Authors: Aja James
Well, Sophia still didn’t know what Dalair was.
Both men exuded a powerful undercurrent of sexual magnetism. Sophia had an idea Ere was well attuned to his own powers of attraction and knew how to use them. Dalair, on the other hand, didn’t have a clue. But Goddess above, he sure poured out that sexual energy in wave after rolling wave, somehow made more potent by the fact that he wasn’t even trying, wasn’t even aware he was doing it.
Like now.
She felt the pull from him like the moon felt enslaved to the sun. It made her want to
do things
. Even raunchier things than biting his ass. Made her want to spread herself like a second layer of skin over his naked body and crawl into him. Made her wish she had Pure-female fangs to sink into this throat, his biceps, his lower abdomen just above his pubic bone, his inner thighs, his –
“Go to sleep, Sophia,” Dalair ordered gruffly in a surprisingly unsettled tone, startling her enough to drop her book to the floor.
He didn’t help her pick it up, but remained in his long held position, lying on his side. Sophia shot daggers at his back as she dangled half off the bed, almost losing her balance, trying to fetch her novel.
She slapped the novel onto her bedside table and made a production of getting settled into her cocoon of thick comforters and pillows, moving around and flipping about.
“Good night,” she called out in a muffled voice, sounding peeved and pouting.
Dalair did not respond in kind, focusing all of his energy into making his body calm down.
It wasn’t going to be a good night for him, not by a long shot. Not when his body ached so badly to get inside of hers, it was all he could do not to cup himself in agony.
He’d felt her gaze upon him ever since he’d lain down. He’d sensed her increasing arousal by listening to her breathing quicken, her heart pound, by inhaling her heady scent, blossoming thickly with her excitement. He could almost see in his mind’s eye what she saw in hers as she scrutinized his body with sexual interest.
But he would never be the one for her, Dalair thought as his heart clenched in pain. He’d never had that right and he knew he never would.
*** *** *** ***
Tristan came behind his Mate and wrapped his arms around her waist, kissing her neck in small light grazes, nuzzling against her and inhaling deeply her familiar scent.
“You’re home early tonight,” Ayelet greeted, tilting her head to one side to give him better access. But she kept her gaze fixed on the giant dual-screen display in front of her, her fingers busy tapping keys as she continued her search for Seth and Leonidas’ potential replacements.
“We have some leads,” Tristan responded, hugging her back to his front and settling his chin lightly on top of her head as was their habit. “We ran into a rogue vampire who used to belong to the faction that was annihilated in the train tunnel. They used to have dealings with another group, much older, much more powerful in its members, to divide territories and agree on ground rules for hunting humans. The older group wanted to absorb this faction into its midst, but not to build a Hive – instead it seemed like they were recruiting for an army. The faction refused.”
“Who is the other vampire Horde’s leader?” Ayelet asked, her key strokes stilling.
“The vampire didn’t know. He’s never seen or heard the person, but the older vampire faction was definitely acting under orders. They were also remarkably organized and well-behaved, as if they were trained soldiers. Yet their general never made an appearance.”
Ayelet absorbed that with a nod. “And how did you manage to get so much information out of a rogue vampire?”
She felt her Mate smile against her head. “Aella can be very persuasive. Between his attraction to her and the business end of her dagger, the Rogue couldn’t deny us what he knew.”
“How much of what he divulged can we trust?”
“Some more digging will tell,” the Champion answered. “But I am inclined to follow the leads he gave us. He seemed to be trying to reform – he was gaunt with starvation and he professed that he would continue to avoid harming humans while trying to find another way to survive. He says he’s in love with a human woman, if you can imagine that.”
“I can,” Ayelet sighed. “We often view the vampires as blood-sucking monsters, our nemesis and the nemesis of human kind. But we must not forget that they were once just like us, Pure Ones devoted to protecting this world and the humans within it. It is tragic that they became what they are simply because they lost their hearts to the wrong partners. The yearning to love and be loved in return should not warrant such cruel punishment.”
“Your words can be considered blasphemous,” Tristan commented without heat, “I didn’t know you were a vampire sympathizer.”
Ayelet turned in her Mate’s arms to regard him. “I sympathize with them as living, feeling creatures of this earth. If the Goddess saw fit to allow them this path of life, surely they cannot be all evil. Since their creation, they seem to be as much part of the Universal Balance as we are. And people change, souls transform. It is a cycle we all serve. Perhaps the vampires are changing too. Just look at the increasing number of Hives around the world. They are becoming much more organized, even civilized. They even have their own Queens.”
She rested her head against her lover’s chest and was immediately gratified by the strong beat of his heart. “Besides, I sympathize because I have you. I know how rare and special our bond is. This is what a Pure One reached out for when they broke the One Sacred Law. How can I begrudge them that desire when I myself have felt the same?”
Tristan hugged her tightly to him and stroked her long blonde mane soothingly.
“I remember the first time I saw you,” Ayelet murmured dreamily. “You had just been revived. You looked so bewildered and in such pain from the transformation. And all I could think was ‘I want him for my own. I would do anything to have him, even if it cost me everything.’ I took that risk with you knowing full well the consequences if you didn’t return my love, but I never hesitated even for a moment. If my death was a consequence, I wouldn’t have regretted making that choice. My existence would have been meaningless without you.”
Ayelet put her hands on her Mate’s hips, then smoothed them covetously over his taut backside, massaging and squeezing leisurely, stoking the fire within him. “I do not know if I would have taken death or life as a vampire, and I’m eternally grateful I didn’t have to face that impossible choice. So I can’t righteously judge those who have walked a similar path, get their heart broken, and then be confronted with such a brutal reality. I suppose my own happiness has made me more in tune with the sadness of others.”
“It is one of the many reasons I love you,” Tristan responded warmly and pushed his arousal into the softness of her belly. “Come, my dearest one, let me show you the depth of my devotion.”
*** *** *** ***
Valerius held Rain tightly as she slept, her back to his front as he curved around her in their customary cocoon.
It was almost dawn, but he’d been wide awake all night with embattled thoughts, struggling between his body’s imperative to Serve her and his mind’s terror at the true mating act. Added to this were Wan’er’s warning from earlier in the day.
No matter what it cost him, he had to try.
Involuntarily he shuddered as his heart clenched painfully. What if he could not overcome his demons? What if his body was too tainted with the horrors and filth of his past to fulfill her needs? What if his mind denied the release she needed from him?
What if he failed to please her?
He’d never been kissed. Never kissed a female in a non-filial way. The tormenters in his human life had always avoided his mouth after the first time they ventured near and almost went away with a missing body part. He’d never had to control his body, having always had it controlled for him, used as his abusers saw fit. And he was too big. If he couldn’t fit into the mistress despite her countless and cruelly inventive efforts, how could he possibly fit inside the tiny, utterly fragile Healer?
She’d shown him a small insight on how to bring her pleasure the other night. But that was all he knew. He didn’t know where to begin or how to end. He feared down to his bones that she might have been right – he didn’t know the first thing about being her Consort.
Didn’t know how to be a Pure-male.
There were times he fell into deep despair, feeling trapped again inside the fourteen year-old boy who’d been brutalized and traumatized. Wanting to claw his way out of his own skin, yet feeling as if he would just get dragged back down, further and further into the abyss. Into a black void of pain and hopelessness.
When they’d retired to their chamber earlier in the night, he’d awkwardly offered to Service her. She gently declined, saying she wished to sleep and that all she wanted was for him to hold her.
But he could see the strain of exhaustion and weakness in her eyes, in the small white lines around her mouth, the way she barely held herself upright, the translucent paleness of her skin.
If there was one good thing he accomplished in his long existence, Valerius wanted to ensure the Healer’s strength and vitality. Rain’s strength and vitality. There was only ever Rain. He dared not think of her as his, but he knew from the first time they met that he was unequivocally hers. He’d only been delaying the inevitable. Denying the very reason for his being.
Tentatively, he trailed a hand down her side, over her slim hip and along her thigh to the edge of her filmy silk nightgown. He eased the material upwards and over her sleeping form, moving her limbs easily to pull the gown over her head, leaving her body naked against his own.
She stirred a little, but remained in slumber, curling more tightly into a ball, her arms crossed over her small, pink-tipped breasts as if she were cold or shy.
Valerius fitted himself closer to her huddled form and smoothed a large hand over her body, soothing her enough to relax gradually and reveal more of her front to his delicate touch.
As she’d taught him, he covered her pubic area with one hand, cupping her gently between her thighs. With his thumb he began a fluttering rub, back and forth across her special spot, encouraging it into a hard little button.
Rain sighed deeply and instinctively widened her legs a fraction to give him better access. He took it as a welcome and delved one finger slowly into her damp heat.
Her hand came over his but she exerted no pressure, merely holding onto his wrist in anticipation. As her arousal and readiness increased, giving off a heady fragrance, his own body tautened incredibly in reaction, his mating scent joining hers.
Before long, her body shuddered in delight, the walls of her tight canal spasming around his finger, making his engorged cock jerk in jealousy and torment against her backside.
When her shivers slowly subsided, she turned around in his arms without opening her eyes.
“You’re making it impossible to resist you,” she complained in a teasing tone. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you when you’re sore and bruised in the aftermath.”
“No,” he agreed, “just let me make love to you. Let me give you what you need.”
Vaguely, it occurred to Rain’s still sleepy
subconscious that he’d said “make love,” not “Service.” Somehow she recognized the significance in the distinction, but immediately forgot all about it when she felt his erection probe between her thighs.
“Hmmm,” she purred, wriggling against him until the satiny lips of her vagina rubbed teasingly over the swollen head of his penis, wetting it in an intimate kiss.
Valerius shuddered at the sensation, but kept himself still, letting her slowly gyrate against him, pleasuring herself with the pressure of his cock.
With a shaking hand, he raised her chin and leaned his face closer to hers. When their lips were but a whisper away, he inhaled her scent deeply as if to brace himself, harnessing inner strength.
And then his lips met hers in a graze so light, Rain felt tickled. She edged her mouth closer and wound a hand behind his neck, barricading a potential retreat.
One slight graze became two brushes. Two brushes blossomed into arduous strokes. And still his lips remained closed against her slightly open ones.
He was driving her slowly mad.
But she wanted him to take his time, like waiting patiently for a wounded tiger to approach. Wherever he led, she would follow. She wanted to be blessed with the gift of him rather than take him as if she had every right.
Which she had. As the rules of the Phoenix Cycle dictated.
But she never viewed her Consorts as possessions, or even as her servants, though technically they were for the duration of the Cycle. She always viewed their Service as a privilege to be honored, even cherished. Each one deserved her affection, admiration and respect.
Rain was so caught up in Valerius’ generous mouth that she forgot for a moment everything else. Her hips stilled in their undulation against his. With all her being she concentrated on his tentative, excruciatingly gentle kiss.
Finally his mouth opened slightly and he began to pull at her lips more strongly with his own, sucking and releasing, nibbling and rubbing. She’d never felt so aroused because of a simple kiss. Maybe it was his tenderness. Maybe it was his shyness. Or maybe it was the anticipation of more to come that built urgently within her, igniting every cell and nerve. For she’d never been kissed with so much…
Love.
There was no other word for it. It was as if he was pouring his heart and soul into this one act, his body literally vibrating with the intensity of it.
Again, Rain felt a sting of alarm. But Goddess above, this felt so good. So right. She never wanted him to stop.
And then she felt his tongue lightly lick her upper lip. Oh please please please come closer, said the spider to the fly. Unconsciously, she squeezed the back of his neck in urging. Please please please come inside.
All at once, he did, inserting his tongue into her mouth with a voluptuous sweep. They both moaned at the sensation and struggled to get even closer though they were already glued together, front to front.
Thoroughly, methodically, he explored her mouth with his tongue and lips, surging inside and retreating over and over and over. Both their hips mimicked their mouths, pushing against each other, undulating, arching.
It seemed to go on forever. She wanted it to go on forever. But still she needed more. Craved him at her core.
Suddenly Valerius broke away with a shuddering breath, chest heaving and heart pounding.