Sharon's strong scent of desire was like a siren call to an immortal male. Robert could not refuse her, and not just because it made his shaft swell and his fangs itch and his glands fill with venom. He needed to answer that call because he was responsible for it. Satisfying her and easing her cravings were as necessary as protecting her.

Sharon had somehow activated all those immortal male instincts in him.

The only other female to ever do so had been Carol, but the circumstances had been a lot different. Carol had been tortured, her suffering so unbearable that he'd been compelled to forsake everything he'd known and everything he'd worked for to save her.

But Sharon wasn't suffering, and she wasn't even an immortal female.

Tonight, though, all he could offer her was a kiss. The immortals inside could see and hear everything that went on out there on the swing, and he wasn't going to give them a show.

Hooking his finger under her chin, he tilted her head and sealed his lips over hers, kissing her softly, teasing her with a soft flick of his tongue and coaxing her to open for him.

Not that Sharon needed coaxing.

A shudder went through her as his tongue penetrated her mouth and she moaned. With the tension leaving her body, she would have collapsed if he hadn't been quick to respond, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her tightly against his chest.

She felt good nestled there, the soft curves of her body molding into his. Everything about the kiss felt good.

Her taste, her scent, the sounds of her little moans and whimpers.

He could've kissed her for hours, gladly suffering through the exquisite pain of prolonged anticipation, the forced restraint bringing on an agonizing pleasure he would've cherished rather than endured.

But they had an audience. Besides, his fangs were descending at an alarming rate, and he was damn sure his eyes were glowing. If they were alone, he could've thralled her, but not with the others watching.

Also, a thrall required concentration, and at the moment Robert's brain was too scattered to focus.

With an effort, he left the heaven of her mouth but kept holding her to him and rubbing small circles on her lower back to ease her down from the erotic high.

"Why did you stop?" Sharon mumbled into his shirt.

He held her pressed tightly against his chest, giving himself time to retract his fangs. "I don't want you to look, but the assholes inside are having a field day watching us."

She made a move to push away from him, but he held on. "Don't give them the satisfaction of acknowledging their smirks. I'm pretending that I can't see them."

She relaxed against him. "You don't need an excuse to keep holding me. I like it."

"Me too." He kissed the top of her head. "I need to calm down a bit before I can go back inside."

As he'd intended, Sharon assumed he was talking about his hard-on, and she uttered a happy little giggle. "I'm glad I'm not the only one left wanting."

"Right."

It was strange how much this little kiss had turned him on. It wasn't as if he was starved for sex, Mortdh knew he'd had more than he wanted or needed lately, but this was different.

There was a sense of freshness, of innocence to it, even though it was quite evident that Sharon had plenty of experience.

As had he.

Was it hope?

Hope that she might be the one?

He wasn't that lucky, or deserving, but once that spark ignited inside of him, Robert was loath to extinguish it with a dose of cynicism.

"Are you ready to go inside?" Sharon asked.

His fangs had fully retracted, so it was safe despite the semi-hard-on he was still sporting. Jeans were great at making it less obvious.

"Here you are," Amanda said as they entered. "We are just about to start another round. Come join us."

Holding hands and ignoring the six pairs of eyes watching them, they walked over to the table and took their seats.

"Who won the last round?" Sharon asked.

Nick grimaced. "Can't you see the mountain of pennies in front of Eva?"

"As usual." Sharon cast Eva a fond glance.

Bhathian's mate was the best player among them. She was too good of an actress, so her facial expressions were not good as clues, and with the incense interfering with the immortals’ sense of smell, that was off the table too.

As the next round drew to an end, Sharon started fidgeting with the tablecloth, and a moment later looked up at him with a determined expression on her face. "When are you going to ask me on a date, Robert?"

He swallowed hard. A date?

He couldn't invite her on a date because he was a prisoner at the keep, and inviting Sharon to come over to his place was not an option either.

Robert looked at Amanda for help.

"Go for it. I'll handle the details," she mouthed so quietly only the immortals heard her.

"Where would you like to go?" he asked.

"I don't know. Maybe just for a cup of coffee, and then watch a movie at your place?"

Eva choked on her drink, spitting out a mouthful.

Sharon cast her a hard look. "If you have something to say, just say it. Don't spit all over the table."

Eva shook her head. "I'm sorry. I was just surprised. You know how old-fashioned I am about things like that."

"I have really annoying roommates," Robert said. "They are messy, like in a pigsty messy, and constantly play horrendously loud music." It was the honest truth, but not the real reason he couldn't invite her over.

She looked disappointed. "That sucks. I guess you can come over here and we can watch a movie in my room. I have a large screen television, and we can stream whatever we want."

From the corner of his eye, he saw Amanda nod her approval.

"Sounds good to me."

Sharon's eyes brightened. "I can make us a nice dinner."

Bhathian snickered. "I suggest takeout. That girl can burn a frozen pizza."

"Shut it," Sharon hissed at him. "I'm trying to impress the guy, and you are acting worse than a real parent."

"Ouch." Bhathian touched his hand to his heart. "My apologies."

For a moment, Sharon seemed satisfied with his apology. But then Bhathian went ahead and added, "I suggest you clean your room before you let anyone inside it. Especially the panties hanging from your bed scrollwork."

Sharon picked up a bunch of pretzels and threw them at Bhathian, who, naturally, ducked in time to avoid impact.

Flicking away a piece of pretzel from his shirt, Bhathian smirked. "May I remind you that you're in charge of cleaning the floors?"

Sharon threw her hands in the air and turned to Robert. "And you say your roommates are annoying? I'm sure they are not as bad as mine."

"I think it's a tie."

"Ugh. I need my own place."

Eva wagged a finger at her. "You're not moving out until you're married, young lady."

"Do you see what I have to contend with?"

"Yeah. It's terrible to have people care so much about you."

"You too, Brutus?"