“Who said that?”

Faye looked away, but he didn’t have to be a genius to figure out who had put that bee in her bonnet.

“Abel?”

She turned her face back to him. “He said he’d overheard your men talking about a woman you wanted to bring back here.”

“That’s bullshit!” Anger about his brother’s latest manipulation churned up in him.

“But why would he say that?”

“Because he wants to drive a wedge between us!” It was the only explanation. “He wants you back.” Cain let out a bitter laugh. “And why wouldn’t he? What man wouldn’t get addicted once he’s had you in his bed?” The dreams he’d had told him that he was addicted to it, too.

“But he’s never had me!”

Cain froze. “What?”

“He never touched me. He wanted to but I couldn’t . . .”

He raised his hand and caressed her cheek. “You remained faithful to me,” he murmured, unable to believe his fortune. Leaning in, he brought his lips close to hers. “I want to get to know you again. Will you show me what it was like between us before I disappeared?” He touched her lips, giving her every chance to withdraw if she wanted to, but she didn’t pull back.

“Oh, Cain, I missed you so much.”

24

He’d given Marcus instructions to take care of the two newcomers, and now Cain closed the door to Faye’s suite behind him, flipping the lock. His gaze traveled to Faye who stood near the fireplace and didn’t move.

He didn’t care that there was king business waiting for him. What he was about to do was more important than ruling a kingdom.

“Thank you for helping those two vampires,” she murmured.

He walked to her with steady steps although his heart was thundering. “I want you to know that I didn’t do it in order to get you into my bed.”

Faye laughed softly and motioned to the bed. “That’s my bed, not yours.”

“Same difference.” Having reached her, he braced his hands at either side of her head. “If I remember well, it never mattered much to me which bed I slept in as long as you were with me.” At least that much he knew from his dreams.

“And sometimes it didn’t even matter to you whether it was a bed.” She glanced down at the bearskin rug at her feet.

Had they made love there before?

“Why don’t you show me what you like best?” he suggested.

Her lips came closer, and her breath bounced against his mouth. “You know what I like best.”

Cain wished he could remember, but no memory was forthcoming. So he did the only thing he could. He captured her lips and kissed her. Her lips yielded to him, parting at the slightest pressure, a soft sigh escaping her mouth, while one of her hands slid to his nape, sending a shiver down his spine and into his tailbone. A corresponding bolt traveled to his groin and ignited him there.

He’d hoped it would be like this ever since the moment she’d appeared in his dreams, but he’d never expected Faye’s passion to engulf him so fully that he lost all sense of reality. This could only be a dream; nothing could feel so good in real life. Yet holding Faye in his arms and devouring her lips like a man dying of thirst felt more real than all of the dreams he’d had about her combined.

He felt his heart roar to life as if it had been dormant since the beginning of time. It beat against her chest, providing the echo to Faye’s heartbeat. Just as rapidly as his, her heart thundered inside her ribcage trying to escape. His hand moved south to capture it, to finally feel her warm flesh in his palm. Soft flesh greeted him, filling his hand to its capacity. His thumb stroked over her peak, feeling it harden under his caress. But the fabric of her summer dress was still in his way, still preventing him from making contact with her skin.

Cain ripped his mouth from her, panting heavily. “Oh, God, Faye!” He gazed into her eyes. They were heavy-lidded, the passion in them undisguised. It made him hungry just looking at her.

He squeezed her breast in his palm, then captured her other one with his other hand. Faye leaned her head back against the wall and moaned.

“It’s not enough,” he ground out and took hold of the fabric. Without thinking, he ripped the top of her dress in two, exposing her breasts.

Faye gasped, her eyes widening in surprise.

Cain dropped his gaze, drinking in the sight. She wore no bra, and her generous breasts spilled into his waiting hands. The contact of skin on skin made his cock throb uncontrollably, thickening further.