"I see a beautiful woman," he said earnestly, dipping down to nibble the sensitive skin below her ear. "Whose kind heart shines in her eyes and whose spirit is boundless." He pulled back so that he could stare down into her eyes. "The way you stood up to Taylor this afternoon…" His half-smile made her heart pound. "You wouldn't ever let anyone get the better of you, would you?"
"I try not to."
He rolled over onto his back and pulled her across him. The dark tenderness on his face wrapped around her heart and squeezed it tight. "Most of all, I like the fact that you share yourself with me. That I don't have to prove my strength to you. I don't have to hurt or be hurt to lie with you."
There was a note in his voice that told her just how important that was to him.
What an odd thing to say to a woman.
Just what kind of commune did he come from? It definitely sounded like one of those weird ones where people were made to do all kinds of strange things to belong to it.
She ran her hand over the rough smoothness of his face. "There's something inside you that scares me, Vane. Are you sure you're normal?"
He gave a light laugh at that. "I don't know what normal is. But I would never hurt you, Bride." His eyes burned her with his sincerity. "Never."
He pulled her lips to his, then moved his hands around her neck to undo the top of her dress and her necklace. He placed her necklace on the box by the bed, then played gently with her breasts. His rough palms scraped her nipples, making them tight and heavy, and sending pleasure through her entire body.
Bride wanted to melt into him. No man had ever made her feel the way he did.
Vane could barely breathe from the emotions warring inside him. He should let her go. He had no business mating with anyone. And yet he couldn't keep himself from her. Tonight he could very well father children with her. It was the first time in his adult life that that was a concern.
In the back of his mind, he could imagine her with his baby. See her suckling it with love in her eyes…
How could he let her go?
How could he even think it?
The Fates had decreed that they should be united. Who was he to argue against the goddesses?
Vane had spent his entire life fighting. Why should he not fight for this? Just once, didn't he deserve someone to love him?
What if she never does?
Just as his mother had never loved his father.
The question hung heavy in his heart. What if he didn't win her over by the end of his three weeks?
No, it wasn't an option. He would win her and he would keep her.
Holding on to that thought, he took her hand and led it to his chest so that she could feel his heart beating. Unable to stand being without her, he opened his pants and freed himself.
Bride gasped as he shifted his hips and filled her unexpectedly. Mmm, he was so thick and hard inside her. So commanding.
Biting her lip, she looked down at him as he lifted his hips and drove himself deep inside her.
No man had ever been so impatient to be with her. It made her feel strangely powerful. Desirable.
The look of pleasure on his face seared her heart. It made her ache for him. Still inside her, he unzipped the back of her dress and pulled it over her head.
Completely naked, she looked down at him. His shirt was open, but still on his body. He'd only slid his pants down enough so that he could take her.
She lifted one of his hands from her breast and kissed his scarred knuckles while she rode him slow and easy.
He stared up at her with his mouth slightly parted, his eyes dark and hooded. His expression showed her just how much he savored her body. Her touch.
That made her soar most of all.
He placed his hands on her hips and held her still as he took over the thrusting. Bride was amazed at the strength it took for him to do that.
But she didn't mind ceding control over to him as he quickened his deep, penetrating strokes. Each one went through her, hot and bittersweet. She leaned forward onto her arms, letting her hair fall over them as her body throbbed and ached for more of him.
Her pleasure built until she cried out from sweet release.
Vane watched her face as she climaxed in his arms. Joy tore through him at the sight of her, at the warm sweetness of her body cradling his. He claimed her lips and moved even faster, wanting his own moment of perfection.
Closing his eyes, he found it. He pulled back from her lips to growl deep in his throat as his body exploded into bliss.
Still joined with her, he pulled her down onto his chest and held her quietly while their hearts pounded in time and his body continued to orgasm for several minutes. He ran his hands over her back, delighting in the tranquility of this moment.
It was the only peace his violent life had ever known. There was no fear here with her. No terror that she had the powers to unmask his human heart and kill him for it.