Sometimes, I want you close, and I want you in my arms, with the scent of your breath on my skin." His lips curled. His smile had a look of sheer wickedness to it. "Sometimes, I want you in my bed, and I want to run my hands over every inch of you." Her body heated and he'd taken her so quickly she couldn't respond immediately. She didn't want to respond. She could resist. She thought she would be able to resist the desire she saw in his eyes. She was certain of one thing though. He would fight her, every step of the way. He was determined to make sure she would never truly surrender. She had known that about him when he saved her from the river. He wasn't letting her go. But she could resist for a little while. He leaned in close, his breath blowing across her lips. She opened her mouth, but he pressed his finger against her lips. "Let me be the first. I like to be able to taste it when I'm inside you. I like to know it's mine." She tried to protest, but he took hold of her chin in his hand and held her firmly, as if he was afraid she'd change her mind. "So you can fight me and deny it, but I'll have you any way I can." The words were a demand. "You'll have me." It wasn't what he wanted to hear, but she wasn't ready to give up. He smiled a smile that had too many emotions to catalog. He could see in her eyes that he'd rattled her. He laughed then, "I won't need to have you. I will have you any way I want." He wasn't being gentle with her, but she couldn't resist the passion rising in her body. Her breath was coming in ragged gasps, and she wanted nothing more than to turn into his arms. He leaned in close, and she could feel his lips brush against hers as he whispered the words that drove him. "You are my woman. I will never share you. Not with any man." She didn't say anything. She didn't know what she could say. She was too breathless. And she couldn't believe that he would give her to anyone else. The thought of him walking away scared her. He was the one man she wanted to stay with forever. Her body was telling her that she was willing to be his, but her heart wasn't ready. She had given her heart away so long ago that she had given herself up. She had given it all up for a man who didn't care about her at all. He hadn't cared for her the way she cared for him. His fingers skimmed down her chin and his eyes pierced hers. "Don't worry about me, Kate. I will keep you safe, protect you and feed you. In the end, if I must, I will kill to protect you." He smiled that wicked smile. His eyes had a devilish glint in them. "And I would. I'd kill to protect you. As a matter of fact, I would kill anyone who hurt you, just as I did today when I killed his brother." She wanted to say something. She wanted to scream. She wanted to run away. She fought every instinct within her body to do something, anything other than what he expected. He was going to hurt her. The thought tore through her mind and she wasn't sure if she could resist his demands any longer. He pulled her to him, crushed her against his chest and crushed her lips with his. She felt his hands move over her waist and slide beneath her blouse. He felt so good. So perfect. She moaned into his mouth as he kissed her with deep force and then lifted his head. She pressed her fingers against his mouth, the only means she had of stopping him. He laughed and kissed her fingertips and gently removed them from his mouth. He was unrelenting. She shook her head, not quite sure what to do. She would rather have him kiss her than have him hurt her. She wanted him to hurt her. His body pressed against hers and his tongue swept inside her mouth as he deepened the kiss. She would have cried if he wasn't touching her so passionately. It took a minute for her to understand that he was allowing her the escape he knew she needed. She gasped against his mouth and pulled back just slightly. "Don't hurt me," she begged him. "I don't want you to hurt me. You will not be so harsh with me." She held him tightly, wishing with everything in her that he would stay with her forever. For a minute, she couldn't breathe and then she gave in to his demand. He was not gentle with her and she loved it. She let herself become lost in him as he continued to kiss her, to kiss her like no man ever had before. Her body tingled and burned from the way he touched her and the way he kissed her. And when he finally released her mouth, she turned her face to the side, not quite ready to face him again. He cupped her face and forced her eyes to meet his. "Kate, why are you fighting me? I'm fighting for you. I love you. I have always loved you, and I always will." He continued to hold her close. "I will always care for you, take care of you, love you." His words broke through the last barrier she had and she allowed herself to cry in his arms. She had known deep down that he would win in the end, but she hadn't known how much pain it would cause. She didn't want to lose him. She didn't want him to go away. She wanted to be with him forever. She wanted him so badly. He turned her against his body, his hands moving through her hair. "Kate, say it. I need you to know what I am saying. I am saying that I love you and I will always care for you. I need you to let me love you the way I do." She lifted her face to his and looked at him, her eyes shining in the dim light of the room. "I love you." She should have said the words she knew he wanted to hear. She should have told him that she loved him, but she hadn't realized until then just how much she loved him. She loved him more than he could ever realize. She couldn't imagine a day when she would be without him. She would hold on to the memory of his kiss and all the other times he had kissed her and how she felt. His eyes turned stormy. He pulled her against him, crushing her body to his and she knew she would be able to feel the beat of his heart for the rest of her life. "I love you," he whispered as he kissed her softly, just as he had when they first met. "Always remember that. No matter what." He kissed her forehead and then turned and walked away. She stood in the room not sure what to do. Part of her wanted to run after him, hold him and make him stay forever. The other part of her wanted to cry and mourn the loss of everything she'd had before. She would never be the same again. He would always be with her, in her thoughts. She knew that she would never be the same. Trevor would be angry. He'd think that she was having an affair, but he had to understand. She didn't want to be with any man. She wanted him. She didn't want to share him, but she couldn't tell him the truth. She had already shared him with the world. He'd find a way to do whatever it was he thought he had to do to keep her safe. He stepped out of the house and walked down the porch steps. She called out to him, but he didn't listen. She ran to the door and followed him. He stopped briefly when she called out to him, then continued on toward the stable. She moved as fast as she could, but it wasn't fast enough. She didn't see him for long seconds. When he stepped out of the stable and turned around, she had her hand around the knife at her side and she held it ready. The blood drained from her face when he looked at her. She didn't know what she had expected. She didn't know how much he would hurt her. He took her hand and lifted it, staring into her eyes, then he let her hand go. "I will make sure you are safe, but I'm not sure you should go back to your home. The house is empty right now. There's nothing for you there." He spoke as if they were strangers. He didn't know her at all, but it wasn't his fault. He didn't know her very well. And he didn't know her well enough to have her forever. She wished she could tell him that she loved him and wanted to be with him forever, but the truth was he wouldn't want to stay with her. She loved him too much, too much for her own good. She watched him walk back up the hill toward his home. She ran back up to her room. Her eyes were cloudy and she wasn't sure why. She had thought she was done with him, that she would never see him again. But now, she wasn't sure she was finished with him at all