A Ride of Peril (A Shade of Vampire #46)(21)

I bit my lower lip and went inside, closing the door behind me. I tiptoed all the way to his bed and slowly sank into the mattress, lying next to him, close enough to rest my neck against his forearm. I sighed and relaxed, watching his chest move up and down with each breath. I couldn’t get enough of him.

He took a deep breath and turned his head to face me, peeling his eyes open. His gaze found mine, and his lips stretched into a lazy smile. He turned to his side and instantly wrapped his arms around me, pulling me close.

“It took you forever to get here,” he muttered, then showered me with short, delicious kisses.

I melted into him, my fingers running along the valley between his pectorals.

“Had to make myself presentable,” I mumbled beneath his lips.

“You’re irresistible by default, Serena, and I don’t like it when you’re not near me.”

His hand reached up to caress my face, his fingers tracing the contours of my jaw and setting me alight once more. His other hand gripped my lower back, holding me against his body. I felt my muscles relax while tension built up in my abdomen.

He pulled his head back to look at me, and I felt his fingers slowly lifting the hem of my shirt, leaving my lower back exposed. His other hand followed the line of my neck and shoulder in a series of small circular moves.

“I must apologize, Serena, but I’m having a hard time keeping my hands off you,” Draven whispered and kissed the tip of my nose.

“If it makes you feel any better, I’m faced with the same problem,” I replied as my fingers followed the deep line down his stomach, delighted to discover his abs, firm beneath his soft skin.

His bedroom eyes made me lose my breath. I pushed my hips forward, enough to feel him hard against me. I belonged there, with him.

“I’d like to see where this will take us,” he said, his voice low and husky. “With everything else that’s going on around me, with all the dangers waiting beyond the shield, you’re the only thing that keeps me afloat, the only one to give me the strength I need to keep fighting.”

His gaze softened, and my heart thudded, struggling against my ribcage. I felt my cheeks burn as I lifted a hand to his face, tracing an invisible line from his temple to his chin.

“I feel the same way, Draven. I don’t know when and how, but you’ve burrowed inside my soul.”

He glanced at my lips, bent forward, and captured my mouth in a long and tender kiss. I surrendered completely as his tongue brushed mine.

The taste of him set me aflame.

My fingers splayed across his chest, groping into the flesh, ripping a guttural moan from him. His hands traveled down my back, pressing into my muscles and pulling me on top of him. I found myself straddling him. He lay there, hot and tense beneath me, his nails gently scratching my skin as they reached my shoulder blades.

He deepened our kiss, and I felt him open up, sending ribbons of his heady energy my way. I took it all in, slowly moving my hips to relieve the tension budding inside of me. I was soft on top of him, my chest molded against his. He groaned and sank one hand into my hair, grasping the back of my head and pulling it to one side. He left my mouth, dropping burning kisses down my neck.

“My mind stops functioning every time I touch you,” he whispered, his teeth gently nipping my skin.

I squirmed, unwittingly bringing my knees up. Despite the two pairs of pants between us, I could still feel him, and I knew I’d set something off inside of him.

“You’ve become essential to my existence, Serena,” Draven said, then flipped me on my back.

Heat built up as his body weighed heavy on top of mine. He found my neck again, dropping kisses between soft bites, making me gasp and arch my back. His thumbs traced my bra-line as his mouth caressed my collar bone, then moved lower, bringing me closer to an edge I’d never experienced before.

I’d barely scratched the surface with Draven, but each moment of discovery brought me closer to what I was beginning to define as heaven. I wanted everything he had to give. I was hopeless in his arms, irreparably addicted and head over heels for the Druid. I projected all of it outward, hoping I’d make him feel what I felt, since my words had already abandoned me.

Draven stilled, his lips hot over my collarbone. He lifted his head, his darkened gaze finding mine. His breathing was ragged, his breath like liquid fire brushing against my skin.

“I’ve realized I’m more terrified of losing you, Serena, than I am of losing this war against Azazel,” he said, resting on his elbows while his hair fell on both sides of his face, tickling my cheeks. “I feel you, I feel everything you want me to feel, and the more you give me, the more I need.”

He lowered himself into a long, heartfelt embrace. I felt the air leave my lungs as our bodies fused into one, and he rolled us over to the side. He gave me a warm smile, his expression gentle and loving, like I’d never seen before. This was a new side of him, and it made my heart twist in knots. I felt the synergy between us.

I could see it in his gray eyes. He could feel it in my heartbeat. I could sense it in the ribbons of gold energy he offered me, and he could taste it in my kiss.

We stayed like that for a long time, lying next to each other, our bodies close, and our souls pouring into each other. The fire burned between us, but as the minutes passed, the cold reality settled back in.

“We have to get moving,” I whispered.