Thunder and Lightning

One of his hands slid to the small of her back to hold her in place, to keep her long, luscious body melded with his. The other hand cupped her breast and gave a slightly rough squeeze. More so than he’d intended, but his passion was welling within him, fast and furious. He toyed with her nipple, making her squirm against him. Her fingers were still tangled in his hair and she let out breathy little moans that drove him wild. His tongue slid along the column of her neck, tasting her sweet, slightly salty skin, exploring the cords as they pulled tight, pressing against her flesh as he drew in a pinch of it.

Not nipping or biting. Sucking softly. Carefully.

Though Cane’s mind clouded with the sensual abyss he was lost in, there was a part of him that remained detached enough to keep himself in check. He wanted her body tonight. Not her blood. He wanted to pleasure her, not drink from her. The lines were blurry, of course, but he held fast to the firm grip he had on his restraint.

So he thought.

“Cane.” She whispered his name. That one word was filled with need and desire.

His eyes snapped open. Lightning lit the windows again and a kaleidoscope of color filled the small room, the varying hues covering the bare skin that was exposed before him. Her long arms. Her tempting neck. Her strikingly beautiful face.

Lord help him, he’d never wanted anything more in his life.

But it wasn’t bloodlust that raged within him. It was physical lust. A red-hot need that flowed over him, through him.

“Say yes,” he said on a low, sharp tone that almost constituted a growl.

“Yes.”

Damn it. And… Hallelujah!

Hell, maybe he was the one playing with fire tonight. Maybe he was condemning his own soul for wanting her so damn much.

He didn’t have any answers. All he knew was that physical pleasure beckoned him.

No. It was more powerful than that. It screamed at him, begged him to be satiated. And he would obey. Not just for himself, but for Bev as well. Especially for Bev.

His mouth was on hers again, but for a few brief moments before he broke away as he shoved her tank top upward over her head, letting the lacy material drop to the floor. He stared at her, captivated. He took in the full, lushly rounded breasts that indeed were accented by small, tight, dusty-rose-colored nipples. And then his gaze lifted, reveling in her bronze flesh, her prominent collarbone, her perfect neck.

Cane sucked in a breath as he devoured the sheer beauty of her. The face that would materialize behind his closed lids every day henceforth. For the rest of his tortured eternity. The lips he could still feel on his mouth. The eyes that, when he looked deep into them, begged for so much more. From life. From him.

He couldn’t explain what he saw when he looked into Bev’s sparkling green eyes. But in his gut, he knew there was a secret hidden in their depths. A truth he wanted desperately to know. A yearning he couldn’t fully identify. A mystery he wanted to solve.

Cane wanted to know everything about her. Wanted to explore every fantasy, fulfill every dream.

His desire for her was overwhelming, yet at the same time the absolution he felt at this moment was enough to give him the kind of peace he’d wished for since the change two hundred years ago.

Her fingertips skimmed lightly over his cheek, down to his clenched jaw.

“You get so lost,” she said, her eyes narrowing on him, curiosity and confusion in her soft voice. “Where do you go?”

He shook his head. Christ. She had no idea how swept away he was. By her.

His throat was tight, but he managed to say, “You’re the most beautiful creature I’ve ever laid eyes on.”

A soft smile touched her lips and her green eyes changed, as though his words and her reaction to them took her by pleasant surprise.

Cane grinned back. He’d made it this far with her. Had pushed past the primal need. Had tamped down the beast. Had focused solely on the man he was. Not the vampire. Not the demon.

He had masculine needs, was enrapt by a stunning woman who stirred more than his bloodlust.

Bev made him focus on his humanity. The essence of him that he’d lost twice now. The essence of him he’d fought so damned hard to recover both times.

After the change. After Amy.

This woman made him feel more like a man and less like a vampire.

The liberation that came with that realization helpe