Once Burned

"I never set a standard that I won't keep myself, and if you ever want out, you need only say the word. But mean it, Leila, because once I leave, I'm gone forever."

Vlad's eyes bled back to deep copper as he spoke, and though they were no longer glowing in that inhuman way, somehow, they were more compelling.

"Right back at you," I said, matching his unyielding stare. "Is that all?"

His lips twisted. "No. I can give you honesty, monogamy, and more passion than you can stand, but not love. That emotion died in me long ago, as I suspect you already know."

I took a deep breath, fighting a twinge that made no sense because he was right. I had guessed that about him.

"Good," I replied in a steady voice. "I was worried that you'd turn into one of those obsessed, emo movie vampires, and that would be embarrassing for both of us."

His laughter rang out before changing into something rougher and infinitely more sensual. Emerald overtook his gaze once again.

"Enough talk," he muttered, and lowered his head.

The firm warmth of his lips combined with the dominating flicks of his tongue made me groan deep in my throat. Desire unfurled as he held me closer, his hand slowly tightening in my hair while I gave myself up to the aphrodisiac of his kiss. His other hand left a trail of heat down my back as he explored my curves with possessive hunger. My loins clenched in response, that inner throb almost painfully insistent. I clutched him, digging my fingers into his back and sending a sharp bolt into him before I moved my right hand away.

He clasped it immediately, pressing it back to his body. "Don't take your hands off me even once tonight."

His voice was harsh with lust, the order more growled than spoken. Then he bent, sweeping me up and covering my mouth with another searing kiss as he strode toward the door.

The one that didn't lead to my room.

It took several of his long, swift strides before he set me on something soft. I'd closed my eyes while kissing him, but when he pulled away, allowing me much needed gulps of air, I opened them-and saw darkness all around. It took a second to see that the darkness was drapes surrounding the bed. They looked black, but I knew they were darkest green instead. Vlad was a shadow looming over me, the brightness in his gaze providing the only illumination in the room.

It wasn't enough. "I want to see you," I said, not caring that my voice sounded shaky from passion.

Light blazed in dozens of places as candles I hadn't seen all ignited at once. They showed a staggeringly large room with a high, triangular ceiling and countless rows of shelves, but I only looked behind him for a second. Then my attention was all for Vlad as he drew his shirt off and discarded his pants in one seemingly simultaneous movement.

I sucked in a breath. Candlelight adorned his bare skin as though trying to caress it, showing broad shoulders, corded arms, thickly muscled legs, and a hard chest that was faintly dusted with hair. That hair followed a tempting dark line down his flat stomach before thickening once it met his groin. When my gaze reached that part of him, I stared. Age-old instinct made moisture flare between my legs, yet I also felt a sliver of apprehension. Everyone said the first time hurt, but at least I was no stranger to pain.

I led my armies from the front, Vlad had said. The proof was all over his body, from the scars that adorned his skin in random white patterns to the muscles that flexed and bunched with his slightest movement. If he'd looked like one of those effeminate magazine models, I wouldn't have felt such a powerful swell of lust, but there was nothing boyish or plastic about Vlad. He was devastatingly masculine, and all of that untamed sensuality was now mine to savor. The knowledge caused another rush of heat between my legs.

"If I didn't want you so much," he said in a deadly purr, "I'd let you keep f**king me with your gaze, but you make me impatient."

He grasped my ankles as he spoke, stripping off my shoes. I pulled my sweater and unhooked bra over my head, breathless but also a little self-conscious as his hot stare moved over my br**sts. His body was so magnificent that I wished I had more for him to look at, but my chest maxed out at a B-cup.

"Never disparage yourself to me." The words were low, but they vibrated with force. "You're mercilessly beautiful, and it's taking all of my control to go slowly with you."

A stronger wave of desire filled me, causing me to tremble from its intensity. I'd never wanted anything more than this, so I didn't see any reason to wait.

"I wish you wouldn't go slowly."

Chapter 23

Vlad's gaze blazed a brighter shade of emerald. Then my skirt and panties were yanked off with a distinct ripping sound. My breath caught when he settled his body over mine, his skin so warm that he felt fevered. Then more aching ripples of desire surged through me when he caressed my br**sts and pinched my ni**les to throbbing tips.

His skillful hands and that taut, muscled body covering mine sent my need into near desperation. I pulled his head down and slanted my lips over his, thrusting my tongue into his mouth with blatant demand. An appreciative rumble sounded before he sucked on it and then ravaged my mouth with kisses hard enough to bruise. I didn't care. Anything less wouldn't be enough.

I made a noise of protest when he pulled away, but he gripped my hair to keep me from seeking out his mouth again.

"Open your legs, Leila."

My heart hammered at the explicit command, yet I didn't hesitate. Vlad's gaze felt like a brand as he stared at me while I spread my thighs. He lowered himself between them, that thick, pulsing shaft so hot against my inner thigh. Then he reached down and I closed my eyes, wanting him so much but also bracing for the inevitable discomfort.

Instead of the thrust I'd expected, his finger delved inside me, stroking and seeking with erotic ruthlessness. Pleasure flashed through me, arching my back and forcing a cry past my lips. Vlad lowered his head and his mouth closed over my nipple, sucking so powerfully that another cry tore from me. Then his finger began to slide in and out, building a rhythm that interspersed my cries with increasingly rapid gasps. All the while, he sucked on my nipple until it throbbed with the same ceaseless insistency as my loins.

I moved without thought, lifting my hips in time to his hand and clutching his head to my breast. Wetness slicked the finger that he circled around my clitoris with firm, undulating strokes. Starbursts of sensation went off inside me, making my nails rake down his back. I didn't care about electrocuting him anymore, couldn't think past the tension growing with every intimate rub and greedy pull from his mouth. My blood thundered through my veins until it felt like my entire body pulsed with passion. Over my gasps and moans, I heard Vlad's roughly seductive voice, but he wasn't speaking in English so I had no idea what he said.