Charisse
cried out as he entered her with one quick thrust that had her slamming back
hard against the wall. Oh Goddess yes, her eyes almost rolled back in
their sockets as he filled her. This was exactly what she craved, hard,
fast and oh so very hot… and yet she still wanted more.
Nate
hammered into her like a piston, urged on by her encouraging moans and the
blissful heat of her tight hot core gripping his cock. There was
something so primal in their joining. Yet still something was missing, a
part of Cyd that he couldn’t seem to reach and Maat damn him, he wanted to
possess every damn part of her, no secrets, no shadows, no barriers between
them.
Withdrawing
from her, he lowered her slowly until her feet hit the ground. Panting
hard he rested both hands against the wall over her head.
Charisse
let out a deep sigh of frustration, why had he stopped? Did he want to
drive her insane? Or drop to her knees and beg him to continue?
Actually, she smiled as she looked down between them; maybe dropping to her
knees wasn’t such a bad idea. Mmmm… her plan forgotten as Nate grabbed her chin
gently in his hand, one of his long fingers coming to rest over her lips,
preventing her from protesting.
“I
want you on the bed, now.” Nate’s voice was low and commanding, his
whiskey eyes dark with desire and need.
Oh
Goddess, she shivered in anticipation. Nodding her head abruptly to show
she was willing to follow his orders. Shivering again as one of his large
hands caressed down her flank as she moved past him.
She
hesitated at the edge of the bed, gasping as she felt him sidle up behind her,
not quite touching her. Even so she could feel the heat radiating off his
gorgeous body. She was about to turn around when he leant over, his hot
breath caressing the back of her neck, causing her nipples to tighten and her
sex to weep.
“On
your hands and knees Cyd.”
She
found herself unable… unwilling, to resist his command. Stepping forward
she moved on to the bed as instructed. Arching her back as he leant over
behind her, trailing hot wet kisses down the length of her spine and up again,
brushing her hair away to nuzzle at the back of her neck. Whilst his
other large hand skated upwards along her inner thigh, three fingers easily
sliding into her sex.
“You’re
so wet Cyd.” He continued to plant kisses over the vulnerable skin at the
back of her neck.
“Because
of you.” She arched and gasped as his fingers began to twitch and flex
inside of her. Good Goddess, the man was killing her.
“Please.” Her hands clutched at the sheet beneath her.
“Please
what?”
“Finish
it Nate… please, Goddess… please.”
Maat,
he liked the way she begged and he loved the way she said his name.
Removing his fingers he grabbed her hips and once more sunk his hard cock into
her willing heat, covering her with his body, his hands moving to cup those
luscious breasts of hers as he began to thrust, hard and deep.
Charisse
knew she should feel helpless, given her position, instead she’d never felt
more empowered and turned on in her life. Squeezing her inner core even
tighter, she smiled through breathless gasps at Nate’s audible groan of
approval.
Oh
Goddess, he bent his knees, sinking in deeper still. Heavens, she felt so
full of him but the angle… she whimpered out loud as one of his hands left her
breast to trail down over the sensitive skin of her tummy to burrow between her
legs. She moaned his name softly when his fingers found her clit.
Goddess, arching her back as he began to rub her clit in time to his thrusts,
she wanted to scream her approval but could manage no more than a breathless
long sigh as her whole body suddenly clenched, the orgasm sweeping through her
like lightning.
Nate
groaned her name as her core gripped him tight, damn that felt good. He
grabbed her by the hips once more, thrusting into her as deep as he could go as
his own orgasm hit and he let go, roaring her name. Maat, it had never
felt that good before.
They
collapsed onto the mattress in a sweaty heap, Nate still covering her with his
body.
“Can you breathe under
there?” He asked, brushing her hair away, turning his head so he could
look into those gorgeous green eyes.
He
was still inside her, there was something about that knowledge that made her
happy. “I’m fine… don’t move.” She instructed as he made to roll
off her.
“Okay.”
He took two deep breaths, Maat, what a work out. Staring into Cyd’s eyes,
he couldn’t help but feel the intimacy of the moment. “I didn’t hurt you
did I?” He asked in a low whisper, liking the way a slow satisfied smile
spread across her beautiful face in answer.
“I…”
She tried to take a deep breath, but couldn’t.
Reluctantly
Nate rolled off and away from her, despite how good it felt, he didn’t want to
squish the girl. Lying beside her, he liked how she immediately moved to
lie on top on him, so intimate, so natural, the feel of her soft breasts
against his chest, her long legs tangling with his own.
“I…
how did this all start again?” She queried with a soft laugh.
“If
I remember correctly, your life was at risk due to the presence of damp
clothing.” He absently trailed a finger down her arm, so soft, so perfect.
“I believe I’m a hero here.”
“Right.”
Charisse laughed breathlessly. “No, I think it had something more to do
with you going a little bit bonkers over the need for me to carry a weapon.”
“Nah.”
Nate pushed his hair off his sweaty forehead and out of his eyes. “I’m a
Maat warrior, we don’t do bonkers… righteous concern, steely determination,
macho grit, that’s more my speed.”
“Macho
grit?” Charisse dropped her forehead to his chest and laughed.
“Hey,
who just fucked you up against a wall for…”
“Shush.”
Charisse stopped him with a quick kiss on the lips, the only way she knew to
shut him up. “You’re right, forgive me, from now on you and macho grit go
hand in hand.”
“That’s
more like it.” He caressed her cheek with his thumb. “So back to
the knife… you know how to handle one, would you carry it…” He took a
deep breath. “Please, for me?”
Charisse
smiled. “Oooh, you play dirty. Fine, I’ll carry the knife.”
“And
while you in such a compliant mood, would you like to tell me what’s going on
between you and that damn rock out there?”
Charisse
froze for a second, her eyes fixed on Nate’s chest and the way his gorgeous
flesh glimmered with hidden lights in the daylight. Sighing, she kept her
eyes downcast. “There’s a lot I can’t tell you.”
“What
happens on the rock stays on the rock?” He asked, making a joke.
“Yes.”
She answered, unable to smile back or even make light of it, her finger tracing
aimless patterns over the muscles of his chest and abs.
He
reached down and covered her hand for a moment. “Could you spell it out
for me Cyd?”
She
froze for a moment, could she? Not stopping to think too hard she traced
four letters on his golden flesh.
“Feed?”
Nate frowned at what she had spelt out. “Who needs to feed Cyd?” He
asked softly.
Charisse
opened her mouth, tried to say the words but once more they were blocked.
She couldn’t even move her hand to spell the words. She wanted to howl in
frustration and at the same time curl up into a ball of humiliation.
Turning her head she glared outside at the deep blue afternoon sky.
“The
rock?” Nate frowned down at her. Everything came back to the bloody
rock. Why hadn’t he put two and two together the day he’d been thrown off
of it? Well, because who in their right mind would think a rock was sentient
for one thing. “You can’t talk about it can you?”
Charisse
shook her head, green eyes full of misery, barely able to meet his.
“Okay,
let me see if I can put this together. Beautiful woman on a rock… at sea…
men visit, no wait...” He remembered the seaward side of the rock where
she’d attached a multitude of fenders and bumpers to cushion any sea vessels
brushing up against the rock. If they weren’t there… he clicked his
fingers. “Men crash, or run aground on the rock…attracted… lured there
by…” He frowned, staring hard at her, trying to work out the puzzle.
Charisse
pointed to her mouth and opened it.
“You’re
a Siren?”
He
looked so completely flabbergasted by the idea that Charisse felt kind of
hurt. Still, she released the breath she'd been holding and nodded.
“Seriously?”
“Yes.”
She forced the word out. It seemed to be easier now that he had
discovered the truth by himself, as if they had passed through some sort of
barrier together and emerged out the other side.
He
frowned. “You and the rock have some sort of symbiotic relationship?”
“More
like parasitic.” She grumbled under her breath.
“It
needs you to lure them in and then it what… kills them?”
“No!”
As if she’d let that happen. “She siphons off their excess of emotion…
through me. I do my best to keep the…” Goddess she hated saying the
word. “Feeding, to a minimum and except for the occasional passing drunk
whose inhibitions are too low to block my call, I keep Bettina on a strict
dickhead diet.”
“The
rock’s name is Bettina?”
“It’s
what I call her. It was the bitchiest name I could come up with when I
was fifteen.”
“And
the dickhead diet?”
“I
figure since I’m compelled to provide her with food, then I should get to
choose the menu. I try to focus on the obvious dickheads; the speedsters,
the showboats, the polluters and the wankers who seem to think they own these
waterways as soon as they get behind a wheel. I let Bettina feed from
them, the effects generally wear off within three days and the whole encounter
takes on a dream like quality.”
“And
you’ve been doing this for fifteen years?”
“She
yanked me there when my… power kicked into full gear.”
“And
you’ve been battling with her ever since? Is there any way to break the
connection?”
“Not
that I’ve found. And I’ve tried… believe me, I’ve tried.”
“And
me? The pulses of power and everything else, is that her attempting to
feed off of me?”
“Goddess
no, that’s her trying to hurt you. There’s something about you she really
doesn’t like.”
“She
doesn’t like me because I kissed you, or she doesn’t like me because I’m immune
to your magic?”
“I
don’t know. So you want to tell me what you did to her?”
Nate
grinned. “I left my crowbar behind as a little behavioural incentive.”
Charisse
frowned, she didn’t get it.
“Think
of it like King Arthur’s sword. Whoever can pull it free will rule
Bettina.”
“You
didn’t?” Charisse was gobsmacked. No wonder Bettina had been on the
down low for the last two hours, she was hurt, sulking and probably plotting an
elaborate payback. “She’ll be looking to hurt you back now, you know that
right?”
“Well,
since you and the rock are tied together, I suggest you find a way to protect
me.”
Seriously,
he thought she could stand up against barmy Bettina and her tantrums? Had
he not been paying attention to the way Bettina jerked her around like a yo-yo
on a string and inflicted pain? Maybe Mr macho grit had taken too many
hits to the head in his one hundred year career. She glanced up at Nate
to find him looking out at the clear blue sky.
“What
are you thinking?”
Nate
looked down at her, a sensual smile on his face. “I was thinking that we
have a few more daylight hours to burn and that I might need a little more
proof.” He sat up abruptly, settling Charisse on his lap, facing him.
“Proof?”
She laughed with breathless surprise.
“Hmmm,
those enslavement powers of yours, I think I need to study them further.”
He brushed her hair out of the way. “And a lot more thoroughly.”
Leaning down he sucked her right nipple into his mouth.
Charisse
arched her back. Biting her lip to keep from
humming
in pleasure… she really didn’t want to ruin the mood.
Chapter
Sixteen
Decision
time, what did one wear to face off against a mad vampire Queen and her
dwindling minions? Charisse surveyed her wardrobe options. It was
easy for Nate with his camouflage khaki trousers, matching t-shirt and skit
kicker boots, but for some reason her wardrobe was lacking in suitable confrontational
wear.
Glancing
out the window at the setting sun she heaved a small sigh. Stop dithering
Charisse, time is running out. She grabbed the first two items off the
pile, navy shorts and a red and white striped t-shirt. It was no fancy
leather catsuit, but at least it was practical as she added navy sneakers to
the ensemble and brushed her hair up in a high pony-tail.
Walking
down the stairs, she decided to attribute the weird feeling in her stomach to
hunger and not nerves at facing Nate after the afternoon they’d shared
together. Why should it be awkward between them now? So they’d
indulged in an afternoon of hot, mind blowing sex, big deal, right?
Everything was back to normal, Nate was out of her system, she was sure of
it. Now her focus had to be on helping to eradicate the vamp threat so
she could get back to the daily Siren grind.
Except,
as she came to a halt in the doorway of the kitchen, watching as Nate at the
kitchen counter cut up avocados, she felt her insides clench with sudden
desire.
Hmmm, maybe it would take a
round or two more to get the Sheriff completely out of her system.
“Hey
Cyd, just in time. You want mayonnaise on your sandwich?”
Damn
him for being so casual. He was so hard to read; at least she knew where
she stood with the mindless drooling worshippers. “Sure.” She
nodded with a determined lightness. “I’ll grab some drinks. What
would you like?”
Nate
eyed Cyd, she looked happy and relaxed as she strode back and forth across the
kitchen helping to set the table for their early dinner. His gut
tightened, Maat he wanted her again. Right here. Right now. Pity the old
kitchen benches weren’t sturdier. Maybe replacing them needed to be
higher on his list of things to do.
Charisse
sat across from him at the small wobbly kitchen table and took a huge bite of
her chicken sandwich. Fighting the urge to keep her eyes down and just
concentrate on her meal she forced a small smile as she popped the top of her
soft drink can and took a swig. “So what’s the plan?”
Nate
stared at her a moment, chewing slowly, pondering her question. The
answer was pretty obvious to him. More sex. A lot more sex.
Blow up that rock.
Marriage.
Kids.
Spend the next century or so together. But how did you pin down a
woman who spent her life dealing with lowlifes and an overly obsessive rock
with an eating disorder?
“I
mean for tonight and the vamps… what’s the plan?” Charisse elaborated.
“I
think Destiny will be coming in hot, thanks to the storm last night keeping her
lair bound, she’s had plenty of time to stew.”
“Meaning?”
“She’ll
be acting rashly, more unpredictable than we’ve seen previously. We know
she has two vamp henchmen left and at least one daytime minion at her beck and
call.
My preference is to take all the
minions out of the equation first. With that in mind, I thought I’d set
up on the second floor. I’ve opened all the windows up there and have
weapons waiting for me in rooms that have the best view of the grounds, both
front and back.”
“And
where will I be during all this?” Charisse nibbled on the crust of her
sandwich.
“Ideally,
I’d like to stow you away in the cloak room under the stairs.”
“But?”
“Destiny
is so fricking unpredictable that I wouldn’t put it past her to firebomb the
house or ram it with a car. I think the best place for you is in the
central well. You’ll be out of sight and in the best location in the
house to react to any threat.” Nate gave her his best stern warrior face.
“And when I say react, I mean run away.”
“Wow,
don’t you just think highly of me and my skill set.” Charisse glared,
pushing the plate with her half-eaten sandwich away.
“Destiny
twigged long before I did that you were controlling her minions using your
voice. You heard what she said about ripping out their eardrums.
She wasn’t joking.
More significant, you
have no formal combat training.”
“Nate,
you know I’m not helpless, you saw what I can do with a knife.”
“And
they have teeth, claws, swords and maybe guns… A knife is great for protection,
they haven’t seen you carry a weapon yet, you’d have surprise on your
side. But to engage?” Nate shook his head. “To
fight? You’d be more of a distraction than a help.”
“Hey,
don’t sugar coat it Sheriff.” Charisse channelled Darcy for inspiration,
amping her glare up to its highest setting. “I’ve handled myself pretty
damn well against Destiny and her minion pals so far. Saving your sorry -
chained to the floor – ass in the process I believe.”
Nate
growled. Maat, when was the last time he’d ever growled at a woman?
Never, that’s when. Cyd bought out all his protective instincts and he
wasn’t handling it well, time… he looked out the warped tiny kitchen window at
the last rays of the setting sun, was not on his side. If he wasn’t so
scared of Charisse getting hurt, if he wasn’t in love with her, what would he
normally do? Utilise the asset he realised.
“Fine.”
He stood up from the table. “Fine, you can be on re-loading duty.” Maat,
he hoped he wouldn’t regret this. “You do everything I say, when I
say. You don’t stop to ask questions. If I say down, you hug the
floor. No hesitating. No nothing… agreed?”
Charisse
nodded her head. Anything was better than being trapped in a dark room,
away from the action, knowing that Nate was in danger with nothing to do but
torment herself with all the dreadful things that might be happening to
him. Getting to her feet she rounded the table, inhaling sharply as
Nate’s large warm hands came down to rest on her shoulders.
“I
would really, really, hate it if something bad happened to you Cyd.”
She
met his whiskey gaze, her hands of their own accord coming to rest on the sides
of his waist. “Ditto Sheriff.” She opened her mouth to say… say
what? She was still a bad bet.
She
still came as a package deal with Bettina. An afternoon of great sex
hadn’t changed the harsh facts of her life.
Nate
leant over, pressing a soft kiss to her lips. “You think too much Cyd.
Come on, let’s go kill some vamps.”
*
*
*
Nate
was right about Destiny being keen for a confrontation. Twenty minutes
after the sun had officially set, the vamp Queen arrived, seemingly out of thin
air at the top of the path leading from the beach. Damn, she was well out
of range of any of his weapons.
“What’s
she doing?” Charisse whispered from her position in the doorway of the
second floor room that had a long time ago been a cosy sitting room, now it was
just a bare and dirty room.
“Pacing.”
Nate lifted the scope to his eye. “Waiting.”
“For
what?”
“Good
question. Stay here.” Nate slipped from the room silently.
How
he accomplished that in those boots, making no sound was beyond her.
Charisse
clutched the door frame, curiosity was eating her alive. What was Destiny
up too? She badly wanted to enter the small sitting room and get a better
look out the window, but Nate’s instructions had been very clear. Hmmm,
she compromised by staying where she was but going up on tip-toe, trying to get
a better view of Destiny. Damn, she wasn’t tall enough and it was too
dark. Where was Nate? What was going on?
She
peered down the almost pitch back corridor, nothing. Turning back into
the room, she jumped in surprise at the minion leering at her through the open
window. It clacked its shark like teeth together, lips pulled back so the
moonlight glinted off those razor sharp points. With its all black
clothing it was almost like it was just a head… floating there.
“Goddess.”
Her racing heart leapt and then slowed. That thing couldn’t come in, but
still, it was kind of freaking her out, remaining so still, its eyes fixated on
her. Its pale skin and almost colourless, white blonde slicked back hair
off putting enough, but it was the silver, almost clear eyes that wigged her
out the most. How was it just staying there? Hovering? No, it
had one hand hooked around a drain pipe or something. Where was
Nate? What was she saying? She could handle one minion.
Humming
a little Barry White under her breath she frowned. Why wasn’t the… oh,
now she saw the streams of dried black blood down the sides of its throat,
Destiny had lived up to her promise of tearing out her minions ear drums.
No wonder the thing was glaring her way.
Well
come on stupid, she berated herself, you have a room full of weapons in front
of you. Use one of them. Her grip had barely left the door frame
when she was tugged back hard, Nate’s fingers yanking at the waist band of her
shorts, his other hand already swinging around to fire off a shot from his
crossbow.
“Fuck.”
He’d missed. “Stay away from the windows Cyd. They have ropes and
grappling hooks.” Nate stepped in front of her using his body as a
shield.
Charisse
was about to ask how he’d come to know this information when the jagged wound
on his left arm, just above the elbow, caught her eye. Seems Nate
had first-hand experience. Thank Goddess she hadn’t gone any closer to
the window.
Nate
moved forward fast, firing off two more bolts. “He’s headed to the side of the
house, here re-load this.” Nate gave her the crossbow, scooping up a belt
of wooden stakes and a small hand held cross-bolt weapon. “I’ll be right
back.”
It
was strange for Charisse standing in the almost pitch black corridor, listening
to the vamps scramble around the outside of the house using drainage pipes and
window frames for leverage. Obviously they’d decided to stay clear of the
roof, fearing more traps. All the while Nate moved around like a wraith,
appearing out of the darkness in silence to check on her occasionally before
moving off, trying to catch the minions off guard and get a clear shot.
“Knock,
knock.”
Charisse
practically jumped out of her skin, thank Goddess she’d bitten her lip
otherwise she was pretty sure she would have screamed. Chancing a glance,
she peeked back around the door frame.
Destiny
lounged outside the upper floor window as if she didn’t have a care in the
world. “Ah, I thought I could smell you Cyd.”
Her
back against the corridor wall Charisse took two deep breaths, looking left and
then right for some sign of Nate. What should she do? Well not
leave the corridor for a start and make a target of herself but she could keep
Destiny busy until Nate got back at the very least. Plus, she looked down
at the weapon in her hands, if she could distract Destiny enough… how hard was
it to fire a crossbow, you just point and fire right? Okay, distraction
time.
“You
know with your skin tone you really should stay away from the all black look.”
“Really?”
Destiny’s voice dripped with disdain, echoing around the small empty sitting
room.
“And
if you insist upon wearing a figure hugging catsuit, then you need to invest in
underwear with a bit of padding, so your ass doesn’t look so flat.”
Destiny
hissed, it was a uniquely unsettling sound that caused all the hairs on
Charisse’s arms to stand on end.
“I’m
just telling you this because I assume, since you’re Queen, no one else has the
guts to.” Charisse advised conversationally.
“Well
if they did, they wouldn’t be keeping those guts very long.” Destiny
sniped back. “And since it’s just us girls here over-sharing, let me tell
you a few home truths Cyd.
Even from
this distance I can smell the warrior’s scent clinging to you. Who’s been
a naughty blood-bag and gone poaching in my territory?”
“Only
in your mind is Nate your territory.” Charisse scoffed.
“He
declared himself mine with his deeds… with a look. He spilt blood and he
smiled. I knew in that moment his heart would be mine.”
Charisse
shuddered; it was hard to tell if Destiny was speaking figuratively or
literally. “If the attraction between you two is so darn powerful, then
why did he invite me to stay? Why does his scent cling to me? Why
isn’t he out there with you right now?” Her fingers tightened on the
crossbow, she needed to be ready… any moment now, Destiny would fly off the
handle and she’d get her chance.
Destiny’s
voice was curiously controlled when it came. “Please Cyd. We both
know sad… lonely little you, insinuated herself into his life like a serpent in
the garden.
Weaving your spells of
enchantment. Stealing his willpower. Clouding his mind.”