She kissed him hard as her hands untied his robe sash, stopping his words midsentence. "It'stension in the muscles between my wings," she said in a breathy rush when he broke the kiss.
"Oh . . ." he said, silver glinting at the rims of his irises again.
She turned around and slowly pulled off her shirt with her back to him. He surrounded her waist with his arms and pressed first his mouth, then his cheek, to that hard to reach spot between her shoulder blades.
The moan she released came up from her gut and caught low and deep in her throat. "Yeah, right there," she said in a husky voice, turning into his therapeutic touch as his hot palms slid across her belly and then ribs. "It all hurts," she finally admitted, now feeling the body blows one by one. "I thought they got it all, but they didn't."
"That's 'cause they're merciful and wise," he murmured, allowing the heat from his hands to slowly rake up her back and then over her shoulders, kneading them gently. "They saved something for me to heal . . . because they know I love to be the one to make you feel better."
She closed her eyes and dropped her head back against his shoulder. "You definitely do that best."
"Yeah?"
She nodded as he found a set of bunched muscles in her right shoulder. "Oh . . . yeah . . ."
"Can I still watch?" he asked in a sexy tone.
"Uh-huh," she whispered, unbuttoning her fly.
"I bet your wings got dirty, too," he murmured against the top of her hair, sliding his hands over her h*ps to make her panties and jeans pool at her feet. "They might need a good soak . . . if your back is sore."
"Then I might just have to open them while I'm in the water," she whispered and stepped away from him just enough to torture him, then bent to pick up her soiled clothing.
The moment she felt his palms trace over the lobes of her behind, she pivoted around and held her jeans, underwear, and tank top up to cover her br**sts, walking backward down the steps into the pool. Then suddenly she tossed her clothing at him, pushing them away from her chest as though passing a basketball. He caught the knot of jumbled fabric, but didn't take his eyes off her. She stepped one foot closer to the mercury-like water and nodded toward the door.
"Better leave them for the staff before you forget."
"Then, don't move," he said quietly, all playfulness gone from his voice. "I don't want to miss any of it."
She smiled and watched him walk across the room. For a moment he'd hesitated, looked toward the door, and then almost seemed to physically jolt himself out of the daze in order to move. He could have simply jettisoned her clothes to make them materialize on the other side of the door. But that was what she loved about him most-his ability to read her intentions just from her eyes, knowing that she was thoroughly enjoying messing with his mind.
When he returned from the task, he stopped at the large armoire and collected a new, thick, fluffy towel and brought over a silver robe that seemed to have the weightlessness of gauze. He carefully laid them at the edge of the large bathing pool, and then sat down on the top step to sprawl out like a huge, sun-soaked panther.
"Nowyou can get in," hesaid, his expression still so serious that it made her wonder.
She stepped down into the water, feeling tiny tingles claim her feet and ankles and then begin to slowly overtake her calves. She stepped a little deeper, and when the sensation captured her thighs, her eyes widened. That's when he smiled.
"You spiked the water with current, didn't you?"
"A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do . . ."
She stopped just short of submerging her upper thighs. He allowed his gaze to travel along her torso, stopping at the V between her legs covered in soft down that partially eclipsed his Neteru tattoo. She'd willed it back to the surface, every silvery-hot line of it. The sight of her offering made his mouth go dry. His gaze sought hers, stopping en route to admire her br**sts. His palms ached to be filled with them, just as his tongue hungered to taste the tight, hard-pebbled flesh at their tips. She broke his concentration yet again as she gave him the gift of a breathy "Oh," of surprise when she dunked herself beneath the surface up to her navel.
"What's in here?" she asked, her lids becoming heavy as she hugged herself.
"King's Ransom," he murmured, watching her slowly drop her head back.
"Seriously . . ." she asked again, beginning to tremble. "What's it called?"
"I told you . . . that's the name they gave me."
"The Neteru Kings?" she said, lowering her body with her eyes still closed. She cupped the iridescent waters in her hands and thendrizzled it over her br**sts."Oh . . . God."
"Yeah," he said so quietly that, for a moment, he thought he'd said it in his head.
"What's in it?" She lowered her face to the pool's surface and inhaled then shuddered. "It smellsso good . But it feels . . ." She looked up and then closed her eyes tightly and spoke in an urgent murmur. "Like you're touching me everywhere at once . . . gentle caresses. How . . ." Another soft shudder claimed her as she submerged to her neck.
"A brother can't give up all his secrets."