Jenny barely had time to pull herself up onto her knees before Julian had grabbed her and hauled her up against his chest, his mouth meeting hers in a kiss that was none too gentle. He opened his lips over hers, drawing her bottom lip in between his and gently sucking on it before releasing it to use his tongue to gain entry to her mouth. Jenny moaned loudly and complied eagerly. Julian broke the kiss and they both gulped in some much-needed oxygen.

"Lay down on your stomach."

She gave him a quizzical look but complied, twisting slightly so she could still look at him. He smiled and perched himself by her feet. Reaching down to the one closest to him he lifted it and slowly moved his hand up to her ankle.

Jenny began breathing in short pants. Waiting for his next move was exciting and frustrating at the same time.

He held her ankle lightly within his grasp. It was hard to judge his mood but Jenny felt more than a little silly in this position. Keeping his eyes on hers he leaned down and lightly nipped at her Achilles' tendon. She yelped and bucked her hips wildly, trying to get free. She had never felt anything like the sensation he caused. It was as if he lit her on fire. She didn't trust herself, specifically the feelings that coursed within her blood. She was rapidly coming to the point where she would willingly agree to make love, consequences be damned. And her rational side, while its voice had admittedly become fainter, assured her that she was not ready for such a step—oh but to surrender to him so completely would be heaven!

"Why Jenny, are you trying to get away from me?" Julian's voice penetrated the fog and she stilled her movements in reaction.

"What if I am?" she asked, amazed that she could manage to tease him when she could barely form a coherent thought.

"Now why would you want to go and do something like that? Don't you like the way I make you feel?" His voice was low and seductive and it sent chills along Jenny's skin.

"I think I may like it too much." She whispered. Her answer sparked something within Julian's eyes and he flashed her that wolf-hungry grin that always made her weak. She renewed her efforts to get away, abruptly overcome with the need to get some control. To her surprise Julian allowed her to twist onto her back.

She belatedly remembered what she was wearing. She had chosen her outfit with care that morning, knowing full well she would end up here. Her v-neck blue shirt was already a big hit with Julian, and apparently her denim skirt was met with approval too since his gaze was locked on it. It was his stare that called attention to the fact that her current position caused her skirt to hike up considerably. That was undoubtedly the reason he let her go, she realized. She blushed and tried to straighten it out as best she could.

Dragging his eyes away from the skirt's hemline Julian reached out and captured one of her hands within his own.

"So tell me Jenny."

"Tell you what?"

"Tell me how I make you feel. I want to know if what I do feels good."

Was he kidding? How could he think anything else but the obvious—that his touch drove her wild?

"Come now, Jenny. How am I ever going to improve if I don't get any feedback?"

"You're doing just fine." She managed to croak out.

"Just fine? Well I admit that's a bit of a disappointment. I guess I'll just have to embark on a whole journey of trial-and-error and you'll have to let me know where I can improve."

She wasn't sure she would survive the trip.

"Oh that's not necessary. You're not doing just fine. In fact, you're doing great!"

"Well I appreciate you trying to spare my feelings but your first instinct was probably the right one. It's for the best that I learn what makes you feel good for myself. After all I made a promise to you that regretfully I have yet to keep."

"What promise is that?"

"I told you I would make you burn for me, Jenny. And I intend to do exactly that so just lay back because you're not going anywhere."

Her eyes widened and her mouth formed a small "O" shape.

"Oh my god." She mouthed the words, her mouth having gone completely dry.

"I think I'll just start here and work my way up. How's that?"

And then he began without waiting for an answer. Keeping his eyes on hers he inched his hand up her right leg, pausing when he got to her knee.  He ran his index finger across the back and Jenny tensed, pulling herself up on her elbows. Then he traced small circles on the inside and she curled her hands into the sheets. He grinned and allowed his fingers to move higher on her leg, alongside the inside of her thigh. When he began to trace patterns on the top and along the sides and bottom Jenny bit her lip and her hips lifted involuntarily.

"Julian." She groaned and fell back off of her elbows.

"Yes? Was there something you wanted to say?" He seemed to be amused but his voice wasn't entirely steady either.

His hand stopped its exploration of her thigh and continued to move upward. Just when she thought he was finally going to touch her right where she was dying for it his fingers changed their trajectory and moved to her hip. She relaxed just a fraction, assuring herself that she was relieved that he hadn't done what she wanted him to do, when suddenly he weaved a finger underneath the elastic of her panties.

Jenny couldn't breathe. Oh god, she wanted him so much.

Just as quickly he withdrew and continued to tease her, stroking along her abdomen and slowly lifting her shirt with every pass of his fingers. He ceased the torment momentarily, only to replace it with a new form of torture. He leaned over her and bent to place feather-soft kisses at every point his hands had been so far.

She whimpered when he kissed her knee and her breathing hitched when he began to lavish attention on her thighs. But when he reached her hip and lifted the edge of her panties so that his tongue could dart in she forgot to breathe. A wave of desire so powerful it caused her to see stars in front of her eyes hit her and she stilled completely, savoring the sensations.

The gentle kisses on her stomach brought her out of the haze and she again became focused on Julian.

"Oh god, Julian."

"Shh, just lay back and enjoy what you're feeling."

She continued talking as if she hadn't heard him.

"Oh god Julian. Oh god I want you. I want you. I do. I do. I'm so hot. You make me so hot. Oh please. Please."

In truth she was only dimly aware of what she had told him. The world could crumble around her and she doubted it would even have registered.

Julian was having a hard time remembering why he had told Jenny that they couldn't make love. All he wanted to do was rid both of them of their clothes and spend eternity pleasuring Jenny. He levered himself up and off of her for a minute to catch his breath. Jenny realized his lips were no longer on her skin and she opened her eyes. She saw Julian sitting next to her breathing heavily, a fist clenched to his forehead and his eyes screwed tightly shut.

She took advantage of his distraction to pull her shirt off so she was clad only in her bra. She backed down onto her elbows and tried to slow her breathing down too. Julian turned back to her and opened his eyes, intending to slow things back down but then he saw what she had done and he felt a jolt of desire stab him in the gut that chased away any thoughts of slowing down.

"Oh my god." This time it was Julian's turn to pray. She was wearing a simple white cotton bra with a narrow ribbon of lace outlining the top of the cups. She had been briefly upset this morning when she picked out her outfit to come to the realization that she didn't own any lingerie that she would consider sexy. But judging from the look in Julian's eyes she worried for naught. She decided it was time to give back a little of what she had received.

"Tell me, Julian."

"What?" He was having a hard time remembering to breathe, let alone hold a conversation.

"Do you like what I'm wearing? How do I make you feel? How can I ever expect to learn how to please you if I don't get any signals?"

He didn't trust himself to speak. So he decided to use his body to show her how she affected him. He laid his hands on her stomach and moved them to her waist, holding her as he gently laid her back onto the pillows. His touch was reverent as he allowed his fingers to slowly slide back over to her stomach. After a few tortuous moments he allowed his hands to gravitate toward her breasts. The first stroke of his fingers was so faint it was near impossible to tell if he had actually made contact…unless you were Jenny. Julian may have intended the slight touch to be teasing but for her it was an incendiary sensation. She nearly vaulted off the bed in reaction to the pure carnal energy he had ignited with that simple motion. He dipped his head toward her chest so he could kiss the tops of her breasts and Jenny thought she died. When she felt the weight of his body on the outside of her leg as he continued to nibble on the swell of her breasts she moved her legs out of the way by wrapping them around his waist.  This motion brought them into fairly intimate contact with each other which caused nearly identical moans of arousal.

"Oh yes. Touch me. Please." She used her right hand to hold onto his shoulder and the left was busy clutching the pillow above her head. He licked along the underside of the lace edging and Jenny arched into him even more, desperate to sustain the sensations.

Her desire was spiraling within her, carrying her to heights she had only imagined. Her body was giving her all the signals she needed to know just what she was headed toward but then she was gripped with a highly inappropriate and irrational fear. What if things didn't work out? She knew that Julian loved her; he had said so in the past. But at that moment she seemed to be outside of herself watching the whole situation and she was scared. Suddenly she craved reassurance that she was the one who held a claim on him, body and soul.

"You're mine." He looked at her with a mixture of surprise and a heightened level of desire when her words reached him. "Say it. I need to hear you say it."

He cupped her face with his hands and made sure she was looking at him. He ran his thumb across her lips and leaned forward to rest his forehead against hers. His cobalt eyes bored into hers.

"Never doubt it. I am yours, now and forever."

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Disclaimer: Sure I put them into these situations but that doesn't mean I own them. I'm no puppet master, my friends.

Author's Note: I am anticipating a huge reaction from this chapter so let me hear you, folks! Good? Not-so-good? Downright horrific? Weigh in with your opinion! And now onto the thank you portion, my favorite part!

CeredwenFlame--I too, would have enjoyed making this one big chapter with the next one but then how would I keep people coming back? They only come back if I end with a cliffhanger, you know ;-). I hope this chapter was worth the wait!

clare—Good to hear from you again! Thanks for the compliment, it's appreciated! Well I apologize for waiting to get this chapter out but I hope you do not find yourself disappointed by it? If you do let me know where I went wrong and I'll do my best to write better!

Shadow—You can't just leave your threat there…you have to be pretty vivid about what horrible thing you're going to do if my update is not speedy enough…of course I *did* wonder what the drastic thing would be and that was its own form of torture…maybe that's what you were hoping for? Thanks for checking in and voicing your opinion. I hope that you are satisfied with the latest addition and that you do not flame me too much!

Forest Elfin—You crack me up! I apologize for nearly causing cardiac arrest…I hope that reading the follow-up didn't cause you to nearly pass out ;-). Thanks for letting me know you're out there enjoying this!

Pixxi—Ok…for Book Three, how about the song "Who Wants to Live Forever?" by Queen? Hope the history test went well? Sorry about what I'm sure seems like an interminable wait for this chapter but maybe you like it enough to forgive me? Yeah, sorry I missed that whole thing where it was you giving the song suggestion…lol…don't know how I missed it!

Amber Evans Potter—Blink, girl! Lol! I'm glad that you at least anticipated that it would be a few days! So in terms of steam, did this chapter raise the bar enough? Let me know what I can do better! Thanks for reading and giving me encouragement to go on!

beanie—Well I hate the thought that I am the cause of anyone's demise, I assure you. I hope this chapter was worth the pain and anguish you went through while waiting? Please continue to write and let me know how I am or how I am failing to entertain you!