The shirt was soaked with sweat, and long strands of blond hair clung to the moisture at her face and neck. Her body was shaking. Jerks and spasms rocked her limbs, punctuated by a series of deep, guttural moans that sounded as if they were forced from her throat.
He stood still, unsure how to proceed.
She rolled onto her back, eyes open but not seeing him.
She was definitely under the spell of something dark. Her long graceful arms held herself protectively around the midsection and she began to mumble words that erupted into harsh whispers.
“Castille’s whore. Castille’s whore. Castille’s whore.”
Jaxon’s blood turned to ice at the words and he fell to his knees, feeling the heat from her body even though he was careful not to touch her.
She stilled as if sensing a presence beside her, and then her spasms, which had abated, returned, her body quaking with a ferocity that surprised him. His eyes raked her near naked form, and he was disgusted at the sharp spike of desire that flooded his body.
He clenched his teeth, trying to ignore the pull that she wrenched from him. But it was no use. He cupped Libby around the shoulders with one arm, the other arm under her knees, and pulled her to him. As he lifted her up, she grabbed hold of his neck and clung to him, her thin arms digging into the hardness of his flesh as if the very devil were after her.
Her head lolled back, falling against his chest, and the dark eyes that had never faded from his memory implored him with such anguish, he felt the cracks around his heart widening even more.
“Please help me.”
Gently, Jaxon cradled her there, tight against his heaving chest, feeling every heartbeat her body took, fighting the overwhelming urge to protect and soothe.
It was a losing battle, and he knew it.
This woman that he held, shivering, damaged, weak and traitorous, belonged to him on a level he couldn’t even begin to comprehend. He stumbled, the realization nearly bringing him to his knees.
Jaxon Castille, jaguar warrior, felled by someone like Libby Jamieson.
He cursed the irony.
The last three years of his life had been hell. The only thing that had kept him sane and functioning was the intense desire for revenge. The hunt for Libby had remained his number one priority, even as he took the odd mission for Drake. His team had broken up, life pretty much fell apart, but one constant was threaded throughout.
Libby.
He had dreamed of numerous ways to make her pay for the death of his cousin Diego, all of them painful. He had lain awake so many nights, fighting the desire that ravaged his body at just the thought of her. It mingled equally and freely with a deadly rage that simmered below the surface.
A rage that fed the cat, enticing it into a frenzy of need that drove him, day after day, fueling the hunt.
And look where that got him.
Here he stood, quivering with need, holding onto the woman who’d effectively shredded his life into slices of want, need, and emptiness.
She whimpered softly in his arms, relaxing into the crook between his shoulder and elbow. The frailty of her body inflamed his senses, and he found her hair—so blond and pale against the dark of his skin—incredibly erotic. He groaned as his body reacted, instantly becoming hard.
Her feminine scent colored the air around him, and he inhaled deeply, letting her essence filter through his lungs until it seemed every cell in his body was alive with a craving that bordered on obsession. Savagely, he shook his head, trying to clear the images of their bodies naked, writhing together in passion.
Her arms around his neck tightened even more as she melted into him. Christ, he needed a cold swim in the lake to put out the fire she’d inadvertently started. He looked down at her face, relaxed and deeply ensconced in slumber. The nightmares were gone, for now.
Jaxon glanced behind him, at the door standing open, mocking his stupidity. Then he knelt down on the mattress. which still held the warmth from her skin, and slid his hard body down until he was on his side, with Libby safely tucked in his embrace.
His dick, inflamed and hard, rested against her back, and he cursed loudly as she sighed and moved her ass against him seductively.
As if she was home.
Fuck, it was gonna be a long night.
Soft rays of sunlight fell across her face, caressing cheeks and awakening her psyche.
Libby couldn’t remember ever feeling so warm, settled…almost happy. Deliciously content. She and happy didn’t usually go hand and hand, but there was no denying the way her body felt.
She snuggled closer to the warmth that wrapped itself around her limbs, then froze.
She wasn’t alone.
Her eyes flew open and to a broad expanse of bronzed, hard flesh. The tattoos she found herself staring at were Jaxon’s. They mesmerized her, seeming to be alive. As he inhaled deeply, the images and symbols on his hard chest contracted, giving the illusion of movement.
But why the hell was he in bed beside her?
Her memories from the previous evening were fuzzy, her mind still heavy with sleep. The last thing she remembered clearly was his black eyes looking at her with such contempt that he’d scared her back into the safe confines of the bedroom she was given when she arrived here.
Wherever the hell here was.
She tried to push away, but his right arm was at her back, while the left lay at her hip, his large hand cupped there, almost possessively. With the wall behind her, his large form in front, she was definitely good and trapped. Sighing softly, she basked in the moment, thinking that it all felt, somehow, so right.
She relaxed her limbs, her eyes drinking in the sheer male beauty that lay in every perfect feature before her: from the deeply expressive eyes with the sinfully thick long lashes to the wide jaw that encased the most amazingly kissable lips she’d ever seen on a man.
Not that she remembered many, but she knew that if she had the ability to remember a thousand different faces, Jaxon Castille’s would end up on top. Even though he scared the crap out of her most of the time, there was no denying the fact that the man was incredibly hot.
Volcanic hot, to be exact.
The eyes she’d been fantasizing about opened without warning, pinning hers with a hard, direct glare that set her insides on fire. Suddenly, nerve endings that she hadn’t known existed roared to life and her entire body was suffused with heat. She felt her nipples harden, even as liquid fire melted into the very center of her, erupting into a wall of need.
A throb began in earnest, pulsing low, deep within her body. Her breath quickened and she fought the urge to rub her hips against his hardness. The ache between her legs magnified at the very thought, and Libby blushed, embarrassed at her body’s reaction to someone who made no attempt to hide the dislike he felt for her.
His eyes remained focused, hard and unreadable. She had no clue what he was thinking, but from the feel of his pulsating length burning against her thigh, she knew he was equally aroused. She groaned softly, and unable to stop herself, rubbed her hips gently against him, loving the feel of his heated flesh against the softness of her own.
He hissed in reaction, and his hands pulled her up along his body until her lips were but inches from his. She could see the white teeth, his tongue languishing between parted lips as he continued to breathe heavily.
“Careful to fan the flames of desire, Libs…I’m not feeling in a gentlemanly frame of mind this morning.”
“I’m sorry, I can’t help myself.” Her soft honest words slipped from between her lips without thought. “I want you. I don’t even know why. It’s like my body craves your touch, and the need inside of me is almost painful.”
She heard his rough groan and it only excited her more.
“I feel like I’m finally home.” She felt him still at her words, and she whispered quietly, “Like I’m where I belong.”
Jaxon’s natural scent was like a beacon to the wildly fluttering heart that pumped blood through her v
eins furiously. She wanted to bury her nose against his throat, inhale the heady musk, and acting purely on the animalistic needs that clawed at her, that’s exactly what she did.
Libby closed her eyes and nuzzled against the pulse that pounded at the base of his neck. Her tongue slipped from her mouth and she licked the delicious pressure point, delighting in the feel of power as his life force rushed through his veins with each powerful beat of his heart. He threw his head back, his arms holding her to him tightly, and she nipped playfully before slowly trailing a path of butterfly kisses up along his jaw until she reached the lips that were awakening incredibly erotic images in her mind.
She paused, her eyes seeking the deep brown of his, and as they met, the fire that raged inside her intensified, and he grabbed her to him, his mouth plundering the softness of her own, his tongue invading, commanding.
Libby opened up to him fully, not caring about anything other than the man who’d awakened such a need, such a desire, that she didn’t think the fire would ever be extinguished. Her nipples were fully engorged, the sensitive peaks aching from the friction of the cloth of the T-shirt and the hardness of his chest.
She groaned loudly as his mouth left hers, to trail a path of molten lava down her neck. He sniffed along the side, sending scattered shards of desire to flicker over the supersensitive area, and when he began to suckle the flesh directly under her ear, Libby felt a rush of warm wet honey spill from between her legs.
Anxiously, she began to move against him, her body finding a rhythm long denied, and one that it recognized even if she didn’t.
She felt his arms wrap themselves around her tightly, and the growl that erupted from deep within his chest vibrated through her, electrifying already taut nerves to an unheard of level of desire. He pulled her into his embrace, twisting until he was flat on his back and she lay panting, sprawled on top. Libby stilled then, and slowly brought her legs up until she was straddling his hardness.
Her hands held fast to his chest, pushing her body up and away from the lips that so tantalized her. She watched him through half-lidded eyes, as his own eyes scanned her body, settling hotly on her generous breasts. The T-shirt Ana had given her wrapped itself tightly against the gently rounded globes, accentuating the boldly erect nipples that stood out in sharp relief, begging for his touch.
When his hands reached underneath her T-shirt to caress her belly, Libby hissed in a torturous sigh, ignoring the ache in her side as she lifted her arms straight up, willing him to pull the shirt from her.
His hands were rough, the fingertips callused as he trailed them over her ribs, pausing a moment at the wince of pain as he crossed over her injured bones. Up, his hands traveled. Gently tugging the ends of her T-shirt, he used a bit of extra effort to drag the material over her breasts, and she groaned as he licked his lips in anticipation.
When the soft mounds popped free from their constraints, Jaxon immediately claimed one turgid nipple deep into his hot, wet mouth, while his other hand ripped the T-shirt up and over her head, sending it sailing to the floor in a heap.
Libby’s arms wrapped around Jaxon, encouraging his exploration, needing to feel him in the most basic way a woman could want a man. His mouth blazed a wicked path of heat along her flesh. Deep spirals of desire formed inside her belly as his tongue continued to assault her flesh. The need became intense, and it seemed every cell in her body was starved for his touch.
She was on fire and a rush of blood roared in her ears as he continued to feed upon her flesh.
Each gentle and not so gentle tug to her nipple elicited a wild response that pounded through her body, sending spasms of pleasure that settled into the deep, pulsating core between her legs. The ache was becoming unbearable, and her body began to cream in anticipation.
Wanting what was next. Needing to feel Jaxon’s hardness, deep inside, assuaging the ache that only increased as his mouth washed over her body.
She felt his muscles bunch beneath her hands as she ran them over his powerful shoulders and down his back. His mouth began to trail its wicked path away from her breasts, and she arched back, giving him ample room as he explored the valley between them, his tongue lapping at the underside of each heavy breast.
She felt his hard cock between her legs and ground her soft center against it, smiling as he growled and tensed, enjoying the power her body had over his.
“It’s been so long.” The words fell unbidden from her lips, but Libby paid no mind, moaning loudly as her needs became overwhelming.
Jaxon’s hands fell to her hips and held her still even as she tried to move against him. Her eyes flew open and she looked down at him, feeling a sense of abandonment as his own eyes blackened, the whites disappearing, the growl that fell from his lips not wholly human.
Something burned there, something dangerous, and it licked at the flames of her desire until she was nothing but a whimpering mess of flesh and bone.
“I need you.”
Her soft words echoed in the still and quiet. They lay heavy between them, and inside Libby felt a wash of sadness run through her.
“I need you to help me remember.”
Jaxon trembled at Libby’s words and closed his eyes against her beauty, needing to regain some semblance of control. He was letting go too fast, and the beast was raging, wanting out with a brutal intensity that made coherent thought impossible.
Her scent was everywhere, scattered over his flesh and invading the cells of his body. Savagely he pulled her to him, knowing that he had crossed the line. Hell, he had jumped over it the night before. He didn’t care.
The jaguar would be denied no longer.
Once more he claimed the lips that had driven him mad with revenge for three long years. He parted their softness with his tongue, loving the taste of her, the smell of her, the feel of her. Her body moved frantically against his, and he roared inside, welcoming the aggressive passion that wracked her limbs.
He continued to delve deeper into her mouth, sucking, licking, tugging until Libby’s moans became a continuous chorus of need. His hands found her breasts and they filled his palms. He reveled in the feminine flesh, once again rewarded with a loud groan as his thumbs worked the hard peaks, the callused pads rubbing the sensitive nipples roughly and eliciting trembles each time he claimed them.
The fire that licked at his body began to pulse, and Jaxon tensed, fighting the urge to dominate, wanting the exquisite sensations to last as long as possible.
Libby was right. It had been way too fucking long.
Abruptly, he pushed her back, pulling himself up, needing to see every delicious inch of her body. Libby’s eyes darkened as his intent became clear, and soft mewing sounds fell from her parted lips as she spread her legs in anticipation.
Her fragrant arousal flooded the air, the heady musk thick and tangible, so incredibly sweet that he could almost taste it.
His eyes drank in her beauty, from the delicate features of her face, to the heaving breasts, down the creamy expanse of skin, until they settled onto the small scrap of fabric that clung to the prize he sought above all others.
He grinned wickedly up at her and his tongue once more lapped hungrily at the dusky pink nipples that lay before him. They begged and taunted him with their ripeness, an appetizer before the main course.
One that was meant to be enjoyed and savored. He suckled, nipped, and teased each hard bud as his hands moved possessively down her body. He felt a hard tug in his groin at Libby’s hiss of pleasure as he spread liquid heat along her breasts. He continued down past her heaving chest, worshiping her rib cage and soft belly as he headed straight toward the honey spot.
His fingers hooked into the top of her panties and he ripped them from her flesh, his hands and mouth seeking the warmth that was no longer hidden. He felt her body contort, arching away and into him at the same time, and he growled loudly as her fingers found his head, the nails digging into his scalp, urging him on as she opened herself even more for him.
He flicked his tongue teasingly, finding the engorged bud that glistened with the cream of her sex. Her body jerked and he growled deeply against her warmth, and without hesitation his hot mouth opened wide and he took all of her deep into him, his tongue working her into a frenzy that erupted within seconds, filling his mouth with the sweet taste of her orgasm.
His large hands cupped her butt tightly and he held her there, enjoying the taste and smell. Only when the last shudder quietly slipped from her did he let go, to continue his journey down her body, on which he feasted at her thighs, knees, and toes.
His own arousal pulsed with life, the heavy ache between his legs becoming almost unbearable. Then, with restrained grace, he flipped her body over, and abruptly stilled at the sight that greeted him.
He felt Libby’s immediate withdrawal, her hands going to her face, which she buried deep into the pillows and covers.
He let his eyes wander over the damaged and torn flesh of her back, then reached down to touch the puckered, ruined skin. With a groan, his mouth rained kisses along each blemish.
“Please don’t look.”
Libby’s muffled cry tore at him, and Jaxon slowly brought his lips to the sensitive area underneath her ear, feeling her shudder against his words. “You taste of heaven, feel like sin, but you always have and always will look like an angel to me. There is not one inch of flesh on your body that I don’t want to taste.”
His hands and mouth proceeded to demonstrate the passion in his words, and when her cries turned from anguish to wails of pleasure again, he hoisted her hips into the air and plunged his shaft hard and deep into her waiting wetness.
Jaxon literally saw stars as her hot velvet channel welcomed his hardness, gripping him tightly as he began to move to a rhythm older than time. Their bodies strained against each other, the wet, sweaty flesh of his slapping against the rounded softness of her buttocks, creating a symphony of sound.
She was incredibly tight, and his body—though large—went deep, and she took every long hard inch of him. He could feel her quivering, pulsing against him, and he clenched his teeth in an effort to prolong the exquisite sensations that were so incredible they were almost painful. He could feel the pressure building; his balls clenched and he increased his tempo, pounding into her ferociously, as the beast began to howl in triumph.
His Darkest Hunger Page 13