Dark Melody

Chapter 17

Dayan woke deep beneath the surface of the earth with his heart pounding and his body on fire. Corinne.

He turned his head to look at her, afraid, exhilarated, so hungry for her he thought he might go up in flames. She lay beside him where he had placed her, unmoving, completely still; she lay as if dead. She looked unbelievably small, fragile beside him. Her body was a woman’s, soft and curvy, and he knew she had the heart of a lion, yet she looked like a child in her sleep.

It had been three risings since he had gone to earth with her. He had awakened each night to check that the baby lived and was doing well in her little cocoon. He knew Corinne would expect it, but he did it because he found he was filled with worry for the infant. Each time breath came into his body, fear for the baby, his daughter, would cycle through him.

Daughter.

He tasted the word. He was a father.

Dayan scanned automatically, searching the immediate area first for danger, then to assure himself that no others of his kind lingered near their resting place.

Darius and Tempest had risen and were some distance away. Shea was already awake and bending over the child, feeding her with some formula she had concocted.

The baby is well?

He made the inquiry before he had even parted the soil of his resting place, anxious for news, anxious to gently touch the baby’s mind with his own.

She grows stronger with each rising, Dayan.

Shea’s reply was gentle and patient.

Dayan concentrated on the other two healers, focusing his attention completely.

‘I wish to bring Corinne to the surface.

There was a brief pause, as if the healers were conferring. It was Gregori who answered him.

‘I will come at once.

Dayan waited impatiently as Gregori hurried to the chamber. Dayan waved his hand to open the soil above their heads. He waited anxiously while Gregori took his time, centering himself, focusing, moving outside his own body and into Corinne’s to examine the repairs. He paid attention to the smallest detail, making sure Corinne was completely healed before she was awakened. Dayan watched Gregori come back to himself, raising an elegant eyebrow at Dayan’s obvious anxiety.

“She is healed, Dayan, and completely ready to take up her life with you. I will examine the baby and get out of your hair,” Gregori drawled, knowing full well what was on Dayan’s mind.

As Dayan floated out of the earth with Corinne cradled in his arms, he cleaned both her and himself, examining Corinne’s lush body for marks or signs of her ordeal. Not a single mark marred her skin, not even the long, wicked cut where she had been opened to take the child from her body. He clothed both her and himself, knowing Corinne’s natural modesty.

Issuing the command to wake, he brought her safely to ground, bending his dark head to find her mouth, to capture her first breath. Corinne. His lifemate.

‘I want you, love, more than my body can stand.

Merged so deeply with him that she felt the urgent demands of his body, she couldn’t help catching fire, her body perfectly attuned to his. She was aware that his body was full and hard, his mind dancing with erotic thoughts and images. He allowed the nightly reassurances from Shea to replay in his head, so she immediately knew the baby was thriving.

Dayan carried her swiftly across the chamber to the small area where Shea had enclosed the baby protectively. Corinne cried out at the sight of her daughter. She circled Dayan’s neck with her slender arms and burst into tears. She couldn’t believe she was alive. Her body was strong and supple, her heart beating in perfect rhythm with Dayan’s. Every cell felt alive, on fire. She wanted Dayan as much or more than he wanted her.

That is not possible.

His voice was sinfully wicked.

She laughed in the midst of her tears, so unbelievably happy she couldn’t take it all in. “I have to hold her. I have to have her in my arms.” She looked up at Dayan with her heart shining in her large eyes. “Have you held her?”

He shook his head. “Only Shea and Gary have held her. Gregori and Darius have examined her daily, and all of us have been reassuring her, but it is you she wants.”

Shea smiled at her. “She is very strong, Corinne. She definitely wants her mother. It is not good to have her out of her protected environment for any length of time. Together, Dayan and I can provide a shield for her while she spends time with you. But only for a few minutes. It is better to be safe.”

“What is wrong with her?” Corinne asked anxiously.

“I want her immune system to be stronger. She has had a hard go of it and needs a little more time. Do you have a name picked out for her? Dayan thought you might want to call her Jennifer after John and Lisa’s mother.”

Corinne nodded, unable to take her eyes off her daughter. “She’s so beautiful. Little Jennifer, at last we meet.”

Shea lifted the baby carefully from the enclosure, placed the tiny body into Corinne’s waiting arms. Merged as he was with Corinne, Dayan shared the instant bonding between mother and child, the unbreakable tie, the exchange of love and tribute. It flooded all three of them. The acceptance. The love. Dayan felt tears burning in his eyes. This was his family for all time. Eternity.

We have it all, my love, I cannot believe our good fortune.

Corinne crooned softly to the baby, rocking her gently back and forth while Dayan surrounded them both with his arms. “Look how tiny her fingers and toes are,” he marveled. “She has everything, like a real person.” He was almost afraid to touch the tiny infant; his finger looked very big as the infant clutched her fist around it.

Corinne laughed softly. “You’ve never been around a baby before, have you?”

He grinned at her, nuzzled her neck so that unexpected sparks seem to jump back and forth between them. “Does it show?”

“Absolutely. Do you want to hold her?”

Dayan looked like he might faint on the spot, and both women laughed openly at him. It was Corinne who sobered first. “I’m so sorry, Shea. Savannah told me you are expecting a child, and you had to make such a long journey to be here. I don’t know how we can ever repay your kindness. Is your baby okay?”

Shea placed both hands on her stomach, holding her baby protectively, feeling her lifemate’s breath on the nape of her neck even although he wasn’t in the chamber with them. “It is difficult sometimes for our people to carry to full term. The baby is fine, but we had to travel cautiously to prevent complications.”

“Dayan told me there’s concern that Carpathian babies often don’t survive the first year of life.” Corinne looked anxiously at Shea.

Shea sighed and pushed her hand through her long wine-red hair. “That is true, Corinne. There have been problems for many centuries. Gregori has done much research on this, and I joined him a few years ago. We discovered that the problems have been occurring longer than we originally thought. It was assumed that during the fourteenth century when most of our adults and children were destroyed, many, many lifemates were lost to us. It was believed fairly universally that Carpathian women had some chemical makeup that made it possible for only the male fetus to implant successfully.”

Shea leaned over and smiled at the sleeping baby. “I think it is much more than that. I believe it has something to do with the plague.”

Corinne’s head snapped up, and she clasped the baby protectively to her. “What do you mean?”

Shea laughed softly. “Jennifer doesn’t have the plague, don’t panic. The plague has been around for much longer than most people realize. We know of instances in China in 224b.c. There was an outbreak in Rome around 262a.d. that killed five thousand people a day. The crusaders carried the plague to Europe. It swept through the continent in the 1300s and early 1400s.”

“How could our people have been affected? Human illnesses do not have

any

effect on us. Their drugs and alcohol do not either,” Dayan pointed out.

Shea shook her head. “That’s what is believed, but it is not necessarily true. Drugs and alcohol are pushed through our systems, so we do not feel the effects. The same happens with human diseases. It doesn’t necessarily mean there are no traces left in our systems.”

“Has there ever been a case of a Carpathian falling ill from such a thing?” Dayan could scarcely believe what Shea was saying. “I have lived hundreds of years — how is it possible that I would not have contracted an illness?”

Shea laughed again. “You Carpathian males. You have egos the size of the continent. I read your thoughts as easily as you read mine. Yes, my mother was human and my father was Carpathian. I am a researcher, Dayan. I am merely looking at a hypothesis. I don’t much care whether you think I’m capable of understanding the makeup of a Carpathian or not. What matters to me is finding an answer to this puzzle. If it is found, we can save our children. In doing so, there is a chance we can save our race from extinction.”

Dayan bowed courteously, elegantly, a courtly gesture. “I ask forgiveness for my thoughts, Shea. I have never seen a Carpathian with a human disease.”

“Traces still might be left behind,” Shea pointed out patiently. “The human descendants of the survivors of the plague carry a mutated gene. That gene seems to be responsible for giving them protection from the HIV virus. Our people must have at times been forced to use those who were ill for sustenance during that time. With as many as five thousand people coming down with the plague daily, they might have had no choice. It was during that time that we began to lose our babies on a regular basis. It might mean nothing at all, might be merely a coincidence, but it is an interesting fact.”

“How does all that affect Jennifer?” Corinne asked fearfully.

“I don’t honestly know,” Shea said. “I’ll work closely with you to see that she thrives on the mixture of nutrients we give her. So far she is doing well on it. Another week or so and she will be able to be with you all the time. For now, she needs to be in her little incubator.” She grinned at Corinne. “I suggest you and Dayan take some time to be alone together. Enjoy yourself — you’ve earned it. Gregori, Darius, Gary and I will be watching over Jennifer. Look at it as if she had to stay in the hospital. She will sleep for long hours. You will know when she awakens; her mind will reach for yours.”

Reluctantly Corinne allowed Shea to take the tiny infant from her arms. “She seems so small and helpless.”

“She is growing,” Shea assured her. “Both of you are extremely pale. Go away for a while, doctor’s orders,” she added firmly.

Corinne watched Shea place the sleeping baby carefully into the transparent enclosure. Dayan wrapped his arms around Corinne’s waist. “Do not be sad, honey,” he whispered against her satin skin. “We will know when she awakens and we can be here immediately. Let us go and explore your new world.” There was a raw ache in his body, in his mind.

She heard it in his voice. Dayan never tried to hide his needs, his vulnerability, from her. Something deep within her responded to him, heating and melting, so that she was pliant and soft with wanting him. Her hand crept around his neck, her fingertips gently massaging the tense muscles. She leaned close to him, wanting to feel the warmth of his mouth against her skin.

I can’t wait much longer to be with you.

There was a breathless catch in her voice that he found incredibly sexy. He caught her up in his arms and moved through the chamber to stream through the tunnels up toward the stormy night sky.

Corinne lay in his arms, cradled against his chest. She looked up at his face, worn from worry, seeing lines etched there that she had never seen before. For her. The wind rushed at them, cold and biting, but Dayan immediately showed her how to regulate her body temperature so she felt perfectly warm. A cool mist sprayed her skin as they moved through the air toward some destination unknown to her. Below them were acres of treetops, swaying and dancing in the wind. It was strange how the leaves looked silvery in the blackness of the night. It was then that Corinne realized she could see the ground clearly, even as fast as they were traveling. She could see everything, down to the smallest mouse scurrying in the pine needles to get out of the rain.

The drops of rain glittered like gems in the night. Dayan’s body was hot and hard, and flying through the sky was totally exhilarating. She turned her face into his throat, nuzzled him, her blood thick, a molten lava moving through her body. She just let it happen, wanted it to happen. He had become her whole world. The way he talked, the way he turned his head. His slow, sexy grin. The way his eyes burned over her.

I am reading your thoughts. Do you want us to fall out of the sky?

He took a firmer grip on her soft body, aware of every lush curve.

She kissed his throat, inhaled his scent. Deep within her something was struggling for freedom. A wildness she knew was there, wanting — no, needing — to come out. Corinne smiled. She had always wanted the freedom to be that woman in her soul. Now she had it. Her tongue found his pulse, swirled in a small caress. She felt his reaction, the instant slam of his heart, the tightening of his body. Her mouth drifted up to his ear, explored and briefly teased before moving along his jaw.

If you don’t kiss me, I might die and we’ll never make it to wherever you’re taking me.

The raindrops were bigger now, droplets of glittering water that ran along her skin and sizzled on the heat of her body. The thin silk of her white blouse was immediately transparent, drawing his gaze to the beckoning enticement of her breasts and wreaking havoc with his ability to move swiftly through the sky. He was grateful the stone house he was seeking was looming up, nestled in the cliffs at the edge of a forest clearing.

They plummeted, nearly falling out of the air as he fastened his hot, seeking mouth to hers, possessive, exploring, craving more and more of her until he thought nothing he did would ever be enough. The wait had been endless. They landed somewhat haphazardly, not on the porch, but against it, a tangle of arms and clothes. Dayan dealt with that problem immediately, not waiting for the shelter of a roof, but ripping aside cloth and dispensing with footwear in every direction. He had to touch her, every bare inch of her satin-soft skin. Feel her. Memorize her.

His mouth was hot and moist and ravenous, giving Corinne no chance to realize they were still outside. All around them the raindrops splattered to earth, and sizzled and steamed against their skin. Her hands had a life of their own, touching his body, making her own exploration, tracing his defined muscles, his narrow waist and hips, then moving lower still to where he was thick and hard with urgent need. She felt his body jerk, felt the way the breath slammed out of him as her fingers moved over him.

Lightning arced across the sky and split open the heavens. The earth rolled beneath their feet as their mouths met again, welded together in heat and fire. They couldn’t get close enough, skin to skin, desperate to be one. Dayan thought he would go up in flames, his body hot and hard and demanding.

‘I have to have you, Corinne. I might go insane if I do not have you immediately.

Corinne’s carefree laughter was muffled in the side of his neck. Her breath found his pulse; her teeth scraped and teased. There was such joy in her, spilling over into him. Her tongue swirled again, her lips following the path of his collarbone. All the while, her hands were testing the weight of him, thick and hard and so needy. Her fingertips skimmed and danced; her body moved restlessly with heated demands of her own. “You don’t want to wait?” Her voice was husky, sexy, a promise of paradise. Her mouth was wandering over the heavy muscles of his chest toward his flat abdomen. His stomach muscles clenched while fire exploded in the pit of his belly.

Dayan’s hand slid over her body, trying to memorize every inch of her satin skin. He lost his ability to think rationally, and it didn’t matter. Corinne’s hands and mouth were inflaming him further, her body willing, accepting, hot and as needy as his own. His fingers found her welcoming moist heat, probed, pushed, felt the rush of hot liquid, eagerly awaiting him. Dayan lifted her, whispered instructions in his mind, or maybe it was just an image.

Corinne’s arms circled his neck and her legs circled his waist. She could feel him, hard and thick, pressing into her. She was open and completely vulnerable to him. She closed her eyes, savoring the moment, the exquisite pleasure, the heat and fire, as she enveloped him, took him into her body, uniting them as they were meant to be. The pleasure was more than she had ever dared to dream of. She heard her own small cry of happiness, and her hips began to move, almost of their own volition. She was riding him hard, taking him as deep into her as she could. Her breasts brushed his chest, and the raindrops ran down their bodies like lapping tongues stroking tiny caresses over their sensitized skin.

Dayan bent his head to her breast as she leaned back, her face lifted to the heavens in a kind of ecstasy. This was how it was supposed to be. Right. Perfect. Two halves of the same whole. His hot, seeking mouth found temptation, pulled strongly while her body tightened around his, a fiery velvet sheath he was lost in for all time. His teeth scraped, nipped, sank deep.

Corinne cried out, her fists clenching in his hair as white-hot fire raced through her body, a pleasure so acute it bordered on pain. She forced her eyes open to watch him feed, as his body took hers, surging strongly upward to fill her, the friction keeping her on the edge so that she was clenching her teeth as her muscles convulsively gripped him.

It was erotic to watch him, his mouth on her skin, his throat working, his black hair rain-wet and slick. It was then, in that perfect moment, in the wild wind and rain, that she noticed his hair was no longer jet black but a soft charcoal. She made a sound, a soft cry of love, of devotion, her eyes filling with tears. He lifted his head, his black eyes glittering like obsidian. From the two pinpricks on her breast, two thin trails of crimson merged with the raindrops. Watching her, he bent his head and followed them, returning to close the tiny pricks with his tongue. His dark sensuality triggered a like hunger in her. Deep. Elemental. Sensuous.

She felt her body tighten, clench around his until she was holding him in a slick, tight, fiery grip. Dayan deliberately pushed aside the wet strands of his hair.

Come on, my love, for me. Do this for me. I need this.

She slowed her hips, using long, slow strokes, letting the hunger wash over her. Slowly she leaned forward, watching him watch her. Very slowly she lapped at the water over his pulse. His body jumped and heated a thousand degrees. Her teeth nipped experimentally. She felt his answering response, his hips surging forward hard, a little faster. Corinne looked up at him, her eyes slumberous, sexy.

‘I do this for me because I need this. I want all of you, Dayan. I want you to belong to me. I want you in every part of me, with every breath I take.

Without hesitation she let it happen. Reached for it. Embraced it. This was her life, and she trusted his leadership as she had every step of the way. She hadn’t been repulsed by his need, his dark hunger; instead she craved him in ways she had never imagined possible. More than anything, she trusted him. She knew that if she couldn’t follow through, he would help her; he had a mesmerizing quality, that would make it easy to follow him anywhere he led. Dayan loved her. He would never do anything to bring her or her daughter harm.

His body seemed to swell in hers, grow thicker and harder, while her body gripped at his. Brand-new instincts took over, her teeth sinking deep, and he flowed into her like nectar. She felt him gasp as the white-hot fireball raced through his bloodstream, as his hands gripped her hips and he thrust forward, surging with powerful strokes. Then they were exploding together, minds fragmenting while their bodies seemed to ripple and burn. The earth moved, a strong rocking under them. Corinne couldn’t tell if it was real or imagined. She could only cling to Dayan breathlessly, every cell screaming with joy. She was alive! She had found her paradise, and it was very real.

Corinne closed the pinpricks and rested her head on Dayan’s shoulder. They clung together, their hearts beating wildly, fighting to get their breathing under control.

“I love you, Corinne,” Dayan whispered softly against her bare skin, his eyes closed, his black lashes emphasizing the paleness of his face. “I love you so much.” He lifted his head slowly, reluctantly, looking down at her through half-closed eyes.

She was looking up at him, her heart in her eyes. Their bodies were still joined together, and her body was still rippling with little aftershocks. She reached up to touch his wet hair, to trace the perfection of his mouth. “Thank you very much for finding me.”

He smiled then, a slow, tender smile that would always be capable of stealing her heart. “You are very welcome.” Small droplets of water dripped from his hair to splash on her face. They both burst out laughing. “We did not make it into the house.”

“I see that,” Corinne acknowledged, looking around her as if she were waking up from a dream.

Dayan reluctantly parted their bodies, reaching to lift her into his arms. “Crazy woman. Next time you decide to seduce me, make it out of the rain.”

She bent her head to lap the water from his shoulder. “I don’t know. I rather like it myself.”

The touch of her tongue sent flames dancing over his skin. Dayan pushed the door open with his foot and waved a casual hand to light the candles and the wood in the fireplace. There was a thick fur rug on the hardwood floor and he put her down, the fur immediately rubbing along her bare skin so that her body tightened again in anticipation. Dayan stretched out beside her on his back, his long body very male. “You are going to rest for a while.” He made it an order. “I am not taking you back to the healers half dead.”

Corinne laughed at him. “Do you think it’s possible to die from making love?”

“The way we make love, anything is possible.” He stared up at the ceiling, watching the flickering lights dance while the rain fell against the windows. He reached for her hand, laced their fingers together. “I never again want to feel like I did when I thought you were dying, Corinne. You were taking my soul with you.”

She rubbed her face against his shoulder, against his thick hair, which was now threaded with gray. His badge of love for her. “You are such a miracle, Dayan, and you persist in thinking it’s me.” She looked at him with a critical eye. “Why are you so pale? You’re never like this.” She touched his face.

“I need to feed,” he said simply. “In a little while I will hunt, but not right now. I want to spend every minute, every second, in your company.”

She lay quietly for a moment, absorbing what he was telling her. “Will I have to do that, Dayan?” She rolled onto her side to look at him. “Because I’m not certain I can. With you it’s different, but I don’t know about anyone else.”

Dayan’s black eyes moved over her face in a kind of dark, brooding study. “I did not think of such a possibility. I do not like the idea much.” He was quiet for a brief time while the rain and wind blew at the walls and windows. “Now that you have brought it up, I do not recall Tempest ever feeding in front of us.”

“Tempest was human,” Corinne said with hope. “She’s Darius’s lifemate.”

“Yes, she was human when she came to us. I do not ever recall seeing her feed.” A slow smile touched his mouth. “Darius would never tolerate her feeding from another male, human or otherwise. I think it is best for us to adopt the same policy. It is entirely possible I have a jealous streak.”

Corinne laughed at him. “You cannot be in my mind and ever be jealous.” She tugged at his hand. “Come on, lazy, let’s go outside again. I want to run.”

His eyebrows shot up. “If you have an overload of energy, I can think of other far more pleasurable things to do besides running. I am being good because you need to rest.”

Corinne laughed softly. “You think I need to rest?” She stretched, lifting her arms to the sky. “You’re the one who stopped, not me. I want to get the hang of being a Carpathian. I want to run, Dayan. For the first time in my life, I can do it. I really want to run. Please, let’s go running.”

“Right now?” He lay back in lazy contentment, linking his fingers behind his neck, watching her closely, drinking in the perfection of her body. He loved the way she moved, loved the joy in her, the naturalness. “There is a storm out there.”

Her laughter filled the room with warmth, filled his heart and soul. “I think there’s a storm in here too. A little storm never hurt anyone.” She bent over to kiss him, her hair sliding over his chest, the silky strands causing him to shiver with anticipation. “Don’t say no. I’m not overdoing it, really, Dayan. I need to run.”

“You are a crazy woman.” He sighed heavily because he knew he was going to run in the storm with her. How could he resist her happiness? It was impossible for him. He wanted to snuggle up with her somewhere safe, but Corinne wanted life. She faced her new world with the same lack of fear she had faced her former life.

Corinne caught his arm and tugged. “Come on, lazybones, or I’m going without you.” She was looking around the room. “What in the world did we do with our clothes?” She was blushing, crimson creeping up her neck to her cheeks so that she looked like she was glowing.

He shifted position, turning onto his side, propping up his head on his hand as he regarded her naked body with glittering, hungry eyes. “I do not think you need clothes, honey,” he observed matter-of-factly, his black gaze dwelling intently on her full breasts.

At once her body began to tingle with heat. “You stop it, Dayan.” She backed away from his reach, but she didn’t attempt to cover herself. She liked him looking at her with that intensely hungry gaze. “You were the one who said we had to stop. Come on.” She turned her back on him and walked slowly, provocatively, to the door, her hips swaying in invitation and her firm bottom beckoning to him. She had beautiful legs and a long, elegant back. She took his breath away.

Dayan moved quickly, leaping to his feet, scanning the area outside the house to be certain there was no danger. She glanced back at him over her shoulder, her look frankly sexy. “I don’t think running naked, when I’m built like this” — she turned to give him her profile, her hands coming up to cup her generous, firm breasts — “is a very good idea.”

His body tightened at the sight of a nipple peeking out at him through her fingers. “Then

walking

naked will have to do, because I like looking at you.” He caught her hand, his fingertips sliding in a caress over her silken skin.

Her eyes moved over his body, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. “I see that,” she pointed out, completely happy. She could touch the baby’s mind at will, know the infant was

sleeping soundly in the care of the

healers while she discovered the exceptional gifts Dayan had given her. She could have it all, experience it all, and she was determined to.

They moved together out the door onto the porch. Dayan tugged her closer, moving her beneath his broad shoulder for protection. “Remember to regulate your body temperature,” he said. Her body was brushing his as they walked together, and their skin become so sensitized, electricity began arcing between them.

Corinne threw back her head, looking up at the night sky, watching the glittering silvery drops rain down from the shadowy clouds above them. A small sliver of moon slipped out briefly from behind a heavy black cloud to shine on the thick stand of trees swaying all around them. Shadows danced, the air was clean and crisp, and the sound of the rain on the vegetation was a musical melody.

She looked down at her bare feet, shocked that she could walk without shoes on sticks and rocks and pine needles. She seemed to glide over the surface, as an animal might, her body instinctively finding the quietest, easiest way to go through the woods. She marveled that she had such a talent. Not only was her body moving efficiently, but her sense of smell had also become acute, and she could see despite the darkness. Information flew in on the wind, almost through her very pores. It wasn’t from Dayan this time; she was receiving it on her own.

She laughed softly, happily, unable to believe she was so alive. That the world around her was so beautiful and new. She was walking faster, listening to her heartbeat, reveling in its strong rhythm.

Dayan allowed her to slip out from under his shoulder, watching her body move, sensuous, enthralling. She lifted her arms again to the moon and dark clouds, her hair wild and rain-slick, her breasts rising as she inhaled sharply to take in the scents of the night. She looked like a goddess, a wild, untamed siren lifting her arms in pagan sacrifice as she turned in a slow circle. “I want to run, Dayan,” she repeated.

“Then we will shape-shift, honey.” Who could ever deny her anything? Dayan knew it would be impossible for him. “Remember what I told you before? It always starts in your mind. You must build a complete picture in your head and hold that image. It is an odd sensation, although not unpleasant. If it frightens you, Corinne, reach for me. I will be with you in your mind at all times.”

Corinne stopped moving, abruptly, swung around quickly to look at him, her eyes wide with excitement. “I’m not afraid. Really, Dayan, I’m not.”

“Picture a leopard.” He did it for both of them, creating the image so she could capture it down to the smallest detail.

She made a little sound, a throaty purring as fur rippled along her arms, as her muscles contorted, her body stretched, and then she was running on all fours, a sleek jungle cat. Her body felt like a well-oiled machine. She ran quickly, reveling in her ability to do so. She had ropes of muscles and sinew.

Cushioned paws. Running in this form was unlike anything she had ever experienced, complete and utter freedom. She bounded across the ground, her paws barely skimming the earth. Her pelt kept the rain from penetrating to her skin. Whiskers acted like radar so that she was aware of everything around her.

Dayan! This is wonderful!

The male leopard closed the distance between them in a single leap, its larger, heavier body protectively close. He didn’t want her to get carried away with her exuberance. She had undergone a terrible ordeal, and even if she thought she was strong enough, he couldn’t take the chance of her being injured. Not even a stubbed toe. Not a chipped fingernail.

I’m reading your thoughts, and you’re being silly. I’m whole! Isn’t it so great to be alive?

He could hear her excited laughter as she leapt up on a thick tree branch and lifted her muzzle to the wind and rain.

He was catching her joy. How could he not? She was bathing him in her warmth, her light, her total pleasure in the moment. He would have soared to the moon and pulled it out of the sky if she asked him. He prowled below her, his ears and eyes alert for danger, yet he was merged deeply with her, immersed in her childlike happiness.

Corinne leapt from the branch because she could. There was untold power in the cat’s body. She wanted to use it, try it out, see what it felt like to be a leopard. Dayan was unbelievably sensuous in the body of the male leopard. She realized, with a slight shock, that she was taking on the attributes of the animal. It was amazing to her. She rubbed against the tall fronds of grass, enjoying the sensation.

Baby, be careful here. We both are very heightened sexually. In this form, sex is possible between us, and you might trigger both of our instincts, but I am not certain it would be entirely enjoyable to you. Leopards are very dangerous at any time. When they mate, the male must hold the female in a submissive position for his own protection. You need much more experience to control animal passions. On the hunt this form is extremely difficult to control.

Corinne was tempted to discover what he was talking about. The female leopard certainly wanted to mate, but, merged as she was with Dayan, she could easily read that he was worried, even though the male shared the same desire. She immediately controlled her impulses and took off running again, stretching out her sleek, muscled body. She was silent, her leaps taking her over fallen tree trunks and even wider streams. She loved the sensation and wanted it to go on forever.

We can do this at any time? Of course. You should practice with me often. There is much to learn, honey, and I can see you will take to it easily. Can I fly?

His laughter was a soft joyful sound in her head.

It is raining. Birds don’t like to get wet. This bird likes it. We can fly to see Lisa and Cullen.

In the body of the leopard, Dayan shouldered her around, turning her back toward the shelter of the house.

It is too soon. Lisa knows you were very ill and you have had the baby. She would expect you to take a few days to recuperate. It has been a few days. I want you, Corinne. All to myself. I want to taste every square inch of your body. I want this rising and the next and ten more to make love to you.

Her answering laughter was tender.

Really? So why didn’t you just say so?