The Darkest Pleasure (Lords of the Underworld #3)(75)

He shuddered at the reminder.

"I disguised myself before I took my walk just in case, but I didn't actually see anyone who looked like a Hunter. No visible wrist tattoos, anyway. And if it makes you feel any better, the chatter I heard was from a few hours ago."

Maddox buried his head in her hair. "I cannot lose you. I would die a more painful death than any that has come before."

"I will not lose you, either. That's why I'm doing this."

"Tell us what you heard," Sabin commanded, then added, "Please," when Maddox snarled at him. Temper, temper. Politeness was not a natural inclination for Sabin, and he had to work for it.

Her fingers curled around Maddox's wrists, holding on to him as if he were a precious treasure. "You were right," she told Sabin. "There are indeed Hunters. They're looking for you. Or rather, they were looking for you."

She'd heard that, too, had she? He tried not to smirk at Maddox, but he failed. See, he projected. Something needs to be done about them. War is the only way.

You were wrong, Doubt added, the words slithering into Maddox's mind, Sabin knew. You're always wrong.

"Sabin," Maddox barked.

"Sorry." The demon couldn't help itself, and Sabin could not always stop it from inflicting doubts on others. When an opportunity presented itself, the demon took it. Every damn time. This is why I can't have a woman of my own.

"I was able to isolate around twelve different voices. They're swarming into Buda," Ashlyn said, "because they just learned where the second artifact is. They're on their way to get it."

DANIKA AND REYES FINALLY reached the fortress, leaving dusk behind. They hadn't kissed or even touched since departing from the club. They hadn't spoken, either. Reyes wasn't sure if that was a blessing or a curse. What was she thinking?

Silence continued to cloak them, even when they strode inside his bedroom. Never turning his back on Danika, he closed and locked the door. She didn't face him. He leaned against it, the wood's coolness seeping past his torn shirt and into his skin. Thankfully Pain had receded to the back of his mind, temporarily sated from his battle with the Hunters, and was making no demands.

Danika stood in front of the bed, staring down at the black sheets. With trepidation? With anticipation?

Reyes hoped the latter. The Hunters had cut him so deeply and in so many places, he probably needed stitches on every limb. He'd chosen not to doctor himself, however. The pain was sublime, throbbing through him, making him quake with pleasurable sensations. He could finally be with this woman, and she wouldn't have to hurt him. He would be so gentle with her, he wouldn't allow himself to worry about corrupting her.

"Nervous?" he asked.

A moment passed before she responded. "No."

Liar. He didn't grin, though his lips twitched upward. "Shall we talk first?" Even offering a reprieve was difficult for him. He craved her in his bed, naked and straining against him.

"No. No talking."

His brow furrowed, and he frowned. She'd sounded so...determined. Why did she not want to talk with him? Does it matter? You did not wish to talk with her, either.

"The Darkest Pleasure"

Slowly she turned, finally facing him. As always, the sight of her angel face stole the air from his lungs. Such beauty in such a small package, he thought. A gift for her, perhaps, but most definitely a curse for him. He couldn't look away. Would happily have died then and there, just to have her image be the last to grace his sight.

Her cheeks were flushed, her eyes glittering brightly, emerald framed by black lashes. Up and down her chest moved, faster and faster, as if she couldn't quite catch her breath.

"We are to make love in silence?" he asked her. His hands itched to touch her. To cup her breasts, thumb her hard little nipples. His mouth watered for a taste of her. He'd bite her, this time. He'd - no. He would be gentle, he reminded himself.

Her eyes stretched wide. "We aren't making love."

"Then what are we doing?" he demanded, folding his arms across his chest.

"We're having sex." She raised her chin and braced her feet apart, the very picture of a warrior before battle. "And yes, silence will be...good."

Again, his brow wrinkled in confusion. "Why?"

"I want your body, not your life story," was all she said, but I want to forget you afterward hung in the air like the sword of Damocles, ready to fall and cut him into a thousand pieces.

He scowled. Once she had told him she knew nothing about him; she had wanted to know more. What had changed?

A trick, perhaps, to manipulate him into talking about his friends?

No. No, he didn't think so. His head tilted to the side as he studied her more closely. Her jaw was set in stone, her shoulders squared. The pinkish hue in her cheeks was fading.

She reached up, hands shaking, and gripped the hem of her T-shirt. She began to raise it, revealing inch after inch of creamy skin. Her stomach was flat, her navel delicate and made for his tongue.

He was in front of her a second later, his hands covering hers and stopping her progress. The shirt's material covered her face, blocking her features from his greedy view. She gasped as his stomach brushed hers.

"You do not want to want me," he breathed into her ear. The shirt prevented his breath from caressing her, but she shivered anyway. "You want to keep me at a distance, I think."