Touch of Temptation

by Rhyannon Byrd

  A slow, deep breath filled Kellan’s chest, and he gave a slow shake of his head. “No. If I’m smart, Chloe, then I’ll stick as close to you as possible, for as long as I’ve got.”

  “You make it sound like you don’t have long.” Her words no longer held their teasing edge, her delicate brows drawn into a troubled vee.

  His mouth twisted with a wry smile, his hot gaze glued to her perfect breasts as he said, “We’re in the middle of a war, honey. Things are only going to get uglier from here on out.”

  “But you’ll be careful, right?”

  “I always am,” he said a little too easily, and she scowled as she crossed her arms over her chest, covering what he figured was the closest view of heaven he was ever going to get.

  “Damn it, I’m serious, Kellan.” Rough, shaky words that held an unmistakable edge of fear. “Promise me that you’ll be careful. That you won’t do anything reckless.”

  “I promise that I won’t do anything that’s not absolutely necessary.” She started to argue, but he cut her off, saying, “Didn’t I mention you should lose the jeans?”

  She took a few trembling breaths, obviously debating whether to keep arguing with him…or to get on with more enjoyable activities. He felt a sharp surge of relief when she finally reached for the button on her jeans again, then paused, sliding him a sultry look through her lashes. “What about you?”

  “What about me?” he asked, watching the way she pulled her lower lip through her teeth again. For as long as he lived, Kellan knew he’d never forget what it’d felt like when she’d taken him into her mouth when they’d been at the compound. And now he couldn’t wait to return the favor, needing her taste on his lips so badly he wanted to howl with the hunger.

  “I’ll take the jeans off when you take off yours,” she told him, the enticing scent of her body mingling with the warmth of the fire, pushing his hunger into something that was even darker than he’d feared it would be. But he couldn’t fight it.

  Just need to take it slow. Need to stay in control for as long as possible.

  Moving to his feet, Kellan repeated the mental commands as he ripped off his sweater, then reached into one of the back pockets on his jeans and pulled out a string of foil-wrapped condoms.

  “I don’t believe it.” A soft burst of giggles spilled from her lips. “Where on earth did those come from?”

  With a sharp smile, he tossed the rubbers onto the rug in front of the fire, not far from where she stood. “I stole them from Seth.”

  “You didn’t!” She laughed, her shoulders shaking as she covered her mouth with her hand. “Don’t you think he’s going to miss them?”

  “Nah. It’s not like he needs them right now. And we do.”

  “Are you sure you got enough?” she snorted, glancing down at the long strip, before lifting her sparkling gaze back to his.

  “Actually, this is only part of what I took,” he confessed with a slow, sin-tipped grin. “I figured we could save the others for tomorrow.”

  She was still laughing and shaking her head when Kellan started undoing his fly, though her laughter faded into a sharp, breathless silence the instant she realized what he was doing. Locking his jaw, he shoved both boxers and jeans over his hips, pulling them off together before flinging them toward a nearby chair.

  “Unbelievable,” she whispered, staring right at the heavy length of his cock, the plum-shaped head already dark and slick with moisture….

  “Unbelievable?” A rusty bark of laughter rumbled up from his chest, and he ran a hand over the back of his neck. “I think I’m almost afraid to ask what you mean by that.”

  “Sorry,” she offered in a hoarse voice, her gaze moving up and down his body with greedy, provocative strokes that felt like physical touches, her chest rising and falling with the quickening rhythm of her breath. “It’s, uh, just that this is the first time I’ve seen you completely naked and you’re, uh…well, you’re pretty breathtaking, Kell.”

  His face burned with heat, and he closed his eyes, fighting for control. It was crazy that such a simple declaration could have such an extreme effect on him, but damn, the ache in his dick doubled, and he covered his face with a hand.

  “Are you blushing?” she asked, and he could hear the smile in her voice.

  “Guys don’t blush,” he muttered, lowering his hand and sliding her a mock glare.

  “You are blushing! Oh, God, that’s too funny.”

  Completely charmed, Kellan found himself standing there with the unlikely combination of a massive hard-on and a goofy-assed grin, and in that moment, he finally realized just how dangerous this woman could be to his heart. Not to mention just how deeply it was going to cut when he lost her. But Christ, how could he not go sappy over her? She made him laugh. Put her trust in him. Stood up for him. For the first time in his life, he was going to bed down with a woman who saw him as something more than a good fuck, and it made a difference. One he’d never been able to comprehend until that moment.

  “Come here,” he rasped, finally allowing himself to reach out and snag her hand, unable to wait a second more to feel her in his arms.

  Need her under me, the wolf snarled, prowling the confines of his body, but he fought against its feral pull, terrified he’d scare her away before they even got going.

  “Is your shoulder okay?” she asked, while he pulled her closer.

  “Honey, of all the things hurting on my body right now—” rough, gritty words that made it sound like he’d gargled with gravel “—my shoulder is the least of my worries.”

  “I’m serious, Kell.”

  “Look,” he told her, twisting his upper body to the side so that she could see for herself. “It’s nearly healed.”

  Their gazes locked, something sharp and electric passing between them as she said, “Are you sure this won’t make you feel bad?”

  “What do you mean?”

  She drew an unsteady breath. “I’m worried about how the poison’s affecting you.”

  Brushing her hair back from her face, he said, “Don’t worry about the poison, Chloe. I’m fine.”

  A shadow of suspicion darkened her gaze, making him feel like a total jackass. “Gregory said something about you—”

  “God,” he grunted, cutting her off as he settled his hands against the tender curve of her waist. “Don’t give any credence to what Gregory said. He was just screwing with us.”

  “And why didn’t you tell me that you’d let yourself get bitten as a part of a deal with the Reykers?”

  “That was only because I don’t like to even think about it, much less talk about it. But I wasn’t trying to keep it from you,” he lied, pulling her tighter against his body as she shivered. “Cold?”

  She nodded, wrapping her arms around his waist, her cheek pressed against the hammering beat of his heart, and Kellan lowered his head, touching his lips to the tender shell of her ear. “Then I guess I’d better get you warm.” He was determined to give her something better to think about than Gregory and that bloody poison. Lifting her into his arms, he laid her on the rug that spread out over the floor, the heat of the fire washing over her delicate skin, painting her body with shimmering waves of warm, luminous gold.

  “You’re so bloody beautiful,” he groaned, hungrily taking a tight, sweet nipple into the heat of his mouth, loving the way she dug her fingers into his hair as his hands ripped at the fastenings on her jeans. Within seconds, he had her stripped, his weight braced on his arms and knees as he caged her beneath his body, his breaths coming in a hard, ragged rhythm while he stared down at her, wanting to be everywhere at once. “God, Chloe. I’m gonna fuck you so hard tonight.”

  She shivered, her eyes growing heavy in response to his graveled words, while her cheeks burned with color, and Kellan lowered his head, hiding his smile against her breast, thinking she was the most adorable thing he’d ever known. Not to mention the sexiest.

  “Why are you making me wait?” she gasped, her hands stroking h
is shoulders and chest. “Why…why not now? Damn it, you should already be inside me!”

  “Because there’s something I’ve gotta do first,” he said in a dark, husky drawl, wedging his knees between her legs as he kissed his way down her body, loving the way she tasted…the intoxicating scent of her skin. “I want your knees spread as wide as they’ll go,” he growled against the soft, dark curls at the top of her mound, and she cried out as he slid his thumbs through the thick, drenched flesh between her thighs, opening her…spreading her, wanting it so badly he could feel the hunger pulsing in every cell of his body, his cock so full and thick he thought he might burst.

  Unable to hold himself back a second more, Kellan pressed his open mouth against the soft, voluptuous heat of her sex, and in a stunning jolt of discovery, he realized she was even more addictive than he’d feared. He made a thick, raw sound in his throat, then went wild, licking and lapping at her silky flesh, his tongue lashing against the swollen heat of her clit as he pressed a thumb inside her, pumping it into that deliciously tight, plush sheath. Hot. Wet. Mouthwatering. She was the most exquisite thing Kellan had ever known, and he couldn’t get enough of her, every swirl of his tongue across her moist flesh pulling a guttural snarl from his lips. She tasted like something that belonged to him, damn it. Something that was his to own, to possess, and as he pressed his face harder against her, his body burning with heat, shuddering with need, he knew his control was slipping away….

  And there wasn’t a bloody thing he could do to stop it.

  CHLOE HAD ALWAYS WONDERED what oral sex would feel like, and as Kellan went at her with another ravenous stroke of his tongue, all she could think was that nothing in her entire life had ever felt better.

  Lifting her head, she reached down to him with a trembling hand, brushing the thick, damp strands of his hair away from his face. “Kellan,” she whispered in between her panting breaths. “Open your eyes.”

  He shook his head, his brow creasing as he squeezed his eyes shut even tighter, his mouth eating at her with a primal, hungry avidity that told her just how much he enjoyed what he was doing.

  “Please, look at me,” she moaned, knowing she wasn’t going to last much longer. “I want…I want to see your eyes when I come.”

  He cursed under his breath, then slowly opened his eyes, staring at her through his lashes, and she understood then why he’d closed them. He hadn’t wanted her to see the glowing blue irises that held so much more of the wolf than they did of the man, the unearthly color smoldering with a dark, dangerous hunger that should have scared the hell out of her—but didn’t.

  “It’s okay,” she whispered, stroking the side of his face as if she was trying to soothe a wild animal, her fingertips cool against the feverish heat of his skin. The corner of her mouth twitched with a smile, and she told him, “Stop struggling so hard. Your wolf can come out and play if he wants to, Kell. I’m not afraid.”

  He made a thick, guttural sound, holding her heavy-lidded gaze as he took another slow, deliberate lick, his tongue soft and wet and deliciously warm, then pulled away. “You’re playing with fire,” he growled, his breath jerking from his lungs in rough, ragged gusts as he leaned over her, bracing his weight on his arms. His powerful biceps bulged, his forearms roped with muscle and sinew, every part of his body hard and rugged and outrageously beautiful. “It isn’t safe to push me, Chloe. To tempt me to lose control.”

  “I don’t care,” she whispered, pushing her hands into the thick locks of his hair, the damp strands like heavy silk. “I can’t stand to have you hiding from me, Kell. I just…” Her voice turned softer…huskier. “I want every part of you.”

  The Lycan’s molten gaze drilled into hers with a wild, visceral intensity, burning with lust, and he worked his jaw, his breathing getting louder…rougher. Without another word, he reached for the condoms that lay on the floor off to his right, ripping open one of the foil packets and unrolling the latex over the dark, vein-ridden length of his cock. Then he lowered himself over her body again, bracing his weight on one hand, while he reached down and fisted his other hand around his cock, giving it a rough squeeze. A surreal sense of rightness flowed through her, and Chloe touched her fingertips to the swollen heat of her sex, then lifted the glistening digits to his parted lips as she spread her legs wider, offering herself up to him…fearlessly tempting the beast. The firelight cast shadows across the hard, masculine angles of his face, his eyes dilated with savage, primal lust, and he growled as he licked her fingers, the mesmerizing blue of his eyes burning brighter as his nostrils flared. She could feel the predatory animal prowling within him, demanding its freedom, and he started to look away, turning his head, when she reached for him. “No, look at me,” she whispered, cupping his cheek in her hand, refusing to let him hide from her. “I want to watch your eyes when it happens. When you come inside me.”

  Some kind of dark, primitive sound tore from his throat, his muscles bulging beneath his golden skin as his long fangs dropped hard and fast—and then he was driving into her, shoving all those incredibly hard, thick inches inside her, and Chloe dug her nails into his biceps, needing to anchor herself in the breathtaking storm of sensation that tore through her body. She was stretched impossibly tight around him, straining to accept his broad width as he worked his hips against her, giving her more…and more…until she’d finally taken all of him. She knew there should have been pain that came with such a deep, heavy penetration, and yet, all she could focus on were the lush swells of pleasure that pulsed through her as he started riding her body, giving her slow, grinding lunges that turned into hard, hammering thrusts, the broken curses falling from his lips the most erotic sounds she’d ever heard.

  Chloe wanted that sweet, inexorable climb to last forever, but she couldn’t hold back the devastating rush of ecstasy that consumed her body, the deep, rhythmic clenching growing stronger…tighter, until she screamed and thrashed, pushing her hips up against him, desperate for everything he could give her. He drove himself into her with one last deep, shuddering thrust, his feral gaze locked on hers, his magnificent body burning with heat, straining above her. And then he broke with a guttural roar, his shaft pulsing inside her…becoming harder…thicker, until Chloe found herself lost in another wrenching blast of ecstasy that crashed over her so hard, everything went dark and dreamy and silent. She floated…weightless…loving the way he’d collapsed against her, still slowly thrusting his hips, as if he couldn’t bear to stop.

  “I don’t believe it,” she whispered sometime later, when the world had finally come back to her and she was able to open her eyes, her breaths as soft and even as a calm sea after the raging, violent fury of a storm. “I thought I’d died, but I’m still alive.”

  “Speak for yourself,” he muttered into her hair, his sweat-slick body heavy against hers, though she could tell he was trying to keep most of his weight on the bent arms he’d braced on either side of her head.

  “I’ve never thought about doing anything like this on the floor before,” she admitted with a smile in her voice, enjoying the way his big body shivered as she ran her fingertips down the sleek, muscled length of his back. “But I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t fun.”

  “Get used to it,” Kellan rumbled, his voice pleasure-slurred as he reached down and grabbed his cock, holding the condom in place as he tried to pull out of her body, while her inner muscles fought to hold on to him. “God, I love how that feels,” he muttered under his breath, finally managing to pull free, then kind of collapsing onto the floor beside her.

  Unable to repress what had to be an idiotic smile, Chloe rolled toward him, resting her cheek on her folded hands. “Why should I get used to it? You got a thing for floors?” she asked with a soft laugh.

  He rolled onto his side and reached out, sifting his fingers through her hair, the look of sleepy satisfaction in his beautiful, heavily lashed eyes making her toes curl. “I’ve got a thing for you. One that apparently makes me insane,” he said in that
dark, velvety voice that always made her melt, his fangs no longer showing. “Can’t always promise we’ll make it to a bed.”

  Chloe started to make some teasing reply, when her inner conscience suddenly caught hold of his words, and the sensual, blissful warmth that had been slowly drifting through her body went instantly cold. “Please, don’t say things like that,” she whispered, almost dizzy from the sudden flare of guilt that seared through her system.

  His eyes narrowed with concern. “Why not?”

  Her stomach knotted with tension. “Well, you know how we’ve talked about the curse?” She lowered her gaze to his chin.

  His tone was almost painfully dry. “You mean the way you’ve spent the past few days harping at me about it?”

  Ignoring the chorus of voices in her head that were screaming for her to shut up and simply enjoy him for as long as she could, she forced herself to say, “Yeah, well, the thing is, there’s something I didn’t tell you.”

  With a sharp, explosive sigh, Kellan rolled onto his back, one hand tucked beneath his head as he stared up at the wooden rafters. “What now?”

  Chloe took a deep breath, then spoke in a quick, rambling rush. “What I didn’t tell you before was that, well, I think I might be projecting my emotions onto you. That the Merrick might somehow be corrupting the curse, twisting the spell’s power for its own purpose. See, I’ve never wanted anyone as much as I want you, and I think…actually, I’m terrified that the Merrick might somehow be using the force of that desire to get what it wants from you.”

  Popping his jaw, he slowly turned his head toward her, the look in his eyes a volatile combination of fury and frustration. “Damn it, Chloe. That’s not how the curse works and you know it.”

  “But I’m not a pure-blooded Mallory,” she argued, sitting up. “Who knows how the Merrick might affect the curse? And if I’m right, then it’s an even grosser manipulation of your emotions than the original curse. I could be forcing you to do this, Kellan. Don’t you see that?”