his eyes were closed, the vibrant color just a memory. His brow furrowed. His lips parted, revealing a row of straight, white, normal teeth. A groan rumbled from his throat as he gave in to his own orgasm. He stiffened, bucking once, twice, before collapsing atop her.
She felt a rush of panic, but then he gathered her in his arms. His strength surrounded her and eased the sudden tension in her body. He nuzzled her neck, his lips warm against her pulse beat.
She closed her eyes and saw him in her mind’s eye. His eyes blazing and his teeth—
Her eyes snapped open. She’d been on the wagon so long that she was hallucinating. She cupped his cheek and felt the warmth of his skin. The faint hint of stubble tickled her palm. Real.
And she wanted more.
The realization hit her, along with a rush of panic. Because she’d never wanted a man so badly.
The wrong man, she reminded herself. Then again, she didn’t know him well enough to know one way or the other at this point. Not that she would ever find out. He was temporary. A fantasy come to life.
And suddenly there seemed nothing wrong with pretending that Jake was the right man. The guy who would sweep her off her feet and carry her over the threshold and love her from this day forward, till death do us part.
It’s not as if he would ever know.
She slid her arms around his neck and gave in to the incredible urge to kiss him.
To love him.
Until the night ended and they said goodbye.
FORGET SUNLIGHT AND wooden stakes.
Neither posed half as much danger as the woman curled up next to him.
Lush. Blatantly sexual. Insatiable.
She was all three. A dream come true to a vampire who fed off sexual energy. Or she would have been except for the fact that, despite all of the above, she was an innocent.
Not a virgin, mind you.
Jake could spot those the way he sensed any other threat. She’d had her share of sexual encounters, but they’d been few and far between. Deep inside, she was naive when it came to men. Still nursing those pie-in-the-sky dreams of a knight in shining armor and forever.
Shit.
Jake eased his arm out from under her. The best thing to do was cut his losses and get the hell out of here right now.
Sure, he’d planned to rejuvenate all night, but the last thing—the very last thing—he needed to do was spend an entire night with Nikki Braxton.
Not because she wanted more from him than he could give but because for a few crazy seconds he’d actually wanted to give her more.
When she’d slid her arms around his neck and stared deep into his eyes as if he were the love of her life, he’d actually let himself get caught up in the fantasy, as well.
He’d liked having a woman look at him with something other than lust in her eyes. He’d liked it too damned much. So much that he’d forgotten himself for those few seconds and the hunger had reared its ugly head and he’d come this close—this friggin’ close—to tasting more than just her sex.
Holy shit.
He sat up and threw his legs over the side of the bed. She slept soundly next to him. But he had no illusions that she would stay that way. She would wake just as soon as she regained her strength. Hot and eager for another round.
Her brow furrowed as if she sensed his sudden movement. He touched her forehead and stroked away the worry lines.
Relax. He sent the silent thought and her expression eased.
He reached for the sheet that bunched at the bottom of the bed. He meant to pull it up over her. He really did. But then his gaze snagged on her pink toes and he couldn’t help himself. He wanted to look at her.
One last look.
His gaze traveled over delicate ankles, up her calves, her knees, to her hips. The single strip of pubic hair leading to the slit that separated her lush pink lips.
Jealousy burned through him as he thought of someone—male or female—waxing and pampering and touching her so intimately. Truthfully he’d never cared much for all the primping that most women did these days. He’d come from an era where natural was in. Staring at Nikki, however, he had to admit that he sort of liked the look.
He liked everything about her.
Before he could think too much on the subject, he forced his attention up and on, over her soft, smooth stomach to her rose-tipped breasts. He traced the indentation of her clavicle, the smooth column of her throat.
Her strawberry-blond hair fanned out across the pillow. Her nostrils flared, and a soft snore rumbled past her slightly parted lips.
Pull the sheet up, he told himself. Now.
Before he could get the cover past her waist, his attention snagged on one dark nipple. His mouth watered as he remembered the tight bud against his tongue. As if he’d actually reached out, the tip grew hard, swelling beneath his eyes. He felt the energy whirling inside of her, the wildness as it stirred and grew.
“Where are you going?” Her soft voice pushed past the thunder of his heart, and his gaze collided with hers.
Rich, golden eyes fringed in long eyelashes stared back at him. He had the fleeting thought that he’d climbed from the bed on purpose.
Get while the getting is good, a voice reminded him.
But then she smiled and touched his throbbing erection, and suddenly the only thing he could think of was how he wanted inside of her again.
5
THE FIRST FIERY FINGERS of dawn threatened the horizon as Jake straddled the black-and-chrome motorcycle parked in front of the Skull Creek Inn and keyed the ignition.
He kicked the bike into gear, and a roar split open the early-morning silence. He gunned the engine and shifted into first. Gravel spewed as he left the parking lot behind and swerved out onto Main Street.
A few seconds later, he hit the county road leading out of town and picked up his speed. The wind whipped at him, but it did little to cool the fire heating him from the inside out. He was wired. Fully charged. His senses more alive than they’d been in a very long time.
Over the buzz of the wind he heard the rustle of a rabbit in the nearby brush, the buzz of the crickets, the frantic rrringgg of an alarm clock at the farmhouse barely visible on the horizon. From the corner of his eye he saw a grass snake slither into a nearby bush, the glitter of eyes as a squirrel skittered up a tree. Despite the fading darkness, the stars seemed brighter and the moon a more vibrant silver.
The sharp scent of hay tickled his nostrils, along with the spicy aroma of apples and pumpkins from one of the nearby
