His voice was a rough velvet that sent tremors through her stomach. She felt his legs tremble when another shudder went through his body. He didn’t release her, not even when he sat down.
He leaned back in the chair, relaxing, even closing his eyes as she bent to him, lapping gently with her tongue. She liked the way the tension slipped from his face so she took her time, taking care of him while she had the chance.
His hand went to the top of her head. “You’re the most amazing woman in the world, Kitten. I never once imagined I’d ever have a woman like you.”
14
CATARINA Benoit would forever be his obsession. His love. Eli hadn’t known it was possible to feel the way she made him feel. He was totally at peace. He couldn’t remember a time, from the moment he’d entered puberty, that he’d ever felt at peace. Every muscle in his body was warm and relaxed. He could barely open his eyes, just enough to see her. To watch her.
She was the most beautiful, exotic woman on earth. He hadn’t expected her to care for him, not in the ways she showed him care. The minute attention to detail. She was meticulous when it came to the effort she put in lavishing attention on him.
He managed to slide his hand from his thigh to slip his fingers back into her long, dark hair. He’d spent a good deal of his life traveling the world looking for the right woman and he’d been close to giving up. There was only one. He’d known that from the moment he began having sex with women. He’d known because his leopard was doubly dangerous around the women and he didn’t always trust that he could control the animal.
The moment he’d laid eyes on Catarina, everything had been different, even the sex. Especially the sex. He’d had great sex before, but he’d never imagined the places her body could take him. Mostly, he never imagined the depth of emotion she could create inside him.
He was a difficult man. He knew himself very well. Shifters had to be in control at all times, especially the males. He lived for control, and he knew he was domineering. There had always been a part of him that feared a woman wouldn’t be able to take his rough insistence on dominance. More, he was rough and he liked his sex that way. He certainly hadn’t expected a woman who could take his kind of sex and give back the way she did.
He studied her face. Her beautiful, flawless face. Her long lashes and gorgeous eyes. Her perfect sinful mouth. It didn’t seem possible that she could be his. He needed to take better care of her. Instead of letting his foul temper smolder for days, he should have recognized that she would be shy with him.
That hadn’t really occurred to him either because she was completely uninhibited when they had sex. He knew he loved her. The terrible feeling inside him couldn’t be anything but love. It ate him up and made him look at himself, really look at who and what he was. With her, he had to be better. He wanted to be better. She deserved better.
“I can’t tell you how much you mean to me, Catarina,” he said. He had to clear his throat when her gaze jumped to his and he nearly fell into her eyes. His voice growled, his emotions so strong, so intense he nearly shook with them.
She sat back on her heels, her eyes soft. Something else was there too and his belly knotted fast. She was definitely afraid of her feelings for him, but she had them. At least the beginnings of feelings, and he wanted to nurture that, make certain it grew.
He reached down and drew her gently to him, cuddling her in his lap. Her body was very warm, despite the cool evening. She fit. There on his lap. Wrapped in his arms. She fit. He caught up the bottle of water he had sitting by his coffee and handed it to her, nuzzling the top of her head.
“I’ve fallen in love with you.” He stared over her head into the night as he made the confession. His heart twisted into knots. His blood surged through his body, a rush of adrenaline at the stark, raw admission he never thought he’d ever make to anyone. He felt as if he was baring his soul, and maybe he was. “I don’t know how it happened, Kitten. I was so busy worrying about your leopard for my leopard, I suddenly found myself completely obsessed with you.”
He could feel the change in her instantly. She went very still. She didn’t pull away. Catarina stayed snuggled into him, a part of him, curled up like a little cat on his lap, but she didn’t move a muscle, not even to bring the water to her mouth.
He tipped her head up to force her gaze to meet his. “It’s true. I love you more than anything on this earth. It isn’t about the leopards anymore. I don’t give a damn about Rafe Cordeau or the DEA. For me, there never can be anyone else but you.”