by Lara Adrian
Dev lifted a brow, pleased. He reached for another bottle and gave her a fresh glass while he tasted the one Nahiri had enjoyed. He liked it too. If only for the way it pleased her.
And as much as he didn’t want to admit it, he was finding Nahiri easy company. Too comfortable, considering that just the day before she’d been standing off against him, wielding her daggers on behalf of the Three.
He didn’t want to think of her as a woman first and an enemy Blade second, but seated beside her on the leather sofa, sharing wine and conversation, Dev had to acknowledge the danger here.
He couldn’t hold on to his fury about his brother’s death when he was with Nahiri. He couldn’t blame her for it, simply because of her connection to the ones who killed him.
Worse than that, he couldn’t deny that he liked Nahiri, in spite of everything that stood between them.
And that on its own was the more troubling danger.
Dev cleared his throat, wrangling his thoughts back to his brother. “The boy’s name is Kai. Marius sired him in the Harem five years ago.”
“I was born in the Harem too,” Nahiri murmured, setting down her glass. She had abandoned the new vintage for the one she’d liked better. “My mother is still there. She’s happy living in the sanctuary.”
Dev couldn’t pretend he wasn’t interested in Nahiri’s background, the things that made her who she was. “And your father,” he said, reaching to pour them each a fresh serving of the second bottle. “Do you know him?”
She shook her head. “I never met him. I heard he died not long after I was born. He was from the House of Akana, one of the last of his line, from what I understand.”
Dev acknowledged the now-extinct House with a grave nod. “Akana was a strong House. They were known for their skilled warriors.”
He could see Akana in her now, the dark eyes and exotic beauty. Not to mention Nahiri’s accomplished position as the highest ranking Blade in the temple.
“Akana was an honorable House,” he added, in case she wasn’t aware of the good in her Incubus father’s people. “It’s too bad theirs was the first Incubus line to die out. I’d have rather seen Marakel go that way first.”
Nahiri all but choked on her wine. “You’re speaking of the Sovereign. You shouldn’t say such things about the one seated on the Obsidian Throne.”
Dev shrugged. “I never wanted their House to have the Throne, and I’m not afraid to say that to anyone. Imothus Marakel is no ruler. If it had been up to me alone, I would’ve put any one of the other Houses on that seat. You’re too young to know this, but it was supposed to be the House of Romerac in power now, not Marakel. Canaan Romerac would’ve been the best choice by far, if he hadn’t abandoned his House with no explanation centuries ago.”
Dev took a drink of wine, scoffing as he set his glass down. “Hell, I’d gladly take the lethal spies of Xanthe over Marakel now. Or even Vipera’s barbarians with their twisted passions. Marakel is weak, and there are others in power around him who know this. The question is, who has the Sovereign’s ear, and what will his weakness cost us all in the end?”
Nahiri regarded him warily over the rim of her wine glass. “The Sovereign has power, but it’s not without limits. The Three will ensure the balance.”
“Will they?”
“They always have,” she replied, resolute. But despite her devotion, Dev saw the smallest flicker of uncertainty in her eyes. She shook her head as if to scatter her doubt. “Anyway, I’m glad to be removed from all of the politics. I’m even more glad to be removed from the obligation of being chosen for the Harem.”
Dev nodded, aware of the exclusion of Blades being sent to breed in the sanctuary. Still, he was curious to know more about Nahiri. “Most Nephilim consider it a great honor to serve in the pleasure palace.”
“Most,” she agreed, “but not me. It would’ve driven me mad. Lazing around on silk cushions all day with nothing to do but primp and weave flowers into my hair? Batting my eyelashes at every Incubus who swaggers in, and praying for the chance he might debauch me so I can give him a child I might never see again? No, thank you.”
Harem life wasn’t the oppressive indenture she described, but Dev was too intrigued to contradict her. Instead, he listened with rapt interest to the way she spoke so freely with him now.
Her candor was partly due to the wine, no doubt. But she was relaxing moment by moment. Her guard had come down, and it was clear she was feeling as comfortable with him as he was with her.
Dev stared at her, mesmerized by her sweet mouth, and by the way she looked at him with those soulful, fathomless brown eyes. He couldn’t keep himself from reaching out to tenderly stroke the back of his knuckles along her soft cheek. She drew in a shallow breath at the uninvited contact, but she didn’t pull away.
Dev’s voice came out thick and rough with desire. “I’m glad to know the Harem will never have you, little Blade.”
A woman like Nahiri would have been in high demand. And the thought of other Incubi touching her, lusting for her, annoyed him deeply. Aggressively so.
For fuck’s sake, what was he doing?
More to the point, what the hell was he thinking, letting himself feel any kind of jealousy or possessiveness toward this woman?
Need swamped him, swift and fierce. Heat raced through him, settling uncomfortably, and quite obviously, between his legs.
He shifted on the sofa, for all the good it did.
He poured himself more wine and downed it in one savage gulp.
If he was smart, he’d put an end to this right now. There was still a chance to clamp the brakes down on what he was feeling for Nahiri. Time enough for him to rein in his temptation and deliver his pretty prisoner back to the villa.
Better yet, back to the temple where she belonged.
He felt her gaze on him. It was as warm and tender as any caress. “I’m sorry, Dev,” she murmured gently. “About what happened to your brother and the woman he was with…I’m sorry for your loss.”
He swung a hard look at her, wanting to refuse her sympathy with a harsh remark or a cutting accusation for the trio of priestesses she served.
But he couldn’t do it.
The sound of his name on Nahiri’s lips had done something to him. All the worse after the time they’d spent here together, getting to know each other as a man and a woman, instead of the vengeful Incubus Master and the devout Nephilim Blade.
Dev wanted to feel animosity toward her.
He wanted to cling to the rage that had sent him to the temple in the first place. The same rage that had made him seek to inflict some measure of his grief and pain on the Three by taking something that belonged to them.
Maybe there had been a part of him that thought he’d find some sense of justice in sullying their finest weapon, their brightest Blade.
But not now.
He couldn’t get a firm grasp on any of those malicious intentions when Nahiri was looking at him so openly.
So trustingly.
His gaze fell to her parted lips. His heart pounded with the urge to crush her mouth beneath his.
“I want you, Nahiri.” The admission was as dark and unapologetic as he felt. “I’ve wanted you from the moment I saw you in the temple.” He hissed out a curse. “I want you so damned bad right now, it’s all I can do to keep from letting the demon side of me loose to enthrall you if that’s what it will take to have you naked beneath me.”
Her eyes widened, but she didn’t flinch. She didn’t move away from him or his carnal warning. “I thought you had plenty of other women at your disposal,” she said. “Willing women you don’t have to persuade with Incubus magic?”
He smiled, taking far too much pleasure in the fact that his boast struck a nerve in her. “What are you really asking me, Nahiri?”
She plucked at a tendril of her long, unbound hair. “Do you have a mate, Dev?”
“No.”
She glanced up at him in question. “A lover?”
>
“No lover who means anything to me,” he said. And not a single name or face even came to mind when he was looking at Nahiri.
She was tipsy from the wine. He could see it in her dark eyes, and in the relaxed, curious tilt of her head as she studied him from under the thick black fringe of her lashes. “I suppose you prefer a stable of Thralls, eager to satisfy all your needs instead?”
He smirked. “Are you volunteering for the job?”
“Never.” It was a quick reply. Too quick to be a true denial. She was looking at his mouth now, her pink tongue darting out to moisten her lips.
It was all the confirmation Dev needed.
He leaned in and caught her nape in his palm, dragging her close.
Then he took her mouth in a hungry kiss.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Nahiri had longed for his kiss from the first instant she’d seen Devlin Gravori.
Her initial craving had been all his doing—the blast of seductive energy that had rolled into the temple along with him, making every Nephilim in his path feel the urge to strip off her clothes and beg for him.
Later, after he’d brought her to his island citadel and declared her his hostage, she’d craved his kiss all on her own. Shamefully, undeniably. Powerfully.
During her time with him today, she’d begun to desire Dev in a whole new way.
With a need that staggered her.
And now, as his mouth crushed down on hers in a deep, masterful kiss, she realized that she was about to cross a threshold from which she might never return.
She wanted more of him than just his kiss.
She wanted all of him.
There was no resisting the hot demand of his lips. No denying the dizzying sweep of his tongue as he tested the seam of her mouth, then plunged inside. His kiss was scorching, ferocious, as devilishly seductive as the man himself.
Nahiri had no defenses now, and no wish at all to make this dangerous moment stop.
Overcome with sensation, melting with erotic pleasure, she speared her fingers into Dev’s silky black hair, holding him close, surrendering her mouth—her entire being—to his command.
He pressed her back onto the blood-red leather cushions, then moved atop her as his kiss delved deeper, hotter. More hungry by the moment.
Nahiri moaned, her spine arching up to meet his hard body. She couldn’t get enough of him. Couldn’t get enough of the delicious friction of their hips, where the thick ridge of his sex ground profanely against her mound.
Some thin shred of sanity warned her that as good as he felt, he was still her captor. It could be a costly mistake to trust him.
“What are you doing to me?” she managed to whisper. “Dev, we shouldn’t…”
He lifted his head, only far enough to meet her pleasure-drenched gaze. He stroked her cheek, strong fingers caressing her with infinite tenderness. “No, we shouldn’t, Nahiri. I damned well shouldn’t want you like this…but I do.”
She closed her eyes, sighing at the pleasure of his touch. “It’s wrong.”
“It’s real.” He lifted her chin, imploring her to look at him. He shook his head, exhaling a curse. “What’s happening here is real, whether either of us wants to admit it or not. And if you want me to stop, by everything holy, you’d better say so now.”
The words wouldn’t come.
She searched her soul for the will to reject what she was feeling, to convince herself that it was only demon magic that had her so enthralled with him, but Dev was right.
This was real.
And she was lost to him.
She drew him back down to her. His answering growl vibrated against her, a sound so raw and masculine it made everything female in her coil in eager response.
Dev kissed her again. Moaning deep in his throat, he plunged his tongue into her mouth and ravished her lips. His hand began to roam over her breasts. He slid his fingers into the low vee of her dress’s bodice, fondling her nipples, which beaded tight and aching under his touch.
He tore away from her mouth on a snarl. Moving lower, his dark head dipped down to kiss her breasts. As he suckled, Nahiri went boneless, pleasure flooding her.
Just when she didn’t think she could take any more, Dev came back up for another kiss. His hand lifted her long skirt, his warm palm skating up her bare thigh. Nahiri gasped, trembling at the feel of his touch skimming toward her sex.
He found her in that next moment, his fingers wading between her folds. He groaned against her mouth, his voice nothing more than a rasp.
“Ah, fuck, Nahiri. Your pussy is so soft and wet and hot. All for me…”
His raw words had the same effect on her as his questing fingers. Her vision started to blur as he stroked her, sensation racing through her like electrical charges. Each caress and tweak made her pleasure ratchet tighter. Her desire coiled taut, on the verge of a delicious explosion.
Dev kissed her deeper now, his fingers toying with the tiny nub of her sex, making her wild with the need for more.
“I want to be inside you,” he murmured thickly. “I need to be.”
His finger slipped through her wetness and into the tight entrance of her body. He penetrated her slowly, but deeply. Nahiri’s body went molten. Although she was a virgin, there was no pain for her kind, only pleasure. And the measured thrusting of his finger inside her only made her long to know the fullness of a true joining with him.
She moved in time with his strokes, unable to hold back her whimper of mounting arousal. “Please, Dev…”
His rhythm slowed, then he eased out of her. She cried out in protest, lifting her head to find him bringing his fingers to his mouth. Her moisture glistened on him. He licked it away, his gaze locked on hers in sensual promise.
“Mmm…sweet as Heaven,” he murmured, looking dark and demonic and so very wicked. He peeled off her dress, baring her to his brilliant citrine eyes. When she was naked, spread out before him, he smiled. “And sexy as sin, little angel.”
He was still clothed, the front of his black suit pants tented at the front. Nahiri couldn’t look away from him. She quivered in anticipation, wanting to feast her eyes and fill her senses with him too.
Dev arched a brow, grinning as if he could read the wanton direction of her thoughts. He took hold of her ankles and pivoted her on the sofa. Sitting at the edge of the soft leather, she could hardly summon breath as he reached down and spread her legs wide before him.
“So sweet and sexy,” he growled, his hot gaze taking her in. “I want to eat you up.”
He sank down between her thighs. His dark head descended on her core. The instant his mouth touched her, Nahiri arced up on a jagged cry.
He caught her hips, holding her steady beneath him as his tongue licked her cleft in maddeningly erotic strokes, from the swollen, throbbing pearl at its crest to the tight rosebud nestled between her cheeks.
Pleasure poured into every cell in her body. Her senses lifted, rising higher, then higher still.
Dev kept on suckling her, and soon that rising pleasure began to concentrate and build.
It exploded, bright white, brilliant.
She gasped a sharp scream of ecstasy as Dev’s mouth sent her soaring, weightless, utterly free.
As she slowly drifted back down into her skin, she found him looking up at her. His mouth still moved over her sensitive sex, but tenderly now. Gentling her descent back to Earth.
“You were right,” she murmured, panting. Her body was still electrified, shuddering with aftershocks. “What you told me in the helicopter earlier. There are other ways to fly.”
Dev’s grin was devilish, one dark brow notched over his gleaming eyes. “Angel, we’re only getting started.”
~ ~ ~
Her sweet taste lingered on his tongue as he rose from between her creamy thighs. He had no patience for his clothing now, stripping it off with rough, careless hands while Nahiri watched him.
He stood before her naked, his cock stiff and upright, the heavily veined sha
ft on fire, its swollen, blood-engorged head weeping with the need to be buried inside her.
She reached for him and he obliged, moving forward until her slender fingers wrapped his girth in a warm, tentative grip. Curiosity shone in her dark eyes, amazement in the soft gasp that slipped from her parted lips.
Dev steeled himself for her exploring strokes. His legs spread slightly, hands fisted at his sides, he had to focus just to stand there and breathe as Nahiri traced her fingertips along his length, then through the clear bead of moisture that oozed from his tip and ran down the underside of his cock.
When she leaned forward to press her mouth to him, his blood spiked as though he’d just been hit with a bolt of lightning. The demon in him snapped awake with hunger, urging him to feed.
He’d been careful with Nahiri so far, not wanting to scare her off with the siphoning energy of his Incubus nature.
But it was no small feat to keep the demon in check while she caressed him, kissed him…making him ravenous for her in every possible sense of the word.
On a snarl, Dev drew her away from him and eased her back down onto the sofa. He followed her there, covering her gorgeous body with the tense, muscled bulk of his.
“I can’t wait any longer,” he muttered, then took her mouth in a savage kiss as he guided his cock to the slick cleft of her pussy. Her heat engulfed him, and he slid home with one sure thrust. “Ah, fuck. This right here…this is Heaven.”
She moaned as his hips found the perfect tempo. He guided her long legs around him, an unspoken instruction for her to hold on tight while he gave his passion free rein.
He pumped into her in a frenzy, never having known such a ferocious need for any other woman. This woman—this Nephilim he’d known less than a day, the Blade he should despise on behalf of all her kind—instead had turned him inside out.
Less than a day with Nahiri and he wanted to possess her.
How much longer before she owned him completely?
