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“Hey”—she looked up—“they can see us.”

“Then let them look.”

But when he moved to kiss her again, Alessandra pulled away and led him under the deck. Here, they could see nothing but slits of light from above and the still-distant glow of boats in the distance. The gentle lapping of water against the docked pontoon boats and speeders echoed not far from them.

But the loudest sound of all, to his sensitive ears, was that of Alessandra’s breathing. For every step she took backward, Kenton took a bigger one forward. And when the wall of the restaurant’s basement finally met his beautiful companion’s back, leaving her with nowhere left to go, he took one final step, planting his hands on both sides of her head.

The concrete blocks grated beneath his hands as he watched Alessandra’s pupils widen, easy for him to see, even in the dark. They both knew this would not end with a mere kiss, and he waited for her acquiescence.

“It would seem you’re trapped, love.”

“I wasn’t trying to get away.”

He kissed her, hard.

Dropping his hands to her waist, Kenton tugged her closer, fitting their bodies together with a skill only a few hundred years could provide. That his heart raced was a testament to the power she held over him.

Kenton did not get overly excited anymore.

At least, not until he met the light that was Alessandra Fiore.

His fingers nearly ached with the need to feel her skin beneath him. Not wanting to wait a moment longer, he opened her jeans. Hardly ideal, but her response—inching closer, moaning in that low, husky voice—reminded him of that morning. He’d wanted so badly to pleasure her then, but he’d restrained himself.

No longer.

Pulling from her, the loss of her sweet lips temporary, Kenton watched her eyes as his fingers found what they’d been looking for. He would no sooner miss her expression as he brought her to climax than he would tell his brothers that he’d let this woman live.

“There was a time centuries past,” he said, slipping inside her wet, tight warmth, “that I’d have waited to find a more appropriate place for this.”

He’d never forgotten the chivalric code by which he’d lived as a young man. When he was a youth, highborn ladies had been expected to preserve their virginity and eschew sexuality. That Alessandra was so unabashed right now . . .

Kenton loved this century above all others.

“I don’t understand.”

No, she would not. Could not. But no matter. There were more pressing matters to attend to. Her ability to form coherent thoughts indicated he wasn’t doing as well as he should.

He moved closer, his palm cupping her now.

When Alessandra tipped her head back in pleasure, he said, “No, love. Look at me.”

Pleasure should not be hidden. Kenton would ensure hers was not.

She listened, her lips opening ever so slightly as her eyes hooded.

Each movement was deliberate as he brought her closer and closer . . .

“I will make you throb with need and come apart in my hand—” he whispered, his voice barely audible.

“Oh God . . .”

“But you must promise me one thing.”

Ignoring the state of his rock-hard cock, which ached to be inside her, ignoring the erratic beating of her heart and faint sound of her blood pumping through her veins, ignoring everything around them and concentrating solely on her eyes, Kenton willed her to do the same.

“You must not shut your eyes again, no matter how strong the urge to do so. Look at me. Glean what you will from my eyes as I pleasure you, Alessandra.”

Increasing the pressure of his palm and his fingers, he did not relent.