Chapter 18 #2
“Uh, no. No, no,” she said with another shake of her head, electing to dismiss that evidence. “I got that in college. Budding feminist, rebellion against parents, insert other lame cliché here. But tattoos used to be much more shocking than they are now. It’s a woman-power thing.”
“Yes.” He nodded. “You are powerful. Chosen by the Lady. It is an honor to caress you, to be welcomed into your body.”
Selene couldn’t stop her blush, but she still frowned. “Lady? What Lady?”
“The goddess.” His tone was patient, but she could tell he was amused by her resistance. “But you already know this, Selene. Trust your instincts.”
“I’m an atheist.”
He laughed, a deep rumble of thunder. “Can you honestly say that after your experience last night?”
“I’m still not sure what happened last night,” she said. “I don’t know if I’ll ever understand it.”
“It may take you time to accept your role in our world,” he murmured. “It’s very reasonable to have questions, and I will provide what answers I can, as will your other friends.”
His lips brushed over hers and stole her breath.
“But we are no longer the god and goddess. Only Fenris Hall and Selene Jones. This is all I’ve craved since I first saw you. To be with you. To be yours. And you mine.”
That took her by surprise. “Even at the bookstore? You pretended you didn’t know who I was.”
“I engineered that encounter,” he admitted, and Selene was charmed to see that he was embarrassed by his confession.
Once again Avondale’s fearsome leader had made himself vulnerable for her sake.
“You’d just arrived in town, and I needed to take your measure, to gauge whether you were suited to life in Avondale, but I wasn’t prepared for the reaction I had when I came face-to-face with you.
I chose to dismiss that response as simple lust. It .
. . has been a long time since I’ve taken a lover. ”
Fen’s hesitation signaled to Selene that, for the time being, that statement was better left alone. She stayed quiet despite her curiosity.
He ran his finger down her neck, along her shoulder. “I already knew you were intelligent. Driven. Protective of your niece. I had no idea you would be so beautiful.”
Leaning closer, he pulled in a slow, deep breath. “Or that your scent would be irresistible. It created a quandary for me. I had to decide how to act in a matter of seconds, and I chose not to reveal myself to you that day. I apologize for the deception.”
“You were feeling all that?” Selene remembered his easy smiles and casual, friendly manner in the bookstore. “You must have an incredible poker face.”
“I do.” He grinned, then his smile became wolfish. “Now let me show you how much I wanted you from the first. How I will always want you.”
Fen gave the sheet Selene had covered herself with a hard tug, stealing it from her.
The expression that came over his face when her body was bared to him again was the death knell for what remained of Selene’s resistance.
His growl made her thighs clench. She waited for him to lunge at her, the anticipation making her breathless.
Instead he leaned down to place a kiss just above her knee.
He kissed her again, moving a hairbreadth up her thigh.
His tongue flicked out, caressing her sensitive skin.
She was already coiled so tight, aching, fully aware of Fen’s endgame.
But he was surely going to kill her by taking his time getting there.
He licked her again, then kissed his way back toward her knee.
Oh no. That was unacceptable. Fen might have built up centuries of patience, but her stores were dwindling rapidly.
Selene’s fingers twitched as she considered grabbing a handful of his thick hair and dragging him to the juncture between her thighs. The situation was getting that desperate.
There was another rumble, but this one came from her stomach.
Fen lifted his head, laughing. “You’re hungry.”
“Apparently.” Her stomach had the world’s worst timing.
Would it be rude if I pushed his head back down? Though it was tempting, she couldn’t imagine actually doing that.
“It’s no wonder.” He rose to his knees and reached out to stroke her cheek. “You haven’t eaten all day. It’s nearly dusk. Let me take you out for a very late breakfast, or early dinner if you prefer.”
“Dusk?” Selene straightened and looked at the clock. Seven thirty. She’d assumed that was a.m. She glanced out the window. The hazy, pastel light was still there, but the shadows were deepening. “We slept all day?”
“We were up all night,” Fen answered.
She was tempted to ignore her growing hunger and suggest they return to what it had so rudely interrupted, but her stomach growled again. This time it bore an alarming resemblance to a roar.
God, why am I so hungry all of a sudden?
She cast Fen an apologetic glance, but he pressed his fingers against her lips before she could speak.
“Don’t worry, Selene.” He smiled. “Once you’re fed, I plan to have you beneath me again, or on top of me. Whatever you prefer. Consider this a brief intermission. But first a shower. And while we eat, I’ll answer the questions I can see you’re still desperate to ask.”
He slipped his arms beneath her and rolled them both off the bed, landing effortlessly on his feet.
“By the way, are you ticklish?”
She was shrieking with laughter when he carried her into the bathroom.