Predatory (Immortal Guardians #3.5)(19)

Crossing the living room he carried her up the stairs and into the bedroom loft.

It was a spacious room with an open beamed ceiling and hand-carved furniture scattered across the polished wood floor. At the far end of the room were glass sliding doors that led to a back balcony that offered a view of the pool as the sun slid beyond the horizon.

A beautiful sight, but not nearly as beautiful as the woman in his arms.

Niko moved to gently place Angela on the large brass bed. Then, standing at the edge of the mattress, he simply relished the sight of her stretched across the emerald green comforter.

Man. How many nights had he tortured himself with this precise image?

The dark hair spread in wild abandon. The pale face flushed with need and the midnight eyes smoldering with invitation.

Only this was far better than any fantasy.

A fiercely possessive emotion clutched at his heart as his gaze slid down the delicate curve of her neck and over the soft swell of her naked br**sts.

It was raw and primal and shockingly perfect.

With jerky movements that would have made his fellow Sentinels snicker, Niko kicked off his shoes before removing the rest of his clothes. He was acutely aware of Angela’s covert survey of his nude body, her breath catching as she caught sight of his fully erect cock.

For once his vanity didn’t assume she was impressed by his lean muscles or his wide chest sprinkled with dark hair. Or even the imposing size of his erection.

For all of Angela Locke’s impressive intelligence and independent nature, she was still remarkably innocent. Combine that with her mysterious conviction she was somehow undesirable and it was bound to make her skittish.

Moving slow enough it didn’t seem like he was pouncing (pouncing could come next time . . . and there would be a next time) Niko stretched out on the mattress beside her so that they were lying face to face. His only touch was the finger he used to trace the line of her jaw.

“No more pretense,” he murmured. “The truth. Once I take you I’m never letting you go.”

She shivered, her body shifting to press against him even as her eyes held a suspicion she couldn’t entirely disguise.

“If this is a ploy to get me in Valhalla . . .”

“I’ve already given my word I won’t force you to go to the compound,” he said, his voice thick as his c**k jerked in reaction to the brush of her hip.

“Isn’t that where you live?”

“For now, but Sentinels aren’t vulnerable like many of the high-bloods, so we have the choice of living among norms,” he assured her, not bothering to mention that she’d eventually have to spend time at Valhalla. The Mave would want to be certain her growing powers couldn’t hurt her or those around her. Yeah, that was a conversation he didn’t mind putting off. Indefinitely. “Once Dylan has been captured we can go wherever you want.”

“I—”

He smiled wryly as her words disappeared and she stared at him with silent wonder.

“Too much, too soon?” he teased.

With a choked groan she wrapped her arms around his neck. “Kiss me.”

He did.

White-hot pleasure seared through Angela as he kissed with a clear intent.

This time there was no teasing, no slow buildup, no tender nibbles.

This was unapologetic hunger that threatened to consume her.

And exactly what she needed.

She didn’t want to think of the past, and the future was something to worry about . . . later.

She wanted to become lost in this moment.

As if sensing her need, Niko’s kiss became even more demanding, his tongue dipping into her mouth with an intimate sweep. In concert, his hand cupped her breast, his thumb rubbing over the tight peak.

Angela squirmed against him as the electric sensations jolted through her.

“Niko.”

He pulled back, studying with a hint of concern.

“Am I frightening you?” he whispered.

Her heart squeezed with a dangerous emotion. God, he was so beautiful. A sexy, lethally beautiful male who had enchanted her the minute he’d strolled into her lab.

But it was his instinctive urge to care and protect her that threatened to destroy the barriers she’d built around her heart.

No one had ever, ever treated her as if she . . . mattered.

As if she was the most important thing in his life.

The knowledge was more erotic than any amount of hard muscles and male beauty.

His brows drew together. “Angel?”

In answer, she plunged her fingers into the heavy thickness of his hair.

“I have wanted you from the moment I saw you in the doorway of my lab,” she confessed in soft tones. “I didn’t know what hit me.”

His soft chuckle brushed over her cheeks, his eyes darkened to indigo.

“Trust me, the feeling was entirely mutual.” Holding her gaze he slid his hand down the flat plane of her stomach until he could unfasten her jeans. “I tried to convince myself that you were just a part of the job, but I knew from the beginning I was lying to myself.”

Her body felt as if it was on fire as he expertly rid her of her remaining clothes. Then, still holding her gaze, he slid slowly downward. The rub of skin against skin made her shiver with excitement.

His lips touched the base of her throat before moving to her collarbone, tracing the delicate line with the tip of his tongue. Only when she was clutching at his broad shoulders did he allow the teasing kisses to travel down the curve of her breast.