Carpathian 16 - Dark Demon

teeth tormenting her.
    He opened his eyes to look into hers. The dark hunger in his gaze robbed her of breath and spread heat through her body. "Get rid of the pants the Carpathian way," he commanded.
    There was such a husky need in his voice everything feminine rose up to respond. She closed her eyes and wished herself out of the confines of her jeans. She wanted nothing but bare skin between them. His mouth was so hot she thought she might not survive the pleasure. "I'm not very good at this," she said with a sigh when nothing happened. "How long did it take the others to get this?"
    "You are great at this. Perfect. I distracted you." He sounded unreasonably pleased.
    "That must be it. I'm usually a very fast learner."
    Vikirnoff threw his head back and laughed. She sounded so peeved right in the middle of their lovemaking that he couldn't help it. "You are so competitive."
    "I am not. I just ought to be able to do this, that's all." Her eyes glittered green-blue, at him. "It can't be that hard. I picture it, right? That's all I need to do."
    "Visualizing is not the same as thinking it. If you are thinking, 'Make it go away' it will not happen. You have to visualize the pants gone." He massaged her bottom. "I can remove them for you."

    Her gaze narrowed and temper flitted across her face. "Don't you dare. I'll do it. I just gained a little weight and the stupid things are extra tight."
    His eyebrow shot up. "That's the problem? Weight gain?" His hand shaped the soft curves. "Could be. Maybe a few pounds."
    She shoved at his chest. "You're really asking for trouble now."
    His palm slid around to her belly. "I love this little hoop, but when you have our child growing in you, and you really gain weight, are you going to leave this in for me to play with?"
    Natalya sobered completely at the thought of children. She swallowed hard, her gaze suddenly avoiding his. "You know that Xavier is always going to be a shadow in our lives.
    As long as he is alive, he will always be a threat to us and to any children we have."
    "I have no doubt that is true." His hand slid a caress through her hair, more comfort than sexual.
    "You don't seem very disturbed by it."
    "Xavier is his own worst enemy. He has been trying to stamp out our species for centuries, yet he lives in isolation, in fear. I do not see the point of living such a life. We are free to live out lives the way we are intended. We have the ability to be happy and he does not. I do not fear Xavier. He fears us."
    Her teeth bit at her lower lip. Vikirnoff frowned. "What is it, ainaak sívamet jutta ? Tell me. I will not take it from your mind if you do not wish to share it with me."
    The tenderness in his voice was nearly her undoing. She swallowed the lump threatening to choke her and rubbed at her burning eyes. "Razvan. Do you think he's really dead? I've always been so accurate, and I thought I'd killed him, but when I replay the battle over in my head, I'm not so certain. You saw Maxim, and even Gregori regenerated his hand, or Mikhail did it for him, but the point is, there were so many unbelievable things. What if I didn't kill Razvan? What if he's still alive? The threat to us would be so much more. He'll never forgive what I did."
    Vikirnoff drew her closer to him, stroking caresses down her hair, his heart beating in time with hers. "If Razvan is dead, Natalya, he will not only forgive you, but he will thank you. If he still lives, it is not really Razvan. His soul is long gone and only the shell of his body remains."
    "I've gone over it a million times in my mind." Anxiety mixed with sorrow filled her eyes. "I swear my every intention was to kill him. I knew what he was doing the moment I looked at your face and I wasn't going to allow him to hurt you."
    "I am sorry you had to be the one."

    "No, it had to be me. I wouldn't have wanted anyone else to take his life, I love him. I'll always love him and I'll mourn the brother I lost forever. It was my job. Had I been the one to turn on the people I love, to become that evil a creature, I would hope my brother would love me enough to destroy me."
    Vikirnoff framed her face between his hands and kissed her gently, tenderly. "That is the way a true Dragonseeker would think. Rhiannon would be so proud of you. I know Dominic must be."
    "Have you heard how Dominic and Manolito are?"
    "Both are in the ground healing. It will take some time for Dominic. Manolito's wounds were very serious, but Dominic remained on the