sacrificed his entire life, not because he was special, but because he needed to make up for the exile and death of his people that his actions had caused. He never would make up for it, he knew, and the despair of that drove him on. He also knew that if he ever gave into the despair he’d not survive.
“Champion.” The word emerged from his mouth tinged with irony. “If you say so.”
Rhianne touched his lips. “I do say so.”
Ben sensed the mate bond that wove between Jaycee and Dimitri as they stood locked in their embrace. He could see it, the glistening threads that bound them in love.
He couldn’t stop himself. Ben slid his hand under Rhianne’s hair, and she moved closer to him, her breath touching his face.
Ben closed the small space between them and kissed her.
Fire ignited, the spark searing through his body. Their lips met simply, no prolonged, intense kiss, nothing like what Jaycee and Dimitri did. A light touch, the satin of Rhianne’s lower lip brushing his and opening something inside him.
Ben wove his fingers into her thick hair, the silk of it heavy. When she unbraided it, it would wrap her like a cloak. Ben could happily lie tangled in her tresses.
Rhianne was the first to end the kiss, drawing back slightly but not pulling away. She gazed at Ben with her brown eyes brushed with black, her face still, as though she strove to tuck her emotions away.
Ben tried to release her and found that he couldn’t. Giving up, he tugged her to him and kissed her again.
When Rhianne made a tiny sound in her throat, Ben’s heart pounded like a freight train. He wanted to take her down to the grass, open the silky blue blouse and discover her firm body inside. He only kept himself still by massive effort.
He deepened the kiss, drawing the tip of his tongue along the seam of her mouth. He wouldn’t delve inside, not now, not here. But tasting her—the sweetness of powdered sugar, the bite of ale, the spice of herself—flooded even more fire inside him.
Making love to Rhianne would be the most powerful thing that ever happened to him. And it was completely impossible.
The thought knocked through him, but Ben couldn’t make himself release her. Rhianne’s hand rested against his chest, right over his heart. She’d implied that he, a creature of Faerie, could find the mate bond, something Ben thought would elude him forever. He wasn’t certain she was correct, but he was grateful to her for believing.
Her hair tickled his fingers as Rhianne came ever closer. Her body fit to his, her soft thighs against his hard ones. Ben wanted to sink into her and never come out. His cock, plenty stiff, rested against her abdomen, its wanting obvious. She couldn’t not feel that.
Rhianne drifted from their kiss, a tiny smile pulling her lips. She’d felt his cock, all right. And she smiled.
Ben smoothed her hair from her forehead. He should say something, tell her they couldn’t do this, walk away.
Instead, he kissed her again, lightly this time, the incandescence of it melting him.
He felt two hard stares and glanced up to see Jaycee and Dimitri watching them with Shifter focus. Ben gently stepped away from Rhianne, who kept her chin up and stared right back at the two, daring them to say a word.
Shifters didn’t like people who looked straight into their eyes. They interpreted it as a challenge, usually one involving teeth, claws, and blood.
On the other hand, Ben had a feeling few existed who could meet the gaze of a Tuil Erdannan and live.
Jaycee and Dimitri were giving it a try, but Ben could see them begin to falter under her scrutiny. Rhianne showed no fear, which was wise, with Shifters.
Ben rubbed his hands together. “We could stand here all night and have a staring contest, or we could return to the house and throw back some brews.”
Dimitri recovered first, his perpetual good nature returning. “Brews sound good. Meet you there?”
“Let’s go,” Ben agreed.
Jaycee gave Ben and Rhianne one final sharp look then she and Dimitri strolled off together, Dimitri sliding his arm around Jaycee. His hand wandered to her butt, and Ben heard Jaycee’s voice rise in admonition. Then she grabbed his ass, provoking Dimitri’s laughter.
“I’m glad those two got together,” Ben said. “Drove us all insane before they did, though.”
“You really like them.” Rhianne fell into step with Ben as he led her back across the square,