Switch (The Forever Series, Book 7) (30 page)

I can sense rather than see his fury that I have now, in
fact, won this round and I smile, trying to hide it but failing miserably.

“You are a wicked woman,” he says. “A wicked, wicked woman.
You are far too clever for your own good.”

“Do you admit defeat?” I ask, brazenly brandishing the
loofa, as I would a sword.

“It appears the Ace up your proverbial sleeve has beaten my
own this time,” he says grudgingly. “Don’t get used to it. The next time you
threaten me with that, it will be the last.” He stalks out in bad grace, as I
howl with laughter. He always was a sore loser. There again, I suppose when you
hardly ever lose, it must come as a shock to the system.

Still celebrating my win, I get out of the bath and towel
myself dry. A shiver goes down my spine as I think of all the ways he will make
me pay but it was so worth it to see the look on his face.

I wrap the towel around my waist as I grab another to
squeeze the water out of my hair. I exit the bathroom and stop short as there
is a stranger in our bedroom. CK has disappeared, still in a temper no doubt,
but has left me with a Feeder it would seem. He turns to look at me and his
eyes widen as he takes in my naked top half, which I quickly cover up with the
hair towel.

“Sorry,” he says in English. “I was told to wait here, I
didn’t realize you were in there.” He points to the bathroom.

“No worries,” I say, as I turn my back to him and loosen the
towel to pull up to cover my breasts. “I am fairly certain that information was
left out on purpose,” I mutter more to myself as I turn back around.

He looks relieved that I am now covered up, as it were, and
sits down at the dresser. Feeling very awkward and vulnerable, I make my way
over to him and quickly drink from him and step back. “Thank you,” I murmur. He
nods and stands.

“My pleasure,” he murmurs back, his eyes briefly dropping
back to my tits, before he turns on his heel to leave. He looks back over his
shoulder as he reaches the door. “I’m Edward,” he says. “You’ll be seeing me
again.” He leers jokingly at me and I smile at him. Seems that my sire, in his
uncanny way, has already hired someone to relieve Ramon of his twice-a-day
duty. Saves us a conversation, but it irritates me that he didn’t consult me
first. Still, he is AB Neg, which is a must and he seems affable. Nothing worse
than an uptight Feeder.

I turn to the closet and see for the first time a dress hung
up on the door. “I took the liberty, I hope you don’t mind?” CK says from behind
me.

I turn with a small, pleased smile. “Not at all. I like it
when you help dress me.”

“I sincerely hope that you prefer it when I help
undress
you,” he says, his eyes hooded with lust as he steps closer when I drop my
towel.

“It’s high on my list of favorite things,” I say.

“Mine too,” he says against my lips before he kisses me
deeply, holding me tightly to him for the first time since I got back from
seeing Sebastian. Twice bathed, I must now be in an acceptable state for him. I
press myself against him and he moans softly in my mouth. I can feel him hard
and ready for me and I brush my hand lightly over him but he steps back, hands
on my shoulders. “Not yet,” he chides me.

I make a noise of frustration and turn from him. “You are
driving me crazy. You are a very frustrating creature. How can you stand it?”

“I keep thinking about how amazing it will be when I finally
do give in and take you,” he says, wrapping his arms around me. He nuzzles my
neck and I feel a tremble go through me.

“Bite me,” I say to him, tilting my head so he has easier
access to my jugular.

“I want to,” he nips me with his regular teeth. “But I want
to do something to you while I do.”

Ooh, a bit of play. I am up for that. “Anything,” I whisper
back.

“No,” he says stepping slightly away from me. “You won’t
want me to do this.”

I turn a bit in his arms. “What is it?” I ask.

He closes his eyes as he decides whether or not to tell me,
and I feel just the tiniest bit of fear slide down my back. He senses it and
his eyes fly open. “No,” he says. “It doesn’t matter.”

“Obviously it does or you wouldn’t have mentioned it.”

“I shouldn’t have mentioned it. I spoke without thinking.”
He closes off his entire face and moves away from me.

“CK, just tell me what it is. If I don’t want you to do it I
will say no. It’s as simple as that.”

He breathes in and turns away from me. “Since the first time
I bit you, I have wanted to do this, choosing one over the other is difficult,
but I can’t do it. Not with you. I don’t want to hurt you.”

“Oh,” I say as it hits me what he wants to do.

He stares at me for the longest time. “Did…did he ever do
that to you?” I have to lean forward to catch his words as he utters them so
silently.

“Yes, but only to hurt me.” Might as well be honest about
it. “I know that isn’t your motivation.”

“No, but I will anyway,” he shakes his head sadly. “I want
to feel you in that way as I take your blood. I wish there was a way I could
partial Shift.”

“I want to feel you that way too but I don’t think I want
you to do that to me. I’m sorry,” I say and look down away from the hurt in his
eyes.

“I understand,” he says.

“We will try to work on partial Shifts. I have already done
it so I know you can too,” I say desperately.

“Ah yes. Your Dragon talons. That was quite…disturbing,” he
says.

“Well yes, but I have also done a partial Vampire Shift.
Although it was claws that came out and not fangs.”

“Really?” he asks interested. “When? Before or after you
became Queen?”

“Err, with Cole. Before I became Queen, before he knew about
me. I bit him with my regular teeth but my claws came out inadvertently and
pierced him.” I am uncomfortable discussing this with him.

He looks uncomfortable that I am discussing it with him, so
I turn from him.

“Then you can teach me,” he says as he comes up behind me and
puts his hands on my shoulders. “I want to be able to feel you come with my
fingers, with my fangs in your neck.”

The thought of it has me going damp and I reach up and pull
his head down to my neck. “Bite me,” I murmur again and he doesn’t need asking
twice after that.

“Oh, Aefre,” he says sadly as he breaks away. “I love you.
Come, time to get dressed.” He whisks the dress off the hanger and holds it out
for me to step into. I am slightly thrown by the sudden change in atmosphere. I
grab the lacy panties that he has laid out and put them on first before I do as
he asks. He pulls it up and I turn for him to do up the zipper.

“You look beautiful,” he says now all genial again. “I knew
the color would match your eyes perfectly.”

I cast a glance at myself in the mirror and I have to say,
the color is most flattering. I wouldn’t have ever thought that green would
suit me but it seems that it does. The soft filmy material skims the tops of my
breasts just barely and with a tight waist it drops elegantly to the floor. The
man has exceptional taste, I’ll give him that. I step into my shoes as he holds
onto my elbow to steady me and then he turns me in a circle. “Perfect,” he
says.

“What about you?” I gesture to his casual jeans and t-shirt.

“I thought you could take the liberty. If you don’t mind?”
He gestures to his side of the closet and I clap my hands in delight.

“I get to play dress up?” I ask him and, not waiting for an
answer, I open the doors with a flourish and examine the contents. His entire
collection probably costs about as much as mine does, if not more. He
definitely doesn’t do things by half. I sift through all of his suits and land
on the one that I love more than all the others. But then I turn to him. “I
don’t want you to wear a suit,” I say and his eyebrows go up.

“What do you want me to wear?”

“Nothing,” I say wickedly and he laughs in delight.

“Well I have no problem with that, but if I am to wear
nothing than surely you should also be disrobed. It’s only fair.”

I frown at that. “No, I love this dress. I would like to
wear it for a bit longer, but I see your point. Fine, then you shall wear this
one,” I declare as I whip out the dark gray, one button Armani suit that caught
my eye. “With this shirt,” I throw him the crisp white shirt with starched
collar and cuffs. “And this tie,” I chuck the light gray silk tie at him.

“A fine choice,” he says as he places them carefully on the
bed and takes off his t-shirt. “You do know how to dress a man up to look his
best.”

“Oh please, every item of clothing you have in here makes
you look your best. I just happen to like that suit.”

“Do you think so?” he asks. “Even this?” He holds up his
t-shirt.

It takes me a minute to register what he said, as I am too
busy staring at his washboard abs and trying not to drool. “Yes, even that,” I
stammer as he waves it at me to get my attention. His shrewd look flusters me
as he knows where my thoughts were, but I boldly look him in the eye. “I do
enjoy the casual look on you, it is very sexy.”

“So what does that make this?” he asks as he dons his shirt
and leaves it open as he loses his jeans to pull on his suit pants.

He knows what he is doing to me and is loving every second
of it. “It makes that the sexiest suit I have ever seen on a man. You may go
downstairs dressed precisely as you are.”

He looks down at his bare chest and titters. “For you?
Anything.” He puts his jacket on and shoes and holds his arm out for me to
take.

“Really?” I ask as I take it. “You are going to make me
stare at you like that all through dinner?”

“Yes,” he says as he opens the door.

“You do realize that I will be the wanton slut ravaging you
before the entrées now?”

“Probably,” he says with a smile so wide, I can’t help but
laugh.

“Well, in that case,” I say, stopping dead in the middle of
the corridor. Hoping that we are alone, I let go of his arm and he turns to me
expectantly, waiting to see what I will do. It sends a thrill through him as I
hike up my dress and wiggle out of my panties, letting them drop around my
ankles as I let go of the dress. I step to the side and bend my leg to retrieve
the knickers, which I bunch up and shove in his suit pocket. “Now you get to go
all through dinner knowing that I am unencumbered and ready for you.”

“How is it that you can turn me on so much with just a
simple action that doesn’t even put yourself on display?”

“Because I know it is all you will be thinking about until
you get to see it again,” I say breezily and he chortles as he takes my hand
and leads me downstairs.

“You know me so well,” he says and steers me towards the
magnificent dining hall, where two place settings have been set up at the head
of the enormous twenty-two seat table swathed in candlelight and my favorite
red roses.

Chapter 16

By unsaid agreement we race through dinner. I can’t keep my
eyes off him and he can’t keep his hand off my leg, inching it higher and
higher as the minutes tick by. When he finally declares dinner to be over, I
jump up and grab him, Astralling us straight into the library.

“The library?” he asks.

“Yes, I’m freezing. I want a nice big fire.” I click my
fingers and one roars up in the massive fireplace, warming me instantly. I take
a moment to light the candles as well, happy to see that they are set in
threes.

“You’re cold?” he asks curiously.

“Yes. I know it’s weird, right? Whatever happened to the
fireplace in your bedroom?”

“Our bedroom,” he corrects me sternly. “It was where the
bathroom is now.”

“I know, but you should have moved it.”

“I didn’t need it.”

“Humph.” I turn my back to the fire to warm that up and my
Dragon flaps Her wings lazily and I can almost hear Her sigh as the heat
spreads over my back. It seems that Dragons feel the cold. I never knew that.
Poor devil, She must have been freezing Her tail off all these months.

“Well, I hope you are warm enough now because there is no
way that this dress is staying on you a second longer.” He reaches up to unzip
it, letting it fall gracefully to the floor.

“Put your arms around me,” I say to him over my shoulder.
“That always sets a fire blazing inside me.”

“Happy to oblige. I am unable to keep my hands off you.
Especially when you are naked by firelight.”

“Whatever happened to your willpower?” I tease and he
snorts.

“Who am I kidding? I have none when it comes to you.”

I giggle and turn in his arms. “Same here and not ashamed to
admit it.”

“Me either,” he says before he kisses me thoroughly, warming
me through from the top of my head to my toes. I shed him of his jacket and
shirt and hook my fingers into the waistband of his pants.

“Please say yes,” I murmur.

“Yes,” he says straightaway. “Oh yes.”

I don’t hesitate as I get rid of his pants with just a touch
and drop to my knees to take him in my mouth. He pulls me back up after a few
seconds and kisses me. “As much as I love your wanton mouth, my sweet. I need to
be inside you.
I
need to be the one now.” He lowers us both to the rug
in front of the fireplace and I hold my hand out to him. He looks blankly at it
for a moment until I remind him that he has to slash my palm. He hesitates, not
wanting to hurt me, but I tell him it’s all right and he quickly slices a gash
and does the same to himself. We press our hands together.

“You remember the words?” I ask and he nods.

We start the chant together as we lace our fingers and he
pushes me right back and enters me slowly, wrapping his free arm around me and
pushing our linked hands above my head. We mutter the words against each
other’s lips, desperate to kiss and when the candles and the fire roar up in
response to the magick and we say the final words, he plunges his tongue
against mine, crushing my hand even tighter as we both come together in
shuddering waves of pleasure.