eyeswere big and brown, a rich brown, almost gold, filled with striking vulnerability and undeniable determination, offset stunningly by pale, gloriously long lashes.
Heâd never seen skin as fair and luminous as hers, not even on a vampire. Like the very moon heâd seen shining in the heavens, she was soft and radiant. Ethereal. His hands itched to reach out and caress her slowly, lingering and savoring, making sure she wouldnât shimmer away, an unattainable dream.
As to the clothing she wore, well, he vowed to keep her dressed exactly so for the rest of her life. The many strips of green grass hanging from her waist parted with her every breath, revealing succulent glimpses of her thighs. No, he hadnât wanted to find his mateâand a human, no lessâand he was angry that he had. But beneath the anger was a possessive hunger he couldnât deny. Didnât want to deny.
Heâd been pleasured by women (many, many women) for so many years heâd forgotten what it felt like to desire one on his own. To simply look and crave. Already his blood heated with a seemingly unquenchable fire, and his skin tightened. Mine. His muscles hardened. Mine.
Obviously she hadnât yet recognized him as her mate. In fact, she seemed to want only his disappearance. Humans, he inwardly scoffed. Standing as she was, she appeared untouchable, this mate of his, but touch her he would. He would die if he didnât.
Valerian paused, blinked, the words echoing through his mind. He would die if he didnât. How many times had a woman said something similar to him? That she would die if he didnât touch her? That she would die ifhe didnât fuck her? Heâd never understood that until just now, this moment, studying the little moonbeam.
She was essential to his being. Hate that fact, he might, but there it was.
As he drank her in, her lips parted slightly, as if she couldnât decide whether to suck in a breath or belt out a scream. Valerian wanted her to do both. Wanted to hear his name roll from her tongue as she panted and screamed in climax.
She was his mateâhis womanâand he would prove it to anyone who said otherwise. Even her. Oh, yes. His every cell knew it, knew she belonged to him. Never again would he be able to enjoy another woman. Enjoy? he thought. He almost laughed. Had he ever truly enjoyed a woman until now?
He wanted the moonbeam, with her ghostly hair and frosty skin. The moment he had seen her, bathed so prettily by the moonlight, heâd wanted her. The world around him had faded, and heâd seen only her. She radiated an untouchable veneer his every warrior instinct responded to and relished.
Gods, he wanted her. Just looking at her now, his body forgot about the dayâs excesses. He was starved for a taste of her.
But she had told him no. Several times. Sheâd run from him, too. Valerian hadnât yet tamped down his shock over that fact. Or his arousal. The warrior in him delighted in the challenge of changing her mind and making her desperate to have him.
His gaze flicked to the small dagger she held, upraised and ready, and the corners of his mouth twitched. Did she really think to keep him from her with such a puny blade?
Oh, but she had a lot to learn about a determined nymph warrior.
âGather all the unmated females,â he told his men, speaking in his native tongue, never taking his gaze from the object of his fascination.
She retreated a step. When she realized what sheâd done, she stilled. She straightened her shoulders, raised the blade higher and stepped back into place. Ah, a woman of courage. One who would fight to the death. He grinned, desiring her all the more.
âWhat do you want with us?â she demanded, using the same language the other surface females had used.
He barely heard her words; he was too entranced by the way her soft-as-petals lips moved so sensuously. By the pink little tongue heâd