She nodded. “Now, you’re starting to make sense. I definitely believe in that.”
The smile on his lips widened. The desire darkened his eyes. “Would you accept my advances if I pursued them further?”
Alex nodded. What was the point of lying to him? She wanted him as much as he obviously wanted her. After all this time of staying away from other men-the thought of eventually returning to Ulric’s bed had kept her company even during the loneliest of times-Alex felt it all slip away. The only thing that mattered now was being with Damon, with this stranger. She was prepared to throw caution to the wind, just like she used to, instead of dwelling on the fact she didn’t know a single thing about Damon or that they’d only met hours ago.
None of it mattered to her before Ulric, and it didn’t matter now.
Something she couldn’t even begin to put into words had taken over-a desire so strong and feral, she couldn’t wait to enjoy Damon’s body.
Damon pushed off the stool, kneeling in front of her. He lowered his eyes, staring at her chest while he licked his lips. He gripped her thighs and slowly spread them. She wasn’t sure what he was going to do next, but when he moved in closer, she wrapped her arms around his neck.
She was glad she’d unstrapped her thigh holster and left it on the bedside table. She wouldn’t need her blaster right now.
Damon clamped his mouth over hers. He ran his fingers up and down her bare arms, stirring her into a fevered frenzy. The warmth she’d felt near the wall-when she first thought he was going to kiss her-seeped from his skin and into hers. He kissed her soft and slow, and she couldn’t tear her mouth away. The buzz of pleasure swelled up inside her, as if he were caressing her into climax but hadn’t touched her intimately, yet.
“I want to pleasure you,” he whispered in her ear. His mouth closed around her earlobe. “I’m going to do it by using magic.”
This time, she didn’t bother correcting him.
Damon’s fingers were now running down her sides and had reached her waist. He gathered the fabric of her tank top enough to slip his warm fingers underneath.
She squirmed at his touch, pressing her breasts against him and trying not to let the discomfort of her hurt ribs show.
“I want to heal you, too,” he said, slowly kissing his way down her neck, shoulders, and arms. He lifted her tank top, and she leaned back into the armchair. His lips were now hovering above her abdomen. “Your ribs are bruised.”
She lifted her hips and rubbed up against him. Her breath quickened, but he shook his head.
“Not like this. Not yet.”
She stilled, wanting to know what he had in mind. He was driving her crazy with those expert fingers of his. If he started using his mouth, she doubted she’d be able to stand it.
“What are you going to do, then?”
“This.” He leaned over, his lips just a centimeter away from her burning skin, and blew a line of hot breath over her.
She squirmed again, feeling heady and so desperate to reach climax, she felt like she would melt into a puddle at any moment. “Damn it, Damon. You’re driving me crazy.”
“I hope so.” He kissed her ribs, and a zing rocked her body.
“What the hell was that?” She was so hot and ready for him.
He didn’t answer. Instead, he kissed her skin again, slowly leaving a line of kisses over her ribcage and following it down to her lower abdomen. When he reached the waistband of her pants, he paused. Lifting his face to look at her, he kept his eyes pinned on hers as he pressed his hand to her bare skin.
“This is magic I’m sure you’ve never felt before.”
Alex was about to respond, but her breath caught in her throat. He’d flattened his palm over the skin below her bellybutton, and her body convulsed. The heat of his skin pierced through hers in a sudden explosion, erupting between her legs. An orgasm teased her into submission. It was so gradual, she couldn’t help but moan and groan, biting down on her bottom lip to keep from screaming.
She’d experienced plenty of different ways to climax before, but nothing quite like this. When it should have been over, and she felt spent, another orgasm shook her to the core. She arched her back and whimpered, wishing he would stop torturing her with this endless pleasure yet hoping it would never end.
The door on the other side of the room was suddenly pushed open. “Damon. Damon, you must hurry. We need you down in the courtyard. Something has…oh, my apologies.”
Damon removed his hand from her lower abdomen and looked over his shoulder. “What do you want, Levi?”
The orgasm’s intensity slowed but didn’t completely fade.
She looked across the room-feeling a little hazy-meeting the teenager’s wide eyes. He was staring right at her, but when she caught his eye, he looked away. His gaze roamed around the room, but he couldn’t hide the red darkening his cheeks with embarrassment. If the tendrils of orgasm weren’t still chasing pins and needles of ecstasy beneath her skin, maybe she would’ve felt a slight tug of embarrassment, too. Then again, maybe not. Alex never apologized for an orgasm, especially one this miraculous. Why should she? How the hell had Damon made her come without even touching her where she’d experienced the full brunt of pleasure?
“Levi, what’s wrong?”
“I’m so sorry, Damon. Ah, we’ve found a dead body in the gardens, and the Priestess would like you to come down to the courtyard.”
Damon frowned. “What do you mean by a dead body?”
“A body was found mutilated along a garden path,” Levi answered in a low voice.
“That’s impossible.”
“It’s why she needs you to take a look. Priestess would like to know if you can read anything that’ll tell us what happened.”
Damon nodded. “Okay. I’ll be there right away.”
Levi hesitated for a few heartbeats before he nodded. “I’ll tell her you’re on your way.” He turned around, left, and closed the door behind him with a small thump.
“It doesn’t make any sense,” Damon whispered more to himself than to her. His eyebrows were furrowed, knotted in a look she hadn’t seen on him since they’d met. Not even the birds had seemed to affect him this much.
She touched his face. “What’s wrong?”
“Murder doesn’t happen in our society.”
“Crime exists in every society.”
“Not in ours,” he whispered. Damon refused to meet her eyes. “I’ve never seen any evidence of murder within these walls.”
She sat up straight, enjoying the last of the pleasurable aftershocks. “What about those bird creatures? Haven’t they killed some of your people? You mentioned the lake with the worms, too.” She cringed at the reminder, but when she looked at her arm, all evidence was gone. Too bad the cut on her hand remained. What the hell had Sackor done to her?
“Yes, I’ve seen the birds kill some of our people, and the lake too, but that always takes place outsidethe walls. Harm is never inflicted by one of our own.”