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"Move your hips againstin the opposite direction and connecting in the ht in her throat, suspended on a jolt of pure carnality Faster and faster they rocked, arching into one another

"Perfect God, I know" One of his hands strayed to her buttocks, gripping, and the other lifted to her neck, tangling in her hair He pulled her deeper into his embrace until their ether with sultry intensity, he hs straddled hiasp slipped fro to explode Already her body rushed toward co of pleasure A search for release

"I want you tonight," he said "I shouldn&039;t, but I do I want you sowith it I told myself I wouldn&039;t take you all the way, just play a bit, but that&039;s not going to be enough Not nearly enough Right now, I can&039;t ht," he repeated

I want forever with hiht dazedly Her taste of freedo inside her An acceptance, a passiveness She deserved a Me all her own, a life of love and happiness Different she ht be, but she possessed a very human heart She wanted Gray in her life now and always Wanted to strip hiht after night, their liht

"What do you feel?" Gray asked her, the words a whispered caress "How does being inall over"

"That&039;s good Real good" His eyes were liquid silver, alive with so she was almost afraid to name It was a look she&039;d never seen from him, in her visions or in reality, almost brutally tender

Sheone over his heart His heartbeat thundered, strong if a little offbeat Fast

"You&039;re begging to be kissed, sweetheart, you know that, don&039;t you? But we can&039;t If I kiss you, I won&039;t be able to stop You&039;re a hell of a distraction, and even though these people think I&039;od, I can&039;t afford to be distracted in here" His hand kneaded the back of her neck "No one else has ever sht and storo with you, Gray, but rip on hi his "Stay here with me"

His eyelids fell to half- out in hot, deterent, perhaps more, and those men will die or kill the people here I want you, Jewel I do More than I&039;ve ever wanted another wooing home Never let yourself think otherwise"

There was pure honesty in his voice, a bone-deep conviction He didn&039;t harbor a single doubt about his words; he believed them with his whole heart If she allowed hiht, but when his mission ended, so did their association

They would never see each other again Never speak with each other That knowledge cut deeper than any knife

She&039;d known he would deny her, of course The moment she&039;d spoken, she had known his reply, but hope was a strange, foolish thing, and she&039;d been unable to hold the words back

Only two options presented theether or keep him at a distance Either way, she would end up with a broken heart One would leave her with beautiful ret, but she would survive

"I&039;ve been honest with you fro his tone to ease the sting of his previous words

"I told you before that you don&039;t have to explain your reasons to me" She tried to mask her hurt, but didn&039;t quite succeed "I&039;m very aware of what you&039;re like"

He studied her face Whatever he saw in her expression angered hirabbed her hand, and hauled her back to the table His scowl renaled for two more drinks He didn&039;t speak until they arrived and the server disappeared

News of Gray&039;s presence must have spread, because the bar fairly burst with centaurs and sirens, eating away at the space Every few seconds, soered his hair or caressed his shoulder For the nored them

"What do you mean, you knohat I&039;m like?" He propped his elbows on the table and leaned forhile she sipped at the ice-cold sweetness

Shewith her own sense of growing fury "You get rid of your women very quickly"

"That&039;s a lie, honey I don&039;t do one-night stands"

"Not in your ive liet close to you, you leave theirlfriend had lasted six a tiht she told hiht he spent with her, he realized

He blinked, doing a quick irlfriends Goddairlfriend had been content to see him the few days out of the ly on the phone They&039;d had a great sex life, one where they both found enjoy that she wantedclothing at his house The shit exploded, however, when he found tampons in his medicine cabinet Tampons, for God&039;s sake It had only been at that moment, as he stared at the feminine products, that he&039;d realized he was in a hard-core relationship

He&039;d sweated for a couple days, but hadn&039;t stopped seeing her He&039;d wondered, though, why he felt no compulsion to tell her about his life And why he hadn&039;t wanted to introduce her to his fa wouldn&039;t have sent hiht stands, or so he&039;d always told hiht stands that lasted several irlfriend he loved her, never lived with a woman, either Never told a woman about his life, his job, or his family He shook his head in disbelief

It wasn&039;t like he wanted to remain a bachelor for the rest of his life He actually liked the idea of e, children, and happily ever after So as the problem? Why did he refuse to allow hi to ht woht If that disgusting cliche was true, it would mean there was only one person, one true love, for everyone His dad and ht, had been soul le for a long time afterward, he had found another woman - one he loved more than he&039;d ever loved Gray&039;s mom

Gray didn&039;t resent his stepmom, Francis, for that, but it had rocked his views of love Was he waiting for a deeper connection than he&039;d had with any of his woet it from them?

Could he with Jewel?

Yes, roared inside his mind He quickly stas he&039;d ever done They were froet that They were not destined to be together There were just too many coh God, did he want her Bad She fired his blood,for it Made his hore For her Only her

Only Jewel seemed to excite him now Her kindness continually rocked hihtened him He was more aware of her than he ever had been of another He wanted to protect and coddle her He wanted to possess her, brand her

He wanted to keep her

Gray scrubbed a hand down his face Fuck, shit, damn He wanted to keep her with him, noays He wanted to wrap himself around her until he was all she knew The most primitive part of him deot exactly which ed to

No No He wouldn&039;t allow that to hts of pleasure He&039;d have her - there would be no stopping that, he realized that now, but he wouldn&039;t keep her Tonight, he would claied the late," he bit out "And it&039;s too crowded in here" The thought of having her was already exciting hi his senses On the dance floor, he&039;d been close to coood, a perfect fit against him God kne s wrapped around his waist "We should go"

She lifted her glass and drained the contents He dropped several drach suit He didn&039;t dare touch her right now He wanted her too much and his control teetered precariously on total annihilation

Out of habit, his gaze searched forshadows as he stalked to the

door Since joining OBI, he&039;d lived his life that way, always searching for those who meant him harm The proclivity had saved him on several occasions

"Return whenever you wish," someone called

"I&039;ll make a sacrifice in your honor," soaze intent as he scanned the elowed froed walls

"The inn is over there," Jewel said, pointing to a building that looked more like a stable than a hotel

He would have preferred a bed of silk and satin for his first tiet Besides, he thought hopefully, maybe it wasn&039;t as pri

As he stepped over the threshold, his boots sank into a thick layer of hay The scent of sweat and ani silver beard manned the area

"I&039;d like a roo the last of his drachmas over the scarred wood surface that separated theasped "They said you had coiveness for my doubt"

Gray nodded

His reatest honor to house you, great lord Please, please Follow , you have only to ask and I will personally see that it is yours If you wish a ladly seat you on e, cozy room There was an actual bed, co pool and enough pillows strewn across the floor to use as a trampoline

"You may leave us," he said

"As you wish" The centaur backed out of the roo low "Thank you, sweet lord Thank you"

Jewel&039;s gaze shifted nervously froain He looked her up and down, iulped "Are we going to bed now?"

Instead of answering, he said, his voice rough with the force of his need, "Why don&039;t you take a bath here, while I have a look around" He needed to map an escape route, just in case, and she needed time alone If her sudden nervousness was any indication, she kneas going to happen, wanted it, but needed ti to put their desires to bed Several times