Dark Melody Page 0,5

her even closer as he examined that discovery. She was carrying a child. Another man's child. A human child. For a moment his mind was in chaos, a wild mix of jealousy, rage and fear, things he had never experienced. Breathing helped, and he focused on what was most important. If he gave her his blood, he could possibly fix her heart problem, but what would such an exchange do to an unborn infant? He could read her fear and her sadness. He moved with her, his body a hard, urgent ache, his mind a jumble of thoughts, his heart and soul truly at peace for the first time in his existence even while his brain worked on a solution to such a unique problem.

The song ended, and he reluctantly allowed her to slip out of his arms, retaining possession of her hand so she couldn't run. "My name is Dayan."

Corinne nodded her head, almost afraid to speak. He was leading her back to the safety of the booth. He moved easily through the crowd, keeping her safe beneath his broad shoulder. Dayan gave her the illusion of safety, taking great care that no one bumped her carelessly.

"Are you going to tell me your name?" He asked it softly, his voice a velvet seduction in itself.

Just the sound of his voice created a yearning to hear him sing again. "Corinne, Corinne Wentworth." She didn't look at him; it hurt, he was so good-looking. And sexy. That dark, dangerous sensuality she wanted no part of. They were close to the booth, to safety. She allowed herself to breathe again.

"When is your baby due, Corinne?" he asked, his voice a gentle thread of sound. She had never heard a voice quite like his. Hypnotic; mesmerizing. A bedroom voice. It whispered over her skin until she burned.

His words stopped her short, and she looked quickly, guiltily at Lisa, afraid she might have somehow overheard. For a moment she felt desperate. Lisa had her head close to Cullen Tucker's and was laughing at something he was telling her. Dayan leaned down, his larger body shielding hers protectively, effectively blocking her from the rowdy crowd. It occurred to her that he was a celebrity of sorts and the crowd should have been clamoring to meet him, pushing forward at least for his autograph, yet somehow no one went near him. Not even the women.

"Corinne." He did something to her name, made it sound exotic with his strange accent. "You are very pale. Would you like me to get your friend for you and take you outside into the night air? There are far too many people in this building."

"She doesn't know." She blurted out the truth and then was horrified that she had done so. What was it about him? She had danced with a perfect stranger, merged with him so that they seemed as intimate as lovers. Normally a private person, Corinne had a compelling urge to tell him the most personal details of her life.

Dayan changed direction immediately, gliding through the crowd once again toward the door, taking her along with effortless ease.

She wanted to go with him.

Corinne couldn't understand that irrational impulse. The cold air should have cleared her head, but he moved his body very close to hers, shattering what little composure she had left. She couldn't think straight with him so close to her.

Dayan took her into the shadows. Everything in him rose up to claim her for his own. He wanted her, he needed her, and his body was going up in flames. She stood there looking up at him with her enormous green eyes, and he was lost. Knew he would be lost for all time. "Good - your color is coming back.

Your friend seems to care very much for you. I cannot imagine that she would not be happy about the baby."

Corinne lifted a hand to shove back the wild mass of her hair. "I shouldn't have given you the wrong impression. Lisa will be happy about the baby for a lot of reasons. It's just that I'm..." She trailed off, reluctant to reveal any details of her personal life to him. "It's complicated." Suddenly, inexplicably, she felt compelled to tell him everything about herself. He was looking down at her and his eyes were so -

hungry. Lonely.

She didn't know what it was, but those eyes were impossible to resist.

He made her feel as if she'd been cornered by a great jungle cat.