Beyond the Darkness (Guardians of Eternity #6)(28)

Salvatore snorted. “You’re too bloody stubborn to be controlled by anyone. Besides, I’ve been with you for hours. I doubt Briggs’s power lasts more than a few minutes.”

She considered his words, absently nibbling on her thumbnail.

“I suppose it would explain Caine’s ridiculous belief he had some sort of vision,” she conceded.

“I’d say his outsized ego has as much to do with his visions as Briggs’s,” he muttered.

She ignored his sour opinion of the cur. “It seems risky to expose vampires to a magic-mad Were.”

“The vamps are impervious to mind control. Unfortunately, it’s too close to dawn for them to travel. We’ll have to wait until tomorrow night to meet up with them.” He patted the mattress. “For now we rest.”

She licked her lips, abruptly appearing more disturbed by joining him on the bed than his confession that Briggs could control minds.

“Fine. You rest and I’ll keep watch,” she croaked.

“I already did a sweep. No one knows that we’re here.”

“You can’t be sure…” She sucked in a startled breath as Salvatore slid off the bed, and with fluid speed, had moved to snatch her off her feet. “Dammit, put me down.”

“With pleasure.”

With two long strides he was tossing her onto the bed and swiftly covering her with his body. A violent pleasure surged through him at the feel of her slender curves that fit perfectly against him.

Dio.

He didn’t know if it was the mating bond that made him react with such raw, biting hunger to this particular female, or if it was simply a normal reaction between a man and woman, and in truth, he didn’t care.

He wanted her.

Now.

Salvatore watched the hazel eyes darken as Harley reacted to the prickling heat that filled the air, able to hear the sudden leap of her heart.

“Get off me,” she gritted, clearly not as pleased as Salvatore by their explosive response to one another.

“We’re staying in this bed, Harley,” he warned. “It’s up to you whether we sleep, or enjoy a more pleasurable pastime.”

Chapter Eight

Harley wrenched her gaze from the molten gold of his eyes, feeling as if she were slowly melting beneath the potent heat of his desire.

What the hell was wrong with her?

She was in a cheap motel, on the run because she’d been stupid enough to allow her curiosity to overcome her common sense, and in bed with a king she had been taught to fear and loathe for the past thirty years.

She should be kicking some serious Were butt, not battling the urge to sink her hands in that thick raven hair so she could tug his head down and kiss him senseless.

Of course, in her defense, the man was obscenely beautiful.

Not only his lean, savagely handsome face, but his body that more than lived up to its promise once the ragged clothing had been removed.

His bronzed skin was smooth and stretched tautly over the lean, sculpted muscles that rippled with a fascinating ease. His chest was broad and tapered to a slender waist, his arms were toned without unnecessary bulk, and his hands were perfectly formed, with slender fingers that were currently stroking her shoulders with a tender touch that sent streaks of heat to all her most intimate places.

Yummy goodness from the top to bottom, and every place in between.

Damn him.

“You deliberately picked a room with only one bed, didn’t you?” she accused, her voice embarrassingly husky.

“I chose the room farthest from the office and out of sight of the road.” A slow, wicked smile curved his lips. “The fact that it only has one bed is a bonus.”

“Bonus for you, maybe.”

He lowered his head to nuzzle a spot just behind her ear, making Harley’s heart stutter in shock. When had that particular spot become so sensitive?

“I could make sure it’s a bonus for you as well.”

“You’re so full of yourself…” Her taunting words were completely ruined as his seeking lips found another point of weakness at the base of her throat. “Oh.”

“Oh, indeed,” he growled, nipping her collarbone. “Do you taste so sweet all over?”

His exotic, musky scent invaded her senses, seeping into her skin like the finest aphrodisiac. The distracting smell clouded her mind, which was the only explanation for why her hands lifted to stroke down the magnificent length of his back.

“What are you doing to me?” she muttered.

His soft laugh brushed over her cheek as he reached down to grasp the hem of her nightgown, and with one smooth motion had it tugged over her head and tossed across the room.

“Do you want a detailed explanation or will a brief overview do?” he demanded, arching back to run a searing gaze over her body, now covered in nothing more than a pair of white panties.

Harley shivered, the golden gaze a near tangible force as it lingered on her oddly heavy br**sts.

“You know what I mean.”

“Actually, I don’t have a clue.”

“You’re using some sort of power to…”

He shifted, settling between her legs that had instinctively widened. Lowering his head, the raven hair brushed against the puckered tips of her ni**les.

“To what?”

“To seduce me.”