When her climax hit her in blinding waves, she screamed from the strength of it. Over and over, her sex clutched the girth of his thick shaft, demanding what it had to give her.
He snarled against her, driving harder, deeper. Finally he released her neck, licking her there before he drew his head up. With his voice ragged, he said, "Mine now." He pressed their entwined hands down, pinning her to the mattress as he bucked between her thighs, sending her spiraling toward another orgasm.
"Rydstrom, don't stop!" Her head thrashed with every surge of his hips. Closer . . . closer . . . need. And then it crashed over her, so fiery and wet that she screamed, her back bowing, grinding the front of her body against his.
"Sabine! I'm going to come in you, come so hard."
His muscles tensed, rippling with strain, then he suddenly froze above her, his c**k throbbing inside her. His eyes met hers, glowing black with anguish, his body wracked with pressure, not yet released. "My Sabine-"
He threw his head back to roar to the ceiling. With his neck and chest flexed with corded muscle, he pumped his hot se**n into her with such force, she could feel it... again and again, searing and palpable as he emptied himself. ...
Once he was spent, he collapsed over her, still softly thrusting as his heart thundered against hers.
Between hoarse exhalations of breath against her damp neck, he kissed her marked skin, and it was soothing. "Cwena, you were worth every minute of my wait. ..."
42
I would say something nice," Sabine began when she first spied the rickety shack, "something like 'I'm sure it's a really nice place inside.' But my covenant would just break."
"You wanted me to take you out on a date to a Lore bar," he said, sliding her a grin. His smiles were coming more frequently, but they still made her go soft each time. "We're on a date, and here it is."
She had wanted him to take her out on what would essentially be her first date. After all, they'd spent the last four days in and around the house, mainly in bed. But she also had ulterior motives. . ..
"It's packed tonight," he said as his new sports car prowled the shell parking lot for a space. They were out in the middle of a swamp-how could this place be so crowded?
When he finally parked, she said, "I still think you should have let me drive."
"Not a chance," he said, as he exited the car.
Once she'd woken the morning after their first night of lovemaking, he'd had a surprise for her. He'd hought a new vehicle for himself and had one delivered for her as well. But she'd just blinked at the shiny red convertible in confusion. "I can't drive."
"I'm going to teach you," he'd said confidently.
At the end of the lesson, he'd declared her the most aggressive and dangerous driver he'd ever encountered. Which meant.. . number one!
And after that, Rydstrom had arranged for Lore vendors of the finest clothing and jewelry to come to the house and supply her with everything she could need. She'd asked him, "Are you trying to buy my affection?"
"Is it working?" he'd answered.
Now as he opened her door, she was assailed by damp air and the sound of music and raucous laughter.
Gods, he looked good. He wore dark jeans, and a black button-down shirt, with an expensive leather belt and boots. His overall air said, "Money, power, and I know it."
When he helped her out, he bent down and briefly kissed her lips. "Are you sure you don't want to go back to bed?" Her lusty demon seemed insatiable. In fact, they both were.
He was so fascinating, loving it when she brushed kisses over his face to show affection-and shuddering in bliss when her nails raked down his back. This morning, she'd caught him twisting in front of a mirror to inspect the scratches. "Sign of a job well done, then?" he'd said proudly, flashing her a sexy grin that made her toes curl with delight.
She would have been more than happy to go back to their bed. But this evening she'd experienced a twinge of discomfort-not pain, just a feeling that seemed out of place in an immortal. The old Sabine had roused, the one who held survival paramount. Though she'd grown confident about defeating the morsus, she always had a plan B.
Tonight she was scouting for a vampire who could trace her back to Rothkalina just in case things got bad....
"You look stunning tonight," he said. "I'd have told you earlier, but you robbed me of speech." Earlier, when he'd spotted her coming down the stairs, he'd done a stutter step.
"I thought you'd be more resistant about my attire." Though she'd worn her hair as wild as ever, she'd donned a simple headdress, and her navy blue kohl was drawn more conservatively for him, only streaking back to her temples. But her skirt was short, her boots were high, and her top was a metal mesh bandeau held in place by chains connected to her choker, two in the front and four climbing up her back.
"I refuse to have you deem me old and stodgy again." As he ran his eyes over her, he took her hands and spread her arms out at the sides. "Will I be jealous that other males see you like this? Without doubt. My horns will go ramrod straight from the first double take. But it also makes me proud."
He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer to him, his warmth and scent making her lids grow heavy as she gazed up at him. "People have pitied me
for going so long without finding my female. Now I want to show you off, and I want to be so bloody smug because it was always going to be you for me-I just had to do my time."
Over the last four days, when he'd said things like this with his tone gruff and his eyes so piercing she almost feared he was too wonderful-too handsome and good and considerate to possibly be hers.
This time with Rydstrom had been blissful. But in all fairness, it hadn't always been perfect. For one thing, he'd insisted she learn how to swim, teaching her in his luxurious pool. Though she was already getting better, she spent more time attached to him, arms wrapped around his head.
And he still drank demon brew, ate steaks, and sucked on little buglike creatures called crayfish. But he did make sure she had vegetables to eat and sweet wine to drink. He'd even brought a bottle in the car for her tonight, in case she couldn't find a drink she liked inside.
With that thought in mind, she turned her attention to the ramshackle tavern. A battered neon sign glowed, but the lettering was illegible. "So what's this place called anyway?" It was situated over the water, nestled among cypress trees and looked like it would blow apart with a strong wind. A precarious-looking pier led out to it. "The Thirsty Thistle or something like that?"