instead.”
Cara wondered why he didn’t tell Galen that Deirdre wanted her.
Galen’s blue eyes shone with anticipation. “You killed the Warriors.”
“There were two. One got away.”
“So Deirdre will be coming for you.”
Lucan shrugged. “Probably.”
“I can be of service,” Galen said. “You’ll need all the Warriors you can get.”
“My brothers and I didn’t survive this long because we trusted people. The answer is nay.”
Galen glanced at her. “If you change your mind, you know where to find me.”
With that, he disappeared into the forest. Cara released the stick and blew out a breath. Then Lucan turned to her.
“You ran,” he said, his jaw clenching in anger. The shadows moved closer to him.
Cara nodded. She had hurt him by leaving. She could see it in his eyes. “I did, Lucan, but only to protect you.”
His forehead furrowed. “You didn’t run because you fear me?”
“Nay.” She walked to him and put her hands on his chest. Warmth enveloped her. “I ran because everyone around me dies. I don’t want you to die.”
“Look at me, Cara.”
“I am.”
“Nay!” he shouted. “Look at me. Look at what I am.”
She smiled and ran her fingers over his lips, her thumb brushing one of his fangs. “I see you, Lucan. I see the god that gives you immortality and strength beyond my reckoning. I also see the man who has saved me many times and who continues to protect me despite everything. I see the man who desires me, but denies that desire because of what he is.”
“Cara.”
She ignored his warning and let her hands roam over his chest. She wished his tunic was gone so she could feel his skin beneath her hands. “You came for me.”
“I vowed to keep you safe. I just wonder who will keep you safe from me?”
“I don’t want to be safe from you,” she whispered.
His hands wrapped around her arms and pushed her back against the tree. She sighed in anticipation when his body slammed against hers.
“Walk away, Cara. Please.”
“I can’t,” she murmured. “I want this, Lucan. I’ve wanted this from the moment I first looked into your eyes.”
He closed his eyes. “You doona know what you’re saying.”
“I do,” she argued. It excited her when he was in his Warrior form. He was dangerous and unpredictable. And he was hers.
She rose up on her tiptoes and placed her lips over his. He groaned and slanted his mouth over hers, his tongue slipping between her lips to plunder her mouth with wicked pleasure. His hands gripped her hips as her tongue touched his fangs.
“Ah, God, Cara. What you do to me,” he mumbled against her neck as he placed hot, wet kisses on her skin.
She grinned and opened her eyes long enough to see he had returned to normal. He lifted his head, his sea green eyes holding hers.
“Are you sure? I don’t think I can stop this time.”
She put her hands under his tunic to touch his muscular torso and felt his stomach jump. “I never wanted you to stop before.”
There were no more words as he claimed her mouth. His lips were soft, smooth, and firm and his taste heavenly. It was what she had needed, this delicious, alluring taste of him. But she wanted more. She wanted to understand the emotion that unfurled low in her belly and made her sex throb when Lucan touched her.
She pushed his tunic up to reveal more of his sculpted body. He broke the kiss long enough to jerk the tunic over his head and toss it aside. Then his mouth was on hers again, coaxing her passion higher, promising infinite pleasure.
He held her as if he was scared she might run away. She smiled inwardly. She wasn’t running anywhere, and there was no way he was this time, either. She would see where their desire took them.
Lucan clutched Cara against him. Her hands caressed his chest, his shoulders, and his neck, all the while she was kissing him with an abandon that drove his hunger higher.
He had fought his need for her and he had lost. She was in his arms, and he was going to relish every moment with her. Her soft moan made his heart pump faster.
“I want to feel you,” he said.
She nodded her head with a smile. He took a half step back and helped her to disrobe. He knelt before her and lifted one small foot to remove her shoe before he slowly unrolled her thick woolen hose down her leg. His fingers grazed her skin, marveling at its soft texture.
He looked up as he began to repeat the process on the other leg and saw her hands grip the tree, her eyes closed and her lips parted. Her pulse beat rapidly at her neck, letting him know she enjoyed his touch.
Lucan kissed the top of her foot and set it on the ground. He straightened and jerked off his boots, but when he reached for his breeches, her hands stopped him.
“I want to,” she said.
He looked into her dark eyes and saw a hunger that matched his own. Lucan nodded, his balls tightening in excitement. She unlaced his breeches and tugged them over his hips. His cock sprang free, hard and wanting.
There was a soft intake of breath before she wrapped her fingers around him. Lucan dropped his head back and fisted his hands. Her touch was soft and sensual, innocent and erotic. Up and down she moved her hand over his length, learning the feel of him.
“You’re so hard and hot, but so smooth.”
He thought he would die. He had gone without too long. There was no way he would be able to bring her to climax without spilling, not if she kept touching him.
“No more,” he whispered, and looked at her. “It’s my turn.”
He spread her gown and his tunic on the ground and then held out his hand for her. Cara didn’t hesitate in taking his hand and letting him lay her down.
His gaze roamed over her body, perfection in every detail from her full dark-tipped breasts, to her narrow waist and flared hips, to her slender legs.
She lifted her arms for him, wrapping them around his neck. The smile on her lips was all seduction. If he had any thoughts of trying to stop what was between them, he knew she wouldn’t let him. The fact that she had seen him, really seen him for the monster he was, and still wanted him boggled his mind.
“Don’t make me wait,” she whispered. “I’ve dreamed of this since our first kiss. Show me the passion, Lucan. Show me the promise of pleasure I see in your eyes.”
Lucan was humbled beyond words. He cradled her face in his hands and kissed her, running his lips lightly over hers. He wanted to take this slow, since it was her first time. But Cara was having none of that. She licked his lips and moaned. He was lost then. He would give her anything she wanted, no matter the cost.
He sank into her kiss, devouring her taste and her scent. His hands roamed her body as he learned every curve and sensitive spot of her skin. With his rod nestled between her legs, he felt her heat and her moisture. He wanted to plunge inside her, but she wasn’t ready. Not yet.
He cupped her breast and massaged it while his thumb moved back and forth over her nipple. Her nails sank into his back when the little nub turned hard. He leaned down and closed his lips over the nipple. He teased the peak with his teeth, biting gently before he laved the tip and suckled it deep in his mouth.
Her breaths were coming in great gulps, her hips rising against his, seeking the fulfillment she didn’t understand yet. Lucan moved to her other breast and repeated his ministrations. She writhed beneath him and murmured his name.
Already Lucan was at his breaking point. He
