Dark Passion Rising (11 page)

“So, where exactly are you putting me?  A cell or the lab?”
Tambra asked, clearly not liking the idea of either.

 “Neither right now.  When you go through the Rising, I will see
that the lab is made ready for you and this equipment removed.  The glass is
virtually unbreakable, so there is no danger of you getting out or being harmed
by shattered glass.  Until your Rising you are my guest here and can move
freely around.”

 “I should be very put out with you Marcus,” a deep male voice
chided.  “How remiss of you not to let me know
my mate
is your guest
here.”

 Temple Fox stood at the bottom of the stair case, impeccably
dressed in a light grey suit.

“I don’t give a shit, Temple.  What are you doing here?”

“I have come for Tambra, of course.  Why else would I venture
into your barbaric dungeon?  Really, Marcus, the dark ages have come and gone,”
Temple sneered.

 Marcus stiffened, rage pumped though his blood stream like
molten lava, a red haze filled his vision.  Tambra was
his
woman.  No,
not his, he reminded himself, she would never be his.  He struggled to smother
the fire in his blood.

 “I am not your mate.  I don’t even
know
you, and what I
can see I don’t like,” Tambra snapped, moving closer to Marcus.

 Temple waved her words away with a nonchalant shrug.  “Once
you’re through the Rising, you may think differently.  I, naturally, will be
there, monitoring every moment of your Rising.  You have nothing to fear.  We
should go and get you settled.”

 “Go?  I’m not going anywhere with you!” Tambra spat, moving even
closer to Marcus.

 “You heard the lady.  You’re not taking her anywhere.” Cody
stepped forward, squaring off with Temple.

 In a blur of speed Temple was next to Cody.

“Do you think you can stop me?  One puny human against the
strength of a Pure Blooded Lycan?”

“No.  But I can,” a new voice drawled, capturing everyone’s
attention.  Tegan flowed down the stairs with all the predatory grace of the
cat he was.

“Tegan, you have no authority over this claim,” Temple sneered,
backing away from Cody as he gave the were-panther his full attention.

Tegan raised one eyebrow.  A sardonic smile lifted his lips.  “I
beg to differ.  It is you who overstep.  Miss Ellis has been placed in
protective custody by the Tribunal’s Enforcers, prohibiting any action on your
part if she declines to go with you.”  He turned his penetrating stare on
Tambra.  “That is your wish, correct?”  At her nod of agreement, he continued,
“After her Rising, she will choose her mate.  As per pack law.  There is no
guarantee that she will choose you unless you are going to try imprinting.  And
that
is not only barbaric, but frowned upon by all Breeds.”

 Temple’s handsome face turned bright red with fury.  “There are
exceptions, Tegan.  The survival of all Pure Blooded Lycans depends on this, on
her!”

 Tambra grabbed Marcus’s arm, stopping him from lunging at
Temple.

“Will someone explain to me what he’s talking about?  What is
imprinting?”

 “It’s rape,” Tegan replied.  “A pre-transformation Lycan is
locked into a small cell where they are forced to submit to the sexual whims of
their captor.  If they fight, they are beaten into subjugation.  As their
Rising nears, they aren’t allowed interaction with anyone except their captor.  Once
Risen, the imprinting takes hold.  The transitioned Lycan is a slave.  All free
will is removed, leaving only the need to please.”

“No way!  You lay one hand on her and I will find a way to kill
you,” Cody hissed, the promise very clear.

Tambra couldn’t help the shudder of revulsion as she looked at
Temple. 

“You would have done that to me if it weren’t for Marcus,
wouldn’t you?” she asked, her anger making her voice shake.

“You have my word, no harm of
any
kind will come to you
while you are here with me,” Marcus vowed.

 Temple’s gaze raked her, frustration, regret, and determination
in the firm set of his jaw.

“I will do whatever it takes to ensure the survival of my Breed.  Faced
with extinction would any of you do differently?”

“Get me out of here, Marcus.  I don’t want to even look at him
right now,” Tambra pleaded, looking up at Marcus with haunted eyes as a shudder
ran through her body.  She pressed closer to him.

 Marcus held her close to him as he led her to the stairs.  He
fought back the urge to attack the arrogant Lycan and eliminate the threat he
posed to Tambra.

“Come, I will take you someplace more comfortable.  Tegan, please
see to Tambra’s guest.  Temple, I think you know the way out of here.  I trust
you will not be back until called upon.”

 Temple kept quiet as he watched Marcus lead Tambra up the
curving stair case.  He knew by the churning in his gut that he may have just
doomed his Breed to extinction.  He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned
toward Tegan’s sympathetic gaze.  Snarling at the man, Temple jerked away from
his hand.  He did not need or want pity from the Were-panther and certainly not
from an Enforcer.  He raised his head proudly, turned, and followed Marcus and
Tambra out.

****

Marcus led Tambra back to the guest bedroom she had woken up in
only days ago.  She felt odd, coming back into the same room where her life had
taken such a drastic turn.  Only a few days had passed, but it felt like years.
 So much had changed.  She had changed.  A shudder ran through her body at the
thought of turning into a monster like the one that had bitten her, and she
turned to Marcus, leaning on his strength as she tried to put her fears into
words.  But nothing came out.  The words died in her throat before she could
utter a sound.  Fear and apprehension swamped her, leaving her feeling vulnerable
to the man who stood rigidly before her.

 She drank in his scent of dark spices and musk.  His dark hair
shone blue-black in the defused light that filtered past the edges of the heavy
window curtains.  The sharp planes of his face were etched in light and shadow,
dark eyes watched her with an unwavering gaze.  He looked primal, all male
dominance and sexuality.  She watched, mesmerized, by the rise and fall of his bare
chest as his breathing turning ragged.  His soft golden skin stretched over the
hardness of his muscles, expanding and contracting, dark hair trailing down his
hard, flat stomach to those low slung jeans that hugged the best ass she had
ever seen on a man.  

Tambra saw the bulge in his jeans.  Her clit throbbed in answer
to his need.  Her body ached to press against his.  Her hands, tongue, and lips
longed to travel over his body until she knew it better than her own.

 She moved toward Marcus slowly, stopping only when she brushed
against him and felt the heat of his body pour over her, making her skin
tingle.  His body quaked with tension, his breath coming faster.  She reached,
with shaking fingers, to stroke the hollows of his cheekbones, then his soft,
full lips, her touch feather light against his skin.

 Marcus jerked his head back, away from her questing fingers.

“Don’t!” he barked, brackets of strain lining his full, sensuous
mouth.

 “Why?” she challenged.

Marcus grabbed her arms and leaned down so they were nose to nose. 
His hot breath fanned across her cheek, his jaw clenched, his dark eyes were
wild.

“Don’t push me, Tambra.  I am at the end of my control.”

 She lifted her chin defiantly.  “Good.  I don’t want you in
control.  Whatever this thing is between us I want… I need to find out, or I
will go insane from wanting you.”

 “You don’t know what you’re saying.  It’s the Rising beginning.  You
really don’t want me at your throat.”  Marcus pushed her away, moving to the
door.

“Yes, I do, Marcus.  I want all of you.  No holding back,” she
whispered brokenly at his back.  She watched him, the corded muscles of his
back tight with suppressed energy as he fought a losing battle to keep
control.  Her body ached for the press of his body on hers, her need becoming
pain as she held still and waited.

 He turned to face her.  She could hear his breath sawing harshly
through clenched teeth.  She knew he saw the raw need within her, that he could
smell her arousal in the air around them as his nostrils flared.  A choked
growl rumbled low in his chest as he closed the distance between them, pulling
her to his chest.  His scent filled her and she buried his nose in his chest, taking
it into her lungs.  His hands, so large on her small back, rose to cup the back
of her head, his fingers spearing into the soft strands of golden hair.

 “Understand me well.  I have little control where you are
concerned.”

 She looked into his dark eyes, saw the hunger for her there, and
shuddered with a hunger that matched his.

“Me neither,” she admitted, feeling the truth of her words.  Whatever
connection there was between them she knew it would never fade, only deepen.  And
for some reason that thought didn’t make her want to run screaming from the
room.

 “Last chance, little one.  Say no to this, and I will go,” he told
her, his voice raspy with need.  “Let me, and I will sink my fangs into your
lovely neck even as I plunge my cock into you.  I will take you until my name
screams from your lips.  Then I will mark you as mine, my Consort, and your
life will forever be bound to mine.”

  In answer, Tambra rose to her toes and brushed her lips against
his, her tongue playing over the seam between his lips, seeking entrance.  With
a low growl that rumbled through her, he deepened the kiss, hungrily pillaging
her hot, moist mouth with the desperate intensity of a man starved.  One hand
slid down her back, cupping her ass, lifting her firmly against his erection.  Need
like she had never felt before made her a creature of sensation, her focus only
on the dark passion rising within her.

 Marcus’s muscles bunched under her hands.  She slid them down
over his wide shoulders, along his back, to his incredible ass.  He broke his
kiss only long enough to rid her of her tee shirt and bra.

He cupped her breasts in his hands, his thumbs rubbing the hard
peaks of her nipples as they tightened under his touch.  His head bent, mouth
laving one nipple before he sucked it into his mouth.  She arched into him,
mindless from the pleasure that spiraled through her.  His lips moved to her
other breast, giving it the same attention as the first.  His hand moved down
her ribcage, past her small waist, to the waistband of her jeans.  He unzipped them
and shoved them, along with her panties, down her rounded hips, leaving her
bare to his piercing gaze.

“So damned beautiful,” he whispered, his eyes caressing her skin
until she felt as if she was burning alive with the need for him to take her.

 She was desperate to feel his skin pressed against hers.  Her
hands reached eagerly for his waistband, and she removed the last barrier
between them.  His cock sprang forward from the confines of his jeans, thick
and hard.  Pre-come dripped from the slit of the large purple hood.  She licked
her lips as she watched that drop run down his cock, trail down the throbbing
vein and nestle within the black curly hair at the base.  His cock swayed with
his movements as he bent and removed his boots, then stepped out of his jeans.  He
stood before her, promisingly palming his cock.

Her mind whirled with lust as her wet core wept.  His nostrils
flared and, with a groan, he picked her up and placed her on the bed, covering
her with his body as his mouth claimed hers.  His skin on her sensitive flesh
sent her blood boiling though her veins.  Her hands traveled over soft skin and
hard muscle, reveling in the strength of him.  He left her mouth to roam over
her jaw and down her neck, one hand cupping her breast.  His thumb and
forefinger pinched her nipple, sending a spike of pleasure down to her
clenching pussy.

“
Please
.  I need you now!” she gasped, her breath coming
in quick pants as she rubbed her hips against him.

His tongue lapped at the vein pounding in her throat as he positioned
himself, his cock nudging at her entrance, separating her wet folds.  She draped
her legs over his hips, giving him better access as he tilted his hips and
drove forward, sinking deep inside her.

“You’re so tight,
fuck
!” Marcus rasped.

 Tambra felt the delicious sting as her body stretched  to accommodate
him, her need burning a path from her sensitive clit through her body, making
her gasp at the intense pleasure.  Her tight channel tightened around him as he
seated himself to the hilt.  He stilled, buried deep inside her.  The sharp
points of his fangs scraped the delicate skin of her of her neck with dark
promise and Tambra moved her hips in silent demand.  He slowly pulled out,
angling his hips so his cock slid along her tight bundle of nerves before
sliding back into her.  At the same time his fangs sank deep into her neck, making
her body teeter on the edge of orgasm.

Her muscles milked him as he began slowly moving in counterpoint
to the pull of his mouth at her neck.  Her eyes closed, surrendering to the
rising tide of pleasure building within her, then broke apart as she spiraled
out into a million fragmented pieces.  

The sudden absence of his fangs within her vein filled her with a
sense of loss, quickly forgotten as Marcus pulled her legs up to her chest,
giving him better access to thrust more deeply into her.  His fingers found the
tight bud of nerves near her core and stroked, sending a sharp spike of
pleasure through her.  He tilted his hips, hitting her sweet spot, sending her
spiraling higher as the second orgasm hit her.

 She heard Marcus shout her name, then stiffen as his cock pulsed
his release deep inside her.  He rested his head against hers, catching his
breath before opening his eyes, branding her with his possessive gaze.  A
thrill of satisfaction slid down Tambra’s spine, her heart opening to him as
the rightness of them clicked into place for her.  Whatever happened, she knew
that what they had just shared was right.