“Mmm.” Tricia wriggled her bottom back snug into the vee of his thighs. Twenty years ago she’d been innocent and taken her lead from him. She wasn’t eighteen any more. She placed her palm on Christian’s thigh and squeezed the firm muscle.
“Tricia.” His breath whispered across her neck, sparking nerves beneath her skin. She didn’t know if she would stay with him, but she had dreamed of making love with him so many times; she had to take this opportunity.
She rose, water and bubbles cascading off her body, and stepped out of the bath. The room was warm. She didn’t cover herself but stood naked in invitation, waiting for him to follow.
Christian climbed out, his wet trousers clinging to his skin. She feasted her eyes on the sculpted muscles of his torso, his lean hips and powerful thighs.
A lopsided grin settled on his lips. “I’d forgotten you are. . more experienced now.”
“Twenty years will do that for a girl.”
His hand rested at her waist and pulled her a step closer to him. He stroked the long dark strands of wet hair from her face. He angled his head and kissed her with slow, thorough exploration until she was light-headed and breathless.
“Does this mean you’ll stay with me?” he asked against her lips.
Tricia leaned back, ran her hands over his chest, and looked up into the green-gold flames burning in his eyes. “That depends how good you are in bed,” she teased.
Tricia lay in the centre of Christian’s bed, tingling with anticipation while he eased his clingy, wet trousers down his thighs.
He stretched out beside her and trailed his hands over her curves as if learning her shape. “You’re more beautiful than I imagined.”
Pulling him closer, she pressed herself against him. His mouth claimed hers in a tender kiss while her fingers explored the silky skin of his back. His face was the epitome of youthful masculine beauty, but he had the well-muscled body of a mature man — a tantalizing combination.
She had yearned for Christian for so long; being here with him in his bed was like a dream. She wanted the moment to last forever, but she was as hungry for him as he was for her. Their eager hands teased and claimed with frantic need. He shifted on top of her with a growl of desire and she wrapped her legs around him, urging him to hurry.
Her fingers dug into his shoulders as pleasure shimmered through her, sweeping away her fears and worries until nothing mattered except loving him.
After they had finished making love, he collapsed on his back beside her, breathing hard. She snuggled up to him, little aftershocks of pleasure racing through her. “The Duke of Buckland is out of luck.” She imagined a scowl on the duke’s arrogant face and smiled. “Will you tell him you’ve claimed me?”
Christian rolled on his side to face her and kissed her finger-tips. “I haven’t claimed you yet, mon amour. That’s something different.”
“So the duke would still take me from you, even though we’ve made love?”
“Let’s ensure he doesn’t have a reason to try.” His gaze roamed her face and he ran the pad of his thumb over her lips. “I’ll never give you up again, Tricia. I shall claim you now.”
“You haven’t told me what’s involved in the claiming yet.”
“I’ll bind you to me in a way that means I’ll be able to sense you, keep you safe. You’ll be marked as mine, untouchable by any others of my kind.”
Tricia shifted uncomfortably. “Sounds as though you’re about to hang a tag around my neck with your phone number on it in case I stray.”
He chuckled. “The connection between us will go a lot deeper than that. You have a dormant gene that the claiming activates to attune you to my energy.”
Tricia was no biologist, but she knew that every cell in her body contained genes. “You’re talking about something pretty drastic here, Christian. You’re spooking me.”
He slid his fingers into her hair and kissed her. “I promise you there’s nothing to worry about. The experience is special. . intimate. Something I’ve only ever shared with one other woman.”
Right now, she did not want to hear about the other woman with whom he’d shared this special intimate thing. “Just tell me how you do this transformation.”
“Simple. I bathe you in my fire.”
“Whoa.” Tricia pulled back out of his grip and reflexively snatched the sheet to her chest. “No way.”
Christian sat up and angled his head, assessing her. “You’re frightened.”
“Any sane person would be.”
“I won’t hurt you. My fire renews.”
“Your fire’s hot. Don’t try to tell me it’s not because I watched you melt that pyramid at the Institute. I felt the heat from across the room.”
Christian sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. “I would never hurt you. You’re going to have to trust me on that.”
And there lay the rub. He had already hurt her so badly he had shattered her teenage confidence and left her broken-hearted. His definition of hurt didn’t tally with hers. And it sounded as though once he’d claimed her there would be no going back. He’d have some kind of psychic tag on her for the rest of her life.
Tricia rose from the bed, tugging the sheet with her to cover up, and walked to the window. Dusk had fallen. The scent of evening flowers filled the air while tiny bats circled the terrace below.
“I need to claim you to protect you, Tricia. I suspect whoever set the fire at your home will pursue you here. The followers of Set and Anubis hunt our women and kill them when they can.”
“Great. So if the duke doesn’t take me some nutty pagans will try to kill me.”
“I’m afraid they’re more than nutty pagans. Apart from Ra, Set was the most powerful of the old gods. He’s evil incarnate and he arms his followers with powers that challenge even the Sons of Ra.”
Tricia plopped down on to the window seat and stared at him. “Are you telling me the Ancient Egyptian gods are still alive?”
“A few, but you only need to worry about Set and Anubis.”
“Oh, great. Well that’s all right then.” She rolled her eyes.
“Now you understand why I sent you out of my life to protect you, mon amour.”
“Actually, I don’t. If I’m a target, you should have at least warned me.”
“They only found you because you drew attention to yourself.”
“Well forgive me for wanting a job and a life.” She turned her back on him, her heart pounding with indignation.
A rustling sound warned her he had climbed off the bed. His hand settled gently on her shoulder. “After I sent you away, the odds of you encountering another Son of Ra or of touching a ben ben were close to zero. Will you keep punishing me for a choice I made with the best of intentions?”
Tricia squeezed her eyes closed and let her head drop forward. Was she being childish and vindictive? Did she want to hurt him for a decision he’d made twenty-two years ago?
She rose and turned into his waiting arms. He eased her head against his shoulder. His warm hand splayed soothingly on the small of her back. “Remy knows the touch of my fire. He’ll confirm it doesn’t hurt.” His lips brushed her ear. His hand on her back pulled her closer; the evidence of his arousal pressed against her stomach. “Come back to bed with me, mon amour. We’ll discuss the claiming tomorrow.”
In the middle of the night, knocking intruded on Tricia’s sleep. Drowsy with the languor of sexual satiation she barely roused at the sound of Remy’s urgent words.
“I’ve been called to Egypt,” Christian whispered. “I’ll be back in the morning.”