Page 60 of Unbound By Shadows
It felt like all the air had gone out of the room. Their eyes locked, and liquid fire pooled in her abdomen. He wanted more. More of her touch. More of her. She was helpless to deny him.
Hesitantly, she traced her fingers around his horn, slowly stroking it from the base, up the S-shaped curve to the sharp tip. It was surprisingly warm, unyielding as steel and so foreign to anything she had ever touched before.
He let out a soft moan and closed his eyes. Taking it as a sound of encouragement, she continued to caress his horn before lacing her fingers into his hair. As she did, his hand tightened on the edge of the sink while the other shot out to grip the counter opposite her knees. He stood perfectly still as she continued to touch him, twining her fingers through the dark strands and admiring how shiny they looked in the moonlight. Her heart hammered in her chest so loudly she wondered if he could hear it.
As she continued to revel in the feel of him, the back of her fingers brushed against his temple. His big body jerked in response. She waited to see if he would tell her to stop, yet he continued to stand still. A silent plea for more. Experimentally, she drew her fingers down his face and watched a look of rapture transform his features. When her hand met his jawline, Sam’s hand flew up to capture her arm.
With an agonized groan, he pressed his lips to the inside of her wrist. The searing kiss sent out jolts of heat that settled between her legs. The delicate skin of her wrist was like a conductor of erotic pleasure to the rest of her body, his mouth calling awake parts of her that she had long denied.
Her head tipped back. The pleasure of his touch, his headyfragrance, and the warmth of his body so close to hers became so overwhelming, she couldn’t suppress a moan.
His eyes flew open at the sound, and he abruptly dropped her wrist. He took a step back. “Forgive me, forgive me… my control… I… ”
He had mistaken her sound of pleasure as a protest. Selene could see him gearing up to storm off in a brooding tornado of self-loathing. But she couldn’t let that happen. He needed to know he wasn’t the only one who felt the pull they had to each other or this feeling of connection, of desire that she couldn’t seem to shake. He wasn’t going to leave her alone with those feelings, not tonight.
“Wait!” She grabbed both of his shoulders to hold him in place. And then, without thinking, weighing the pros and cons, or dissecting her decision, she kissed him fully on the mouth.
When he froze, Selene felt a stab of panic that her advances were unwelcome. But then he took a clumsy step closer and seemed to melt into her. His arms shot around her back and waist to squeeze her to him. Emboldened, Selene spread her knees, inviting him closer and offering more access to her body. He greedily accepted.
Grabbing her hips, he jerked her body toward him, and she gasped at the feel of his massive erection pressing right where she needed it most. The tips of his claws bit into her as he clasped her to him. His mouth was hot and insistent on hers. When his lips parted slightly, Selene seized the opportunity to sweep her tongue inside. He responded instantly, rolling and thrusting his tongue against hers. His taste was addictive, dark but with an edge of smoky sweetness, like good whiskey. All she wanted was more. Her head angled to the side to deepen the kiss, and she felt him shudder.
It was a kiss that spoke of hunger and desperation. A kiss of unleashed passion and barely restrained control. A kiss that burned like fire but quenched a biting ache inside her.
Her hands roved up and down his back before he traced his lips across her jaw and down her neck. The way his muscles twitched and jerked under her fingers was thrilling. Ademon—a huge, fearsome creature straight from the Underworld—was trembling under her touch. Holding her body against his as if he would die without it.
One of Sam’s hands tangled in her hair, pulling her head back to expose her throat. The light kisses on her neck turned to swirling licks of his tongue and not-so-gentle nips of teeth before his tongue danced around the V-neck of her nightgown. His touch was becoming rougher, more urgent, and she pressed closer to him. She wanted to drown in his passion. Bury herself in his strength and fully embrace the wild abandon she felt.
Smoothing his hands to her shoulders, he gathered handfuls of her nightgown, as though he were about to rip the fabric straight from her body. A tiny, practical part of her brain cried out that he was about to destroy the gorgeous nightgown Arkaya had made for her, and she stiffened.
The buttons! Use the buttons!
He seemed to notice her tension in her and growled. The sound was menacing—a wordless warning that said,don’t deny me.His fists tightened on her nightgown, and all she could gasp out was a weak, “No!”
He abruptly dropped his hands and stumbled back, his chest heaving.
Selene’s lust-addled brain wasn’t working right, so she just stared at him. When she regained the slightest composure, she opened her mouth to tell him what she meant. That she didn’t mean for him to stop completely, but he cut her off. “Don’t say a word. My control is not… This was a mistake.”
“But Sam, I—”
“Don’t!”
Her mouth snapped shut at the threat in his voice. His jaw clenched, and he looked up at the ceiling, seeming to fight for control. He ran a shaky hand over his face and then looked at her, his red eyes skimming over her bare skin before a mask of cold indifference shuttered his features. He snarled, “This cannot happen again,” then stomped out of the kitchen.
Chapter 24
Selene stayed in the kitchen for several minutes after Sam stormed off, waiting for her heart to steady. Part of her hoped he might come back, but that didn’t seem likely. Once her nerves had settled, she crept back to her room. The cold floor on her bare feet was shocking, but each step grounded her. It was clearing the fog in her head, and pulling her down to reality.
Sam’s red eyes burned in her mind when she climbed back under the covers. His words had stung, but maybe he was right. Maybe it shouldn’t happen again. Who was she fooling? Mindlessly kissing and rubbing up against someone like that. Fantasizing about having a fling, taking a lover. Letting that lover do whatever he had wanted to her right there in the kitchen. On the counter. With their hosts sleeping in the next room.
Good grief. That wasn’t like her at all.
Or was it? Damn it; she had been enjoying that kiss. And not opposed to what would happen next. For a moment, she thought about bursting into the attic to finish what they had started. Take him by the horns, so to speak, and scratch this itch so she could stop obsessing about it. But she put the idea aside.
Selene stared up at the ceiling, marveling at how much could change in just a moment. Now that their attraction to each other was out in the open, what would happen next?
When Selene came downstairs the next morning, Brunie had another full spread on the table. Instead of a roast, a tower of fried meat dominated the table. Softball-sized muffins replaced the bread rolls, with sides that looked like Aurelian versions of fried potatoes, scrambled eggs, and toast. Selene’s mouth watered.
“There she is, our lovely Selene. Good morning!” Eldridge gestured for her to pull up a chair. Sam was nowhere in sight. “Would you like some tea?”
