Rion by Susan Kearney Page A

nipples rested just under the surface? Rion bit back
     a grin and strode around the tub, thinking that the best way to pamper her was to make her ask for exactly what she wanted.
    “We have three different scents of soap.” He opened them one by one and placed them under her nose. “Would you like the sweet,
     the floral, or the star scent, my lady?”
    “Star scent, please. It reminds me of the crisp smell of autumn leaves, when they’re all vibrant golds and reds before they
     fall off the trees.”
    Rion wet his hands, then scooped some star scent into his palms and rubbed up a good lather. Taking care not to let the soap
     drip into her eyes, he worked the thick lather into her hair. “Would you like your scalp rubbed, too?”
    “Yes, please.”
    Rion massaged her head with his fingertips, noting how much she enjoyed his rubbing over and behind her ears. She leaned into
     his hands, and the tension seeped out of her face and neck.
    “You feel wonderful.”
    “Keep your eyes closed. I’m going to rinse you now.” Employing a spray hose, he tipped her head back and rinsed the shampoo
     from her hair. With her back arched, her breasts rose completely out of the water. When a water droplet clung to her nipple,
     distracting him, he dropped the hose. Water sprayed everywhere—including all over him.
    Marisa surveyed his wet shirt and chuckled. “Since you’re already soaked, you might as well come in and get clean, too.”
    “So we’re okay again?”
    Their gazes met. And in her eyes he saw acceptance.
    “Yeah. We’re okay.”
    Rion didn’t wait for a second invitation. He shucked the clothes but climbed into the tub behind her, settling so that his
     back rested against the side of the tub, and her back settled against his chest.
    “Lean against me,” he instructed. “I’m not done with your hair.”
    She scooted down a bit and her breasts disappeared beneath the surface. He gulped and applied the Toran equivalent of conditioner
     and perma-shine rolled into one, smoothing his fingers through her hair from the neck up to the roots.
    “Umm. That feels so good that I think you should wash the rest of me.”
    He’d been hoping she’d ask. His chest tightened. Her lovely dragon scales, winding along the insides of her arms and down
     her spine and her silver skin, made his mouth water. There was something very beautiful about Marisa, not just her stunning
     looks, but the way she opened herself to new experiences, the way she could take joy in small pleasures.
    “Star soap?” he asked.
    “Whatever you think,” she murmured.
    Again he lathered his hands, then spread the soap over her shoulders and along her arms. The soap wouldn’t immediately dissolve
     in water like Earth soap. Instead, it clung to the skin, the soap nodules bubbling away to leave the skin clean and buffed.
    “Oh… my.” Her eyes popped open. “That tingles.”
    “Uh-huh. Lean forward.” He spread the soap over her back, all the way down to her shapely ass. “Now lean back again so I can
     do your front.”
    His hands closed over her breasts. She gasped. “How long does the tingling last?”
    “That depends.”
    “On what?”
    “Your chemistry and hormones. The more aroused you are, the more you tingle.”
    “But the more it tingles, the hotter I get.”
    “Umm.” He nuzzled her neck with his lips, fondled her breasts with his hands. “Such an interesting dilemma. What would you
     like me to do?”
    “You’ve missed a few spots.”
    He nipped her earlobe, tweaked her taut nipples. “Have I now?”
    She moaned softly. “I didn’t know I could feel like this.”
    “I haven’t even begun to make you feel good,” he promised, lathering up his hands again. He spread the soap over her belly
     and down her thighs. “Raise your legs, please.”
    He leaned forward and ran his hands over her thighs, her knees, her calves. He took particular care with her feet. And then
     he repeated the process with her other