~ FIFTEEN ~

By the time Jessie surfaced, Tobias was swimming toward her. He pulled her into his arms and took possession of her mouth with his. At first, she fought the impulse to kiss him, but there was no refusing her desire for him. It was a slow, mesmerizing kiss that just went on and on.

His kiss was gentle but insistent. It was designed to encourage, to calm her, and to enhance her hunger. And it worked wonderfully. His hands seemed to touch her everywhere at once. His lips left her mouth and began a tantalizing exploration of her throat, her shoulders, and her breasts.

She wrapped her legs around him, locking her ankles behind his back. She felt so hot, her flesh so overly sensitive and aching for his touch, his attention. The most delicious ripples of pleasure pulsed through her entire body as she moved her body against his intimately and trailed kisses from his ear to his jaw.

Then, taking savage possession of her lips, his kiss deepened. His hands were everywhere, heating her, touching her, exploring her body, and awakening wonderfully wicked sensations over every inch of her skin.

She pushed away from him and stopped kissing him. Lust. She saw lust burning in his eyes. It was raw, and so…damned intense. So many emotions racing around in her head, confused the hell out of her. She turned away from him.

He wrapped his arm around her, under her breasts, and held her close. He brushed his lips across her shoulder and up her neck to her ear. “I love to feel your body against mine,” he whispered.

Heart racing, she closed her eyes and leaned against him. She definitely wasn’t about to complain about his body against hers. She was a damn wreck. Her entire body ached at the idea of him wanting to be close to her, to feel her skin against his.

“Merge with me.”

She glanced over her shoulder. “What?”

“Your mind. Your soul. Merge with me. I need to know what you’re feeling. I need you to know what I’m feeling.”

“That sounds dangerous.” Every inch of her body burned with desire. She’d never felt as wanted, as needed as she did at that moment. Her thoughts focused on the heat of his hard, swollen cock pressed against her lower back. Her flesh tingled. Her breasts, overly sensitive, ached.

“Not at all. Your safe with me.”

“You don’t understand.” A shiver ran from her toes, up her spine, and to the top of her head. She’d never experienced such profound need. The heat of his large muscular body smoldered over her flesh, moving deeper through her body, warming her blood.

“I think I do.” The warmth of his breath, the scintillating sensation of it on her neck, heightened her desire. “Merge with me.” She heard her own moan, a soft whisper of desire, of longing. “Allow me to feel your desire for me.” He turned her around and, holding her face in his hands, he bent his head and brushed his lips across hers. “Feel my desire for you.”

She reached for his mind, opening hers for him to explore. A firestorm of desire, of lust. His eyes were solid black, even the whites, except for six star-rays in the center of each one. It should’ve freaked her out. But just being with him filled her with peace. She felt his love so deeply. It flooded her heart and soul. She couldn’t imagine what life would be like with him.

He refused to acknowledge the problems, the challenges their differences created. If he didn’t face them soon she would have to force him to consider them. But how? He was so damn stubborn.

“Stop dwelling on negative thoughts.” He reached out and traced her lips with his finger. “You look so sad, so heartbroken. You should be very happy right now.”

She bit his finger, holding it between her teeth for a few seconds before releasing it. “Why do you think I should be happy?”

“I really like it when you bite me,” he growled. “I love it.”  His smile was so damn sexy. And naughty. She was pretty damn sure he wasn’t just some ordinary demon. He was the devil.

“I asked you a question.”

“You should be happy because you’re with me.”

Everything inside her reached for him. Her body. Her mind. Her soul. For a second, she could almost believe they could overcome the obstacles of their differences. Nothing mattered other than their bond, their love. For the first time in her life, she was completely at peace. He would always love and cherish her.  Looking up at him, seeing the tenderness combined with the ravenous hunger in his eyes, she saw forever with him.

He wrapped his powerful arms around her body, holding her against his solid and unwavering body. “Our bond is eternal.”

“I see it. But it’s so hard for me to truly believe it.”

“Give it time, sweetheart.”  He bent his head down and slowly planted a fiery hot blaze of kisses from her ear, down her neck, back up to her ear, and then across her jaw to her lips. “We have plenty of time.”

He had plenty of time. Hers was running out with each breath she took. He couldn’t understand. He didn’t age.

All of a sudden, she felt the presence of something threatening, something evil. She went completely still, allowing her mind to reach out and explore their surroundings.

“What is it?” he asked.

“Something is watching us.” She realized he didn’t look surprised at all. “You knew, didn’t you? Damn it, Tobias! How long did you know we were being watched?”

“We were safe at all times.”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “How long?”

“About ten minutes before we arrived at the falls.”

“You were using me to lure Guss to you.”

“I am attempting to get him to expose himself to me.”

“I am so stupid.”  She looked up at him. “I believed all your bullshit.” She turned and headed toward the rocky shoreline.

He grabbed her arm to stop her. “You can’t go just yet.”

“Let go of me.” She pulled her arm away from him and kept moving.

“Wait.” He took her arm again. “You’re not stupid. I wasn’t using you. I wasn’t lying to you.”

“Get your hand off me.”

“I didn’t know he would try to fu…mess with us when I decided to bring you out here.”

“You knew damn well he was fucking with us and you didn’t bother to tell me.”

“I didn’t want to worry you.”

“I bet.”

“What does that mean?”

“I need to get the hell away from you. As far away from you as possible.”

“We’re protected here. He can’t push beyond the barriers surrounding us. He can’t harm you.” He picked her up and carried her out of the water. He dried and dressed them both with a wave of his hand. “I wouldn’t place your life in danger.”

“But you would let him watch me…watch us while we are…while…” her voice trailed off.

“No.”

“It’s too late to lie about it. You already said he was watching us before we got here.”

“He never really saw us. He only saw images of us. I shielded us.”

The ground ruptured in several places all at once, each fissure spewing clumps of dirt and stones in every direction.

“What the hell is going on?”

He pulled her under his arm and lifted his other arm and waved his hand. She felt a surge of power leave his body and spread out all around them.

“What is it? What’s happening?”

***

“It’s an illusion. None of it’s real,” he lied, hoping to prevent her from panicking over the idea of ghouls climbing up out of the ground to attack them. It might’ve worked if a clump of dirt hadn’t bounced off his forehead and knocked his hat from his head.

“That’s a big relief.” She stepped on his hat and glared up at him.

He stared down at his hat for a few seconds and then, shaking his head, he frowned at her.

“What?”

He figured it wasn’t a good time to tell her that she looked incredibly sexy when she was mad. “Why’d you step on my hat?”

“It’s all make believe, right?”

Captivated by her smile, he stared down at her, his breath harsh, his body shuddering with need. “I could show you some much better ways to release your frustration to prevent it from getting all pent up.”

As he bent down to pick it up, she stepped on it again and then kicked it out of his reach. “No thanks. This works great for me.”

“Wounding it wasn’t enough. You just had to kill it.”

“I want you to tell me what you just prevented from coming up out of the ground.”

“Ghouls. And it’s possible you stopped them.”

“Really?”

“I’ve heard they’re very fond of their hats.”

“You stopped them very quickly.”

He shrugged. “They’re ghouls.”

“Why would Guss send ghouls to you if you’re able to stop them so easily?”

“He was attempting to poke holes in my protective barriers without getting close enough to hurt himself.”

“I want to leave.”

“Not yet.”

“Damn it.” She turned her head to follow the movement of a shadowy looking doglike figure on the top of the cliff. “What’s above us?”

“A ghoul. It can’t get any closer. None of them can.”

“How many are trying to poke you?”

“Not me. My barriers. And just a few.”

“Why aren’t you killing them?”

“I will when we leave.”

Right next to her shadow on the rocks she saw the shadow of a large male with wings. She whirled around.

“You have wings.” They were black and, from tip to tip, reached about twelve feet. “Holy, fuck. Why the hell are you just now bringing those out?”

He grinned. “You like them?”

“You look so damn…holy fuck. Damn, Tobias. I’m not going to lie. I really, truly like this look on you.”

“They don’t freak you out?”

“Um. Hell no. You look hot in an avenging fallen angel warrior sort of way.”

He motioned for her. “C’mon. Let’s get out of here.”

“We’re going to fly?”

“Unless you would rather walk home.”

“The horses? Oh, no. Did the ghouls get them?”

“They are safe in their stalls.”

She reached out and moved her hand over his right wing. “I am so turned on right now.” His wing trembled beneath her palm. “They’re ticklish?”

“More like turned on.” He smiled. “No one has ever touched them so intimately. I never knew they could be so sensitive.”

“Where do you put them when you aren’t showing them off?” She stared at him. “And why the hell did you wait for so long to let me see them?”

“They’re always with me. Most of the time they are masked by magic to the point of being entirely intangible.” His black, leathery wings shimmered for a few seconds and disappeared. A few seconds later they shimmered and solidified. “And I didn’t show them to you yet because I wasn’t sure you would like them.”

A sharp pain ripped through her skull. She winced, her breath briefly catching in her throat. She took a breath and expanded her mind to search for the threat.

“No!” He grabbed and shook her. “Don’t reach for it. It’s a compulsion.”

“Too late.” She’d figured it out a split second before he grabbed her. Her head hurt like hell. It felt as if a bomb had exploded in it. “Oh, shit.”

He dragged her into his arms. “Merge your mind with mine. We’re going to fly.”

She reached for his mind as she wrapped her arms around his neck.  

“Don’t be afraid. Close your eyes and keep your face tucked against my chest. It might get hard to breathe for a few seconds.” She felt him take a few running steps and shoot up into the sky. “We’re going to move very fast but you’re safe with me.”

The instant she merged her mind with his, the terrible pain in her head vanished. She felt his heartbeat, steady and strong against her cheek. She knew they were moving fast. Faster than she’d ever dreamed of moving. But she wasn’t afraid. He was invincible. He was hers.

And you are mine. He started to move even faster, disrupting the atmosphere, causing lightning to erupt and thunder to explode all around. We’re almost home.

I know I am safe with you, Tobias.

One second they were flying, and the next he was lowering her onto his bed. “Are you okay?”

“Guss is a demon, right?

He nodded. “Yes.”

“If he’s like you he could kill you.”

“He can’t. And, he’s not like me.”

“He’s a demon.”

“He will never be able to defeat me.”

She got up from the bed and walked over to the window. He stood behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders. “Don’t shut me out.”

She could see his reflection in the window. She should run. She should put as many miles between them as possible. If only she could go back in time to a world without immortal beings.

“Look at me, Jessie.” His voice was only a whisper, but it was a strong command that forced her to face him.

Her heart raced with an intoxicating mixture of desire and anticipation. “I don’t want any part of this.”

“Of what?”

“Your world.”

“It’s our world.” She saw something different in him, something more dangerous than anything she’d come face to face with.  

“It’s all too much. Too much hatred and violence. Too many differences. I don’t even want to know immortals exist.”

“Do you want me to make you forget?” His blue eyes turned black, glowing, pulling her into a hypnotic state, his power wrapping around her, holding her. 

“You can do that?”

He nodded. “I can.”

“I wouldn’t remember you?”

“I’ll always look out for you.”

“But I wouldn’t know you, right?”

“No.”

“I don’t want to lose you.”

“You wouldn’t know you’d lost anything.”

She placed her palm over his heart. “You don’t truly believe that, do you?”

“You wouldn’t have any memory of me.”

“You don’t have the ability to remove your memory from my soul. Maybe my mind. But you could never be erased from my soul.”

“I’m a healer. If my existence causes you pain, I can and I will heal you.”

“Could you go on so easily without me?” She paused. “I guess that’s a silly question.  You’ve managed quite well without me for eight thousand years.”

“Quite well?” His laughter held no humor. “Living half an existence isn’t living quite well.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize to me. You haven’t done anything wrong.” His smile, an obvious attempt to put her at ease, held no joy. He turned away and walked toward the door. “It’s late. Get some rest.”

“You’re leaving?” She realized that he was doing what he’d done for eight thousand years. He was honoring his mate, putting her needs above his own. He was leaving her.

“I’ll be on the front porch if you need anything.”

“Stay with me.”

“He can’t get to you in here. You’re perfectly safe now, Jessie. I swear you will never be forced to run from him or any other threat ever again.”

“Don’t leave me.”

***

For a long moment, he looked at her. She ached for him to close the distance between them, for him to take her in his arms. “I’ll be right outside.”

“Stay.”

“I’ll be close if you need anything.”

“No. Don’t leave me. I need you to stay with me.”

“You have nothing to fear.”

“Knowing you doesn’t hurt me.”

“You have paid dearly for my mistakes.”

“Why? Because you didn’t rush to kill another demon?”

“Because I wanted him to come after me. I provoked him to target you.”

“I don’t care. Knowing you is the best thing that has ever happened to me.”

“You should care. You have every right to be mad as hell. I failed you.”

All the sudden, she realized why he hadn’t moved. She’d left him. She’d shut herself off to him. He was confused because he couldn’t read her. He was taking her at her word, rather than force her to accept him. All at once, she opened her mind to him and reached for his, letting him feel her emotions, her need for him, her desire for him. “Promise me you will never make me forget you.”

“I promise.” He took her in his arms, holding her close.

“I’m so sorry, Tobias.”

“You haven’t done anything wrong.”

“Damn it, Tobias. I know I hurt you.” She leaned back to look up at him. “Stop being a stubborn ass and accept my apology.”

“You’re forgiven.” He smiled. “Get some rest.”

“I don’t want to spend another second of my life without you. I don’t want to spend another night alone. I don’t want you to leave.”

“Are you going to tell me what you want?” His lips parting in a roguishly sexy grin, his blue eyes smoldering with desire.

Insatiable hunger clawed at her. “I want you to stay here with me tonight.”

“Are you planning to take advantage of me?” His voice deepened becoming a sexy weapon of pure seduction.

“To be entirely honest, I’m considering it.”

“Are you anticipating something spectacular?”

She shrugged, attempting to appear relaxed despite drowning in a turbulent sea of lust. “I do remember thinking that you’re a pretty good kisser.”

“A pretty good kisser? That’s it?”

“Actually, now that you ask, I remember thinking that you were pretty good at doing other things.”

“Such as?”

“Touchy, feely things. All things considered, I do believe kissing you was quite a spectacular experience.”

“Are you hungry, Jessie?”

“No.” It was far worse than that. She was starving. He’d reduced her to a desperate, needy woman. But not for food. She was aching for his touch, his kiss. His bare skin against hers. Oh, damn.

“I’ve been starving for you for a very long time.” His deep, seductive voice was a powerful weapon of dark seduction, an erotic growl, that moved over her flesh like a scintillating flame, touching her, heating her everywhere at once.

She let her breath out slowly, her heart pounding, every muscle in her body tensing. “Oh, damn.”

He moved closer, way too close, forcing her to tip her head back to look up at him. Her breath caught in her throat at the sight of something scary burning in his eyes. Not something. It was anger. Edginess. Hostility.

She couldn’t be with him. Not really. They were not compatible. He was immortal. She was mortal. They had no future. She lifted her hands, pressing her palms against his chest, attempting to shove him away from her. Of course, being enormously strong, he didn’t budge one damn inch. “I changed my mind. I want you to leave, Tobias.” She dropped her hands to her sides, clenching her fists. “Go.”

He shook his head slowly, his gaze moving over her face. “Jessie,” he breathed her name, his arms wrapping around her, pulling her closer, holding her against his much larger, hard, muscular body.

He was too sexy, too damned masculine in all the most wonderful ways, setting her sanity ablaze. “Please,” she pled, her mind and body battling against each other. Her mind was losing the skirmish. “I can’t.” A shiver, following the movement of his hand, went up her spine as the heat of his body surged into hers and his warm spicy scent filled her lungs. “I can’t do this, Tobias.” She tried to wiggle out of his arms, but only managed to make matters worse by moving her body against his. “Stop it. It’s not happening. We are not happening. Not now. Not ever.”

All at once, he released her, and the atmosphere darkened. His gaze, seething with rage, trapped hers. Unable to move, unable to look away from him, she took a few deep breaths attempting to steady herself.

“Stop scaring yourself.”

“I want you to leave.” She would’ve preferred to run as far away from him as possible to avoid ever being in his presence again, but she knew he could and would find her no matter the distance. Hiding wasn’t an option.

“I am not angry. And,” he shrugged, “if I was, I would never hurt you.”

She lifted her chin. “I know.”

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

“Nothing. Everything. You’re a demon.”

“We’ve discussed this before. I am guilty as charged.”

“I’m human.”

“You’re a woman.” He closed the distance between them so quickly that his movement was a blur. “My woman.” Cupping her face in his palms, he forced her to look at him. “I am your man.”

The walls and floor vibrated and the windows rattled to contradict him. He was mad. She knew he was mad as hell. At her. She didn’t need the physical manifestations to know it. She was too aware of the boiling current of danger in the air to believe otherwise.

“You’re mad.”

“No. Not all strong emotions are roused by anger.” His hands still cradling her face, he brushed his thumb across her lips. An incredibly hot tidal wave of enormous power washed over her, enveloped her. “Tell me what’s bothering you.”

“I need you to be honest with me. I can’t be with you when I know you believe I am less than you. I need to know why you have such a low opinion of humans.”

“I don’t have a low opinion of humans in general. Some are bad. Some are good. Just like any immortal.”

“You’re trying to avoid telling me something. It’s big. I know in my heart you’re hiding something from me. Trust me if you want me to trust you.”

“About thirty years ago, a three-year-old child was camping with her family nearby. She wandered off and got lost. I found her. Not far from here. I brought her to her mother. I will never forget the mother’s tears of joy when I placed the child in her arms. They returned for the next ten years. The child grew up and the parents aged. They set up camp on my property. The girl loved my horses. She spent a great deal of time with them. She loved to explore and wander around. It was two weeks of joy. Of happiness. On the eleventh year, they never showed up. A few months later, I discovered that they were killed in a car accident on the way here.”

“You were close with them?”

“Close enough that I forgot I would lose them one day. I looked forward to their visits. I planned my summers around them. Her parents never knew I wasn’t human. The girl knew. She tried to convince them that I was a dragon.” He smiled. “A good dragon.”

“How did she know?”

“At three she saw it in me. After she turned eight she never brought it up to her parents again. But she continued to do everything she could to get me to admit it to her. I let her see me once. When she was nine years old, she stumbled across directions to build a trap to force me to expose myself.”

“She didn’t stumble across it.” Jessie laughed. “You gave her the directions.”

“I might’ve accidently left them out in the barn.”

“You loved her.”

“Yes. For two weeks every summer she blew in here like a tornado and turned my life upside down. It was fun.”

He stared into her eyes for a few seconds and then, letting his gaze fall to her lips, he bent his head slowly and kissed her. “Tell me what’s really bothering you.” The incredibly hot plea in his voice, knowing his hunger was as profound as hers, set her ablaze. He met her gaze again. “Tell me why you are afraid of our bond.”

Keeping her eyes on his, she shook her head. “Everything.” She moved her hands up his broad, heavily muscled chest to his shoulders. His eyes darkened, a low groan escaping his throat. Her desire for him escalated, sudden and ravenous. He was incredibly sexy. A wonderfully dangerous hot-blooded lover. She saw him. She felt him. His true dark, volatile nature. But that wasn’t what frightened her. “Wanting you, needing you, scares the hell out of me.”

“Why?”

“I’ve never wanted or needed anyone. I’ve always been alone.”