“What are you saying?”
“You’re already the mate of my soul. I want to make it official.”
Laylah’s mind shut down at the same time her heart went into overdrive, ricocheting around her ribs like a pinball.
“Mate?”
His lips twisted. “Are you shocked or horrified?” “I’m stunned,” she readily admitted. He frowned, as if puzzled by her reaction to his little stunner.
“Did you actually think I would chase after you for days, defy the Commission and my own Anasso by keeping you hidden, and risk my neck because I had nothing better to do?”
“But, I’m a Jinn mongrel,” she said, those words explaining everything.
Jinn mongrels didn’t mate.
End of story.
Or at least it should be.
Tane, however, seemed to be out of the loop as he flashed a smile filled with dangerous intent.
“I hate to disappoint you, my sweet, but I managed to figure that out all by myself.”
“I’m an outcast.”
“And I’m not?”
She made a sound of impatience. “I’m unstable.”
“You’re a female.” His smile widened. “It’s expected.”
“Jerk.” She curled a fist and hit his back with enough force to make him grunt. Dammit. Was he completely insane? Or was his fascination with her a part of his guilt-complex? She was, after all, the go-to gal for a vampire with a self-destructive urge. “You won’t think it’s so funny if I accidentally strike you with a bolt of lightning or collapse your lair into a pile of rubble.”
He captured her lips in a kiss that blazed through her, searing away her self-righteous impulse.
Making her toes curl in the process.
“So long as you are next to me it won’t matter,” he said against her lips.
She gave a tug on his mohawk. “You must know this is crazy.”
“Be my mate, Laylah,” he coaxed, his eyes glowing. “Say yes.” She should say no.
Had she forgotten the horrible accidents over the years? For God’s sake, she’d killed more than one demon when her powers had slipped her control.
Of course, it had only been in self-defense, a voice whispered in the back of her mind. And none of the demons were anywhere near as indestructible as a vampire.
And …
And she loved him.
The pure simplicity of her emotion brought an end to her inner dialogue. “Yes,” she said.
He groaned, pressing his forehead to hers. “Thank God.”
Laylah stroked the tense muscles of his neck, bracing herself for his strike. She wasn’t afraid. Excitement bubbled through her, as intoxicating as champagne. But, she’d had an up close and personal view of his fangs. It seemed impossible they wouldn’t at least sting.
Tane, however, caught her off guard, crushing her lips with slow, drugging kisses that had her arching in ready response. He tasted of wildfire. And sex. And power.
A lethal combination.
His hands skimmed down her body, removing her bra and panties with skillful ease, then returning for another intimate exploration that made her tremble with pleasure. He stroked the line of her shoulders, and down her collarbone. He cupped her br**sts, his thumbs teasing her ni**les to aching peaks. And all the while he kissed her with a deep urgency that made her blood race.
Desire swelled inside her, as well as something new.
A hunger to feel him at her throat, his fangs buried deep in her flesh.
Perhaps sensing she was too impatient for a marathon seduction, Tane lifted himself off her long enough to shed his shorts before returning to cover her, his mouth seeking the pointed tip of her breast.
He groaned in approval as her hands scraped down his back, digging into his hips with her nails.
Using his tongue and teeth, he tormented the swollen bud, his c**k rubbing against her clit until she was ready to plead for release. He shifted his attention to her other breast, his hand sliding between them to slip a finger between her folds, finding the pinpoint of her desire with remarkable ease.
“Tane …” she choked.
“Yes, my sweet.”
“I need you.”
As if her words snapped the last thread of his composure, Tane gave a low growl and with one hard thrust was buried deep inside her.
Laylah gasped, feeling stretched to the very limit. Then, with a throaty moan she wrapped her legs around his hips in blatant appreciation.
“Mine,” he rasped, burying his face in the curve of her neck. “My mate.”
She quivered as his tongue ran a wet path down the line of her jugular, arching her head back to offer what he desired. Tane didn’t hesitate. With a harsh groan, he plunged his fangs through her skin, his hands holding her hips steady as she bucked from the pleasure slamming into her.
Gods.
She wrapped her arms around him, holding on tight as he began to pump his hips in rhythm that matched the sucking of her blood.
The combined sensations were …
Earth shattering.
Happily tossing herself into the maelstrom of bliss, Laylah met him stroke for stroke, rushing toward an orgasm even before he released a trickle of his power. She screamed as the tiny jolt of electricity threw them both over the edge and she exploded into a million pieces.
Lost in the shattering pleasure, she felt him withdraw his fangs and gently close the puncture wounds. She floated in a daze of paradise, already sensing the deepening connection between them.
He nuzzled a path of kisses toward the hollow beneath her ear, his hands stroking up the curve of her waist to cup her swollen br**sts.
“Your turn,” he whispered.
Laylah readily threaded her fingers through his mohawk, excitement shimmering through her. She was no expert on vampire relationships, but she did know that the mating was only half complete. It was only after she took his blood that they would be truly bound together.
Not giving herself time to consider the pain she was bound to cause, she raised her head to sink her teeth deep into the flesh of his neck. She didn’t have fangs, but she was able to draw enough blood to trickle down her throat.
Tane groaned in satisfaction. “Laylah.”
The breath was snatched from her lungs as the awareness of Tane flowed through her with a shocking intimacy. It was like …
She sucked in a shaky breath.
It was like he was a part of her, so deeply ingrained it was impossible to know where one began and the other ended.
And buried deep in her heart were the threads of his love that shimmered as brilliant as the finest gold.
She lowered her head and met the fierce honey gaze. “You’re mine.”