Sivamet.
The tenderness in his voice turned her heart over.
Teagan, I do not expect you to go to ground with awareness. There is no reason you ever have to be aware of it. I can wrap my body around yours and wait for you to fall asleep, make certain you are out for the night and put you in the earth where you will be rejuvenated. I can wake before you, feed you and make certain you are refreshed and in bed again with me before you wake. I have told you, whatever makes you happy and comfortable in our world is what I want to do for you.
She knew he meant that as well. It was impossible to miss the sincerity in his voice or his mind. But still, Teagan’s brain played the “what if” game that she always played when she was climbing with others. She always considered herself the weak link. If someone fell or was injured and they were up four or five hundred feet, even in a harness, she would have to bring them down. Of course she’d trained for it. She’d even practiced it repeatedly, but she always wondered if she would panic.
There it was. Panic and fear, her old nemeses. If Andre fought off a master vampire or a pack of vampires, he would be injured. He would need her. Just as her climbing partners would need her in an emergency. She didn’t know, even if he trained her, if she could open up the earth and put them both in it.
There is no need to worry about such things, Teagan.
Of course there is. It could happen. It’s even likely to happen.
Teagan, you are my lifemate. We share the same soul. You are in my mind and you can pull out information on anything I have done. You would protect me with the same fierce determination that I would use to protect you. It will never matter what you have to do—you will simply do it.
How do you know?
You have great courage. You always have. You are already bound to me, not only our souls, but in your heart as well. It is in your nature to take care of those you love.
You can’t know that.
Teagan.
Her stomach plummeted and rolled at the silk and velvet brushing through her mind so intimately.
I am there. In your thoughts. In your memories. You traveled all the way to these mountains alone, determined to heal your grandmother’s mental illness. If you could not help her, you planned to move back in with her and take care of her. You are a woman of great courage who will do whatever it takes to care for those you love.
It was absolutely true that she would have moved in with Grandma Trixie and taken care of her rather than see her in a hospital. She would have consulted with the best doctors to learn how to care for her. But she would never, under any circumstances, abandon her. Grandma Trixie had taught her that.
Unconditional love. She’d known that always, her entire life. She’d always had that from her sisters and her grandmother. They didn’t mind when she panicked, but it was a weakness—a character flaw—and she’d never been able to overcome it.
She took another breath and stared down at the ground below her. It was far, far below her. She felt the first wave of uneasiness, the tightening that heralded the full-blown panic. She hated being out of control. Hated it.
She forced herself to scan the ground below them, seeking beauty, seeing the landscape from a different perspective. Too far down. So far down. She hated heights. Flying was very cool. Maybe the coolest, but it wasn’t her thing. She couldn’t be up this high without her stomach lurching and her mind freezing.
Do you know what I would like to do with you right now? You brought the beauty of shifting and flying back to me. You are magic, Teagan, my magic. Still, with all this beauty, all I can think about is kissing you. Being inside of you. That is the most beautiful of all places. You are so perfect.
Her mind and body went from frozen to melting, just that fast. His voice, soft, sensual, mesmerizing.
I especially love your breasts. Your nipples are perfect. I love how sensitive they are. I love how wet you get for me, so ready, and you never hold back. You give yourself to me all the way. You put everything out there for me. So sweet, sivamet. So beautiful.
The terrible panic was gone. She was hot and wanting him, but thankfully she wasn’t screaming hysterically.
Wow. She sent the word into his mind when she could find a breath. Not a single one of my climbing friends ever thought to say that to me when I was freaking out. I think it was quite successful.
And true.
There was a trace of humor in his voice. Mostly it was all velvet and silk. She felt his pride in her and didn’t really understand why. You know it doesn’t make any sense at all that you feel that way about me. Teagan really felt compelled to tell him the exact truth.
I see you, Teagan. The real you. That is the one I have fallen so hard for.
Her heart stuttered. She knew her reaction to him wasn’t strictly physical. She knew it was impossible to fall in love with someone so fast. She couldn’t love him. Could she? She knew him better than she knew any other person on the face of the earth, including her family members. She was in his mind and he was right, it was impossible to stop the flow of information back and forth.
She could see his honor and integrity. For him, she really was the only woman in the world and he would do whatever it took to make her happy. Of course, he was arrogant and bossy, but she supposed with his past, his abilities and the longevity of his life, he’d earned the right to a little arrogance.
He was gentle and kind and compassionate. He didn’t complain about his life. He accepted the centuries of hunting the vampire. He accepted the terrible wounds and the loneliness that came with that. He accepted her for exactly who she was and with all her failings, with every fault, she was still the only one. His. That made her happy in spite of being so afraid of the future. Very happy.