* * *
“I really enjoyed myself tonight,” Nathan said when we stepped onto my front porch. “They’re good people, and Carrie’s dad is a ball buster.”
The moon was almost full. Its bright light cast enough light for me to see the happiness in his face. My eyes strayed down to his arms, chest. He turned to unlock the door, unaware of the hungry desire stirring inside me. I suddenly realized I should say something in response to what he said.
“They are good people, and I love them all.” I noticed something moving toward me from across the porch and smiled when I saw what it was. “Hi, Mr. Kitty. I mean, Zeruel.” He rubbed against my leg, and I bent to pet him. “I want you to know I’m very fond of you too.” I kissed his head. “I love you.”
“Did you kiss him?” Nathan laughed, opening the door.
“I did, and he’s purring, so he must not mind it.”
He shook his head, flashing me his sexy smile again, and that familiar fire inside my belly ignited. I stood, winked at Zeruel, and entered the house.
“You know, it’s only a quarter past ten. We can still go to my house and have Anwar turn you immortal tonight,” Nathan said, turning on lights. “I really would like for you to reconsider and do it tonight instead of tomorrow.”
My back was turned to him, and I unbuttoned my white blouse, revealing my white lace bra. I ran my hand down my flat belly. My soft skin rose and fell beneath my hand.
“Are you listening to me, Paige?”
I turned, and his gaze immediately went to my chest. He looked up, and to my satisfaction, his eyes were bright with the same desire I felt.
“I want you to make love to me for the last time as a human, so it’ll be fresh in my mind when we make love again as immortals,” I said, the raspy part of my voice adding a sultry tone to my words. “I want to record it into memory, so I’ll have it with me for eternity.”
“Now I understand,” he whispered, his bright eyes pouring into mine.
“Is that stupid?” My words came out breathy because of the way he was looking at me, with such love, passion, and yearning.
“No, it’s beautiful. You’re beautiful.” His hand went to the back of my neck, and he gently pulled me to him. “I love you,” his warm breath blew into my ear. My heart fluttered at the intense electricity between us. His hands moved to the side of my face, lifting it.
“I love you too,” I whispered as he lowered his lips to mine.
His kisses were long and deep, but slow, like he wanted to savor each one. He moved his hands to my neck, my shoulders, pushing my blouse off. I lifted the bottom of his T-shirt, and he broke our kiss to take it off. He threw it across the room, then picked me up. I wrapped my legs around his waist and held his face in my hands, our mouths and tongues reconnecting. We were both breathing erratically, and when he pushed my back against the wall next to the stairs, kissing the side of my neck, a breathless moan escaped my lips. Every nerve ending in my body was like a live wire, and I longed for him to touch every inch of it.
“I want you.” His voice was deep and primal.
“I’m yours,” I breathed, already feeling an explosion building inside me.
We were suddenly in my room, and he positioned me on the bed, my backside on the edge of it. Within a minute, he was above me, his hand softly touching my body. I shivered, and when I moved my hand down his bare chest, he shivered as well. He pushed me farther up on the bed, and I raised my hands above my head, arching my back as he did things to my body that caused me to moan loudly and twitch beneath him.
A long while later, after I had my fun with Nathan, and he had his fun with me again, I fell into his arms. We were both panting, blissfully happy. It was well past one in the morning, and I thought this time tomorrow I’d no longer be human. The thought of the pain and the blood that would be drained out of me entered my mind, and my mouth filled with salty saliva. I curled an arm around my queasy stomach and forced that thought out of my mind. I didn’t want it to ruin this wonderful moment and tried to think of something else. Thankfully, Nathan spoke, and I was able to focus my attention on him instead.
“That was beyond extraordinary. I can’t get enough of you.” He hugged me to his side.
“I know exactly what you mean.” I touched his smooth washboard stomach and was glad he wasn’t hairy like most guys. Why I thought of that, I didn’t know.
“Do you think other people feel this way?” He propped his pillow against the headboard and scooted up, bringing me with him. “I mean, I’m sure other people have great sex, but with us it’s much more than that. It’s not about the act of getting my rocks off. It’s about making love and trying to physically express not only my desires for you, but what I feel that cannot be put into words. Am I making sense? I know I’m rambling, but I’m in awe of what we have together and what I feel for you.”
The adorable look on his face made me forget how to speak for a second. He was so damn cute. I reached up and touched his cheek. “I hope other people feel this way or close to it,” I said. “Otherwise, this world is much sadder than I thought. And you’re making complete sense because it’s the same for me. I’m so in love with you that when you’re not around a part of me is gone with you.”
His eyes locked onto mine. “Yes, it’s the same for me too.” He kissed my hand. “I want to marry you.” He sounded serious, and his expression was filled with adoration, stunning me.
I didn’t know what to say. I mean, this was the first time he ever mentioned marriage, so I had assumed we’d be together like we were for the rest of eternity. But the thought of marrying him, taking on his name, and sanctifying it in front of the people we love, blew me away. My throat tightened.
He pulled me up and cradled my face in his hands. “I mean it, Paige. I want to marry you, and I’m not saying this because of Brayden. I’ve known this since the first day you caught my eye. You’re everything to me, and I want you to be my wife.” His thumbs moved across my cheeks. “I know in this day and age marriage is only a piece of paper some people find unnecessary, but to me it’s much more than that. It shouts to the world we are united in love, trust, friendship, and loyalty.”
“I never knew you thought about this,” I whispered.
He brushed his lips against mine, then our foreheads connected. “I’ve thought about it a lot, but there’s never been a more perfect time to bring it up.”
“So, are you proposing to me?”
The corner of his mouth curled, and he had a mischievous look on his face that confused me. He shook his head.
I glanced down, feeling the heat in my face. What an idiot I was to presume he was proposing to me or working up to it. I was probably too young to get married anyway, but then again, people in the 1800s were married at a lot younger age than I, and had a couple kids by the time they were my age. And when you knew without a doubt you were with the right person, you should get married. But still, I wanted to crawl in a hole and disappear.
He tilted his chin down, his eyes on mine. “You deserve a proper proposal, one I intend to give you when the time is right. I just wanted you to know the type of future I envision us having and how incredibly in love I am with you.”
The heat subsided from my face, and I couldn’t help but give him a teasing smile. “Well, I guess you’ll have to wait for my answer then.”
He laughed and playfully rolled his eyes, sticking the palm of his hand to his forehead. “Oh, the agony of it all. I don’t know if I’ll be able to handle the anticipation of not knowing what your answer is going to be.”
I smacked his arm, laughing along with him. “Shut up.”
He grinned and pulled me into his arms, moving us on the pillows. I glanced at the clock and saw it was almost two in the morning.
“I think maybe we should try and sleep so we can get up at a decent hour tomorrow,” I said, feeling my stomach churning.
“It’ll be okay.”
I didn’t respond.
“I swear
. You won’t feel most of the pain.”
“Most?” I gulped. I didn’t like hearing that.
“It’s not that bad.” He leaned across me and switched the lamp off. “At first it feels like a bad paper cut, but then your body goes into shock and all you feel is something cold running off you, and then you drift off and black out.”
“What will it be like afterwards?” I asked, not wanting to think about the pain.
“It’ll be a whole different world. All your senses will be heightened exponentially. Your eyesight and hearing alone will astound you. Your mind will be sharper, and all the flaws in your skin will vanish. Not to mention, the agility, the strength, and swiftness you’ll have in your body will astound you even more.”
“It’s almost hard to imagine I’m going to be like that.”
Nathan yawned. “Soon you’ll find out.”
“Ten more hours,” I muttered, hearing him breathing much slower now and thought how unfair it was for him to be already asleep. But then I closed my eyes, and before I knew it, I too fell fast asleep.
Beyond the Eyes: YA Paranormal Romance Page 55