Further Than Passion by Cheryl Holt

supposed, but something more earthy, more sugary.
    "Marcus, no!" She lunged, but he'd f inished it off.
    "I love it when you call me Marcus."
    Immediately, his arms were heavy. They slumped to his sides, and she yanked the vial away.
    "I can't believe you drank it!" she wailed. "Why would you? Are you insane?"
    "Let's have some wine, shall we? There's nothin g happening between us that a bit of intoxication can't solve."
    "I don't need inebriation! I need privacy, and solitude, and ... and ... and ..."
    To his mortification, tears swarmed into her eyes. He couldn't stand to witness her dolor, so he walked over and poured the wine. His legs were sluggish, but his senses were more acute. Colors were brighter, odors stronger, sounds louder and more apparent. He actually thought he could hear a clock ticking on the floor below.
    Perhaps the elixir was a narcotic, after all. He was no stranger to opiates and other soporifics. They were often distributed at the wild parties he was wont to attend, but while they induced pleasant stupors, none of them had ever so severely tuned his perception.
    He turned toward her, and she was staring out the window. She was glowing, encompassed in a golden halo, her scarlet tresses radiating with a warm fire, and he experienced such a profound wave of joy that his chest ached. He felt as if his heart were enlarging, as if it no longer f it under his ribs. The ice in which it had been encased for so many years was melting, the droplets sweeping away in a refreshing flood.
     
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    Here she is! a voice blissfully proclaimed, and he was overwhelmed by a certainty that he'd been waiting for her forever, without his realizing he had been, and that his destiny had finally arrived. A rapid display of visions flashed, scenes from eras gone by, of the two of them together throughout many previous lifetimes.
    Perturbed by the drug's powerful effects, he shook his head, trying to clear it. He had to keep his wits about him, for in his confused condition, there was no telling what he might say or do.
    Needing to be with her, to touch her, he came up behind her, but she continued to gaze outside. He was so attuned to her that he could read her mind, and so many details were obvious.
    She had always been solitary, isolated. She was pining to love and be loved, to find someone who cherished her. She was so lonely, so starved for companionship and affection.
    As to himself, she was titillated by his interest in her, but afraid, too, worried that he would harm her, that her tender heart would never mend. Smiling, he gripped her waist and spun her so that she was facing him. She was silent, morose, and he snuggled her to him and kissed her forehead. "I won't hurt you. I swear it."
    "I can't imagine you'll do anything else."
    "I won't," he contended, desperate to reassure her. " I ... I ... "
    Bewildered and unsettled, he stopped. He'd almost declared that he loved her, which couldn't be. He didn't love anyone. He never would. He knew better.
    It was the potion talking, and he was amazed by its ability to muddle. No wonder Kate was disturbed enough to seek an antidote.
     
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    "Come," he coaxed. He linked their fingers and led her to the bed.
    Resigned, she followed, and he reposed, then tugged her down on top of him. They'd traveled beyond the point where she could dissuade him. He jerked the ribbon from her hair, freeing it, and the auburn locks flowed over her shoulder like a crimson waterfall.
    He eased her down, her breasts in contact with his chest, her nipples poking into him like shards of glass. The fabric of her negligee was so thin that it seemed as if she were naked. His phallus hardened further, pu ls ating with a renewed urgency.
    "You're so intent on your pursuit of me," she ventured.
    "Yes."
    "To what end?"
    "I don't know."
    He rolled them so mat she was beneath him, and he paused, recognizing that he'd dreamed this very moment. He could visualize everything that would transpire, how the encounter