Page 12 of Bitten By Desire

Slowly, he backed away, setting me upright and wiping my eyes with his thumbs. His glowing gaze searched mine. “There’s no hurry, love. I’m quite well versed at waiting.”

Then he scooped me into his strong and steady arms and carried me to the bed where he laid me down and pulled the covers over me. “I will watch for any signs of intrusion as you sleep. And perhaps…burn that dress.”

“Julian?”

“Yes, my love?”

“I love you.”

I fell asleep to his smile—the sweet, beautiful, real smile that he saved only for me.

Chapter 5

Home is Where the Pastries Are

I woke to Julian watching me, head propped on one elbow and dark curls gloriously mussed. Tucking a stray piece away from his forehead, I offered a lazy smile.

“No one tried to murder anyone in the night?” I asked, stretching.

“Quite boring,” he agreed, standing to reveal his sculpted body and tapered waist that led to low-hanging pajama pants and teased what hid beneath.

The grin he wore when he caught me looking made me giggle. “I see Little Julian is awake as well.”

“Who are you calling ‘little’?” he asked and dove onto the bed, landing suspended above me, fangs out.

“Forgive me, that was an entirely inaccurate description,” I said, reaching up to say good morning to Big Julian.

“I told you I can wait,” he said, not moving, though his eyes grew unfocused as I played with him.

“You’ve waited quite patiently,” I agreed, slipping my hand inside the pants so nothing was between us. “Where did you get those anyway? They are a bit big on you.”

“They belonged to the demon lord,” he said as his fangs elongated and his hips began to move with my ministrations.

“Did you know demons exist?” I asked.

“Charlotte, perhaps we can either discuss the situation or focus on other pursuits? It’s difficult to do both at the same time.”

That seemed fair. I reached for his shoulder and guided him down toward me for a kiss.

His scent of bergamot and cloves eclipsed the lavender I hadn’t even realized was as strong as it was. He removed my hand from his pants, whipped them off, and climbed back over me.

“If you are certain you are ready, I have plans to pleasure you until noon,” he promised then traced the curve of my shoulder to my breast with his lips.

Panic gripped me as I remembered with cold clarity the night my mother was killed—the last time we’d been intimate.

“Julian, wait,” I said, scooting into a sitting position. I buried my face in my hands.

The bed bounced as he adjusted to a sitting position beside me then pulled me into his embrace. He set his chin on my head and held me as I attempted to get my breathing under control.

“Perhaps we should hold off on trying until you feel better,” he said.

“I’m so sorry. This isn’t fair to you,” I said.

“Charlotte.” Julian pried my hands from my face and turned me to face him, seated across his lap. “I am in awe that I finally have the chance to be with you properly, without hiding or the fear that Silas would somehow find us. That is a gift beyond my wildest dreams. If I never make love to you again, I will still be satisfied to have you here telling me you love me back.”

I threw my arms around him and hugged him as tightly as possible. He rose and carried me to the bathroom where he set me on the edge of the enormous jetted tub and began filling it with water for me.

“Take a bath. Dress in whatever you can find. And after we retrieve our belongings, I will take you to breakfast at my favorite café for the best coffee and pastries in the world.”

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