Night Embrace by Sherrilyn Kenyon
groin against the part of her he couldn't wait to bury himself into. He sampled the warmth of her mouth and listened to her moans of pleasure.
Closing his eyes, he inhaled her unique scent and let it wash over him. Sunshine wanted to weep at how good he felt on top of her. The leather of his pants caressed her intimately as his lips tormented hers. His braids tickled her neck with every movement he made. And his hands felt wickedly wonderful as he ran them over her body, seeking out every part of her.
She almost whimpered in protest when he moved away. He pulled her dress from her and tossed it to the floor. She felt more than just physically naked in front of him. For some reason she felt spiritually bare as well. It was as if he could see deep inside her somehow, as if he knew things about her no one else knew.
As if they were connected on a level that transcended their physical bonding. At least she thought so until he returned to lie on top of her. Then her thoughts scattered again and she became one with the moment. It was strange, really, this sensation of him.
Sunshine hissed at how wonderful he tasted. All that lush, tawny skin made prickly by his masculine whiskers. She so loved the taste of a man's jaw. No man had ever tasted more perfect. She brought her hands around his waist, to his fly. His bulge was huge.
Pulling back slightly, she watched his face as she opened his pants and touched him for the first time.
He closed his eyes and growled deep in his throat as he rocked himself gently against her hands. Oh, she liked the feel of him there. He was so hard and ready for her. She laced her fingers through his short curls, moving her hand lower until she could cup the soft heat of him in her palm.
Talon moaned in pleasure. It felt so incredibly good to have her holding him like that.
He'd had sex more times than he could count and yet there was something new about Dark Hunter Series (04) - Night Embrace - Sherrilyn Kenyon Page 73 of 460
this experience. Something fresh.
She pulled his pants down lower so that she could tuck her toes into them and pull them off. It wasn't until she frowned that they both remembered he still wore his boots.
"Oops," she said with a smile.
Talon chuckled, kissed her deeply, then rolled over to remove his boots. She rose up on her knees and leaned her naked body against his bare back, making him tremble from the feel of her breasts against his spine.
"I just love this tattoo," she said as she slowly traced it down his back with her tongue.
"I love when you do that," he said, tossing his boots and pants into the corner. He gripped the edge of the bed as she explored his back with her mouth.
"Does it have any special meaning?"
He closed his eyes as she returned to tracing the marks with her tongue. "They're Celtic symbols for protection, power, and longevity." Talon clenched his teeth at the irony. His uncle had had no idea what was awaiting his nephew when he had placed those markings on his skin. Just how long his life would be.
She gave one long, warm lick, then pulled back. "I can't believe your uncle did this. My father had a cow when he saw mine."
Talon looked at her over his shoulder. "You have a tattoo?"
She wrapped her left leg around his waist and showed him her inner ankle. It was a very small, stylized Celtic sun with the jagged symbol for creativity.
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Smiling, he ran his hand over it. "Very nice."
"Yes, but it hurt for days. I can't imagine how much worse yours must have been."
She had no idea. Especially since his had been performed long before the days of sterilized needles and machinery. His uncle had meticulously tapped the design into his body over a three-month period. Some of it had gotten infected and only Nynia's herbal abilities had spared his life.
"It wasn't so bad."
"Ooo," she said teasingly, wrinkling her nose. "Mr. Tough Guy."
"Would you rather I say it hurt?"
"It never hurts to admit that you feel pain."
"Baby," he said gently. "I don't feel pain. Ever." She looked at him in surprise.
"Really? Not even a little?"
He shook his head as he clamped his emotions down. He didn't dare allow himself to feel the pain of all he'd lost. Even after all these centuries, it would destroy him.
"It's a waste of time and energy. It also drains the mind and makes it weary."
"But without pain, you can't have joy. It's the balance that makes us appreciate the extremes."
Now that was a deep concept. Very deep, considering they were sitting bare-assed on her bed. "Do you always philosophize while you're naked with a man?"
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She nipped his shoulder impishly with her teeth. "It's rather hard to find a man who's willing to do that."
He dropped his gaze down to her breasts. "I imagine it would be a lot easier if you didn't look so damned good without your clothes on."
She moaned as he dipped his head and took one of her breasts into his mouth. She lay back on the bed, drawing him with her. Talon sighed at the feel of her puckered areola under his tongue. He brushed his hand down the curve of her hip, over her soft thigh, and through the moist tangle of curls until he could touch the part of her he craved the most.
She groaned and shivered as he carefully separated the tender folds until he could tease her cleft. Oh yeah, he wanted this part of her. Wanted to see her head thrown back against the pillows and hear her scream out loud while she came for him.
Sunshine clutched his head to her breast as she opened her legs wider, giving him access to her body. She ached and throbbed at the feel of his hand stroking her. And when he plunged his fingers inside, she cried out.
Her body burned for his in a most unbelievable way. It was hot and fierce and made her tremble with need. She'd never wanted a man as much as she wanted this one. She wanted to pull him close to her. Closer and closer until they truly melted into one being.
Unable to wait any longer, she reached down between their bodies so that she could guide him deep inside her. They groaned in unison. Sunshine arched her back, drawing him in even deeper. He was so hard and hot, so full. She'd never felt anything better than him filling her.
He sat back on his legs and pulled her hips so that he could slide into her, slowly, deeply. It was a rolling rhythm that made her writhe from the intense pleasure of his Dark Hunter Series (04) - Night Embrace - Sherrilyn Kenyon Page 76 of 460
intimate strokes. She stared at him as he watched her with a tender look on his face.
"You are beautiful," he breathed, rolling his hips against hers and thrusting himself even deeper and harder inside her.
"You too," she said as she clutched at his knees.
His eyes darkened as he watched her and he gave himself over to their union. She'd never had a man make love to her like this. It was as if he were nothing but sex. As if he could feel nothing but her body.
He had such a way with his hips as he slid himself in and out, hard and deep. He teased her with his hands, his fingers stroking her in time to his thrusts. The pleasure of his touch permeated every fiber of her being. And when she came, the orgasm was so intense that she screamed.
Talon growled at the sound of her ecstasy as her body clutched his. Crying out, she reached up and pulled him down on top of her. Then, she did the strangest thing of all she nuzzled his neck and face, raining kisses all over his cheek and shoulder.
Talon froze. Her arms held him tight against her as she wrapped her entire body around his. The tenderness of her touch and actions pricked him, breaking through the chokehold he kept on his emotions. It was as if she really cared for him. As if he meant something to her. As if she were making love with him.
Only one woman had ever held him like this
He could barely breathe. For the first time
in fifteen hundred years he actually felt as if he were makin
He felt her. Felt connected to her. Felt as if they were something more than strangers with no ties to each other. Her lips scorched his skin as she continued to nuzzle his Dark Hunter Series (04) - Night Embrace - Sherrilyn Kenyon Page 77 of 460
neck and thrust herself against him. He held her tight and closed his eyes. His senses and emotions reeled from the pleasure of the moment.
When he came in her arms, he shivered to the core of his battered and weary heart. He lay there, vulnerable and panicked. No, he couldn't have felt that. He couldn't have felt her. It wasn't possible. He was mistaken. What they had was sex. Incredibly great sex, but nothing more than that. Sex. Simple. Basic. Uncomplicated.
And he was going to prove it to himself one way or another Sunshine lay in complete satisfied bliss, breathing raggedly, drifting slowly back into herself. That was the most incredible orgasm she'd ever experienced. She couldn't believe the way he'd felt, the way he'd touched her.
She held his head close to her heart and felt his ragged breath falling against her breast. She cradled him with her entire body and just soaked up the warm masculine weight of him.
Used to men who quickly dosed off after they came, she was completely unprepared when he rolled over onto his back and pulled her to lie across his chest.
"You didn't think I was through with you, did you?" he asked in her ear. "Well, yeah."
He laughed. "Lady Sunshine, I've only just started."
To her delight and awe, he proved those words well over the course of the next few hours. They made love on her bed, on the floor, on her sofa. He took her in so many different positions that she felt as if he were reenacting the entire Kama Sutra.
Finally, they ended up in the kitchen where he set her up on the counter and then made slow, tender love to her. Oh heaven, the man felt incredible! He had more stamina than an entire team of athletes and was completely shameless when it came to making love Dark Hunter Series (04) - Night Embrace - Sherrilyn Kenyon Page 78 of 460
to her. She'd never been with a man and felt so at ease with her body and his expectations.
A man like this was all too hard to come by. After they had finished with the counter, which she would never be able to look at again without blushing, Talon stood naked, looking into her refrigerator with his two braids tucked behind his ear as he searched for food.
He was still breathing heavily from their last go-round and Sunshine wondered idly if she'd gone bow-legged at some point from this afternoon's marathon.
Still, he looked scrumptious as he moved containers around in his quest for nourishment. His bare backside was a feast for the eyes and when he bent over to look into her bottom drawer, she couldn't resist running her hand up his muscular thigh, between his legs, to cup and fondle him.
He sucked his breath in sharply between his teeth and straightened. Sunshine gave him a mischievous grin that garnered her a quick kiss before he returned to searching her fridge.
"My lady, do you own anything made of meat?"
Sunshine ran her hand across his back, smoothing down the red marks where she'd sunk her nails in during her last orgasm. "I have soy burgers, and I did pick up some granola bars, wheat germ, and oatmeal while I was out."
He actually whimpered.
"Sorry. I'm a strict vegetarian." He sighed. "And I'm a strict carnivore."
She licked her lips and smiled as she remembered his playful nips and bites on her Dark Hunter Series (04) - Night Embrace - Sherrilyn Kenyon Page 79 of 460
flesh. "I noticed."
He turned toward her and gathered her naked body against his. He kissed her lips as if he were still able to savor her even after all they had done this afternoon. Then, he pulled back. "As much as I want you again, I have got to have something more to nourish me than your hot, lush body."
He grabbed her soy cheese from the top shelf and the whole wheat crackers she had on the counter. Sunshine started to warn him about the cheese, but thought better of it.
He did need something other than her to nibble on, though to be honest, she liked being his chew toy. The man was insatiable, and best of all, he was the champion at what he did.
She watched curiously as he grabbed his Snoopy Pez dispenser from her counter, then went back to the living room. Sunshine picked up their glasses of water and followed him to the Art Deco coffee table. Talon sat down before it and sliced the cheese, then placed it on the crackers. He fed her one. "So tell me, if I wasn't here, what would you be doing today?"
She laughed. "I'm sure I would probably be sitting more comfortably, for one thing."
His face amused, he dipped his head to nuzzle at her neck. "Can I rub anything to make it feel better?" She hissed at his deep, sensuous voice. "Your rubbing it is what got me into trouble."
He ran his tongue over her collarbone, then he pulled back and ate a cracker. He choked. Sunshine handed him the water. Talon drank it down fast and scowled at her.
"How old is this stuff?" He checked the expiration date on the cheese and his scowl deepened. "Soy?" he said as he finally recognized the package. "You let me eat soy cheese?"
"It's good for you."
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"It's nasty."
"Oh," she said, as if she were talking to a child. "You poor baby. I'm so sorry."
"No you're not."
"Not true. I am sorry I don't have anything a big he-man like you can stand."
Talon sat back and shook his head at her. He should have had Kyrian bring him a burger along with his clothes. Even so, he had thoroughly enjoyed the day with her.
Even if it did mean eating things that should be classified as toxic waste products.
Cringing, he reached for another cracker, more prepared this time for the disgusting taste of it. By sheer force of will, he downed six crackers with cheese, though they barely took the edge off his hunger.
Thank the gods he had his Pez. Grabbing Snoopy, he quickly popped three Pez cubes into his mouth to kill the taste. "How can you eat that?" she asked. "It's nothing but flavored sugar."
"Yes, but it's good sugar."
She wrinkled her nose at him. Talon gave her a wicked grin. "You know the best way to eat these, don't you?"
She shook her head. He pulled Snoopy's head back and took the small square out with his fingers. He held it up to her lips. "Bite down gently on it and hold it between your teeth."
She hesitated, then obeyed. For a full second, Talon watched her sitting there naked with the cube between her teeth. Then, he leaned forward and used his tongue to pry it Dark Hunter Series (04) - Night Embrace - Sherrilyn Kenyon Page 81 of 460
loose. Sunshine moaned at the taste of him combined with the sugar. Opening her mouth, she gave him a long, hot kiss. "Now, that was nice."
"Worth polluting your system for?"
"Umm-hmm," she breathed, running her fingertip along his jaw.
Once all the Pez were gone, she picked up the Snoopy dispenser and looked at it. "This seems so out of character for you, Mr. Tough Man. I find it hard to believe a guy who can fight off six criminals single-handedly would haul around a Peanuts Pez."
He brushed her black hair back from her shoulder and let his hand linger in the strands.
"Actually, I collect the dispensers. This one is a vintage 1969 one."
"Really?"
He nodded. She looked at it again. "Is it worth much?"
"A couple hundred dollars."
"No kidding?"
"No kidding."
"Wow. And I almost fed it to the washing machine."
He laughed at that. "I'm glad you didn't. Me and Snoopy go way back."
He took Snoopy from her hands and set it on the coffee table. When he turned back to face her, the gleam in his eye was one she'd become quite familiar with.
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"Are you really sore?" he asked.
All things considered, she should be, but his touch was so gentle that she wasn't. "I'm not. You?"
"Never better."
He leaned back on the floor and pulled her across him. Sunshine straddled him and moaned at how good his steely abs felt against her. To her amazement, he was already hard again. "You don't ever wear out, do you?"
He cupped her face in his hands and gave her a dark, serious stare. "It's you, love.
Definitely you. With anyone else, I would have been curled up and sleeping hours ago."
"You mean that?"
He led her hand to his swollen shaft. "What do you think?"
"I think I should have taken more vitamins this morning."
"And I'm thinking there are still several positions we haven't tried."
Talon woke up in Sunshine's bed just as the sun set. He smiled in sleepy pleasure as he smelled the scent of turpentine and patchouli on his skin. Sunshine. She was still nestled in his arms, sound asleep. To his amazement, he felt his body starting to harden again.
After this afternoon, he should be sated for at least a day or two, if not for a full week.
For that matter, he shouldn't be able to move. Yet he wanted to take her again. Right now. He wanted to feel her arms and legs wrapped around him, holding him close as he lost himself to the sensation of her flesh sliding against his.
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Only Nynia had ever made him feel like this. He had been completely insatiable with her. To look at her was to burn for her. He'd never thought to find another woman so appealing. And yet all he wanted to do was spend the rest of the night inside Sunshine.
To feel her breath against his neck as he buried himself in her moist heat over and over again.
But he couldn't. He was supposed to meet Acheron at Jackson Square. Not to mention that there were Daimons on the street ready to kill, and he had innocent people to protect.
"Talon?"
Inwardly, he cringed at the sound of her sleepy voice. He'd hoped to make a quiet exit while she slept. How he hated messy exits.
"Evening, love," he murmured, kissing her brow. She smiled a smile that dazzled him.
"Are you leaving?"
"Yeah, I have to go meet someone."
"Okay," she said.
She got up from the bed, and wrapped a sheet around herself. "It was really great meeting you, Talon. Thanks for a wonderful day."