Her body was too tense.

Growls rumbled from Devon's chest as he moved inside her. He didn't seem to notice that Val wasn't with him. I leaned forward to stare down at her face. Her eyes were squeezed shut and her cheeks damp. My eyes trailed over to her mouth. She was biting down hard enough on her bottom lip to draw blood. I reached out and moved the hair from her face in hopes of her looking at me, but she didn't. Val turned her head to the side and reached up to grip his shoulders. Something wasn't right.

My lips parted. I was ready to stop him, but it was already too late. Devon's movements slowed and became jerky. His body shook with the force of his release. A second later he stilled. He was panting, trying to catch his breath. Val's tight grip on his shoulders loosened. She pressed her hands against his chest and tried to push him away.

"G-get him off, p-please."

I carefully slid out from behind her and moved to her side. Devon groaned and muttered something I couldn't hear. He pushed himself up onto his elbows but that's how far he got. It seemed like he had no strength to move. I wrapped my arm around his waist and helped him up. Between the three of us, we managed to move him onto his back. Devon blinked up at the ceiling for a few seconds before his eyes slid closed.

Movement from the corner of my eye made my head snap in that direction. I watched as Val slid off the bed and ran from the room. With one last glance at Devon, I bent to grab my pants and then hurried after her. I paused outside the bedroom to pull on my pants. A knock on the door passed without an answer. It was probably best to leave her because it was obvious that she wanted to be alone, but I couldn't just walk away. I pushed the door open and entered the room. It was empty, but the bathroom light was on and the sound of the shower could be heard.

Val was sitting in the shower hugging her knees to her chest. Her shoulders shook but she made no sound. I hesitated. Clenching my fists, I squeezed my eyes closed for a few seconds. We shouldn't have pushed things. She wasn't ready. I opened the shower door and stepped inside. Her body jerked when I slid my arm around her shoulders. Val raised her head and blinked at me. Her eyes were red-rimmed, another sign that something wasn't right.

"Talk to me, doll."

She swallowed. Her lips parted but no words escaped. I tensed when she suddenly threw herself at me. The sob that fell from her lips tore right through me. Something was wrong and I didn't know how to fix it. I pulled her onto my lap and hugged her tightly as she cried. Five minutes later she lifted her head and reached up to wipe her nose. She sniffed. I cupped her cheek and turned her head towards me.

"Look at me," I ordered when she kept her eyes closed.

Val slowly opened her eyes. A few more tears slipped from them. I wiped them away and waited for her to speak. "Aunt told me that it would hurt. She didn't tell me . . . I know I was wet. I was ready but it still hurt. It burned."

"I'm sorry," I muttered. "I'm sorry you didn't enjoy it."

"I did, before . . . you know. After that . . . he didn't wait for me to get used to him inside me."

I frowned. "He should've. He wouldn't have hurt you intentionally, doll."

"He fell asleep."

She laid her head against my chest. A soft sigh fell from her lips. She was disappointed. I couldn't help feel angry at him. He should've been more careful. It wasn't like him. And then again, it wasn't like him to strike out at someone for touching him. He passed out almost right away after he reached his peak.

"It's the drug," I told her. "We use drugs that they created. It comes in handy now and again. Doc Ali gave Devon some of the drugs to help him heal. It would explain why he passed out on you." A thought hit me. "Val, he didn't mean to hurt you. I felt how tight you are. With the drugs still in his system and then the pleasure of your body . . . shit. I don't know how to explain this to you, doll."

"Are you saying that if he wasn't pumped full of drugs he would've been more careful?"

"Yes."

She looked doubtful. I smiled and leaned down to kiss her. Her lips instantly parted beneath mine. I pulled away before it could get more heated. She was probably tender. I'd wait for her to take the first step, even if it fucking killed me.

"I'll run you a hot bath. It will help with your tenderness." My smile widened when she blushed. "Then we'll get some sleep."

She blinked at me. "You don't want to. . .?"

"Oh I want to doll, but I'll wait for you to make the first move."

Val smiled and reached up to press her palm against my cheek. Her smile widened when our eyes locked. "I never thought you'd be such a softy."

I growled. "I'm not a softy."

"You are."

"You wouldn't think so if you knew what I'm thinking about."

"What are you thinking about?" she asked softly.

I pecked her lips and then gripped her hips to move her off my lap. I stood and turned off the taps before glancing down at her. Giving her a wink, I stepped out of the shower and headed towards the bathtub. A few minutes later I helped her into the bath. I hesitated, before reaching down to push my pants down my legs. Val's eyes widened when she got an eyeful of my hard cock. I smirked as I climbed in behind her. Instead of settling against me like I expected her to do, Val turned around to face me.

"You're still—" she glanced down at my lap, "—hard."

"I'll stay hard for as long as you're within distance. Your smell makes me hard."

"Only my smell?" She raised an eyebrow in question.

"Everything about you, doll." I leaned back and stretched my arms out on the edge of the tub. "The way you move. The way you smell. The way you look at me."

The colour in her cheeks darkened. My eyes dropped to her mouth when she licked her lips. She moved again. I closed my legs when she gestured for me too. Val got onto her knees and straddled my legs. She shifted closer and placed her hands on my chest.

"I want to do something, but I've never done it before."

"What do you want to do?" My heartbeat increased.

She licked her lips and leaned forward slightly. "I want to touch you and kiss you. I want to explore you."

My mouth dried as all the possibilities of what she might do ran through my mind. My cock jerked in response. I swallowed and gave her a small nod. She could do anything she wanted to me as long as I got to feel her hands and lips on my body. Her lips twitched.

"Tell me if I do something wrong."

I nodded. My breath got caught in my throat when Val leaned forward and pressed her lips against my neck. I turned my head away to give her more access. Shudders raced through me when she licked my skin. I gripped the edge of the tub to stop myself from reaching for her. Her lips and tongue slid lower. My head dropped back. A low growl couldn't be stopped from escaping. She suddenly used her teeth to nip my skin. I snarled. Val jerked away.

"I'm sorry," she said softly. "I didn't mean to hurt you."

"You didn't" I cleared my throat. "We're not human doll, we make sounds. I like you touching me very much. I'll growl and snarl but that doesn't mean that you're doing anything wrong."

"You want me to continue?"

I nodded, unable to utter another word. Val's hand slid down to my abdomen. I waited for her to touch me where I ached most, but Val didn't wrap her hand around my cock. She brushed her fingertips against my abs. My back arched when she wrapped her lips around my nipple. Val gave my nipple a few sharp tugs before using her tongue to circle it. My eyes fluttered close when she kissed her way across to the other nipple. It was hell to keep still. Her lips moved lower over my stomach. She dipped her tongue into my navel before sitting up.

"This would be a whole lot better if we move to the bed."

I opened my eyes to blink at her. "That's not such a good idea."

"Why not?" She frowned at me.

Our eyes locked. "If we move to the bed, it'll be easy for me to grab you, flip you over, and bury my cock deep inside you. I want to fuck you Val, and you're not ready for that yet."

The heat in her eyes died down. She moved back and placed her hands on her lap. Her eyes darted around the bathroom before locking with mine. She gave me a small smile but it wasn't enough to hide that spark of fear in her eyes.

"Yeah, I'm not ready for another round yet. We should finish and go to bed. It's late."

She climbed out of the tub and wrapped a towel around her body. I watched her walk away. We fucked up. We should've waited. Regret filled me. She might just decide to walk away after tonight.