Adoration, she murmured and stroked her tongue lower.

His c**k jerked, as she slipped off of that intimate part of him to straddle his thighs. Her br**sts pushed into his groin. He could feel the soft mounds and her erect ni**les pressing into his center so that his heavy erection nestled in the heat between them.

I have adored you almost from the moment we met. You came into my life and there has been no other to fill those dark empty places. Only you, she whispered into his mind.

Her tongue continued to administer to his burns, following the chains lower and lower with those soft lapping velvet strokes until his heart nearly stopped beating in anticipation.

I call to my brother silver, let go,

Free yourself from this blessed soul.

Bring forth with you the damage to skin and bone,

My brother, give me aid, I cannot heal him alone.

Desire and love twined together until there was no separating the two. She used her devotion for Dimitri as well as her growing hunger for his body to chain the silver to her, to draw out the tiny particles, calling them to her, the worst of the burns adhering to the metal.

Her mouth moved lower, and a groan escaped him as her tongue lapped at the chain links across his shaft. Her tongue bathed him with soothing heat, her lips brushing kisses over him in between that soft stroking.

His lungs burned for air, but she didn’t stop, moving even lower, to the chain marks around his hips and thighs. She was killing him with her healing, a slow, deliberate assault on his senses.

He knew she wanted to heal his scars, to ease that tightness in his body that refused to go away, but she could explore, she could taste him, get to know his body intimately, claim every square inch of him for her own, getting lost in the sensations rising between them—and not feel threatened. She was in her element healing him. She was in control.

Dimitri knew she was making her way to him the only way she knew how, and for him, her determination was not only beautiful, but sexy beyond description. She moved over him with care, every touch loving. He felt her love intertwining with her power to lift the rigid tight scars and draw out the tiny particles of silver left behind in skin and bone.

Her mouth moved over him in a kind of worship that left him mad with desire, and trembling with such a terrible love for her he felt the burn of tears behind his eyes.

Come to me, silver, I offer my skin,

Bring all the scars away from him.

Join with me, brother, drive out his pain,

So that only my warrior, my beloved, remains.

To his utter shock, the chains around him loosened noticeably. He hadn’t realized he’d pushed pain to the back of his mind, accepting that it would be there for all eternity. He should have known she would find it there when she merged with him. It was impossible to hide anything from her. The pain eased and then slowly disappeared, leaving him lying beneath her, free of all silver, the chains only faint memories in his body.

Skyler sat up slowly, and at once he could see the burns covering her skin like a coat of armor. His heart jerked, his hands coming up to grip her arms. “What have you done?”

She shrugged, and the coat shimmied to the floor and disintegrated. “I’ve loved you the best way I know how.” She smiled at him and brushed her hand over his flat stomach.

He rolled her over. “Then it’s my turn, isn’t it?”

Skyler lay sprawled beneath him, but he was very careful not to pin her down, or make her feel trapped. He caged her in with his arms, but made certain she had freedom of movement. She didn’t flinch, but looked up at him, the love in her eyes wreaking havoc with his heart.

“I’m expecting great things, my love,” she whispered softly, tracing his lips with her fingertip.

A slow smile curved his mouth. Amusement crept into his glacier-blue eyes. “I’ll do my best not to disappoint.”

He bent his head to fasten his mouth to hers. Tasting her. Savoring her. Loving her. She was a miracle of heat, of fire, pouring into him, cleansing him until he felt brand-new. He tasted her passion and knew he was addicted for life.

He kissed his way from her mouth to her chin, and then down her throat. He stroked one finger over her breast and felt her immediate response, a shiver of pleasure. Her hips moved subtly, a calling, a need.

He cupped her breast, his thumb sliding over her nipple, brushing gently at first, and then tugging and rolling, all the while watching her reaction. She shivered again, not pulling away, but rather pushing into his hand. Her br**sts were definitely sensitive. Each touch sent a small rush of liquid fire dampening between her legs.

“You realize you have a fixation,” she teased, her voice husky and a little ragged.

“Obsession,” he corrected and lowered his mouth.

While he suckled, he flattened his tongue, stroking and teasing, even using the edge of his teeth. His fingers tugged and rolled the nipple of her other breast. He was very careful not to let his own desire get out of hand. From the moment he first saw her—touched her—inhaled her—he was lost and he knew it.

He wanted her with him every step of the way, her passion growing until it matched his—until she got to that euphoria of pure feeling and let herself go completely. Skyler needed to be comfortable with him and trust him. No matter how aroused she was, there would be moments she would panic, and she had to know he was capable of hearing, even perceiving those moments before she did and stopping immediately if necessary.

He lifted his head from the sweet temptation of her curves and kissed her again, long and slow. Their world was about love and he wanted to wrap her in it. He had enough love for her to hold her for eternity and he wanted her to feel that always.

He lowered his head again to the sweet curve of her br**sts, licking over the tempting pulse just along the swell that led to the valley, using the edge of his teeth, letting her feel the sensation. Her heart accelerated. Her hips moved again, urgency beginning to grow in her. He bit deep. She gasped. Arched. The bite of pain burst through her. Merged as he was with her, he felt that erotic bite spread like a firestorm through her body.

Her arms came up to circle his head, fingers fisting in his hair. She cried out as he began to draw her life’s blood from her body, merging them further, his hands once more at her br**sts. She was his, this beautiful body, soft and warm and so responsive. Once she made up her mind, she gave of herself so freely, putting herself in his hands, trusting him. Her trust humbled him.

He lifted his head, watching the twin ruby beads began to flow over the slope of her breast. He chased them, drew them into his mouth and then closed those small wounds. He’d left his mark on her, and he found it pleased him.