"Yes."

"d.a.m.n. Why didn't you...?"

She felt him start to draw back again and increased her hold on him. "Please," she begged. "Please do this. Tonight. Now."

"Holy s.h.i.t. What is this? You're looking for a stud to take your cherry?"

She knew what a stud was, and although there weren't any cherry trees near where her people lived, they'd traded for the delicious dried fruit. "Yes," she said, hoping that' s what he wanted to hear.

"s.h.i.t."

"I-I have come so far," she managed. "What I ask is not so much, is it? Surely it is not so hard for you do to." If she kept him inside her, would a little of his seed dribble into her? Would it be enough?

"Lady, this is hardly a hardship on me. But d.a.m.n it, a virgin."

"I thought you would want-"

"I want. Believe me, I want." He took a ragged breath. "s.h.i.t, I'm going to burn in h.e.l.l for this."

"No, you will not burn," she said although she didn't know what he was talking about.

"I hope to h.e.l.l you're right. What a-you're sure about this?"

"Yes." Yes!

Apparently that was the answer he wanted to hear because he stopped trying to draw away and pushed himself deep into her again. While they'd been talking-and even before that when she'd felt the pain-she'd lost touch with at least some of her inner volcano. But its strength hadn't been spent. It waited for her, ready to grow and heat again.

How could a man be so strong? She understood the kind of muscles needed to hunt, farm, even fight, but this? He pushed and pushed at her, jolting both of them so she wasn't sure she was still on the ground. Maybe he'd speared her and was carrying her along.

Along where?

Her cheeks were so very hot, as were her arms and b.r.e.a.s.t.s and stomach. Most of the fever, however, was centered in her baby-cave. She felt enough discomfort to know she'd be sore once their mating was over, not that it mattered.

"Virgin. Virgin. d.a.m.n."

She wanted to tell him-tell him something. But he had become part of her. Her cave felt as if it was trying to empty itself and suck all of him into her at the same time. His thrusts increased in intensity; he grunted with each breath. Suddenly something warm and wet flooded her cave, and he rammed into her like a stallion mounting a mare. She rode the wave, sensed it rise up around her, cover her. Drown her.

"Ah-ah!"

Chapter Five.

"Why didn't you tell me you were a virgin?" Taron demanded when, finally, he could talk again. Maia-that was her name, wasn't it-was lying beside him, looking for all the world as if she'd been pole-axed. He wasn't all the way back to the here and now himself, but enough progress had been made that he at least had a toehold on reality.

"Would you not have mated with me if you had known?"

Like him, she was drenched in sweat. He didn't need to ask to know he wasn't the only one who'd come. s.h.i.t, she'd had a climax during her first s.e.x act. Either he was stud of the year or this was one s.e.xy broad.

"Mated? All right, if that's what you want to call it, who am I to argue? And no, I wouldn't have gone at it the way I did if I'd known, that's for sure," he admitted. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you."

"You did not. Not really."

Noting that she was trembling, he pulled her onto her side and into his embrace. It was cool enough that they wouldn't be able to lay here in the buff much longer, but he'd take all he could get. h.e.l.l, the last thing he wanted to do tonight-or for the foreseeable future-was let go of her.

"Look, let's don't play games, all right?" he said. "The way you came onto me-h.e.l.l, I figured you had more experience than I did, and that's saying a lot."

When she didn't ask for an accounting of his experiences and tentatively-at least it seemed tentative-curled down enough that she could kiss his nipple, he went on. "I've only had one other virgin. And since I was in a like condition, it was pretty awkward all the way around. You're so uninhibited, prancing around the next thing to naked-what gives?"

"Gives?"

Guessing this was going to be another of those conversations that went nowhere, he tried to rub away the gooseb.u.mps on her shoulder. Before long, his effort progressed to what he could reach of her flattened breast with their bodies sealed together the way they were.

"Look, I'd like to know one thing," he managed despite the stirring of a certain part of his anatomy. "I need to know. Are you on the pill? Maybe you're wearing a patch. IUD?"

"Yes," she whispered after a too-long silence.

If he'd been set up-"I'm holding you to that," he said firmly. "Believe me, lady, you better not be lying to me." She didn't say anything, which made him feel more than a little uncomfortable. "You don't sound as if you're from around here," he said in an attempt to pull more out of her. "Where do you live?"

Instead of answering, she arched her back, giving him greater access to her b.r.e.a.s.t.s. Despite her somewhat roughened fingers and the calluses on her heels that told him she spent most of her time barefoot, the rest of her lush and freely-offered body was silken. Maybe that's what came from clean living, not that he knew what she did for a living, where she came from, who the h.e.l.l she was, whether she was wearing a wire and had been hired by the compet.i.tion, unimportant things like that.

Her nipples had turned into not too small pebbles, and seemed several degrees warmer than the rest of her b.r.e.a.s.t.s. If someone put a gun to his head, he couldn't say how many b.r.e.a.s.t.s he'd been invited to explore, and after awhile he'd come to the conclusion that they were all pretty much the same. Yes, there were differences in size, color, position, sensitivity, but since they all existed to serve the same basic purpose, there wasn't all that much to be said about them.

Something, however, was different with Maia's. He just didn't know what it was- only knew he hadn't come close to being done with them.

Or with her.

He repositioned her so they were sitting up and her back was now against his chest, and he'd cradled-strange that he'd think of it like that-her legs between his. He'd managed to prop his a.s.s and lower back against a clump of gra.s.s, and although it was far from the most comfortable back rest he'd ever had, he didn't care. Strangely, he cared only a little that his once again alert c.o.c.k was being smashed by her a.s.s.

Her head rested against his left shoulder. Her hands lay unmoving on his thighs. The message in her open-to-him body was about as basic as it could get. No fool he, he alternately played with her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, stomach, hip bones, even curled himself around her so he could gain access to her m.u.f.f and the lush c.u.n.t underneath.

The first time he cupped her p.u.s.s.y and pressed down, she responded by grinding the back of her head into his collar bone. She was leaving finger-tip sized divots in his thighs. It had been an experiment-at least that's what he told himself-a test to see whether he'd made her so sore that her p.u.s.s.y was incapable of registering pressure. Obviously it wasn't.

Encouraged, or maybe the truth was he had no control over what he was doing, he spread his fingers to increase his control over her c.u.n.t. His middle finger was positioned at the entrance to her hole. He entered, wiggling his finger just a little to make sure he'd found ground zero.

Her breathing picked up, and so did his. Just like that, he felt pressure in his groin; the message in his c.o.c.k came through loud and clear. There was only one place it wanted to be.

Amazing. Contrary to what the men's magazines said about the early thirties still being prime-time s.e.xually for men, he hadn't gone for two jerk-offs in one night since his early twenties. Sure, he was capable-he thought-but like drinking too much, blowing a whole night with s.e.x was no way to run a business.

Screw his company, his career.

The nymph to end all nymphs was here, between his legs, offering herself to him like a Christmas morning gift.

Unfortunately, there was a limit to how wide he could spread his legs, which meant she too was under the same constraints. In addition, leaning forward like this so he could play in her playground was going to kill his back. However, until the death knell had been sounded- Maybe there'd been a change in the drumming; maybe he'd simply become aware of it again. Whatever it was, he matched his hand's rhythm to the beat that seemed to have permeated both earth and air.

She'd stopped digging into his legs. Now she painted and caressed them, touching the same area over and over again. It was always new, always traveling from thigh muscle straight to his c.o.c.k.

When he slid his hand further over her s.e.x and buried his middle finger up to the base in her, her hands stopped moving. Now they lay nearly still on him, trembling just a little.

"You're cold?" he asked.

"No. I... "

"You what?" He straightened his finger so the back of it rubbed against her p.u.s.s.y wall. Her next breath came out a sob.

"I did not expect..."

"What? That you'd climax the first time?" Could he take credit for that?

"Climax?"

What planet was she from? And did it matter? "Come? Get off on me? Whatever you want to call it?" Her juices were drenching his finger and some had already leaked out to dampen his palm. He wondered how much of his sperm was mixed in with her sap. Curious about how close she was to the brink, he curled his finger so it now brushed the back of her p.u.s.s.y. Her c.u.n.t muscles clamped around him.

Hmmm. Time to bring in the reinforcements.

Ignoring the increased discomfort in his back, he leaned even further forward so he no longer had to brace himself. Now that his other hand was free, he put it to good use. Stroking her pubic hair and finger f.u.c.king her at the same time took both dexterity and concentration. He sure as h.e.l.l didn't mind, and from her little grunts and groans, he had no doubt about how she felt.

Calling on his inventive nature, he pulled her tight against his hard-as-nails c.o.c.k and caught a p.u.s.s.y lip between the thumb and forefinger of his left hand. Now that that silken piece of flesh was out of the way, he had no trouble working a second finger inside her. Sweat broke out on her. She shoved her a.s.s against him, grinding her b.u.t.tocks into his c.o.c.k.

s.h.i.t!

"That's what I'm talking about," he whispered into her ear. His voice sounded as if he hadn't used it in a month. "Lady, you're randy."

"I-it feels so good."

"Makes you sorry you put it off so long, does it?" s.h.i.t. Did he want to go there? "How -how old are you?"

"I am a woman."

You are now. "I won't argue that, but-" Despite her p.u.s.s.y-grip on him, he straightened his fingers. Her G-spot was around there somewhere. If he connected... "I don't understand you, not even a little bit." About as much as I understand what the h.e.l.l I'm doing with you.

"And you want to?"

"d.a.m.n right." I also want to screw you until I can't see straight, but that's another story.

"I-I want to tell you about me," she said in a small, uncertain voice. "About my people. Our fears."

"Fears?"

Whatever he'd just touched, her c.u.n.t spasmed as if an electrical probe had been applied to it. Never one to deny a lady, he stroked again. Just like that, a small stream of hot fluid drenched his hand. He held it against her, no easy task given the way she was jerking.

Climaxing. Right here, right now, without him having to do more than a little freelance finger-play.

"Come on, Maia," he encouraged. "Let it happen; just let it happen."

She bucked against him with such force that he was knocked backward. He felt himself start to slide off his clump of gra.s.s and tried to straighten. However, with his hands otherwise occupied, he had nothing for leverage.

He landed on his back with her on top. She lay there a moment, sweating and shaking, making tiny, continuous mewling sounds. Then, just like that, she went limp. Her breath came out in a long, loud sigh.

Climax number two.

Despite whatever was poking into his back, he was in no hurry to have her get off him. Although his hands were sticky with her come, he felt compelled to cover her b.r.e.a.s.t.s. After all, he didn't want her getting cold. The moment he spread his fingers over them, however, compa.s.sion and consideration changed into something else.

Splayed out by gravity, her b.r.e.a.s.t.s were nevertheless incredible organs. They were hers; he could touch them only when she gave him the right, but he'd taken her virginity. He'd showed her the meaning of climax-a d.a.m.n simple task-and now she wanted to tell him about her people and their fears, whatever that meant. She knew what his c.o.c.k felt like inside her c.u.n.t and in her hand.

That made them, what? The word soulmates flitted through his mind, but that was way too heavy. Too dangerous.

In the s.p.a.ce of what couldn't be more than a heartbeat, she went from out cold to sitting up. Alarmed, he reached for her, but she was already on her hands and knees, not because she was leaving him but because...

Although she was still putting her mind back together, Maia had been aware of what was happening on the other side of the hill. There'd just been a great whooshing sound, almost an explosion, and now the night sky was becoming brighter, redder. The fire-arch The Lady had told her about had been lit. Soon it would be time for her and Taurus to step under it, but they still had a few minutes-maybe enough time for her to make him hers, at least a little bit.

She turned around. He was on his back, staring up at her, his arms reaching for her. His seed-maker put her in mind of a shaft stuck into the ground, only it was coming from him, not the earth.

Positioning herself so her legs were outside his, she rocked over his organ until her baby-place was directly over it. She'd felt him inside her before; it shouldn't be such a soul-changing prospect to have it happen again, and yet she couldn't get enough air into her lungs.

Down, down, down she came. She moved as slowly as she could because she wanted to draw out the experience for both of them. The tip of his organ pressed against her opening and seemed to hang up there. Although she'd never done it before, she used her hand to move her flesh out of the way. He slid in.

"Good grief, woman."

Grief was something no one wanted, but Taurus didn't appear to be in pain. In fact, he seemed interested in nothing except pushing even more of himself into her. She accommodated him by widening her stance, lowering herself onto him, and sucking him into her. The two bags of flesh where she'd been told a man's seed was stored pressed against her bottom. It felt wonderful.

He couldn't pump into her the way he'd done before because he wasn't in the right position. However, she was.

Rather pleased with herself for having figured that out, she lifted her head so she could study the red-tinted sky. She rested her hands on his ribs for leverage and began moving her hips up and down. His hands settled over her thighs, not in a punishing way but not gentle either. Down against him she went. When she'd gone as far as she could and his seed sacks pressed harder against her, she stayed there for several heartbeats. He felt so big inside her.

When she straightened and drew away, she brought his organ with her. Keeping him inside her called for concentration, no easy thing since his skin gliding against hers had become like small, continuous lightning strikes.

She'd been sent to this time and place to claim Taurus and take him back with her. But tonight, right now, was all she could think about.

Tiny lightning strikes were good. Delicious. Like the finest food only countless times better. Her skin, not just where his seed-bearer was touching, became hotter and hotter and was so sensitive she might have felt the weight of a single grain of sand.

She forgot who she was, couldn't remember what it felt like to be separate from him. His seed-bearer was amazing. Like a predator after prey, it effortlessly trapped her. But she had no desire to break free.

Sensing that he was approaching the moment of release, she increased her own efforts. They quivered as one, created their own music, beat a single drum. As before, he pounded into her, each thrust squirting his fluids into her. She caught fire, exploded.

Chapter Six.