His Darkest Hunger (Jaguar Warriors 1)

“Oh my God, that feels so good,” she gasped.

He smiled against the soft flesh and then opened wide, bringing his heated tongue to swirl around the buds that begged to be kissed. Slowly, he teased and caressed, and when her whimpers became hoarse and the pressure from her hands was hard, he took one of the tips deep into his mouth and suckled hard.

She tasted like candy, and he felt her stiffen as he savored the sweetness and gently caressed her other breast. They had always been beautiful, perfect and feminine, but today they were like gifts from the gods, and he suckled hungrily.

Her hands began to make their way down past his shoulders, and Jaxon shuddered at her tentative caresses. They felt unsure, virginal, and that nearly drove him to the brink.

His skin was burning up and he felt the beast scratching at him. Begging him to take what was his. Mark her with his brand.

He tore his mouth from her breasts, trailing a path of fire down, his hands grabbing the waistband of her jeans. He would have ripped them, but her hips were so slim they slid down with no effort at all.

The scent of her arousal was heavy in the air, and Jaxon felt close to losing control. He leaned back onto his haunches, breathing in deeply, trying to maintain a bit of calm, his eyes taking in every inch of her beautiful body.

Her long hair was wild about her face, half covering her eyes as they trailed in long tendrils over her panting mouth and down toward her heaving breasts. His eyes wandered past the ribs, which were too noticeable for his liking, to the flat belly and the neat patch of blond that harbored her greatest treasure. His heart ached at the beauty before him, and it took a few moments until he realized there was a flaw to her, one that hadn’t been there before.

The long, thin white scar seemed to mock him as it sat low on her abdomen. The anger that rushed through him upon seeing it was instant and cold. It felt as if he’d been punched in the gut. The scar represented a whole host of things he wasn’t ready to deal with. And as his desire fled, the quest

ions that had been burning in his mind since the night before could no longer be denied. Had she had a baby? And if so, who the hell was the father? Had she loved another the way she’d loved him?

Images and memories clouded his mind, and his hot flesh cooled as a rush of emptiness threatened to overwhelm him. It sat heavy and unwanted deep in his chest. He felt betrayed, and as his eyes skimmed the scar, he couldn’t help but wonder if she’d screwed the bastards who had ultimately screwed him over.

He pushed away violently, and was ten yards away before he could speak. He’d been so close to losing himself in her. Again. Something he had promised he would never do.

“You need to go back to the cabin.”

Libby sat up, trying to hide her nakedness, and when she spoke, she sounded confused. “Jaxon, I don’t understand.”

Her voice broke on a sob, and he fought the savage need to take her. To punish her. To pound his body into hers and hope for some sense of relief from the darkness that had stalked him for the last three years.

“Jaxon, help me understand all of this. Please, I need to know.”

“Libby, what you need to do is get away from me.” His voice, thick with anger and need, was almost incoherent.

“I just—”

Jaxon exploded into action and was at her side in a second. He leaned down, enjoying the fear that clouded her eyes as she stared back at him. Her body trembled and she shrank from him.

“If you don’t get out of my sight I will do one of two things to you. I will either fuck you until you can’t see anymore, or I will wrap my hands around that lovely, long neck of yours and wring the very last breath you’ll ever breathe from your body.”

Then Jaxon pulled back from her again, his body flushed with fury as he spat, “My problem is that I don’t know which one I want to do more.”

The hurt that flashed across her face slammed into him, but he angrily pushed it aside. What the hell did it matter if she was upset? He could give a rat’s ass.

He watched her through hooded eyes as she rolled over and pulled her jeans back up over her hips. Her movements were stiff, but she held her head high as she clasped the two ends of her shredded shirt together, trying to cover her exposed breasts.

Without much success.

She gained her footing and faced him with a bravado he knew she didn’t feel. He had to give her credit. She was finally regaining some of the spunk that had attracted him to her in the first place.

“I’m leaving now.”

Her voice was small, and the anguish she felt was laced throughout her words. “I don’t know what I did to you and the others…” She paused again, struggling to maintain her composure. “I can’t say I’m sorry for something I don’t remember, but if I hurt you in the past, there must have been a reason.”

He turned on his heel and walked toward the forest, flinching at the hoarsely whispered words that followed.

“There has to be a reason.”

He stalked through the trees, ignoring the shrieks and alarm that rent the air as two blue jays and a host of sparrows heralded his approach. For an animal known for its ability to hunt and stalk its prey with silence and stealth, he was doing a poor job melting into the local habitat, but he didn’t give a shit.