by Shania Tyler
But her eyes were drawn to the double doors in the back of the room, and though she didn’t know for sure what was in that room, she suspected a bed.
Theo’s fingers settled on her shoulders, and he pushed her hair out of the way before placing a kiss to her neck. She closed her eyes and locked her knees as his lips traveled up and rested on the pulse that beat furiously in her throat.
His hands slid down her arms and he whispered, “Had I been given a thousand years, I’d never have dreamt of someone as perfect as you.”
She smiled and thought the same about him. He was perfect, and it went beyond his haunting good looks. He was a protector, courageous, kind to his servants, and sweet with her. He was the perfect guy, vampire or not. She turned and kissed him just as a knock came to the door.
Their lips parted and Theo went to the door. He grabbed the bottle, the cup, and closed the door behind him. Then he went to the sideboard and started to open the wine.
Piper walked over to him and picked up the cup. “It’s beautiful.” She turned it in the dim light and gazed at the images depicted on each side. A pair of floating hands were opened to a long road.
“It was carved from the sacred trees of my homeland.”
“Morwen isn’t your homeland?” she asked, turning to him.
“No,” he said as he popped the cork. “My people originate from Corena. It’s a place south of here. Not far from your homeland in Ucrary.”
“What’s Corena like?”
“I think it would be like the places I read about in some of the westerns Mason gave me. Fields of endless grass and open land,” he told her and poured the wine into the cup. It was a deep and rich blue. “The wine is grown in a secret garden in Corena and only drank for the most special of occasions.”
“Such as?”
He took the cup and said, “Victories in times of war, births…” He grinned. “Weddings.”
She turned fully toward him and watched the shadows play over his features. A small fire burned in a corner of the room and the light danced in his eyes. A wedding. When he’d said forever, she hadn’t known he’d meant to take her as his wife.
“You’re thinking something.”
She blinked and nodded. “Yes, I was thinking that I’ve never had someone propose to me before.”
He drew his brows together and tapped a finger against the cup. “What did you think I was doing every time I asked for you?”
“I don’t know.” She shrugged. “Shacking up, maybe?”
“Shacking up?” He put the cup down and gave her his full attention. His frown worsened and his eyes flickered over her face. “What’s that?”
She touched his arm. “It’s when two people simply live together without making anything official.”
“No,” Theo quickly said. “I will not accept that. I want you as my wife. I want something official. There will be no question—”
Piper silenced him by placing her fingers over his lips. And then she smiled. “I didn’t mean I didn’t want to marry you. I only meant that I hadn’t expected it. Ever. I mean, yeah, guys liked me, but…” Her smile widened. “I just never thought.”
He still looked heated as he grabbed her wrist and moved her hand away. “I want to kill every person who’s ever hurt you.”
Her eyes widened, but she was too dumbstruck to talk.
He went on. “I want to kill every person who ever made you feel as though you were unworthy of devotion and adoration.” He took her hands into his and said, “Piper, I want to become one with you. To live as husband and wife, to share the good and bad moments with you, take care of each other, and honor one another until we pull our last breath. Is that not what you want?”
Piper blinked, and tears fell from her eyes. Theo’s vows were the most powerful words she’d ever heard, leaving a lasting impression on her mind and filling her heart fully. She loved him. A week in this man’s presence, and she was in love.
And he wanted to know if what he’d promised was what she wanted.
“Yes, Theo,” she whispered. “I want to be with you just as you described it, sharing the good and bad, caring for you, and honoring you.” She reached up and touched his cheek, resting it on the hard line of his jaw. “Until our last breath.”
He kissed her, and Piper couldn’t have imagined a more intimate moment than the one they’d shared. He broke the kiss and lifted the wine glass. Then he took a sip, all while staring into her eyes, and then handed it to her.
Piper took the cup and asked, “Do we not need witnesses?” She took a sip. The deal was done.
“The gods are our witnesses.” Then he narrowed his eyes and asked, “Is this a requirement where you are from?” He held the cup at his chest. He’d not taken a sip yet.
“Yeah,” she said, drinking more. It was delicious. “Or how else is anyone to believe you’re married?”
“They will know,” Theo said with authority. His eyes said there would be no questioning it.
Piper laughed.
“More?” he asked as he grabbed up the wine bottle.
“Later,” she told him and put the cup down. Then she moved closer to him and wrapped her arms around his back. Then she pressed her head to his chest and inhaled deeply. The man in her arms was her husband. She was married. She smiled.
He stroked her hair and his fingers moved down the strands that cascaded down her back. He was so warm and strong. Home.
He pulled her head back and looked into her eyes. Then his mouth descended on hers.
Theo knew every step he’d taken in his life had been to bring him to this moment. Piper was his and as he took her mouth, he could feel the mystical currents of desire began to stir. It was beyond them both. An energy that came from the ground that wove around them and pulled them together.
The kiss deepened.
Piper tightened her hold on him, and he lifted her back into his arms and left the room.
Past the door, he dropped her on the bed and then joined their mouths back together. Piper’s breathing was just as rushed as her fingers, which she skimmed over his shirt and jacket and began pushing them off his shoulders.
He brought himself up on the bed and shrugged out of his jacket and then froze as Piper dragged the thin straps of her dress down and the scrap of pink material fell to her hips. Her breasts were uncovered, and Theo thought he’d never seen a more beautiful pair in his life. He threw his jacket, leaned toward Piper, and took one of her pert nipples into his mouth.
Piper took in a short breath, grabbed his head, and opened her legs. “Theo,” she groaned.
Her scent filled his lungs and caused a swimming sensation in his mind. He wanted to slow them down, but he wanted her too much.
He heard a button pop and then lifted to find Piper’s fingers wrapped around the two halves of his shirt.
Their eyes met.
“I can’t wait,” she whispered.
Neither could he.
They quickly undressed.
Theo pulled his shirt over his head, kicked off his shoes, and undid his pants, all while watching the tantalizing Piper stand up on his bed and shiver out of her dress. A pair of white lacy underthings came off next. She tossed both at him.
He caught them and grinned up at her. She was the most stimulating creature he’d ever seen and she was all his. His eyes roamed over her. Her body was lean and her curves tight. His eyes fell to the place that would welcome him in.
He grabbed her legs, and she fell with a laugh to the bed.
Piper landed on the piles of blankets on the mattress and giggled as Theo traced his fingers down her legs, but the sound stopped when she felt those fingers venture up her inner thigh. His hand then traveled back down to her knees and Piper found feel him stroking her to life. But if she was any more alive, she’d go up in flames. “Theo,” she whispered.
“Yes?” His breath brushed her lower lips right before he kissed her there.
Piper shot off the bed, or would have, had Theo
not been holding her down. His mouth played with her, his tongue lapping while he kissed the apex of her body in the same manner he’d ravished her lips. Piper felt herself spinning toward completion with each stroke until she came.
The violence of it surprised her, sparks of lightning seemed to flash before her eyes, and then Theo was over her, joining their mouths together right before he plunged inside her.
They groaned.
Theo slowly moved forward, and Piper pushed her hips toward him, and shuddered beneath him as he filled her in a way that no other man had. She wrapped her hands around Theo’s shoulder as his hips began an unforgiving rhythm inside of her, stroking with powerful thrusts, and touching every sensitive spot over and over again. She met his demanding pumps with a rotation of her hips that made his eyes roll back.
“Piper.” Her name shuddered from his lips and traveled down his body. “Oh, gods.”
She moaned as he went faster and his pumps became more brutal, massaging her insides, and heating her body back to the boiling point. It had never felt like this before. There was a madness with their mating, a possession of their bodies that left them both primal, driven by a force of need that would surely kill them if it had gone denied a moment later.
He was right. They’d waited too long. Theo felt so good that it almost hurt to think she’d ever gone without him. He’d been right to demand forever from her, because after tonight, there would be no going back. She could not live without this. Without him.
His lips parted and his fangs stood out like twin white gems in his mouths. His body was trembling with every thrust.
Piper convulsed when she finally came. Theo roared, met her body with a few last powerful thrusts, and emptied himself inside of her.
He fell onto the bed and took long pulls of air.
Piper managed to find the energy to turn her head so she could look at the man who’d brought her nothing but pure joy and happiness. His body glowed from the dew of sweat. His eyes were closed and her gaze was drawn to his lashes, then his cheeks, and finally his mouth where his fangs still peeked out.
He opened his eyes and turned his head to face hers. She had no clue what he was thinking. His dark eyes were unreadable, and Piper felt the urge to squirm underneath his gaze.
He sat up on an elbow and gazed down at her entire body and her eyes went to the black strands of hair on his head. She reached up and pushed the wet strands of his dark hair back, and his black eyes found hers once more.
He placed his free hand on her stomach and rubbed his thumb against her still warm skin. She felt sensitive everywhere, as though their lovemaking had woken extra sensors in her body. She was glad he was touching her, but she still had no clue what was bouncing around in his mind. Was he disappointed? Had he compared her to other lovers and found her lacking, when ever since she’d met him she’d had the best moments of her life? Was she alone in the afterglow of their coming together?
“I would give up everything for you.” His words woke Piper up from her thoughts.
Her eyes widened.
His eyes narrowed at her. “Everything. I would give up my every possession to have you. How do men live without finding this? How could I have thought to exist without ever having you in my life? It seems inconceivable now.” His hand touched her cheek and wiped the tears that were falling from her eyes.
Piper hadn’t noticed she’d started to cry, but his words made her fill so full inside. She was surprised she didn’t burst into light with all the happiness that rested over her heart. She wondered how she found the strength to breathe and then she choked as a sob came up her throat. She covered her face with her hands, disappointed in herself for showing him just how much he’d touched her. She hated crying. She’d stopped doing it a long time ago. No one ever cared. It never changed anything.
But now, everything had changed. She would never have to worry about where she belonged. She would never have to worry about pain or emptiness. She had Theo and like he’d said before, she’d give up anything for him, because she already knew that nothing else would feel as right as this.
She felt exposed by her feelings and slightly ashamed, but then she felt Theo cover her body with his own very warm one. He cupped a hand behind her back and pulled her into his chest, sheltering her and cradling her as though she were a child.
Blankets were pulled over them, one after the other, until Piper felt herself cocooned with him, buried in a place where no one else could fit or find them. She wanted to stay there forever. She wrapped her arms around him and rested her head on his firm shoulder.
I love you.
The words were whispered in her mind. She’d never loved anyone before, besides Meg, Kelly, and Ethan. She’d never loved her parents, since she hadn’t known them. She’d never loved a man. They’d never stayed along enough for her to love them, and they’d never made her feel like Theo did.
I love you.
It wasn’t enough to think it. She wanted to share everything with him. She wanted him to know her feelings. She panicked at the thought of exposing herself further and giving her heart to someone who could break it, but he had to know.
She sat up in their taco blanketing and met his eyes and was startled to find him grinning at her. There was the softest look she’d ever seen in his eyes. A fluttering erupted in her stomach.
She sucked her teeth and her fist came down on his chest, but since she was wrapped so tight against him, her hand didn’t travel far enough to cause pain. “You’re reading my mind.”
“You’re thinking very loudly,” he told her.
She wanted to hit him again, but instead groaned and let her head fall on his chest. Then, she shut him out of her mind and was amazed as how easy she found it to be. It was as easy as closing a door.
Theo chuckled.
Piper bit her lip. Kelly had told her that pavos and pavas could read each other’s thoughts, but she hadn’t known it would happen this quickly. She’d have rather told Theo she loved him verbally, but now he knew.
One of his hands settled on her bottom while the other stroked her back. Then he kissed her hair and said, “Look at me.”
She only buried her face deeper into his chest.
He laughed and it vibrated against her face. “Piper, my love, look at me.”
Well, if he was going to call her his love…
She lifted her face.
He was still smiling and said, “I love you.”
She thought her face would break with how wide she was smiling. “Really?”
He laughed again and rolled them over until she was on her back.
She moaned at just how warm she was. Their legs were tangled together. They fit perfectly.
He moved her hair from her face and said, “Yes. I love you.”
She squealed and then he kissed her. Hard.
She moaned again and felt heat lick her from the inside out. A moment ago, she hadn’t been thinking about sex, yet with the press of lips she was ready.
His voice was rough when he said, “I want you again.”
“I’ll kill you if you don’t take me.” And she wasn’t sure she’d been joking. It was just that powerful.
He spread her legs, effectively untangling from the sheets and then he entered her again. His body shook, and he grunted. His voice was rough and deeper, “I might need you all night. I don’t know if I can help myself.”
Piper rolled her body where they were joined.
He hissed and his teeth flashed again. “And I’ll need blood.”
“Yes,” she whispered. “Take me. Take everything.”
They were all the words he needed.
* * *
17
CHAPTER
SEVENTEEN
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Piper woke to the feel of hands rubbing up and down her inner thighs. It had been three days since she’d come to Theo’s room and nei
ther of them had left his suite. Not once. She’d been told that the Evaness had left without word hours after her and Theo had departed from the parlor, so while their enemies were gone, she and Theo had played.
And they couldn’t seem to stop.
She opened her eyes. The dim light from the fire allowed her to see the large lump of Theo’s body underneath the burgundy sheets. She grabbed the end of one, slung it back, and froze. Hands were still touching her, caressing her thighs and calves, but there was no one there.
“It’s me.” Theo’s voice came from between her legs, but she saw straight through to the fireplace.
She reached out toward where she assumed him to be and her hand touched something soft. His hair. She ran her hands through it and smiled as Theo bled into color, becoming a very naked and beautiful man before her eyes.
His dark hooded eyes grinned at her. “I think I’m starting to get the hang of my abilities.”
“I can see that,” she whispered.
He moved out of her reach and stopped touching her. Then, slowly, he vanished.
Piper continued to smile at the fireplace, but watched as the impressions of his knees lifted from the mattress and she no longer knew where he was. She sat up and reached out to where he’d been, but he wasn’t there. Her hand glided through the air and bumped into nothing.
She got onto her knees and reached farther down the massive bed.
A hand grabbed her rear and gave her cheek a squeeze.
She gasped and spun around. Then she laughed. “Theo, where are you?”
“You should know.” His voice came from the other side of the room.
“You walk very quietly.” She crawled off the bed and slowly moved to where she thought he’d spoken from.
“Noel was a trained assassin. He’s taught us many things.”
She walked toward his voice. “How did you meet him?” She’d only asked to keep him talking.
