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  “Lower. Right at the base.” His voice was hoarse with desire and she could feel him trembling slightly under her touch. “Gods, your hand feels good on me, Lilenta.”

  “I’m just…just trying to see what you’re talking about,” Liv murmured, wondering if she was trying to excuse her actions to him or herself. But she couldn’t help feeling secretly pleased. Touching him like this, being the one in control and feeling him react to her, was a heady sensation. The fact that she could make such a huge, muscular warrior tremble just from a few light, teasing strokes made her feel powerful in a way she never had before.

  “Go a little further and you’ll see. Nothing could make me react more than your soft little hand on me. Nothing but being deep inside you, bonding you, that is.”

  Trying not to picture what he was describing, Liv did as he directed, letting her fingers trail down to the very base of his thick shaft. The Kindred didn’t have much in the way of body hair she noted, so it was easy to see what he was talking about when she came to the area he’d indicated. And sure enough, just at the place where his shaft met his body, she felt something different—something not human.

  “My God,” she whispered as the area began to swell, forming a kind of ring of flesh that more than doubled the circumference of his shaft. “What…what is that?”

  “My mating fist.” Baird’s voice was low and strained and a quick look at his face showed that his eyes were pure molten gold.

  “But what…what is it for?” Liv wanted to stop touching him now but she felt almost hypnotized. The ridge of flesh around his base was smooth and firm and seemed hotter than the rest of his body. She tried to wrap her fingers around it and failed—he was much too large now. Like he wasn’t big enough to start with! She was so fascinated that it took her a moment to register Baird’s answer.

  “To tie us together when we have bonding sex,” he growled as she touched him. “It won’t fully inflate until the first time I enter you. But when I do—”

  “Wait a minute.” Liv looked up from her exploration. “You mean it gets even bigger?”

  “It will when I’m inside you, yes. It’s purpose is to fill you and keep us together for as long as it takes for me to bond you to me.”

  Her first impulse was to laugh. Surely he had to be joking! “You’re kidding, right?” she said, searching his burning eyes for a clue. “I mean, I’m not a porn star or anything. If we ever had sex—which we are so not going to—but if we did, I’d have a seriously hard time even accommodating your, uh, regular equipment. There’s no way this…” She let her fingers flick over the solid ridge of flesh surrounding the base of his shaft. “Would ever fit in me. No way in hell.”

  “Don’t worry about that, Lilenta. I know how tight you are. I was just touching you—remember?” The hunger was burning in his eyes again and Liv felt a flash of shame mixed with desire when she remembered how eager she had been to spread her legs and let him stroke into her. What’s wrong with me? I was really out of control!

  “Don’t remind me,” she muttered, pulling her hand away and crossing her arms over her chest. “And how can I not worry when you seem to seriously think you can fit something that size in me? It’s impossible.”

  “It’s not impossible,” Baird explained patiently. “As I make love to you the chemicals released by my body will trigger changes in yours and allow you to open yourself to me fully—you’ll feel no pain, only pleasure as we bond.”

  “No, I won’t feel pain or pleasure because we are not going to bond,” Liv said, trying to sound firm.

  “You’re just frightened, that’s all.” Baird’s voice was a soft growl. “You’ll feel differently when we’re close—when you’re under me, open for me. Then you’ll ache to be filled with my shaft. Every part of it.”

  For some reason his words, and the mental image they raised, were frighteningly seductive. There was no way she should want to let him do that to her—no matter what he said it was sure to be a painful experience. But part of her wanted it anyway.

  Liv felt a surge of panic. My God, he’s probably right—when he’s got me right where he wants me I’ll probably just give in! What about the way I was acting just a few minutes ago—rubbing against him, begging him to do it? If he hadn’t kept his promise not to I’d be pinned under him right now with him trying to force himself inside me. And God knows how long it could take—hours and hours with no end in sight. Not to mention that I’d be stuck here forever afterwards. I’ve got to stay away from him—far away.

  “Lilenta…” Baird reached for her but she shied away.

  “No, don’t touch me! In fact, I don’t think we should touch anymore at all.”

  Baird frowned. “What are you talking about?”

  Liv shook her head, her pulse pounding as all her old fears of being pinned down and helpless under the big alien male came back in a rush. “There’s something about you. I can’t…can’t seem to control myself when you get too close. When you touch me. And don’t tell me it’s my body reacting to yours because we ‘need’ each other again either,” she snapped, when he opened his mouth as if to reply. “I don’t care what causes it, I don’t like being out of control. Don’t like it that I can’t seem to stop myself from…from acting like some kind of animal in heat.”

  “I told you this would happen.” Baird shifted on the bed toward her but Liv pulled away again. He sighed and sat back. “Your body is in heat, Lilenta—to a certain extent anyway. And as long as we’re together you’ll get hotter and hotter. Having me inside you is the only thing that will ease you.”

  “Well then I guess I’ll just have to manage on my own because there is no way I’m letting you try to get your whole entire uh…self inside me.” Liv’s heart was still racing. “In fact, I don’t think I want you touching me at all anymore. It’s too dangerous.”

  Baird’s face was like a thundercloud. “You signed a contract, Olivia. This is our bathing week—you can’t deny me the right to wash you.”

  “Exactly—wash me. And that’s it.” Liv lifted her chin defiantly. “I’m pretty sure if I went over that contract with a fine tooth comb there wouldn’t be anything about you being able to rub me with fifty types of oil and lay on top of me and practically hump me through the mattress.”

  “I was scent marking you,” he protested. “Gotta do that in order to let other males know you’re mine.”

  “I’m not yours,” she flared at him angrily. “And I never will be! So you can wash me—fine, I can’t stop you. But nothing outside the bathing pool. That means no more naked massages with exotic oils. And absolutely no more marking, or whatever you call it.”

  “Fine.” Baird was so angry now his eyes were practically glowing. “But if I can’t mark you, then we’re not leaving the suite. Not with you smellin’ so hot and not having any of my scent on you.”

  Liv threw up her hands. “Great. Put me under house arrest—I don’t care. Just stay away from me.”

  “If that’s how you feel,” he said, his jaw clenched. “I told you once I wasn’t interested in taking what you didn’t want to give.”

  “That’s exactly how I feel,” Liv assured him. “And I’m not giving another inch.”

  “Fine.” He was still glaring at her but the pain was back in his eyes now—back to stay and Liv knew she was the cause of it. Suddenly she felt horrible.

  “Try to understand, Baird,” she pleaded softly. “I never asked for this—for our minds to align or for you to claim me. I never wanted any of it. I just…I just want to go home.”

  Baird closed his eyes briefly. “I wish I could let you. But I can’t, Olivia. I need you too damn much. I’m sorry.” He got off the bed and left just as he had the first time he’d brought her into the suite.

  Liv sat in the middle of the huge bed and wrapped her arms around her knees, trying not to cry. God, if only she could control herself better around him! It made her feel horrible, like the worst kind of tease to go so far with him and then refuse him