wrinkled sheets. âIâm sorry. Iâm trying to be as gentle as possible.â
âI live with pain all the time,â he said. âSo donât sweat it.â
âAnd thereâs a part of you that likes it.â She sat back, capping the tube.
He came up on his hands and knees, facing her. âThe Shadow part of me likes pain but it craves sex.â Like a cat, he prowled closer, until his face was only inches from hers. In his eyes, the Shadow flashed, dark and seductive. âBloodshed.â He moved even closer, forcing her to lean back. âAnd you, Kye. It craves you.â
Her heart pulsed at his nearness, his words. âIs the Shadow in me, too? Because of the bond? Ever since we did the Cobra, I feelâ¦different.â
âHungry? Horny? Afraid? Afraid is good. You should be pushing me away, heading to the door. But youâre not.â
She knew she should be, but the Shadow in his eyes held her. âNo. Iâm not.â
His mouth came down over hers, crushing hers. She lost her balance and fell back on the bed, and he followed. He plunged his tongue inside, sucking at her. The power of him enveloped her. He captured herâmouth, body, and soul. Because even as her logical brain screamed in warning, her mouth melted beneath his, and her tongue sparred with his.
She clutched at his biceps, kneading the hard muscles that held him hovering over her. Her heart hammered in her chest. He drew one hand down the side of her neck, her collarbone, and over her breast. She arched into his touch, needing his hand to squeeze her. Oh, gods, what was happening to her? Sheâd never wanted like this before. No, craved , his word.
His thumb moved across the silky material of her blouse and circled her hardened nipple. A needy sound escaped her mouth, right into his. She slid her hands up over his shoulders. Her fingers drove into his damp, thick hair.
He moved to her other breast as though he knew it ached for the same kind of touch. Maybe he did. Because he knew her, felt her. He made love to her mouth, brutal and devouring, waking something primal in her. The hunger sheâd repressed, the same way Caidos repressed their emotions. Kasabian triggered her own bombardment, except it was all sexual.
He pulled her shirt out of her waistband and slid his hand beneath it, across the heated skin of her stomach. When his hand moved under her bra and touched her skin, she shuddered. His fingers directly touching her nipple, pinching it gently, driving heat down the center of her core. She was having trouble pulling in a breath. A thought. Anything.
âNotâ¦the Thrall,â she managed.
âWhat?â
âThis, whatâs happening to me. Not some angel hypnosis.â
âIâm no angel.â He took her mouth again, claiming her, then finishing the kiss and sucking on her lower lip. âLove, itâs dangerous, you being here in my bed,â he said between kisses. âLetting me touch you like this.â
âI know,â she whispered. âI canât seem to make myself leave.â
âThe more I touch you, the more I want.â His hand now rested on her stomach. âIâve always felt the Shadow was dangerous, but since the Cobra, itâs growing stronger. It spoke to me when I was fighting the Caido. The first time Iâve ever heard it speak.â
Their mouths were so close, if either of them moved forward, theyâd be kissing again. She could sense him holding back, reining in a powerful urge.
She moved back an inch, and gods, his eyes were like black ice. âWhat did it say?â
ââUse me.â It wanted me to release it. I didnât, and I got my ass handed to me. Iâm going to release it. Because itâs all I have now.â
âNo, Kasabian. Donât do it.â
âAnd when I release it, you cannot be anywhere near me. Because it wants you.â
That statement coiled through
Caitlin Crews, Trish Morey