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“Does it hurt?”

A muscle ticked in his jaw. “No.”

“Hmm.”

Leah did it again, running her fingers down another segment, and watched as Julian’s nostril flared and his erection twitched. She smiled.

She walked around to the back, her foot hitting something on the floor. Glancing down, she saw it was her purse.

The gun.

The stake.

Leah swallowed. Should she tell him? No, not now.

Tonight was for her. Tomorrow she would worry about Dmitri. Tomorrow, maybe, she could find the courage to tell Julian the truth.

Once she was behind him, Leah traced the back of the wings lovingly. It was rougher than the inside, leather compared to silk. Curious, she leaned over and pressed her lips to it, noting how Julian tensed. Before she could explore further, Julian expanded them. She watched, mesmerized, as they disappeared into his back.

“I’m not done,” she complained.

“You’re done when I say you are.” He growled and whirled to face her.

Her body throbbed in anticipation. She should be scared. He was so much bigger. So much stronger than she was. Leah took an involuntary step back.

Julian froze. “Do you want to stop?”

“No.” Her entire being, body and soul, wanted him. The fact he’d stop if she asked, even at this point, soothed her fears and hesitations.

Julian was not Dmitri, never would be.

He would never hurt her.

She was as certain of that as the belief the sun would rise tomorrow.

Stepping closer, she slanted her mouth over his, pouring all her desire into that kiss. His lips parted, his tongue met hers with the same insatiable need firing in her blood. His hand cupped the back of her neck, and he plundered her mouth while his other hand held her hip and pulled her firmly against him.

And they were back. Back to that place where there were no thoughts but this moment, nothing but pure and burning hunger for each other.

Without breaking the kiss, Julian walked her back until her knees pressed against the bed. Gently, he laid her back until he was on top of her. Only then did he stop and let her breath again.

He was staring down at her with an unreadable expression. It took Leah a moment to recognize tenderness. No one had ever looked at her like that. Her already pounding heart skipped a beat.

The expression softened his harshly angled features and made him more human. Not the Ruler of Vegas, but Julian.

Her Julian.

“You’re beautiful.” The words came from the depth of her soul.

His lips quirked. “That’s not a compliment.”

“It is. Trust me.”

Leah thought he would kiss her again, but he only pecked the corner of her lips before trailing a line of kisses down her jaw, teasing and taunting her. Julian set about exploring her with his mouth and his hands. Leah lost herself in his kisses, in his touch. When his hand closed over one of her breasts, she arched into him with a whimper.

His mouth nipped at the curve of her neck and sent shivers down her spine. Leah knew he wouldn’t drink. He wouldn’t claim her, but the way he kissed her neck, laving it with his tongue, drove her mindless with lust. His fangs scratched her in that sensitive area and her core clenched with need.

She didn’t want him to stop, but she wasn’t sure how long she could take this, especially when his mouth closed over her straining nipple.