She turned toward him, looked at him through sleep fogged eyes. She licked her kiss-swollen lips slowly, not realizing how sexy it looked or how many ideas it gave him.
He leaned up on one elbow, the muscles of his arm bunching and clenching as he shifted his weight. He brushed the damp hair from her forehead, placing a tender kiss there. “I am honored that you gifted yourself to me. I hope I will never give you cause to regret it. I will care for you always and see to our happiness together.” He glanced down at her, saw the dreamy half smile on her face. Heartened to see she was taking this so well, Niklas lay back, gathered her into his arms and nuzzled her neck for a moment. “I must admit that I am surprised that you are taking this so well.”
* * * *
“Taking what so well, Niklas? Are you planning to leave already?” She turned away, her heart already breaking into tiny pieces. She was so tired, she hadn’t heard much of what he’d said. But it sounded like he was trying to say goodbye. Had he just taken advantage of her? She shook her head. No. As much as she might want to, she couldn’t blame this all on him. She had started it.
“No, Mi Dara, that is most emphatically not what I am trying to say.” Niklas caressed her shoulder, his hands rubbing up and down her arms in a rhythm meant to sooth.
She turned in his arms, wanting to face him, to see the truth in his expressive eyes. She searched his face intently. “What does that mean, Mi Dara, and the other word you used?” She wrinkled her brow trying to remember.
“Laharra?”
She inclined her head. “Yes that was it.”
“Laharra means beloved, in my language.”
Brianna smiled drowsily, kissed him passionately, glad that he thought of her that way. He must not be planning on going too far if he thought of her as his beloved. “And the other?” she asked, her fingers lingering in his fine ebony hair. She could live the rest of her life happily, if she never had to remove her fingers from his silky hair. Her eyes were sparkling now, happy. Niklas’s were dark and troubled.
“Mi Dara?”
She nodded expectantly, smiled through her exhaustion, her eyes drifting closed.
Niklas cleared his throat, uncomfortable. “Basically, the closest translation would be…my wife.”
Brianna’s eyelids flew open. “But we’re not—”
Niklas placed a finger over her lips. “In the eyes of the Gods and in the eyes of my people, we are married.”
“What?” She jumped out of the bed as quickly as her jellied limbs would allow. “What sort of archaic country do you come from? You can’t just marry a woman without her consent,” she said, glaring at him. “We are not married!” She stamped her foot in a fit that caused her breasts to jiggle invitingly.
Following his gaze, she looked down at herself and realized she was standing in the nude arguing with a crazy man who thought they were married. “Look, just because I agreed to have sex with you does not make me your wife.” She reached down, grabbed her T-shirt and pulled it over her head. She snorted. Apparently the man didn’t get around much if he thought a little romp between the sheets was a wedding ceremony. The sound of his words came back to her.
Do you choose me? he had asked. There is no going back.
I choose you. She remembered saying it clearly. She’d had said those words. Then Niklas had said something else. Something strange, something about being bound for all time. Brianna’s trembling hands flew to her pale face. “Oh, my Goddess, what have I done?” She leaned against the cool wall and slid to the floor in shock. She wrapped her arms around her knees and rocked back and forth, staring into space.
Niklas sat up in the bed. He watched her for a while before he stood, walked to her and lifted her into his arms. It was a measure of her shock that she didn’t resist. “You have given yourself to me, Laharra. To put it in a term you would understand, we are married or handfasted.”
Brianna’s trembling hand slid to her throat. Her fingers rested over her racing pulse. Her heart drummed frantically in her ears. Emotions, fear, joy, passion, all crowded through her.
She looked at Niklas, her eyes like saucers. When she gazed into his beautiful dark chocolate eyes, try as she might, she couldn’t make herself regret what she’d done. She blinked. After all, Brianna Lynne O’Neill was no idiot. The man was very nearly a God!
Chapter Eleven
Brianna closed her eyes, and inhaled deeply, taking in the intoxicating scent of his skin, their intermingled scents and the aroma of sex. She thought of the wild, uninhibited way she had given herself to him and blushed.
Leaning her head to the right, she rested it against his broad chest. She could hear his strong heartbeat and felt the rightness of what she’d done. Her hand moved from her neck to his chest. Her fingers made a lazy circle around his perfect flat nipple.
Niklas sucked a breath between clenched teeth. He quickly returned to the bed and sat, still holding her in his arms. He watched her with those wonderful eyes. Those addicting eyes. They were every bit as addicting as the chocolate they resembled and every bit as decadent.
He inhaled deeply and shook his head slowly. “You have no idea what you do to me.” His hand captured hers against his chest. Leaning down, he brushed his lips against her forehead and smiled, obviously nervous. “There are words that must be spoken, words that you must say to truly complete our bonding.”
Brianna looked at Niklas. Fascinated by the way his eyes changed color—ever so slightly—with his emotions. She peered into their mahogany depths, wondered if he was telling her the truth. “Tell me what they are, and I’ll say them.” Tears pooled in her eyes. She thought that he was being noble and giving her an out.
Shaking his head, he kissed her soundly. His tongue grazed her lips, entering her mouth when her lips parted and tangled with hers. Brianna wanted nothing more than to stay right here, in this beautiful moment with him. He was everything she’d ever dreamed of in a man, even if he was a bit chauvinistic.
Niklas reluctantly broke their kiss and looked into her eyes. “I cannot tell you the words you must say.” He shook his head slowly. “For this to be a true bonding, they must come from your heart. Your soul knows them. If we are truly meant to be bonded, you will know them.” He raked a nervous hand through his hair. “If you truly do not want to be bound to me, you can refuse to say the words.” His head was bowed as though it really mattered to him.
Brianna closed her eyes and reached inside herself. She looked for the words that Niklas needed to hear from her. She found a flicker of light within her that was strangely a part of Niklas. Then to her surprise, she began to speak in another language. “Mi Daru un dula, Mi Daru sonay. Laharru mon sunta waleema budai.”
Brianna’s eyes flew open. She clapped her hand to her mouth in shock. Where had that come from? She knew she’d just spoken another language, didn’t even know what she’d said. No, that wasn’t true. She did know what she just said. She just didn’t know how she knew it.
She’d said, my husband and life, my husband and soul. You are my beloved. I gift my heart and soul into your keeping forever and beyond. Brianna’s gaze flew to his, both eager and terrified to know if what she thought she’d said was correct. But how could she know that? It definitely wasn’t normal.
Niklas smiled, kissed her slightly parted lips. Lying back on the bed, he took her with him. Brianna’s lips parted further, his tongue slid between her teeth, dancing, mating with her own. She felt a peculiar wrenching in her heart and her mind. Somehow she could hear him talking to her. Yet he wasn’t because his lips were still firmly pressed against hers in a searing kiss, as his hands roamed her body, enflaming her, driving her wild.
* * * *
Mi Dara, my wife. I have waited so long for you. You humble me with the gift of your trust and your beautiful body. Know this, your heart and your soul are safe in my keeping for as long as I live.
He was still kissing her, drugging her with his mouth and hands. He gently nudged her legs apart with his
knee. She parted her legs easily, and Niklas settled himself in the cradle of her hips.
He groaned with intense pleasure as he entered her again. He whispered sweet nonsense into her mind as his body drove her wild. Niklas heard her whispers of encouragement, knowing what she wanted, needed, before she could voice it. And he knew with a startling realization that the legends of his people were true. Against all odds, he had found The One. And they were truly bound in heart and mind.
On his knees, Niklas lifted her buttocks, tilted her hips, and drove into her with the abandon that he could hear her whispering for. She wanted him out of control, needed the both of them to go up in the flames she could feel licking at their skin. Brianna moaned, the sound coming from the deepest recesses of her being. A guttural sound, which barely escaped his throat, burst free as Niklas felt his own release.
Afterward, they lay panting side by side, both exhausted, both replete. With their hands clasped together, their fingers entwined, they finally slept.
* * * *
Brianna woke to deliciously sore muscles. Muscles she’d never even known existed, protested movement. She stretched slowly and smiled. Knew if she wanted to, she could lie back and sleep for a very long time. “I don’t ever remember being so relaxed.”
She remembered the dream she’d had. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to really be so connected to the person you loved that you could hear their thoughts? She paused. Did she really love Niklas? Could she? She didn’t even know him. Not really. She moaned, rolled over and crawled out of bed. She didn’t even want to think about what her silly heart had gotten her into this time.
She headed for the shower, wondering when Niklas had left. Part of her was bothered that he hadn’t decided to stay. Another part of her, the part that knew she couldn’t have faced him first thing this morning, was glad he was gone. After all, she had plenty of reasons to be embarrassed after the way she had made love with him with such abandon.
Turning on the water, she stepped into the little stall and tried not to think of the way she had totally lost control. She felt the blush steal up her neck, warming her face. Had she really raked his back with her fingernails, screaming for him to drive into her harder and harder? Brianna covered her face with her hands, completely mortified.
Do not be embarrassed by your sensual nature, Laharra.
“Niklas?” Startled, Brianna jerked her head up and poked it out of the shower, the cooler air brushing her cheeks. Realization hit. When had her water heater started working? Turning the water off, she stepped from the shower, grabbed a towel, and rubbed it briskly against her skin. She walked to the counter, and, leaning over, she rubbed the towel over her mirror to see if she looked any different. Should she?
Brianna eyed herself in the streaked mirror and frowned. She didn’t look any different. She didn’t look like she’d just had the most incredible night of sex she could have possibly imagined. She shrugged and continued to towel herself dry, mindful of the tender places on her skin. She looked down at herself and flushed.
There were whisker burns all over her body. Wherever she looked, there was evidence of their lovemaking. She hugged herself and smiled, remembering how wonderful each, and every, one of Niklas’s caresses felt.
Dressed in blue jeans and her favorite T-shirt, that boldly announced, give me my stinkin’ coffee now, or suffer the consequences, she went in search of Killer to let him outside for his morning bark-fest. No matter where she looked, Killer was nowhere to be found. Putting her shoes on, she rushed next door. Maybe Niklas knew where he was, or at least maybe she could get him to help search for him.
Brianna knocked on the door, waited a moment, then knocked again. Her patience was near the breaking point. She loved that little pain in the butt. If he had been hurt because she’d forgotten him outside last night, she’d never forgive herself.
Niklas opened the door with a smile. He was holding Killer and immediately handed the squirming bundle of hair to her. He knew it was why she was there.
Brianna hugged Killer close and kissed him on the ear. “Why did you take him? I was worried sick.”
He stepped back, waved her into the house and closed the door behind her. “You were sleeping. I brought him here, so he wouldn’t disturb you. I left you a note. Didn’t you see it?” He looked at her quizzically, his brow raised in a way that made him look even sexier.
Brianna blushed. She was embarrassed that she didn’t think Niklas would have left a note. “I was so frantic I didn’t even look for one. Where did you leave it?” Cuddling Killer close, she rubbed his ears and pressed little kisses to the side of his head.
Niklas smiled. “It was on the table in your kitchen.” He placed a gentle hand on her back, massaging it lightly. “And there is no need for you to look so embarrassed. I understand your apprehension. You love him.”
She sighed, relieved. How did he always seem to have the ability to make her feel so comfortable? He had an agreeable way about him that erased any embarrassment she felt. Brianna opened her mouth to apologize, and Niklas interrupted.
“You do not owe me an apology or an explanation. I left your home with something you love. You had every right to be upset.”
How did he always seem to know what she was thinking now? She gave a mental shrug and smiled into his eyes. She then looked around, noticing for the first time that most of his belongings were gone. She frowned. “What happened to all of your furniture?” She wandered across the almost empty room to stand by the window that faced her house.
* * * *
Niklas closed his eyes for a moment and let out a deep breath. He’d hoped she would sleep a bit longer. At least until he could have returned to her and explain. He’d felt her embarrassment earlier. He had hoped she’d been dreaming, but it was not the case. He’d been using a holographic device to give orders to the crew and wasn’t able to go to her at the time. They needed to leave this place as soon as he was able. When he felt her anxiety over the missing pet, he knew she was indeed awake and would have to be dealt with, whether he was ready or not. Finished with the holo device, he’d been coming down the stairs when she’d started pounding on the door.
He took her arm and sat her down on the sofa, one of the few furnishings left in the house. He put his arm around her shoulders, drawing Brianna closer to his body. He wanted a firm grip on her when she heard what he had to say. “I am packing to leave.” The sooner he got this over with the better, as far as he was concerned. She stiffened. It was a reaction he’d expected, yes, but one he certainly did not welcome. He held fast when she tried to wrench herself free from his grasp.
Tears began to pool in her eyes, trembling like gems on her lashes. She was obviously under the mistaken impression that he was leaving this world without her. Niklas could feel the emotions roiling within her. Of them all, anguish, confusion, fear and anger, mostly he felt her anger. She thought he’d used her. Each emotion swirled within her, each trying to control the direction of her thoughts.
She turned her head. Eyes blurred with tears found his. “But…but why? After last night I thought—” She covered her mouth with her hands, the last of her words coming out on a sob.
Killer stood on his hind legs, licking her face in an attempt to console. It was a measure of her distress when she pushed him away.
Brianna scrubbed her face with her hands, her feelings of humiliation and loss obvious. I won’t cry over him. I won’t cry because my spell didn’t work and I’ll have months to wait before the planets will be in the right alignment again.
Niklas’s arm tightened around her as he heard her thoughts and she tried to pull away again. He held her firmly to his side. He couldn’t bear to see her like this. He couldn’t take the time to stay, to reassure her, to give her the time to grow to trust him thoroughly.
He cursed under his breath. Why did things have to happen this way? Why did they always have to be so difficult? If he didn’t have to rush back, he could take all the time he needed to reassure h
er. What a strange twisted universe this is. He groaned, knowing he had to tell her, yet wasn’t quite sure how to do so. Where should he begin?
She turned away, but not before he could see how her eyes reflected her anguish. It was obvious she couldn’t bear to look at him anymore.
”Laharra, look at me, please,” Niklas pleaded. He reached out, trying to gently turn her head back toward him, but she fought.
“I can’t. I won’t. I don’t think I can ever—” she sobbed into her hands, resting her forehead against the wall.
He didn’t have time for this. He would have liked nothing more than to stay here with her until she could grow to trust him. He’d been lucky, very lucky, just to have found her. He couldn’t protect her here as well as he could on Terrna. Or even as well as he could on his ship, now that he was relatively certain all of the spies were gone. “I have to go home, Laharra. I would take you with me, if you would go.”
* * * *
Brianna looked up at him through her tear-filled eyes. How could he think she could leave the country with him? She didn’t know him. How did she know he wasn’t some sort of strange axe murderer or a man who dealt in sexual slavery? “Don’t you understand? I don’t even know you, not really,” she cried. “I can’t go anywhere with a man I don’t know. I don’t even believe I had sex with you. I never do things like that.” She was breaking his heart, she could feel it. Good, then he knows how I feel. The jerk. Strangely, she could feel his remorse. He didn’t want to hurt her. The knowledge gave her a small measure of comfort, and she was able to calm herself a bit.
Briannas Prophecy Page 14