They might not be interested in men, but they obviously still thought about them.
His mind spiraled to what kind of ‘agenda’ Natasa had, and where the hell they were really heading.
Ahead, Ilithyia drew to a stop and held up her forearm. As a unit, the others halted and raised their weapons. Titus was so lost in his thoughts he didn’t realize they’d stopped until he slammed into Natasa’s back and nearly knocked them both down.
She grunted, pushed against him until he stumbled back a step, then glared over her shoulder.
A smile worked its way across Titus’s mouth. She was gorgeous pissed. That flame red hair fanning out around her, the flare of heat in her eyes. He bet her skin was hot right now. Hot and soft and so damn alluring he wanted to feel it against him. Everywhere.
“A garrison,” Ilithyia whispered in a harsh tone. “Spread out.”
The Amazons moved with lightning speed, disappearing into the forest as if they’d never been there. Natasa tugged on the rope bound to Titus’s wrists and quickly pulled him into a dense copse of trees.
Darkness surrounded him. He tripped over a downed limb, bumping into Natasa again, only this time she didn’t seem to mind. She grasped him by the shoulders, whipped him around and shoved him up against the trunk of a tree the size of a house. Then she plastered her body to his and whispered, “Shh.”
Titus’s adrenaline surged. This close he could smell the lemon scent of her skin. Could feel the heat radiating from beneath her clothes. Blood rushed to his groin, messing with his thoughts. Focus. Control. To try to keep his brain on line so he wouldn’t give away their location, he looked over her head at the trees around them.
The small area was more like a cave than a forest. The spruce so densely clustered, their limbs were devoid of needles. The packed groundcover told him some kind of animal had recently bedded down in here, and the foliage on the outside of the tree-lined circle was thick enough to block whatever lay beyond.
Footsteps pounded in the forest. Muffled voices reached their ears. Titus tried to focus on the words and thoughts of those around them, but Natasa’s rapid breath drew his attention. And the way she gripped his sleeves tighter in her fingers, the way her heart raced next to his drowned out all other sound.
Instinct overcame reason. He lifted his bound wrists over her head, slid them down her back so his arms were tight around her. She didn’t protest. If anything, she moved closer into the strength of his body. And yeah, she was warm—like he expected—but the tremble that rushed through her told him she wasn’t quite as confident as she’d seemed earlier.
He lowered his mouth close to her ear, only just missed brushing her lobe with the tip of his nose. “Whatever’s out there…I’ll protect you.”
She stilled against him, then slowly tilted her head back to look up. Heat radiated from her hands pressing into his sides, from her breasts resting against his leather chest plate. He wished he’d taken off the formal gear earlier in the forest. Wished right now they were naked, skin to skin, so he could see if she felt as good against him in other places. Wanted, more than anything, for her to rise up on her toes and press those plump, tender lips against his so he could know what it was like to be kissed again.
He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been kissed. Couldn’t remember what it felt like to press his mouth to someone else’s, to taste their essence on his tongue. Couldn’t remember how good it must feel to get lost in nothing but warm, blissful wetness.
She’d be all three, he bet. Not just in her mouth, but between her legs, where he ached to touch her, skin to skin.
“You can’t protect me,” she whispered. “No one can.”
The finality to her words slowed his racing heart and brought his focus up to her eyes. They were so green, so fathomless, he wondered if he could see her soul. But they were also haunted. By a fear he sensed was the root of who she really was.
Her panic attack back at the colony whipped through his mind. Followed by the way she’d run from him in Argolea. He had no doubt whoever or whatever was out there was here because of her.
“Who’s hunting you?”
Her gaze slid from his eyes to his lips, where it hovered, jacking his already overheated body temperature up another five degrees. For the first time in his life, he wanted to know the thoughts of another. Then she licked her lips, like she wanted to take her own sinful taste, and all that supreme control he’d mastered during his lifetime flew right through the trees. His cock swelled beneath his fly until need consumed him.
Kiss me. Gods, just kiss me.
“Natasa?” Ilithyia’s rang out.
“Shit.”
Natasa lurched back, her one panicked thought slicing through the sexual haze. But Titus’s arms were still bound around her, and she didn’t get far.
She struggled to break free, and amusement stole through him. He might not be able to read her thoughts clearly, he might wrestle with her expressions, but he recognized body language. She wanted him. Maybe not as much as he wanted her, but enough.
She jerked out from under his arms and smoothed her hair. Then held up a finger and shot him a look. “Not a word.”
A broad smile spread across his face. Yeah, he’d discover who she was for Argonauts. He’d uncover what she was running from and figure out a way to protect her for her. But he was going to have her for himself. Screw the consequences and whatever was keeping him from feeling her emotions. For the first time in over a hundred years, he wanted something just for him. And he wasn’t going to walk away until he had his fill. No matter what happened next.
“They’re gone,” Ilithyia called. “We move on.”
Natasa’s chest rose and fell with her deep breaths. Color stained her cheeks. Heat all but rolled off her in waves. “Come on,” she snapped. “And stay quiet. Don’t make me hurt you.
“Hurt me, ligos Vesuvius. I want you to.”
She narrowed her eyes. “You’re playing with fire, Argonaut.”
Warmth flooded every single vein in his body. This was about to get a whole lot more interesting. “I can’t wait to get burned.”
Natasa’s adrenaline surged as they neared the compound. She was walking a fine line here. She didn’t want to do anything to piss off Ilithyia any more than she already had. The Amazon already didn’t like her. And being caught with an Argonaut wasn’t improving her situation.
Stay focused. Remember why you’re here. Remember what’s at stake.
Behind her, Titus shuffled over a rock, and his shoulder bumped hers. Awareness trickled through, reminding her of that moment with him in the trees. When he’d looked at her as if he’d wanted to kiss her. When she’d considered—for one insanely stupid moment—rising on her toes and kissing him back.
Kissing him? Kissing him? She was seriously losing it if she was considering getting more involved with the hero.
Damn him for following her. Damn her for being so enticed by him. If she hadn’t flirted with him on that stupid castle wall—if she hadn’t saved his life then—they wouldn’t be in this mess right now. Marching toward something that could end very badly for both of them if she didn’t keep her wits about her.
Son of a bitch, she should be going after Epimetheus, not screwing around with an Argonaut.
“You’re being cryptically quiet, ligos Vesuvius.”
Ligos Vesuvius… Did she look like a little volcano? Her irritation jumped another notch. “And you would be wise to take a cue from my silence.”