Nicolae was waiting outside the office, his long, sinewy frame leaning negligently against the banister. Destiny paused to look at him. The breeze was coolly ruffling the long silk of his hair. The moon cast a silver beam across the angles and planes of his face, illuminating the sheer sensuality there. His body was hard and powerful, a dangerous blend of predator and seductive male. He turned his head and smiled at her, robbing her of breath just that easily.

"You're very good-looking," she said judiciously, tilting her head to study his magnificent physique. "Are all Carpathians as good-looking as you?"

His black eyebrows arched. "I do not think that is a safe subject for you." He held out his hand to her. Destiny studied it carefully, as if examining it for a trap. How in the world had she become so obsessed with him that the sight of his outstretched hand could send her heart somersaulting? Her fingers laced almost reluctantly with his. Up close, he would be able to feel the way he made her pulse elevate, the way her heart beat a little unsteadily. Her entire body ached for him if she ventured too close to his sheer magnetism. A humiliating fact, and one impossible to hide when he was touching her.

"Silly woman," he said affectionately. "There is nothing at all to hide from a lifemate. There is never any need. I am in your mind as you are in mine."

"Well, if you're in my mind, then you should be perfectly aware that I'm having a difficult time accepting our weird relationship."

He brought their linked hands up to his mouth, his lips teasing the skin of her inner wrist. "You accept our weird relationship; you just are afraid to trust it. Or yourself. It makes you happy, and you do not trust that."

She glared at him. "Have you been hanging out with Father Mulligan again? He's always handing out that two-cent advice of his."

"He only charged you two cents? He made me fill his poor box," Nicolae said, straight-faced. "And he didn't offer a single word on marriage. He just said to have courage, whatever that meant."

Destiny burst out laughing. "The old fraud, he probably said that on purpose just to make me crazy. Where's Vikirnoff?"

Nicolae rugged on her hand until she began walking along the street with him. "He is out seeking information on the woman in the photograph. The healer is on his way, and my brother is determined to keep the cities free of vampires. We do not need Vikirnoff cluttering up the skies tonight. I have plans."

The three little words set butterfly wings fluttering in the pit of her stomach. She had already been too long away from him. Desire shot through her, shaking her very foundations. Her mouth grew dry, and her body hot, just hearing his words. Just the thought of his hard body made her tremble. She didn't dare look at his mouth; her knees would give out.

"What kind of plans?" She had no idea how she managed to get the words past her strangled throat.

He moved closer, his larger body brushing against hers so that electricity seemed to arc and crackle between them. Little dancing whips of lightning sizzled in her bloodstream. Just walking with him was a miracle to her.

Nicolae glanced down at the top of her bent head. She was the miracle to him. He still couldn't quite grasp the fact that he had found her at long last. The endless search for her was over and she was with him. A part of him. The intensity of his feelings shocked him at times. "You said you wanted to go to the movies. I found an all-night theater."

She glanced up at him from under her long lashes, rewarding him with a small smile. "I'd like that, thank you."

The thought of sitting with her in a darkened theater was a reward in and of itself. He couldn't stop the erotic fantasies filling his mind. Destiny blushed wildly, catching his thoughts. She had never considered what one might do in a dark corner of a theater.

Destiny cleared her throat, searching desperately for something to say. Searching desperately for a safe subject "Mary Ann is worried about money again. She didn't want me looking at her books, and now John Paul has wrecked her office. She tried to act as if it were no big deal, but it obviously is."

"I do not want you robbing a bank or risking your life taking money from a drug dealer."

"You sound just like her." Destiny laughed at his severe tone.

"She had a point. I will get her the money she needs. Living in the world for centuries, we Carpathians have a certain expertise in acquiring money. There is no need for you to do anything illegal or dangerous to help Mary Ann."

"I'll hold you to that. I don't like her worrying so much."

"Good. I'm an expert fund-raiser. Count on me, Destiny."

Of course she could count on him. She had known, on some level, for most of her life that he would always be there for her. Now he was real. Solid. Beside her sharing her life and her thoughts. She did count on him.

He bent his head, feathered kisses down her cheek even as they walked along the darkened streets together holding hands. "I share your body too," he murmured wickedly.

His voice whispered over her body, made every muscle clench with urgent need. A rush of liquid heat surged, spread, pooled low in anticipation. She didn't know how he had managed to become so firmly entrenched in her heart so quickly. "I still think you've used some black-magic spell on me," she said gruffly.

"Is it working?"

"Don't sound so happy about it." A fine drizzle had begun. Destiny lifted her face to the skies, allowing me vapor to bathe her face. "I love the rain. I love everything about it. The air always smells so fresh after it rains, and the sound is so soothing. I sometimes lie under the covers and just listen to the way rain sounds likes music."

"Do you want to drop in at the rectory and see Sam?" Nicolae ventured. "Two hours from now I would not want you to suddenly worry about him."

"You were reading my mind again." She smiled up at him because she couldn't help herself. Nicolae. Sharing her life. Giving her hope. Binding his life to her life, so that she would never be alone again. It was almost more than she could take in and accept. Happiness. She had never dared to believe it could be hers. Belief seemed to trickle into her mind and take hold a little bit at a time.

Still hand in hand, they launched skyward, shifting shape as they did so, two owls flying toward the windows of the rectory. They shifted a second time, became vapor streaming through the night to find the opening in the window, no more than a crack, but it allowed them entry. Twin ribbons of colored mist poured into the house, moved quickly through the darkened hallway to find the crack beneath the door.

Father Mulligan appeared to be dozing in a chair by the bed. Sam was asleep, tears still marking his pale face. Destiny's heart went out to the little boy. She materialized beside him, her fingers stroking back the thatch of hair tumbling across his forehead. "Poor little boy," she murmured softly.

Father Mulligan sat up with a start, clutched dramatically at his heart as he glared at them. "Do you go through walls? You nearly killed me coming in like that."

Destiny looked instantly repentant. "I'm so sorry, Father. I thought you were really asleep. I should have been more careful."

"His heart rate did not even rise," Nicolae pointed out. "He should be an actor, not a priest."

Father Mulligan grinned mischievously, looking for all the world like a small boy. "I did rather well in the school plays when I was a young lad, much to my father's chagrin. He thought acting a perfect sin. I was expecting you two this evening."

"We would have come earlier but we have been looking into the strange, unnatural behavior of your parishioners. Are you certain the wine you are serving is not a bad one?" Nicolae inquired with a straight face. "All of them do attend this church."

"I hadn't thought of that," Destiny agreed, glaring accusingly at the priest.

"You two are treading quite close to blasphemy," Father Mulligan warned, attempting to look severe. His eyes were twinkling merrily, ruining his credibility as an actor.

"Well, I suppose we can rule you and your wine out, but I do have a question," Destiny said. "The night Martin took the poor box, do you recall if any glass was broken? Before he became violent."

Father Mulligan frowned. "How strange you should ask that. I spoke with Tim and he told me that he had given Martin medicine, and the glass of water dropped onto the floor as Martin handed it back. Tim said Martin just stared at the slivers of glass, shoved Tim out of his way and left their apartment. Evidently, Martin came straight here to the church."

"Has Martin ever used the little clinic, the one just down from Mary Ann's office?"

"Yes. There's a doctor who comes twice a month. He's noted for being brilliant in pain management. Martin was in a terrible accident a couple of years ago, shattered all kinds of bones and twisted his back. He had been going to the doctor for help, and it seemed to be working. But Tim said they had some kind of falling-out and Martin decided not to go back. It was too bad, because his pain was under control."

"Do you have any idea what the falling-out was over?" Destiny asked. Seeing the priest hesitate, she continued. "I wouldn't ask, but I think the doctor may be involved in all of this in some way. The more information I have, the easier it will be to solve the entire mess."

"It had to do with their business. Tim and Martin are planning a community for older citizens. They are trying to make it unique and safe and yet affordable. A great deal of money is involved. The doctor wanted to be added to the staff for a high consultant salary. Martin overheard him treating an elderly patient and thought his manner impatient and insulting. I heard several complaints about his treatment of the elderly, and when Martin asked me my opinion, I told him what some of my parishioners had said."

"So at his next session with the doctor, Martin probably told him politely they would pass on his services," Destiny mused.

"I don't want to give you the wrong impression," Father Mulligan said. "The doctor may not be very good with the elderly, but he's helped others tremendously. I know he visits poor little Blythe Madison on a regular basis. I've seen him leaving when I go to see her."

"Is Blythe an attractive woman?" Nicolae asked.

"Strikingly so," Father Mulligan answered readily.

"Just as Helena is," Destiny pointed out. "Is Harry as crazy about his wife as everyone claims he is?"

"Absolutely," Father Mulligan said. "He's devastated. Not a single day goes by that he doesn't visit her at the hospital. He's begged her to come home to him, but he says she's become even more withdrawn."

"Perhaps we should pay him a quiet visit," Nicolae suggested. He held up his hand when Father Mulligan might have protested. "Do not worry, he will not even know we were there."

"Thank you for taking care of Sam, Father," Destiny said. "I'm sorry I had to turn him over to you."

"I don't mind. Nicolae helped the social workers see things my way, so I think we have Sam's future well taken care of, including a trust fund that Nicolae set up for him. The couple who want him are wonderful people, and we're cutting through the red tape nicely."

Nicolae. It always came back to him. His thoughtfulness. His attention to detail. For some reason, the thought made Destiny blush wildly and she had to duck her head to conceal her thoughts from the priest. There was no concealing them from Nicolae.

Details are important, he agreed in his black velvet voice, implying all sorts of things. Lightning is going to strike you if you keep that up in front of a holy man. Let us go where I am much safer, then. But first we must stop by The Tavern.

Destiny murmured a goodbye to the priest, brushed back Sam's hair once more and started for the door.

"Go out the same way you came in," Father Mulligan pleaded. "Just one more time, for me."

Destiny glanced at Nicolae, who raised an eyebrow at her. His lips twitched with suppressed laughter. Together they melted into vapor, then rushed out beneath the small crack in the door while the priest laughed delightedly.

Harry had already closed The Tavern and had climbed the stairs to his apartment above the bar when they arrived. He was slumped in a chair with a framed photo in his hands, his forehead resting on the glass. He sat there unmoving, clutching the picture of his wife. The sight of him sitting so alone and unhappy wrenched at Destiny's heart.

We will fix this, Destiny. Now that we know what Blythe looks like, we can find her. I feel as if we are very close to solving this mystery. The doctor is very much involved in these attacks.

They left Harry and flew out of the city. Destiny looked down at the sparkling lights.

It's so beautiful here, Nicolae. I love this city. I love the people.

She could admit it to him now. He had given her that gift. She wasn't so afraid to allow herself to care about others. She was beginning to believe she wasn't responsible for the death of everyone she had ever loved.

Is that the hospital where Blythe is living? Destiny was already heading toward the grounds, certain of the direction, almost as if Blythe were calling to her.

"Maybe she is," Nicolae said with understanding. "She has suffered greatly. I think it best if you speak with her alone. I will be close, but unseen."

Destiny was grateful for his sensitivity. Nicolae could easily force Blythe's acceptance of him, but Destiny was reluctant to compel cooperation from someone who was most likely suffering, and Nicolae shared her view.

Destiny blew him a kiss as they walked through the halls of the hospital invisible to the human eye. She found Blythe huddled on a window seat, rocking back and forth, her tormented gaze riveted on the door. She didn't appear to notice Destiny at first; her entire concentration was focused on the door.

Destiny cleared her throat to bring the woman's attention to her. When Blythe turned her head, Destiny recognized the look in her eyes. She had seen it over and over on the faces of the abused and battered women who had fled their lives and gone to Mary Ann. There was despair and shame and hopelessness. Blythe was drugged, but there was awareness in her, a strong spark of life despite her situation.

"Who are you? How did you get in here?" Blythe asked nervously, but she was looking expectantly toward the door, not at Destiny.

"Is he coming? The doctor?" Destiny asked softly.

Blythe focused more fully on her. She nodded. "If he sees you here, you could be in danger." At the mention of the doctor, Blythe's heart rate increased dramatically.

"He hypnotized you, Blythe, didn't he?" Destiny asked softly.

"I suspect that he did." Blythe's voice was surprisingly strong for a woman everyone believed to be mentally ill. "There's no way to get away from him and know Harry is safe. He uses drugs and hypnosis." She shrugged. "Everyone thinks I'm crazy." She added the last as an afterthought.

Destiny noted that Blythe was becoming increasingly agitated. Her fists were clenching and unclenching. Destiny felt the same presence she'd discerned earlier that day. Evil. It was moving toward them, the footsteps hard on the hallway floor. Blythe whimpered and hurried to her window seat, pressing one hand hard against her mouth to keep from crying out.

Destiny slipped back into the shadows. "Get him to talk, Blythe," she said softly. "Give me something to work with." She could easily take the information from the doctor's mind, but she wanted Blythe to participate actively in freeing herself.

The lock clicked and the door burst open. Destiny was half expecting a vampire, but the man glaring suspiciously around the room was wholly human and yet as vile as any monster she had vanquished. Destiny could see through the illusion a vampire projected with his voice and his looks to the rotting malevolence beneath, but this man shocked her. He was incredibly good-looking, a tall, blond man with a shark's smile. Even looking closely, Destiny could not see past his surface good looks to the evil lying beneath.

"I heard you talking to someone." He closed the door with deliberate finality. "Or are you so far gone that you talk to yourself now?"

Blythe huddled closer to the window as if she might throw herself out, except the way was blocked by bars. Her gaze shifted to the corner of the room where Destiny had disappeared. She lifted her chin. "I won't let you touch me again."

He laughed, the sound chilling. "Of course you will. You'll do exactly as I tell you, just as you always have. You wouldn't want to kill your husband, wonderful Harry. Slice him up into little pieces while he slept in bed, now would you? I could make you do that, Blythe, and you would deserve it for cheating on me with that nothing of a man. A bartender, for God's sake. I am a genius, a man of greatness, and you turned your back on me and slept with a common nothing. You let him touch you."

Blythe lifted her chin. "You can come here every night and rape me, drug me, force yourself on me, but I will never want you. I'll always belong to Harry, never you."

Destiny could feel her stomach churning with bile, with a fierce rage as cold as ice and as hot as an out-of-control fire. She heard the humiliation in Blythe's voice, the utter despair even as she defied her tormentor. Destiny looked at the doctor and saw only a monster. Without thinking, she waved Blythe to silence, sent her to sleep so that she slumped over on the window seat, her eyes closed.

The doctor swore. "You little bitch, do you think that's going to fool me?"

Destiny came out of the shadows, her eyes flaming a fiery red. She hissed softly, drawing his attention. "You do not deserve to live."

He spun around, stepped back and quickly put up his hand. "You have no proof of anything. I was attempting a form of therapy. How dare you come into this room?"

"You hurt John Paul because Helena turned down your sick advances. You harmed Martin because he refused to give you your way in his project. You use your profession to hurt people, don't you, Doctor?"

He shrugged carelessly once he assured himself they were alone in the room. "I'd like to see you prove such an accusation. I have an impeccable reputation." He pulled a syringe from his pocket, smiling at her as he did so. "You shouldn't have stuck your nose in where it didn't belong." He walked to her, completely confident that he could subdue her.

Destiny allowed him to take her arm in his viselike grip. She smiled coolly at him while inside she smoldered with outrage at his complete lack of remorse. "I don't have to prove it, Doctor. I'm not human." For one moment she allowed him to see the rage, the fury, the red flame of retribution.

The doctor went white, his mouth opening to emit a high shriek of terror. Destiny waved her hand to stop the sound, catching it in his throat, cutting off his airway. She blinked, suddenly realizing what she was about to do.

Nicolae. I will not be like the undead. I may have their blood, but I will not join their ranks and terrorize this disgusting excuse for a man. I will not do the very thing they do. He deserves to be brought to justice and I will do so, but...

She released the doctor as Nicolae materialized, pulling the syringe out of the doctor's suddenly nerveless fingers. "I think I would like you to write out a full confession for us, Doctor. And include why and how. You must tell the world in general that you could not live with the guilt of your crimes." His voice was so soft and pleasant, Destiny backed away from him, away from the power of the compulsion.

She was shaking with the need for justice, grateful that Nicolae had intervened with a cool head, remembering they would need proof for all the victims.

It was terrifying to think how much she had wanted the doctor to see death coming. Destiny wanted him to feel everything Blythe had felt. Everything she herself had felt.

She put her arms around Blythe, whispering to her, promising her that everything would be all right.

We cannot leave her like this, Nicolae.

Do not worry, we will provide for her.

The doctor turned as if sleepwalking and left the room. Nicolae put his arm around Destiny and together, at a much more sedate pace, they followed the doctor down the hall and out of the ward. Both watched as the man sat at the desk in his office and carefully wrote out his confession. He left it on the desktop and once again was on the move, climbing the stairs to the roof, several stories up, where he simply stepped off the edge. They did not watch him hit the sidewalk below, but hurried away, stopping only to allow Nicolae to whisper to a security man and the nurse at the desk. They sought the peace of the quiet streets, easily gaining entrance into Harry's home. Destiny watched Nicolae, her heart swelling with pride as he bent to give Harry a soft command.

Harry dressed quickly and hurried down to the street, heading for the hospital, uncertain why it was so important to him, but needing desperately to spend the remainder of the night in the hospital room with his wife.

Destiny shivered, buried her face against Nicolae's neck. "I never once thought it was a man. A doctor. Someone who is supposed to be a healer. Why would anyone choose to be so evil?"

Nicolae brushed a kiss onto her hair, wanting to take away the pain of her memories of other monsters. "I cannot give you an answer, little one, but do not be sad. Blythe will learn to be happy with Harry again, and eventually all of these people will be able to live their lives in peace, thanks to your caring enough to listen to them and piece it all together."

"Thank you for thinking of sending him to her. I knew we couldn't remove her from the hospital, but I couldn't bear the thought of her being alone." She tangled her fingers in his hair and nuzzled his neck, aching to hold him to her and make love to him. He always contrived to make sense out of a world that was never quite sane.

How did I ever manage without you?

He kissed her. Hard. Possessively.

Come with me. We have done what we could for our friends. I wish to do something for you. Let me take you to that movie.

It was the last thing she expected, and it made her laugh. "You're crazy, you know that?"

She couldn't stop smiling. Joy seemed to start in her soul and spread through her body until her lips curved in complete happiness. She and Nicolae shifted shape once again, materializing in their true forms on the sidewalk together in front of the movie theater. Nicolae immediately drew her into his arms, pulling her tightly against the hard strength of his body. His long, lean fingers tunneled deep into the thick mass of her hair. "I have waited for hours to get you alone."

"Really?" Pleasure blossomed through her body. "I wanted to be alone with you too," she confided. No matter what he said about the darkness inside male Carpathians, Nicolae would always be her light.

A cool breeze slid over her body, bringing the inevitable mist with it. Laughing, happy, they slipped into the dark of the theater. Only a few couples were scattered around the large room. Nicolae found the darkest corner, up in the balcony where they were all alone. It wasn't a vampire movie but an action movie. Destiny had seen it advertised, a popular video game made into a movie, and she particularly loved the actress. The balcony seats were wide and comfortable, and she settled into one with a little sigh.

"Did you really summon the healer? Gregori?"

"Do not sound so worried," he answered, sliding his arm along the back of her seat to rest on her shoulders. "He has a lifemate, and it would be impossible for him to be other than good."

Destiny shifted, leaning close to him. "What's he like?"

He waited to answer, framing her face between his hands, finding her mouth with his. Fire poured into her. Into him. His tongue danced and dueled with hers. He had already waited too long to have her. His body was hard and aching. His mouth said it all to her, taking command, a hard possession, a declaration of his intentions.

He lifted his head and stared down into her enormous eyes and smiled. His voice was very calm when he answered her. "Gregori comes from a revered lineage. His ancestors have always guarded the Prince of our people, and most of them had a tremendous ability to heal. All of us can do so when called upon, of course, but the talent runs strongest in his line. I do not know him, but I knew his father, a man of loyalty and integrity who always stood by our people."

She was beginning to know Nicolae well. "A warrior. A hunter," she interpreted. "Exactly."

A man much like Nicolae, one he would respect.

Destiny nodded. "All right, then. I'll stick around and see what he's like."

The action on the screen was fast-paced and intense as sinister men stalked toward the heroine's mansion. Nicolae glanced at the screen, then looked around the theater. "So this is what it is like to watch a movie from the balcony. I must confess I was never much of a movie patron." His thumb slid along the neckline of her blouse, slipped inside to caress bare skin.

A shiver of pure awareness went down her spine. "Movies are wonderful. I really admire the imaginations of the people putting together such wonderful worlds." She glanced at him. He wasn't looking at the screen but at her, his dark eyes smoky with desire, with raw sexual hunger. His hands went to the front of her blouse and her heart began to pound. "Nicolae, this really is a good movie."

"Is it?" he murmured, clearly distracted.

She was all too aware of his fingers slipping the tiny buttons open down the front of her blouse. His knuckles brushed her bare skin as the material gaped open. She tried to be shocked, but excitement set in. "Is this what you do on your movie dates?" She found it hotly erotic to be sitting in a movie theater in the dark with her blouse open and her breasts aching and swollen with need. She watched, fascinated, as his long fingers stroked her soft, creamy skin.

"Did you think I came to watch the movie?" He sounded amused.

"Well... yes." The breath slammed out of her lungs as his fingers began to shape her breast, his thumb lovingly brushing the nipple into a taut peak of desire.

"I wanted to watch you watch the movie. I love to watch you enjoy things. Do you object to wearing a skirt?"

"A skirt?" she echoed faintly.

"Instead of pants. A short skirt. You do not have to wear anything under it." His voice purred as his fingers stroked.

His request seemed sinfully wicked, wonderfully sexy, and as she complied in the easy way of their people, donning a short thigh-length skirt, she felt the flush of heat moving through her body. "So I'm to sit here and watch the movie while you watch me?"

"Excellent idea," he agreed. One fingernail lengthened to slit through the thin lace of her bra, freeing her full breasts from the wispy confines. "I just want you to enjoy yourself." Nicolae cupped the soft weight of one breast in his palm. The cool air teased her heated skin, tightened her nipples even more.

On the screen, the heroine was running through her large mansion as intruders finally broke in, determined to steal an important icon left to her by her father. Nicolae bent his dark head to Destiny's enticing offering. His mouth found her vulnerable throat as her head fell back. His tongue swirled, tasting her skin, the temptation of her pulse.

You move me. Every time I look at you, touch you, I know I am alive. If the strict truth were told, his insides went into total meltdown the moment he touched her body. Kissing her sent him into a heady spin. Fire raced through his veins and burned in his belly, but most of all, even greater than his tremendous physical response to her, was the intensity of his love. It shook him as nothing else ever had.

Her skin was amazingly soft. He wanted to touch every inch of her. Take his time and simply feel. Revel in his ability to do so. The contrast between a man's body and a woman's fascinated him. Her curves were lush and inviting; he wanted to sink deep into them and spend long hours enjoying every moment.

He feathered kisses down her throat, his mouth traveling to the tip of her inviting breast. The low sounds she made in her throat only served to heighten his pleasure. He wanted her needing him with the same mindless urgency he was feeling. He wanted that cool look gone from her face, her eyes cloudy with desire for him. He wanted her so distracted, she would never be able to look at a movie again without remembering this night and growing hot at the memory.

Teeth nipped and scraped gently, teasingly; his tongue lapped gently. He was pleased when her arms cradled his head, holding him to her breast. The music from the soundtrack pounded in his body, a hard, driving beat that matched the rhythm of his mouth as he took possession of her breast. She arched into him, her hips writhing in the seat, unable to stay still under the wild assault on her senses.

Destiny tangled her fist in his hair. "Wild man, let's go home. You've gone crazy on me." But she held him to her, not wanting him to stop.

He feasted on her body, teasing her breasts, first one, then the other, delighting in his ability to do so. She was his, sharing her body, allowing him free rein as he carefully explored each abundant offering. He heard the music throbbing through the theater, but time and space dropped away so he was unaware of anything but her yielding flesh.

Nicolae found the hemline of her short skirt and traced it along the top of her thighs. His hand slid between her legs and urged them apart to give him access to the treasure he knew was his. Moist heat radiated a welcome to him. Her satisfaction deepened his own desire. Destiny responded like a flower opening to him.

He stroked her thighs, found her tight curls and caressed the moist folds the small triangle guarded. His palm cupped her softness, pushed against her, was rewarded when she pushed back, seeking relief.

"I want to go home," she whispered again.

"Yes, we need to be home," he agreed, pushing his finger deep just to feel her reaction. She shivered with excitement and need. Her hips writhed on the seat.

All at once the confines of the movie theater were too restrictive. She needed to be out in the open where she could breathe. Where she could cry out with joy. Where she could have complete privacy with Nicolae. "Take me home," she said, her arms circling his neck.

Nicolae found her mouth again, sweeping her into his world of fire and pleasure, his fingers bringing her to a fever pitch. He lifted her into his arms and took her from the world of humans, back into the night. Their night. Their world.

Destiny felt tears burning behind her eyes. The night was cool on her skin. Fog slid along the ground and a soft mist instantly enveloped them. The shadows were places of beauty, not evil. She reached toward the night, embracing it. Embracing her life with Nicolae. Her mouth found his as they stood together. She belonged. Finally. Irrevocably. She belonged with this man.

She poured everything she felt into her kiss. Her needs. Her dreams. Her acceptance of him. Most of all, her complete trust in him. She forgot the scandalously short skirt she was wearing, wrapping one leg around him, pressing her body against his.

Nicolae found the bare curve of her bottom and held her tightly to him. Destiny was ravenous, matching him kiss for kiss, flame for flame. He lifted his head to the cooling mist and laughed for the sheer joy of being able to hold her in his arms. He took them to the skies, high over the city, his arms wrapped around her as they moved through the clouds.

Clothes were too much of a burden, and both shed them at nearly the exact moment. With their mouths fused together and Destiny's hands clasped at the back of his neck, she lifted her legs to wrap them firmly around his waist. The head of his erection was large, pressing tightly against her opening, seeking entrance. She knew she should wait, they were already too wild, but the temptation was far too great. She was pulsing with need, desperate for relief from the too tight, too hot feeling. Every nerve in her body cried out for his possession. Every muscle clenched with desperate urgency.

Nicolae gasped as she lowered herself onto him, right there in the air, taking him deep into her body. Her tight sheath was fiery hot, in complete contrast to the cool air surrounding them. He spun them, a dizzying drop as they flashed across the sky toward their home, making her cling tighter, her soft breasts pressed tightly against his chest.

She had intended to be perfectly still as he carried her through the sky, but the sensation of him filling her with his hard thickness was too much. The movement of flying simply added to the delicious sensations. She began to move, a slow, sexy ride, moving up and down, her hips lifting away from him, then slowly settling over his heavy erection once again.

Every muscle in his body was taut and strained. He shuddered each time she lowered her body around his, each time her sheath gripped him and stroked him with hot velvet. The friction sent flames dancing over his skin in spite of the cooling mist. It was sensuous and alluring, riding through the sky with her impaled on his hard body. Her dark cloud of hair spilled around them like a silken cape, teasing his heightened senses even more. Every movement sent her lush breasts rubbing against his chest. He could only hold her tightly, concentrate on keeping them aloft as her muscles clenched around him and she rode up and down with a leisurely rhythm.

Nicolae was nearly out of his mind by the time he took her through the levels of the mountain toward their hidden chamber. He had no time for flames or flowers; he could only think of burying himself deeper and deeper in her body. Faster and harder, he thrust, his hips surging into her. He barely had their feet on the ground before he was taking control, his hands moving over her, everywhere, shaping and exploring and arousing her further in a frenzy of need. He backed her against the nearest boulder, only remembering at the last moment to cushion her back as he thrust deep.

Destiny rained kisses on him, held him, accepted him, though she was every bit as frenzied as he was. But there it was again. Unexpected. Insidious. A snake in her garden, robbing her of paradise. This time she stayed merged with Nicolae, allowed him to see the darker shadow images slipping into her head, desperately wanting to trust him to know what to do.

Nicolae kissed her. He went from taking her body wildly to kissing her tenderly, his hands so gentle they felt like the brush of gossamer wings over her bare skin. His kiss was loving, warm, coaxing rather than taking. All the time, his body moved gently in hers. "You like to be out in the open."

"I know." She wanted to apologize, but it seemed silly when he was only making an observation, not condemning her.

He kissed her again, slowly and thoroughly, hungrily. "We are in the open. We are wherever we want to be."

Destiny closed her eyes and took the picture of the stars from his mind. Took the scent of the clean mist and held it to her while he filled her with the beauty of his hands and mouth. His body worshiped hers until her body was coming apart, soaring free with Nicolae across the sky she loved so much.

She held him to her, listening to their hearts beating together. Very slowly she opened her eyes to find them beneath the mountain in the chamber of pools. "I wanted to be wild and out of control. I'm sorry you had to be so careful with me."

Nicolae didn't point out that his body was still quite willing to take hers again. They had a few more hours before they had to seek the solace of the earth and he intended to utilize every minute together. "I do not mind being careful." His teeth bit at her neck teasingly. "I do not mind anything we do. Some day we will be wild and out of control. We have eternity together. We do not need to have everything at once." His teeth scraped along her shoulder, nibbled her breast. "One day I will have silken scarves and you will trust me enough to let me bind your hands and have my way with you and there will be no fear of intimacy between us."

"You think I'll be able to do that?" She was skeptical.

Nicolae tugged at her hand so that she followed him into the water. He turned her away from him, placing her hands on the very boulder she had forced him to hang on to. "Yes, I know you will. You will trust me completely. I intend to give you so much pleasure every time I touch you that you will only think in terms of pleasure when I am near you." His hand on her back positioned her upper body forward, so that her smooth bottom was presented to him. "Lovemaking is never about control and power. No matter what we do, it's about showing each other with our bodies what is nearly impossible to express any other way. There should never be shame, only pleasure, and I intend to give you much pleasure."

Nicolae ran his hands over her curves. "You are so beautiful, Destiny." His hands moved up her thighs, stroked caresses over her moist entrance.

"This makes me feel very vulnerable," she admitted.

He stepped close to her, reached around her to cup the fullness of her breasts in his palms. Deliberately he rubbed against her, allowing her to feel how thick and hard he was. How much his body wanted her body. "All you have to do is tell me no. That is all. We stop the moment you do not like anything we do." He pushed his finger into her, testing her readiness.

If her mind was fearful, her body wasn't. She was hot and slick, even more welcoming than before. He caught her hips and thrust deep, burying himself all the way. Her body clenched around him, then slowly opened in welcome. "Each position is just a new sensation, not a threat, Destiny," he said, waiting a heartbeat to allow her body to adjust fully to the invasion of his.

He thrust hard. Waited another heartbeat. Destiny pushed back against him, seeking more. Her body was already hot, hotter than she had thought possible. The feeling of intense vulnerability was gone, leaving her able to participate fully. She wanted him to thrust harder, to create the firestorm all over again. Silken scarves, he had said, and her body had grown hot at the thought. She doubted she would ever trust him to that extent, but as his body took hers, she realized she was strong enough to rip through silken bonds. It was merely an image of a restraint, not the real thing.

Nicolae wanted her pleasure above his own. Destiny relaxed completely and began to move, thrusting backward into him as he surged forward, her muscles tightening and releasing, gripping and teasing. Each time his hips plunged forward, her breasts moved in the same rhythm and white-hot fire raced through her blood. She became aware of everything, even the sensation of the water lapping at her skin like tongues. His body slapped against hers, the thick length of him pistoning faster and harder until the friction threatened to set them on fire.

She didn't want him to stop and she didn't need him to be gentle. His large hands were biting into her hips, but it felt wonderful, not threatening. His body was wild, taking possession of her, obviously staking a claim, but she welcomed him, welcomed this abandoned form of lovemaking.

She went over the edge fast and unexpectedly. Destiny cried out loudly in the confines of the chamber. Her body refused to go alone, gripping and milking the seed from him so that he thrust helplessly, spilling the essence of life deep inside her.

Nicolae rested his head on her smooth back, attempting to calm his breathing.

Do you see, little one, not everything has to be perfect to be pleasurable. If there are times we can only hold one another, it will be all right. We will enjoy those times together. We will have many perfections and many near misses, and they will all be pleasurable. That is true intimacy. And that is life.

A slow smile hovered on her lips, even though her legs were shaky and it was only sheer willpower that held her up. Nicolae reluctantly allowed his body to slide away from hers, his hands drawing her with him to the deeper center of the pool so that the water bubbled and fizzed over her breasts.

Nicolae didn't let her go; rather, he pulled her close to him, his mouth taking hers, plundering and sweet at the same time. His tongue probed and danced until she was breathless. The water fizzed in her most secret places, and then two fingers joined the sparkling water, pushing her up toward the skies again, teasing and dancing in time to his tongue while tiny bubbles burst against her nipples.

His mouth left hers to travel to her neck, teeth nipping sharply, his tongue swirling to ease the bite. Over the creamy swell of her breast, he bit deep, without preamble, so that the pleasure-pain of it seared them both. Her small muscles clenched around his fingers and he pushed deep, felt her body rock with an explosive orgasm. He fed there while she fragmented, while her feminine muscles convulsed again and again. His tongue swept the tiny pinpricks, sealing them, but leaving his mark on her so he could see the evidence of his possession. His mouth wandered lower to the tips of her breasts, catching the fizzing water to hold the bursting bubbles around her tender flesh. He was rewarded again as she climaxed, calling his name.

Her arms circled his neck and she kissed his eyes, the comer of his mouth. His body clenched in anticipation. She feathered kisses down his jaw, over his throat; her hands began to wander, slipping below the water line. Fingers danced, stroked; her palm became a tight sheath. Her tongue lapped the pulse in his throat. His heart leapt as she bit into his flesh, as her hands followed the guidance of his mind. It was his turn to share the searing ecstasy, his turn for her ministrations.

Sounds filled the cave over the next couple of hours. Soft murmurs, cries of delight, splashing water. True intimacy. Unconditional love.