"You can keep your heart darlin'; you're gonna need it. I'm asking for another part of your body." She reached down and began to stroke him over his boxers. He threw his head back, hissing.

"The things you do to me, woman."

"Buckle up, cowboy, this ride is about to get rough."

He sat up, flexing every single one of his ab muscles. He held himself at the perfect angle to kiss her gently. "As you desire."

"Yes, please." She ground her body over his.

"If you wish to keep those clothes in one piece, I suggest you remove them," he whispered lowly. "But know this, the fact that you have no replacements is the only reason they are still intact. I truly do not think I could help but murder any man who saw you without underthings, and that sort of behavior is frowned upon by the ruling classes."

Eva laughed and jumped off her mate. She shimmied out of her clothes, throwing them haphazardly around the room before pouncing on him again. He had matched her speed, and when she returned to the bed, he was as naked as she was. When their bare skin made contact, they both groaned; it felt like heaven being this close to him. He rolled them until he was kneeling between her legs.

"It has been a long time since I have been with anyone." He stared down at her body.

She raised an eyebrow, and he smirked. "Not like that. Sex sometimes is just sex. What I am referring to is intimacy."

"It's never easy to let someone get close. That's why the mating heat is so important. Over the years, I've heard different descriptions of what mating heat was like, but what I feel for you pales in comparison." She threaded her fingers behind her head.

He leaned down and started placing small kisses on the inside of her thighs. "I think I know what you mean. If it were just attraction, then sex would be the answer, but it isn't. I have shared things with you in the short time I have known you that I have never told another living soul." Every small touch sent electric jolts to her clit, building her passion, higher and higher.

She nodded. "Me too. It's like Fate has crammed decades of being the best of friends into moments. The level of comfort means more to me than sex."

She nearly groaned in frustration when he worked his way past her mound and started making his way up her belly. Though she was enjoying the feel of his lips, so soft and gentle on her body, her core was begging for relief. His nose nuzzled between her breasts, and he inhaled as if memorizing her scent.

She wrapped her legs around his body as he nibbled at her collarbone. It wasn't until he ran a tongue up her neck to tease her ear that she realized he hadn't touched her intimately, and yet she was so primed, it was as if he'd spent hours between her legs. She never before had a man take his time with her. The way he touched her, it was as if he was worshiping her body.

"Could you..." She paused. She didn't want to sound needy.

He pulled back and looked her in the eye. "Never hesitate in asking for something from me. Or, for that matter telling me if I do something you do not like. It may take me a century or two, but I do plan on memorizing every inch of your body."

"Would you kiss me?" she blurted out.

His eyes widened. "Gods forgive me. Here I am enjoying your body after I said I would take my time and do things right, and you have to ask for a kiss. I am a cad for indulging in my own desires."

Eva traced her fingers across his brow and down his jaw. "I want to know how you taste."

"Then by all means, feast." He lowered his head and took complete possession of her lips. This was what had been missing! She drew his tongue into her mouth as her hips bucked against his body. He dueled with her tongue, drawing out her pleasure. When her tongue nicked his lowered fang, she felt his deep growl along her chest.

He pulled back, panting hard. "Will you allow me to give us both what we need? Will you tie your breath, your heart, mind, and soul to mine? Will you place yourself into my keeping for all eternity?"

"Yes! Gods anything! Please!" Eva was so strung out from his barrage of teasing, she would have agreed to anything.

"Thank you," he whispered before he buried his fangs deep into her neck. For a split second, she had to fight her tiger to prevent her from flinging him off of her, but then the pleasure came. Wave after wave of pleasure. Tingling explosions erupted from her core, ripping scream after scream from her throat.

Just when she thought she could take no more, he plunged his body deep into hers. This! This is what she'd been craving from the second she had scented him. She tightened her legs around him and lifted her hips to meet him thrust for thrust.

As he fed and the pleasure began to build again, she felt a warmth begin to spread at the center of her chest. The very essence of who she was began to lift toward her mate. When her soul merged with his completely, she knew she would never be alone again. Their intertwined souls flared and started to pull apart and, for a brief moment, she felt panicked; she didn't want to leave the haven his body and soul provided. But as her own soul tucked back into her chest, she felt a piece of him pulsating happily along with it.

The pounding of his body into hers, the feeling of his fangs deep in her neck, and the warmth of his soul next to hers proved to be too much. This time when she screamed, he pulled back and roared his release along with her.

She felt her eyelids begin to flutter as she tried to stay awake. His rapid puffs of breath on her shoulder assured her that he was just as wiped as she was. Gently, he withdrew from her body and lay beside her.