“Declan!”
“I know, baby.”
Babyin his low, growly voice while his skilled fingers expertly play every pleasure center sends me into outer space. My orgasm explodes through me, leaving me tingling and breathless.
I sag against him, every nerve still buzzing. Declan stays still, his body the only thing stopping me from collapsing into a puddle at his feet. He presses his lips to the side of my neck, beard stubble rasping against my jaw. It’s slow and almost reverent, making my pulse skip all over again.
His fingers slip free and he rests his hand on my thigh, steady, warm. “You okay?” he murmurs against my skin.
I nod, still trying to breathe. “I’m deviiiine.” I let out a snort-giggle. Can you get drunk off an orgasm? It feels like a possibility.
He rumbles with laughter and brushes my hair out of my face. “Good.”
I can’t even tease him about the smugness in his tone. The man deserves an award for his skills.
“Let’s get some sleep.” He slides one arm under my legs and scoops me off the table, swinging me in the direction of his room.
I squeal and loop my arms around his neck. “You’re taking me to your lair?”
One corner of his mouth slides up, then flattens. “You’ll be safest in there with me.”
Right. We’re supposed to be running from something, not doing…whatever this is. I stroke my fingers against his cheek. “Are you going to tell me why we’re here?”
Instead of answering, he bumps his elbow against his door and carefully pushes his way inside. He walks around a large king bed made of wood and thick bands of black iron and gently sets me on the edge.
His shorts are still tented to an impressive degree and I reach for him. “I think it’s your turn.”
He blocks me easily, shifting to the side. “Sleep.”
I blink at being rejected for the second time. He glances at a chair in the corner and for a second, I’m worried he’s going to choose to spend the rest of the night there.
But he slides in beside me and pulls the covers over both of us.
“Declan—”
“Sleep,” he says, voice low but certain. His arm lands across my waist, heavy and protective. “I’ve got you.”
His erection prods at my backside and I wiggle against him.
“Settle down.” He groans and clamps his arm tighter around my waist. “We’ll get there,” he promises.
Even though he’s turning me down, it doesn’t feel like rejection. I like the sound ofwe. And the promise of more to come.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Declan
Any other time,any other woman, and the long, silken strands of hair tickling my chest when I wake would irritate the life out of me.
This morning, my only frustration is that I don’t want to move and wake Emery. Now that I have her in my bed, I don’t want her to leave.
Dawn creeps through the slit in the curtains, thin and gray. The room smells like her—warm skin, a faint trace of cinnamon—too sweet for this cold house.
Even unconscious and softly snoring, her body’s pressed tight to me. Her plush behind fits against my thigh, every slow inhale rubbing heat along my skin. The lines along my ribs stir faintly, like something dreaming under my skin. It’s the closest thing they ever get to purring, content while the Rider’s away and Emery’s in my arms.
The green ring that circled her wrist last night now coils farther up her arm, glowing faintly in the dim room. It’s not a trick of the early morning light. The line around her wrist isn’t a line anymore. It’s a vine, curling upward in thin, glowing filaments that crawl beneath her skin. A pulse of panic cutsthrough the peaceful morning. The mark shouldn’t have spread that fast.
“Mmm.” She lets out a soft, sleepy, contented sigh. At least the mark doesn’t seem to be hurting her.
