Wispy remnants of the deep satisfaction Lucas had experienced during the link drifted through him. "I hadn't thought about it in quite those terms."
Amaryllis walked back out onto the front step, stood on tiptoe, and put her arms around his neck. "It seems to me that you and I have a few more things in common than we originally thought." She brushed her mouth lightly against his. "You don't know what a relief it is to realize that I'm not the only one around with more psychic energy than the lab techs can measure."
Lucas wondered if he had stepped into the center of one of his own illusions. In the next instant he concluded that this was no time to question the nature of reality. He was a pragmatic man by nature, not a philosopher.
He crushed Amaryllis against his chest, lifted her off her feet, and carried her back through the front door.
Chapter 8
Amaryllis heard the front door slam shut and realized that Lucas had kicked it closed. He did not bother to hunt for the small panel on the wall to switch on the lights. Instead, he carried her through the moonlight and shadows into the living room.
The urgency in him threatened to steal her breath. His undisguised sexual desire was as potent as the power of his talent. It swirled around her as if it were a cloak, enveloping her completely. Amaryllis felt the heated rush of passion flowing through her, driving out the tension and fear that had gripped her during the encounter with the street thugs.
With wholly uncharacteristic recklessness, she cast aside her questions and her common sense. The future could take care of itself. The only thing that mattered was this moment and the possibilities inherent in it. She had waited so long for the man of her dreams.
"Lucas." She tightened her arms around his neck.
"I'm here," he whispered. "I couldn't leave now for all the jelly-ice in the Western Islands."
He lowered her onto the couch and sprawled heavily on top of her. His mouth closed over hers as he pulled the remaining pins from her hair. He inhaled deeply.
"It reminds me of the jungle flowers," he said.
She felt his strong hands on the buttons of her blouse. His fingers trembled as he opened the garment. He broke off the kiss to gaze down at her breasts. "So beautiful." He touched one nipple wonderingly and then bent his head to take it into his mouth.
Another wave of excitement flashed through Amaryllis. She lifted herself against Lucas and felt the hard, thickened evidence of his desire. She struggled with his clothing until she got his shirt undone, and then she touched him with shy eagerness. He groaned.
She stroked him more daringly, relishing the taut con- tours of his chest. When her fingers brushed against his rib cage she felt a long, unnatural furrow of toughened skin.
"You were hurt," she whispered.
"Accident." He dismissed the incident with a drugging kiss. "Long time ago. You want me, don't you? You really want me. I can feel it."
"I've never wanted anything more in my life," Amaryllis said simply.
It was true. A joyous abandon swamped her senses. She was powerful, more so than she had dreamed. She had discovered the truth about herself with a man who could share that power with her. The knowledge was dazzling.
A lifetime of self-restraint went up in smoke. Amaryllis felt wild and eager and free. She hovered on the brink of great discovery, and she could scarcely contain herself. Questions awaited answers.
Lucas rained kisses on her bare shoulders and nibbled at her ear. There was a desperate, straining impatience in his every touch.
He reached down to seize a fistful of her skirt and haul it up to her waist. The feel of his calloused hand on her thigh was so intensely intimate that she cried out with pleasure.
"Are you all right?" He lifted his head to search her face.
"Yes, yes, of course. I'm all right." She shoved her fingers into his hair and dragged his mouth back down to hers.
He gave a soft, husky laugh that dissolved into another aching groan. She heard something tear and realized it was the crotch of her panties.
"Damn," Lucas muttered. "I didn't mean to do that."
"Don't worry about it. There are a lot more where those came from. I buy them by the dozen on sale." She raised one knee and pressed it urgently against his muscled thigh.
Lucas cupped her gently and buried his face in the curve of her throat. "Remind me to buy the next dozen for you."
He lifted himself away from her, just far enough to allow him to unbuckle his belt. He got his trousers unfastened and then he eased himself back down between her legs.
He stroked her, his hand vibrating with his own urgency. Amaryllis trembled. She was intensely aware of her own dampness, and she knew that Lucas was breathing in the scent of her body. She was grateful for the shadows.
She felt him part her with his fingers, and then she felt the broad head of his shaft. There was moisture on it. Uncertainty flared for the first time. She had not expected him to be quite so large.
Lucas started to ease himself into her. He paused.
"You're tight," he whispered. "Small and tight."
"No, I'm not. I'm perfectly normal. The problem is that you're too big." She smiled and touched the side of his face. "But don't worry about it. I won't break."
He made a hoarse sound deep in his throat, and then he surged into her, filling her with a suddenness that sent shock waves through every nerve in her body.
Amaryllis gasped and stiffened. She dug her nails into Lucas's back. She had expected some pain, but not quite this much. She inhaled quickly, trying to breathe her way through the moment.
"Amaryllis."
She almost laughed in spite of the discomfort she was experiencing. The stunned shock in Lucas's voice was a thousand times greater than her own.
"Don't worry." She framed his face between her palms and kissed him fiercely. "I won't--"
"I know, I know, you won't break." He returned the kiss with great tenderness. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"Because it wasn't important."
"The hell it wasn't." Lucas started to ease himself back out of her.
"No." Amaryllis clutched at him. "Don't stop. Not now. I want this. I want you."
"Not half as much as I want you. But I never expected that you would be a virgin."
"I told you, it doesn't make any difference. I'm old enough to make my own choices."
"Yes, you are, aren't you?" Lucas's eyes glittered in the shadows. "Link."
She did not understand at first. "What?"
"Link with me."
She obeyed. She was already too disoriented to notice the vulnerable sensation that always preceded the focus link. Her mind looked out on the psychic plane. Instinctively, she created a prism.
"Beautiful." Lucas thrust deeply into her body at the same instant that he poured sparkling waves of energy through the prism.
He made no effort to focus the raw talent. Instead, he let the waves of light splash and froth in a waterfall that cascaded into a brilliant, swirling pool.
The result was a swirl of sensations and an almost unbearable sense of intimacy.
He was her true mate. The one for whom she had waited.
Talent and prism bound by their own shared power.
Amaryllis wanted to scream as the pleasure stormed through her, but she could hardly catch her breath. She was being tumbled about in a fountain of light, color, and energy. Excitement, euphoria, and laughter exploded within her.
She was dimly aware that the pain was still present, but it had blended with all of the other sensations. She could no longer distinguish it, let alone identify it.
"Unbelievable," Lucas muttered against her ear. He began to move rhythmically within her. Simultaneously, he reached down to touch the small bundle of nerve endings hidden between her legs.