He complied with a groan of hot desire. "You fit me like a glove. Like a hot, wet, o.r.g.a.s.mic glove."

She chuckled and he felt the reverberations down to his b.a.l.l.s. "Yours is the biggest I've ever seen, much less had inside me."

"Biggest c.o.c.k?" She clenched around him at the word and he smiled. "Do you like my big c.o.c.k, sweetheart?"

She moved her little hands over his shoulders caressingly. "I love it. Don't stop, Hal. Make me come."

He moved faster, panting a bit now. "I'll make us both come, Cas. I want to shoot inside you, fill you up and know that you're sticky with my c.u.m."

The words made her shiver and she started to convulse under him. She came long and hard, milking him, taking him with her as jets of his sperm shot into her, just as he wanted. It went on and on. He'd never come so hard in his entire life.

When the last of his seed had been milked from his c.o.c.k, he collapsed on her. He knew he was too heavy for her, so he rolled them quickly, but he didn't disengage. He wasn't kidding when he'd said he wanted to stay inside her as long as he possibly could. She was warm, wet and welcoming, and by the look and feel of her, in no hurry to expel him from her body, so he stayed, tucking her close and encouraging her to snooze in the aftermath.

He held her while she rested from the most explosive o.r.g.a.s.m of her life, and she realized she couldn't love him any more if she tried. She woke to the feel of him moving inside her, hard and ready once more as he took her on her side. He had one of her legs hooked over his hips, spread wide and at an odd angle that made the tip of his p.e.n.i.s stroke her g-spot with every thrust. She bet it wouldn't take long to send her into orbit and she was right. Within minutes, she was screaming his name as an even more intense o.r.g.a.s.m wracked her body.

She felt him come warm and hot within her and she reveled in the feel of his slippery tribute trailing down over her body, leaking from inside her. He apparently liked it too because he used his hands to rub it all over her legs, tummy and thighs, caressing each bit of her as he spread his essence over her skin.

They showered together after they'd cooled down a bit, only to heat the water to steam around them as they made love again in the bathroom. He had her up against the tile wall, bent over the sink and sitting on the vanity before he was through, giving her just as many o.r.g.a.s.ms before he came again himself.

She'd never been with a man who recovered faster or could go longer than Hal. If he wasn't a superhero, he was the next best thing, seeing to her safety, comfort and pleasure before taking his own. He seemed to enjoy bringing her to o.r.g.a.s.m and turning her on with his sometimes dirty commentary. She loved that about him. In fact, she loved everything about him. Knowing that they were more than compatible s.e.xually was just the latest item on her list of the reasons why she loved him.

Casey poured out all the love she'd held inside for so long, holding him close when he shuddered and came deep in her body. She kissed him deeply, reveling in his possession and feeling possessive right back.

CHAPTER SEVEN.

After they returned to bed, he held her close, basking in the glow of love given and received. He'd finally learned the reality of loving Casey blew away all his fantasies of her. She was pure energy and when she made love, she focused all her being on the man she was with. He hoped and prayed that man would be him again and again.

Just the thought of her with another drove him mad. He wanted her and he would keep her for as long as she let him. But eventually, he feared, his secrets would drive them apart.

"We saw the Tower of Babel and the Hanging Gardens. Not in ruins. In full bloom." He stroked her hair as she lay quietly beside him, firmly ensconced in his arms. Somehow it made it easier to talk about, though he'd had difficulties before describing the odd apparition that had forever changed him and his men. "The tower reached toward Heaven itself and shone brightly in the desert sun. We didn't really notice anything odd at first. Saddam had his people rebuild a lot of the ruins of Babylon, so we figured it was part of that, but I sent Zeke and Wil to check it out. They're archaeologists, so they wanted to see what the builders had done to the ruins. They called us all in after we secured the perimeter and showed us that this was no ordinary building. It hadn't been rebuilt. It was in perfect, original condition. That's when Jeff started cracking jokes about Rod Serling and the Twilight Zone. But now I don't think he was too far off the mark."

He continued to stroke her soft hair, relishing the feel of her, solid and warm in his arms as he recalled the oddest occurrence of his life.

"We went to the top of the tower cautiously. No one appeared to be home, but we were stuck to procedure, leap-frogging each other as each position was secured. I was the first to reach the pinnacle and for just a moment, the view took my breath away." His eyes clouded as he remembered the sight. "I don't know if the old man was there before I got distracted, but when I turned back just a second later, there was this old guy sitting in the center of the room. He was dressed in really fine robes and sitting cross-legged on a very fancy rug. He was looking right at me as if he'd been waiting for me." He shivered as he thought of that life-changing moment and was rea.s.sured by her softly stroking hand on his shoulder.

"I called Mike in. He's our best interpreter, though we all spoke a bit of the local dialect, but there was no need. The old guy started speaking in perfect English, which was unexpected to say the least. He welcomed us in this booming voice and we all lost discipline. The rest of the unit tumbled into the room without orders, but I understood. The command in that old man's voice was hard to deny."

"What happened then?"

"We exchanged words. He asked who we were and I told him. He didn't seem to know what the United States was or that the country was at war. I asked him a few questions, but he was cagey. He was pretty clear on his dislike of what Saddam had done to the ruins. He spat a few times when he looked out at the rebuilt portions of the city from his tower. Then he started asking all of us questions-personal questions -about our beliefs and our values. It was weird, but we just couldn't keep from answering. It was like we were compelled somehow. He got us to tell him about the causes for the war and the state of the world. It was like the guy hadn't seen the news in like twenty years."

"They didn't have a lot of TV's or a free press in that country before, did they?"

He nodded. "But it was more than that. He really had no clue what had been happening for hundreds of years. We answered questions on everything from the Cold War to the American Revolution. He just kept asking and asking, and we were powerless to stop answering. It was so weird, but it seemed perfectly normal at the time."

"So what happened after he finished questioning you? How long did it take?"

"Well, that's the weirdest part. It seemed like we talked to the guy for hours, but when he finally finished with his questions, I could tell by the position of the sun that only a few minutes had pa.s.sed. Then he looked at each of us in turn. He came right up to us and put his hand on our foreheads, one at a time. Normally, none of us would tolerate uninvited contact of any kind with an unknown civilian, but we just stood there, letting him touch us. He spent a few moments with each one of my men, then came to me. When he touched me, I felt a super head rush, like I'd just completed ten high alt.i.tude, low opening jumps in a row. I blinked and my vision cleared and the old man was smiling. He called us warriors of the djinn. He said a few other things, but that's what stuck in my mind the most."

"Holy moly! You think the old man was a jinni or something?"

"Or something. At least, that's my theory. The other guys each heard something a little different, some in different languages."

"What?" She was incredulous, as he knew she'd be, but so far, she seemed to be more accepting of his wild tale than even he'd hoped.

He shrugged. "I think we really were in the ancient Tower of Babel."

"Oh my G.o.d. That's amazing." G.o.d bless her, she was with him every step of the way. He couldn't measure how great that made him feel. To have her trust, her acceptance, and her love meant more to him than anything else in the world.

"I know. The old dude told us to go forth and use our gifts for the good of mankind, and that he'd decided against killing us for trespa.s.sing in his tower. Then he disappeared. Poof! He was gone. Freaked us all out." He rubbed his hand over his scratchy jaw as he thought back to that disconcerting moment. "That's when I noticed that the constant dust and sand that always blew around was completely still. Everything felt eerily quiet and I knew we had to get out of that tower. I gave the command to retreat and we boogied out of there. Dan was the last man out. I turned to see him step over the threshold and a moment later, the entire building was gone. My men and I were safe, but the ziggurat was completely gone. Just rubble in its place."

He shivered and she placed one small palm over his heart. It comforted him in a way he'd never felt comforted by any other woman before in his life, though she spoke not a word, letting him say what he would. Oddly that made him want to talk more, to make her understand what he'd felt and seen in that ruined city half a world away.

"That's when we all knew something bizarre was happening to us. We moved on and came upon the gardens a bit later in the day. They were incredible, Cas. Trees in full bloom. Fruits of all kinds, some of which I'd never seen before. But I didn't think too much about it at first. There were lots of foods I'd never encountered before I got sent overseas. We were kind of hungry and there was no enemy movement in our sector, so we took a break under some of the trees, getting out of the sun for a few moments. Rick found some fruits that he said were edible, so we tried them. They were as sweet as anything I've ever eaten, but I can't tell you exactly what they were. We'd been in the desert for weeks and hadn't seen any fresh food for longer than that. Just MRE's and what native stuff we could scrounge."

He was silent for a long moment and she twisted in his arms, wrapping one long leg over his and settling in to stroke his chest. But her eyes were concerned when he looked down to watch her beautiful face.

"Don't you know that in all the stories of the fey, you're not supposed to eat anything? They say if you do, you'll be stuck in their realm for all eternity." She smiled, but her eyes were worried.

"Maybe that's what happened," he agreed after a moment, smiling to ease her tension though he could find no ease himself. He stroked her back, cuddling her close-but whether it was for her comfort or his own, he didn't quite know. "But I have to tell you, that fruit was more satisfying than ten MRE's. It fed something inside me that I didn't know was empty until that moment when the nectar hit my teeth."

"More jinni magic, you think?"

He looked down at her, suspicion in his eyes, but she was serious. He kissed her for her faith in him and her willingness to believe.

"I don't know, but something about that fruit was different. Knowing what I know now, I wouldn't be surprised if that old dude had something to do with it, but I didn't see him again. We ate and then moved on, but when we turned back, the beautiful terraced gardens were gone and the dust was back with a fury. A sandstorm came upon us right then and we took shelter in the ruins as best we could. We hunkered down and waited it out, but it was hours before we could move again and when we did, we didn't mention the weirdness that had happened in ancient Babylon." He pulled her over him to lie on his chest so he could see her eyes. "We got into a serious firefight shortly thereafter and called in air support. They pulled us out and sent us to the airfield at Baghdad for debriefing. This was only a day or two after they'd secured the airfield, so things were still pretty tense there. That's when I got shot and Rick did his magic act."

She stroked the smooth skin over his heart. "Thank G.o.d," she whispered, kissing his chest lightly. "If you had died, I'd have mourned you for the rest of my life."

She spread her legs, resting her wet p.u.s.s.y right over his stirring c.o.c.k. Unbelievably, he was hard again, even though he'd already come three times in as many hours. Sliding down his body, she took him in her mouth, stilling any words he might have spoken. She sucked him down deep and hard, just the way he liked it. She played with his b.a.l.l.s, experimenting, using her fingers to gently probe and caress in ways that nearly drove him crazy.

Before she could finish him off, Hall dragged her up by her shoulders, placing her on her hands and knees in front of him. They hadn't done it doggy style yet and he was eager to feel her tight around him- especially from behind. It was one of his favorite positions and she had a gorgeous a.s.s that made his mouth water. She shook her booty at him and he chuckled.

"Not eager at all, are you?"

"I'm waiting, Hal." She pouted over her shoulder at him. "Don't make me wait."

But he took a moment to touch her p.u.s.s.y from behind, stroking deep inside with two wide fingers, watching as he went. "You're so beautiful, Cas. I want you in every way."

"Then take me. What are you waiting for?"

He knelt on the bed behind her, joining their bodies as one. "You're mine, Casey. I'm never letting you go ever again, so get used to it."

CHAPTER EIGHT "So what happened the other night? You used your super powers-"

Hal groaned. "Please don't call it that." He cut her off with a slightly disgusted, uncomfortable smile. "I'm not a comic book super hero."

She patted his chest, resting one hand over his heart. "You're super, at any rate. But you're distracting me. Why did you get so sick all of a sudden?"

He sighed and lay back, staring up at the ceiling. "I don't know. It's happened a few times, but it seems to be getting less severe now."

"That was less severe? What happened before-cardiac arrest?" She was being facetious, but he didn't laugh with her and she suddenly stilled.

"Not quite, but close. Rick seems to think that my body is playing catch up with the new strength. The first time I used it for real, in a sustained way, like what happened the other night, I pa.s.sed out and Rick had to revive me. Each time since then, it's been a little better."

"Oh, Hal!"

"Ssh, honey." He soothed her, stroking her hair and kissing her face softly. "Don't worry. I told you. Rick thinks I'm just getting used to the changes. That's all. We're all experiencing some problems. That's why they put us out on that island with a team of medical specialists watching over us. The Army's just as baffled by what's happening to us as we are, but they're not cutting us loose. They're taking care of us."

"d.a.m.n right they should!" He loved that indignant tone in her voice on his behalf. "But Hal, it sounds dangerous. Are they sure you're okay?"

"They're watching us. All those experts agree. It's getting better, not worse, so that's something. And I'm still alive, right?" He chuckled and she thumped him on the chest.

"Don't joke about that, Hal!"

"Hey," he rolled her under him, crowding her, caging her beloved face in his arms with gentle insistence. "I love it that you're concerned for my well-being, but I'm okay, Cas. Really. I wouldn't take a chance getting involved with you now if I thought I didn't have long to live. I wouldn't hurt you like that."

To his great surprise, there were tears in her eyes as her little hands came up to caress his cheeks. "Even a day with you would be worth a lifetime of heartache." She craned her neck up to place a desperate kiss on his lips.

"I won't break your heart," he said with great seriousness as she finally let him go. "But you might just break mine with talk like that." He rolled again until she was on top of him, cradled in his arms like a beloved child. "You are so special to me, Cas. You always have been."

"Ditto." Her voice was drowsy, but her lips placed little kisses on the skin over his heart as she rested against him.

They lay quiet for a while, basking in the glow of their new level of intimacy, each lost in their own thoughts. But after a while she started feeling the stirrings of him against her thigh and her insides squirmed in answer. She wanted him again.

She'd never been this wanton in her life, and she loved every minute of it. Loving every inch of him.

He surprised her by flipping her over so that he straddled her legs from behind, sitting on his haunches over her. His big hands swept over her back with a gentle thoroughness that made her breath catch.

"What are you doing?"

"Ever had a full body ma.s.sage, Cas?"

She tried to shake her head, but she was trapped by pillows, her neck twisted to the side. As he moved

his magic fingers over her skin, she wouldn't change positions for the world if he just kept doing that.

"No. But by all means, feel free."

He chuckled, continuing the sensual torture, stroking hard then soft over her ultra feminine muscles.

"I'm going to bring you a whole lot of new experiences, Cas." He caressed the cheeks of her b.u.t.t,

lingering extra long on the crease between her thighs and a.s.s. She caught her breath as he took the time to trace one big finger around the puckered entrance to her a.n.u.s. "For example, I can bet you've never taken a man back here." She sucked in a deep breath as her abdomen clenched. She could feel her face heat with a mix of shock and embarra.s.sment as he chuckled once more. "I can tell I'm right. Aren't I?"

She was breathless as she replied. "Yes, but-"

"Yeah," he purred, "but ... I love your b.u.t.t, Cas, and it's going to be mine. Totally. Completely. Just like the rest of you. Don't worry. You'll love it. I promise."

His finger swept into her p.u.s.s.y, picking up the moisture pooling there at his hot ma.s.sage, then moved

back up to tease her back entrance. She squirmed, unsure, but willing to experiment as he pressed firmly, moving inside.

It felt ... odd, but wonderful. She never would have thought such a thing could feel so good.

"Hal!"

He all but purred behind her, blanketing her with his big body as his finger f.u.c.ked her a.s.s, just a little.

"Mmm, you like that, do you?"

She caught her breath when his other hand speared into her p.u.s.s.y, heightening the fit and the outrageous feeling. When his finger sank all the way into her a.s.s, she came hard, nearly bucking him off her.

He chuckled behind her, taking a moment while she recovered to go into the adjoining bathroom. When he came out, she was resting comfortably, her face pressed against the pillow as she nearly dozed. He scooped her into his strong arms and settled her over his hard body.

"No sleeping yet, sweetheart. I have plans."

"Hal?"

"Yes, love?" He nipped her shoulder, working his lips down over her breast to suck hard as she

squirmed.

"Were you always this, um, potent? Or is this something new since your visit to Babylon?"