if nothing else. The science at play was deadly. “You need to be rational about this.”
He changed in front of her eyes. Something barely held together snapped. Nothing obvious, and nothing she could identify, but she felt his control shred. He grasped her arms and hauled her body against his, shocking the oxygen from her lungs. His face set in brutal lines, tension ripping from him, he leaned down and trapped her gaze. His dark eyes glittered with a need even she could identify. Primal fury darkened his face, proving he was nowhere near human. “You think hybrids have survived this world by using logic?” he rasped.
She shivered and slapped at his chest, trying to push him away. It was too late for that, and deep down, she knew it. Sparks arced through her body, firing nerves, arousal shocking her even more than his unrelenting hold. “Ivar.”
“A name. Just a name I gave up in hell. I’m a demon, I’m a vampire, I’m a fucking Viking.” His breath burned her mouth, while his anger overwhelmed the atmosphere around them. “We don’t sign a nice contract for life ever after, Professor. We fuck hard, bite deep, and take.” His hold tightened, and he pulled her up on her toes. “You want to be mine? Make sure you damn well understand what that means.”
She stared up at him, a buzzing sounding between her ears. What had she said to bring this on? What was this? “I...I don’t—”
“No. You don’t.”
“I—”
He cut off her next word by slamming his mouth down on hers, stepping into her and lifting her onto the table in one smooth motion. She fell back to her elbows, and pain tingled through her skin. He kept her there, barely stable, kissing her so hard she couldn’t breathe.
His tongue slipped inside her mouth, warm and demanding. Her eyelids closed, and she opened her mouth wider, taking more of him. Wanting all of him.
A groan rippled up his throat, and he dug his hand into the back of her hair, twisting and taking control. His other hand banded at her hip, drawing her closer to him and forcing her legs to widen and make room for his hips. He caressed her butt, partially lifted her against his hard groin, his hand spread across both buttocks, his mouth furiously working hers.
Then he stopped, releasing her lips. Holding her against him with one hand, he twisted the other and pulled her head back. She was helpless in his grip, a shocking hunger burning through her lower body. He lowered his chin, and his eyes blazed a furious metallic green with that raw blue border. “This is me. This is what you get if you want to mate.” He kissed her hard, his eyes remaining open. “No logical agreement. No rational partnership. You get the real me, the one still bound to hell. I’ll take, and then I’ll take some more. And if you agree, you’ll fucking give me everything.”
She shuddered, and it wasn’t from fright. Well, not completely. The craving for him shooting through her obfuscated every other feeling. Every other thought.
“I’ll mate you. Without question, if that’s what you decide.” His nostrils flared, giving him the look of a hunter finding prey. “You want it, and you want me right now. Make sure you can live with the decision in the cold dawn of morning when you’re not hot and so ready to be taken.”
With that, he released her.
Her butt smacked the table, and she shoved off her elbows to regain her balance and sit up. She blinked, trying to regain control of herself.
He turned on his heel and strode out the door, his steps deliberate and sure.
She touched her bruised mouth, desire still raging through her. For the last few days, Ivar had worn a facade. Of a humanesque, handsome, and almost easygoing soldier who wanted to sacrifice himself for his brother. He wasn’t human. He’d tried to tell her, and she hadn’t comprehended the difference. Additional chromosomal pairs didn’t result in an evolved species. He was more animal than human.
She’d just met the real Ivar the Viking.
Worse yet, she wanted him. Immensely.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Ivar stormed out of the research cabin, already at a jog. By the time he hit the dirt road, he was running full out. His breath panted. It took him several heartbeats to realize a pint-sized fairy was running right behind him. He looked over his shoulder. “I thought you were making lunch.”