Joie was dreaming of a hot, moist mouth pulling strongly at her breast, of hands stroking her body. Of lips traveling down her bare skin to her navel, swirling kisses and teasing bites over her stomach. Hands on her thighs tugging her legs apart. She was already damp with invitation.
She opened her eyes as the waves of sensation burst through her like a gift. The wealth of Traian's silky dark hair slid over her skin, the sight more erotic than she had ever imagined. His fingers moved inside her, found secret ways to shimmer fire through her veins. And then his tongue took the place of his hands, stabbing deep, tasting and teasing and stroking her until she was crying with joy and her body no longer belonged to her. Wave after wave, orgasm after orgasm rippled through her body, so that she bucked and jumped as he held her firmly, his mouth devouring her, claiming her, feeding her sheer pleasure.
She clenched her fists in his hair, holding on while she took the wild ride, while the earth moved and her body shattered into fragments. He took possession of her then, kneeling above her, dragging her hips to him, thrusting deep with powerful strokes while she came over and over in a mind-numbing climax that seemed endless. He was everywhere, in her body, in her mind, their hearts beating in the same rhythm. She could feel the intensity of his emotions, a tidal wave of longing and love, of absolute need and hunger, of caring and loyalty, far more than she could understand, but real all the same.
Joie clung to him as his body rode out the storm of roiling emotions, each thrust deeper and harder in a fierce, possessive joining. Thunder roared in his ears, lightning sang in his blood, fire raged in his belly until the conflagration merged together at the core of his body. Her feminine sheath was fiery hot, tight and velvet soft, the friction an unbelievable sensation. He tilted her hips, wanting her to take all of him, wanting to crawl inside her body, his home, his sanctuary after several lifetimes of loneliness. He wanted to give her the world, wanted her body to feel the same flames of passion and pleasure as she ignited in him.
He felt her muscles clench around him, the gathering of a great force. He threw back his head, allowed his body to explode with volcanic intensity, thrusting deep, taking her with him, holding her close as they burst into sunlight, the only time he could ever embrace such a thing. His shifted her in his arms, pressed her body to the length of his. "Never go away," he whispered in her ear. "Never leave me to face the endless years alone."
Joie caught his face between her hands, brushed back the long silk of her hair, and stared up at him. At the lines etched into his beautiful masculine features, put there by battles and years of knowledge of foul things walking the Earth. Put there by sheer loneliness. "I want you always, Traian. We'll find our way together."
He leaned toward her, kissing her gently, with exquisite tenderness, with the overwhelming love in his heart that he couldn't quite put into words but tried to show by worshiping her with his body. He kissed her over and over, long, drugging kisses, his body locked deep inside hers, his hands tunneling in her hair. His mouth roamed over her throat, down to her breast, found her heart unerringly.
Joie felt the swirl of his tongue, and her heart leapt in anticipation. Her body tightened around his. White-hot pain lanced through her, gave way immediately to pleasure. She cradled his head to her while he fed, while his body moved slowly and erotically deep within her. The sensation was unlike anything she'd ever experienced. She writhed helplessly beneath him, arching her hips up to meet him, her breasts aching and full with need. When his hand cupped the weight of one breast, his thumb sliding over the taut peak of her nipple, she pressed his head closer to her, offering more.
Traian swept his tongue across the pinpricks, tasted the temptation of her breast before finding her mouth to share the taste of their life's essence. He took his time, his tongue thoroughly exploring her mouth, teasing and dancing and mating with hers. "Come into my world, Joie. Another step closer."
This time she was locked in a dreamy haze, aware of his body's sensations as she moved restlessly, wantonly under him. As her mouth moved against his chest, taking his precious gift, his fingers stroked her throat, her breast. His body thickened inside her, moved with greater force and purpose. She felt the flames, hot and white and pure, burning in his veins, pulsing through him.
She should have been horrified, but she wasn't. She was overjoyed to be able to bring him such pleasure, so much happiness. She wanted to be fully in his world and she wanted so much more. She moved more aggressively until he was surging into her with strength and power, until she felt the gathering of every nerve ending, every muscle and the flow of blood, until they soared together higher than ever.
I want more time with you. I want to touch your body and know it the way you know mine. I want to see the things you've seen and make you feel the way you've made me feel.
"We have time," he said. "All the things you fantasize about, all the things that matter to you - we have time for everything." Very gently he stopped her feeding, closing the wound in his chest. He laid her on the bed, his hands gentle, loving, stroking her bare skin while he brought her fully out of the enthrallment. "I have to go, Joie. We've slept all day, and it's almost sunset. I have to find the master vampire before he rises."
"Do you have an idea where to look?" She traced his face, his mouth with her fingertips.
"I hope he did not leave the cave. They were so reluctant to leave it before, but we had not discovered the wizard's traps. It is a dangerous place to be, even for the undead. Maybe especially for the undead."
"Promise me that you'll contact me if you run into any trouble." She looked him straight in the eye, insisting on the truth.
"You are my lifemate, Joie. If I run into trouble, you will know." He bent his head to kiss her. Slowly. Lingering over it. Pouring his heart and soul into it.
Just that fast, Traian was gone. Joie lay on the sheets, staring up at the ceiling, her heart pounding in fear. He was gone, slipping out through the window, a cloud of vapor streaming into the air. It wasn't yet sunset, but she felt as if the sun had gone down on her world.
It is only the effects of our connection. I am with you. Feel with your mind as a Carpathian must. It takes time to learn our ways, I know, but I cannot have you suffering grief when I am alive and well and able to reach out to you.
Determined to combat her sorrow, Joie sat up.
It is amazing how strong the feeling is. And it is a little frightening to think that emotion is stronger than logic. I know where you are, yet I still have such a need to touch you. It makes no sense.
And it didn't. Joie considered herself a very logical woman. She didn't like this out-of-control feeling, a dark dread that stole her good sense and her ability to reason. She lifted her chin. There were changes taking place in her body and mind, but that didn't mean she would give in to melancholy.
I'll be perfectly fine, Traian. You worry about yourself. I'll hang with Jubal and Gabrielle while you're gone. And Gary. He knows both the undead and my people. Stay close to him.
Joie did the mental equivalent of rolling her eyes. As
if. Traian, you're going to have to get over your outdated attitude toward women. It must be your age. That man needs protection. He lives in another world, just like Gabrielle. I can see it in him. He's more at home in a lab than fighting vampires. But he knows vampires. Stay close to him. You might have mentioned your archaic attitude and your stubbornness when you were being so blasted charming this morning.
His soft laughter echoed through her head, and then he slipped out of her mind, leaving her feeling bereft. Determined not to give in to the strange reaction to their separation, Joie took a long, hot shower. It was nearly impossible to stand beneath the cascading water without thinking of Traian, but she concentrated on figuring out how to tell her parents that she was essentially married.
Gabrielle stuck her head in the bathroom. "Hurry up! Jubal and I are getting tired of waiting for you two. And you'd better not be doing anything perverted in that tiny little shower stall." She sounded more hopeful than anything else.
"How did you get into my room, you peeping Tom?" Joie threw a wet washcloth with deadly accuracy. "It was locked."
Gabrielle squealed when the cloth hit her square in the face. "I'm picking up your bad habits. Are you in there alone? Because I don't want to see any naked bodies."
"Traian already went back to the cave."
"If he wasn't so drop-dead gorgeous, I'd be afraid he was a troll, he likes to be underground so much. What are you going to tell Mom and Dad?" This time there was glee in Gabrielle's voice.
"I've been rehearsing," Joie admitted. She emerged from the stall, wrapped in a bath sheet. "It has occurred to me to lie to them. And I thought you preferred skinny men. I saw you ogling Gary last night."
"I don't ogle," Gabrielle sniffed indignantly. "I never ogle. I just thought he was rather on the cute side." She sighed heavily. "Oh, to be model-thin and beautiful."
Joie glared at her. "You are beautiful, you idiot. You're just crazy. Is Jubal hanging out in the bedroom, because I need my clothes."