His frown was lifting into a smile as his eyes opened. But when he studied his arms and then his body, the frown returned, deeper, more intense. 'I should have…I did not…I had hoped to return to my former visage.'
'Why?' She loved him, just as he was. Horns, fangs, claws and all. Wait—loved? Oh, yes. She loved him. She had considered it before, but had discarded the idea. Now, there could be no discarding. The emotion was there, undeniable as Death stared her in the face.
No man had ever been more perfectly suited for her. He was not disgusted by her nature, he reveled in it. He did not fear what she could do, but found pride in it. He delighted her, amused her, tempted her.
'It is my hope that…that…' He gulped. 'If you bond with something else, something besides the wall, perhaps your ties to it will lessen and your strength will return. Perhaps the pain will ease.'
Something else? 'You?' she asked, suddenly breathless for reasons that had nothing to do with pain.
'Yes. Me.'
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Geryon looked away from her. 'I know I'm ugly. I know the thought of being with me in such a manner is abhorrent, but I—'
'You aren't ugly,' Kadence interjected, 'and I do not like that you think so. I do not like when you demean yourself like that.'
He blinked over at her, astonishment shining in his expression.
She continued, 'The thought of being with you is welcome. I promise you.'
Now his mouth opened and closed. 'Welcome?'
'Yes. But I don't want you to bond with me simply to save me.' She had once been too afraid to admit she craved his body, had pretended merely to be grateful to get a kiss. There would be no more pretending. 'I want you to want to do this. Because I…I want you inside of me, becoming part of me, more than I want another tomorrow. I want to be your woman, now and always.'
Before he could respond, another pain slicked through her, raining like poisoned hail and curling her into a ball. Another crack had just slithered through the wall; she saw it in her mind.
'Geryon?' she panted.
His gaze bore into her. 'I once swore that were I ever lucky enough to regain my soul, I would never, for any reason, trade it again. I have just realized that I would willingly trade it for you, Kadence. So yes, I want to do this.'
Geryon slowly divested Kadence of her robe, careful not to hurt her with his razor-sharp nails. She was already in pain and he doubted she could bear much more. Beautiful, precious woman. She deserved only pleasure.
For whatever reason, she desired him. Desired forever. Together. She had given him the thing he'd thought he valued most—his soul—but he had not known until he'd watched her curl into a ball that he valued her more. He'd longed to take her pain into himself. For her, anything. She cared not that he was a beast. She saw to the heart of him, and liked it.
When she was naked, he drank her in. Alabaster skin dusted with the sweetest hint of rose. Lush breasts, a curved waist, a navel his mouth watered to sample. Legs that stretched for miles. He bent and licked one of her nipples, laving his tongue around the delectable tip, his hands traveling all over her body.
The closer his fingers came to her core, the more she purred a deep sigh of satisfaction, her pain seeming to melt away. 'The pleasure, it's replacing the pain,' she said, confirming his thoughts.
Thank the gods. He moved his attention to her other nipple, sucking, allowing the tip of a fang to graze it ever so gently. 'Still helping?' All the while his fingers teased just above her clitoris, not touching, only teasing.
'Still helping. But I want to see you,' she said, giving his armor a pointed stare.
He lifted his head and peered into her eyes. 'Are you sure? I could take you without removing a single piece of armor.'
'I want all of you, Geryon.' Her features were luminescent. 'All.'
'Whatever you desire, you shall have.' He only hoped she did not change her mind when she saw him.
'Do not fear my reaction. You are beautiful to me.'
Such sweet words. But…he'd lived with his insecurities so long, they were a part of him. 'How can I be? Look at me. I am a beast. A monster. Something to be feared and reviled.'
'I am looking at you and you are something to be praised. You may not bear the appearance of other men, but you have strength and courage. Besides,' she added, licking her lips, 'animal magnetism is a very good thing.'
Slowly he grinned. 'All right. I will show you the rest of me.'
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Geryon removed his breast plate and tossed it aside, his too-corded chest with its scars, fur and over-large bones revealed. His hands shook as he then unwound the leather wrapped around his waist, slowly revealing his hardened shaft, his scarred and fur-lined thighs. He tensed, waiting for the inevitable gasp of horror, even though she'd assured him of his 'animal magnetism.'
'Beautiful,' she said reverently. 'A true warrior. My warrior.' She reached up and ran her fingertips through that fur. 'Soft.'
Breath seeped from his parted lips, breath he had not realized he'd been holding until just then. 'Kadence. Sweet Kadence,' he rasped. What had he ever done to deserve her? If he hadn't fallen in love with her already, he would have fallen then.
As the hottest thrum of desire he'd ever experienced pounded through him, he kissed his way down her stomach, stopping only to dip his tongue inside her navel. She trembled. When he reached the apex of her thighs, he worshipped her, and the trembling became writhing.
'Amazing,' she gasped, fisting his hair.
He wanted to devour her, possess her, but he held back, her taste like the sweetest ambrosia. Only when she came apart, screaming her pleasure, did he rise above her. He was proud and honored to have given her such ecstasy. But he was trembling now, his body on fire. Desperate. For her, only her.
Her legs wound around him, and she cupped his cheeks, staring deep into his eyes. 'I need more of you.'
He entered her an inch, one blessed inch. Stopped, gave her time to adjust. He'd go slowly if it killed him. Make it good for her, the best.
'Why do I not feel the need to master you?' she purred into his ear. She bit the lobe.
Sweet fire. 'That's how it was, before?'
She nodded, arching her hips to take more of him. Another inch.
He had to cut off a groan. 'Perhaps because my heart is so completely yours, there's nothing left to master.'
'Oh, Geryon. Please.' She stroked his horns, circling a fingertip over the hard points. 'Take me all the way. Give me everything.'
He could deny her nothing. Releasing his fierce grip on control, he pounded forward and she cried out. Not in pain, but in joy, he realized. Over and over he filled her, giving her all of him. Their wills intermingled so completely, it was impossible to tell who wanted what.
His nails raked the floor beside her head, his teeth even nipped her, but she loved it all, urging him on, begging for more. And when he spilled his seed inside her, her inner walls clutching him in her own surge of
