“Me?” She sounded genuinely shocked. “What would you depend on me for?”
It was a question he’d been avoiding since the mating first happened.
She was right.
He did like playing the lone wolf. Well, not a wolf. He hated Weres. But, he’d preferred to keep others at a safe distance.
It’d been that way for centuries.
And yet, in the few weeks since their mating, he’d become growingly content with the sense of Sally that was nestled deep inside him.
Not just the glorious sexual heat that flowed through him like molten lava, but the complex combination of fear and joy and aggravation, not to mention his obsessive need to protect her, that seared away the ice he had used to protect his heart after Fala’s death.
Now he made no effort to deny the intoxicating brew as he shoved his fingers in her hair, tilting back her head to give him easier access to the delectable line of her collarbone.
“You’ve reminded me that life isn’t just about duty,” he admitted, his fangs scraping her delicate skin. “And that I’ve closed myself off from my emotions for too long.”
Her breath came out in a shaky sigh, her firm ass wiggling against his cock with an invitation that made him groan.
“The emotions—” Her words were cut short as he kissed a path between her breasts.
“Hmm?” he prompted.
“They’re not real,” she moaned.
He chuckled, using a fang to slice through the nightie and expose the perfection of her breasts.
“Oh . . . I’d say they’re very real.”
Sally jerked as he licked the tip of her breast. “I meant the emotions,” she choked out. “They’re not real.”
Roke lifted his head to meet the guarded gaze. His entire body was hard and aching with anticipation.
“They feel real,” he muttered, his voice already thick with need. “They feel painfully real.”
She briefly stiffened and Roke braced himself for her rejection. Goddammit. Even when he could feel her body trembling with need, she seemed determined to fight her desire.
Then, holding his darkened gaze, she allowed her hand to slip beneath his robe, splaying her fingers over his unbeating heart.
“This is only going to complicate the situation.”
His already hard erection gave a painful throb. Her touch was so light he could barely feel it, but it was enough to send an explosion of pleasure through him.
This woman had the power that no other possessed.
Her every touch, every brush of her warm breath, every beat of her heart, made him feel as if this moment was something new. Something so rare and precious that it could only happen between the two of them.
And perhaps that was true.
Perhaps the connection between mates added a depth of intimacy that could never be experienced by two mere lovers.
Certainly there had never been another woman whose hunger was a tangible force that pulsed deep inside him, arousing his own desire with shocking force.
He groaned as he lowered his head to bury his face in her hair, filling himself with the scent of warm peaches.
“The situation has been complicated from the beginning, my love,” he murmured. “But this . . .” He traced the shell of her ear with his tongue. “This part is simple.”
She shivered. “What if it makes the mating permanent?”
The thought should have been worrisome. Surely nothing was more important than breaking the unnatural bond?
Instead he dismissed her concern without a second’s hesitation.
“There could be a dozen ways we might accidentally make the mating permanent,” he muttered, covering her hand to press it hard against his chest. He was so hungry for her touch it was a physical pain. “Besides, if you were a demon who based your powers on sex, we’d know that by now. You would have been compelled to seek out sex, even if it wasn’t with me.”
She bit her lower lip. “Maybe.”
He frowned. He didn’t need the mating bond to know she was fiercely aroused.
Her need scented the very air.
But, tilting back her head, he read the hesitation still darkening her eyes.
“What is it, Sally?”
“I feel—” She licked her dry lips, sending a flare of heat shooting straight to his cock.
“What?” he husked.
“Out of control.”
Shit. He’d been floundering out of control for weeks. It was becoming a normal state of affairs.
“And that’s a bad thing?” he asked.
Her expression remained somber. “For me . . . yes.”
Ah. He understood.
Her life had been a desperate fight for survival since she turned sixteen; no doubt the only thing she’d been able to control was her own body.
But, the Dark Lord had even taken that away from her by making her his conduit.
It had been rape at its most basic form.
No wonder she was wary of putting herself in a vulnerable position.
“You want control?” he murmured softly, planting a kiss on her plush lips. “You’ve got it.”
With gentle care, he scooped her off his lap, laying her next to him on the mattress before he stretched out his legs and settled against the pile of pillows.
She blinked in confusion, her hair a tumble of red and bronze and deep gold as it framed her pale face.
“What do you mean?”
“I’m yours. Do what you want.”
Her brows lifted, but he didn’t miss the covert curiosity in her gaze as it lowered to take in his chest that was exposed by his open robe.
“You’re so certain my choice won’t be sticking a stake in your heart?”
He held her gaze as he cautiously lifted his hand to trace the curve of her lips.
“We have to learn to trust each other,” he murmured. “It’s the only way we’re going to survive.”
She gave a slow, hesitant nod, looking unbearably fragile in the darkness. Their earlier passion had exploded so fast there had been no time for thinking.
Now she had to gather her courage to take control of their lovemaking.
To take control of him.
He swallowed a low groan.
It was an oddly erotic thought.
“Okay,” she at last managed to husk. “Don’t move.”
Roke smiled at her command, folding his arms behind his head. Sally paused another moment, then with a fluid motion she pushed herself off the mattress, and before he could guess her intent, she was straddling his hips and gazing down at him with a tiny smile.
Roke hissed in shock, clutching the quilt to prevent himself from grasping her hips and guiding her onto his aching cock.