Chapter 31

When he laid her down, she pulled him onto her, kissing him, wanting to climb inside his soul. When she let go, he looked down at her with sparkling tears in his dark eyes. "I love you, Hermy-o-ninny. Hermione," he corrected himself. "I love you more than anything in the vorld, and I alvays vill, I promise."

She cupped his cheek with her hand and whispered, "I promise, too, Vitya. I love you." He lowered his face to kiss her again, and just before their lips met, she murmured, "Make love with me, please. I want to be part of you."

"You alvays haff been, svetlina. You haff been the light and happiness in my heart." His lips met hers with an intense passion that left them both in the heat of desire. When he had carried her to bed, the picture of chivalry, she had expected him to take things slow. Instead, their clothing fell to the floor in a frenzy of need, hands and lips everywhere. The heat in his eyes as they traveled her naked body made her feel beautiful, perfect in every way. She'd never seen another man look at her with such an open look, as though she were the entire world and nothing else mattered but being with her and feeling her skin.

She stared at him just as openly. Broad shoulders, strong arms, long legs, Viktor was beautiful. When she slid her hands over his hips, she decided that no more faultless skin had ever grown on anyone else.

His lips, his tongue, his teeth were everywhere, kissing, licking, biting. He tasted places she couldn't imagine a man being interested in. He wasn't just interested in her body; he was interested in her, including the backs of her knees and the skin between her fingers. He loved everything, and he showed her how much.

Soon the heat between them flared to wildfire dimensions. Gasping from the feel of him, sweat sticking their bodies to one another, Hermione felt her heart squeeze tightly. She could feel his beating against her chest, pounding, pounding. In the instant of her ecstasy, she felt the moment he had asked for. She slipped out of her skin, and his soul was inside her, and hers was inside him. Their hearts met, and they were together as they were meant to be.

Viktor lay lazily on his back, exhausted, while Hermione trailed her fingers over his skin, exploring him the way he had her. He watched her face while she looked at his body. The awe in her eyes made him feel like a satisfied cat that had every drop of cream in the world.

"Where did this come from?" she asked, stroking a scar on his rib with a soft fingertip.

"Bad break from a Bludger, bone popped right through the skin."

"Oh," she said, kissing it. He wished he could be aroused again instantly, because if she kept that sort of thing up, he would want her again in about twelve seconds. She kissed his belly button. Her hair was soft, tickling his stomach. She was beautiful with sex hair; so many strands had pulled out of her bun, grazing her face, sticking out at odd angles, tangled. His eyes were heavy. He tugged a curl, and she rested her cheek against his thigh, smiling up at him contentedly.

"I love you, Vitya."

He ran his hand down her back, feeling his calluses snag the smooth skin, watching her eyes. She liked the roughness of his hands. Beautiful, beautiful woman, and she was staying with him forever. He felt his eyes closing against his will. He wanted to savor this first time, spending the lazy aftermath with her, dragging it out…

She was waking him up with gentle but insistent kisses, hours later. The night was dark outside, and her body was warm, flushed from sleep. He caressed her slowly, arousing her, opening her to his body. Even so, she gasped against his ear as he entered, squeezing him, sending glorious shivers down his back. Their lovemaking this time was slow, gentle, easy, lasting. When it was finished, she curled into him, and they slept skin-to-skin.