He couldn’t deny that. “Are you so determined for me to like you?”
She shrugged. Yes, Rune. “You should like your mate.”
He dropped his hand. “This again?” He was about to fall back on his known-each-other-for-only-four-days argument—
Wait. No, it was worse than that. She was infatuated with him—simply because he was the first Lorean she’d ever spoken to!
She’d never known another being with powers. Fate could have subst.i.tuted any immortal male for Rune the night they’d met. Josephine would’ve drunk the other’s blood, then grown attached.
d.a.m.n it! Hadn’t she responded to Deshazior with like enthusiasm? If that demon had come upon her first, she would fancy herself in love with him!
“Why’s the breeze warm?” She glanced over her shoulder. “What’s around the next corner?”
“Go see,” he bit out, following her into a narrow canyon. How to turn infatuation into something more lasting? So he could secure her for the Møriør.
When the canyon opened up, she rushed toward a small pool. “Hot springs? This is amazing, Rune.” He’d read about this place today.
Steam rose from the water. Tall boulders circled the pool, buffering the wind. Snow acc.u.mulated on the stone, but flakes melted a couple of feet above the water. Strings of paper lanterns stretched from one side to the other, making the haze appear to glow.
She wasted no time undressing: boots, jeans, shirt. In her lacy thong and bra, she descended the natural rock steps into the water.
That body would be the death of him.
She ducked under and emerged, smoothing her wet hair back, revealing her perfect ears. “Come in!”
He recalled Dalli’s words: “Win her.” He wanted an iron bond with Josephine.
Then the forge had best be hot.
FORTY-FOUR
Jo didn’t know what had gotten into Rune, but as he strode toward the edge of the springs, with his eyes so dark and threatening, her laughter died. As if in response to a threat, her body tensed, her mind becoming more alert.
He started to undress, his movements growing quicker and quicker, until parts of him blurred.
She blinked, and he was in the water with her naked. She swallowed hard as he stalked closer. Steam dampened his smooth skin and his black hair. As his torso flexed, his tattoos glided over chiseled muscle. Soon the water would erase that blood rune on his side.
Standing before her, he used a claw to slice away her bra and then her thong, tossing the sc.r.a.ps away. “Nothing comes between us.” He grazed his knuckles over a nipple, his silver rings clinking against her piercing. “Tell me why you’ve seized on me, Josephine.” He coiled his arms around her, drawing her close, trapping his straining d.i.c.k between them. It was hotter even than the water. “Why do you want more from me?”
Breathless, she said, “Because you’re mine.”
“Why. Me?” He grasped her nape. “I’ll tell you—because I’m the first Lore male you’ve ever known. If you’d met another before me, your attentions would be fixated on him.”
d.i.c.kwad! As if she didn’t know her own mind? And he was harshing her buzz.
“You’re too b.l.o.o.d.y young and inexperienced to—”
She cupped his sac and tugged.
“Josie?”
“You’re making me sound like an idiot. Which doesn’t mesh with me being extraordinary in every way, now does it?” Yank.
Groan. He eased his legs farther apart for her and rocked his hips.
“If you underestimate me, Rune, I will always have you like this: by the b.a.l.l.s. Get me?”
His gaze locked on hers. “Two can play at that.” He cupped her p.u.s.s.y with a firm grip.
She sucked in a breath.
He rubbed the heel of his palm against her c.l.i.t as he murmured, “Do you want to play nice with me?”
Jo did, she really did. She let go of his b.a.l.l.s—and grasped his shaft.
Each time he kneaded her, she stroked. “That’s it, Josie.” His free hand caught hers, and he linked their fingers.
They stared at each other, both fondling beneath the surface of the water, both breathing heavy. Their clasped hands squeezed rhythmically.
Then he leaned down to take her mouth, his tongue seeking and twining with hers. She moaned into the kiss, making him groan again.
Still cupping her, he slipped his middle finger into her p.u.s.s.y. She dimly realized her feet were no longer touching the bottom of the pool; he held her in the palm of his hand. She gave a cry, stroking him fast.
He took her mouth over and over, slanting his lips. He kissed her like he wanted to scald her. Brand her.
Her b.r.e.a.s.t.s slipped against his rigid chest, her nipples raking along his skin. When she thumbed the head of his c.o.c.k, another of his fingers found its way inside her.
By the time he broke away from the kiss, she’d gone boneless, happily resting in his hand.
In a husky voice, he told her, “I’m going to take you.”
First thought: Where? “Ohhh, take me take me.” Maybe she was still a little drunk. “But today, on the mountain, I was thinking. . . .”
“About what?”
“I’ll need my hands for this.”
Curiosity lit his eyes, and one of his s.e.xy ears twitched. He freed her and set her down.
She ran her palms up his tattooed torso, rubbing his flat—and clearly sensitive—nipples, then laced her hands behind his neck. She tugged him down so she could reach his ear. Nipping his lobe, she whispered, “I wanna suck your c.o.c.k, Rune. Can’t stop thinking about it.”
He shuddered. “A very feasible alternative.” He traced from her to the steps, sitting on a higher one, which put most of his d.i.c.k above the surface.