Immortals After Dark 12 - Lothaire

her lips.
    He shuddered in response. It struck him that he was actually watching his woman— his —discover this pleasure for the first time. The idea gratified him in ways he couldn’t describe.
    How long I’ve waited for this, waited for her.
    “Now it just feels better and better.” She touched her forehead against his. “Baby, I can feel your heartbeat inside me.”
    Soon you will in more ways than one. “You can never take this back, Lizvetta. I’ve claimed you for my own.” But not completely. He still needed to bite her neck. Ritual. The mark was a sign of this claiming, the seal between them.
    Sink your fangs into her. Make her writhe on them as well.
    Just when his eyes locked onto a pulse point in her neck, she whispered, “I never knew it could be like this. Lothaire, I’ve never felt closer to another.”
    He dragged his gaze up to hers. Voice thick, he admitted, “Neither have I.”
    She smiled. “Good.”
    Don’t hurt her. Only gentleness. Don’t scare her.
    Tonight, Lothaire, you don’t get to be a vampire with her.
    In Russian, he told her, “Little mortal, you’ve changed everything .”
    How can I want you this much? To deny what I am?
    Because he was feeling something stronger for her—a bone-deep feeling of possessiveness, of protectiveness .
    No one would ever harm the female in his arms, not even himself.

42
    W hen Ellie rose up and tentatively slid down the first time, Lothaire’s eyes widened, then grew hooded once more.
    Was he as shocked as she was by how right this felt?
    Even his irises appeared sharper, their shape more defined, his gaze lucid as it locked with hers.
    Connection . . .
    In the past, Ellie had never communed with another, had never looked into a boy’s eyes and felt something deeper than the need for release.
    Now, with Lothaire . . . she did.
    This was more than just sex; this was a bond, like a promise between them.
    She thought she’d known what kind of man she wanted. Now she realized she’d always needed this vampire lover with his hungry red eyes and his lifetimes of yearning.
    He’s yearned all this time for me.
    When she slowly began to ride him, she cupped his face, leaning forward to kiss him with all the feelings bubbling up inside of her. He met her mouth with a seeking tongue and unyielding lips.
    Guard your heart, Ellie. But his possessive kiss . . . who could guard against that?
    Or the sensations cascading over her? Her nipples dragged up and down his muscular chest, his hot hands like brands across her ass.
    When she drew back, panting for breath, he rasped, “Look at your expression. You’re falling in love with me.”
    She could scarcely think, but for some reason she didn’t want him to have that power over her. “I’m not falling in love with you.” I might be falling in love with you.
    “Of course you are.”
    Guard your heart! “I-I never said that.”
    “Ah, but I’m me .”
    “Lothaire, are you always so danged chatty during sex? I can make tea. . . .”
    He gave a pained laugh, then groaned when she twisted her hips.
    “Lizvetta!” He pulsed inside her. “More of that .”
    She was already nearing her peak, but she wanted to see to his pleasure. This wasn’t just about her getting off; she needed to satisfy her man. She eased her rhythm.
    A mistake.
    “Move on me!” He twined her hair around his hand, drawing her back to lick her neck. “Harder, faster.”
    As if Lothaire would ever allow himself to go unsatisfied.
    “I’ll have more of you!” He released her hair to palm her breasts. “Given or taken.”
    She wrapped her arms around his neck, riding him with abandon. Yet as she watched his eyes, their clarity faded.
    A growl began emanating from him as his shaft swelled inside her even more. His lips drew back from his fangs. “Need to fuck you hard.” He looked wild, his eyes like fire.
    Fear coursed through her. “Lothaire—”
    He enfolded her in his arms and traced her to the bed—with her trapped beneath him.

    When he thrust inside Elizabeth, Lothaire roared to the ceiling from the rightness of it.
    He was a born vampire, and she was his fated female—now pinioned to the bed.
    Through the haze of inconceivable pleasure, he felt her tense beneath him. No, she can take me. He withdrew for another thrust, plunging into her tight sex.
    “T-too hard,” she whispered.
    “ What? I want it hard! You’ll give me what I want.”
    “Please be gentler with me, Leo.” She leaned up to kiss his