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He followed her, and before she could finish speaking, he cupped her hands and pushed them against his chest, holding them both with one of his own.

“When will you accept that I do not care what you are, or what you have done?”

He leaned down to press his lips against hers while he slid his free hand around her body once more. The kiss was gentle when she thought he would be rough. When he squeezed her fingers lightly, her lungs tightened in her chest.

He... cares for me.Just knowing that made the burning piece of tenderness within her spread with welcoming warmth instead.

The moment she parted her lips to return his kiss, his tongue swept inside her mouth. Geryon wasn’t patient enough to go at her pace, his kisses hungry and messy.

She took in the sweet taste of him, and desire flipped in her belly, blossoming to life.I want him.

She had feared him catching up to her, because she knew if he did, Valerie wouldn’t want to fight it. After his words, she wanted to fight him even less.

Her head could deal with this later.

Right then, right now, all she wanted was to believe his words, even if it was just for a moment. She wanted to believe he shared in her feelings. She wanted to believe what she had done didn’t matter, that darkness was not lurking around the corner to grab her in its ugly clutches.

For once in her life, Valerie wanted to let her heart take over. She was confused, uncertain, but just for one night, she didn’t want to experience this terrible pang in her chest.

She wanted to ache in other ways.

Valerie slipped her arms around his shoulders and pressed her body against his, arching into him.

I do not have to promise tomorrow.But she could let him have now.

He gripped her tighter as a groan fell from him. “Nhn. Your scent...” He pulled back to shudder. “Changed so rapidly.”

Taking his hand away from her, he pulled on the tie of his cloak while he pushed her back against the desk she’d been using earlier. It slipped from his shoulders when he crashed his lips against hers again.

This time, his gentleness faded, leaving scorching kisses in its wake. He spoke between them with such a haunting croak, it made her ears tingle.

“Are you going to try to run from me, force me to shove this” – he thrust his cock against her, showing her how hard and long it was already – “inside you before you do?” His hand lowered to grab her backside and grip it tightly, almost lifting her. “Or can I unclothe you first?”

Instead of answering, Valerie pulled Geryon so she could crash their lips back together, her tongue slipping inside his mouth. She lowered her hand and rubbed her palm over the bulge of his shaft. It was her own way of silently telling him she had no intention of stopping.

He gave a pant and broke away from her mouth to bring his lips against her neck. He started to undo the ties at the front of her simple dress at the same time.

“No more running away,” he demanded.

She thought he was going to be soft with his mouth, would give her the little kisses that sometimes stole her breath. Instead, he bit her hard, like he once had on the back of her neck.

Skin tore. Blood welled. A gasp left her, and she tensed against him – accidentally squeezing his shaft she’d been stroking.

She stemmed her grimace when his teeth dug deeper.It hurts.

She was so distracted by the pain that it was only when he released his bite that she realised he’d pulled her dress to her waist. It caught on the slight flare of her hips.

When he licked at the wound, a ripple of goosebumps cascaded wildly down her body at the titillating sting. He brought his free hand forward to rub the pad of his thumb against one of her nipples, and it tightened under his touch.

His other hand rose to caress the bare skin of her back, his fingertips a feather-light touch against her.

One of the things that always drove her to Geryon was he was contradicting with his touches. One part of him would be rough, like his mouth and teeth, while others would be such a gentle touch that it tingled her skin. Her muscles leapt at each sensation in different ways.

It satisfied all parts of her. Soft, and yet mean. Rough, yet gentle. Forceful, yet coaxing.

Another shiver ran down her spine when he skimmed his hand over her hips and under her dress with such a silky touch it had her softening. He pushed her dress further down, and it eventually fell from the curve of her backside so he could grasp her freely.

Her thighs twitched at each flick of his thumb over her nipple, her abdomen tightening. Every time she felt desire roll, that growing pool of wetness at her core became damper.