had injected his poison. He inspected her blood, wanting to see if his ancient blood was slowly fighting off the vampire's tainted sludge. Her blood was different. He felt it, sensed it, but no matter how carefully he searched, he could not find the poisonous bacteria. At times he had the sense that something was there with him, aware of him, but he found nothing to substantiate the feeling. He was gratified to see the blood flowing much more freely in her veins. Some of the long-term internal damage had been healed. It gave him hope that there would be a way to cure her completely. Finally he gathered her close to him and allowed the soil to pour over them, his lips brushing her cheek as the earth enfolded them into its care.
Destiny woke fighting. She knew she wasn't alone the moment awareness came to her, still deep beneath the earth as the soil opened above her. Her heart began to beat, and air found space in her lungs. She felt the body next to hers - hard, muscular, male. Strong. Too strong to fight, but she tried anyway. She was on her side, and the instant she became aware she turned, the edge of her hand slamming down with the force of a hammer toward the throat she knew was close to hers. But it was no longer there.
As her hand passed through empty air, Nicolae shackled her wrist, brought her hand gently to his throat to rest over his pulse. "You are safe, Destiny. Always safe with me. Each rising from this night until the end of our days, you will never wake alone or at risk. I will be here."
Destiny wrenched her arm free and launched her body out of the earth, her heart pounding so loudly it sounded like a drum in the confines of the cave. She landed some distance from him, fully clothed, her hair neatly braided and her gaze moving continually, restlessly in all directions.
"Where's Vikirnoff? He has not risen?"
Nicolae took his time rising, deliberately pausing before he clothed himself so she could get a good look at his sinewy body. He swept his hair back, using human means, securing the thick mass at the nape of his neck with a leather thong. "Are you nervous, Destiny? Surely not. You cannot be nervous with your lifemate."
Destiny tried not to stare at the perfection of his masculine body but she couldn't stop. He had incredibly broad shoulders, a narrow waist and hips, long, lean legs and well-defined muscles. He was fully aroused and quite casual about it as he dressed.
She began pacing, quick agitated movements that betrayed her inner conflict. "I can't be with someone all the time. I need space."
"There is a world waiting outside this chamber, Destiny." Nicolae gestured toward the entrance. "The night is waiting."
Her hand went to her throat. The ragged tears were healed. Her skin was without a single blemish. Her heart was beginning to settle down again, finding the exact rhythm of his. She forced a small smile, a brief curving of her mouth, yet her blue-green gaze continued to jump around the cave. "I think this might feel like my first one-night stand."
"One-night stand? I am offended. You planned to use me and throw me away after one night, did you? I am not that kind of man, Destiny. I am in for the long term. Eternity. You slept with me. It would be wrong of you to toss me out."
A reluctant smile touched her mouth, gleamed for an instant in her eyes. "I've watched a lot of movies - I don't think we slept together."
He grinned, a slow, teasing grin that swept away the lines etched into his darkly sensual features and managed to give him a boyish look. "We definitely slept together, Destiny. And as you can see, it was sleeping, not making love." He brushed his palm over the thick fullness stretching his trousers.
She blushed. She felt the color rising steadily, and no matter how hard she tried to stop it, it swept up her neck and into her face. She had been looking. Speculating. Maybe even admiring. "I was naked. You were lying beside me and we were both naked."
"That is common practice, I believe, when one goes to ground, especially to heal wounds." He looked totally unrepentant.
"I told you there would be none of that." She gestured with her chin toward his erection.
He laughed softly, pure male amusement. "I do not