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Damn. I painted that mural close to a thousand years ago. My skin broke out in gooseflesh, despite the exquisitely hot water pounding on me and filling the room with steam.
Her gaze wandered down my back and over my ass before bouncing back to my face again. This time her inspection was a little less subtle than the first time and I considered turning and giving her the full frontal view, but I decided against it.
“You’re more than welcome to join me,” I said when she showed no signs of moving.
Her mouth opened and she glanced back toward the living room. “When?”
“Right now,” I said, knowing she wasn’t referring to my offer.
She rolled her eyes. “When did you paint that mural?”
“A long time ago,” I said. “Now, are you going to join me or not?” This time I turned toward her, giving her the full view and I smiled at the way her gaze bounced, her eyes widening a fraction before inching their way back up my chest to my face. Her cheeks bloomed and I cocked an eyebrow at her.
She pressed her lips together and slammed the door, marching out of the room in a huff.
I chuckled and ran the soap over my chest, running my fingers over what was left of the welt on my skin. The vampiric healing powers still amazed me enough that I missed the shift in the air around me.
Nails scraped my back and I jumped, swinging my head in the direction of the disturbance. Her wide eyes met mine and I turned, drinking her in from head to toe. Exquisite was the only word that popped into mind and when her fingers touched my chest I reached, covering her hand and holding it against my skin.
“What are you doing?” I whispered because having her undressed and this close put me at a major disadvantage.
“I’m saying thank you,” she said and her hands moved lower.
Catching her wrists, I warned, “Naomi, don’t start something you can’t finish.” My body responded anyway and she closed the distance. Her lips grazed my chest and I closed my eyes, releasing her and surrendering to her exploration.
When her tongue trailed lower, I recalled the memories of her ex and my eyes snapped open. As much as the thought of her taking me in her mouth thrilled me, I didn’t want to be that memory and I grabbed her by the shoulders, pulling her up to face me. She wasn’t one of the common harlots from my past that I let drop to their knees before me.
No, Naomi was different and I wanted more.
“You do not have to do this just because you aren’t ready for anything else.”
Her dark eyes met mine and I traced the frame of her face with my fingertips, studying every curve. Leaning down, I took her lower lip in my mouth, sucking gently before shifting and delivering a kiss that started as tender and rich as her blood, but soon escalated into an all-consuming heat and I could envision living in this bliss for the rest of eternity.
I had lied to her today.
Fear wasn’t the only deep emotion I had encountered since I plucked her out of the sky, this need to connect, to love again overwhelmed me. The irony of her name and the form she turned into added to the feel that fate had prepared this feast just for me.
I reveled in the feel of her, the taste of her and the sound of her. Each stroke of her hand, each swipe of her tongue gave me new life.
The shower transitioned to the bedroom and when she whispered, “I’m not doing this because I have to.” I nearly lost my mind. Her mouth was the closest I’ll ever get to heaven. I couldn’t recall ever feeling this out of control with a woman, this lost in the sensation, this deep even with the taste of blood passing over my palette.
“Good lord, girl,” I whispered when she crawled next to me and curled up in the crook of my shoulder. Shudders still shot through my form in aftershocks of pleasure and I met her gaze, hungry for more. I pushed her onto her back and stretched on top of her, clasping her hands in mine and raising them above her head while I explored the recesses of her mouth, our tongues playfully dancing with the rhythm of my heart.
When the kiss broke, I stared down at her with a grin.
“You know, hawks mate for life,” she said, her tone laced with amusement.
“You know, I think I heard that somewhere,” I answered. Her laugh filled the room and I turned serious before we did something she didn’t fully comprehend. “Are you really ready for this, Naomi?”
Her smile faded. “You drew a mural of us. It’s almost like...” she trailed off.
When her eyes closed and that crease formed between them, the heat building inside me doused to a low simmer and I shifted, pulling her back into the crook of my arm as I rolled to my back. She sighed and ran her fingers over my chest.
“Are you angry?” she asked after a few moments.
“No.”
“Disappointed?” She raised her head and met my gaze.
I gave her the warmest smile I could muster. “No,” I said, even though my soul ached for her. “When you’re ready, we’ll cross that bridge.” I glanced at the clock and peeled her from me sitting up and taking a deep breath.
“I need to do a quick scout of the area before sunrise.”
Her expression became guarded and she folded her arms over her chest, like I was pulling away on purpose. A flash of a thought brought my attention to her.
“I’m not running out on you, Naomi. I have to make sure the family above is safe. Demons can’t get in the house, neither can angels. I saw to that, but my safeguards don’t apply to the yard and if demons are hanging around that could put these people in danger. I can’t let that happen.”
Naomi unfolded and rolled off the bed, reaching for one of the shopping bags.
“What are you doing?” I asked as she pulled on a pair of jeans from the bunch.
“I’m getting dressed so I can help.”
Her offer amused me and I laughed. “You are staying put.”
She spun, sending a glare in my direction.
“Lucifer knows I took you, but I’m not sure he knows you’re alive, and I’d rather not divulge that fact just yet.”
“What if there are more demons out there?” She yanked on the new hiking boots we bought and stood.
“Baby, I could have handled that demon.”
It was her turn to laugh. “You weren’t handling him when I got there.”
“I’m serious, Naomi. I’d rather not have to worry about protecting you if I run across another demon. Please just stay put.”
“What if something happens to you? How would I get out of here and more importantly, back inside if you don’t come back?”
I crossed and grabbed her by the arm, bringing her to my computer. With a few quick keystrokes, the scanner beeped and I put her right hand on the surface. The machine catalogued her handprint into the security system. “There, you can get in whenever you need to,” I said. “As far as the keypad, the number is seven, one, nine, two. Can you remember that?”
She started laughing. “You’re kidding, right?”
“What’s so funny?” I asked and glanced at the clock. I had a little more than three hours before the sun broke the horizon and I wanted to cover a large circumference before I got back.
“That’s the day I was born.”
My gaze snapped from the clock to her face as another coincidence raked a chill across my skin. “What?”
“Seven, one, ninety-two,” she said. “How long have you had that security code?”
“Forever,” I said. Anytime I needed a pass code that was my default.
“Any significance?” she asked and pulled on her coat.
“It’s a combination of my birthday and the day Athena died.”