Darkling (4 page)

“I know.” She started to wave a hand as if to dismiss
anything he might say. The three of them glanced down at the object in her
grasp.

With a gasp, Niles reached for it. “Is that what I think it
is?”

She placed it in his hands.

His arm fled from around Vega’s back as he accepted it. A
quiet hiss issued from between his teeth. “Where did you find such a fantastic
fossil, Mischa?”

She shrugged. “Just around the ’hood. You know I do a lot of
walking. I spotted it with some garbage on the corner.”

Excitement lit his face. “It’s amazing. Look at those ridges.
What do you suppose created them?”

Vega stared between the pair. She needed to wrench the
starscale away and flee. But could she do that to Niles? It would surely hurt
him. After all he’d done for her, could she betray his trust? And what about
their earlier encounter?

“I don’t know what the indentations are. Maybe they’re snail
tracks?” Mischa leaned close to Niles so their heads almost touched.

Vega’s heart flipped. She had a very small window of time to
grab that scale and get back home. If she hurried, maybe only those in her
constellation would realize her absence, and they were loyal enough not to say
anything to the elders. The longer she stayed down here, the more she risked
their displeasure. Being banned from her realm was a true concern. Though it
hadn’t happened to another celestial being in many millennia, the old stories
warned of the possibility.

Tears burned behind her eyes.
I can’t stay here in this
world. I’ve got to find a way to get that starscale before Mischa disappears
with it.

The girl didn’t know its value. If she lost it or sold it,
Vega would never be able to find it again. It was blind luck that she was so
close to it now.

“Wow, look at this deep groove,” Niles was saying. Somewhere
between the boxing ring and the time he reached Vega, he’d removed his gloves.
The big pad of his thumb ran over the etching on the scale.

The swishing noise grew louder in Vega’s ears—like the
scrape of steel swords. Particles of star dust glimmered around the object.
Couldn’t they see it?

“What are you going to do with it, Mischa?”

Vega crowded closer to hear her reply. Behind them, the
noise of the people rose again as another fight was announced.

“I brought it for you, Niles. As a gift. I know you collect
fossils and thought you’d appreciate it most.”

He let out a huffing breath. A soft smile bowed the corners
of his hard lips as he sagged at the knee to clutch the girl to him. “Mischa,
you’re the sweetest! Truly a little saint—giving and thoughtful even while you
face hard times.” He threw his arms around her in an engulfing hug. “Thank you
so much for the gift.”

“Congratulations on winning your fight.” Her voice was
muffled against his shoulder. Her gaze darted to Vega’s.

Releasing her again, Niles straightened and gestured for
Vega to look at the object he held. If only she could find the words to tell
him it belonged to her—that she’d dropped it accidentally and would be punished
beyond belief if she didn’t get it back in time for the newborn lighting
ceremony. He’d said he’d help her, but would he understand its importance in
her existence?

Now the starscale belonged to him and had sentimental value
as a gift from one of his cherished friends. Vega didn’t think he’d give it up
easily.

She stared down at the enchanted scale and rifled through
every word in her memory to try to find the right ones. The ones to let him
know she needed the starscale. To explain why she’d vanish after it was given
to her.

Or the words to describe the sudden band of pain that
tightened her chest at the thought of never seeing him again, except from the
distant night sky.

Chapter Five

Niles flipped onto his side and stared at his bedroom
window. The sheets were hot and twisted and his pillow was lumpy beneath his
cheek. The tall expanse of glass was black and shiny, reflecting the pale glow
from the bathroom light he left on to guide Vega. The world beyond was a void
to him—it seemed his entire existence was here in his apartment.

With Vega.

He strained to hear her sweet little snores. Damn, tonight
had been torment. Seeing her obvious worry over him fighting Darien had
enflamed him. Passion had throbbed in his system at the way she clung to him
and begged him not to get into the ring again. When they’d returned home and
shared a late snack—the first meal they’d ever sat down to together—an inferno
of need had been lit inside him.

Sitting across the little kitchen table from her and
watching her scarf down nachos and cheese with both hands and gulping down
glass after glass of water had really shown him how lonely he was.

They’d talked at length. Though she still revealed nothing
about herself, she asked questions about boxing and how long he’d been doing
it. When she’d asked about his gloves, he’d rummaged in his gym bag and let her
put them on.

With delight, she’d taken a few jabs at the air, her plush
lower lip caught in her teeth. Seeing her body twist and turn, mimicking his
moves during the fight, had made his cock stiffen like never before.

In fact, he was hard and aching now at the memory of her
mouth wrapped around him. The low throb of need in his gut was almost
unbearable. Knowing he didn’t just ache for any woman, but only for the vixen
sleeping on his couch, was torture. His body urged him to get up and go get
her. Scoop her up into his arms and carry her to his bed. Stretch her out
beneath him and plunge into her hot little body…

He looked up at a quiet step. For a long minute, he stared
at the door, which he’d left open in case she needed him in the night.

You want her to need you for more than a glass of water
or comfort.
She’d fallen into his arms easily once. He knew he could scoop
her up and have her again. The heady taste of her pussy seemed to linger still
on his lips.

But he had to distance himself. It was bad enough he’d gone
against the regulations of his job and was hiding her in his apartment.
Sleeping with her would get him fired. Hell, everything he’d done with her so
far was way over the line.

At the mere thought of sinking into her tight little body,
his cock swelled inside his boxers, the thick head pressing against the
waistband and demanding exit.

Again he heard a soft noise, as if she were wandering the
short hall between the living room and his bedroom. When he heard it a third
time, he silently slipped out of bed and padded barefoot across the carpet to
the doorway. He peeked out into the hall, and his heart slammed his chest like
a Mack truck hitting a wall.

She was dancing.

Long, ebony ropes of hair swished around her torso and
snaked down her bronzed arms. Her body undulated, her upper body moving in
opposite time to her hips. His gaze locked on the space between. Her belly
dipped in and out rapidly.

He scrubbed a hand over his face. Damn, he wished he had his
glasses. He could make out her form well enough without them, but he longed to
see the sharper lines of her tantalizing body.

She spun toward the living room window, braced her hands on
the frame and continued to swirl her hips. His cock throbbed and his balls
clenched up tight at the vision of her round globes pressing against the thin cotton
chemise she was wearing again.

Tomorrow he’d get her some clothes. Until now she’d refused
them, but he couldn’t let her wear the layers he’d discovered her in. Hell, if
he was honest, he wanted to see her in something form-fitting.

If you felt those curves beneath you, man, it would be
over.

Unthinkingly, he slid a palm down his abs to his cock. He
squeezed the head hard and gritted his teeth against the need to blow.

Vega rocked side to side as though she was moving to the
music of a city that never sleeps. She performed a shuffling step. Her bare
ankles flashed from beneath the long, swirling mass of cotton she wore.

He clamped his fingers around his shaft. Fuck, he couldn’t
take it anymore. He was going to come just by watching her.

In three steps, he reached his bed and sank to the edge.
Hastily, he shoved his boxers down his hips and lay back. He pinched his eyes
shut, trying to hold in the images of Vega’s alluring dance as he took his cock
in hand.

Shocks of lust shook him. He stroked his shaft from root to
tip, smearing his thumb over the juices that had seeped out. A rough groan
boiled up his throat and he quickly staunched it. White heat clawed at his
insides.

The dark need built—doubled, tripled. He ran his palm over
the shaft, applying pressure, fantasizing about guiding the head to her moist
folds and joining them with one swift thrust. God, what would it be like to
capture her moan beneath his mouth as he slipped into her?

The fullness grew in his balls until they throbbed. It had
been a week since he pleasured himself, and Vega had him more pent-up than
ever. His release was going to be monumental.

In his mind, he continued to fuck her, cupping her full
breasts while pummeling her mouth, her throat with his kisses. Devouring her
and driving deeper until his cock nudged the tip of her womb.

With a rasping breath, he ruptured. Hot come flooded over
his fingers as waves of pleasure struck him. At the same time, tenderness
threaded through his heart for the woman he fantasized about.

“Oh Vega,” he whispered. The last spurts erupted from his
cock. He continued to pump it lightly.

His heart thundered in his ears and he struggled to hear her
pattering footsteps in the other room. Was she still performing her erotic
dance?

Still hard at the thought, he got up and located a dirty
towel in his laundry hamper. After a quick wipe, he crept back to the doorway.
He glanced down the hall and into the living room.

She was no longer at the window. For a long minute, he stood
there, fighting to control his noisy breathing and waiting for her to come back
into the frame of his vision. There was no denying that he wanted to stride
into the space and gather her into his arms. Not only did he want to experience
the feel of her body and the taste of her kiss, but he wanted to hold her tight
and gaze into her eyes. Tonight at the fight, a connection had been forged
between them when she expressed her worry for him. Finally, after years of
agonizing over other people’s welfare, he’d found a person who seemed to return
that feeling.

Too bad he knew nothing about her.

He returned to bed and stretched out on his side again,
staring at the door this time and praying Vega would pass through it into his
arms.

* * * * *

Vega’s clothing clung to her damp skin and perspiration beaded
on her throat. The apartment was pretty cool in comparison to the world
outside, but her body was hot. A restlessness had risen inside her and she
didn’t know what to do about it.

Well, that wasn’t exactly true. Niles could ease this ache.
But to go to him now and then later steal away with the starscale would be the
worst kind of betrayal. She needed to distance herself.

She flipped onto her back on the sofa and stared at the
window. She’d gotten up and parted the draperies to see her friends the moon
and stars. The miniscule pinpricks of light were obscured by the bright lights
of the city, which saddened her. More than anything, she wished to converse
with her twin sister at that moment. She needed to know what she should do
about these new emotions rising inside her.

Vega twisted her head on the pillow and sent a longing
glance toward Niles’ bedroom door. He stirred her. Everything about him—from
his dark, caring eyes to the cords of muscle she’d seen on his abdomen when he
was fighting drew her. Her fingers ached to explore his body; her lips hungered
for another taste of him. From making love with their mouths, she understood
these needs. But the ache in her chest she understood less.

If she called out, she knew he’d come to her. What then?
Could she go against her desire to keep her distance and touch him the way she
wanted to? To clasp his face in her hands and draw his hard lips down to hers?

A shiver washed over her, pebbling her flesh. These
unfamiliar sensations were both divine and distracting. She wanted more of
them, but couldn’t think around them.

She smoothed her hand down her arm, wiping away the bumps on
her skin. As she did, her nipples bunched up tight. Lightly, she rubbed them
too. The ache in them grew, and heat speared between her thighs.

She edged her fingers beneath the neckline of her gown and
located one hard bud. She pinched and rolled the sensitive tissue through her
fingertips. A strangled moan escaped her. An invisible knot in her core
tightened until it was almost painful, but she couldn’t stop. She wanted to
push through it, knowing if she did, she’d reach bliss higher than her altitude
in the sky.

As she prodded the hardened pearl back and forth, moisture
grew in her sex. The folds slickened and the tissues swelled. Abandoning her
nipples, she ran her hands down her belly to the V of her thighs. She pressed
the fabric against her bare skin and traced the seam.

Electric shivers rippled through her body. As a star, she
couldn’t experience pleasure this way, but each stroke spurred her on. Quickly,
she yanked her gown up and plunged her fingers into her wet pussy. Rough gasps
escaped her as she swirled her fingers over the soft folds. For centuries she’d
witnessed this act between lovers and always longed to know the ecstasy displayed
on the women’s faces. Now she could barely stand the torment.

When she dipped a finger into her soaking opening, she
stopped breathing. Her flesh contracted around her digit, gripping her tight.
Using her other hand, she caressed her aching nubbin, imagining Niles’ slick
tongue working against her.

Oh it feels sooo good.
Her breath sobbed in her lungs
as she increased her speed. Her muscles tensed and her eyes rolled back in her
head. Heat licked at her body. She began to tremble.

Behind her eyes, she saw Niles in a hundred different
poses—leaning casually against the doorframe, his eyes twinkling from behind
his thick-framed glasses, back muscles rippling as his fist connected with his
opponent’s jaw.

His masculine scent clung to everything in this space. How
she loved waking to his delicious scents filling her head and influencing her
dreams. How often had she craved his kiss, his tongue swiping the recesses of
her mouth? Countless times. And now she had something new to dream about—making
love to Niles.

In a blinding burst, she came. Cream flooded her fingers.
She fingered her swollen folds faster. Waves crashed over her again and again.
She bit down on her lower lip, squelching a cry of ecstasy. Her world narrowed
to the extreme sensation in her core, the juices bathing her fingers, and the
image of Niles in her mind.

She wanted him as a woman wanted a man. To be in his arms,
kissing and connecting in a way she never had before. In this form, she felt
she’d die if she didn’t have a chance to experience those things. Her ache was
much stronger than in her celestial body.

As the last pulsations ebbed away, she went boneless. Her
muscles relaxed and she released one last shudder. She imagined the brush of
air against her flesh was Niles, nipping and kissing every inch of her. She
longed for it. Craved it.

Through the window, she glimpsed the moon peeking from
behind a thick cloud. Was her old friend coming to check up on her? It felt
that way.

Quickly she shoved her skirt down and hitched herself into a
sitting position with her knees locked to her chest. Yes, she knew what her
heavenly friends must be saying about her. And her sister…she’d never hear the
end of this escapade. Losing the starscale was a major offense. Newborn stars
depended on it to fill them with a glow that would someday add to the night
sky.

Tears scalded her eyes.

Not again!

They spilled over and tracked down her cheeks. If Niles
heard her crying, he’d come to her for sure, but did she want that? Part of her
screamed yes—falling into his arms and allowing him to soothe away her fears
and stress was exactly what she needed. On the other hand, she was going to be
forced to betray him, and soon. He had no clue he possessed the object she was
searching for. The starscale had been hidden in his room. Atop his dresser or
inside his closet was an object more powerful than any earthly item.

The longer she sat there thinking about this, the more
urgent it became to retrieve it. Soon she’d have to break down the wall of
guilt she felt at stealing it back from him. Time was running out. The lighting
ceremony would take place in less than a week. Without that starscale, she
could never return to her true place.

She stared at the darkened doorway of Niles’ bedroom.
Suddenly, a notion tore through her so strong and bright, it might have been a
meteor. She shook it off. Shook off the idea that she might be here for more
reasons than to right the error she’d made.

No, Vega, you’re just hung up on Niles and the things he
makes your new body feel.

Dropping her head to her knees, she let her tears fall
freely and accepted her fate. She must retrieve the starscale and betray Niles’
trust in the process.