Giving her one last kiss, he leaned back until he knelt between her legs. Grasping her hips, he drove more forcefully into her and watched as every thrust pushed her closer and closer to release. When her good arm lowered and her hand found her breast, he growled as she fondled herself, and he moved faster within her.
He caught her cry of ecstasy with his mouth as she came apart beneath him. The muscles of her sheath clenched around him, but he managed to restrain himself from spilling inside her.
He held himself still while she came down from her high. Then he moved within her again as tingles continued to race throughout her body. His mouth moved to her neck, and his fangs grazed her flesh before piercing her skin.
She bit her lip to hold back a cry of pain, but as soon as the pinprick came, it faded away, and bliss seeped through her. He could kill her so easily, yet she felt no fear as his body moved more demandingly against hers, and she eagerly responded to him.
Her blood infused his body with strength as it seeped into his cells and branded them with her essence. She was a part of him, he would carry her with him always, and when this was over, he would make her his for eternity.
Clasping her good hand, he pinned it to the bed as his control started to fray. He had to take it easy; she was a mortal, but he was lost to her. When she bent her head and bit his shoulder while she came again, the last of his control unraveled. Instead of holding back, he gave himself over to his release.
Withdrawing his fangs from her, he wrapped his arms around her and rolled to the side to hold her against his chest. It took him a few seconds to catch his breath as he stared at the bottom of the bed overhead.
“Did I hurt you?” he inquired, his voice gruff as self-hatred swelled within him. She was his mate; he was supposed to care for and protect her, not use her so roughly.
“Not at all,” she murmured as she nestled closer. “That wasamazing.”
“Are you sure?”
“I’m positive.”
He settled his chin on her head as he ran his fingers up and down her arm while a sense of contentment settled over him. He’d never seen himself as a stay-at-home kind of guy, but holding her, there was nowhere else he’d rather be.
“I love you, Elyse.”
She stiffened against him, and her head rose so she could meet his gaze. His eyes were their beautiful hazel color again, and as he studied her, she suddenly had a name for the strange emotion she’d experienced earlier: love. She caressed his stubble-roughened cheek and jaw as she kissed him.
“I love you too,” she whispered.
Saxon hugged her close as he kissed her again, but he pulled away before it turned into something more; she needed to rest. He kissed the tip of her nose before she settled her head into the hollow of his shoulder and went to sleep.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
A knockon the door roused him sometime later. Uncertain of what time it was, he gazed around the room as Elyse remained nestled in his embrace. He untangled himself from her, pulled on his jeans, and padded toward the door as another knock sounded. He opened it to reveal Declan on the other side.
“Ronan wants to discuss our options,” Declan said.
“I’ll be right there.”
He closed the door, got dressed, and checked to make sure Elyse was still asleep before slipping out to join the others. He wasn’t surprised to discover it was still night; if they were going to make a move against the Savages, they would have to utilize every bit of daylight they could get.
The others were gathered around the counter dividing the kitchen from the main living area. A map was laid out before them, and he recognized it as the one Elyse used to mark the location of the Savages.
“We’ll have to be on the lookout for cameras and guards, but hopefully we’ll be able to get close enough to survey what’s going on,” Ronan said as Saxon stepped between Killean and Lucien. “I don’t trust anyone else to do this, so it will only be us going in for now.”
“How long will it take us to get there?” Nathan asked.
Ronan inspected the map. “Half an hour.”
“What about Logan?” Asher asked.
“He’ll be out for today and probably part of tomorrow,” Ronan said. “He’ll be fine with Kadence and Simone here to look out for him.” Then he lifted his head to meet Saxon’s gaze. “Elyse is coming with us.”
The words were like a punch to the gut, but Saxon kept his face impassive as everything inside him screamed against it. He had to stay calm if he was going to put a stop to this. “She’s not a threat to Kadence and Simone if she remains here.”
When Killean grunted, Saxon contemplated punching him in the face.
“They’re hunters turned vampires; I have no concerns that a human with a broken arm could be a threat to them,” Ronan said.
