Inferno's Kiss (48 page)

Cleopatra didn’t say anything, but her shield slipped slightly at his words. For a fleeting instant he caught a glimpse of her conflicted feelings. She quickly recovered to study him with an inscrutable gaze. He took a step toward her, and she immediately retreated. Fear gutted him. The gulf between them seemed to widen by the second, and he didn’t know how to reach her.

“Damnit, say something,” he demanded.

“Cornelia’s death isn’t any more your fault than it is mine. It wasn’t my lack of abilities that made Ignacio betray the Order or kill Cornelia. Both of them chose their paths.” She spiked one hand through her hair to sweep the black tresses off her face. “It was her time, and there wasn’t anything you or I could have done to save her.”

Dante closed his eyes for a moment as he tried to accept her rationale. Was it possible he was taking too much responsibility for what had happened? The memory of Firmani’s sword against Cleopatra’s neck created a knot in his throat. Up until that moment, he’d never hesitated before in battle. Not once.

But beyond that brief, indecisive instant, his response to the situation would have been the same no matter who Firmani had been holding hostage. He would never have sacrificed one of his team. That it had been Cleopatra in danger had destroyed his normal calm, but he would have made the same judgment call if it had been anyone else, and Cornelia would still be dead. The guilt he’d been carrying with him for days eased to a more bearable weight. His gaze focused on Cleopatra again, but she quickly glanced away.

“Is it true what Ignacio said?” Despite the curiosity in her voice, he recognized her question for the diversion tactic it was. “Is Lysander really your brother?”

“Half brother,” he said with a nod. It was still a strange sensation to know he had family, and he could tell Lysander felt the same way. “We spent some time together yesterday talking.”

“Lysander was the brother I never had growing up. He looked out for me.”

“He still does.” Dante’s jaw tightened as he remembered Lysander grilling him about Cleopatra.

“
Christus
, he put you under the microscope, didn’t he?”

“He tried.” He allowed his mouth to curl in a slight smile. Lysander hadn’t been happy when Dante had refused to answer any questions about Cleopatra. His half brother had finally let the matter go, but not without another warning.

“I can just imagine how
that
went,” she muttered. “Lysander can be pretty intimidating when he wants.”

“I managed to hold my own,” he said in a wry tone. She flushed as if realizing her response had been less than complimentary.

“Sorry.”

She bit down on her lip, and he knew her discomfort wasn’t just because she’d inadvertently bruised his ego. Rigid with tension, she looked ready to bolt from the room the second she thought of an excuse to do so. If he didn’t get to the heart of the matter soon, it would be harder than ever to find a way to settle things between them.

“We still have unfinished business between us.” Dante narrowed his eyes at her then looked pointedly down at the carpet before lifting his gaze back to Cleopatra’s face. She jumped slightly before she went still again.

“Do we?” she said in a careless tone that was a poor attempt to hide how nervous she was.

“Yes. We do.” He cocked his head to the side to study her. Even though she’d shut herself off to him, it wasn’t possible for her to keep all her emotions from seeping through the shield she’d put up. The anxiety flowing off her was almost tangible in the way it filled the space between them.

“I want to know where we go from here.”

“
We
aren’t going anywhere,” she said in a terse manner.

“So you’re willing to forget everything that happened.” He noted how her violet gaze was turbulent with emotion.

“The
only
thing that happened was some great sex,” she snapped, the tension in her ratcheting up another notch.

Relief and satisfaction swept through him at the words
great sex
. At least he hadn’t completely embarrassed himself when it came to his initiation into the pleasures of lovemaking. More importantly, her entire demeanor convinced him that what they’d shared had shaken her deeply. For the first time since they’d met, her confidence was missing.

“Actually, I thought it was incredible, which is why we should do it again.” He bit back a smile as her mouth fell open in shock. She recovered quickly with a vehement shake of her head.

“No. Not happening.” Short and to the point, as always.

“So, I was nothing but a challenge to you?” His heart clenched at the sudden possibility he might be wrong about her.

“
No
,” she exclaimed before bemusement clouded her face. “At first you were, but when you explained about . . .
it wasn’t like that
, and you know it.”

His fear subsided as he sensed the battle she waged inside her. The vulnerability she was struggling to hide made him love her even more.

“Then tell me what it
was
like.” He reached out with his thoughts and traced an invisible trail along the inside of her bare arm. Cleopatra gasped, and this time he allowed himself a small smile of triumph.

“
Stop that
,” she exclaimed.

“Stop what?”

He concentrated on the small indentation at the bottom of her throat, envisioning his mouth nibbling her there. The sharp breath she drew in signaled she was far from immune to him.

“Stop touching me,” she snapped.

“I’m not touching you.”

A small smile tipped one corner of his mouth upward. His invisible touch ran lightly across one breast straight to her nipple. Her body responded to the unseen caress despite her efforts not to show any reaction.

“I’m warning you, Dante Condellaire,” she bit out as she fought the rising tide of desire surging its way through her body.

“You’re fighting a losing battle, Cleopatra.” Warmth enveloped her as his invisible touch skimmed across her skin and the top button of her shirt popped open. “I want you, and I know you want me, too.”

The speed with which he moved startled her. One moment he was eyeing her like a tiger contemplating his next meal, and the next she was wrapped in his arms. The heat of him pressed its way through her clothes and into every pore in her body. A shudder wracked her as she saw the determination in his dark blue eyes just before he lowered his head and captured her mouth with his.

It was a hard kiss filled with passion and hunger. She recognized the same craving in herself.
Christus
, she should be trying to fight her way out of his arms. If she allowed this to continue, the situation was going to explode in her face. But her traitorous body refused to listen to what her brain was telling her, and she melted into him.

The heat inside her became a fire that streaked through her blood until it pushed its way into every fiber of her being. Reason abandoned her. Replacing it was a need so strong she was blind to anything except the hunger for his touch. Arms wrapped around his neck, she bit gently at his lower lip until he gave her access to his mouth.

Her tongue danced and swirled around his, intensifying the need that was pooling in a liquid warmth between her thighs. Strong hands gripped her hips and tugged her forward until his cock was nestled against her. A low moan rolled out of him as she shifted her body over his erection in a silent invitation.

He answered by cradling her bottom in his hands and lifting her upward. She immediately wrapped her legs around his waist as he carried her toward her bedroom. Caught up in a feverish passion, she hungrily laced the side of his neck with kisses and small nips at his skin with her teeth, while his warm, spicy scent flooded her nostrils.

She inhaled the delicious smell of him, breathing him in until he was a part of her. The mattress pressed into her thighs as he set her down on the bed then stepped back to pull his navy blue T-shirt up over his head.

Hard and muscular, he made her heart stop beating for a fraction of a second before it resumed at a faster pace. He was even more beautiful than she remembered. She reached to undo his jeans, but he caught her hands and carried them to his mouth. The touch seared her fingertips.

“Not yet,
carissima
.” His unseen hands quickly undid her shirt and pushed it aside to reveal the dark red lace of her bra.

Pure lust flashed in his deep blue eyes as he stared down at her.
Deus
, if he continued to look at her like that, she was going to have an orgasm before he’d even thrust into her. Something primitive darkened his face, and she was certain he’d read her thoughts.

With an incoherent, guttural sound, he pushed her backward onto the bed to grab her jeans and pull them off her. His actions made her gasp in surprise, but it was the passionate hunger reflected on his face that caused her heart to pound wildly in her chest.

An unseen hand curled around her ankle then slowly slid upward over her leg. Tantalizing and exquisite in its unhurried pace, his invisible caress teased a soft cry from her as it glided over the silk of her panties. She’d never wanted a man’s mouth on her so badly before. Hips arching upward, she pushed her panties downward until they tangled at her ankles. The image of him kissing her intimately filled her head, and a soft growl escaped him as his hands brushed across her belly.

“Is that what you want,
dolce cuore
? My mouth on you?”
The unspoken question was a sinful pleasure that aroused her even more than if he’d uttered the words.

“Sweet Vesta, yes.”

“Then show me what to do,
carissima
. Show me how to please you.”

Her eyes closed as she visualized his mouth on her sex, his tongue stroking and swirling around the pulsating flesh between her slick folds. A mere second later, his mouth was doing exactly what she’d envisioned. Pleasure washed over her in waves as his intimate kisses made her writhe on the bed.

With each flick of his tongue he carried her to one rapturous peak after another until the intensity was so exquisite it pushed her into a place she’d never been before. The force of her orgasm was mind-numbing, and she arched upward with a sharp cry. Poised on the edge of a cloud, she tumbled downward until she lay spent on the bed, her breathing ragged.

Rough denim rubbed against her thighs, and she moaned as the heat of his mouth burned its way across her stomach and up to her breasts. His mouth suckled on a lace-covered nipple, and she whimpered with a renewed hunger.
Christus
, she couldn’t get enough of him. His hair smelled of soap, and she spiked her fingers through the dark locks.

Unseen hands lifted her up slightly and undid her bra. An instant later, his teeth were lightly abrading her nipple, while he discarded the last bit of his clothing. The instant his rigid cock pressed into her stomach, a surge of desire raced through her limbs. Eager to touch him, she slipped her hand between their bodies to stroke his hard length.

He jerked at her touch, and a moment later his mouth was devouring hers with a hunger that matched her own. The muted taste of her essence was on his lips as his tongue tangled with hers, and the air instantly vanished from her lungs when he filled her completely with a hard thrust.

Her body clenched around him, rejoicing in the pleasure the joining gave her. Need spun a silky web over her body, holding her hostage as he lifted his head. Her senses reeled at the passion making his eyes dark and stormy. No man had ever looked at her like that before.

“You’re in my blood,
mea amor
.”
The thought brushed against her mind with the gentleness of a feather.
“You belong to me and no one else.”

She didn’t have time to absorb the implication of his unspoken words as he withdrew from her slightly then thrust back into her. The action pulled a low groan from him, and she lifted her hips to welcome him again and again as he increased the speed of his strokes. The strength and power of him engulfed her as each of his thrusts pulled her toward a pinnacle she’d only visited with him.

Her body trembled against his as a wild stirring danced its way across her skin. It pulled her tight like a spring until her body clenched hard around him, and she clung to him as her orgasm made her arch toward him. Seconds later, a dark cry rolled out of his throat, and he thrust deep inside her one last time before his entire body rocked against hers as he climaxed.

He slumped forward, his face buried in her neck, and she reveled in the warmth of his strong body pressing into hers as the world slowly spun to a halt. The sultry heat settling in her limbs made her murmur a protest when he rolled away from her. A warm hand clutched hers, and she closed her eyes to savor the lingering pleasure caressing her body.
Deus
, the man was a quick learner. If possible, that had been even better than the first time.

“I have your wicked imagination for inspiration,” he murmured as he read her thoughts.

“You have
no
idea,” she said with a laugh as she visualized an erotic position they’d yet to try. A dark growl rumbled in his chest, and her body tingled at the possessive sound.

“We’re going to have to do something about these naughty thoughts of yours.” Dante rolled over on his side and grinned at her.

There was a relaxed, almost boyish look about him that made her stretch out her hand to touch the side of his face. Dante immediately turned his head to press a tender kiss in the palm of her hand. It was a simple caress, but it frightened her. Dante didn’t need her in his life. She would only complicate things for him. She’d seen what had happened when Ignacio had been holding a knife to her neck. Dante had hesitated, and it had cost him the life of his friend. She loved him too much to put him through that kind of hell again.

Quietly, his thoughts drifted across hers like a soft piece of silk. There was a deep intimacy about him reading her every thought and desire, and panic fluttered inside her as she realized how vulnerable she was. If she wasn’t careful, he’d know the truth.