Passion's Blood Read Online Free PDF Page B

exhaustion, having ridden at a merciless pace for days through lands ravaged by fire and pillage. He ordered meals delayed until pickets were set and the camp secured against attack. He had learned long ago the value of attention to detail when on the battlefield.
    Emric shrugged off his dusty cloak and tunic, seized a nearby bucket of water, and lifted it, sending the cool liquid splashing against his tired body. It did not soothe the fires raging within him.
    He turned wearily into his tent and dropped onto the straw-filled mattress. Fatigued as he was, sleep still avoided him. Heavy thoughts of the morning plagued him, for he knew they must face an opponent who not only greatly outnumbered them but was better prepared and rested. He searched his mind over and over for some advantage but could find none. The wisest course was to avoid open combat as long as possible unless the enemy marched for the interior.
    But Emric knew they would have to fight, for the Heldanners had no reason not to ride out at first light to crush him and his force like so many bothersome insects.
    He yearned for the peace of sleep, to leave the heavy responsibilities behind, if only for a brief time, and to escape into Leanna’s warm embrace. At last, the prince slipped into the dark haven of his dreams and there he found her …

    Leanna’s chamber was warm in the glow of candles and smelled faintly of sweet freesia. Emric heard her moan as she stretched back across her bed of soft, deep furs. Her hair spread across the velvet pillows, gleaming red in the dim light.
    Reaching up, she tangled her fingers in his dark hair and guided him down to her waiting body.
    Raising himself on one arm, he lowered his head to her breast and kissed the soft roundness. Her skin was like velvet and smelled of spring flowers. He pressed his face firmly against her breast, inhaling her fragrance. Arousal tightened wantonly in his belly. Shifting her legs apart, he stroked his hands up the length of her smooth ivory thighs.
    Slowly, he let his mouth kiss its way down her body, over her belly, and down to the soft copper curls below. His fingers traced her delicately, parting the silken curls to reveal her. His tongue licked out teasingly.
    Her cry of pleasure as his mouth caressed her told him how well he could please her.
    Shifting back upward, he suckled at her breast while his fingers entered her. Gently, he moved his fingers back and forth until he saw his desire reflected in her eyes. Her head rolled from side to side on the pillow, and her hands tangled feverishly in his hair before they slid down his back, her nails sinking into his flesh.
    “Please, my love …” she whispered. “Do not deny me.”
    Her words and her breathless sighs excited him beyond measure. He felt her hand reach out to find him. Freeing him, she brazenly caressed him as her hungry lips sought his. No, he would not deny her.

    The last vestiges of clothing were quickly cast aside. From the corner of his eye he caught the reflection of his crimson cloak on his armor and briefly shuddered, for it gleamed like newly shed blood. A small blue ribbon curled on the ground next to it.
    He looked back to Leanna, who lay beneath him, her lovely body naked in the half light of the fire. She nestled into the furs, arms reaching for him, legs parting for him. He lowered his body, hard with desire to possess her.
    She gasped when he entered her. Her arms twined round his neck and she opened her mouth for his tongue as she had opened her body to accept him. He joined their mouths as he had joined their bodies, tasting her sweetness.
    He filled her and in return, the emptiness within him was also filled. He felt her body move beneath him, and his hunger for her was so overpowering he feared he would hurt her with his superior strength. He fought against the powerful instinct that took hold of him, the timeless urge of the male animal to conquer and consume.
    She lay beneath him as delicate as a flower,