Demons of Bourbon Street (13 page)

“
Kane,” I said, my voice thick.

Raising his head, he moved his hand to my hip and pulled me against his hard body. “Yes, love?”

“
Take me to bed.”

His brown eyes turned molten chocolate with heated passion. I didn’t have to ask twice. He lifted me easily and carried me into the other room.

Taking his time, he liberated me of the rest of my clothes. First my jeans, and then he placed both hands on my waist. Inching his way down, he slowly lowered the last of my garments, kissing a trail to my belly. Kneeling on one knee, his hot breath mingled with the heat between my thighs.

I sucked in a breath and waited. Days. It’d been days. He hadn’t even visited me in my dreams while we’d been gone. My real life reactions to Kane’s dreamwalking was entirely too personal considering I’d been sharing a bedroom wall with family.

He ran firm hands along my legs, pressed a soft kiss to my inner thigh, and then looked up at me.

I quirked an eyebrow.

A low rumble sounded in his chest as he rose. “The next time I touch you, I want you lying down.”

“
Oh?”

His lips turned up in a predatory smirk. “What I have planned, your muscles can’t be trusted to keep you upright.”

I took a tiny step forward and slipped my hands under his shirt. “What if I have my heart set on seducing you?”

His gaze turned intense. “What the lady wants, she gets.”

“
Good,” I murmured and pressed my palms against the concave of his hips. God, I loved touching him there. I slowly brought my hands up, pressing fingers to his corded muscles. He raised his arms, and a second later I pulled his shirt off.

I took in his beautiful form. Over six feet tall, slightly tanned, and the body of a man who knew his way around the gym. He was gorgeous. I placed a soft hand over his heart, knowing that was what I loved most about him.

Abandoning any pretense of seduction, I wrapped my arms around him, holding tight. He was mine and I was his.

His strong arms came around me, and he whispered, “I love you too, pretty witch.”

“
I know,” I whispered back and brought my lips to his for another slow, tender kiss. But as soon as our tongues met, the spark reignited. That intense heat flooded through me again. I reached for the button of his jeans and seconds later we were both naked. His hard length pressed against my belly, forcing a strangled moan from the back of my throat.

I leaned back.

His eyes were glinting again as he watched me. “Lie down, Jade.”

The gruffness in his voice sent shivers of anticipation to all the right places. I did as he asked.

He hovered over me, and I pulled him to me, flesh on flesh. Tension shot through my starved body. Our lips met, tongues darting, teeth scraping.

Heat burned my insides, pulsing with his desire.

I reached down, closing my fingers over his velvety shaft.

His breath hitched, but he grabbed my wrist and gently pulled my hand away. “No. Tonight I worship you.” He kissed his way down my body, his tongue dancing over my skin. And this time when his lips brushed against my thigh, his tongue followed.

Wet and quivering, I gripped the sheets as Kane spread my legs. He paused just for a second and blew a hot, tantalizing breath, marking my center. He lifted his head and watched me as he ran a slow and deliberate finger against my opening. I raised my hips, more than ready.

He smiled up at me and plunged his fingers into me. A small cry escaped my lips as his mouth closed over my most sensitive spot, his tongue stroking in tandem with his clever fingers. Intense pleasure pulsated, blurring my thoughts to nothing but the pressure building beneath Kane’s expert touch.

My breath came in short gasps as the dual sensations mixed into one fiery, intense flame. Tiny shockwaves rippled through my core as my muscles tensed. Kane paused, and when I whimpered, he plunged his fingers again, simultaneously scraping his teeth over my sex. Pleasure exploded through me, liquid lightning electrifying every last nerve. I let out one last cry as my body turned languid and utterly satisfied.

Kane rested his head on my belly, tracing circles over my hip. I placed a hand on his head and ran my fingers through his tousled hair. A few minutes later, Kane rose and positioned himself over me, silent. Waiting. With a tiny nod, I welcomed his thick, hard length into my tender flesh.

We came together, him filling me and me taking every last inch of him. Slowly his hips started to move. I rocked with him, intense need building once again. His hands moved to my hips, holding me still as he thrust hard and deep, over and over again, until his breath became ragged. His fingers dug into my flesh, and I let go, crying out as the wave took me over the edge. Muscles tensing, he buried himself in me one last time, a guttural groan rumbling from deep in his throat.

His grip eased. He pulled me close, still buried deep, and kissed my shoulder. Resting his cheek against mine he said, “I’m not letting anyone take you from me. Ever.”

A bittersweet pulse fluttered in my heart. I brushed my lips over his ear and whispered, “I’m counting on it.”

Chapter 9

We held each other, silent, as our breathing returned to normal. After a few minutes, Kane rolled away and sat up, planting his feet on the floor. He grabbed my hand and tugged. “Come on.”

“
Where?”

“
Bath time.” He stood and grimaced as he flexed his right leg.

“
You okay?”

He smiled. “Yeah, just stiff. A soak will help.”

Trailing Kane into the bathroom, he flipped the hot water on and climbed in the antique claw-foot tub. He propped himself up against the back, knees raised, and patted the water, inviting me in. Bubbles clung to his chest.

I gazed at Kane submerged in the bubble bath. How could I resist? I lowered myself into the lukewarm water and leaned against him. The scalding water rushing into the tub burned my toes. Swirling the water to equalize the temperature, I closed my eyes and heaved a heavy sigh.

“
Want to talk about it?” Kane ran his hands lightly over my arms.

I pressed my toes to the faucet and shut the water off. “I don’t know what to think.”

“
About which part?”

A lot had happened. Jonathon and Lailah were possible mates? How creepy was that? I actually felt sorry for her. No wonder she fantasized about Kane. And then there was Philip. Could he be trusted? If what he’d said was true…

“
The part about my soul being tainted.” A small tremor ran the length of my body.

Kane tightened his arms around me as if shielding me from any harm. “There isn’t anything wrong with you. If black magic is eating away at your soul, don’t you think one of us would notice?”

I shrugged. “What about the circle? I did tap black magic when I battled Meri. Thank the Goddess I didn’t use it.” I paused, mulling my thoughts. “Do you think when I released the darkness, the circle absorbed the magic?”

He paused and ran his thumb over my cheek. “You’d better talk to Bea.”

My mentor, Bea, was the former New Orleans coven leader. During a battle with Meri, she’d sacrificed herself to the soul-eating magic in order to save the rest of us. We’d had to magically bind her into a coma to keep her from turning all evil-witch, but we’d managed to bring her back, whole and pure. At least, we thought we had.

Kane was right. Bea was the person to ask.

“
First thing tomorrow,” I said.

Kane kissed the top of my head. “You mean later today.” He gestured to the sun-shaped clock on the wall.

Four a.m. We’d been up for twenty-four hours. My eyes watered with fatigue. I stood and reached a hand to helped Kane up. “Time for bed. We need at least a few hours sleep before we start the next round.”

***

In my own bed, with Kane beside me, sleep was almost instantaneous. But instead of Kane waiting for me in dreamland, I found myself lounging on a king-sized bed, covered in purple silk. I glanced around at the windowless room. The lavish cherry wood furniture shone to a high gloss, matching the wood-paneled walls. The placed screamed dark and elegant. Where was I?

A door in the form of a hidden panel swung open. A silver tea cart emerged from behind the panel, rolling silently over the thick carpet. A pause, and then…Dan appeared. What was he doing in my dream?

“
You need to eat.” He stopped the cart next to the bed and locked the wheel.

“
Just some tea. I’m not hungry,” my dreamself said.

He gave me a stern look. “You’ve said that every time I’ve brought food to you. You need your strength.”

I pressed into the pillows. “For what? They don’t appear to be interested in letting us out of here.” Confusion swirled in the back of my consciousness. Who was I referring to and where were we?

He poured a cup of black tea and doctored the Earl Grey with a lump of sugar. “We’ll find a way.” He handed me the cup and tucked a lock of black hair behind my ear. Black hair? I glanced down at a silver knife on the tray and caught a glimpse of my reflection. Gray eyes, long, thick hair, angular nose.

Meri.

I was dreaming I was Meri, and Dan wanted to help me.

“
I need you to get strong. Dad’s waiting for us,” Dan continued.

A heavy sadness settled in my chest. “Philip doesn’t care what happens to me. Forget about me and save yourself.”

He sighed. “Let’s not argue this again. You know I’m not leaving without you.”

I stared at my slim fingers wrapped around the tea cup. “Fine, but it’s going to take a lot more than apples and cheese slices to gain any substantial energy.”

“
It’s a start,” he said and disappeared through the panel door.

My eyes flew open to the early morning light, sweat dampening my brow. I sat up holding my head in both my hands. What the hell?

“
Jade?” Kane murmured beside me and ran a hand down my back. “You okay?”

I lay back down and snuggled into him, comforted by his touch. “Yeah, I’m fine. Just a weird dream.”

He pulled me closer and kissed my neck. “Go back to sleep, love.”

Snuggled in his arms, my safe place, I squeezed his hand and willed myself to drift back into oblivion.

***

A loud banging tore me out of my restless sleep. I bolted upright and through blurry eyes spotted Kane answering the door, half-naked in only his faded jeans.