His eyes turned wary—and burning. “Raindrop?”
“You secure the horses.” Rain slid from her saddle in front of the treehouse. “I’ll light the lamps in the room we’re sharing.”
When Daric enteredthe room she’d chosen for the night, Rain had analmost worrying glint in her eyes and wore an expression that barely sidestepped aggressive.
She held out her hand to him. Daric took it, and she tugged him closer.
Her silver hair was down, cascading around her shoulders like a river. She’d even removed the starflower, which she’d worn every day and night of their journey. Her eyes flicked up, meeting his, and they were like dusk, both darkblue and on fire. A knot tightened in his chest. He loved her more than anything.
She unclasped his cloak and began loosening the laces of his tunic.
“Rain?” Daric’s mouth went dry, and his voice croaked like a lad’s. He ached from the need to touch her.
“I’m counting on you to guide us, Daric. I mean… I understand the basics.”
His pulse pounded, heavy with desire. There were four walls. Abed. Privacy, even from the stars above them. And Rain was making herself perfectly clear.
He couldn’t resist smoothing his hands into her hair and weaving the silken strands between his fingers. “We have to break the curse first. We’ll be each other’s reward for saving Leathen.”
“Right now, Daric, I need you more than Leathen does.”
A wild burst of heat tore through him. He struggled againstraw craving but felt his control slipping when Rain plucked at the laces of her tunic. The front gaped, revealing pale skin and the upper swells of her breasts, round and perfect.
Daric stared, mesmerized. He was two ragged breaths from undressing her entirely. His hands slipped to her shoulders, half pushing the material off, half trying to keep it on her.
“There could be consequences.” Daric’shands flexed on her shoulders. “And if we fail, I’ll have to marry Astraea.” He already loathed the idea. Now, he could hardly contemplate it.
Rain stepped back and took off her clothing piece by piece until she stood naked before him. She was exquisite, so unbearably tempting. She was everything he’d dreamed about and more. If anything, her skin was smoother and her body more made for worshippingthan he’d even imagined. The sight of her before him like this would haunt him forever if they were forced to live out their lives separately.
But then, as she backed right up against the bed she’d prepared for them, she made him a promise. “You won’t marry her. I won’t let that happen. Tomorrow, this ends forever.”
She was the most glorious being he’d ever laid eyes on, powerful in ways heknew he’d never truly understand, and when she vowed with such absolute certainty that he wouldn’t have to marry Astraea, Daric believed her. And it freed him.
His control evaporated. Rain was his. She always had been. Just as he was hers and would be forever.
Daric stripped off his clothing, and the way Rain looked at him made him believe he might almost be worthy of the goddess before him.“I love you more than all the magic and might in Braylian’s Cauldron.”
A shiver rippled over Rain, making her skin pebble with goose bumps and her nipples harden. “There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you.” Her eyes glistened with unshed tears, and Daric believed that promise also.
He would do everything in his power to deserve her and the love she offered. He hadn’t kissed Rain before for fearof losing his mind to wanting her, but he couldn’t deny her—or himself—any longer. His devotion had always been there, laid out at her feet. Now, he couldn’t wait to spend the rest of his life proving how wholly his heart belonged to her.
Daric reached for her, that first touch of naked skin scalding and wonderful. His heartbeat accelerated. Rain wasn’t ignorant, even in sexual matters, but shehad no experience. He knew he needed to be gentle and go slowly. Daric had little experience himself. He’d had exactly one encounter and had spent the entire time fantasizing about Rain, which had left him with a hollow feeling that lingered. Trying again had seemed pointless. Rain was the only woman he wanted.
Daric dipped his head and kissed her neck and shoulder. He trailed his mouth towardher jaw, soft as a feather. Her pulse fluttered, and she gripped his arms, drawing him closer. Her short, quick breaths warmed his skin, and then their lips met for the first time ever.
His blood ignited. With a deep rumble, Daric hauled her against him. Rain moaned into his mouth, her body scorching. She wrapped her arms around his neck and claimed him back, that first crush of lips hard, frantic,and intense enough to set alight the treehouse. Heat surged through him, stealing his breath, stiffening his cock, and setting his heart to pounding.
She broke away with a gasp. Both their chests heaved. Their eyes met, and Rain’s gaze was hot enough to sear him to the bone and leave him in ashes. Daric swept her into his arms and laid her on the bed. She reached for him, and he stretched outbeside her, pouring a lifetime of passion into every kiss and an eternity of want into the reverent way he touched her. Rain rolled toward him, nestling inward, and kissed him back with a fever that made him delirious. Daric rocked against her. A harsh breath groaned out of him. She was soft and smooth and hot as a bonfire.
“I’ve dreamed of this so often,” he murmured between deep, soul-alteringkisses.
“I feel you pulsing against my belly,” she whispered.
“I want you so much, I hurt.”
Rain lifted her hips, pressing into him. “I want to help.”
“You are.” He kissed her. He wanted to kiss her a thousand times for every beat of his heart. “You’re the ache and the cure.”
Daric bent his head and nuzzled her breasts. His hands skimmed her ribs. Rain shuddered, breathing faster. Alreadydrunk on the taste of her, Daric took her nipple into his mouth and gently sucked. She groaned, arching against him and tilting her head back, her hair like a cloud around them.
Sensation rushed down his spine and flooded his groin. Everything tightened. His heart hammered and Daric pulled back, his jaw clenching. He let out a slow, shuddering breath and moved his hand down Rain’s body. He neededto bring her pleasure now, because he had no illusions about how long he would last once she was beneath him.
