Dark Desire After Dark

him and tossed it away.

His brows drew together. 'Uh, what happened between the time I went for food and now?'

'I broke up with Tim.'

Cade's heart began to thunder, and damn if she didn't notice.

'You really like that news, huh?' She smiled.

'What's not to like? But why now?'

'He stole credit for my research. And he was after the code I'm working on now.'

Cade went still, fury spiking through him. 'Holly, I'm going to give you his throat for this.'

'Aw, you say the sweetest things, demon.' She stood on tiptoe and pressed a gentle kiss to his lips.

Deciding he'd kill Tim for her anyway, he relaxed and said, 'I know how to play those heartstrings, yeah?'

She unbuckled Cade's belt. 'I called him a fuckwit tosser.'

'That's my girl.' He stripped off her top, then his shirt. 'Are you coming on to me to get back at him?'

'Probably.' Down went his zipper.

'I'm okay with that.'

And if he'd thought this couldn't get any better, she bit her bottom lip and said, 'You told me you'd fantasized about me, um, going down on you. What if I wanted to try it?'

Trying to keep his cool, he grinned down at her. 'Then you'd be my best girl….'

Once they were naked in bed, and she'd begun kissing down his torso, he swallowed hard. Would she lose her nerve? Don't lose your nerve, Holly….

She took him in hand. A first halting lick was followed by another. Soon she was circling all around the head with wet flicks of her tongue.

'That's it, Holly,' he groaned, 'just like that.'

'You taste so good,' she murmured in a delighted tone.

He struggled not to thrust to her hot tongue, but the instinct to move his hips was so powerful. 'Suck it inside your mouth,' he rasped. She did, making him arch his back sharply. 'Ah! What are you doin' to me?'

Hastily pulling back, she said, 'Am I doing something wrong?'

'Everything's too right.' Hand palming her head, he pressed her back down. 'I fear I'll come before I'm ready.'

With a satisfied smile, she rubbed her cheek against his shaft, then continued. He pulled her hair out of the way so he could see his female pleasuring him like this.

A fantasy made flesh. After so long.

Bending his knee, he raised his leg so she straddled it, her wet sex against it.

She moaned around him, one of those sharp, yearning cries that made him frenzied to pleasure her. Immediately, he reached for her hips, pulling her toward him.

'Cade? I liked that….' She trailed off when he repositioned her, settling her knees by each side of his face, her mouth at his cock.

'Then you'll love this,' he rasped before he lost himself in licking strawberry blond curls. Her sex was so hot, the flesh exquisitely tender. He licked in bliss.

But she froze. 'Cadeon?' She sounded stunned. He dug his heels into the bed and thrust up. After a hesitation, she took him between her lips again, her mouth soon growing greedy. The shy virgin was gone, replaced by a hungry, demanding Valkyrie who expected to give and get pleasure.

With his hands splayed over her ass, he gripped her, holding on to her as she wickedly rocked her sex against his mouth.

When he worked his finger into her sheath, she spread her knees wider with a cry. She was losing control. Thunder boomed all around the building, quaking the walls.

He wanted this to last forever, but he was already on the verge. She needs to come first. As he withdrew and thrust his finger, he sucked her hard little clitoris between his lips, snaking his tongue over it.

She screamed, then took him deep. Her moans around his shaft sent him over. As she came, he groaned and licked, joining her….

She rolled off him, sprawled beside him as they caught their breath.

'Who knew demons were so delicious?' she asked as he dragged her to his chest.

'Demon. Singular. Don't be getting any ideas.'

36

The Northwest Territories

Headlands of the McKenzie Mountains

The sixtieth parallel was the last one before the Arctic Circle.

They'd passed the sign marking it several hours ago.

For the last four days, they'd headed ever northward toward the Canadian Rockies. The land grew starkly beautiful, the temperature holding steady at a balmy fifteen below. The sun never ascended much higher than the spruce tops, and it both rose and set two hours outside of noon.

Now she was waiting for Cadeon in the parking space—singular—at the White Tail Lodge, which promised to be the final outpost before serious, isolated wilderness.

In other words, their final destination.

The 'Lodge' itself was a strange hybrid of trailer and cabin. On the gray siding, antlers were nailed to the side, spelling Wh te T il Lo ge.

Holly thought it should spell: We gave our lives for this??

As Cadeon bought supplies, she patched her laptop into her sat-phone to upload all of her day's work into a Tim-free account.

The only lingering fallout from Tim's betrayal was her anger and a burning desire to complete her code. And without the obstacle of her ex-boyfriend, Holly had few defenses against Cadeon's appeal.

She was reminded of her last look at the Veyron. Without the prop of the truck, it had helplessly crumpled. Now without the guilt and sense of obligation, Holly was doing a free fall for the demon….

She and Cadeon indulged—often. He happily allowed her to explore him, drawing a knee up, telling her to 'Have at it.' They slept in the same bed. Each time, he wrapped his body around her so tightly, tucking her close to him. She wondered if he was following some innate demon instinct to protect her.

They showered together—one of the highlights of each day for her.

But he never tried to make love to her, even when she'd hinted that she'd be amenable to losing her virginity. Though she could tell how badly he wanted to take it, he still made no move to.

Was it only that he didn't want to hurt her? Every day he noted how strong she was becoming. Did he doubt that she could handle the claiming?

Or was there another reason he resisted…?

When he'd returned and finished loading up the back, she asked him, 'What all did you get?'

'Food, staple goods—apparently eggs and butter are like gold if we do happen upon anyone north of here. And as many tanks of gas as we can ferry. I also found out that we're going to have to cross a winter road.'

Winter road—a euphemism for ice beneath tires and possibly not much more. 'No way around that?'

'Only way to get from here to there, love.'

'This is the checkpoint? It's adorable!' Holly hopped out of the truck, gazing at the snow-covered cabin. 'It's straight out of a winter wonderland calendar!'

His female's mood had certainly improved since the ice road. The normal—but loud—shifting of ice had terrified her, and she'd held on to the dashboard the entire way.

When a fox bounded by in the foot-high snow banks, she clapped her gloved hands in delight. 'Cue the fox. How perfect!'