She climbed higher, needing more, her body tightening like a bow. Her lungs constricted as the climax took her. Her body spasmed around him, and she cried out his name.
His fangs pierced into her neck, going deep, slicing with a pain that went far beyond the physical.
Tears filled her eyes even as the pleasure burst through her. A flash of heat burned from her left shoulder blade to her spine. The marking. Placed deliberately close to her heart.
His hips jerked as he came hard inside her.
The storm raged on.
His fangs remained for several heartbeats, leaving permanent indents in her skin. They retracted slowly, scraping up, reminding her who’d claimed her. Finally, he licked the wounds closed. Then he released her hair and caressed her back, smoothing rain over the burn. The pain slowly subsided.
She shivered, suddenly overcome. What in the world had she just done? Talk about jumping into the fire feet first. This was more than she’d imagined.
He withdrew from her body, and she gave an involuntary moan of protest. But she couldn’t move.
His chuckle was dark as he lifted her into his arms, his movements graceful and sure. She might never move again. Closing her eyes, she rested her cheek against his chest, listening to the even beat of his heart, feeling protected and safe. He moved rapidly through the rain and through the raging river, not bothering to find the rock path.
Mother Nature was no match for him.
They were back inside the cabin before she knew it. He settled her into the bed with a soft kiss on the forehead. “I’ll be back in a minute. Need to secure the area.” Then he was gone.
She curled onto her side, suddenly chilled. Energy popped through her blood, changing her somehow on a cellular level. Probably deeper than cellular. She hadn’t spent much time researching the physical reactions to a mating. Tiredness swamped her, but she struggled to keep her eyes open.
The rain pattered against the window, lulling her into calmness. She’d mated Logan Kyllwood. The enormity of that fact pressed on her like the strongest gravity in any dimension. It had been the best way to deal with the Seven situation and the danger of the Cyst. And she liked him. Wanted him. Felt more than she’d expected for him. She wasn’t up to examininghowmuch more right now.
But how well did she really know him? What she knew, she truly did like.
Though there was something about him she couldn’t define. Something dark—even more primal than she’d thought. She’d been right to challenge him, but in the end, it was an honest plea that had earned his marking. Logan didn’t play games, and he was impossible to manipulate now that he knew her.
He wanted her bare and honest.
She swallowed, trying to warm up in the chilly sheets. Her hair was still wet.
He came into the room, moving silently, lifting the covers and sliding in. One arm went around her and pulled her into his side, while he lay on his back. “We’re secure,” he said quietly.
His big body warmed her instantly, and she cuddled closer. “Do you feel different?”
He caressed her hair. “Yes. Energized and aware.”
She yawned. In just a few hours, he’d undergo the ritual. What if he didn’t survive? He had to. She placed a hand over his heart, reassured by its strong beat. A part of her wanted to ask him not to undergo the ritual. But she knew him better than that. This world was a safer place with him in it. “Are you sorry?” She had pushed him into the storm.
“No.” His hold tightened. “Just worried about the ritual and how to keep you safe.”
She’d been keeping herself safe her entire life. “That’s not your job.” He had to join the Seven. It would be more than enough.
He turned them both, spooning around her with a heat that seeped into her bones. “Your safety is my most important job. I want to take you to demon headquarters tomorrow before I meet with the Seven. You’re covered.”
“No. I want to go to the ritual,” she said sleepily.
“Absolutely not.” The firmness in his voice stopped her midyawn. “It’s way too dangerous. Nobody but the Seven can be there.”
She was a teleporting Fae. “I’m going with you, Logan.”
His arm wrapped around her waist, holding her flush against him. The marking on her shoulder pulsed. “I said no.”
She blinked, her voice deserting her for several moments. Finally, she swallowed. “I wasn’t asking your permission. Why are you being so bossy?”
“I warned you, Mercy. There’s no halfway with me. You mated me with your eyes wide open, and I’ve never hidden a thing from you.” His voice was calm but held a certainty that was as sexy as it was annoying. “While I’m undergoing the ritual, you’ll stay safely away from me as well as the Fae. We’ll deal with them together once I’m back.”
