by Marie Harte
“You think I’ve got power?” She stared at them in astonishment. “I’m nothing like you four. Or should I say three? Where’s the grey-eyed one? Aerolus, right?”
Darius closed the distance between them and took her chin in his hands, tilting her face to his inspection. “Oh, you’ve power in you, sweet. It’s racing in you as we speak.”
She could only blink in confusion, the heat of his palm like warm honey, sweet and addicting.
“Your eyes turned red for a brief moment, Samantha, as red as mine. And the fire you withstand is elemental magic—my magic. It’s my fire that burns inside you. I can feel it.” His voice lowered, sounding guttural and needy and way more than she could handle this close to him.
“Not now,” Cadmus protested. “I want to hear her side of things.”
Marcus cursed and dragged his brother out of the room. “Come on, you idiot,” she heard through the doorway. “Darius isn’t big on sharing, and I’m not big on watching. Her, sure, but him? Borders on base perversity.”
The door suddenly slammed shut, leaving Samantha and Darius an inch apart.
“Darius?” she asked breathlessly.
“Later, love.” He kissed the corner of her mouth with a whisper-light touch and groaned. “You’re killing me,” he murmured before stealing her will to breathe, to think, to do anything but kiss him back.
Fast and furious, their desire fanned into a combustible inferno. Darius tore at her clothing, as desperate to enter her as Samantha was to feel him inside her. She helped him as best she could, needing him to soothe the ache only he stirred. Jeans and underwear followed her shoes, sliding to the floor. Then her back hit the bed as Darius crushed her beneath him in an erotic act of pure possession.
He fumbled at the clasp of his jeans briefly, then without warning plunged into her, no foreplay or teasing required to further the fiery desire they both felt.
Samantha groaned at the sensation of fullness, at how perfectly he fit her. She was wet and wild to have him and locked her ankles around his waist, making him groan her name. Over and over he thrust, the delicious friction of his cock against her clit ever present and growing.
And then she burst into a million fragments, staring into his taut face as he quickly followed her into oblivion. He continued to thrust, pummelling her into a second, consuming orgasm that siphoned the fire from her body into his. She could sense their hearts beating as one, their connection a living conduit of emotion and heat.
When at last her breathing slowed, she stared into his clear, deep red eyes now replete with satisfaction.
“I have no willpower when it comes to you,” he rasped lazily. His jeans rubbed against her legs and she realised he’d paused only long enough to remove her clothing and free his erection before making love to her.
Slowly withdrawing from her body, he took her with him as he rolled to his back. “How this keeps happening is a mystery to me,” he said and nuzzled the side of her face playfully.
Amazed at his mellowed mood, and her insanity for having sex with him yet again, Samantha wanted to scream her frustration but could only manage a muffled hmmph. Hadn’t she sworn off men, wanting to bolster her self-esteem before dating again?
And this, this wasn’t dating. This was hot sex—pure, untainted lust for a stranger. Well, at least on his part. She was starting to feel something for the impatient, arrogant, royal pain. She closed her eyes in dismay. That’s right, he was royalty, a prince in fact—from another world.
“I know you’re not happy with me, Samantha, and I can’t say I’m happy with the whole situation.” He held her in his arms, his ropey muscles easily caging her, and she prayed she’d been more circumspect in shielding her thoughts. She could only imagine what he’d think if he knew she was developing feelings for him. “But you won’t be safe anywhere in your world without me.” His gaze narrowed as he looked up at her. “So don’t make the mistake of thinking to escape. Wherever you go ’Sin Garu will be waiting. And after seeing how easily you wielded my fire, it’s a sure bet he’s planning to use you against me.”
She sighed, any euphoria after their intimacy completely fading. Worries about her burgeoning feelings for Darius and reminders of the blond with the nasty attitude took the wind from her sails.
“I’m sorry,” he murmured and hugged her tight. Two apologies in one day? Must have been a record.
I heard that. Instead of sounding annoyed, he sounded amused.
“I am completely confused.” She leaned up on her elbows and stared down at him. “I can’t be around you without wanting to jump your bones, and for a woman like me that’s saying something. Then there’s your buddy ’Sin Garu—”
“What do you mean a ‘woman like me’?” She squirmed under his regard. She didn’t know how to hide that festering wound. “A reference to Josh-the-Asshole, right?”
She flushed. “I told you to stop reading my thoughts.”
“I can’t help it. You’re way too loud when you’re upset.”
Bristling, she wanted to ignore him but sensed his honest interest and found herself explaining. “I met Josh through a company I worked for years ago. We started dating, and before I knew it a whole year had passed. We had fun, and it was comfortable. I cared deeply for Josh, enough to consider a permanent relationship.
“He was handsome, charming and successful.” She felt his arms stiffen. “But the more intense our relationship grew, the more I realised how much of my life I put on hold to bolster his.
“His clients, his parties, his pleasure came first. After a while I got sick of cancelling my plans to suit his. Instead of being honest with what he wanted, he would guilt me into giving in. If I loved him as much as he loved me, I’d skip my conference. If I had half his devotion, I’d agree to hostess his business social.” She frowned. “It took a while, but I finally found me again after too much time playing second to Josh.
“Now I find myself caught in your mess with an evil sorcerer from another world. And man, I cannot believe I just said that. It sounds like something from a bad movie.”
She realised she’d been talking nonstop, that Darius had yet to speak, when she paused to take a deep breath. “Darius?”
“Do you still have feelings for this Josh?”
She knew he could have probed her mind for answers, and appreciated the fact that he avoided doing so.
She thought about his question and answered slowly. “No, not anymore. At the time I thought I loved him, but what I really loved was the feeling of being important to someone else.” She exhaled heavily, gazing deeply into his otherworldly eyes. “You probably don’t understand any of this.”
Darius stared, his thoughts colliding with his conscience. He could feel the pain of her failed relationship throbbing in her heart. Samantha wanted to be first, and why shouldn’t she? She was a beautiful, caring, hard-working woman who deserved to be treated like a queen. Unfortunately, she once again took a backseat in a ‘relationship’, in this instance to the battle waging between ’Sin Garu and Tanselm.
Just as Josh had hurt her, Darius too played the part of self-important lover. Through no fault of his own, he’d been placed in the role, but unlike Josh-the-Asshole, he had no intention of letting Samantha go.
Why he was suddenly so sure of her importance in his life he had yet to understand. Their chemistry went beyond anything he’d ever experienced, and the raw emotion that chased their sexual encounters boggled his mind.
How could he put into words the irrational idea that he and she were destined to be together? That Darius Storm, the Prince of Fire, had finally found a mate in a world so completely foreign to him? And that she would most likely be averse to being his mate, for the exact reasons she’d left Josh?
His head began aching and he closed his eyes, keeping his arms locked firmly around Samantha. All of a sudden he felt very tired, and he realised he hadn’t had much sleep in the past forty-eight hours. He wondered how much sleep Samantha had managed.
Just then she rested her head on his chest and sighed softly. In seconds her breathing evened and she fell asleep, much to his satisfaction. His need to be with her unmanned him and yet made him…happy. Though he hated to concede to Arim, he knew, deep down, that he’d met his affai. Now if only Samantha would play her part without too much persuading.
She twitched in her sleep and he tightened his arms around her. He snorted. As if the she-devil in his arms would make anything easy. Hell, since he’d met her he’d been in one unwanted predicament after another. And yet she excited him like no other, made him ache for her touch, for a whiff of her scent.
He’d found no fragile flower here, but a firebrand with as much passion as a firewalker. He grinned as he stared at her golden skin, glowing under a haze of stray sunlight beaming through his shuttered window. Fiery and confrontational summed Samantha Brooks in a nutshell. Not to mention passionate and sexy as hell.
He prayed to the Light for patience, a trait he sorely lacked. He couldn’t afford to screw up this one attempt at courtship, not for Tanselm and not for Samantha.
With any luck he’d have time to convince her to accompany him home, before he explained about the affai and that she’d have to give up everything she held dear to save both his land and his life.
Chapter Eight
Samantha had to credit Darius for being devious. He’d slyly advised his brothers to move her things into his room while she stayed with them, for however long that would be. As if she’d resist temptation sleeping next to him day in and day out. She’d insisted on privacy, and after much grumbling he’d conceded to a room of her own.
That was five days ago.
She missed working, and after a week without Darius, without sex, she hastily corrected, she felt overloaded with frustration.
She refused, however, to go down that road again with him, not until she had a better handle on her emotions and the situation she faced. Odd, but accepting he was from another world and that she had become involved in a fight against evil was easier to stomach than having ‘feelings’ for the bossy Adonis.
Spending more time around him, watching him interact with family and friends in his home—in this world—would better illustrate just what kind of man he really was. She didn’t want to be clouded by desire, even though she could find no way to turn off her body’s reaction to his nearness.
She’d spent Monday managing Gerry and finishing up administrative work. Tuesday Darius collected her winter clothing from her storage facility. So much for apartment shopping. At least she wasn’t wasting money on rent.
Wednesday, Thursday and this morning had been spent in a similar fashion—willing herself to relax, to think of her time off as a vacation, one she hadn’t had in years. She readily compared her new accommodations to a luxury hotel and figured she was lucky to reside in such comfort.
Staring at the mountains from the living room’s bay window, she couldn’t help admiring the house Darius lived in with his brothers. Had she the money, she would have bought something similar. She loved the Greenlake area, and the house had a phenomenal view of both the lake and the mountains.
The room she requested, away from Darius, sat on the first floor, allowing her a nice picture of the Storms’ now frozen garden. She could just imagine the blooms in late spring, which according to Cadmus, didn’t come close to rivalling her natural beauty.
She’d been hard-pressed not to laugh in his face when he’d said that, doubly amused when Darius glared and set his brother’s napkin on fire. She’d found it immensely satisfying to see Darius jealous, because of her.
Grinning at the memory, she stared at the gloomy picture of Friday morning and thought how well Darius had seemed to take their separation. When she’d initially asked for her own room, he’d seemed affronted. But after a few hours he’d changed his tune.
“You need time and space to sort things out,” he’d grumbled, the insightful comment unexpected, and one that made her question Darius’ hidden depths.
Though normally curt, bossy, and rude around his brothers, he never presumed with her. Aside from knowing exactly what her body needed physically, he didn’t take her mental and emotional desires for granted.
He’d been surprisingly solicitous since she’d ‘moved in’, constantly making sure she had everything she needed. And he’d given her space, leaving the house often to do whatever it was he did during the day. The one time she’d asked him he’d grown so prickly she hadn’t questioned him again.
Cadmus and Marcus proved charming companions, another thorn in Darius’ side. Oh, she could tell he loved them dearly, though it might pain him to admit. The way they interacted, how he sought to keep them out of harm’s way, showed how much he cared.
Only yesterday he’d adamantly denied her request to go downtown, despite Marcus’ promise not to leave her side.
“It’s not safe, and I’m not about to lose either of you due to your arrogance,” said with a look to Marcus, “or your impatience,” said with a look at her.
While she appreciated his caring, she didn’t relish his constant need to control. Marcus had muttered something condescending under his breath, and she’d secretly agreed.
After five days of catching up on work, her personal needs, and the latest DVDs and novels, she felt ready to burst if forced to stay inside one more minute.
One of the brothers entered the living room behind her, his face visible in the window’s reflection. She turned, noted the brown eyes, and smiled. “Good morning, Cad. Nice to see one of you is an early riser.”
He grimaced. “I hate to admit it, but I’d still be sleeping if you weren’t here.” He grabbed coffee and a banana and settled into a leather recliner. “How are you this morning?”
“Stir crazy.”
He nodded. “I told Darius you wouldn’t take being cooped up in here much longer. Frankly, I’m surprised you haven’t bolted before now. Granted, Darius has a point wanting to keep you safe. But really, what’s it going to hurt if you take a walk around the block?” He sounded cranky, partly, she suspected, because he hated sitting inside with her.
“I’m sorry,” she started but he waved away her apology.
“Don’t be. It’s my own fault. Marcus has a job and Aerolus, well, I’m not sure what he’s doing right now. I’m the only one available at the moment to babysit—” at her look he quickly amended, “to protect you.”
“Thanks,” she said wryly, shaking her head. “You know, the first day I met you four I was baffled by how alike you were. Now I can’t imagine why I thought that.”
He grinned, his brown eyes sparkling with mirth, and she realised the truth of her statement. Darius she knew instinctively. She could feel his presence when he entered the room, could sense him drawing near without looking.
Marcus and Cadmus, on the other hand, had distinct personalities that made their identical appearance fade in comparison. Now when she looked at them, she saw them, not mirror images of Darius.
Marc, as she liked to call him because it annoyed him, had a tendency towards arrogance far beyond Darius’ capacity to condescend. Marcus acted like royalty, as if she should cherish every moment spent in his presence. Yet beneath the attitude she felt warmth and acceptance, and she had to admit she loved his dry sense of humour.
Cad, on the other hand, loved the nickname she’d given him. Easygoing and openly affectionate, he constantly joked. Despite their nature as quadruplets, he really did seem the baby of the family and the others treated him as such. Though he had to resent it, he treated Darius and Marcus with tolerance and ever-present amusement.
She also noted how in tune he was with nature. The small greenhouse attached to the kitchen flourished with plant life, all courtesy of Cad’s green thumb. And being inside stifled him. She could see the toll it took on him to remain with her inside the house and wished it could be otherwise.
“You sure are thinking hard,” he murmured as he finished his banana.
“Yes,
well, that’s all I can do in here. No offence, I love your house, but really, do we have to stay inside?”
She glanced outside and saw the sun parting the clouds hovering over MountOlympus. He followed her gaze and shot her a sly look.
“You know, if we snuck out now, we could get a nice walk in before anyone noticed.”
“No.” Darius stomped into the kitchen looking bleary-eyed. Secretly thrilled to see him, Samantha focused on keeping her inner shields intact and her heartbeat steady.
“Awe, come on Darius,” Cad protested. “We’re dying in here. It’s so boring staring at each other all day long.” He winked at Samantha. “Though come to think of it, we could find something else to entertain us if you’re planning on going out again.” The suggestive leer he sent her made her want to laugh. Darius, however, didn’t find Cadmus amusing in the least.
He said something in a foreign language that had Cad arching his brow.
“Touchy.”
“Samantha,” Darius said, studiously ignoring his brother, “would you like to go out with me tonight?”
She blinked. “Where?”
“I thought we could grab something to eat downtown,” he said casually, his eyes intense as he waited for her answer. “It won’t be fancy or anything, but I thought you might want a break from my family.”
She forced herself to pay no attention to Cadmus and his cheeky grin. “I’d love to.”
Darius nodded and seemed to relax, as much as he ever did lately. “Fine. I’ll see you back here around six.” So saying, he shot Cad a warning glare and left without another word.
Staring after him, she wasn’t aware she frowned until Cad mentioned it.
“I know he’s a pain in the ass, but he’s got his reasons.” He grabbed another cup of coffee, offering her one as well.
“He’s been busy this week.” It bugged the hell out of her that he remained so secretive about his whereabouts.
Cad snorted. “Yeah, right. With the exception of working at the club and his time spent helping Father Denton, he’s been going out of his mind staying away from you.”