Touch of Temptation (14 page)

Moving beside him, she asked, “Can you open it?”

“Have you found anything I could use to get in here?” he asked, pointing to the small keyhole situated in the middle of the safe’s door.

“Here,” she said, reaching into her shirt pocket and handing him three paper clips. “I found these when I searched the room, along with some matches and the candle.”

“Perfect.” Setting one of the clips on the table, Kellan straightened out the other two, then leaned close and inserted their tips into the keyhole.

“How do you know how to do that?” she whispered, watching him maneuver the metal as he carefully manipulated the inner mechanisms of the lock.

“What can I say? I’m just naturally good with my hands,” he replied in a lazy drawl.

She snuffled a soft laugh under her breath, and he hid his grin. A few minutes later, a loud snick echoed from the lock, and the front of the safe cracked open. “Nice work,” she told him, and he could hear the quiver of excitement in her quiet words.

“Okay, let’s see what we’ve got.” Reaching inside, Kellan pulled out what appeared to be a thick stack of papers wrapped in some kind of ancient oilcloth.

“Huh. To be honest,” she murmured, watching as he set the bundle on the table, “I was expecting something a little bigger.”

Pulling his hand down his face, he let out a husky laugh that had her questioning him with a look. “I’m sorry. It’s just that I’m really happy I’ve never heard those particular words on a woman’s lips before. Especially when I’m the only man in the room with her.”

Chloe rolled her eyes. “Haha. You’re so funny.”

“Come on,” Kellan drawled, sliding her a lopsided smile. “You threw that one right in my lap.”

The corner of her mouth twitched, but her grin faded as she turned her attention back to what he sure as hell hoped were the true archives, considering the time they’d wasted to get them. “Do you mind if we open them up quickly?” she asked. “I know it sounds crazy, but I want to see if there’s a journal inside.”

Knowing they’d already wasted too much time, Kellan choked back a curse, tempted to just toss her over his shoulder and start running. “Can it wait until we’re out of this place?”

At her beseeching look, he sighed and peeled back the oilcloth, rifling through the yellowed pages until he pulled out a thin leather volume with frayed edges. “This is the only one I could find.”

She reached out, laying her hand on the small journal, then quickly nodded. “That’s it. That’s the one!”

“Great,” he muttered, wondering what the hell was going on as he slipped the journal back inside the oilcloth. Casting a quick look around the library, Kellan grabbed a backpack that had been left in the corner and quickly slipped the archives inside, then hooked one of the straps over his shoulder. Jerking his chin toward the door, he said, “Now let’s get the hell out of here.”

“I know you must think I’m crazy, Kell, but thanks for doing this for me.” She started to turn away from the
table, then suddenly swayed, catching herself against the edge. “Whoa.”

“You okay?”

“Yeah,” she whispered, pressing her hand to her forehead. “Sorry. I’m just…I got a little dizzy.”

Dropping the backpack, Kellan moved closer and tipped up her chin, studying her eyes. They no longer glowed with the power of the Merrick, the gray darkening like a bank of storm clouds rolling in on the horizon. Damn it, he could see how weak she’d grown, the strength she’d gained from the feeding he’d given her already drained after everything she’d been through. The Merrick, starved for so long, was obviously going to need another feeding before it was at full strength—and Kellan needed her as strong as possible if they were going to make it out of there alive.

You know what you have to do
, the wolf whispered, its guttural voice coaxing and soft. Running his tongue over his teeth, Kellan wanted to argue with the animal, but damn it, the bastard was right.

“What’s wrong?” she asked unsteadily. “You look like you’re about to tell me my dog just died.”

Locking his jaw, Kellan told her to pick up the candle and grabbed her other hand, pulling her through a connecting doorway and into what looked like a private study, the candlelight flickering against the high, book-lined walls.

“I don’t understand,” she whispered, setting the candle on a gleaming mahogany desk that sat in the center of the room. “Why did we come in here?”

“Because I broke the door in the library,” he explained in a raw, gritty rasp, shutting the door and twisting its lock, before turning to face her. She stared back at him,
her gaze clouded with confusion, waiting for the rest of his explanation. “We’re going to have to run for it, Chloe, and you can barely stand.”

“I know.” She ran her tongue over her lower lip as she leaned back against the desk. “I’m sorry. I’ll—”

“Shh. Stop apologizing. It’s not your fault. But…” Kellan swore under his breath, rubbing a hand over his eyes, and forced out the thick, rough-edged words. “Christ, I hate like hell to put you in this situation, but you need another feeding. A strong one.”

She blinked, understanding dawning with a dark flush of color in her pale cheeks. “You mean…right now?”

With his gaze locked on hers, Kellan crossed the room to her. “I don’t know what we’re gonna run into out there, and with Gregory already here, we can’t take any chances.”

She wet her lips, her expression a mixture of so many emotions, he couldn’t tell what she was thinking. Feeling like a total ass, since anticipation was searing through his veins, his cock already hard and aching, Kellan cupped her cheek, rubbing his thumb across that fever-glow burning beneath her fair skin. “Chloe, I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be,” she whispered, taking a swift breath. And then she shocked the hell out of him by pressing her hands against his chest, going up on her tiptoes and touching her lips to his. “It’s okay,” she said against his mouth, her soft breath warm and sweet. “I’m ready, Kell.”

Then she kissed him again….

S
HE WANTED HIM.

Gripping Chloe’s upper arms with shaking hands, Kellan pushed her back until he could see her face. The warm glow of candlelight illuminated heavy-lidded eyes and moist, parted lips, her chest rising and falling with her shivering breaths. He’d seen the signs enough times to know what it meant—but it had never mattered to him like it did in that moment. Chloe
honestly
wanted him, and he was suddenly trembling harder than he’d been with his first woman.

Quietly, she asked, “Do you…do you want me to turn around?”

Knowing she was thinking of how he’d faced her toward the wall in her cell that first time he’d touched her, Kellan shook his head. “Not this time. I want to be able to watch your eyes.”

She smiled, and the look of happiness shining in her gaze hit him like a punch to the gut. His beast wanted her, desperately, but this crazy thing between them was about so much more than lust. More than just her sexy little body and that seductive scent that made him want to eat her alive. He wanted to take her blood inside him and feel her spilling through his system, claiming ownership over every part of him, making him hers—and his beast wanted the same. Already, the animal’s fangs were
heavy in his mouth, but he struggled to pull them back, not wanting to frighten her. Of course, he’d forgotten the fact that this woman didn’t scare easily.

Staring at the sharp points visible beneath his upper lip, she grinned, not an ounce of fear in her voice as she said, “Your fangs are bigger than mine.”

He let out a surprised bark of laughter. “Just give me a sec, and I’ll be able to pull them back in.”

“You don’t have to.”

His gaze, which had drifted to the provocative hollow of her throat, shot back up, and her grin bled into another dazzling smile as she studied the look on his face. “It’s okay, Kellan. I’m not afraid of your fangs. You can do whatever you want to me.” Her fingertips touched the feverish heat in his brow, her touch tender as she brushed back his hair. “I have a feeling I’m going to like it all.”

“Damn it, don’t do that, Chloe.” A muscle pulsed in his hard jaw. “You don’t want to tempt the beast out of its cage.”

Her eyes sparkled. “Sure I do. I love animals.”

“Oh, God,” he groaned, his hands settling onto her slim hips as he leaned over her, resting his forehead against hers. For a moment, Kellan wondered if she was trying to off him with a heart attack, his pulse rushing so hard and fast, he couldn’t think straight over the loud, thrashing noise. Taking a deep breath, he ran his tongue over his lower lip, struggling to remember the things he needed to tell her. “I…I won’t hurt you.”

Softly, she said, “I know that, Kell.”

“And I, uh, don’t have any rubbers.” The low, hoarse rasp settled heavily into the space between their bodies, and he braced himself for her withdrawal.

But it never came.

Instead, she sounded like she was choking back a laugh. “Gee, Kell. I’m really shocked you aren’t better prepared. I mean, why on earth didn’t you just pop down to the local drugstore last night and grab us a box of condoms?”

The light, teasing tone was so unexpected, it jerked another gritty sound from his chest, and he drew back his head to look down at her. “I can’t carry any diseases, just so you know. But I still…I’ve always used a condom, in the past.”

Her head tilted a little to the side, her eyes dark with emotion, while her provocative scent rose with the heat of her body. “Me, too. But you should know that I’m not on the Pill or anything.”

“I’ll pull out.” Kellan forced the guttural words past his clenched teeth, struggling to control that primal part of him that wanted at her. That craved spilling his hot seed deep within her body, getting her with child. A head-spinning, completely
WTF
kind of thought right there—but one he couldn’t deny. If his future were his, Kellan had no doubt he’d be doing everything he could to bind this woman to him in every possible way, intertwining their lives until they couldn’t be torn apart.

“Not to sound bossy,” she whispered, “but you need to get a move on with this thing, because I’m about two seconds away from attacking you.”

With another husky rumble of laughter, Kellan lifted her onto the sturdy desk, the height perfect for what he had in mind. His heart was beating like a friggin’ jackhammer as he reached for the gun tucked into his waistband and set it on the desk, his hands shaking even harder as he went to work on the buttons of her shirt, the once-white fabric now streaked with blood and soot.
They probably looked as though they’d only just survived some kind of natural disaster, but he still thought she was the most beautiful thing he’d ever set eyes on.

“I didn’t want it to be this way for you…for our first time.” His tone was almost regretful as he pulled down the cups of her bra and swept his thumbs over her swollen nipples, before helping her work her panties over her hips, then pulling them off her legs and letting them drop to the floor. Pressing between her sleek thighs, he ground his jaw as she settled her palms against his chest, her fingers exploring the cut of muscle beneath his sweat-slick skin, and he told her to lean back and lift her heels onto the edge of the desk. She followed his ragged command, spreading and lifting her legs as she settled back onto her elbows, the explicit pose blatantly erotic, and as Kellan stared down at her dark curls and the deliciously pink flesh that was already gleaming with her juices, the pain in his cock doubled…and he knew that he’d never been so hard in his entire life.

Her hungry, clouded gaze followed the movement of his hands as he reached for the button on his jeans, working the zipper down, his cock surging from the strangling confines of denim as he shoved the jeans low on his hips. His pulse roared in his ears as he gripped the heavy, ruddy shaft in a tight fist, the color darkening as he squeezed. With a low groan on his lips, he ran the taut, swollen head through her folds, then pressed against that tender entrance, working his way inside, the feel of her hot, slippery juices soaking his naked dick damn near stopping his heart. He tightened his muscles, needing to thrust hard and deep—the wolf in him clawing at his insides, demanding it—but she stiffened beneath him with a sharp gasp, and he cursed under his breath.
“Damn it, this is too dangerous. You have no idea how close the wolf is to taking over.”

“I probably have a better idea than you think,” she murmured, staring up at him through the thick veil of her lashes. “I can see it glowing in your eyes. Hear it in your voice. And it doesn’t bother me, Kell.”

His muscles quivered, his body covered in blood and ash and sweat. He had no doubt he looked crazed…wild, his hunger for her predatory and raw, unlike anything he’d ever known, pushing him to a place he didn’t trust. “Damn it, Chloe.” He shook his head, fighting to get the words out. “I know you need to feed, but you don’t know what the fuck you’re getting into. I…I don’t wanna be the thing that hurts you.”

“Kellan, look at me.” She waited until he’d locked his burning gaze with hers, then said, “I might not have your colorful past, but I’m not an innocent. I’m a grown woman.”

“Who’s had one bloody lover,” he snarled, trapped in a physical hell—too afraid to push deeper…and unable to drag himself away.

Narrowing her eyes, she said, “I’m not a child, Kellan. So stop freaking out. You’re not going to scare me.”

“Don’t wanna hurt you, either.” Rough, guttural words that had more of the animal in them than the man. Not that she seemed to care.

“Yeah, well, some good things are worth a little pain,” she offered in a gentle voice, a grin playing at the corner of her mouth. He didn’t know if the words were hers, or the Merrick’s, the primal creature rising within her, burning in her luminous eyes, but that heart-melting grin was
all
Chloe, and it broke him, shattering his restraint.
“Can’t…can’t hold it,” he gasped…shaking…his control slipping away….

With a soft, devastating look of trust glowing in her bright eyes, she lay back, pressing a soft palm against the hammering beat of his heart, and simply said, “Then don’t.”

In the next instant, Kellan threw back his head and roared, a guttural snarl ripping from the depths of his chest as he dug his fingers into her hips and slammed into her, shoving over half of his thick, vein-ridden shaft into the depths of her body. He cursed something dirty and raw, pulling back his hips, then drove himself even deeper, working more of his length into her, the pleasure so intense it bordered on pain.

“God, Chloe. The way you hold me… I swear it’s never felt this good before,” he groaned, and she flinched in reaction, not from any physical discomfort…but from his words, and he knew she was thinking about that bloody curse. “Damn it, don’t do that.”

“Do what?”

Bracing his elbows on either side of her head, Kellan leaned his face close to hers, pumping into her, thrusting with hard, heavy lunges, until he’d finally buried every inch of his cock inside her. Then he forced himself to hold deep and still, letting her get used to the heavy penetration as he told her, “This is real, Chloe. As real as it gets…and I’ve wanted it since I first laid eyes on your photograph.” He lowered his head, pressing his lips to the corner of her eye, then the apple of her cheek, his damp hair brushing against her face. “And the more time I spend with you,” he growled, pressing his hips tighter against hers, loving the way she caught her lower lip in her teeth, “the more I want it. Not because of
some curse, but because you blow my fucking mind. You understand me?”

She nodded, her breaths coming faster, and he caught the way she flicked her gaze over the vein in the side of his throat, his blood pumping hard and strong. Pulling back his hips, he gave her a deep, grinding thrust, and rasped, “You see something you want, little one?”

As she licked her lips, her fangs flashed in the soft glow of the candle, and Kellan nearly came then and there. Curving his hands under her arms, he pulled her up with him, the pebbled tips of her breasts brushing the heavy slabs of his chest, and he angled his head to the side, offering her his throat. She groaned, exhaling a soft breath against his hot skin, and Kellan fisted one hand in the back of her hair, pressing her mouth tighter against him, while the other hand gripped her hip, bracing her as he lost the ability to keep it slow, his hips slamming against her. She flicked her tongue against his skin, then she sank her fangs deep, piercing the vein, and the second his blood hit her tongue, she started to come, those lush muscles convulsing around him, pulling him deeper and deeper. She drank greedily, a choked scream trapped in her throat, and just like before, that same fiery wind swarmed around them, the Merrick’s power pulsing against his body, searing across the surface of his skin.

Losing control, Kellan pulled her away from his neck and pushed her down onto the desk, his own fangs dropping hard and fast, his claws slipping from the tips of his fingers. With a thick growl that sounded dangerously like “
Mine
,” he sank his claws into the desktop, gouging the wood, pumping his cock into her harder…faster, the swollen shaft thickening even more, until he could
barely move within the narrow, cushiony walls of her sex. “Damn it,” he grunted, his voice rough…breathless. “You feel so good. I don’t want it to end.”

“Next time,” she moaned, arching beneath him, her small hands fisted in his hair. “Next time you can stay in me all night.”

“I’ll hold you to that,” he whispered against her cheek, and then he couldn’t talk anymore, the pressure in his shaft too much to withstand. With his lungs locked in a vise, Kellan shoved into her once, twice, then wrenched himself free from the tight, liquid depths of her body. Retracting his claws, he grabbed his slick shaft, spurting across her hip, the thick, jaw-grinding pulses going on and on under the blistering heat of her gaze as she watched him fist his cock.

“Wow,” she whispered unsteadily, when it was finally over.

“Sorry,” he gasped, fighting for air as he braced his hands near her shoulders. “Christ, I didn’t mean to drench you.”

A soft smile touched her lips. “Don’t apologize, Kell. I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t criminally sexy.”

“You think?” he asked, his chest vibrating with a gritty laugh.

“Oh yeah.”

“Damn,” he groaned, shaking his head as he leaned over to his right, pulling open the top drawer in the desk, hoping to find something he could clean her up with. “I’ve never come so hard in my life.”

“I’ll, um, take that as a compliment.”

“It was definitely that,” Kellan rumbled, finally finding a small pack of tissues. Wanting to kiss her, but not trusting himself to stop at just that, he quickly took care
of the mess he’d made and handed her back her panties, then buttoned up his jeans while she refastened the front of her shirt. Casting a quick glance around the book-lined study, he ran a trembling hand over his face. “Hell,” he groaned, “I’m never going to look at books the same way again.”

“Me either,” she admitted with a shy smile.

“I think there’s also a damn good chance I’m liable to get hard every time I catch the scent of old paper.”

She gave a delicate snort. “You’d do well to avoid libraries, then.”

“You’re probably right,” he drawled with a wry smile, loving that they could be easy with each other after something so raw and violent and terrifyingly good. “And as much as I’d like to keep you in here with me forever, we’ve got to get moving. How do you feel?”

She slid off the table and stretched, her voice a low, seductive rumble of pleasure as she said, “Like I could take on the entire Casus race.”

“That’s good.” Kellan silently prayed it didn’t come to that. “Now let’s get the hell out of here.”