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Well before dawn, they&039;d taken refuge in a dilapidated house several e Rhiannon boldly built a fire in the ancient-looking pot-bellied stove, using bits of the rotted shutters for fuel

"You takeso sensitive to flame, Rhiannon

The chiain, ad There will be no direct contact between my flesh and the flames And I&039;ll see it&039;s well doused before we rest"&039; Eric and Ta place, and, she suspected, to spend some time alone She suppressed her jealousy of them and tried to focus on ht a huge, fluffy co in a h; this pile of refuse would be worse yet"Rhiannon, it&039;s ti fire, careful to keep her hand from the flames, closed the iron door and brushed the black soot froers"Time?"

"To tell me what you have planned for Lucien"

"So you can tell me how foolish and risky it is?"She shook her head quickly, and crossed the roo sofa

"Thank you, no You, Eric and Ta for Jamey

I&039;ll keep Lucien busyalive, but busy, until you find the boy"

"Thus the talk of a lengthy ritual?"

She nodded

"He wants power He craves it the way a drunkard craves liquor It&039;s a weakness to want soainst hith, he&039;ll take part in it"

She thu for some creature to skitter forth When none did, she turned and sat down

Roland came and sat beside her

"And what of your admonition that he neither eat nor rest?"

His shoulder touched hers, he sat so close His thigh pressed to hers, but he didn&039;t even try to rectify matters She wasn&039;t sure whether she should do it herself She knew she didn&039;t want to

"Deprivation of food and sleep weakens the mind It&039;s used by all the most successful cult leaders, you know I only wish I could er before I face him"

She didn&039;t move away If Roland didn&039;t mind the closeness, why should she deny herself the supreme pleasure of it?

"Face him in ay, Rhiannon? You ainst the gray-colored stuffing that poked out fro over her chest

"It will be a battle, of sorts A battle of minds"She closed her eyes and tried to see her hastily concocted plan clearly She wanted it to seem like a sound course of action when she explained it to Roland, not like the ravings of a careless, reckless child

"While Lucienon his mind I will entrance him, as I&039;ve done to countless hu him completely under my control"

Roland half turned, so he faced her She avoided his eyes, but he would have none of it He caught her chin in two fingers and turned her face to his

"You are well aware thisHe is able to conceal his mind from yours

"His eyes sparked with eer His jawline tightened His full lips thinned

"He will be weakened and tired I will be strong and ready for the fight

The incense and candles that distract him will help me to focus"

His hand dropped from her chin, to settle on her shoulder"If this works, and you are able to get him under your pohat then?"

She resisted the impulse to tilt her head sideways, and brush her cheek over his hand on her shoulder Barely resisted it

"I&039;ll scan his mind and learn where the boy is I&039;ll relay the information to you and the others, and you will rescue him"

"You make it sound so simple"

"Because it is"

"And if you fail? If his ?""That will not happen"

"It could, Rhiannon"

"It won&039;t"She reached up with one hand to cup his face

"Just this once, Roland, try to believe in th that is mine I can do this"

His frown came suddenly, and left just as fast

"I&039;ve never doubted your strength I do believe in you, Rhian-non That&039;s never been a question But I fear"

"That I will bungle it and cost Jaed his from her shoulder

"No, little bird That you will save Jamison and risk your own existence in the process"Roland stood abruptly, reached down and gripped both her hands to pull her to her feet

"Lucien nearly killed you once, Rhiannon

I have an uncanny feeling that is his intent, even now""The risk is not io with you,"Roland said hoarsely I&039;ll stand watch over this entire exchange, and if he lifts a hand against you, I will kill him before he draws another breath"

She shook her head

"You can&039;t He wants , or you will stay away

Your choice, Rhiannon"Like chips of glassy coal, his eyes glittered

She sighed and turned away

"Why must you be so difficult?"

A hand of steel closed on her shoulder, turning her so she collided with his chest At the instant of impact, another arm snapped around her waist, as firmly as a padlock&039;s hasp His breath bathed her face as she turned it up, and then his lips caught hers in a h the barricades of her lips and plundered every part of her interior within reach

In seconds, she went fro partner Her an They took turns lapping each other&039;seach other&039;s lips

Rhiannon&039;s arripped her buttocks in his eager hands, and pressed her hips to his,arousal

When his mouth left hers at last, she felt the shudder that rocked through hiainst it

"That&039;s why I am so difficult, reckless one

Because this planet, without you arim a place asas this house And as eony those words inflicted on her soul She could feel the thunder of his heartbeat against her chest, his breath in her hair

"But you want that e presence rehtened His words ca

"No, Rhiannon It&039;s not what I want, but what is necessary It&039;s not you I want out of my life, but the monster that lives within me How can Iand shallow

"I don&039;t! I want to understand I only want you"She lifted her head from his shoulder and looked up into his eyes

"I swore I wouldn&039;t give you the chance to rejectwords When Ja but sweet le tih to sustain me, I fear"

His dark eyes fell closed, and she saw his lips tre to, Roland I&039;ll ask no more of you, I proain, and the fire in his gaze burned into her heart

She lowered her forehead to his chest, unable to face hiain

"Go on,"she whispered

"Tell me to leave you alone Res I&039;ve said Let me feel your disapproval one et it fixed in my mind that I&039;m not worthy of your"She stopped herself as her throat closed off Love She&039;d been about to say love God, as happening to her senses"?

"I&039; herself for his rejection He brought his hands slowly upward, his pal over her nape He cupped her head, and tipped it up, staring down into her eyes

"It is not you who are unworthy, it is I I ought not allow myself even this embrace, after my loss of control the last time"He lowered his face to hers, until his lips barely brushed over hers as he spoke

"But I cannot turn you away My desire for you burns away my will"

His mouth covered hers, his palms still pressed to the sides of her head He kissed her as he never had before Gently, slowly Every sweep of his tongue was a tender exploration, every shifting of his lips, a caress His fingers dived into her hair, raking through it again and again And then he drew hi with passion

"Undress forbut your stunning beauty"

She nodded, and lifted unsteady hands to the silk blouse she wore

His gaze held hers captive as she slowly freed the buttons But when the blouse fell away, and her breasts stood unclothed before him, he broke contact with her eyes to stare fixedly at her chest She didn&039;t flinch from the intensity of that stare She felt her nipples harden in response to it, as if reaching out to hiaze lower as she released the fastening of the denims, and dren the zipper Without shame or hesitation, she pushed the jeans down, and the panties with thearments and kicked the out She :! I stepped away just as quickly, and when he sent her a quizzical glance, she smiled

"Now you"Her smile was answered with one of his, and he quickly re it to the dusty floor

She let her gaze roam freely over the expanse of skin revealed to her, the dark swirling ers, her lips

"I&039;ve always adored your chest, you know So broad, so"Unable to resist, she moved nearer him, and ran her hands over the crisp hairs and firm muscled wall She lowered her face to its center, and inhaled his scent

When she lifted her face away, she ran her hands up ward

"And your shoulders,"she whispered, surprised at the hoarse quality of the words

"And your arms One would think you a body builder by the shape of you"

"The only weight I&039;ve hefted was that of a broadsword, as well you know"

She pressed her lips to his shoulder

"Then I&039;lad you hefted it"She kissed a trail toward his neck and up it, savoring the taste of his skin Her hands slipped doard, fu them doard

"Hurry, Roland"He chuckled low, and helped her divest hi clothes Then they stood, bodies pressed together, flesh against flesh The hairs of his chest rubbed over her breasts The hard length of his arousal stood rigid against her abdomen

She ran her hands over the curve of his back, down to his buttocks, which flexed in response to her touch Roland&039;s hands rested at her waist and he kissed her deeply, hungrily As one, they sunk to the floor Rhiannon pushed gently until Roland lay back She stretched out atop him and lavished his neck and shoulders with kisses She ht one sasped in pleasure or surprise She wasn&039;t certain which, until his hands closed on her head to hold her closer She sucked at the hard little nub, then licked a path down his sternum, across his belly, around his navel