It is particularly your modesty that attracts me. Walk farther into the trees while I release these two from my command. I will not have them near you.
Desari’s head snapped up, and her dark eyes smoldered dangerously. She walked away, but she was tired of all the orders the males of her race seemed determined to toss out as fast as they were able.
Has it occurred to you, Julian, that I can sing a binding song and leave you trapped in the body of a bird the next time you choose to shape-shift?
Julian laughed softly in answer, that same male smugness that made her want to wring his neck. He had moved with his incredible speed and was keeping pace beside her with his easy, fluid strides. His arm circled her waist, and he bent to brush the side of her neck with the warmth of his mouth. “You might do so,
cara mia,
but you would not leave me in such a state for long. Your need of my company would be my freedom.”
Excitement was rushing through her body at the touch of his. He smelled clean and fresh, his clothes immaculate, as if they had not been covered by earth these last few days. His veins were bursting with life, his heartbeat calling to hers. “Arrogant man,” she sniffed with pretended indignation. All at once his playful boasting didn’t matter. She hungered, her body crying out for sustenance, and mixed with that need was a bolt of lightning streaking through her, turning her insides to molten lava, spreading its heat low and wickedly.
Julian caught her up in strong arms and took her, airborne, through the forest, far from any other being, to a deserted emerald island in the middle of a small lake. He was already finding her mouth with his own, a fiery domination that was met with hot demands from Desari’s silken lips. Her hands were everywhere, pushing at his clothes, insisting he be rid of them. She traced his shoulders, his chest muscles and ribs, the broad expanse of his back. Her fingertips explored his skin, assuring herself there were no lingering signs of his battle with the undead, that he was completely healed.
Her clothes felt heavy and cumbersome, an irritant to her suddenly sensitive skin. At once she rid herself of them so that nothing was between her and Julian’s hard frame. He felt so right, his arms locking her close. She burrowed closer, needing to feel him, wanting to crawl inside him, wanting him buried deep inside her. After so many centuries without someone of her own, without a chance for children and someone to truly love her and want her, Desari woke with joy each rising.
Someone to
need
you,
he corrected. His voice was husky as his hands did their own exploration. He dropped to his knees in front of her, looking up at her dark, smoldering beauty, the fire and flame in her. She was such a part of the night, of their world, shining like the moon and stars.
Julian caught her slender hips firmly in his hands and forced her forward so that he could trace every inch of her satiny thighs. He found each and every hollow, her body already committed to his memory for all eternity. It was as if time stood still for him, allowed him a moment from the universe, a moment that would last forever, to be consumed completely by the wonder of woman. The firmness of her muscles, the softness of her skin, the sheen and silk of her hair, the smoldering sexiness in the depths of her coal-black eyes, even her long eyelashes, inky and dark, and the triangle of dark curls that guarded heat and fire. She was so beautiful to him, such a miracle of light and goodness, that for a moment tears shimmered in his eyes before he could blink them away.
Julian rested his head on her thighs, inhaling her scent, while the wind whispered its secrets and teased their bodies. She was a creature of the night, as wild and hungry as he. She was his other half, and yet a part of him could not comprehend that she wouldn’t vanish to leave him to be consumed once more by utter isolation, by total hopelessness.
His mouth found the warmth of one silken thigh, leaving a long trail of kisses, every one of them in thanks for what he had been granted. He was still awed by her whispered promise to him as he lay gravely wounded, her voice soft and husky, pure and compelling. There could never be untruth in her, not with her voice. She had meant that promise to him, meant it with all of her being. Had he slipped away to the afterlife, she would have followed him.
Always together. You are not alone. I will follow you.
Her commitment to him went beyond anything he could have hoped for. His hands tightened possessively on her small bottom, drawing her closer to him. Her heat beckoned, her wild scent calling to him to assuage her need. Julian wanted only pleasure for her, for everything to be perfect for her—the night itself, the touch of his mouth, his hands, his body inside hers, locking them together as they were meant to be from the beginning of time.
Desari cried out at the first touch of his lips. Her body seemed not her own but his to caress and touch. To kiss and explore. He was finding places so secret she hadn’t known they existed, places of such pleasure that she could only stand helplessly while he swamped her body in waves of earth-shattering ecstasy. She had to curl her fingers in his thick mane of golden hair to keep herself anchored to earth. She was soaring out and away, high above ground while her body rippled with pleasure.
She was gasping for air when his mouth covered hers and he began pressing her down onto the soft ground. His body was hard and aggressive, his hands parting her thighs and wrapping her legs around his waist. His teeth grazed her neck, then traced a path down her throat to find the soft swell of her breast.
Desari pressed closer, wanting to take him inside her, keep him a part of her for all time. Her hunger was raw and aching, a need so intense, she dragged his head up so that her mouth could find his skin. She felt his body shudder, the hot velvet tip of him sliding into her. She thrust with her hips, intent on forcing his complete entrance, but he refused to move, his palm catching the back of her head to hold her face pressed against his chest.
Julian wanted it all, her complete union with him, heart and soul and body. Her mouth moved over his heated skin, sending flames licking over him so that he clenched his teeth and pressed her even closer in anticipation. Her teeth scraped over his chest, back and forth, until he thought he might go mad with need. His hips moved impatiently, but he held back, waiting, prolonging the moment. She bit him, a tiny bite followed by the soothing swirl of her tongue.
Desari!
Her name was wrenched from him, a plea.
He felt her tremble in response to his aching need, felt the moment in her mind. Even as he thrust himself deep within her, her teeth sank deep into his chest. White lightning flashed through them. Electricity arced back and forth, sizzling and melting until they were welded together, one being. He heard his voice shout hoarsely, the pleasure so intense he was unable to stay silent. His hands tightened, one in her hair, the other cupping her bottom. The deeper he drove, the wilder her body’s response, the friction of fiery heat gripping and releasing him excruciatingly erotic.
Her mouth was moving in a frenzy of hunger and craving, the rich essence of his life’s blood heightening her pleasure. Her body was moving restlessly, wildly, without inhibition, wanting him as deep inside her as possible. He was touching her in places that shattered her earlier, lesser ideas of eroticism. She closed the pinpricks her teeth had made with a stroke of her tongue. At once he caught her wrists and stretched her arms out away from her, pinning her beneath him while he bent his head to her full, creamy breasts. She cried out when his mouth closed over her taut nipple, already aching and sensitive with need. Julian responded by burying himself deeper, riding her harder, keeping them both on the edge of fulfillment.
“Julian, please,” Desari found herself whispering, her body coiling tighter and tighter.