"Once," Ty whispered, "I saw Lucifer go to you, put his head into your hands with such trust that I was reminded of the legend of the unicorn and the maiden. It made me… restless, baffled, angry. I felt sorry for the unicorn, trapped by his reckless love.
"And then the maiden opened her hands and let the unicorn go, for she loved the unicorn too much to hold it against its will."
Janna's fingers stilled until Ty's head shifted against her palms, asking to be stroked once more, asking to be held by her touch even as the unicorn had been held.
"The unicorn ran off and congratulated himself on his clever escape, and then…" Ty turned slowly, covering Janna's body with his own. He touched the hot center of her just once, slowly, drawing a long, broken moan from her. "And then," Ty whispered, watching Janna's eyes, "the unicorn realized what a fool he had been. There was nothing in the forest as exciting as the maiden's touch, no beauty to equal her companionship, no pleasure as deep as the ease she had given his soul. So he went running back and begged to be given the maiden's gift once more."
When Ty neither spoke nor moved to join their bodies, Janna's heart hesitated, then beat with redoubled strength.
"What did the maiden say?" she whispered.
"I don't know. Tell me, Janna. What did the maiden say to the unicorn?"
Tears magnified Janna's eyes. "I love you," she said huskily. "I'll always love you."
She felt the emotion that shuddered through Ty's strong body as he bent and kissed her tears away.
"Yes," Ty said, watching Janna's eyes. "I want you to be my wife, my mate, my woman, the mother of my children, the keeper of my heart, the light of my soul. I love you, Janna. I love you.''
Janna reached for Ty even as he came to her. Their bodies merged, softness and strength shared equally, defining and discovering one another in the same elemental moment. Ecstasy blazed as they lost and then found themselves, man and woman forever joined in the reckless, incandescent union known as love.