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  “I want your cock in my mouth.” There was no hesitation.

  “That’s good, because I need your mouth on me, baby,” he whispered against her lips. “I’m going to break in half if I take another step.”

  She kissed her way down his throat while she pushed at the material of his shirt, wanting it off his skin so she could get to him. He reached with one hand and whipped it over his head, slinging it somewhere. Anywhere. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw it float down to the short white fence where vines grew and settle there.

  Her hands caught at the waistband of his pants and she took them down to his ankles. He kicked them away. “Take the dress off, Ashe,” he said, desperate to see her body.

  She didn’t take her gaze from his. Both hands went to the hem and she pulled the dress from her body, leaving her completely bare to him. Her skin gleamed, a rosy color, flushed with need, the ritual heat on her.

  He cupped her breasts in his palms and ran his thumbs over her nipples. Strumming. Watching her reaction. Her breath caught in her throat. He changed the rhythm and then pinched and tugged. She gasped. Her eyes glazed a bit. Her mouth opened.

  “Need you on your knees, Ashe,” he said. He wasn’t certain he was capable of handling this. She was so beautiful. He kept tugging on her nipples, his gaze glued to her face, needing her reaction the way he needed air.

  She knelt immediately, still looking up at him, almost in adoration. He circled the base of his cock with one hand. “Put your hands behind your back.” He could barely breathe. He couldn’t see anything but his woman kneeling there in front of him, surrounded by flowers and curling vines, completely naked, her skin glowing with need.

  Ashe obeyed him, putting both hands behind her, threading her fingers together. His heart tripped as the action thrust her breasts toward him. He stepped closer and rubbed the sensitive head of his cock over her lips. She parted them for him and he fed it to her, one slow inch at a time, watching with a kind of wonder how his girth stretched her lips. How she struggled to take him. She didn’t pull back or hesitate, not even when he was certain she would choke. She just kept her eyes on his, and there was trust there. Complete trust.

  Timur had no idea how he’d earned that from her, but by some miracle she’d given that to him. He moved in her. Gently. Carefully. It was difficult with his entire body shaking and his seed boiling. Every cell in his body urged him to go faster. To bury himself deep in the silken heat of her mouth.

  “I need you to suck harder.” He gave the command through gritted teeth. He could barely talk, barely manage a voice instead of an animalistic growl. He felt like an animal, need consuming him, driving out sanity, every thinking part of him.

  He threw his head back when her mouth tightened and he felt that suction gripping him, the friction as he drove deeper. He watched her struggle to relax for him, to let him go deeper, cutting off her airway for longer moments. Never once did she let go of her hands or pull away from him. She didn’t break eye contact either.

  He’d never seen anything more sensuous than his woman with her eyes watering and her lips stretched around his girth. His cock disappearing and her throat working. He didn’t want it to end, that ecstasy when she gave up every semblance of control to bring him pleasure. He felt the burn starting somewhere in his toes. The tingling up the back of his spine, like the tips of flames, licking at him. The burn in his belly, the roaring in his ears and the brutal tightness in his balls as they drew up, covered, he was certain, in flames.

  He caught her hair in a tight grip and thrust deep, feeling her open at his demand, feeling nothing now but the terrible burst of raw fire that turned fast into a raging storm. It roiled in his gut and groin, and then there was that one moment where he teetered on the edge staring down into her eyes. So beautiful. So perfect. Giving him this when he did nothing to deserve it. Giving him everything. Then the volcano erupted, long jerking spurts he was helpless to stop.

  His hand went to her throat to feel her swallowing. That added to the pleasure, to the force of his explosive eruption. He tightened his hold in her hair as he withdrew and held himself there, waiting just out of her present reach. She leaned into him and did what he silently demanded, her tongue lapping at him gently. His entire body shuddered with pleasure as she took every drop of his essence into her. She took her time and was very thorough. By the time she was finished, he was hard again.

  He used his grip on her hair to pull her into a standing position. He indicated the small fence and she turned and faced away from him, her hands gripping the top rail. He kicked her legs wider and wider until he could see her sweet pussy gleaming at him. She was so ready for him, pink and swollen and nearly crying in her need. He didn’t wait. Didn’t hesitate. He caught both hips and drove into her.

  Fire streaked up his legs and centered in his groin. She was scorching hot, surrounding him with silken flames. It was heaven and hell combined. He plunged into her again and again, hard driving strokes, his powerful hands pulling her back to meet him. He could hear her ragged breath as he drove air from her lungs with the force of each surge.

  He wanted to be gentle, but the grip of her heat wouldn’t allow it for either of them. She needed to be sated, and wild and rough was their only recourse. “This is love, Ashe.” He whispered it over her head. Stroked one hand down her back in a caress before gripping her hip again. “This is love for you the only way I know how to show it to you.” Giving her what she needed. She gave him everything, and he would burn for her always. Burn until there was nothing left of him.

  She pushed back hard, impaling herself as he drove through those soft folds. Then she was keening, wailing, calling out her orgasm to the world. He felt her body clamp down on his and couldn’t stop the storm in his body from erupting into her. He didn’t want to stop it. He let the force of his own orgasm match hers and yelled her name as he blasted his seed into her.

  Timur wrapped his arms around her waist and buried his face in the nape of her neck. “Someday, Ashe, I’m going to make love to you so gently, you won’t know who you’re in bed with,” he promised. “I’m going to worship your body the way you worship mine. Don’t think I don’t know or appreciate what you do for me, because I do.”

  He would never have said the words to her face. He wasn’t there yet. No one else knew about the poetry he wrote, tucked away in a secret diary he feared an enemy might find someday. A killer with a poet’s heart. How had that happened? He vowed his woman would get that side of him someday, but not yet. His feelings for her were too new, too overwhelming. He had to find a way to reconcile the killer with the lover and poet.

  His body gave another shudder and then he began to withdraw. He heard her little cry of pain as he did so. The leopards were so close, pushing on each of them for freedom. He didn’t like being out of her body. Away from her. Alone in his own skin once more. Still, he stroked another caress down her back.

  “Shift for me, baby. I want to see your leopard. She’s beautiful. My male says she’s the most beautiful leopard that he’s ever seen. He says she’s unusual.”

  He knew his woman would want her female appreciated. He watched her body contort, the fur sliding through to cover her skin. She was a shade faster. He would work on that with her when she wasn’t in heat. The faster they could shift, the safer they were. She stood in front of him, her little body compact, fur very thick, like that of an Amur leopard, but the coloring was different, shades of platinum and gold running through a darker fur. The rosettes were ringed with the two colors and he’d never seen that before. His male was right. She was beautiful, her fur different, and therefore she was more at risk for an enemy to want her pelt.

  He shifted quickly, letting his male out. Instantly Temnyy scented the air and grimaced at the smell of several male leopards in close proximity. He nudged his mate, shouldering her, pushing her to run for the grove of trees. She swiped at him with one paw, not at all enamored of his bossy ways. She could scent the other males as easily a
s he could and knew that in her present state, she would create chaos. They would fight for her. Adore her. Vie to be her mate.

  Temnyy turned and raked his teeth down her side. She jumped and went in the direction he pushed her, right toward the grove. It was large and shaded due to the heavy canopy above them. The branches on the trees were thick and twisted one into another to create an arboreal highway aboveground.

  Beneath the trees, the vegetation was more scarce because sunlight had a difficult time getting through the canopy. Still, there were bushes and a little stream that ran through the small forest the Arnotto family had created so many years earlier. Godiva ran to the stream and played in it, cooling her paws and then rolling so that the cold water bathed her side where Temnyy had raked her. She snarled at him, letting him know she wasn’t happy with him.

  Temnyy moved closer to nuzzle her muzzle with his own, and then he lapped at her side with his tongue, taking the sting away. They ran together, side by side, Godiva learning the forest area, mapping it out in her mind so she would know it well if there was danger. Several times she stopped to mark the trees with her alluring scent. The moment she did, Temnyy marked over the top to warn the others away from what was his.

  She rolled in the dry leaves and playfully swatted some at him. He watched over her, her antics telling him she wasn’t quite ready for him. They ran another distance and then she began rubbing along his side and pushing her muzzle into his neck. He licked her. She was receptive to his display of affection, rolling over for him and then coming to a crouch.

  Temnyy was on her immediately, his teeth holding her in place, and then he began their hours of mating. Every fifteen minutes he took her roughly, again and again. His teeth held her, biting deep and his barbed penis scraped her as he withdrew, causing pain. Still, she crouched for him, her heat driving her to the mating ritual.

  It was evening before Timur pushed his leopard to return to the guesthouse. The two leopards entered panting, sides heaving, tongues rolling, Godiva clearly exhausted. Timur shifted first and immediately went to run a hot bath for her, throwing in soothing salts to help ease any bruising.

  Godiva padded after him and lay on the cool tile, her eyes closed as he filled the deep tub for her. Everything in the Arnotto estate had been designed for the comfort of shifters and their leopards.

  “All right, baby, shift for me,” he whispered, running his hand through her soft fur.

  Godiva lifted her head and looked at him. He could see his woman there, behind those exotic, beautiful eyes. The strange light amber with the darker rings around them, eyes that seemed to see into his soul. He hoped not. His soul was black with sins.

  “Come on, baby, or I’ll have to put you in the water just the way you are.” It wasn’t much of a threat. Leopards liked water. They could swim and often did. Some had achieved the skill to catch prey in water.

  Godiva gave a little sniff of disdain and then her body contorted. He winced when he saw the rake mark along Ashe’s satiny skin. It was a long red streak that went from hip, over her ribs to just below her arm. It appeared more of a scrape than anything else and it wasn’t deep, but it reminded him that any mark on Godiva was a mark on Ashe.

  She was on her hands and knees, and looked so exhausted he wanted to gather her into his arms and put her to bed. They had a dinner with Evangeline’s family to get through, probably another wild mating session and then he had to go to work. Hopefully, she would be so exhausted she would sleep and wouldn’t even know he was gone.

  “What’s wrong, Timur?”

  Her voice was husky. He willed his cock to behave. It was so close to her mouth. To those lips. To keep from doing anything he might be ashamed of later, he lifted her into his arms and stepped into the bathtub.

  “I don’t like Temnyy raking Godiva with his teeth.”

  “She was being a hussy.” Ashe turned her head into his chest.

  Her breath was warm against his skin. He felt the tip of her tongue touch his flat nipple. Unsurprisingly, he was sensitive, and he felt as though an electric wire ran from nipple to his cock.

  “Were you okay with everything that happened this afternoon?” He kissed the top of her head. “You have to tell me when you don’t like something.”

  “You mean when I had your cock down my throat?” She looked up at him.

  She was a fucking temptress. How could she say that and look at him so innocently? His cock was going to be out of control, and she was more exhausted than she knew. One of them had to be sane. He put her down, off his lap so she couldn’t feel his reaction to her deliberate phrasing.

  “That’s exactly what I mean.”

  “I loved it. I loved being outside surrounded by nature, vines and flowers. Feeling the sun on my skin. It was very intoxicating.”

  “I was so out of control I couldn’t wait long enough to get you inside,” he confessed.

  “I was so out of control I didn’t care,” she admitted. Her eyes met his. “You’d already warned everyone away. I saw you texting just before we left Evangeline and Fyodor.”

  He nodded. “I was afraid we’d left it too late. Your female goes from zero to a full-out burn in seconds.” He leaned closer and smiled at her. “Before you protest, I love that about her. I like not knowing when we’re going to have to make a run for it. Believe me, baby, it will keep me on my toes, checking for closets or alleyways.”

  She laughed softly. “I love being with you, Timur. You’re so unexpected.”

  “Will that be enough for you when I’m ordering you around?”

  She shrugged. “That all depends. I don’t mind your orders if they’re for my protection or someone else’s. I love that about you. I love that you’ll watch over our children and your family with that fierce side of you. I won’t love it if you start thinking you can control my everyday life. I will always be me. Always, Timur. If you really are in love with me, then you’ll realize controlling me would ruin everything we have, or could potentially have.”

  There was truth in what she was saying and he hoped he would always have the wisdom to know when to back off from trying to control his environment.

  14

  TIMUR was head of security for Fyodor, but he was also his brother. Tonight, with Ashe at his side, he was Fyodor’s brother—seemingly. He dressed accordingly, but the clothes he chose were easily gotten rid of, should he have need. He would be walking a fine line, convincing Ashe and Evangeline he had the night off and was simply enjoying a meal and getting to know Evangeline’s family.

  Evangeline had been with them long enough to know they were suspicious of her brother, so tonight he had to convince her all suspicion had been allayed and she could relax, her family was out of danger. He knew Ashe was exhausted and she didn’t want to go, she even suggested that maybe resting up for the next round with Godiva’s heat would be a good idea, but he needed her there as a distraction.

  The truth was, he detested using her that way, but he had to put Evangeline’s fears to rest as well as put her family members at ease. He was not an easy man and he knew it. He made others uncomfortable. He didn’t fit in at dinner parties. He didn’t know all the right forks to use and he didn’t care to know. Fyodor could handle all those things. Still, Timur dressed with care. He would do whatever it took to make certain his loved ones were safe, even if that meant deceiving them, and it was never easy to mislead a leopard.

  Ashe walked in looking as if she had just stepped off the cover of a magazine. He couldn’t believe how beautiful she was. Her hair fell in a waterfall around her face, tumbling down her back, thick and shiny. She had the kind of hair that begged a man to run his fingers through it. Her makeup looked nonexistent, when he knew she had spent some time getting it just right. It emphasized her large, exotic eyes, drawing attention to the dramatic sweep of her lashes and the unusual color of her irises.

  Her lips were painted a darker mauve, accentuating the beautiful bow. His heart beat a little faster as she walked in. She wore
blue jeans. He knew she didn’t have much in the way of clothes, and they’d only brought a small overnight bag, so she only had a couple of items of clothing to choose from, but with Ashe, it didn’t matter. The jeans hugged her in all the right places and the dusky rose-colored top clung to her curves.

  “You look beautiful.” He breathed the words, shocked that he could actually speak.

  “I don’t have much in the way of clothes for a dress-up dinner party. I wore the only dress I have earlier and it’s really more of a cover-up, not a dress. Evangeline assured me that this would be all right to wear.” She ran her hands nervously down her thigh. “What’s her family like?”

  There it was, the beginning of a careful mixture of truth and deceit. Leopards heard lies. More than ever he had to choose every word.

  “I don’t know. Evangeline wasn’t raised around her brothers, so she barely knows them. They’ve been pushing for a closer relationship and I think she wants to explore that.”

  “Why wasn’t she raised with them?”

  Timur took another breath and let it out. He was on much safer ground. “Her grandfather was a predator. He liked to abuse women, all women, especially family members. When Evangeline was born, he was told she died immediately. They took her to a cabin they had prepared in the swamp. As she got older she was left there alone, more and more.”

  Ashe narrowed her eyes at him. “They left a child alone in the swamp?” Disbelief edged her voice.

  He nearly laughed. The truth was unbelievable, and that was a good thing for him. He nodded. “They left her there to fend for herself. She got very good at looking out for herself and in the end, she wanted away from all of them.”

  Ashe shook her head. “And now they want a relationship with her? Why? Because she has something they want?”

  “I don’t know the answer to that, baby. I hope it’s because they really want to get to know her and they’re sorry they didn’t have that chance when they were children. Remember, her brothers were just kids. They didn’t make the decisions and more importantly, we don’t know what they were told about Evangeline. Most likely, they were told she died. If their grandfather questioned them, they had to sound believable.”