Chapter 30: Chapter 30

Julian leaned forward and kissed her with a hint of tongue. Oooh, sexy vampire warlock. His mouth moved against hers as he deepened the kiss, and in a smooth motion, he unfolded from his chair with her in his arms and strode around his desk toward the door. Good, he was going to take her somewhere more private because she definitely didn’t want to get caught banging while Lily and Harpe were in the house. But nope, Julian settled her on her feet and pressed her back against the wooden doors as he locked the deadbolt. Okay then, they would have to be quiet.

Julian bit her bottom lip and unsnapped the button of her shorts, then slid her bottoms down to her ankles, panties and all. He dropped to his knees and demanded in a whisper, “Take your shirt off.”

Okie dokie. She yanked her shirt off her head and wiggled out of her bra faster than the snap of a finger, but Julian seemed fine where he was, eye level with her hips. She opened her mouth to ask if something was wrong, but he gripped her legs, leaned forward, and laved his tongue against her sex right at her clit.

“Ooooh,” she groaned. Quiet. She clamped her teeth on her bottom lip to remind her horny noises to stay where they were.

Julian sucked gently on her sensitive nub, then brushed his tongue against her again. Her knees were numbing now, but as if he knew she was about to go down like a sack of stones, he gripped her knees and held her upright. Erin ran her hands through his hair, and the next time he ran his clever tongue over her clit, she gripped his head in a silent plead for more. That satisfied rumble she adored rattled from his chest and filled the room. Quiet, quiet.

Slowly, Julian slipped his tongue inside of her. Erin's eyes rolled closed at the sparking sensation between her thighs. She rested her head back against the door and sighed out a helpless sound. Over and over he plunged inside of her until pulsing pleasure rocketed through her body. The jingle of Julian's belt brought on another wave of excitement, and when he bit her inner thighs gently, once on each, and turned her slowly until she faced the door, she knew he wasn’t done with her yet.

“Arch your back, love,” he whispered in her ear as he pressed his erection against her back. She did so happily, desperate to feel him inside of her again. God, she adored when he called her “love.” Dangerous Julian and Dangerous Erin had no voice here. What they were doing, bonding to each other so seamlessly… This wasn’t dangerous. Love was right.

Julian wrapped his arm around her middle and nibbled at the back of her ear. Erin's hips rocked as her desperation piqued. The head of his cock pressed into her by an inch, and she pushed backward, hungry for more of him.

Julian chuckled a deep, sexy sound right against her ear. “Are you eager for me, love?”

“Yes. Call me that again.”

Without hesitation, he whispered, “Love,” against her ear.

Now both of his arms were around her, one around her middle and one massaging her breast in a needy rhythm as he slid into her from behind.

“More,” she demanded on a breath.

Julian smiled against her ear and drew back, then slammed into her. And there were his teeth again, right on her shoulder as he thrust into her over and over. His pace picked up, faster, harder, and she was gone now. Floating. Falling. Nothing to hold onto, and she didn’t care to stop the stomach-dipping sensation.

When a feral, wanting growl ripped up her throat, Julian reacted immediately, pounding into her harder. And just as the pressure became too much and her body clenched around his in another orgasm, Julian froze behind her, a snarl in his throat, and his teeth sunk deeply into her neck. She gasped and bowed back against him. Pleasure, pain, pleasure, pain, and the scent of iron filled the air. Warmth running down, pooling in the bowl above her collar bone, streaming down between her breasts. Warmth running down her thighs as Julian's jets of hot release became too much for her to hold.

Her body was on fire.

Fire from the overwhelming heat of Julian's body.

Fire from the warmth that churned in her middle as her release pounded through her.

Fire for the man she adored.

“I love you, I love you,” she panted out as he ran his tongue over the claiming mark he’d just given her.

“Mate,” he whispered against her skin. “I love you, too.”

“Favorite mate,” Erin said, holding onto Julian's shoulders piggy-back style.

“You,” Julian said easily as he reached forward and pulled open the front door like it weighed nothing. The towering giant barriers groaned as they swung open and creaked as he closed them again.

“No, I mean out of your human mates.” Butterflies had been flapping around in her stomach since he’d first called her that this afternoon in his office.

“I haven’t called anyone my mate but Chlorine and you, and you’ve seen me through her memories. What we had wasn’t real. At least not to her. The humans I married were just to stop a freefall. I took on a wife when the loneliness got too bad. When the darkness was so thick, I thought I’d become the dark.”

“I think Chlorine loved you, Julian,” she said softly. “Not to defend her because I hate what she did to you, but I think you meant a lot to her. At least you felt big when I was in that vision. You felt important. She was hurting deeply when she told you about her betrayal.”

Julian shook his head, eyes on the cobblestone driveway he strode down. “She felled all of our people with her treachery.”

“Yeah, but she couldn’t have known that would happen. It felt like she was unhappy to be mated to Marcus and felt unwanted. Unloved. And then she met you, and she wanted to pretend her life was different. I think she was one of many mates to Marcus and wanted something real. You felt real. When I saw you through her…I loved you.” Gah, this was all so confusing.

“My answer is still the same and an easy one for me to give. You are my favorite mate. I wish you had been my only.”

“For all this time?”

Julian chuckled and released the backs of her knees, settling her on her feet. He turned and cupped her cheeks, then leaned down and kissed her gently. “For all time.”

Her cheeks heated with happiness, and she brushed her nose against his before she pulled away. Dangerous Julian.

He wrapped his big strong hand around hers and led her toward the waterfall tumbling off the cliffs above. From here, she could hear it clear as a bell. The mist as the falls hit the water below smelled like rain, and the silt that was being stirred from the bottom of the river smelled rich and earthy. The sun beamed down in speckles as they ducked under a low-hanging bald cypress branch and into the woods that encased Julian's perfectly manicured lawn. With the pine-needle blanketed forest floor covered in gold pools of sunlight, and rays of dusty light streaming through the canopy to the soundtrack of the roosting birds’ song, this place looked like a completely different world. Walking in front, Julian smiled back at her as he led her toward a thin deer trail in the woods. His smile was bright and easy, flashing those gorgeous dimples, and his dark eyes danced when they landed on her. God, she loved him in this moment, more than anything. This incredible man who had survived so much had chosen her. He made her feel special when it was him who was truly one of a kind.

Erin really hoped Jake would come to accept that Julian was always going to be a vital part of their life.

“You’re thinking of your brother.” It wasn’t a question.

“How do you know that? Are you reading my mind?”

“I may not be able to read you clearly.. but I have an idea of what you’re feeling. You see, along with the bond of making love, comes with the bond of the heart. Whatever thought that passes through your head shows in your heart” he placed one hand on her left breast, making Erin take a breath. “And since i have your heart, my warlock magic practically allows me to read through you. So I know what’s going on within you, but I can’t read it clearly.”

“Just... wow”

“Are you worried that he will hate you in future?”

“I just...”

“Erin... Jake adores you. He is just scared you’ll forget about him soon enough.”

“He knows that would never happen. He’s the only family i have. I wouldn’t trade him away for anything...”

“Shhhh... don’t cry baby, your brother will come around. He just needs more time.”

Erin wiped the tears that had escaped and turned to Julian with a smile.

“I hope so.”

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