Rafe grabbed Eleta's upper arms and pulled her up onto her knees on the bed. His fingers dug into her flesh, and she knew she would have bruises in the morning. They were touching from shoulder to hip, and her nipples tingled from brushing against the soft cloth of his shirt. For once, he didn't seem to notice as he pressed his face toward her until they were nose to nose. They could both smell her musky dew on his lips, and their eyes had matching sparks of desire. His searched her expression for some hint of the truth, and his breath was a hot blast on her face.
"What prophecy?" he repeated, his voice even more menacing than before.
Eleta gulped and tried to gather her scrambled wits. This was not going according to plan. Her tutors had not prepared her for the possibility that the wolf would not be so easily seduced. Everyone had taken it for granted that with her beauty and with the proper coercion, Rafe would simply fall beneath her spell. She had been prepared with all the knowledge and skills necessary to beguile him. She had not been expecting him to beguile and befuddle her. Nor had she planned to tell him anything about the prophecy.
Rafe gave her an impatient shake that was none too gentle. "What prophecy?" he demanded once again.
Eleta retreated behind her regal facade that had always served her well in the past. She raised one haughty brow and tilted her chin so that she could look down her nose at him. Her eyes scolded him for his insolence.
"Let go of me," she commanded.
Rafe hesitated, and for what seemed like an eternity, she thought he would refuse. His eyes narrowed as he held her gaze for several heartbeats. Finally, he released her and turned away, placing his hands on his hips. Eleta sank onto her heels, drawing a shaky breath and trying to regain her composure.
Several fraught moments passed as each of them struggled to leash their own raging desires. Rafe ran a trembling hand through his hair and glanced at her from over his shoulder. She was still sitting on her knees on the edge of the bed. Her long hair framed her nudity, providing enticing glimpses of her curved hips and swollen nipples, still red from his mouth. He snapped his gaze back to the fireplace and growled in displeasure as another wave of hot blood flooded into his loins. He was sorely tempted to take her now and ask questions later.
"Damn it woman! Find some clothes and cover yourself!"
Eleta flinched from the harshness of his tone. She rose from the bed and crossed to one of the large wardrobes in the corner. Rafe could hear the sounds of rustling fabric, and he struggled to draw a deep breath into his lungs as he waited. She padded back to him on bare feet, and when he turned, the vision that assailed him took what little breath he had away.
She was dressed in a flowing lavender robe of the softest gossamer silk. It was cinched tight at the waist, which only accentuated her curves. The material clung to every contour, lovingly hugging the swells and dipping into the valleys. The material was sheer enough that it held almost nothing from his regard, and the outline of her pouting nipples was clearly visible. The impudent tips were straining against the fabric, and his mouth began to water. His eyes dropped further, and he could see the black triangle of hair at the apex of her thighs. The overall effect was even more alluring than her nudity had been, and he groaned as he pierced her with an angry glare.
"Is that the best you can do?" he growled. "There must me something more modest that you could wear, woman. You look like some strumpet!"
Eleta braved his anger as she closed the distance between them and leaned into him, placing her hands on his chest. She could feel his heart pounding beneath the muscled expanse, and she knew the effect she was having on him. She noticed that his hands shook and they seemed to land on her hips of their own volition. Perhaps all was not lost, she thought. Perhaps if she told him some of the details of her plan, it might be enough to satisfy him. She caressed his chest with heated palms and looked up at him from beneath her sooty lashes.
"I've told you already, Rafe. I intended for us to become lovers. When I brought you here I was planning to seduce you. Every garment I have with me has been designed with that in mind, to bring you pleasure."
Hearing those words further undermined his good intentions. The thought of her plotting in advance to seduce him was the ultimate flattery. When she began spreading hot little kisses along his throat, Rafe knew that he was dangerously close to losing control entirely. He closed his eyes and tried to ignore her soft lips nibbling along his jaw, but that was impossible. His instincts were urging him to rip off her robe, toss her onto the bed and pick up where they had left off. But he needed answers.
Rafe pushed her slightly away and turned his back to her. He gulped huge breaths of air as he fought for some semblance of sanity. What the hell was the matter with him? No one was more familiar with feminine seduction than he was. Many a lover had enticed him with teasing glances and inviting kisses. He was no stranger to naked breasts or silken thighs. Making love had no longer held any mysteries for him until this moment. He was shocked to realize that he had never experienced this degree of hunger for any woman. He wanted Eleta with an intensity that scared him.
Rafe realized with some degree of awe that when his mouth had been on her and he had tasted her sweetness on his tongue, he had forgotten about seducing her. His focus had been solely on giving her pleasure. Her sighs and moans had been like sweet music to his ears, and the more she had flowered for him, the more she had enslaved him. That thought frightened the hell out of him. He had never been so focused on a woman's pleasure over and above his own.
He crossed to the table to put some distance between them. The clinking of the chain helped to refocus his thoughts. He tossed back a gulp of wine before turning to face her.
"None of this makes sense, your Majesty. I believe that your intention is to seduce me." He tried to keep his gaze dispassionate as his eyes trailed down her body, but he failed miserably. His green eyes flashed with anger as they locked with hers once again. "But what does that have to do with some prophecy?"
Eleta sighed and looked away briefly. She could see he was not going to drop the subject until she gave him the explanation he was looking for. It was always best to stick to the truth as much as possible. She decided to tell him as much as she could and hope that he would be satisfied.
She beckoned him to join her in the chairs beside the fire. She curled up in one, but before he sat in the other, he added a few logs to the fire. He finally took a seat and looked at her expectantly.
"Long ago, before either of us was born," she said softly, "there was an oracle who advised the queen. She had a vision, and she prophesied that we would become lovers." Seeing that she had his full attention, she continued. "The prophecy stated that a princess would be born, and she would be known as the chosen one. It foretold that she would someday mate with the Wolf of the East."
"For what purpose," Rafe asked, clearly skeptical.
"There is no purpose," Eleta said with an impatient frown. "It is just a prophecy, nothing more."
A long moment passed as he stared at her, trying to read the truth in her eyes. Finally, he sat back and shook his head in disbelief. "No, ma'am. There is much more that you are not telling me. It does not make sense that you would simply allow someone's vision to dictate your actions in this way."
"What other reason could I possibly have?" she asked. "The things I told you before are true. I have heard about your prowess in the bedroom, and I wanted my first experiences to be pleasant. Since the prophecy had foretold that we would be lovers, I decided not to resist my destiny."
"How can you be sure that you are the princess mentioned in the prophecy?"
