We're an unpredictable bunch.
Alice stiffened at the brush of warmth in her mind that seemed to cascade through her, igniting her body the same way he always did. Do you really have so little sense of privacy?
I've spent half a millennium running around the earth with a bunch of sweaty guys who wind up naked, almost dead, and bleeding several times a week. Privacy isn't going to keep us alive, babe. I don't believe in it.
Well, I do!
He tightened his grip on her and looked down at her. His eyes were blazing with adrenaline and heat. Well, I don't. And before she could stop him, he bent his head and kissed her. Not a simple kiss designed to ease her terror at their predicament, like a nice guy would offer her.
It was a statement of ownership from a soldier in the middle of a battle, a man whose testosterone was raging, who was in the mindset to dominate, outsmart, and survive. And of course, it plunged straight into her soul, awakening everything that made her a woman. She didn't care that they were balanced precariously on the tip of the earth. She forgot that there were noxious fumes and a bottomless pit surrounding them. She lost sight of the betrayal of the beautiful flowers being so deadly. All that mattered to her was the feel of his mouth on hers, the heat from his body consuming her, the untamed power in his arms as they crushed her against him. She melted into the kiss, accepting all that he thrust at her, loving every bruising kiss he gave her.
As she kissed him back, the tension and fear that had been dogging her melted away, replaced by the sensation of being cradled in a basin of warmth, safety, and unstoppable desire. The world became about the two of them, and the magic they could create with their kisses. She wanted more. She wanted all of him. She wanted him to make love to her like he'd done before, only this time, she wanted it to be about them, not about him trying to make his brand appear on her arm or break through her barriers.
She wanted Ian to make love to her, Alice Shaw, simply because she was the woman who touched his heart.
Hell, Alice. Ian wrenched his mouth off hers, breaking the kiss. We can't do this right now.
She almost cried out in protest as he deprived her of the kiss, and she had to struggle to resist the need to beg for more. Ian was right. Of course he was right. This wasn't the time or place for anything like this. What was wrong with her? Had she completely lost her mind?
No, you haven't. Ian caught her under the chin and raised her face so she met his gaze. I heard your thoughts when we were kissing, and I want you to know that there is nothing I would like more than to make long, slow, leisurely love to you for no other reason than that you are the woman who brings light into my life.
Alice's throat tightened. "Stop it," she said. "Don't say things that you don't mean—"
"Oh, I mean it." He cut her off with a kiss, a long, tender kiss that made tears sting her eyes. When we get out of here, that is exactly what I am going to do to you. He pulled back so she could see the promise in his eyes. "Because I want it even more than you do. Got it?"
Alice nodded, her throat too tight to answer. No one had ever said anything like that to her, making her feel like she was special simply because of who she was.
He grinned. "Hell, woman, you're a lot of things that make me crazy, but special? You're in a category that no one else can touch." He squeezed her once, then turned away to scan their surroundings, keeping her anchored against him. "I have to admit, the thought of making love to you is a damned good incentive for getting us out of here alive. I'd hate to die and miss it."
She almost laughed at his comment. "That is such a guy statement, not wanting to die because you might miss out on some great sex."
He rubbed his hand seductively over her lower back, even as he continued to evaluate their surroundings. "It was great sex, wasn't it?"
She felt her cheeks heat up. "Yes," she admitted.
"And just think, I got better than that