"I'm only trying to convince you that I am no dream."
Without warning, he shifted her farther up his thighs. The air was wrenched from her body as the fierce jut of his erection settled in the damp heat between her legs.
She shifted experimentally, the dull throb in her lower body rejoicing as the tip of him slipped just inside her body. She was prevented from a complete entry, however, as he grasped her hips and regarded her with smoldering eyes.
"All you've done is made more certain this is a fantasy," he murmured.
'You need more proof?" she teased.
"Ah, no, my turn for kisses," he informed her, drawing her toward his waiting lips. "And I want to kiss you everywhere."
With a slow, deliberate motion, Dante branded her lips with a searing kiss. Then moving his mouth over her face, he stroked down the length of her arched neck. Abby's fingers dug into his shoulders as he pulled her relentlessly upward, catching the hardened nipple between his teeth. She gave a soft cry as he tugged and suckled her, her head thrown backward at die insistent pleasure crashing through her. He turned his attention to the other breast, relentlessly driving her need to a fever pitch.
She wanted him within her.
She wanted the powerful thrust of his erection driving her to that wondrous edge and tossing her over.
But even as she sought to bring them together, he was determinedly lifting her ever upward. She found herself on her unsteady feet as his mouth teased the contracted muscles of her stomach, occasionally nipping at the shivering flesh. She moaned in protest, and then her eyes flew open as he lowered even farther, and his seeking mouth found her moist parting.
She momentarily struggled to stay upright as his tongue reached out to stroke the highly sensitive flesh.
There was something utterly decadent about being poised above him as he expertly urged her to the point of no return.
But then sensation took over, and, closing her eyes, she simply allowed him to pleasure her.
With tantalizing care he searched to find her center of pleasure, holding her hips in firm hands. Abby gritted her teeth as he gently stroked the building pressure, so enthralled by the searing delight he was creating that she was nearly too late when she abruptly pulled away from his magical touch.
"No, Dante," she gasped.
As if sensing she wished to have him inside her when she came, Dante guided her back to her knees and positioned her so that he could slowly penetrate her softness.
Abby sighed in relief as she pressed herself ever deeper, knowing that nothing had ever felt so right as having him within her.
For a moment she merely savored the full sense of completion. But as he remained unnaturally still, she reluctantly lifted her heavy lids to send him a puzzled gaze.
"Dante?"
"You started this seduction, Abby," he rasped. 'You can finish it."
With a slow smile, she placed her hands upon his chest and slightly lifted her hips before sliding back down.
Dante moaned, his fingers convulsively clutching her hips. "My God, you are going to kill me. Again."
Abby moved, pulling herself higher before plunging downward. His hips arched off the sand-covered ground, a pained frown forming on his forehead.
Abby smiled with heady satisfaction, thoroughly enjoying the knowledge that Dante was completely at her mercy.
For this moment he was hers. As intimately tied to her as if they were one.
One soul, regardless if he possessed one or not.
One heart, beating or not.
One body.
With slow, deliberate motions, she tormented them both to the edge of frenzy, refusing to increase the pace even as he gasped out a plea for mercy.
Only when she realized that her muscles were inevitably tightening to an explosive release did she give in to his broken commands and allow him to grasp her hips so he could pump himself forcefully within her.
He gave a shout of joy at the same moment she violently convulsed about him.
For a moment out of time, she floated in pure bliss, pressed against the impaling flesh until with a low moan she collapsed against him in utter exhaustion.
She was shaken by the force of her pleasure. But oddly comforted by the arms that encircled her to press her close against the hardness of his body.
It was as if she had been thrown from the top of a skyscraper, only to discover she was being caught in the safety of Dante's embrace.
Perhaps sensing her tumultuous emotions, Dante softly stroked her tousled curls and placed a comforting kiss on her brow.
"Are you all right, Abby?"
She snuggled against his strength. "More than all right."
"And you aren't considering any wanton staking?"
"Not at the moment."
"Good." He gave a soft chuckle as his lips absently smoothed over her temple. "Unlike most vampires, I enjoy my passion without pain, bloodshed, or the threat of imminent staking."
Lazily tilting back her head, she met his glittering gaze. "What about Sasha?"
A decidedly smug smile curved his lips. "I've told you there's no need to be jealous, my sweet. I put Sasha in my past the moment you arrived on Selena's doorstep."
Her heart gave a jump even as she regarded him with a frown. "I don't believe you."
He arched a brow, his unworldly beauty starkly pronounced as the rosy dawn outside the cave began to dispel the gloom.
'That Sasha is in my past?"
"That you even noticed me when I arrived on Selena's doorstep," she clarified in dry tones.
His fingers traced aimless patterns over the bare skin of her back, his expression softened with amusement.
"Oh, I noticed. How could I not?" His lips twisted with a hint of self-derision. "From the moment you arrived, I was plagued by that damnable purity. It taunted me until I couldn't get you out of my thoughts. I knew I was going to seduce you even before I knew your name."
She gave a choked laugh at his outrageous arrogance. "Could you possibly be a little more full of yourself?"
He shrugged. "There are some things that are inevitable."
Abby paused. She wasn't much of a philosopher. Hell, she didn't even know what a philosopher actually did. But she did know that inevitable or fate or providence were not words in her vocabulary.
"No, there is no such thing as inevitable," she said firmly.
"Why do you say that?" he demanded, more curious than offended.
"Because if fate was set in stone, then I would be a drunken whore working the streets for a cheap bottle of whiskey."
Her tone was light, but she felt him stiffen beneath her, his fingers pressing into her skin.
"Don't say that," he rasped.