Page 20 of Exorcise Me
“Experience?” His eyes darkened slightly. “What kind of experience did you have in mind, exorcist?”
The way he said ‘exorcist’—like it was both a tease and a term of endearment—made heat pool in my stomach.
“The kind Father Finnegan would definitely not approve of,” I said, stepping closer until our bodies nearly touched. “The kind that involves you. A lot of you.”
Lucien’s free hand came up to cup my cheek, his touch achingly gentle. “Noah,” he said, my name a caress on his lips. “Are you sure? Once we cross this line—once you consciously choose this—there’s no going back to the person you were before.”
I leaned into his touch, my decision already made. “I don’t want to go back to who I was. I want to discover who I can be.” I turned my face, pressing a kiss to his palm. “With you.”
Something flashed in his eyes—a hunger deeper than mere desire, a need that mirrored my own. Then his mouth was on mine, and conversation became unnecessary.
This kiss was different from our others—less frantic, more deliberate. A conscious choice rather than a dam breaking. Hislips moved against mine with exquisite patience, as if we had all the time in the world. Perhaps, for him, we did.
I wound my arms around his neck, pressing my body against his, seeking the heat and solidity I’d missed these past days. He responded by deepening the kiss, his tongue teasing mine, his hands moving to my waist to pull me closer.
“Three days is too long,” he murmured against my lips. “Don’t send me away again.”
“I won’t,” I promised, then gasped as his mouth moved to my neck, finding a spot that made my knees weaken.
“Good,” he said, voice rough with desire. “Because I’ve thought of nothing but this—” his teeth grazed my pulse point “—and this—” his hands slid under my shirt, fingertips tracing patterns on my skin “—and especially this—” he rolled his hips against mine, the hard evidence of his arousal pressing against my own.
I groaned, head falling back to give him better access to my neck. “Bedroom,” I managed. “Now.”
His chuckle vibrated against my skin. “So demanding.” But he was already guiding me backward, his mouth never leaving my body for more than a moment.
We stumbled toward the bedroom, shedding clothing as we went. My shirt was discarded somewhere in the hallway. His followed moments later. By the time we reached the bed, we were both down to just pants, breathing hard, skin flushed with desire.
Lucien pushed me gently onto the mattress, following me down, his body a welcome weight above mine. In the soft afternoon light, he looked almost otherworldly—too perfect to be real, yet solid and warm against me.
“I missed you too,” he confessed, his voice softer than I’d ever heard it. “More than I should have.”
The admission made something warm bloom in my chest. I reached up, tracing the sharp line of his jaw, the fullness of his lower lip. “Tell me something true,” I whispered. “Something real about you that no one else knows.”
He stilled, surprise flickering across his face. Then he leaned down, his lips brushing my ear. “I’ve existed for seven centuries,” he murmured, “and no one has ever seen me the way you do.”
The words settled into me like stones dropping into still water, ripples of meaning expanding outward. I turned my head, capturing his mouth with mine, trying to pour everything I couldn’t yet say into the kiss.
He responded with equal fervor, his hands exploring my body with newfound reverence, as if mapping territory he intended to claim permanently. I arched into his touch, my own hands busy with the button of his pants, eager to feel all of him against me.
“Patient,” he murmured against my lips, even as he helped me push the fabric down his hips. “We have time.”
“Three days was enough waiting,” I countered, working my own pants off with his help.
Then we were both naked, skin against skin, and coherent thought fled. Lucien’s body was a marvel—all lean muscle and smooth skin that seemed to glow from within. I ran my hands down his chest, across his stomach, lower, watching his pupils dilate as I wrapped my fingers around him.
“Noah,” he groaned, the sound sending shivers down my spine. “You’re playing with fire.”
“Maybe I want to burn,” I replied, stroking him slowly, reveling in the way his breath hitched.
His smile was wicked as he moved down my body, pressing kisses to my chest, my stomach, the sensitive juncture of mythigh. “Then let me show you what it means to burn for someone.”
What followed was an education in pleasure I hadn’t known was possible. Lucien used his mouth and hands with devastating skill, bringing me to the edge again and again only to back away, building a tension so exquisite it bordered on pain.
“Please,” I finally gasped, my body trembling with need. “Lucien, I need—”
“What?” he asked, raising his head to meet my gaze, his eyes glowing with inhuman intensity. “Tell me what you need, Noah.”
“You,” I said simply. “All of you.”
