Darius lay on his side, staring at Gabrielle, who slept soundly. She had barely moved throughout the day, after they had fallen asleep in each other’s arms. He had been able to sleep a few hours, but now he wanted to stare, to take in everything about her when she was unaware. He had yearned to see her for so long now, and his heart swelled with love for this woman who had come rushing back into his life.

How strong she was. Having endured so much torment and fighting against the injustices done to her.

Her eyelids fluttered, and her breathing quickened. He went up on his elbow, unsure if he should wake her from what appeared to be a disturbing dream.

“No, leave me alone!” she called out.

He put a hand on her shoulder, his thumb brushing along her collarbone, hoping to soothe her.

“I will not go back.” Her head thrashed from side to side. “You cannot make me. I would rather die.”

“Gabrielle,” he whispered softly. “You are dreaming, lass.”

She awoke with a start, her light eyes staring at him without blinking. He snapped his fingers, lighting a candle so she could see and not be afraid.

Recognizing him, she immediately settled and even smiled softly.

“It is alright. You are with me, and you are safe.”

Gabrielle’s heart slowed down a little. Thank God it had been a dream.

“Can I get you anything?”

Her expression changed, becoming more serious. “In my nightmare Sutherland had found me, and then tried to kill me.”

He pulled her close, kissing her forehead. “Sutherland will not harm you, lass. I would never let him.”

She reached up and kissed him gently. “Thank you for keeping me safe.”

She had never known it could be like this between two people. No book could ever express the deep emotions involved. To share such intimacy, and with such a beautiful, caring man.

Snuggling closer to Darius, Gabrielle rested her head on his shoulder.

“He has a lot of influence and power. Much more than you know, Darius.”

He pulled back a little, enough to look into her eyes. “Do you doubt me, lass?”

She touched his handsome face once more. “I do not doubt you. It is just that I do not trust Sutherland, and I know him. He uses people to get what he wants.” How desirable Darius was with his long, dark hair all ruffled, the slight shadow of a beard on his strong jaw and chin.

Sutherland was forgotten as the blood in her veins warmed, swooping low into her belly, making her hot and moist between her thighs.

He reached out, cupped her jaw, and brushed his thumb across her bottom lip. “I want you to stay with me, Gabrielle. I will take care of you.”

“I hate that I am putting you at risk.”

“You are not putting me at risk, Gabrielle.”

“But what of your brother and Remont?”

He laughed under his breath. “They enjoy the game much more than you know,” he said, leaning over and kissing her.

Tired of talking, she accepted his kiss and even went so far as to deepen it.

He moaned, a wonderful sound that made her bold.

She reached for his cock, her fingers encircling the immense girth.

His brows lifted.

“I want to taste you. Just as you tasted me.”

His throat convulsed as he swallowed hard.

Her gaze slid from his, down over his chest and stomach, and then to his cock that reared up between them.

She licked her lips, bent her head, and tasted him.

He closed his eyes and released the breath he hadn’t realized he had been holding. Her inexperience excited him, and as her hot mouth covered the head of his cock, he reached for her, his fingers weaving through her soft, shiny hair.

Sweet Jesus. He gritted his teeth as she licked and sucked his rigid length, her teeth lightly grazing him. She gagged a little, and he relinquished his hold on her hair, hoping he had not hurt her.

She found a rhythm that worked just as her hand wrapped around the base of his cock. Her hair fell across his thighs, heightening his pleasure.

He would come any second if she did not stop. She cupped his balls with her free hand.

“Enough,” he said, pushing her just beyond range of his erection. Gabrielle scarcely heard his ragged whisper of enough. Confused, she looked up at him.

His eyes were so dark and heavy-lidded, and she realized with a start that what she was seeing was a man in the throes of passion. A man on the verge of climax.

She glanced at the plum-sized head of his cock that had now turned purple. The hard length arched toward his navel, the veins prominent.

An ache had grown between her thighs, making her wet and so hot. She squeezed her legs together but it didn’t help. “Did I hurt you?”

His lips curved into a wicked smile she would never forget for as long as she lived. “Nay, lass. You did it perfectly. I stopped you because I did not know if you were ready for what would have happened.”

His answer perplexed her a little, but she didn’t question it. “I want you,” she said, and he rolled onto her, covering her with his hard body. Gabrielle shifted, the sensation of having him laying on her still so new. But it felt right, and her heart raced with anticipation.

His manhood probed at her opening, and he reached between their bodies. The kiss deepened and as he slipped into her snug opening, she gasped against his mouth, still sore from last night.

Her body stretched to accommodate his thick, long staff, and she relaxed as he entered her with a firm stroke.

Her body tightened a bit with each thrust, his hips moving in controlled strokes. It felt so good having him buried deep inside her. She opened her legs wider, relaxing as his hips ground against her.

She felt her body reach for climax. He bent his head and licked one of her nipples, the other hand moving over her breast, cupping it, and then playing with the nipple. He pulled at it and pinched it lightly. She groaned at the exquisite ache, the invisible thread that seemed linked from her breasts to her sheath, now stuffed full of his thick, long cock.

His teeth lightly pulled at a nipple and it pushed her over the edge, her inner muscles squeezing him as she came.

Darius felt Gabrielle’s inner muscles grip him, the throbbing heat bringing him that much closer to completion.

He kissed her neck, his canines ready to pierce the skin there, but he stopped himself just in time.

He could not drink from her. He would deny himself that much. As the last glimmering waves of her climax rocked her body she opened her eyes slowly, a satisfied smile on her luscious lips.

Oh, but he was not done with her yet.

Pulling out of her hot, tight core, he positioned a pillow beneath her and urged her onto her belly, her arms out to her sides. He could see the confusion first as she glanced back at him. “Trust me,” he said, slipping a finger into her soaking wet slit.

She moaned and shifted her hips.

Her heart-shaped buttocks lifted as she thrust her buttocks up.

His cock reared against his belly.

Slipping another finger inside her heat, she gasped, her heartbeat accelerating.

He saw the blood smeared on her thighs and felt an exhilaration of knowing he was the first, and God willing, he would be the last. He bent forward, licked the blood from her thighs, and savored the taste of it.

He trembled with need.

He kissed a path from her bottom, up her spine, to the back of her neck. How he yearned to drink from her. The craving was testing his willpower in a way he never thought imaginable.

Working his fingers in and out of her until the juices flowed freely again, he smelled her musky scent and knew he could not hold off much longer.

Unable to wait a second more, he placed his hands on her hips and entered her slowly.

She gasped, her fingers clutching at the sheets.

He released a satisfied groan as her inner walls hugged him so snugly. “So tight,” he said, making sure to be gentle.

Thankfully she could accommodate him, even in this position, taking every inch of him until his sac touched her lower lips.

Gabrielle breathed heavily into the pillow. She could not believe how full she was. He stretched her, and though it had hurt, it also aroused her. He reached around, his fingers finding her hidden button.

She gasped as he played with the tiny bundle of nerves, flicking it, pressing against it, circling it over and over.

Then he began to move.

Slow, controlled strokes.

She had always known there were many ways to make love. Already in the space of a few hours, she had learned more than she ever imagined. Her body had known exquisite bliss, and now as Darius moved in and out of her in long, even thrusts, she felt herself reaching for that pinnacle yet again.

His fingers grew bolder on her button, and she cried out as she came, her snug channel squeezing his rod over and over again.

She pressed her hand over his, keeping his fingers there, afraid he would stop.

But he didn’t and continued until he brought her to completion again. His strokes increased, and soon the bed was moving beneath them, the headboard hitting the wall.

Even though the hand that had been on her sex was now holding her hips steady, the pillow beneath her caused friction and she pressed her hips into it at the same time Darius thrust deep within her.

She came again, moaning with ecstasy into the pillow.

He held her hips tight, nearly bringing her off the bed as he let out a low groan.

Her heart was a roar in her ears as he fell on the bed beside her, his arm around her, pulling her near.

She trembled, every inch of her satisfied in a way she had not imagined.

No wonder women wandered from their marriage beds to find lovers who would satisfy them where a husband might never be able to.

“And don’t you forget it, lass.”

She looked at him. “You read my mind!” she said, trying to sound outraged, but failing.

As he grinned boyishly, her insides twisted, and she experienced déjà vu once more. She had never been so happy in all her life. So content.

She never wanted to leave this bed or leave this man.