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Jake licked a path across her skin to coax the other breast in the same torturous manner. A decadent heat spiraled through her and she moved her pelvis. She wanted him, surrounding her, inside of her.
“Not yet,” he murmured as if he’d read her thoughts. He slid down her slick body and left a blazing path with the velvet tip of his tongue. Strong, purposeful hands parted her thighs. Almost reverently, he stroked her quivering sex.
The breath rushed from her lungs when she felt his damp mouth against the inside of one thigh. Then his lips danced across her skin to the part of her that burned the fiercest.
She gasped as his tongue parted her. He eased his hands under her buttocks, tilting her to fit more firmly against his mouth. His shoulders urged her legs apart until she lay completely open.
He nuzzled her, drinking in her scent before he devoured her with his mouth. Every thrust of his tongue, every caress of his lips, felt like a raw act of possession that branded her mine, mine, all mine.
If only.
As soon as the thought pushed its way into her head, she pushed it right back out. There was no hidden meaning behind his actions. It was all about the pursuit of pleasure.
A temporary pleasure.
Regret washed through her, but then his fingers parted her slick folds and his tongue swept her. Up and down. Back and forth.
Heat drenched her. She bucked and her body convulsed. A rush of moisture flooded between her thighs, and he lapped at her as if he’d never tasted anything so sweet.
When she calmed to a slight shudder, he slid up the damp length of her body, gathered her in his arms and kissed her. She tasted her essence—wild and ripe, bitter and sweet—on his lips and desire spurted through her.
She slid her hands over his shoulders and traced the sinewy contours of his body. His length pulsed between her legs, pressing against her tender flesh.
But he didn’t enter her.
Not yet.
Instead he devoured her with his mouth, his hands roaming her body, stroking pleasure points she never knew existed.
“Now,” she begged when she could take no more. She arched against him, opening herself up, desperate to pull him deep.
He growled and grasped her hips. Thrusting, he joined them in one swift, complete motion.
The air rushed from her lungs, only to rush back in as she gasped.
He pulsed deep inside of her for a long, decadent moment before he started to move. He withdrew, only to push back inside, burying himself deep.
Once. Twice.
She skimmed her hands over his back, urging him harder, faster, as she felt the bubbling heat of another climax.
Again?
She couldn’t believe how quickly she was ready for round two. Then again, it had been so long since she’d had a round one that it only made sense. It certainly wasn’t Jake himself who stirred her until she was desperate and out of control.
She was horny, that’s all.
She came quickly. She clutched at his shoulders. She cried out his name.
He buried himself one last time deep in her body and went rigid.
Through the fuzzy haze of pleasure, Nikki glimpsed him poised above her, his arms braced on either side. His muscles bulged. His skin glistened with perspiration. His eyes were wide-open. His gaze shimmered, pulsing into a hot, vibrant purple that glowed in the darkness. His lips parted, and she caught a flash of white as he bared his teeth—
Wait a second.
She blinked, and there he was still poised above her. But his eyes were closed, the vibrant color just a memory. His brow furrowed. His lips parted, revealing a row of straight, white, normal teeth. A groan rumbled from his throat as he gave in to his own orgasm. He stiffened, bucking once, twice, before collapsing atop her.
She felt a rush of panic, but then he gathered her in his arms. His strength surrounded her and eased the sudden tension in her body. He nuzzled her neck, his lips warm against her pulse beat.
She closed her eyes and saw him in her mind’s eye. His eyes blazing and his teeth—
Her eyes snapped open. She’d been on the wagon so long that she was hallucinating. She cupped his cheek and felt the warmth of his skin. The faint hint of stubble tickled her palm. Real.
And she wanted more.
The realization hit her, along with a rush of panic. Because she’d never wanted a man so badly.
The wrong man, she reminded herself. Then again, she didn’t know him well enough to know one way or the other at this point. Not that she would ever find out. He was temporary. A fantasy come to life.
And suddenly there seemed nothing wrong with pretending that Jake was the right man. The guy who would sweep her off her feet and carry her over the threshold and love her from this day forward, till death do us part.
It’s not as if he would ever know.
She slid her arms around his neck and gave in to the incredible urge to kiss him.
To love him.
Until the night ended and they said goodbye.
FORGET SUNLIGHT AND wooden stakes.
Neither posed half as much danger as the woman curled up next to him.
Lush. Blatantly sexual. Insatiable.
She was all three. A dream come true to a vampire who fed off sexual energy. Or she would have been except for the fact that, despite all of the above, she was an innocent.
Not a virgin, mind you.
Jake could spot those the way he sensed any other threat. She’d had her share of sexual encounters, but they’d been few and far between. Deep inside, she was naive when it came to men. Still nursing those pie-in-the-sky dreams of a knight in shining armor and forever.
Shit.
Jake eased his arm out from under her. The best thing to do was cut his losses and get the hell out of here right now.
Sure, he’d planned to rejuvenate all night, but the last thing—the very last thing—he needed to do was spend an entire night with Nikki Braxton.
Not because she wanted more from him than he could give but because for a few crazy seconds he’d actually wanted to give her more.
When she’d slid her arms around his neck and stared deep into his eyes as if he were the love of her life, he’d actually let himself get caught up in the fantasy, as well.
He’d liked having a woman look at him with something other than lust in her eyes. He’d liked it too damned much. So much that he’d forgotten himself for those few seconds and the hunger had reared its ugly head and he’d come this close—this friggin’ close—to tasting more than just her sex.
Holy shit.
He sat up and threw his legs over the side of the bed. She slept soundly next to him. But he had no illusions that she would stay that way. She would wake just as soon as she regained her strength. Hot and eager for another round.
Her brow furrowed as if she sensed his sudden movement. He touched her forehead and stroked away the worry lines.
Relax. He sent the silent thought and her expression eased.
He reached for the sheet that bunched at the bottom of the bed. He meant to pull it up over her. He really did. But then his gaze snagged on her pink toes and he couldn’t help himself. He wanted to look at her.
One last look.
His gaze traveled over delicate ankles, up her calves, her knees, to her hips. The single strip of pubic hair leading to the slit that separated her lush pink lips.
Jealousy burned through him as he thought of someone—male or female—waxing and pampering and touching her so intimately. Truthfully he’d never cared much for all the primping that most women did these days. He’d come from an era where natural was in. Staring at Nikki, however, he had to admit that he sort of liked the look.
He liked everything about her.
Before he could think too much on the subject, he forced his attention up and on, over her soft, smooth stomach to her rose-tipped breasts. He traced the indentation of her clavicle, the smooth column of her throat.
Her strawberry-blond hair fanned out across the pillow. Her nostrils flared, and a soft snore rumbled past her slightly parted lips.
Pull the sheet up, he told himself. Now.
Before he could get the cover past her waist, his attention snagged on one dark nipple. His mouth watered as he remembered the tight bud against his tongue. As if he’d actually reached out, the tip grew hard, swelling beneath his eyes. He felt the energy whirling inside of her, the wildness as it stirred and grew.
“Where are you going?” Her soft voice pushed past the thunder of his heart, and his gaze collided with hers.
Rich, golden eyes fringed in long eyelashes stared back at him. He had the fleeting thought that he’d climbed from the bed on purpose.
Get while the getting is good, a voice reminded him.
But then she smiled and touched his throbbing erection, and suddenly the only thing he could think of was how he wanted inside of her again.
5
THE FIRST FIERY FINGERS of dawn threatened the horizon as Jake straddled the black-and-chrome motorcycle parked in front of the Skull Creek Inn and keyed the ignition.
He kicked the bike into gear, and a roar split open the early-morning silence. He gunned the engine and shifted into first. Gravel spewed as he left the parking lot behind and swerved out onto Main Street.
A few seconds later, he hit the county road leading out of town and picked up his speed. The wind whipped at him, but it did little to cool the fire heating him from the inside out. He was wired. Fully charged. His senses more alive than they’d been in a very long time.
Over the buzz of the wind he heard the rustle of a rabbit in the nearby brush, the buzz of the crickets, the frantic rrringgg of an alarm clock at the farmhouse barely visible on the horizon. From the corner of his eye he saw a grass snake slither into a nearby bush, the glitter of eyes as a squirrel skittered up a tree. Despite the fading darkness, the stars seemed brighter and the moon a more vibrant silver.
The sharp scent of hay tickled his nostrils, along with the spicy aroma of apples and pumpkins from one of the nearby farms. He smelled the dusty scent of the gravel road before him and the clean tingle of fresh water being pumped from a well a few miles away.
But more than anything he smelled her.
The sweet scent of cotton candy and warm, ripe woman clung to him and filled his head and made him want to haul the bike around and head back to the inn.
To her.
Eight hours, and he still hadn’t had enough. When he’d left her, she’d felt as hot and vibrant as the moment he’d met her, and so he’d had a hell of a time tearing himself away. Shit, he’d stayed an extra ten minutes. Touching her with his eyes. Tracing her features. Watching her sleep. Wanting to touch her again with a desperation he’d never felt before.
He gunned the engine faster, eating up gravel at a frenzied pace.
Ten friggin’ minutes.
He still couldn’t believe it. One had turned to two, and before he’d known it, the alarm on his watch had gone off, sending a jolt of reality through him. He had to get to shelter before he burned to a crisp.
He saw his turn just up ahead. It was little more than a break in the trees, but the path up into the hills was smooth and wide enough for his bike. He slowed and swerved and then he hauled ass again, ducking every so often to avoid a low-hanging branch. Time ticked away and soon pinpoints of light broke through the trees. A few deadly rays needled him here and there as he rushed for cover.
Faster.
Faster.
There.
The trees thinned, and he saw the mouth of the large cave he’d scoped out the night before. A burst of heat washed over him as he broke into a clearing and zoomed the last few feet into the welcoming blackness. The pain blinded him and he skidded to a stop, barely missing the rock wall to his right. The engine ground to a halt and died.
Jake sat there for several seconds, letting the darkness swallow him up and cool his burning flesh. The smell of smoke faded and his vision soon returned. He blinked, and his eyes quickly adjusted to the pitch-black interior.
He shifted into neutral and walked the bike several feet. Rounding a corner, he headed deeper into the cave. The faint sound of running water lured him until the small tunnel he traveled finally opened up into a large black cavern. Water bubbled from an underground spring nearby, dribbling over the rocks and splattering into a small, crystal clear pool.
He killed the engine and parked the bike. Grabbing the leather saddlebags draped over the gas tank, he retrieved his sleeping bag and stretched it out on the dirt floor. He tossed his hat to the ground and pulled off his T-shirt before turning his attention to the rest of his body. He’d suffered only minor burns—his hands, his neck, the bottom of his face—thanks to his unplanned delay back at the inn, but the pain was still excruciating.
Enough to make him wince as he lowered himself onto the soft down.
Enough to distract him from the delicious scent of her that had rubbed off on his skin and the sugary taste that lingered on his lips and the vision—her lusty body flushed and ripe, her eyes closed, her full lips parted on a moan—that filled his head.
He was injured. Even more, he was fully charged and satisfied, and so the need for her—for any woman—had been completely and totally satisfied.
But as he stretched out on his back, tucked the edge of his saddlebag beneath his head and closed his eyes, he couldn’t seem to relax. The minutes ticked by and instead of focusing on tomorrow—he planned to scope out Town Square and see if he could get a sense for the exact spot where the turning would take place—he found himself thinking about the past few hours.
He heard her soft voice in his head, saw her stretched out beneath him and felt the velvety softness of her skin against his lips. He tasted the ripe essence of her sex as she came against his mouth, and for the first time in his entire existence Jake McCann had the incredible urge to go back for seconds.
Not that he would, of course.
One night was all that he could and would give to any woman.
Even one as sweet and lush as Nikki Braxton.
Particularly one as sweet and lush as Nikki.
The way she’d stared up at him, as if he were a man rather than a monster—as if he were the man—made him forget his past and the torment that ate at his soul.
