Total pages in book: 126
Estimated words: 124077 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 620(@200wpm)___ 496(@250wpm)___ 414(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 124077 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 620(@200wpm)___ 496(@250wpm)___ 414(@300wpm)
A fierce, protective tenderness swelled inside him like a physical ache—a pressure behind his ribs that was both painful and exquisite. This was his mate, trusting him, seeking safety in his strength. The rightness of it was a truth so profound it filled him with longing.
He wanted to tell her. The words burned in his throat.
You are my fated mate. My other half. I have loved you since I first saw you, and I will love you until the sun no longer shines and the stars grow cold.
He wanted to whisper it into her hair, to seal the truth against her skin with a thousand kisses.
But again he held the words back—a silent sacrifice on the altar of her peace. She had been frightened tonight—not by a monster, but by a consequence of the bond she did not yet understand. The pleasure blooms never would have come for her if they hadn’t sensed the mate pheromones both he and Terra had both been putting out.
To speak of it now, though, would be another kind of invasion. He couldn’t risk it. He couldn’t bear to see the fragile trust she had in him replaced by fear.
So he simply held her and breathed in the scent of her—clean skin, a hint of floral, and underneath it all, the unique, intoxicating essence that was Terra.
He pressed his lips, very gently, to the crown of her damp hair.
I will wait for you, lovely one, he thought. Wait for as long as it takes—until you feel comfortable with me. Until you are ready to learn we belong together for all time.
It was a silent vow…a promise he swore not to break. At least she was sleeping now, so he didn’t have to fear the words he so longed to say slipping out.
But then, to his surprise, Terra stirred in his arms and then lifted her mouth to his. The next time he tried to kiss her head, their lips met instead.
Taurex was so surprised he wasn't sure what to do at first. Had she kissed him on purpose? Surely not.
But Terra didn’t pull away. Instead, she pressed closer to him and kissed him again. Then she pulled back and looked up at him.
“Sorry,” she whispered. “I…I don’t know what came over me. You just smell so good it makes me want to be near you.”
Taurex felt a swirl of conflicting emotions. Was she reacting to his Mating Scent against her will? Or was she feeling the tug of the fated mate bond which was pulling the two of them together?
He stroked her hair.
“I like being close to you, too, lovely one,” he murmured. “But you’re upset right now–we should probably be careful.”
She pulled further away, looking hurt.
“Do you think I’m trying to seduce you? Because of your money? Or–”
“No, no!” Taurex said quickly. “No, I just don’t want you to do anything you might regret later when we have both calmed down.”
“All right…I guess you’re right. Just hold me then.”
She snuggled up to him again and he pulled her close, loving the feel of her in his arms.
Terra was still for a long time—so long that Taurex had started to drift off. But then she seemed to get restless again. She twisted in his arms and made a little sound of pure frustration. At last, she spoke.
“Taurex? I feel…strange.”
“Strange how?” he asked.
“Kind of…I don’t know…sensitive.”
“Sensitive where?” He looked down at her and saw that her lovely face was troubled in the dim light from the window.
She squirmed some more as though she didn’t want to tell him. She was nibbling her lower lip—a sure sign she was hesitating for some reason.
“Terra, I can’t help you unless you tell me what’s the matter,” he said, putting just a hint of sternness in his voice.
That seemed to do the trick because she finally answered.
“I feel sensitive everywhere…everywhere those damn pleasure blooms touched me.”
“You do?” Taurex frowned. He was beginning to get a bad feeling about this. Could Terra be one of the human women who had a reaction to pleasure bloom secretions? He hadn’t thought it would be a problem, or he never would have let her get in the pool in the first place.
“I do,” she confirmed, twisting against him again. “And I’m starting to get so uncomfortable!”
Taurex frowned. There was only one way to find out for sure if she was having a reaction—he just hoped she wouldn’t take it the wrong way.
“Terra,” he murmured. “Would you mind taking off your towel so I can see you?”
“So you can see me?” she repeated, frowning. “Why?”
“Because I think you may be having some kind of reaction to the secretions of the pleasure blooms,” Taurex explained patiently. “I need to see the areas where they touched you.”
She hesitated, nibbling her lower lip.
“What is it?” he asked softly. “Are you afraid?”