Once Forbidden (5 page)

Devlin
narrowed his eyes. “You didn’t wait to hear what I was going to do third,” he
said, lowering his head and giving her a deep kiss.

Sarah
twined her fingers in his hair and held him against her, loving the feel of his
lips on her own. The man could kiss. He nipped on her lower lip and she groaned
as he deepened the kiss, driving his tongue deep inside. When he finally lifted
his head, they were both breathing hard. “What were you going to do third?” she
asked, her voice breathless.

“I
was going to lean you over the vanity,” he said huskily, “and slide deep inside
you.”

Sarah
was instantly aroused. Not in a hundred years would she have ever believed that
she’d get turned on by the idea of being spanked and then made love to
afterward—but right then, she wished she’d taken her time coming back into the
bathroom!  “Oh.”

There
was such a wealth of disappointment in her single word that Devlin laughed. Devlin
took her small hands into his and backed to the vanity. He stopped when his
legs hit the bench. He released one of her hands and pulled the bench out, and
then sat down and tugged her down onto his lap. “Disappointed?”

Sarah
looked at him very seriously for a moment, and decided to be honest with him. “A
little.”

“You
know I’d never hurt you, don’t you Sarah?” he said.

Sarah
nodded. It felt good, sitting here on his lap. She’d never done this before. She
felt safe sitting here with his arms wrapped around her. Of its own accord, her
hand moved up to his face. “I know.”

“Stand
up a minute, Sarah,” he ordered gently.

Sarah
looked at him, a question in her eyes, but she stood before him. Was he really
going to actually spank her? Her heart beat a little faster. Something else she’d
read about in books. But was it something she really wanted to experience first
hand?

Devlin
smiled. “Trust me.” He pulled her over his lap very gently. His hand moved to
her skirt and he edged it up very slowly, his fingers caressing each inch of skin
as it was exposed. When it was at her waist, he rested his hand on her bottom. She’d
worn a thong, and her white skin was soft against his hand.

Sarah
felt a surge of desire as his hand rested on her cool bottom. She tensed,
waiting to see what he was going to do now. She closed her eyes tightly. It was
an embarrassing position, but exciting in a way, too. In the next instant, she
felt the gentlest of smacks against the soft flesh of her bottom and she
released the breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding in a little whoosh.
“Oh.”

“Sometimes
good girls get spanked, Sarah,” Devlin said, a smile in his voice. He continued
to spank her gently, his hand raising and falling on the resilient flesh of her
bottom.

Sarah
wiggled against his thighs, getting more and more turned on by the second. “Please,”
she whispered.

“What?”
he said, pausing.

“I
don’t know!” Sarah said. She needed something, but she had no idea what.

Devlin
smiled. He started spanking again, but he let his hand wander between her
thighs, moving the edge of the panties aside to finger her, moving in and out
of her with thrusts of his fingers between spanks.

Within
a few moments of the dual sensations, Sarah felt a climax building and groaned
as he started to spank a little harder and the fingers thrust a little faster
and deeper. Just when she was on the edge of her release, though, he stopped. She
jerked her head around and looked at him.

“Stand
up,” he said, his voice guttural.

Sarah
got to her feet shakily. Her bottom was warm, but she was
hot
. She
wanted him, and she wanted him now. She looked at him—needed him. “Please.”

Devlin
got to his feet quickly and unbuckled his belt and lowered his jeans and boxers.
He moved Sarah to the vanity and leaned her over it. He lowered her thong. “Hang
on,” he said, and drove inside her in one deep, powerful stroke.

Sarah
lifted her head and could see herself in the mirror. Of course, she couldn’t
see him, but it was obvious she was being loved—and thoroughly. Her pupils were
dilated and her cheeks were flushed. Her body jerked with each powerful thrust
of his hips, and she could feel his fingers biting into her hips as he held her.
“Yes,” she moaned. “Harder.”

Devlin
groaned deep in his throat and held her tighter and moved faster and harder
into her.

It
was over in only a few moments and Sarah slumped against the vanity, exhausted.
“That was…something.”

Devlin
chuckled and caressed her bottom possessively. The skin was barely pink. He
lowered his head and kissed each cheek. “Remember, that was a good girl
spanking, love.”

Sarah
giggled and garnered enough energy to turn her head and looked at him. “And
there is more than one kind of spanking?”

“Oh
yes,” he assured her. “Naughty girls get an entirely different kind of
spanking.”

Sarah
flushed. “I can’t believe I let you do that,” she admitted more to herself than
to him.

Devlin
helped her stand straight and turned her around in his arms. “Did you enjoy
it?” he asked knowingly.

“You
know I did,” she said, flushing.

Devlin
grew very serious. “Sarah, there is nothing to be embarrassed about. What two
do together as long as they both enjoy it is never wrong—as long as no one is
hurt. It was something different that we both enjoyed. There’s nothing wrong
with that.”

Sarah
was still blushing, but she gave him a shy smile and nodded, wrapping her arms
around his waist.

“Are
you ready to go to the land Down Under?” he asked.

Sarah
paused a moment. “But what about….” Her hands moved to her face.

Devlin
shook his head and placed a finger over her lips. “Everyone will see you as you
see yourself,” he said quietly. Even if he hadn’t been able to read her mind
when he wanted to, he’d have been able to read the concern on her face. He
couldn’t keep up the illusion when he wasn’t with her, but as long as they were
close, those around her would see what she saw. It was draining, but it was
what she needed.

Humans
could be the cruelest creatures of all—the inhumanity they showed to their
fellow man never ceased to amaze him. This woman, this valiant woman that had
risked her very life for one of their children—was shunned now. It filled him
with rage anew.

Sarah
felt his muscles tighten beneath her fingers and her gaze lowered. “I’m sorry,”
she whispered.

“For
what, love?” he asked gently, keeping his voice soft.

“I
don’t know,” she admitted. “For whatever I did to make you angry.”

If
she didn’t look so hurt, he’d have been almost tempted to chuckle. Already she
could sense his feelings. “Right emotion—wrong reason, Sarah. You did nothing
wrong. I was thinking if you must know, about the people that have hurt you—the
people that put that look into your beautiful eyes.”

“I
understand why they look at me the way they do, Devlin. I know I scare them and
make them uncomfortable.”

Devlin
bit back a sharp retort and touched her ruined cheek. “They should see the
woman I see,” he said huskily.

Her
answering smile was beautiful. “I think you’re very good for me.”

Devlin
grinned. “I think if we don’t leave here very soon we will still be here when
the sun rises in Australia,” he teased. Devlin bent down and picked up her
panties and held them out to her. “Forget something?”

Sarah
reached for them, but he held them high out of her reach. “Give them to me!”

Devlin
shook his head, his eyes gleaming. “I think I’ll keep them.”

Sarah
gave him a sharp look. “I’m not leaving this bathroom with no underwear on!”

“Care
to make a wager on that?” Devlin asked.

Chapter Six

Before
Sarah could even argue with him, in the mere blink of an eye, they were out of
the small confines of her bathroom and standing on the street outside of the
Sydney Opera House. Sarah stood staring, transfixed at the sight.

She
was slightly disoriented by the instantaneous travel and her legs shook. She
leaned against Devlin for support.

Devlin
chuckled and wrapped his arm around her, steadying her. “You lose the bet.” When
she only nodded, he held her tighter. “Give it a minute, love. The
disorientation will subside in a few moments.”

“Would
I be able to do this?” she asked very carefully. She stood very still, staring
at one of the most beautiful landmarks she’d ever seen. One she’d always
promised herself she’d see one day.

Devlin
started to answer her, but then froze, listening. He moved in front of her,
using his excellent vision to see what danger he’d sensed. Nothing seemed out
of the ordinary. Few people were around at this late hour. Still; there was
danger. He was sure of it. “We must go, Sarah,” he said quietly.

Sarah
tensed, sensing his urgency. “Something’s wrong.”

His
head nodded once. In the next instant, they were back safely in her small
bathroom.

Sarah’s
head was spinning from the transportation. Certainly someone had seen them
appear and disappear like that? “Devlin, what was it?”

“I
don’t know, Sarah. I sensed danger. Someone was watching us—I wasn’t going to
risk you by sticking around and finding out whom or what they might have
wanted,” he explained.

Sarah
paled. “Is this something else I’d have to look forward to?” she asked tightly.
Her head was still spinning and her heart was racing. She backed away from him,
searching his face.

Devlin
ran his hand through his hair in a rare show if exasperation. “No,” he said,
keeping his voice level. “I’ve never sensed it before. I thought it better to
be safe than sorry.”

“Surely
someone saw us appear and disappear.”

He
shook his head. “No, I always plan for that. The people around us simply think
we walked away.”

Her
head was reeling. She needed to sit down. Now. Stumbling, she sat on the vanity
bench. “I just don’t understand any of this. Were we somehow followed? Do you
have an enemy?”

He
realized that she was right. It was animosity he’d felt. Hatred. “Perhaps,” he
allowed. “I need to go. I’ll damn well find out,” he promised. “Don’t leave the
apartment, Sarah. I want you to stay inside until I come back. Promise me.”

She
couldn’t miss the intensity in his voice. “All right. I won’t go anywhere. Do
you think I’m in danger?”

“I
don’t think so, but I’m not taking chances with your safety, Sarah. I need to
know you’re safe.”

Sarah
nodded. “I promise I’ll stay here. You’ll come let me know what’s going on?”

“Yes.
Don’t let anyone in, Sarah. Not until I know what’s going on.”

“I
won’t,” she said again.

Satisfied,
he nodded. He lowered his head and gave her a hard kiss. “Think of me,” he
ordered, then was gone.

Think
of me.
As if she had any choice, she thought a little wildly. In the last
twenty-four hours, she’d been across the world and back in the blink of an eye.
She’d let a vampire make love to her in the most decadent of ways.

“What’s
wrong with me?” she asked aloud with a groan.

Still
shaky, she left the bathroom and went out to the bedroom. She changed from the
skirt into a comfortable pair of sweats—and put on a pair of underwear. Remembering
that he still had hers made her flush again.

She’d
never been so wanton. She hadn’t been a virgin, certainly. She was
twenty-seven, after all. There had been men in her life in the past—even ones
she’d thought herself in love with.

None
of them compared on any level with Devlin.

Although
he’d assured her he wasn’t controlling her mind, how could she be sure? She’d
never thought to protest any of the things he’d done with and to her. Not once.
She was still tender from his lovemaking. Even now, her body wanted him.

Just
thinking of him lying over her—his penis deep inside her—made her grow hot and
moist. She wanted him still. Could he control her mind from a distance? Was he
hiding somewhere within the apartment?

She
looked around frantically, and then shook herself. Of course he wasn’t. It was
daylight. He was somewhere dark—of that much she was reasonably sure.

Lord,
but she was tired. She padded to the kitchen and made a pot of coffee. She knew
she’d never be able to sleep until he came back. There were so many questions,
and she needed answers to them.

Sarah
opened her refrigerator and pulled out the makings for a sandwich. She hadn’t
eaten since—she couldn’t remember. Eating was necessary, she knew it, but she
wasn’t really hungry. Quickly she slapped together a ham sandwich to go with
the coffee and sat down at her small table.

What
was she going to do about Devlin? About her life? She couldn’t imagine living
the rest of her life hiding away in her apartment, nor could she imagine never
seeing the light of day again. With a sigh, she sat the plate with her
impromptu lunch aside half uneaten.