“I’m yours to command, querida,” he murmured.

Just for a moment she hesitated, and he smiled as he realized she was battling a flare of nerves. So far he had always taken control of their lovemaking. Now, she struggled to gather the courage to take matters in her own hands.

To take him into her hands.

He swallowed a low groan at the mere thought.

“Very well,” she at last managed to husk. “Roll on your back.”

Cezar readily followed her command, rolling until he was flat on his back. Anna paused another moment, then with a bold motion she sat up and before he could guess her intent, she was straddling his hips and gazing down at him with a tiny smile.

Cezar hissed, grasping the covers to prevent himself from jerking her downward and bringing a swift, explosive conclusion to the game.

If she was in the mood to play, then by God, they would play. And play. And play. And play.

Even if it killed him.

Easily feeling the tremors that shook his body, she held up a warning finger.

“Lie still.”

Cezar gritted his teeth, his fingers nearly ripping through the mattress as she calmly grabbed the edge of her tiny T-shirt and yanked it over her head. He didn’t need the candlelight to appreciate the beautiful thrust of her breasts or the smooth curve of her waist, or the ivory perfection of her skin.

“Dios…” he groaned, his hips thrusting upward to rub his erection against the thin strip of satin that was all that covered her moist core. “You’re so bloody beautiful.”

“You once thought me a wallflower and a…shrew, wasn’t it?” she demanded, her hands shifting to his shirt and making swift work of his buttons.

He struggled to think as her fingers explored his bared chest, circling his nipples before heading ever lower. It was the sweetest torture he had ever endured.

“I wanted you from the moment you entered that room, Anna Randal,” he growled, his hands shifting to run up her bare thighs. “You might be a shrew, but you’re my shrew.”

She chuckled softly as she slowly leaned forward and pressed her lips to his. “I watched you from the shadows, you know. You were so handsome, so exciting.” She gave his lower lip a teasing nip. “So far above me.” Her tongue trailed down his jaw, wrenching a groan from his throat. “And now I have you beneath me.”

He arched his back as a surge of pleasure raced through him. “You can keep me here as long as you want.”

“As long as I want?” Her lips skimmed down his throat, her hair spilling over his chest, the tips of her breasts brushing his skin. “That’s a rather dangerous offer.”

“Not nearly so dangerous as teasing a vampire,” he growled, his hands skimming up so he could rip off the delicate underwear.

“Behave yourself.” She nipped at his stomach. “You’re supposed to be lying still.”

He hissed as her hands began tugging at the zipper of his pants. “I may be undead, but I’m not made of stone, querida.”

Tugging his pants down, Anna was forced to pause to yank off his shoes before she could complete her task. Once she had him bare she straddled his legs and began crawling back up his body, her gaze squarely on his straining erection.

“You may not be made of stone, but there’re some parts of you that are as hard as a rock.”

His arousal twitched, silently pleading for her touch, even as he ruthlessly sought to control the passion that was swiftly raging out of control.

The fire that burned inside him threatened to turn him to ash on the spot.

“Dios, Anna, I can’t take much more.”

She slowly smiled, clearly pleased with her power over him. “Patience, Conde Cezar.”

Patience? Patience?

He could write a book on patience.

But after two centuries of wanting and longing for this woman, patience was not top on his list of priorities.

“Patience is highly overrated, Anna Randal,” he groaned.

That wicked smile curved her lips. “Maybe I can change your mind.”

On the point of assuring her that nothing could change his mind, not in this moment, Cezar gave a strangled shout and nearly shot off the bed as Anna shifted upward and took his straining shaft into her mouth.

He could die in this moment and be a happy vampire, he decided as she used her tongue to make his torture complete.

Oh, so, so, so happy.

His hips lifted off the bed as she enthusiastically explored every quivering inch of him, seeming to take special delight in tearing moans and groans from his raw throat.

At last Cezar could bear no more. One more lick and the entire game would be over.

Reaching down he grasped her arms and jerked her to sprawl on top of him. She sighed as her legs fell on either side of his hips, her slick core pressed to his erection and her hair draping around him like a river of honey silk.

Dios. Until this moment he hadn’t truly believed that there could be a paradise on earth.

“Anna, we can practice my patience skills later, I need to be inside you,” he groaned, his fingers skimming up her inner thighs to stroke through her moist heat.

“I…yes,” she breathed, bending down to kiss him with such tenderness that Cezar shuddered with bliss.

This woman—this wonderful, precious woman was his.

And he would give his life to keep her safe.

Stroking and teasing until she was at last pleading for release, Cezar gripped her hips and with one smooth thrust he entered her.

With his lips, he caught her moan of satisfaction, careful to keep his fangs from grazing her fragile flesh. The last thing he needed was to accidentally take her blood in the heat of the moment.

Lifting his hips from the bed, Cezar angled himself even deeper, the pleasure so intense that he had to pause a moment to simply allow himself to absorb the exquisite sensation.

“Cezar,” Anna groaned, her fingers tangled in his hair.

He hissed. “Am I hurting you?”

“God, no. It’s…”

“It’s what?” he demanded.

“I can sense everything you’re feeling.” She pulled back, her hazel eyes glowing in the pale light. “It’s as if you’re a part of me.”

“I am.” He shifted his hands to frame her face as he began to stroke in and out of her in a determined rhythm. “You hold my heart, my very soul in your hands, querida.”

“Cezar.”

Her head once again lowered and their lips tangled as Cezar continued to thrust deep inside her, his entire body humming with a joy that he had never dreamed existed.

Wow.

Anna decided that the word pretty much summed up what had just occurred between her and Cezar.

Well, maybe super duper wow.

Struggling to catch her breath, she snuggled next to the gorgeous vampire on the bed, feeling amazingly at peace considering in the past few hours she’d been ripped through a portal, nearly killed by an angry fairy, and woken up mated to a vampire.

Of course, it really was on par with how her days seemed to go lately.

No, that wasn’t quite true, she thought with a tiny smile. Everything had changed.

With a sense of wonderment she opened herself to her awareness of Cezar’s feelings. She was aware of his sated satisfaction, his pleasure in holding her in his arms, his restless anger that she was still in danger, and an odd fear that she was to be taken away from him.

It was beautiful and baffling and most of all…extraordinary.

She would never, ever be alone again.

For the rest of eternity, no matter what happened, Cezar would be a part of her.

Unaware that Cezar was closely watching the various expressions flit over her face, she gave a startled blink when he stroked a finger over her lips.

“I’m not sure I trust that smile, querida,” he said, his voice a pleasant rumble as she rested her head on his chest. “What are you thinking?”

She paused, then, tilting back her head, she met his curious gaze. “Tell me about the rest of the mating ceremony.”

His expression was instantly wary. “Anna?”

“You said it wasn’t completed,” she prompted, her eyes narrowing as she easily sensed he was guarding his emotions. “What else does it take?”

His fingers traced a path through her hair. “It would first take your willing desire to become my mate. You would have to be committed without reservation and without fear.”

She smiled wryly. Just a few days ago she would have been convinced that no one could enter a relationship without at least a few reservations. After all, there was nothing more terrifying than opening your life and heart to another.

Now, however, she knew that she was prepared to leap headfirst, without a parachute or safety net, with this man.

No, not man. Vampire.

“And then?”

His dark eyes flickered, as if in pain. “And then I would take your blood.”

“That’s it?”

He forced a smile to his stiff lips. “I suppose you could dance naked around the bed or sing, ‘I’m bringing sexy back,’ if you want.” His arms tightened around her, his head bending so he could plant tiny kisses over her cheek. “In fact, we don’t even have to be mated for you to do that.”