Tomas nuzzled her neck, sliding her hair out of the way so he could brush kisses down the side of her face, from her temple to her delicate jaw. “We can do this together. We’re good together, Sarika. Come into my world. Choose me of your own free will.”
He wanted to be her choice, when she really didn’t have one, not if he were to survive. But still, he knew she was his choice, and he wanted her to feel as strongly about him as he did about her. He’d claimed her in the way of his people. He hadn’t even tried to fight the compulsion, and he knew that had upset her. She was human and a shifter. Neither would understand his society and the strict rules they had to follow. The code of honor that dictated their lives. Or how a Carpathian would feel about the woman who was nothing short of a miracle to him.
Sarika turned in his lap, both hands framing his face. Her tear-drenched eyes stared directly into his. “You will always be my choice, Tomas. Always. I know it took time for me to come to terms with what you are, but I have. I’m determined, as long as Coh will be okay, to go into your world.”
He kissed her. He couldn’t stop himself. He felt her sincerity. She wasn’t saying she’d chosen him because she felt she had no other choice. His mouth wandered down to her chin, his teeth nibbling, his tongue tasting her skin. Everything about Sarika appealed to him.
I’ve checked with your jaguar multiple times after each blood exchange. Even after you exchanged blood with my brothers and Luiz. She seemed content and unafraid,he assured her.
His mouth moved over her pulse point, that temptation, beckoning to him. A siren’s call. He sank his teeth deep, connecting them, feeling the rush of heated pleasure sweeping through his body. Only Sarika could make every nerve ending come alive. Her blood was his aphrodisiac, solely for him. He craved her taste. Craved her soft skin and curves. Her kisses. The sensation, the wonder, of physical desire was a new experience and one very profound.
It took discipline to only take the amount of blood needed for a true exchange. She moved on him continually, her soft body grinding into his as she sat on his lap.
I’m doing the clothes thing, Sarika.
It would be nice if you could hurry.
Her soft little plea sent heat rushing down his spine. He lifted her carefully, turning her to face him.
Straddle me.
He did the clothes thing while she put her legs over his. Without clothes, it was much easier for her body to slide over his, engulfing him in heat, surrounding him with tight, silken fire. She didn’t even hesitate. Her body had to work to allow him in, and twice he whispered to her to relax.
I am relaxed. You just keep getting bigger.
That made him smile. He kissed her, his mouth as gentle as he could make it when he wanted to crush her to him.Take my blood, Sarika. Come into my world all the way.
There was no hesitation. Her mouth went to the offering he had opened on his chest, and the world, for him, tilted and spun. She made the earth move. He had never really experienced the sun, but he felt that the radiant brightness she shone over him had to rival it.
Sarika made little noises, soft moans, compelling cries, that sang through his veins like a symphony of fire. His body moved in hers. Her body rose and fell over his. They shared the same skin, the same soul. For him, it was a cosmic experience. So unexpected and beautiful.
It was difficult to force himself to stop her feeding when it felt soright and enhanced their lovemaking, but stopping it was necessary. He took over, surging into her, looking into her eyes, drowning there, feeling like they were one.
Sarika gasped out her climax, clutching his shoulders, her heart beating wildly as he found his own release. She buried her face on his shoulder. “I’m very, very fond of your ability to deal with clothes, Tomas.”
He found himself laughing. “Happy to oblige.”
She grew quiet, and he held her tighter, waiting…Twice he checked in with her jaguar. Coh was complacent. Seemingly unaffected. When the cramps began, they seemed far milder than Tomas anticipated, so mild they could have been nonexistent. Still, he opened his mind to his brothers and Luiz. They would help ease her into their world.
He nuzzled the top of her head, aching. Worried. He’d witnessed the conversion, and it was brutal as a rule. Time passed. He rocked her gently, but she didn’t seem to be uncomfortable. The conversion was taking far too long. He shed his body and entered hers to see for himself what was taking place.
Her organs were reshaping just as they should have been, but her blood wasnotbeing taken over by his. It was as if the blood cells bonded together to create something else. His were fully Carpathian, and hers appeared to still be jaguar, but their cells clung to one another.
Tomas shared his findings with his brothers and Luiz. Luiz reached out to Dominic for reassurance. It appeared that the same thing had happened when Dominic converted Solange. She was Carpathian, but still jaguar.
Tomas checked on Coh. The jaguar seemed bored with the entire business, although, he realized, she was watchful over Sarika.
Are you hurting?he asked Sarika.
She shook her head.I’m just very, very tired.
I will allow you to sleep in just a little while. I want to ensure you are completely converted with no repercussions before we go to ground.
It only took another half hour. Sarika dozed in his arms as he took her beneath the tree house, where he opened the earth and floated her down into the soil’s welcoming arms.
His brothers and Luiz met him on the tree house verandah. He explained in detail what happened with Sarika’s blood. “She seems fully Carpathian and yet at the same time is fully jaguar.”
“And you? What has her blood done to you?” Mataias asked.
