Page 40 of Needed in the Night
She slipped her hand through my hair to cup the back of my head, drew me close, and kissed me.
Her lips were perfect and soft and she tasted of brandy and jampa berries andIsla. Even my most vivid fantasies had not done justice to her kiss.
Everything else in the universe faded away.
I had never kissed a human woman before. In fact, I did not recall kissing any member of any species. Humans were not unique in the galaxy for their desire to touch their lips, but I had never bedded anyone who shared that trait. And I found myself immensely grateful for that.
Isla was the sole proprietor of my lips, along with every other part of my body—including my chest, which rumbled louder with each passing moment until my entire body vibrated against her.
Her mouth yielded under mine, and the tip of her little tongue licked at my lips. I followed her lead and discovered an entire new universe of pleasures and tastes. She even cautiously flicked her tongue along the edges and points of my fangs. I growled. She shivered—but in desire, not in cold or fear. The scent of her need overtook everything else.
For several heartsbeats, I knew nothing else but that siren call and my hunger for her. Blood rushed to my cocks. Luckily, I was holding her well above my lap. I did not wish to startle or frighten her with my arousal.
When she broke the kiss and drew back, I did not resist, but I did not want the moment to end. My chest heaved and my hands trembled with the force of my need.
“I liked that,” she said with a wistful smile. Her words were quite unnecessary since her racing heart, rapid breathing, and sweet scent had already told me so.
She rested her head against my shoulder. I held her gently with one arm around her back and the other underneath her, my nose nestled into the crook of her neck and shoulder to drink in her scent.
“If I’d known, I wouldn’t have sung ‘Warm Waters’ tonight,” she murmured against my chest. “Or ever joked with you about what people yearn for. Or thought to myself that you weren’t the type to yearn. I’ve never been more wrong.”
“Please do not apologize.” I caressed her back. “I enjoy that song very much. And you did not know what I held in my hearts. I could not show it.”
“Because of Nubo.” She looked up, her eyes fiery in a way that stirred heat within me. “He’s scum. But we only have thisroom for an hour at most. I don’t want to waste it talking abouthim.”
I was more than happy to forget our employer for now. “Speaking of this room, who is Madame Ycari?” I asked. “Is she really a perfumer?”
“She is. Credentialed and certified by the Guild on Engaren. The plaques are on display in the shop.” Isla studied me. “She is also more than that.”
“Just like you.” I took a chance and kissed her again, this time gently. “I would like to know how you came to be on Fortusia, Isla, and who is a danger to you.”
“Another time.” She surprised me by running her nose and then her lips along my jaw. The brush of her mouth on my sensitive skin made my cocks harden nearly to the point of pain. “You said my scent tells you a lot about me. Do you like it?”
“Likeis not the correct word.” My voice sounded strained, even to my own ears. “For me, your scent is captivating. It transforms me. I am content in my soul when I smell you.”
“Just content?” She repeated her slow journey along my jaw, and now my rumble took on a desperate, dangerous edge. “I think you might feel more than that.”
I hungered for her so deeply and so intensely that I could think of little else…save the fact I would do nothing unless I knew what precisely she wished me to do. I was no ravening creature like Nubo or the Hardanian I had dumped on the street earlier in the week.
“Isla.” I leaned back, though putting any distance between us made my hearts ache. We had only these few stolen minutes to talk, to touch each other. I knew we had to plan what we would do next, but my body sang of her and my need drowned out nearly everything else.
“Tell me the truth.” Isla touched my lower lip with her fingertips. “What do you yearn for, Mikas?”
You. Always you.
“What doyouyearn for?” I countered. “You know what is in my hearts; I have told you.”
“I want a home,” she said without hesitation, and my hearts broke at the poignant simplicity of her words. “I’m tired of running.”
Despite the ache in my chest created by those words, I recalled something I had heard long ago from a friend who had found his true mate and a piece fell into place.
“You asked what it means to be true mates, beyond biological compatibility,” I said. “I said peace and contentment.”
“And safety.” She tilted her head. “And I suppose I could feel those with you. I suppose I already do,” she amended. “Because I felt them with you as my friend, before this.”
“But there is something else,” I said, and now the words tumbled out in a rush. “I have just realized how I feel in your presence. You are my home. And if you can accept me as your own, I will be yours.”
She stared at me.
