Kiss of a Demon King

time you wore metal against bare skin? There is one reason for this top-to look fabulous. Not to trek through the wilderness. Out here it collects sand, which rubs against my breasts. And they are already far too sensitive because you were forever kissing and sucking on them last night!'

Memories of the night before flashed in his mind, and he stifled a groan. Throughout the day, he'd been recalling with pleasure all the things he'd done to her body-and planning with anticipation what he'd do to her tonight.

The most excitement in centuries? She was right. 'Demon, are you listening to me? This isn't parity. I never kept you in pain or hurt your flesh.'

'You're immortal. You'll be healed by sundown-'

'Just take a look at them! They'll be pink and tender. Oh! And I'll bet my face is getting more sunburned!'

It was, which made her freckle across the bridge of her nose, which meant she looked even less like an evil sorceress. Damn her. Her body was so fragile, not like other females of the Lore. A Valkyrie or furie would be laughing at a hike over this terrain.

'You want me to fix it?' He unfastened her top, then yanked it off her, dropping it to the ground.

If he'd expected her to gasp and stammer, he'd have been wrong. Instead she sighed, flexing her back and rolling her head on her neck.

Her breasts were pink and looked tender. The tips budded right before his eyes. His mouth watered to lick and suckle her-

'Oh, don't you even think about it, demon!'

'You dare act angered with me?' Angered over his desire for her? The very need she'd stoked to a blaze?

Sabine stormed over to him, bare breasted, her hair shining like fire in the sun. 'Yes, I dare!' She kicked his shin with the metal tip of her boot.

He gritted his teeth. 'Do that again, sorceress, and you will not like the outcome.'

'I'm beginning to wish I'd ordered more boy-on-boy shower-time for you.'

His eyes went wide, then narrowed. 'You're aching for your next spanking, aren't you? Keep this up, and I'll oblige you.'

'You'd love that, wouldn't you? I think the reason you don't want to release me is because you'd have to part with this anger, and then you couldn't treat me like your sex slave each night. It's so good for you, you can't stand the thought of letting it go.'

He cupped her nape. 'You might be right.'

'Of course I am!' Her eyes were blue, her lips parting around panting breaths. She was so damned sexy, too much so.

He dragged her into his chest. Had she gone up on her toes?

And then they were kissing each other, crazed, frenzied. Like the night he'd claimed her. Taking her trembling mouth was a madness, an addiction. Wring' ing those little moans and breathless cries . . .he could kiss her forever.

When she subtly arched her back, he groaned, raising his hand to gently pet her tender breasts-

Her stomach growled. Loudly.

He broke the kiss, leaning his forehead to hers as they caught their breath. 'We'll stop here for the night, sweet.' He took off his tunic, draping it over her front like an apron, then tying the sleeves around her back. 'Looks like I need to hunt for my woman.'

She rolled her eyes. 'I don't need you to hunt, demon, I need you to gather.''

27

'Drop it, Sabine!' Rydstrom bellowed from a lower plateau.

Earlier, he'd set up camp on a high promontory, set­tled her by a fire, and finally threaded her arms into his tunic-retying her right after, naturally. Then he'd gone all he-man, marching off to snare the unwitting crea­ture he'd just been dressing. Though he'd kept her in sight the entire time, he'd eventually gotten far enough away for her plans.

'Drop-the-wine!' He started charging for her. 'Bloody now!'

In response, she maneuvered the bottle neck in her mouth's grasp, tightened her lips, and turned it up, gulp­ ing the contents.

'Damn it, Sabine!' he yelled as he ran.

When he reached the campsite, she dropped the emptied bottle with a gasp and took in the sight of him.

His bare chest was heaving, and sweat trickled from his neck. Her eyes followed a bead as it slid down his torso over the ridges of muscle. Magnificent demon.

Then she frowned-he was holding a skinned animal of indeterminate species. Take away the animal carcass, and this would be one of the sexiest sights she'd ever seen.

'Do you know what I went through to get the cork out?' she asked him, turning to muffle a lady-like burp against her shoulder. 'Then you expect me to go unrewarded? Besides, I can't face the upcoming trial of ritualistic animal abuse without wine.'

He sank down on the opposite side of the fire, spit­ting the poor creature on a stick.

As he secured the little carcass over the flames, she studiously surveyed the scenery. Rydstrom had made their camp high up on a large jutting cliff. Below them the falls trickled into a pool of the darkest green-the color of his eyes. Other cliffs surrounded the water on three sides, and as the wind rushed in, white blossoms danced on the swirling air.

In minutes the smell of roasting meat was pervasive. After the day's arduous journey, she was starving, and the scent wasn't as bad as she'd thought it would be. In fact, it was . .. appetizing.

'It smells good, doesn't it, sorceress?'

She turned up her nose. 'I won't eat it.'

'Just look at it.'

Before she could stop herself, she did. Her mouth watered at the sight. It was so succulent, it dripped, making the fire hiss. No, I'm more refined than this. I don't eat animals! 'You are fully aware that my kind doesn't consume meat.'

'You will now.'

'Now what? Now that you're the boss?'

His gaze flickered over her belly.

'Ohhh, now that you think I might be carrying your babe. Will you force me to eat it?'

'I didn't cause this situation. Remember that.' His tone made her raise her brows. 'If your plan worked, and you've gotten yourself pregnant with a demon, you'll need meat to feed it.'

'Do you not think that it would make me sick to eat something I never have before? Something I find revolt­ ing? Perhaps you should have ascertained if I was high-maintenance before you abducted me.'

When her stomach growled again, he rose and snatched up the empty pack. 'Do not move, princess. I'll be back with something you might deign to eat.'

A short time later, he returned with the pack full, dumping the contents on the blanket. She quirked a brow at a selection of berries. 'A male trying to poison me. How . . . novel.'

'They aren't poisonous.' He scooped up some and popped them into his mouth.

'Not to demons, but they're toxic to me. Because we're not of the same species.'

'You make it sound like we come from different plan­ets. We're not that different.' • 'No?' Her gaze flickered over his horns.

He ran his hand over one, then glowered at her. Strangely, she seemed to be exasperating him-but not angering him.