know.”

I grinned. “I do. I’m curious, what did she call your, er, privates?”

Her cheeks flushed a deep crimson. “Sacred places,” she whispered.

God, it was hard not to laugh. Good thing I was trained to keep a straight face. But I’d forgotten she could feel my emotions.

“You’re laughing at me.”

I shook my head quickly, though my grin stretched. “No!” I coughed when she gave me a skeptical look. “It’s more that it’s a side of you I haven’t seen. You’re so bold. It’s fascinating to me that you’ll throw yourself off a dragon without hesitation, but using words makes you blush.”

She squirmed. “I was paddled as a child if I even whispered a bad word,” she said with a shrug. “It became a habit to keep my words clean.”

“Well, in that case, you better tell me what words you’re comfortable with me using,” I said quietly, taking her hand and pulling her to me.

“Oh, I like your swears,” she said. “Please don’t stop. Coarse words are thrilling.”

I shook my head, but leaned forward to pull her chin up and kiss her—only to have the bond swell in my chest, and my body respond. I’d barely taken her mouth when my breath grew short.

Grace leaned in eagerly when I slid a hand to her neck—then, just as I was about to pull her into my lap, she jerked her head back, her eyes wide.

“Will the squad expect me to speak about these things?” she squeaked. “I know men are far more open, but—”

“They will make jokes at times,” I said dryly. “But don’t worry. We’re used to having Bren around now. We’ve been instructed very clearly about the boundaries. No one else will ask you to talk about such things. You’ll hear plenty of innuendo when they want to get under your skin, though.”

“Oh, good. I thought when they learned about the bond, they might make jokes about the joining, and that would be mortifying.”

My mind conjured the image of my brothers, grinning and teasing… and something cold chittered in my chest.