The orgasm stole her breath, beating through her with a hammering force. She came down sighing his name, and he drove her instantly back up with his talented fingers driving inside her.
Her breasts ached, and her nipples hardened even more. He rolled one nipple just as he pinched her clit, and she climaxed again, her legs going weak. He wrapped an arm around her waist, holding her still and forcing her to ride yet another cresting wave. She could only take what he was giving, and it was delicious.
Finally, she sagged against him, murmuring and kissing his chest. Had she ever felt this much alive? Oh, she’d lived for centuries, but had she really been alive?
He flipped her around and placed her hands on the smooth wooden bench that ran the length of the shower.
She blinked. “I’m not—” He grasped her hips with relentless hands, his cock probing her entrance. “Oh,” she sighed, leaning back against him.
Slowly, ruthlessly, he pushed himself inside her, forcing her internal muscles to relax and take him. Overcome, she bent over onto her elbows, letting her head drop. So much. He was so big, and he was behind her and definitely in control. At the thought, her body quaked around him.
“No. You wait.” He reached around and tugged a nipple, gaining her attention. “You wait until I’m ready.” Then he released her, gripped her hips, and pounded.
Hard and fast, powerful and devastating, he powered inside her, pulling her back to meet each thrust. She built hot and fast, needing that final detonation. “Please,” she whispered.
“Not yet, damn it.” He twisted one hand in her hair and drew her head up, his other fingers digging into her hip. Her neck elongated, and he scraped his teeth down it. “You’ll hold on for me. Because I tell you to.” The hammering increased in force, and with his body over hers, she was truly his.
The fire burned through her, and her body gripped him until she could feel his heart beat inside her. Every breath was a painful sob, but she couldn’t stop. Biting her lip, she tried to hold on.
He swelled inside her. “Now, sweetheart. Give me everything.”
Her body obeyed him before her mind caught his meaning. She clamped down on him. Then she shattered, crying out his name and shutting her eyes. Spasms overwhelmed her, stronger than before, igniting her every nerve. She gasped and sobbed, taking more of him.
He ground against her, his powerful body shuddering.
She murmured something, her body shutting down. Exhausted. So tired. So happy. So complete.
He was still over her, and he kissed her ear gently. “You can say it again.”
“I love you, Benjamin.” It was the truth, crazy as it seemed. Now her elbows gave out.
He withdrew and lifted her by the waist, setting her beneath the spray. “I care for you, Karma. I vow to you that I’ll protect you with everything I have. You’ll be safe, and I’ll get your girls back for you.” He kissed her gently on the nose.
Well, it was a start.
Chapter Thirty-One
Benny set the platter of Chateaubriand in the middle of the round table and took his humungous apron off. “You’re welcome. I cooked.” Yeah, he was the best cook among the Seven. Although, after he’d seen what Karma did with a simple potato dish, he realized he had some competition. Cooking with her had become almost as enjoyable as the hours they’d spent in the shower and then in bed.
Okay, not as enjoyable. Not even close.
His body was loose and his mind clear, and he owed that to the sweet female fussing over the green beans. He grasped her around the waist, lifted her up, and set her in a chair. “Sit and eat. You need nourishment.”
She slapped the hand at her waist. “Benjamin,” she admonished, embarrassment in her voice.
He grinned and took the seat next to her. It was way too late for him to pretend he had any manners. “Pour the wine, would you, Logan?”
Logan poured Opus One for everyone, handing the glasses down the line.
Benny looked at his family, feeling at home with Karma by his side. Logan and Mercy were making googly faces, but it didn’t gross him out like usual. Sam had already dug into the dinner like a starved wolf, and Garrett was eyeing the green beans. Shrugging, he reached for the bowl and dumped some on his plate.
Benny waited until Karma had served herself before filling his plate. “All right. Sam, you start.”
Sam washed down the steak with a generous gulp of the expensive wine. His eyes were dark but the color had returned to his rugged face. He looked like a cross between Zane and Logan with his square jaw and green eyes. Intelligence shone in those eyes, and he did nothing to hide it among family. “The Kurjans are assholes,” he said. Then he winced. “Sorry.”
Benny took a drink of the wine. “Call it like you see it. What else?”
Sam chewed thoughtfully and then swallowed. “You know, I think Jaydon has grand plans to become Ulric two-point-oh. If Ulric makes it home, I wouldn’t be surprised if Jaydon doesn’t try to do him in.”
“That’d be convenient,” Garrett said grimly. “How accurate are the rumors about Jaydon?” He looked at Karma.
She delicately wiped her mouth with one of the cloth napkins she’d found somewhere in the pantry. “Very accurate. Linda overheard him talking about it. I think that’s why there’s been a rush on gathering enhanced females. He is definitely going to attempt the ritual that Ulric performed centuries ago.”
Sam shook his head. “I’d be surprised if Dayne allowed it. When Ulric performed his ritual centuries ago, he broke all natural laws by killing one hundred enhanced females and using their blood to fuse his entire body into an impenetrable shield. The Kurjans want to keep enhanced females for themselves or for whatever Ulric ultimately has planned, right?”
Benny kept an eye on Karma’s plate to make sure she was eating before he answered. “Yeah. Supposedly Ulric wants to do away with all enhanced females except Kurjan Sotis, but I’ve never understood why.”
Karma shrugged. “I don’t know. I’ve never heard his plans or what his plans are believed to be.” She coughed. “I do understand that the only way Ulric can be killed is if he ingests the combined blood of the three Keys.”
Mercy winced. “So gross. I’m one of the Keys.”
Karma jumped. “I didn’t know that. Do you know the other two?”
Logan reached for a roll. “Grace Cooper, Adare’s mate, is a Key. We haven’t found the third one yet.”
“Maybe it’ll take centuries to find the third Key,” Karma said, her voice hopeful.
Benny wanted to agree, but in his gut, he knew it wasn’t true. Sometimes the world sped up as if rushing toward a countdown, and he could feel it happening now. The ritual was coming. He was glad that during his explorations of her body, he’d discovered she did not have the birthmark of a Key. Thank God. He looked at Garrett. “You get anything?”