Bad Apple Read online

  “If you want me to leave, I will. I shall never force myself upon you.” I trail my hand through the long curls running the length of her back. “But if you let me stay, I promise you, I will make you moan like Rose.”

  She sucks in a tight breath. “Darien,” she whispers.

  Her soft voice makes my cock twitch. I pray she takes me up on my offer. I've never wanted anything, or anyone, more in my life than to take Snow in this moment.

  Marcus grunts from the other side of the chamber wall. Snow leans in for a look, and a smile rushes my lips. I press my chest against her back and glance through the crack myself. Rose rides my brother's cock like a champion steed. Her hands wander her own breasts, kneading and pulling at them as Marcus grips her hips, guiding her movements.

  Snow twitches against me, and I slide my hand the length of her, around to where her hand slips into her bloomers. “Let me help you.”

  “Darien, I can't.” She protests, yet fails to put up much of a fight as I make my way to where her fingers intrude her lower lips. “I shouldn't be doing any of this.”

  “Why?” I press my lips against her neck once more, pulling more of her soft skin over my tongue and teeth. A hiss rushes her lips and jolts pleasure straight to my twitching cock.

  “It's not right,” she whispers, pressing her ass against me. My heart races, and I lose all coherent thought. All I can think about is ripping off her garments and pinning her to the wall. Closing my eyes, I force my breathing to slow. I will not rush my first time with Snow. It must be perfect. Like she is. She needs to trust me. I must be her safety.

  “What's not right about this?” I slip my fingers between hers and her hand disappears, sliding out from her bloomers. Yet she leaves mine. Her arousal drenches my fingers in an instant, and I force back a gasp of my own. Even I am shocked at just how turned on she is. I let my fingertips slide in a slow path through the wetness before brushing against her most sensitive spot. Her hips buck, and I almost slide out.

  “Darien,” she says in more of a moan than a word.

  I have her.

  Limbs weaken in my arms and she gives over control as she falls into my chest. I press my fingers harder against her, making swift, long swipes inside her. She rocks in rhythm with my strokes.

  “I've wanted to do this with you for so long.” The words leap from my lips before I can stop them. To hush myself, I dive back against her neck and press my tongue against her supple skin.

  “You....you have?” she says before a moan takes over again, and her hips rock faster against my hand.

  “Many times.” I reach around and clasp hold of one of her breasts, pressing my palm against her rock hard nipple. Its softness and fullness is everything I imagined it would be. She writhes her body against me, lost in her little world of pleasure. And I'm the one pleasing her. “Let me be your guide.”

  ****

  My heart beats so fast it practically hums. Darien's fingers stroke me between my legs. Between my legs! How did I let this happen? But the sensations of dancing fingers rubbing me cloud all logical thought. It is impossible to say no. All I want is for him to move faster, to stroke me and never stop. Heat floods my belly as each swipe over my sensitive clit jolts through me, and I can think of nothing other than Darien.

  “Don't close your eyes, Snow. Watch them. Tell me what you want me to do to you,” Darien whispers against my ear. I'd think this all a dream except for the warmth of his breath launching a shiver along my spine.

  Marcus picks Rose up as if she were a doll and throws her off of him. He turns her onto her stomach, grips her by the long red locks of her hair and plunges into her from the back. Lust cries out through her groans as she arches back against him, as if she cannot get enough.

  “I want that,” I whisper so soft I don't think Darien even hears me.

  But he does.

  Before another thought enters my mind, Darien rips my skirts down and they drop to my ankles. An ache wells between my legs, missing his stroking fingers.

  “As you wish, my angel,” he says, kissing along my ear as his hands force down my bloomers.

  A gasp wheezes from my chest as the cool air hits my exposed bottom. Can this really be happening? Behind me, the sound of him releasing his belt snaps me to the reality of the moment. “Darien, wait...” I rush the words from my lips.

  The tip of his hot cock presses against my chilled skin as he stops. “I promise, I will not hurt you, Snow. I will never hurt you. Unless you ask me to.” His lips work their way along my neck to the edge of my cheek. “Do you not want this?”

  I swallow hard over the lump in my throat and push away the confliction drowning my heart and head. Marcus releases a deep growl. It floods my belly with heat, and my nethers with want and need.

  “Yes. I want you, Darien.” I stare at Marcus rocking his hips, slamming himself in and out of Rose. Darien slides his fingers between my lips, slipping in my fresh arousal.

  “You're dripping, Snow. You're so ready.” He eases himself closer to me as his fingers guide the head of his cock under me from behind. “Keep watching them.”

  Mesmerized by the rhythm of Marcus' movements, I don't realize Darien strips us naked until the hairs of his warm chest press against my bare back. Our clothes puddle around our ankles.

  Rose cries out as Marcus speeds his rocking, slamming his balls against her bottom.

  Darien's fingers slip beneath me once again, holding the tip of his cock at my entrance. I jerk forward in anticipation already aching to feel it inside me, and I brace my palms against the stones in front of me.

  “I love the feel of you, Snow. So warm, soft, wet.” His words float in my head without meaning as I'm lost in the sensations of his touch.

  One hand wraps around me and clutches a breast, twisting and kneading my hard nipple. I ache to moan, but it hides behind the lump still lodged in my throat. His other hand holds his cock beneath me as he eases himself in. I tense as he slides inside me, and in one swift movement he thrusts the remainder of himself in. A groan launches from my lips as I lunge forward. The feel of him thick and hot inside me is indescribable.

  “Snow, you're so tight. You feel incredible.” He stills, yet his cock throbs against my walls and he tightens his grip against my breast. “Are you still alright?”

  I nod, unable to form words. Instead, I arch my back against him, inviting him to continue. As I watch Rose writhe beneath Marcus, I move against Darien, mimicking her motions. Darien growls against my ear and it floods my body with zings and tingles, setting off a fire in my loins. I need for him to move inside me as I've never needed anything before.

  Withdrawing his cock, he presses it against my bottom, holding it there. “I need to kiss you, Snow. I need it like I need air to breathe.” He turns me in his arms and cups my face.

  For the first time since he snuck up on me, I look into his blue eyes. Lust, desire, and joy flicker in them under the pale light of the fire behind us. He is handsome. And I want him. He crushes his mouth to my lips, sliding his tongue in a wild dance with mine. Pulling me to him, my breasts squish against his broad chest, and his fingers curl against my flesh.

  His kiss takes me to another world. I understand now the wordless union Marcus and Rose share, how this action expresses a story more than any voice can say. He sweeps along my mouth, pressing our tongues together, making us one. Soft moans seep through his lips against mine. I return them with whimpers and groans of my own, like a mating call of the spring bluebirds. They speak for us.

  My hands fumble along his body, searching for his cock. I grip him with my fingers and stroke him as I remember Rose doing to Marcus. Darien jerks back, breaking our kiss as he releases a growl. His palms slam against the wall behind me, and he stares deep into my eyes as I work my hand over him, sliding in the last bit of my juices still on him.

  “Snow...” His voice cracks as he fights the heavy breaths huffing in and out of his chest. Stilling my hand, he guides it to his mouth and kisses e
ach fingertip before sucking them one by one. “Your juices taste divine.”

  My eyes widen as I watch him with horror and fascination. What a strange thing to do, yet it oddly floods me with desire.

  Easing himself against me, he grabs hold of his cock and pushes it against my entrance. In a fury, he grabs hold of my leg, hoisting it against his body and harnesses me against the wall as he thrusts himself back inside me.

  My body arches without my control as I take him in. Cradling the back of my head with his large hand, he pumps in and out of me. Marcus and Rose drown out our own moans with theirs as Darien and I crash together, groaning as he shudders against me. Goose bumps rush my flesh, and sensations spiral through my loins into an explosion, launching a loud gasping groan from my mouth. His face mimics that of Marcus, the look of ecstasy taking hold as a final groan rips over his lips.

  He stills against me, pressing his forehead to mine as heavy, labored breaths take over his body. A shiver takes control of mine. With careful movements, he lowers my leg and slips out of me before wrapping me in his arms and pulling me to his chest.

  “I'm so sorry, Snow.” His large hands stroke my hair and down my back.

  A ping of regret and fear stab at my heart. Was it not any good?

  “Did I do it wrong?” I ask, doing everything I can to hold back a wash of tears pooling in my eyes.

  He slides his hands against either side of my cheeks. A smile curls at the edges of his lips. “God no, Snow! You were prefect and beautiful. It was me.” He shakes his head.

  “You?” I stare at him as if he were mad. I still ache to have him back inside me. My body rings with sensations and adrenaline wanting more. How could he have done something wrong?

  “I swore to take it slow with you. I promised myself I would give you pleasure. And at the first sign of you stroking me I slam into you like a whore. I'm ashamed. You deserved better.” His head droops, and he presses his hands against the wall behind me.

  “Darien,” I whisper as words fail to make it past my lips. They cannot express the multitude of emotions rampaging through my head and heart. “You did give me pleasure. You brought out things in me I've never experienced before. I've never been with a man. I had no idea I could feel like that.”

  He presses against me, and heat floods my belly again as if it were the first time. Shock hits me that I want more of him. That I ache to have his hands rake my body the way they did minutes ago.

  “Snow,” he whispers against my lips before sliding his tongue between them.

  His kiss swallows me whole, and suddenly his warm fingers part my legs, diving into my folds. A fire burns inside me, and I rock my hips against his hand. Whimpers bubble up from my chest with each of his strokes. My arousal mixed with his seed seeps down my legs, and the scent of our sex floods my nostrils. It makes me want him more.

  In a fury I launch myself at him, thrusting my hips over his hand as I paw at him like some wild animal. He pins me to the wall, stroking me harder and faster until my world spirals and dizziness overcomes me. My nails dig into the flesh of his muscular shoulders as I release a primal scream, drowning in the waves of an orgasm so strong it sucks the air from my lungs.

  He buries my scream with his mouth, punishing my tongue for making such noises. Yet his kisses breathe life into me, and I cannot get enough of them. It can't end. I pray he never stops touching me. I forget where I end and he begins.

  A soft laugh ripples through our kiss and he pulls back, hovering over my mouth. “Snow, you'll get us caught.” Embarrassment rushes my cheeks. A foolish grin pops over my lips as I try and turn away. He catches my chin with his fingertips and locks onto my eyes. “But I hope that made up for my earlier enthusiasm, stealing your pleasure from you.”

  Silence surrounds us, except for the heavy breaths panting from our chests. Darien peeks through the crack over my shoulder. “I think they've passed out.” His gaze makes its way back to mine. “Will you let me escort you to your room?”

  I bite my lip and give him a nod.

  Chapter Three

  Sunlight blazes into the room shouting at me to wake from my slumber. I roll with a groan, and soreness attacks my nethers. Memories of last night with Darien jumble through my head, a mix of embarrassment and excitement. In a fool judgment, I made my best effort to convince him to spend the night in my bed. But being the gentleman that he is, he refused, saying he didn't want to tarnish my reputation should the castle awake before us and find him coming from my bed chamber.

  My hand slips under the covers, roaming my nakedness. I touch the source of the soreness and cringe at the sensitivity, yet hunger for those rush of tingles and zings that swallow me whole. Images of Darien standing before me in only his flesh flood my mind. Broad shoulders and a strong muscular torso shielded me, protecting me as I wandered into unexplored territory. Soft curls of dark hair dotted his chest, leading a trail of treasure to his cock.

  It dawns on me then, while I'd held it in my hands, stroked its length and indulged in the throb of it against my fingers, I'd never actually looked upon it. The darkness in the tunnel all but swallowed us, save for the seeping light in the wall. An ache wells in my belly as I picture Marcus' cock in his stead, and a need to see Darien's fuels me. But I fear the soreness rampaging through my region should we engage again.

  Maybe I can provide him with some pleasure, as Rose did for Marcus when she placed her mouth on his. Perhaps that is how I can do for Darien as he did for me last night.

  I toss back the covers and ring for the ladies in waiting to pour a bath. Normally I would take it upon myself to do such a thing, but Darien insisted that as long as I stay in the castle I am to be waited on, and not wait on anyone else.

  As the water washes away the last remnants of Darien, I think about who I've become. No longer am I the Snow White everyone thinks virtuous. Sadness fills a small hole in my heart for that innocence lost. All the years instilled in me of the sins of the flesh and the honor in remaining pure.

  Perhaps I could blame the wine from the feast. But inside my heart of hearts, the aching need to find love, and urges of the flesh, have always filled my thoughts. From the moment I laid eyes upon Darien, impure thoughts inundated my head. I longed for him to look at me as Marcus does to Rose. And last night, as if in a dream, he came to me. He freed me.

  My soul longs to join with him again, and even as sore as I am I yearn to have him back inside me. I must find him. I must have more.

  I slip a finger along my aching clit, sliding through the hot water. Where once this action elicited arousal for me, it now pales in comparison to Darien's touch. I can no longer make myself feel as Darien does. Only his strokes can release me.

  I hop out of the tub, braving winter's breath that fills the air in my room. Scurrying about, I throw on a shift and fight the laces of my overdress. As I reach for the door, a thought hits me—how will I face Rose and Marcus ever again?

  While they were far too swept up in their own lovemaking to hear mine and Darien's, the fact still remains burned into my mind that I watched theirs. And I liked it. Shame pitches and rolls in my stomach. Perhaps I can manage to avoid them for a few days. Surely they'll be locked up in their bed chamber enjoying their honeymoon.

  I make my way to the dining hall, hoping I didn't sleep through breakfast. My stomach rumbles, churning the embarrassment from my actions last night. As I enter the grand archway, Darien's eyes lock onto mine from across the room. Flutters attack my heart, and my lips long to join with his. Inhaling a deep breath, I force myself to remain calm and erase the deviant thoughts from my head. I must fall back into Snow White.

  Darien rises from the long solid oak table, sliding out from a heavy-backed dining chair. With long strides of his firm thighs and muscular calves, he crosses the room to greet me.

  “Snow, good morning,” he says with an outstretched arm. “I didn't want to wake you. I fear you did much celebrating last eve and needed your rest. Come, are you hungry?”
/>   I nod and accept his hand as he guides me to a chair next to his at the table. “Famished.”

  Before sitting, I drop to a curtsy before Queen Miriam. “Good morning, your highness.”

  “Good morning, Snow White. You may rise.” She dots her mouth with a napkin, staring at me with remarkable violet eyes. “I trust you enjoyed yourself last eve?”

  My heart plunges to my stomach, and bile singes my throat. Does she know?

  I nod. “Y—Yes ma'am.”

  Darien squeezes my hand under the table. “Snow went to bed early last night. I fear the excitement got the best of her. I did my best to get her to have one more dance with me. But alas, she resisted my charms.” He tosses me a wink.

  Queen Miriam's lips form a half-grin. “Not many that can resist the charms of my boys.”

  Her eyes capture mine in a cunning stare. A lump wedges itself in the back of my throat, blocking all my words. Did Darien have many women? Unease fills my head, dripping through my limbs like a poison, filling me with doubt. Darien traces along the back of my hand with his fingertip.

  “Mother far exaggerates. It was always Marcus with the women. I thought none could ever tame him. But I see he finally met his match in Rose Red.” He nods to his brother and my sister who enter the dining hall hand in hand, not breaking eye contact with each other.

  My hunger for food turns into hunger for Darien as I picture Marcus and Rose wrapped in each other's arms making love. Instead of shame as I thought I'd feel upon seeing them this morning, a voracious need blazes in my loins. I can only think of Darien and the sensation of him inside me. Shifting in my chair, my hips rock in an effort to ease the lust burning through me.

  Darien tilts his head, a sly grin spreading across his face as he takes a sip from his chalice. I ease my hand out of his grasp, sliding it along the inside of his thigh. His eyes dart to the corner, tossing me a side glance. I find him already hardening against my touch as my fingertips grace his length tucked under garments of clothing. An urge wells in me to set him free. As I sweep another stroke over his shaft, he chokes on his drink and sets down his cup, a little harder than necessary. I massage my fingertips against him, enjoying the throb of his muscle against my hand. With each pass over his length, he stabs at his meat with his fork, slamming it against his plate.