To be entirely honest, though, I was mostly excited.

My heart crashed against my ribcage and I was barely able to breathe through my nervousness. All I could see was the moon hanging plump and ripe in the center of my vision. My hands moved to Anyan’s wide shoulders, my nails digging into his shirt as my fists clenched. I’d never felt so vulnerable.

Which is why, when Anyan’s big hand moved my shirt up my body, I gasped. His calloused hands rasped deliciously against the soft skin covering my ribs, and then his fingers moved over the thin material of my bra—an admittedly rather serviceable cotton jobbie. I moaned, feeling my nipples harden, but still, when his mouth found my left breast, I nearly jumped out of my skin. First of all, it was patently unfair of him to go diving straight for my nipples. We’d never even kissed properly, and there he was, skipping entire bases. Second, I’d never before been touched the way Anyan touched me. His mouth on my flesh was hard, persistent, even through the thin material of my bra. Calloused fingers that squeezed around my breast accompanied his mouth as if he were taking possession of my body, as if he owned me.

I’d only really been touched by two men in my life. And, while I know it’s not right to compare, I couldn’t help it. Jason had been all tender solicitude, and Ryu had camouflaged his delightfully filthy nature under the guise of being a gentleman. But Anyan’s touch was demanding, insistent—almost frightening, if I was honest. His mouth and his hands promised he was never going to back down, never going to yield, until he’d taken what he wanted.

When he nipped at my breast, none too gently, I felt a rush of heat flush through my body. Then, after sucking away the sting, he moved his shaggy head over to latch that wide mouth onto my right nipple, but not before roughly pulling down the fabric of my bra, so that his lips found my bare skin I thought I saw stars as I wondered, belatedly, whether we were gonna need a safety word.

It’ll be Geronimoooooooo… “Oooooooh,” I said, before my feeble attempt at self preservation dissolved into a throaty moan as Anyan released my hair to wrap his arms around me, pulling me forward as he suckled hungrily at my breast. I raised my head as I twined my own fingers in his hair, taking back a modicum of control by grinding my hips against his and causing him to release my flesh with a gasp.

Then I was the one tugging on hair, as I pulled his head back. His eyes were closed, his lips parted. Zeroing in on his mouth, I moved forward to kiss him.

If we are going to do this, we’re going to do it in the correct order, I reprimanded him mentally, as I stopped just short of a smooch to nuzzle my own nose against his. I couldn’t help it. I felt the tip twitch against mine, making me giggle. But my laughter ceased at the hungry look in his eyes.

“Bad, bad puppy,” I murmured.

Then his lips found mine. The first few seconds of our first real kiss were hardly movie quality: I had my mouth open, so our teeth clanged against each other like gongs. Then we had to figure out how my small mouth would fit against his wide one, which took a few moments.

But then it all fell into place, and his kiss sent my world tumbling in a gyre.

His mouth was hard, insistent, daring me to pull away. So I met his ferocity with my own, suddenly wanting to eat him up like pie. I was the first one to bring tongues into play, licking gently at his lower lip until his mouth opened to mine. Our tongues met on his turf, swirling against each other, his following mine back into my own mouth. I sucked at his tongue hungrily, suddenly desperately wanting to be filled by him, wanting to taste him, just wanting…

And Anyan was happy to oblige. His body rubbed against mine as he pulled me closer. I wasn’t sure if I was even on the railing anymore, or if he was holding me to him. My legs twined around his waist, pressing the heat at my center against his hard abdomen, my heart thumping in my chest.

Our kiss deepened, impossibly. It felt like I was feeding from him even as I fed him a bit of myself. I was losing myself in Anyan’s mouth, but my body was ready to move on. My own hand in Anyan’s hair pulled him back from me just enough so that I could reach to pull my plain, long-sleeved black tee all the way off. I felt the railing under my butt, again, as he put me down so his hands could move to fumble at my bra strap. While he worked, I placed my palms on either side of his face, as I feathered kisses over his eyelids and forehead, finally dropping down to suck just the tip of that ridiculously sexy nose.

“Shit,” Anyan swore, under his breath. He was having trouble with my bra strap, which amused me no end.

Who’s the dominant one here now, Mr. Let Me Take Control? I thought smugly, until the barghest resolved the issue by taking a firm hold of either side of my bra’s clasp and pulling till I heard a snap.

Shit, it was my turn to swear.

But before I could think any further on the demise of my delicates, Anyan’s hands were at my bare breasts. His fingers squeezed my nipples while his palms cupped and I nearly swooned at the sensations.

He used the opportunity of my head-thrown-back moan to find my neck again, kissing and biting his way down the left side until his shaggy curls tickled my chest. Then he kept kissing downward, working his way left till I felt his warm breath on my bare nipple.

At least we have run the bases properly this time, my virtue acceded, completely overwhelmed by lust, along with all the rest of my systems.

Then Anyan’s hot mouth suckled, and I thought I might overload on the pleasure of it.

My right hand braced myself on the railing as my left found its way into his hair. Running my fingers through his curls as he suckled me, I looked down at him, feeling a curious mixture of possession and pride. I knew that part of my pleasure was from knowing that this was Anyan at my breast. I’d wanted him for so long, and was as elated at having him, finally, as I was terrified.

He came up for air only long enough to steal a quick, hard kiss before attending to my other nipple. One couldn’t accuse this shapeshifting man-dog of not being thorough, bless him.

While I was enjoying the barghest’s attentions immensely, however, I also wanted to do my own exploring. So I tugged, tentatively, on his hair. As if in approbation, Anyan bit the soft underside of my breast sharply, making me gasp. But he also moved his head back and up so he was, once again, towering over me.

“I want to touch you, too,” I breathed, causing his lips to quirk either with a smile or desire, or both. I reached my hand under the bottom of his shirt, running my fingertips over his abdomen as he went to pull off the pesky bit of material separating me from my barghest chest.

Which is when we heard the polite cough from the doorway.

Anyan and I froze, both of our eyes wide. You’d think after being attacked, together, we’d have learned not to let our guard down.

Or our brassieres.

Anyan turned around, carefully shielding me with his wide shoulders as I peered about for my shirt. I didn’t see it anywhere, of course, and presumed the naughty barghest had kiestered it when I wasn’t looking.

Meanwhile, I could see, over Anyan’s shoulder, Gus standing just inside the front door. His bald little head gleamed, but not as brightly as the porch light shining off his Coke-bottle glasses.

“Do you have any milk?” the stone spirit asked, absolutely oblivious to the fact that he’d just ruined a moment that had promised railing sex. “I’m very thirsty,” he concluded, as if ordering from a waiter at a restaurant.

“Um… milk. Yes, I believe I do have milk. In the fridge,” Anyan replied, remarkably cordial for someone who’d just been cock-blocked by Dr. Bunsen Honeydew.

Instead of helping himself, as Anyan had implied, Gus just continued to stand there. Staring.

Anyan sighed and turned to face me. I shrugged my shoulders.

“Go help your guest,” I said, running my index finger over that wide mouth.

“Want my shirt?” he asked, nipping gently at my finger.

“I’m pretty sure I could do a naked cancan and Gus would be none the wiser.”

“You’re probably right,” he said, with a sigh. “I’ll get him his milk then.”

“And then tuck him back into bed on your couch?” I asked, really wanting to know if there was any chance of getting our rumpy-pumpy back on tonight.

“And then tuck him back into bed on my couch,” Anyan said. Meaning, Not unless we kill and eat the stone spirit.

“Damn,” I said.

“Damn,” he agreed.

“Well, I will see you tomorrow, then.” My voice was heavy with disappointment, and I thought my libido might shrivel up and die at the horror of not getting laid that night. “And I’ll also see you tomorrow night?” I asked, hoping to give my poor, tortured sex drive something to live for.

“Unless the sky falls down, I plan on shagging you silly as soon as possible.”

I giggled. “I like that. I’ll write it in my calendar.”

“Put some hearts around it. So I know you’re not just using me for sex,” was Anyan’s only response. Then—to my utmost pleasure—the barghest gave me the softest, sweetest kiss on my lips before he turned around to attend to Gus.

Who exhibited not the slightest awareness I was hanging out, half naked, on Anyan’s railing. Bless.