Bound By Darkness (Guardians of Eternity #8)(34)

Perhaps sensing her battle against her twin hungers, Ariyal lifted his head to stroke his lips over her mouth.

“Let go, Jaelyn,” he softly urged.

“I can’t,” she rasped.

“What do you fear?”

She moaned as her hips instinctively lifted to press more firmly to his caressing finger.

“Losing control.”

He lifted onto his elbow and peered deep into her wary eyes. “I’ve got you, sweetheart.”

For a long moment she studied his starkly elegant face.

His beauty wasn’t the same as the frigid perfection of a vampire. He was mist and hot enchantment and dark magic.

Don’t be a fool, Jaelyn, a warning voice whispered in the back of her mind.

She’d been taught a brutal lesson in trusting others.

One she didn’t intend to repeat.

But even as her mind warned of caution, her hands were framing his face so she could kiss him with the pent-up passion that thundered through her.

He groaned, his hand shifting to spear his finger into her body. He swallowed her cry of pleasure as her hips left the mattress, his tongue stroking a dangerous path over her fully extended fangs.

She was being consumed by flames, drowning in the heat of his touch and the blaze of his unrestrained need.

Opening her mouth to his thrusting tongue, she skimmed her hand down his chest. She didn’t mind sharing control, but she wasn’t a passive lover.

Ariyal sucked in a startled breath as she brushed her fingertips over the rippled muscles of his stomach and then clutched his c**k in a firm grip.

“Shit,” he hissed between clenched teeth. “I can’t play games tonight.”

She knew the feeling.

She was close. So very close.

“Then finish this.”

“Yes.”

Holding her gaze as she positioned him, Ariyal gave her one last stroke of his finger before sinking his erection deep inside her.

They groaned in unison, holding absolutely still as they absorbed the sensation of being so intimately connected. Then, feeling the hunger once again threatening to overwhelm her, Jaelyn dug her fingers into the tight muscles of his ass.

“Ariyal.”

“I know,” he muttered against her mouth, his hips slowly pulling back before shoving forward with a blissful force. “Hold on tight.”

She pressed her face into the curve of his neck as he set a fierce pace, her fangs aching and the bed shaking beneath the impact of his thrusts.

“Please,” she moaned, the building pressure narrowing to a shimmering promise that hovered just out of reach.

“More. I need ...”

“That’s it, poppet,” he breathed into her ear, his hand slipping between them to caress the tiny nub of pleasure. “Trust me and let go.”

“Yes.”

Her entire body clenched and hovered for a timeless moment; then with shocking force she shattered into a million, joyous pieces.

Chapter 8

A part of Ariyal cringed at the realization he’d just made fierce, passionate love to this beautiful female in surroundings that weren’t fit for a hellhound.

No matter how desperately he wanted Jaelyn, he should have been capable of waiting until he could offer her at least the illusion of comfort.

But a larger part of him was indifferent to the hard, narrow bed and grimy cell. Or even the distant stench of demons entering a large room overhead.

He had just experienced the most shockingly blissful climax of his long, long life. The last emotion he could stir up was regret.

Actually, he wasn’t sure what the hell he was feeling as he snuggled the silent vampire against his chest, his fingers running through the cool silk of her hair.

“Tell me about your nightmare,” he commanded before he could halt the words.

Not surprisingly she stiffened, her reluctance to discuss her past a tangible force in the air.

“Give it a rest, fairy,” she growled.

“ No.”

She pulled back to stab him with a steely glare. “Do you want to talk about your years with Morgana le Fey?”

His jaw clenched. Of course he didn’t want to discuss that crazy-ass bitch. If he had his choice the name of Morgana le Fey would be scrubbed from the history of the world.

But for reasons that should no doubt be making him wail in fear, he wanted to know what haunted her when she slept.

No, not wanted. Needed.

“What do you want to know?”

She frowned, caught off guard by his abrupt capitulation. Had she been bluffing? Then he felt the slight easing of her muscles as she nestled against him and a genuine curiosity melted the frost on the indigo eyes.

“Were you her lover?”

“I was her slave, not her lover.”

She gave a slow nod. Did she understand the soul-numbing difference between the two?

“Did she hurt you?”

“She took pleasure in causing pain.”

“She tortured you?”

“In the beginning.” His arms tightened around her as he was battered by the memories he struggled so hard to keep buried. “Eventually she discovered that it caused me far greater distress to see my brothers hurt.”

She paused, clearly sensing his injuries ran far deeper than a few scars.

“Did she use her magic?”