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“You had a wasted journey, druid. You found me. Now it’s time for you to leave.”

  “You delude yourself, Allegra. You called me, remember? Left your mark all across Europe hoping I’d find you.”

  He grasped her shoulders, turned her to look at him and slammed her body back against the glass. His eyes blazed like starlight. Passion, anger, dominance burned with an erotic intensity that made her crave him.

  Lifting her arms above her head, he shackled her wrists in one of his giant hands. With the other, he stroked a fingertip down her cheek, along her jawbone, finally feathering the pulse point that beat wildly in her neck.

  He’d grown physically stronger. She was no longer the dominant strength. She couldn’t overpower him physically or mentally. No longer the Master, Allegra was once again the slave.

  For once that didn’t fill her with dread. Her need for him overrode the doubt.

  Her pussy clenched, ached to be filled by her Master’s cock. To be taken.

  A smile played on his lips. “I can smell your arousal. There will be no stopping, Allegra. Not now, not ever.”

  His hand skimmed down her body to caress her breast. Her nipple peaked and she bit her lip in an effort to suppress a moan.

  “Tell me you want this.”

  “I want this.”

  “Tell me you want me, Allegra. Say it.”

  “I want you, Kyrian.”

  His lips crashed onto hers, tempting, demanding her submission. Allegra’s body came alive in a way it hadn’t for centuries. Electricity fired along her synapses, sending a direct line of heat from her brain to her pussy. Her breasts became heavy with the need to be touched, her nipples hard, turgid peaks, begging for Kyrian’s fingers.

  His tongue rimmed the outer seams of her lips, coaxing her to open for him. When she did, he darted into her mouth like a marauder. She moaned low in her throat at the taste of him. Dark. Forbidden. Powerful. Masculine. A lick of feminine heat coursed through her, reveled in the dominant male before her.

  Her tongue dueled with his, attacking and retreating, mimicking the movement of what she wanted him to do with his cock.

  As they kissed, he ran his hands down the bodice of her corset, found her nipples and plucked. His erotic ministrations made her rip her mouth from his and cry into the night.

  “Kyrian…” Her fingers fisted in his dark hair, tugging, nudging his face down to where she needed his kiss the most—her throat.

  His laughter sent shivers dancing across her skin.

  He didn’t deny her. His lips closed over the pulse point in her neck and sucked, not breaking the skin but leaving no doubt he was going to bite her, and soon.

  He ripped open the bodice of her shirt and she gasped at his use of force. Deep down, she knew he wouldn’t hurt her. With his strength he could do some serious physical damage yet his mind reached out to hers, linking them. He bathed her in warmth and comfort, sensations previously unknown from the feral druid and at odds with the raw, turbulent passion he exhibited.

  “So beautiful. So damn, fucking beautiful. I’ve missed you.”

  He cupped her breasts, kneaded the soft flesh. Bending his head, he swiped his tongue across one nipple then the other. His rough, wet tongue drove her wild. Her cunt clenched, moisture gushed between her thighs, soaking the material of her pants.

  “More, please, more…”

  She wanted him to take a nipple into the warm cavern of his mouth and devour her.

  As if plucking the thought directly from her mind, he did just that. He sucked one nipple into his mouth and rolled it between his teeth.

  Allegra came apart. The orgasm barreled over her, robbing her of rational thought. All she could do was feel, ride the wave of pleasure as her body sang. Moisture gathered between her thighs. The heavy scent of arousal beat in the air.

  “I love watching you come for me.”

  His teeth scraped at her neck, nipping yet never breaking the skin. Frustrated, Allegra almost groaned. She wanted him to pierce her, to take her blood and fuck her with his cock.

  Grasping handfuls of his hair, she pulled his head up so they were eye to eye. He had beautiful eyes, her druid. Midnight-blue bottomless pools that danced with heat and hunger and possession.

  “No more waiting. Fuck me, druid. Take what you want.”

  He licked his lips. Droplets of moisture lingered and she wanted to lean forward and lick them clean.

  “Mine, Allegra. I’m going to take what is mine.”

  She nodded. There wasn’t a point in denying it any longer. She’d left a trail of psychic breadcrumbs across the world, leading him here. She’d made peace with her past and herself. Three hundred years was a long time to run from the one thing she needed—her druid, her mate, her Master.

  He gripped the edges of her corset and ripped, tearing the material apart. Her breasts spilled out into his hands. He molded them together, kneaded, heating her blood, starting another fire in her gut. But he didn’t linger, his touches were frantic, furious, as if he needed to fuck her as badly as she wanted him to.

  His nimble fingers unbuttoned her leather pants and dragged the zipper down. Metal grating on metal rasped into the silence, mingled with their labored breathing and the waves crashing onto the shore.

  He dipped his hands inside the leather to touch her clit. Skin-to-skin contact made her throw back her head and gasp. His touch was just as she remembered—electrifying.

  “Take these off.”

  His gravelly tone was another indication of his growing arousal. Not wanting to wait any longer or disappoint him, she pushed her hands into the waistband of the leather pants and shoved them down.

  She watched as he unbuttoned his own pants and pushed them past his hips. Like her, he wasn’t wearing any underwear. His cock sprang forward, long, thick and hard. The head glistened with pre-cum. He stroked his hands up and down, moving the foreskin back and forth.

  She watched, bit down on her lip. Tiny pinpricks of blood welled from the broken skin.

  His feral growl startled her for one brief moment. Unable to control the beast before her, and not really wanting to, she gasped as his body slammed against hers. Palming her ass, he lifted her, wrapped her legs around his waist and pushed his cock inside her.

  It only took one shove for him to fill her pussy. She was so wet, dripping, yet still he stretched her. The feeling of fullness, of delicate pressure as she adjusted to his size, stole her breath.

  Her fingernails clawed as his shoulders, dug deep, drew blood. “Fuck me, druid. No more waiting. Fuck me. Claim me. Possess me.”

  She rolled her hips, forcing him even farther inside her cunt. He didn’t deny her. His hips pistoned forward, slamming her body into the glass.

  In and out. In and out. His cock rubbed against her G-spot, his pubic bone brushed her clit.

  He fucked her hard and fast, possessing her with his cock.

  “Yes, yes, just like that. Fuck me, fuck me, fuck me…” She whimpered, moaned, begged, unable to think of anything but the druid and the delicious orgasm building in her womb.

  His tongue snaked out and licked the blood from her lips. His hand shot to her throat, immobilizing her head. She should have been scared but he didn’t squeeze.

  Instead he looked into her eyes and whispered, “Mine.”

  He swept his head down and she held her breath, waiting. His fangs pierced her vein in a blinding flash of white-hot pain and blazing desire. He forced his mind into hers, breaking down her carefully erected barriers.

  She was powerless as he merged their minds. She saw his search for her, his quest to find the woman who’d possessed his soul from the minute she walked into the clearing offering him the dark gift.

  Flashes of his despair and anger at her leaving pierced her heart. He didn’t just want to possess her in the way she had known centuries ago, he loved her and that love burned pure and bright in his dark heart. His need for her shone like a blazing inferno.

  He couldn’t speak the words
but he’d shown her his love. And what a glorious love it was. How could she run from this, from him, now?

  The erotic pull of his lips abated. His fangs retracted. He lifted his head. His lips were flushed with her blood.

  “Drink from me, Allegra. Let me feed you. Let me be what you need.”

  He loosened his grip on her neck and rolled his hips, pushing his cock to the hilt, reminding her that they were still joined. He tilted his head to the side, offering himself to her.

  Her fangs sprouted from her gums. Bloodlust beat heavily in her veins, matching the aching beat of her clit.

  “Yes…” Pressing her mouth to his vein, she struck. Blood spilled into her mouth, hot, rich decadent, powerful. It felt like drinking the sweetest nectar, tasted so much better than the blood of mortals.

  As she drew his blood into her body, his cock pounded into her pussy. The erotic penetration of his blood and his cock sent her body into orgasmic bliss. Her pussy clenched. The world receded as she came. Wave after wave crashed over her. She felt him stiffen, slam inside her and follow her over the edge, pumping her body full of his seed.

  She retracted her fangs and rested her head on his shoulder. He cradled her body against his and she felt safe, warm, possessed in the best possible way. She hadn’t known it could be like this.

  After what seemed like an eternity, he withdrew from her body, lifting her gently, and laying her on the rug. The ocean outside the window continued to roll and crash, but strangely, she felt calm, all turmoil gone. Kyrian joined her on the rug and she resisted the urge to purr as his body curled around hers.

  He brushed a lock of hair from her face. “I know why you ran from me.”

  Blinking, she focused on her mate. “What?” Confusion filled her mind.

  “I know what happened in Rome.”

  Although she’d come to terms with her past, she felt ashamed. She’d been nothing but a slave pandering to the whims of her Master, putting up with daily abuse for no other reason than being a woman. Even now, it still hurt to think about it.

  She tried to pull out of his embrace but he wouldn’t allow it. Instead he tightened his hold and bathed her mind in more warmth. She really wanted to know how he’d learned that trick.

  “I never wanted to own you in the literal sense. I never wanted you to be a doormat. I just wanted you to be mine.” He snorted. “I’ll admit, puffing up my chest and resorting to intense sexual blackmail probably wasn’t the best route but I just wanted you to see we belong together. It was the only way I knew how to keep you by my side.”

  Allegra smiled. “I think you failed with that.”

  He stroked her hair and laughed. “I guess I did.”

  It was her turn to make a confession. “I saw what you were becoming, I saw the power you were gaining and I panicked. I saw you growing stronger, physically and magically. I couldn’t control you. I loved you so much. I felt like you would consume me and I couldn’t go through that again, I wouldn’t give up my independence for anyone.”

  She sighed. “And at the time, it felt like you would eventually take my freedom. I wouldn’t be Allegra Augusta anymore, I’d be some woman who served you. A toy, a possession for you to play with whenever you saw fit.”

  Silence lengthened between them. She listened to the gentle crash of the ocean. The elements had calmed after Kyrian released his anger.

  “You could never be my slave. You are too powerful. You underestimate yourself. You can shut me out if you really want. It will never be like it was before, Allegra. I love you too much to break you as they did.”

  He stroked her hair in slow, soothing motions. She found it comforting, endearing that a man so strong could be so tender.

  “I guess we are more Mistress and Master then.”

  He chuckled. “I guess we are. I love you, Allegra. I’ve loved you for almost a thousand years and I’ll love you for another thousand. Promise me you won’t leave again.”

  She smiled. It felt so good to finally be claimed by her mate. It didn’t feel like slavery. In fact, she felt free. “I promise never to leave you again.”

  And she meant it.

  The End

  About the Author

  Multi-published author Scarlett Sanderson is a librarian by day and an erotic romance novelist by night. She lives in suburban England with her significant other and dreams of having Lara Croft-type adventures. As a reader, she loves to immerse herself in sweeping tales of romance, fantasy and, most of all, tantalizing erotica. Those are the elements she tries to weave into the stories she creates.

  When not writing, Scarlett has a burning passion for history, good chocolate, fine wine and anything supernatural (especially if it includes the hunters Dean and Sam Winchester from the TV show Supernatural!).

  Scarlett welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website and email addresses on her author bio page at www.ellorascave.com.

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  Also by Scarlett Sanderson

  At Their Command

  Beg Me

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