Wandering Soul (16 page)

Chapter Twenty-Two

Elsa could hardly breathe. The room seemed to disappear around her, until there was nothing left but the two of them. The focus, the purpose of Dante's gaze spread shivers over her entire body.

“I told you, I—”

Dante didn't let her finish her sentence. “You told me you want me. You told me that you have longed for me. I will not let you deny yourself this. Deny us this. All of your fears, all your doubts about us are unfounded, and I will spend the rest of my life proving that to you.”

He slid one arm around her waist to the small of her back and placed the other on the side of her neck, lightly dusting her skin with his fingertips. The argument she had been ready to make vanished, the words scattering like sparks from a shorting power line as his touch overwhelmed her senses.

He pulled her closer and bent his head to hers. Just before their lips touched, he whispered, “Elsa…”

The thrill of his kiss was unlike anything she had ever experienced. She felt weightless. She wrapped her arms around his neck to keep herself from floating away. He was her anchor. The warmth of his body flowed into her. The softness of his lips was intoxicating.

His mouth moved on hers gently, tasting her, exploring her. He buried his fingers in her hair as his other hand pressed her to him. He deepened the kiss, his tongue coaxing her mouth open.

She didn't care about resisting him anymore. She wasn't strong enough. He was too warm, too real. How could she have ever thought she could let him go?

Elsa tightened her arms around his shoulders, parting her lips and inviting him in. He tasted like strawberries and champagne.

He trailed his kisses along her chin and neck. Sparks rained down through her body from wherever they touched.

“You are mine.” His voice was a soft breath against her ear. “And I am yours. I will never let you forget that.”

His words were as dizzying as his kisses. Elsa felt her heart lurch as he stepped back, every fiber of her being protesting the distance between them. But his gaze held hers without wavering.

He slid his jacket from his shoulders, then tossed it onto a nearby chair. Slowly, he removed more of his intricate outfit, never looking away from her. She watched him hungrily, imagining that she was the one removing each article of clothing.

When he was down to just the familiar white shirt and black slacks, he stepped closer. He reached out with one hand, trailing his fingertips along the side of her neck, across her collarbones, and ever so lightly over the tops of her breasts.

He pulled her against him and kissed her deeply. His hands flew over the back and sides of her dress, finding the hooks and zippers and undoing them.

Elsa felt feverish. Every touch of air was like a cool breath as her dress slid over her skin.

Dante drew his hands along her hips, guiding the dress to the floor. He kept his gaze locked on hers, as if he was avoiding looking at her body while she stepped out of her dress, then he placed the golden fabric on the chair with his clothes.

He paused briefly before letting his gaze rove over her body. When he did, he let out an audible gasp.

Doubts sprang to life in Elsa's mind. She wasn't toned enough or thin enough or curvy enough. Her imagination produced a million ways he could be disappointed with her. She lifted her hands to her chest and took a step back, but he gently grasped her wrists and followed her as she retreated.

“Do not cover yourself.” There was a rasp to his voice, as if speaking was a struggle. “You are so beautiful. Please let me look at you.”

She felt herself blushing, but she lowered her hands. Dante released her and took a step back. His gaze was as intimate as a caress, lingering on her breasts, the antique gold lace of her panties. He ran a shaking hand through his hair, leaving it the tousled mass of soft waves she preferred.

Still staring at her, he pulled his shirt over his head, then threw it on the floor where it was quickly joined by the rest of his clothing.

Elsa couldn't keep herself from staring back. His body was all smooth lines of muscle, his chest tapering down to his narrow waist and hips. He was grace, lithe strength and pure masculine beauty. She tried not to stare at his erection, but it was hard to look away from it.

She knew that she would never be the same after this. She was about to ruin herself for other men, and she didn't care. Reaching up to undo her chignon, she stepped toward him. His lips parted as he watched her hair fall around her shoulders.

He smiled at her, running the backs of his fingers along her stomach, sliding them over her ribs, and finally cupping her breasts. He bent down to kiss her again, deeply, as his hands worked magic on her.

Lowering himself on one knee, he kissed her stomach while sliding her panties down her legs. For a brief moment, Elsa saw a possibility play out. A possibility that she knew would haunt her.

Dante on one knee, proposing with his mother's ring. A life, a future together. Truly together. It was an awful dream that held everything she wanted and everything that terrified her.

He stood and lifted her from the ground. She pushed all thoughts, all dreams, all hope and panic away. Instead, she focused on the feeling of his arms around her, his chest against hers as he lowered them both to her bed.

Everywhere, skin was touching skin, and it still wasn't enough. She wanted more contact. Needed more. As he kissed her, she tentatively slid her leg up his thigh. Dante groaned against Elsa's mouth, rolling her onto her back and pressing her into the bed. She could feel him between her legs, so close.

His whole body shook as he took a deep, shuddering breath and held perfectly still. “I know that I should take my time, but—”

“I don't want you to.”

She was desperate to know him in this way. Her body was already begging for him. She slid her arms under his so she could run her hands down his back and over the firm muscles of his backside.

That was all it took.

She gasped as he buried himself in the soft flesh of her core, her back arching from the intensity of him filling her. He slid his hands under her back, holding her shoulders as he nuzzled her neck, pushing himself deeper. He was still trembling.

“Impossible,” he whispered against her ear.

She had to agree. The moment was perfect, each sensation a miracle. Dante was here, joined with her. It was bliss.

Slowly, he started to move again, every thrust bringing Elsa closer to a precipice she was wholly prepared to cast herself from. She wrapped her legs around his thighs, urging him on. His pace increased, just like the sparks arcing out through her body from where they were joined.

As she felt the explosion start to cascade within her, Dante let out a deep groan and increased his pace to a near frenzy. She cried out his name, forever branding it on her soul.

He collapsed on top of her, his strength seeming to have left him. He nuzzled her neck, placing gentle kisses along the soft, sensitive skin. His touch echoed all over her body.

“Dear God,” he said. “I never imagined…”

Elsa was still basking in the glow of things. Her mind slowly processed his words. What had he never imagined? She felt a heavy dread deep in her stomach.

“That wasn't…” She almost hated to finish the sentence. She wasn't sure she wanted to know. But she had to. “That wasn't your first time, was it?”

He managed to lift himself up on his elbows, smiling down at her and kissing her gently before saying, “I hope it was not too obvious.”

The dread transformed to crushing guilt. Elsa knew that she was being weak by giving in to her desire for Dante. She was being selfish, not waiting until he'd had a chance to date other women in her time. But knowing that she'd been his first, and that would mean that if he really did love her, she'd be his only…

“Did I do something wrong?”

“No. I did.” She rolled out from underneath him. Sitting up on the side of the bed, she pulled the sheets around her.

He rose to his knees, his hands on her shoulders as he pulled her back against his chest. “What is it? Tell me what is wrong.”

She covered her eyes with one hand, trying to figure out how to put her thoughts into words. She knew he was already upset by her reaction and didn't want to make him feel worse. Especially not after something that was supposed to be so special.

“I just… I didn't know that was your first time.”

“I am gratified to know I performed so well.” He brushed her hair from the side of her neck, then pressed a gentle kiss on her shoulder and wrapped his arms around her. “Was there something you would have done differently had you known?”

Not allowed herself to be so weak? She shook her head.

“Next time, I believe I will be better able to take my time. I want to savor you. I could spend days learning your body.”

He pressed another kiss against her neck and she closed her eyes, willing herself not to cry. It was bad enough he had already seen that once this evening.

“I don't think there should be a next time.”

His arms loosened around her, and she felt him sitting back, pulling away from her. That was good. They needed more distance between them.

“Did you not enjoy it?”

“I did. It was probably the most amazing thing I've ever experienced.”

“I do not understand.”

Elsa stood up, pulling the sheets with her so that she could wrap them around herself. She turned back to face him, trying to steel her resolve.

“I told you I was worried that you only think you want me because you don't think you have other options.” She kept the focus on their physical attraction. She couldn't talk about love without breaking down. “I assumed at the very least you'd had relationships in your own time. I shouldn't have given in. If I had known it was your first—”

Dante rose from the bed, following as she backed away. Her resolve was already weakening. A sheen of sweat from their lovemaking clung to his skin, highlighting the dips and valleys of his muscles. There was a flash of something in his eyes. Intensity, determination.

“I wanted you.” His voice was low and level. “And you wanted me. That is all there is to it.”

“It doesn't matter what I want. This is supposed to be a new life for you. What I want shouldn't matter.”

“What you want will always matter to me. Always.”

She shook her head. “No. This isn't right. What you're feeling isn't—”

“Do not dare tell me what I feel. You do not know what I think and you do not know what is in my heart. Only I know these things.”

He stalked up to her. Even without touching her, his towering presence was overwhelming. She could feel the heat from him, catch his scent everywhere. She felt as enveloped in his essence as she had when he had been filling her, holding her as close as he could.

“You say that you want me to make a life of my choosing,” he said. “I am. And you are part of that, whether you like it or not. There is no other woman I want. I have never desired a woman as I desire you.”

“You'd never met a woman from my time before.”

“And now I have met several. What does it matter?” He let out an exasperated sigh. “Has it not occurred to you that I have never wanted a woman as I want you, never loved a woman, because I had not met
you
? Do you think I would want you any less if we had met in my time?”

“I…don't know.”

He didn't give her time to consider the idea.

“I do know. You say you do not care how I look, that what you care about is me. Do you not think I feel the same about you? I do not care that you are the one who brought me here, only that you are here with me now.”

What could she say to that? But still, how could she let herself believe that everything she ever wanted was right in front of her?

Again, he didn't give her time to think. He gripped her shoulders and pulled her against him, crushing his lips against hers. He released her only long enough to tear the sheet away, then wrapped his arms around her, lifting her off her feet.

Elsa grabbed on to his neck as he stood up to his full height. She instinctively wrapped her legs around his waist, gasping as she felt his shaft nudge against her again. Never releasing her lips, Dante stumbled to the wall, pressing her back against it, as he drove himself into her core.

He shifted one of his arms to cradle her bottom, the other grabbing her thigh and using his grip to push himself even deeper. Elsa had never experienced such intensity. Their passion was consuming her and she didn't care. He was the flame, and she was the candle.

He broke off the kiss, his gaze boring into her. “I traveled across time to be with you. I want no other and will have no other. There is only you.”

She clung more tightly to his neck, wanting to believe him, wanting to let go and cast herself into his love. But she was so afraid.

They had crossed the line. There was no turning back.

She pushed away the fear and doubt, again focusing on the union of their bodies. She gave him everything she could, everything except her heart.

Dante trailed his kisses down her neck, suckling the skin beneath her ear. She felt herself building toward another climax, this one looming on the horizon even larger than the first.

He plunged himself deeper into her, faster, pinning her against the smooth wood of the wall with his body. He released his grip on her leg, bringing his hand to her cheek and reclaiming her mouth. His tongue was just as hungry, delving into her mouth relentlessly.

Her climax hit her like an earthquake. Every part of her body seemed alive, singing with sensation. The aftershocks kept going as he threw his head back, crying out from his own release. She could feel him pumping his seed within her, the shockwaves of his pleasure reverberating through her body.

When he finally stopped, his body was pressing her against the wall firmly enough that he didn't even need his hands to support her. He caressed her cheek with his thumb, kissing her again, but gently.