Primal Heat 05 - Darkness Reborn

He'd seen her at her worst. She had nothing she could prove to him. "Not so much, no."
    "May I?" He held out his arms, and she almost laughed at his attempt to look harmless.
    How dangerous could it be for him to carry her a few yards? Surely she could manage to resist her attraction to him for a few steps, so that he could help her? Of course she could. She might be throbbing with desire for him, but she was also an emotionally stunted and damaged woman. She should have no trouble calling upon that trauma to resist the temptation of being in his arms. "Yes, sure, you can move me."
    "Excellent. I've been wanting to feel you up for weeks." He slipped his arms under her and scooped her up with way too much ease, his biceps bulging as he stepped over the crumbling wall.
    "Don't be crass. I'm not that kind of girl." But damn, she couldn't stop the swell of desire that cascaded through her at the sensation of being held in his arms. Suddenly, all the intensity that had erupted during their first encounter raged to the surface again. Her skin felt hot, her belly pulsed, and her whole body began to vibrate.
    Kane stopped and stared at her. "Son of a bitch," he said softly, staring at her with such sensual desire that she felt like he was about to ignite every cell of her body. "What is it with you?"
    She pulled her sleeves over her hands and shook her head. "We had a night of great sex, and there's a little residual stuff going on. That's it."
    "No, it's not." He bent his head and pressed his face to her hair, inhaling deeply.
    Sarah stilled, her heart thundering at the intimate gesture. It felt amazing to be in his arms again, to feel his body surrounding her like some great shield. She'd wondered how she could have made love with him so recklessly, and now she knew. It was abundantly clear just how thoroughly he unraveled her defenses. He stripped her of all sanity and logic, and made her burn with something she didn't even understand. Suddenly, all the weakness that had been haunting her fled, replaced with something powerful and strong. Life? Hope? Excitement? Things she hadn't felt in so long.
    Kane pulled back, and something flashed in his eyes. Pain. Hunger. Lust. Tension. Slowly, without another word, without asking permission and without bothering to see how she felt about it, he hoisted her in his arms, crushed her against his chest, and kissed her.
    The moment his lips touched hers, something inside Sarah came roaring to life again, just like it had before. The hunger she'd seen in his eyes filled her, sweeping through her like some great storm trying to wrench her off her feet and thrust her up into a raging inferno of desire, lust and passion.
    She couldn't stop herself from kissing him back, from wrapping her arms around his neck, from breathing in the sheer force of who he was. His energy and life force streamed into her, surging past the tears and breaks in the fabric of her soul, plunging right to her heart. She clung to him, kissing him back every bit as fiercely as he was kissing her, afraid to lose the feeling he gave her. He was life, he was light, he was courage and strength, everything she didn't have on her own, everything she needed.
    With a growl, Kane shifted her in his arms so that she was facing him, her legs on either side of his hips, her breasts crushed against his chest. His hands dug into her butt, his mouth almost violent on hers as he kissed her back. It was as if all the intensity from that night had never left, despite two weeks of absence and the fact it was broad daylight.
    She fisted his hair, her heart thundering as she kissed him. God, it felt amazing to be held and kissed, like she was alive and breathing for the first time in years. Her skin was on fire, the blood racing through her, her body trembling with such desire that her stomach actually ached with need.
    Jesus, Sarah. Kane locked his arm behind her shoulder blades and plundered her mouth, his kiss so deep and so passionate it was as if he were trying to find her soul and strip it out of her body.
    But as she kissed him, she felt the kiss begin to change. More passion, more darkness, more violence surging through him. His arms began to tighten around her, almost too tight, almost crushing the breath out of her. Adrenaline raced through her, along with a tremor of fear. Los Muerte. The name whispered through her mind, as the darkness of Kane's spirit began to close around her like a thick, dark cloud of violence and