by Hazel Hunter
“What the hell does that mean? Are you here to help or not?”
Unperturbed, Raina stared him right in the eye.
“If Gillian was wrong, or you’ve just been lying to her, or letting her believe a pretty story, now’s the time to say it. If you say you have a bond and you don’t, it could kill her.”
Shayne jerked his head back. Though he’d been ready to protest, he hesitated. He looked down at Gillian’s still form. In reality, he had only known her for a few days. They’d been thrown together under dire circumstances. Slowly, he crouched down next to her. Was bond the right word? It was only natural to be attracted to a gorgeous woman. But was that all it was? His eyes traced the gentle curve of her lips, her full mouth, and trailed down her perfect body. Carefully, he picked up a gloved hand. That she was beautiful there was no denying, but the way his chest tightened to think of her suffering, the sickness that settled in his stomach when he thought of losing her, the urge to move heaven and earth to protect her––it was more than a pretty story. In fact, if he was brutally honest with himself, he’d felt something the moment he’d seen her. He lightly held Gillian’s hand between both of his.
“We have a bond,” he whispered to her, though she was unconscious. “Of that I’m sure.”
“Good, then it’s our best hope.” Raina knelt opposite him. “Put your hands on either side of her face.”
Shayne settled Gillian’s hand down and did as Raina instructed.
“She’s so warm,” he whispered.
Gillian’s cheeks glowed a faint pink.
“She is,” Raina agreed. “That thing I saw wants nothing more than to see her burn.”
Shayne’s own heat boiled at the thought. Given half the chance, he would show that Templar what it meant to burn. Raina must have seen the look on his face.
“Believe me, if I could send you after him, I’d do it in a heartbeat.” She smirked as though she were picturing it. “But that’s not how it works. You’ve got to draw them here.”
“And how do I do that?”
“With your bond.”
Shayne frowned and looked down at Gillian’s face.
“Imagine it as a tether,” Raina said. “It’s beautiful against the dark, and it is strong, because it needs to be. Imagine a silvery cord, swirling across the darkness of space.” Her voice took on a soft and lilting tone. Shayne closed his eyes. “It glitters, but is unbreakable. It shines, but can’t be cut.”
He saw it. As surely as it had lain coiled and unseen on the ground, Shayne saw it rise in the air. It was exactly as Raina had described it. It floated, undulating in the moonlight, bright and gleaming.
“Now imagine her.”
That wasn’t hard to do. He thought of the cool gray of her soft eyes; the way her lips sometimes begged to be kissed; the lush curves of her body and the rose scent of her skin. He thought of the way she looked at him sometimes out of the corner of her eye. In the distance, he saw her turn to him.
Come here, he thought. Come home. I’m here. I’ll keep you safe. I’ll protect you, I swear.
She had found the tether. She grasped it, so he did too. He pulled. She was gaining speed, running, sprinting for her life. He pulled with everything in him.
Suddenly, Gillian gasped, and Shayne’s eyes snapped open. She bolted upright, her eyes flying open, and grabbed Shayne’s hand.
“He’s coming,” she breathed. “He’s coming. He’s right behind me!”
There was a rushing roar like a train. A rush of heat blasted them, and Gillian screamed. Raina sprawled backward, throwing an arm up to shield her face.
But Shayne stood up and leaned forward. Someone had tried to hurt Gillian, someone had made her suffer. And now that man would pay.
The Templar, or what was left of him, stood there. True to Gillian’s words, he’d been close. He was a mess, a wretched semblance of rotting flesh hanging on bones. But as Shayne spread his hands in front of him, Gillian lurched to her feet. The Templar dropped on all fours and launched at her.
As neatly as if they had rehearsed it, Shayne stepped between them, his hands outstretched.
Burn.
The thing lit up in a white-blue flame. If it’d had skin, it would have been gone in an instant. But instead of incinerating, the creature howled. Its flesh crackled and blackened, but it reached out its flaming hands.
Shayne spread his fingers and took a deep breath.
“Burn,” he muttered through clenched teeth.
Like a blow torch, his fury engulfed the Templar. Vlasti screeched from somewhere above the forest. The trees and river lit up. A pillar of flame shot up from the man’s head. In a matter of seconds, all that was left was ash. Shayne stopped the fire. As abruptly as it had begun, it disappeared. The darkness returned as though a curtain had been drawn.
“Shayne?” Gillian said weakly.
He turned just in time to see her crumble.
“Gillian!” he said, darting forward.
He caught her just before she hit the ground, scooping her up and cradling her to his chest.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I’m so sorry.”
Shayne’s voice was strained, as he hugged her tight and buried his face in her hair.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you from that,” he whispered.
Her arms looped around his neck, and there were no more words. For several long moments, he simply held her. It felt so right, the way she fit against him, the way she snuggled under his chin. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, filling his lungs with her delicate scent.
Raina cleared her throat.
By the time Shayne looked up, Raina had already gathered their things.
“I don’t know how to thank you,” Shayne said.
Raina grinned, but she sobered quickly.
“Maybe don’t thank me yet.” She glanced at Gillian who simply lay curled against his chest. “I think you’ve a long road.” She seemed to consider her own words. “But not tonight.” Her smile returned. “Tonight I can offer you a place to stay.”
CHAPTER NINE
FOR THE FIRST time in what felt like forever, Gillian awoke without a sense of dread or fear. She was in a decadently soft bed between clean white sheets, and her dreams had been mercifully free of nightmares. Above her, a few rays of early morning light stole across a ceiling of roughly hewn logs. Was this a cabin? She also realized that, except for her gloves, she was naked.
And that made her think of Shayne.
She glanced over at him, still sleeping on his side. He frowned in his sleep. Was he still searching for her in his dreams? She gently touched his shoulder. His eyes opened immediately, a trained soldier’s response. But when he saw her, he relaxed and a smile played along his lips.
“So it wasn’t a dream,” he said lowly. “You’re safe.”
“I am safe,” she said. “I’m safe, and I’m with you.”
He opened his mouth to reply, but, with an impulse that came out of nowhere, she kissed him. His arms wrapped around her waist, dragging her to lie half on top of him. Though his skin was warm under the blankets, his muscles were taut and hard. Her gloved fingers carded through his hair, as he returned her kiss with one of his own. His lips devoured hers, hungry and urgent. As hers parted, his tongue tangled with hers. He tilted his head one way, then the other, as his hands rubbed down her back and cupped her rear. He brought her hips over his, so she straddled him. His hard length rubbed along her folds. Even as he hissed, she moaned as something deep inside her unlocked.
“Are you sure?” Shayne whispered hoarsely.
The shadow of their ill-fated encounter at the river was stark in her mind. It couldn’t end like that again. She wouldn’t let it.
“I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life. Shayne, I want this. I want you.”
His mouth on hers was hot and demanding. She gave herself up to the wildness of it, to the way their bodies seemed to melt together. She fit him in ways she didn’t understand. Wh
en he touched her, it was like coming home.
Shayne tumbled her to her back, looming over her like a conquering warrior. There was something beautifully primitive about his body, the faint scars that he bore on his flanks, the way it was made for war and love. She luxuriated in the weight of that body pinning her down.
“What do you need?” he murmured. “Every instinct in my body tells me to take you until we’re exhausted, but I want to give you what you need.”
A thousand, thousand images flashed through Gillian’s mind. The unfulfilled fantasies of years filled her head. But as the tip of his cock probed her entrance, her mind blanked.
“I…I just want you, whatever way you will have me.”
“Every way that I can,” was his response.
His mouth found the pulse point at her throat with quick and unerring accuracy. She shivered when he lapped at it. The bite mark he had left there was all but gone. His mouth trailed down to her round breasts, to the gentle rise of her belly, to the curve of her hip.
“Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?” he murmured. “Do you have any idea how much I want to please you?”
His words brought shudders of pleasure to her body. Her hands drifted down to stroke his broad shoulders. In response, he ran his hands along her thighs and her calves, trailing long fingers along the flesh there.
She was barely aware of the fact her legs had fallen wide open, welcoming even more of his touch. He circled his fingers higher and higher along her legs, finally dipping to the sensitive skin of her inner thighs. She sucked in a breath and tried to breathe out, but only managed to whimper. Strands of delicious tension wound through her belly as his fingers and then his mouth came down to the soft skin.
But when he slid his fingertips down her wet slit, Gillian swore she was levitating straight off the bed. He passed his fingers along her slick flesh again and again, parting it with just the slightest pressure.
“I want your mouth there,” she whispered, a hot flush coming to her cheeks.
Shayne’s response was only a soft, delighted laugh. He slid down so that he was resting between her thighs. Using his fingers, he parted her so that she lay completely open to him. Her hips squirmed when she felt his breath. But when his mouth found her flesh, she went rigid and groaned. It was hot, and soft, and maddening. It was everything that she had ever wanted. He passed his tongue over her clit, again and again, teasingly gentle until she tangled her fingers in his hair. She pressed his head down between her legs. The sound he made was a satisfied growl.
Shayne wrapped his hands around her hips to hold her still. His mouth was merciless, pressing hard against her, and then sucking. She groaned as the first tremors of pleasure pulsed through her, raising her higher and higher. Her hips tried to buck, but Shayne’s grip was firm. Her hands fisted the sheets to either side. Her back arched, but it did no good. As though he had one purpose in all the world, he continued the pleasurable, punishing onslaught. Wild tendrils of ecstasy whipped through her. She couldn’t stand much more.
“Shayne,” she gasped. “Shayne, I can’t…”
The deep growl in his throat was all the answer he could give, but she understood it as though he’d spoken.
You can, and you will.
Her climax burst over her like a searing explosion. Her entire body went stiff, and then went up in fire. She was helpless to prevent the pleasure sweeping through her, from driving her wild. She didn’t care that she was clawing at his shoulders. She didn’t care that she was screaming.
Shayne didn’t stop lapping at her. But finally his tongue moved more gently. Throughout her climax, he kept sending bursts of pleasure through her. Just when she thought it was over, a gentle lick brought it on again. Gillian didn’t know how long she stayed in that beautiful, breathless ecstasy. She only knew that when she opened her eyes, Shayne was beside her, nuzzling behind her ear. But to her surprise, his cock was hard against her thigh.
“You haven’t…” she breathed.
He drew back and stared into her eyes.
“No,” he said softly. “But I want to. Are you ready?”
Though she nodded, she wasn’t truly sure. Her body was so suffused with pleasure she didn’t know if she could move. How could she possibly do something as amazing as what he had done for her? However, Shayne had his own ideas.
With a gentle hand, he helped her from the bed and led her to a curtained window. As he drew the fabric back, Gillian had a moment of panic. Then she remembered they were in the middle of the wilderness. But as the curtain parted, Gillian’s mouth dropped open. A deep and vibrantly green valley plummeted to enormous depths below. In the distance, the sun was only halfway above the horizon. Despite knowing no one could see her, she felt almost unbearably bold and brash.
Shayne guided her hands against the glass, letting her brace herself against the huge window. With one foot, he tapped first one calf, then the other. Finally understanding what he wanted, Gillian spread her legs, turning to look at him over her shoulder.
“Are you all right?” he asked.
“Yes,” she whispered. “Just…well…you need a condom.”
He went to the survival kit at the side of the bed, and pulled out one foil package. She watched him draw out the latex sheathe. There was something darkly sexy about watching him roll it over his cock. She liked the sight of his hands on his own body. Perhaps sometime, he would let her see what he looked like when he stroked himself.
Shayne came to stand behind her. But instead of plunging into her as she thought that he would, he ran his hands up and down her quivering sides. Then he ran them over her belly and up to cup her breasts.
“Such a beautiful woman,” Shayne purred in her ear. “Can’t get enough of you.”
Gillian’s laugh was interrupted by a gasp when the head of his cock slipped along her slit. But he wasn’t penetrating her, simply spreading her flesh with his. Warmth spread between her legs until she thought she must be melting. What was he waiting for? Then it occurred to her.
“Please,” she whispered. “I need you inside me.”
She could feel her cheeks burn at the request, but she couldn’t bring herself to care. There was nothing she wanted more.
The broad tip of his cock nudged at her entrance. For a moment, she thought he would tease her again, but then he started to slide inside. The exquisite stretch made her moan, and she leaned her forehead against the cool glass. Inch by slow inch, he filled her. He rose higher, gliding upward, the fullness in her abdomen growing. By the time he was seated fully inside her, she could barely move.
Shayne’s hands moved to her hips, and he lifted her into the air. Shorter than Shayne, her feet dangled down below. She pushed hard against the glass to keep from hitting it, but the change in angle made her groan in pleasure.
Shayne’s thrusts were slow and long, flexing her hips with his, sending spikes of heat into her belly. She concentrated on it, moved by him, and moaning with every stroke.
“Gillian, love, open your eyes.”
At first, she wasn’t sure what he was saying. But when she did, and opened them, she gasped.
The late fall sunrise painted the valley below them with gold. Beyond it, the mountains had fallen into purple shadow. With her eyes fastened on the horizon, it was as if she could fly.
Shayne started thrusting into her more firmly, each thrust making her cry out. She could feel herself clenching around his stiff cock. Her body writhed of its own accord. No longer able to push against the window, she put one hand and then the other around the back of his neck. He pressed forward, pushing her breasts against the glass. The cool surface made her nipples tighten, while his hot flesh surged upward into her core. The combination was electrifying. What began as a sizzle low in her belly, spread upward with alarming speed.
“Shayne,” she nearly wailed. “Oh god, Shayne, I’m going to come again.” She didn’t know whether she was begging him for the climax or for mercy. “I–”
“
You can,” he growled. “And you will.”
She writhed, trapped between the glass and her lover, with nowhere she could go. She cried out, short and sharp, as her body clenched hard around his iron shaft.
A high whine escaped Shayne, as he thickened and jerked inside her. He spilled himself in pulses so hot, she could hardly believe there was a condom. His body trembled in the throes of his release. She relished the rich, thrumming sound from deep in his chest.
“This is what I want,” she heard herself breathe. “This is what I have always wanted.”
Shayne planted a soft kiss on the spot between her shoulders before pulling away. She whimpered when he set her down and withdrew from her body, but then he was there again. He lifted her in his arms, and carried her to the bed.
They touched each other gently and without hurry. Gillian found herself looking deep into his eyes, the blue and the brown. One for the sky and one for the earth, she decided. She smiled at the thought. He ran his fingers along her bottom lip, smiling in return. Gillian couldn’t remember every being happier than this beautiful moment.
“We can’t lie in bed forever,” he finally said.
“We could try,” she suggested.
He grinned. “A girl after my own heart.”
But Gillian knew that Raina had to be waiting somewhere––Raina who had saved her life.
“Who showers first?” she asked.
“First?” he said. “How about if I lather you up. Then–”
Gillian put a gloved finger to his lips, shushing him. “I think that’s the last thing we need.”
CHAPTER TEN
GILLIAN FOUND THAT their clothes had been washed and left on a chair outside the room. Though the dress was ripped, it was clean. She was thankful to Raina, all over again. Once they were dressed, and Gillian had verified where her leather portfolio was, she and Shayne made their way downstairs.
Raina’s home was a wonder. If it had been built in Los Angeles, it would have been worth millions. Instead, it was built in the middle of nowhere. As far as Gillian was concerned, the location made it beyond price. It was a harmonious mix of the new and the traditional. The walls were all red logs, but the floor was marble. The temperature was perfectly controlled, and through one half-open door, Gillian glimpsed a computer array that would have made any techie swoon.
