What She Craves (19 page)

Her face flamed with heat. Oh God! She wanted to hide at her shameless desire to learn this act and to take in the naked form of their bodies.

The redhead smiled at her, then winked. Blast it. He was the redhead from town. Her face grew hotter still. How embarrassing. She looked down, trying to hide her discomfort. What a bizarre evening.

She searched the crowd again for the green-eyed man. After years of preserving her virtue, why was it she now didn't care if she gave her innocence to one of these cat-men? Well, at least she didn't think she would mind giving it to the green-eyed gentle one.

 

Abysis strode through the crowd. Damn it, now that he'd found his queen he did not want to wait until the female Felis finished with their rites. He clenched his teeth. It was for the best; he knew that. Watching the eager human male spend his seed deep within the Felis womb relaxed and readied the female humans for the male Felis vigors. He'd waited so long.

Abysis could sense all eyes on him. They knew his queen was present. How could they not? He'd entered the common room with his cock erect, something only the queen could do to him. All other male Felis could mate with any human female. Many of his years already knew the delights of spending their seed in the warmth of the human womb.

He had never experienced that thrill.

His curse as the heir to the Catus was that only the one woman the goddess chose for his queen could arouse him, and she was here. He rolled his shoulders and everyone gave him space. His body ached for release, craved the caress she began in the preparation room.

His cock strained, remembering her shaking hands as she undid the flap of his trousers. He'd wanted to shed her innocence there and then and start his life. Damn the rites. No! It was good Sophie entered to prepare her. The rites were important. Without them their kind would have died off years ago.

He needed to wait, but he'd searched for years for her, participating in every corral, and never had his flesh stiffened and grown. Tonight it did. He glanced down at his swollen flesh—it was agony to stand here watching the rites, while his queen stood among the offering.

He turned and glanced at the line of virgin women, his gaze instantly locking onto his queen. Even being heir did not guarantee him the innocence of her. His fists clenched.

Any one of the older males who went before him could select her. That was why he made the spectacle of touching her during the rites. Now they all knew their queen. He ground his teeth together. And curse the Felis who would dare cross him by choosing her from the line. His fingernails dug into the flesh of his palm, and he glanced at the elders.

Unless the elders took pity on him and allowed him to claim her first, he would have to wait through three male selections before he could claim his fair-haired queen. Though, he thought the elders enjoyed seeing him acutely hard, his cock bright purple, slapping against his thighs as he walked. He doubted they would yield. This was, after all, tradition.

He wandered to the back of the crowd. Watching the rites only heightened his arousal, and he needed none of it.

He inhaled a tense breath, and the smell of her desire filled his senses from the other side of the room. The tangy aroma hung in the air so heavy he could taste her. His tongue traced his lips, gathering her scent. She was delicious. He couldn't wait to lick her slick flesh and taste the thick cream that coated her.

Desire for her touch, to make her his, pushed through him. He spun on heel and stepped toward her. He needed her.

No, damn it!
He turned back around and growled through clenched teeth, causing two Catus standing nearby to flinch. His muscles shook as he forced himself to remain on course and head for the back of the room.

He could not break all the rituals, and it required all his strength not to bury his cock in her out of the circle.

T
he rites continued for several more female cat-eyes. What else should Jessica call them?

Throughout the selections, the procedure remained the same. A cat-eye would select one or two humans from the line and commit the mating act with one of them for the audience, spilling the evidence of their innocence on the floor of the circle. The cat-eye in the center and the human they chose would then leave the room. What they did after that? She had no idea.

She shifted her stance and delightful twinges filled her womb. Her mind and body hummed to the sensations coursing through her. Her nipples stood erect and a pulse beat between her legs. She never dreamed watching people in the act would cause her body to respond in such a way.

She was not the only one affected by the rites, and each labored breath that hung in the air caressed her nerves, increasing her excitement. All the male cat-eyes' sex stood erect. One of them even stroked himself until he spent his seed as one couple mated in the ring. He had truly enjoyed himself, growling as he discharged, then purring after. It was strange to hear that purr, a genuine cat sound, come from someone who at first glance anyone would take for human.

The aching flesh between her thighs pounded, wanting the caress the maid had provided with the cloth while preparing her. Could she achieve the same delight by touching herself on her own? She glanced around the room. No, she couldn't touch herself intimately here. In the privacy of her own room she would experiment with touching herself, but not now. She rubbed her thighs together again and trembled.

A male stepped into the circle, and the remaining two male virgins walked from the room. Her eyes settled on this first gruff male cat-eye. He possessed long multishaded black hair and golden eyes; the same black hair covered most of his body in small tight curls. His shoulders, as broad as the green-eyed man's, seemed to have a roughness to them.

Nothing about this man excited her. She hoped he wouldn't pick her. She scanned the crowd. Would the green-eyed man participate? She hoped he was not merely viewing the rites, as so many of the cat-eyes were.

Her maid placed her hand on Jessica's arm. “It is time, mum.” Then she pointed to the front of the circle.

Jessica's eyes widened. She would now participate. Her hands shook as she stared at the cat-eye in the center. She did want to see her captor again and to experience his touch, but what if this man chose her? If she did this, she would have no choice of who she gave her innocence to.

The maids led the nine women to the front of the circle and one by one opened the women's robes. The cool air caressed Jessica's heated naked flesh and goosebumps raced across her skin. Her hands fisted and her cheeks washed with heat. She wanted to close the robe. Never had she stood naked in front of this many people. What was happening to her? She was still willing to stand here. To allow these people to see her like…like this. To risk everything she knew for the possible touch of her captor. Was she being foolish?

The gruff one paced in the center as he surveyed each virgin in the line. The gong rang and a vice locked about Jessica's lungs. There was no going back. She nodded her head to herself. Indeed, she would stay in hopes that the green-eyed one would be the man she yielded her favors to.

The gruff one strode to the beginning of the line and slowly raked his gaze over each woman. Growling, he smelled the air and touched the first woman's black hair. He did not touch any other part of her, but the woman's hands trembled, and when he touched her, she gasped.

Jessica stood in the middle of the line and tensed as he grew nearer. He kept glancing at her from the corner of his eye, and the hairs on her neck stood. He did not look at her like he desired her. There was something else in his eyes, but just what emotion she didn't know.

To her right, the whole body of a plump woman quivered as he inhaled the scent of her. Growling, he ran his hand through her red hair as his head jiggled and he kept sniffing her. He appeared to like her scent.

His touch trailed down her arm and she gasped. Wrapping his fingers about her wrist, he pulled her into the center of the circle.

Jessica let out a tense breath. Maybe he leered at the plump woman and not her. He may only pick one woman; two of the cat women did that.
Please let him only pick one.

He returned to the line and she cringed. His eyes narrowed as he approached her. He puffed out his chest and inhaled her scent. His breath wafted against her skin, and gooseflesh rose in a wave of unease.

Please don't let him pick me.

Jessica closed her eyes and held herself still. Her body pulsed to the rapid beat of her heart. He ran his hand through her blond hair, and a rumble came from deep in his chest. The hair on the back of her neck lifted.

Please, please, please
…

She opened her eyes as he hesitated and then turned and went on to the next girl in the line. Her breath came out in a whoosh.

Thank goodness.

He did the same thing until he reached the last girl. Turning, he gazed at all of the women standing before him. His shoulders straightened and he rolled his neck. Striding back up the line, his eyes fixed on her.

He was coming for her.

Her stomach knotted and she couldn't breathe. Shivers cascaded up her spine. Stopping before her, he reached out and grabbed her hand, pulling her with such a force she shrieked and stumbled into the plump woman in the center of the ring.

“Pardon.” She glanced at the woman's startled face, then turned to face the gruff one.

Jessica's hands began to shake with nerves. She tried to swallow, but her throat closed and she gagged.

This can't be happening
.

The gruff one strode around them, circling. Jessica's heart thundered in her ears, her eyes riveted on the large red phallus protruding from between the gruff one's legs. It looked smooth with a large ridge down the center and around the tip, in a fashion like an arrow. Her gaze scanned the crowed but the green-eyed one was nowhere. The gruff one stopped before her and made a noise low in his throat.

The cat women had acted bold toward the human men. Was she supposed to do the same? Should she step forward and grasp this man's sex in her hands? She looked at the large red sex with black hair all around it and shuddered. No, she couldn't do it. She didn't want this man. She closed her eyes.

Lord, let him pick the plump woman.

A loud howl rose from the back of the room. Jessica's eyes shot open. Everyone turned in the direction of the sound, and the crowd parted to reveal the green-eyed one as he entered the circle. His eyes flashed as he looked at her standing with her robe open. Heat bloomed through her body with excitement. Was he here to claim her?

This man intrigued her; she would gladly give her innocence to him. He placed himself between her and the gruff one, then turned his back to her and blocked her sight of the other man.

A deep growl wracked his body. The gruff one growled back. She saw every fine fawn-colored hair on her protector's back stand on end as he inhaled a breath that sounded just like a hiss. Oh my! The gruff one growled low in his throat twice, then laughed. Laughed! How odd.

The green-eyed one spun around to reveal the gruff one on his knees with his head bowed. With eyes wild, his gaze swept her. Leaning forward with a growl, he sunk his teeth into her neck. Pain shot through her and she cried out.

His arms came around her and he nuzzled her neck and licked the blood dripping from her wound. Every muscle in her body quivered, and wetness leaked from between her thighs.

How could he have bitten her? Yet her whole body seemed to crave him with an overwhelming desire. All she wanted was him to hold her and to feel his caress. Her stance opened, parting her legs to him. He pushed a thigh between her legs and clasped her to him. Leaning her head into his, he licked her neck with his tongue, each flick in unison with the quick shallow puffs of her breath.

His thigh rubbed against the flooded flesh between her legs, and light flashed before her. Her hips sliding against him as pleasure sparked from her every pore. Oh, that same sensation the maid had created. Her head swam and her vision clouded.

He raised his head and stared her in the eyes.
“You're mine, no one else will touch you.”
Then he turned and disappeared into the crowd.

She blinked. Had he actually spoken those words to her? No, his lips had not moved.

The gruff one stood, grasped the plump woman by the hand, and pulled her to the table in the middle of the room. Jessica returned, legs wobbling, to the line alone to watch as they mated.

The gruff one leaned the woman over the end of the table and parted her legs from behind. Jessica wanted the green-eyed one to mimic this act with her. She wanted him to fondle her breasts and touch her between her legs.

The bite on her neck began to throb and with each thought of the green-eyed one the pain increased until a trickle of warmth ran down her shoulder.

She looked down as a line of blood ran off the tip of her nipple. The feelings of his arms about her and him biting her assaulted her again. Her knees weakened and swayed, catching herself just before she fell.

“Yes. You know you're mine. If only my turn will come.”

He would be participating. She shook her head and placed her hand on her temple. Was he speaking to her? That wasn't possible. He was nowhere near her.

A growl came from across the circle, and her eyes snapped to the green-eyed one as he paced. She watched fascinated as his hard, inflated condition hit his legs, bobbling back and forth as he strode. Did that hurt?

“No. What is agony is having to wait once I have found you.”

Found me? What does that mean? A cry pulled her mind back to the mating taking place in the ring. The gruff one grasped the plump woman by the neck and pumped into her from behind. The woman's face strained with pain.

Jessica sucked in her breath. Was there pain for human women with them? The human men seemed to have nothing but pleasure from the cat-women. She closed her eyes.

“I'm not doing this,” said a young woman in the line to the left of her.

Jessica watched the maid lead her from the room. She would not be participating. Jessica gazed back at the couple in the center, bit her lip, then looked at the door. She could leave.

“No, don't pull away,”
came the voice.
“Coon is rough. It's the way he finds his pleasure. I will not be aggressive. You will find pleasure with me. There can be no other outcome. You are my match. Coon is not with his.”

She shook her head and closed her eyes. She was going mad, hearing voices in her head.

 

Abysis paced, watching Coon sate his vigor with the human he chose. How dare he try to take her after he pointed her out to the Catus? He fisted his hands. Coon wanted to provoke him. As would Haven, the next male before him, but Haven would push him further; he always did. Damn it!

That was why he marked her. She could now hear his thoughts, so if things got aggressive with Haven, she would know why and would not fear him.

All the males in this year's rites had mated before. He had only watched the rites. His lessons consisted of how to pleasure and how to mate. In years past, he even helped ready the female Felis for the rites by stroking them, but he had never sunk his stiff cock into the warmth of a woman.

He clenched his teeth and glanced around the room. All eyes were on him. The male Felis enjoyed watching him react to her presence and would do nothing but provoke him until he claimed her.

He growled. Her pleasure that had coursed through him as he rocked her against his thigh amazed him. She enjoyed the touch. The goddess had been kind to him. Three of the past queens had not found bliss in the act. He had always worried about making things pleasurable for his queen. The intensity of the pleasure he felt only meant he would be able to do as he wished with her.

He'd almost given up hope he would find her. The Catus had been waiting for him to claim his life mate. To start the new line. Finally. He didn't even care all eyes were on him and not on the entertainments in the sacred circle. If only the elders would yield and let him in. His teeth clenched.

He looked back at his queen with her golden hair and her blue eyes. Their whelp would be fair. It had been generations since the queen possessed light coloring.

He turned again and looked up at the elders watching the rites from above; his uncle shook his head at him as Coon left the circle. Abysis growled. Damn it.

Haven would go next. Abysis stood across the circle from his queen and scrutinized Haven. Haven watched him closely, then grinned. Haven would pick his queen.

His chest tightened, possessiveness raging through him. He wanted to spring across the circle and claim her before Haven had his chance. If he did, the entire Catus would see him as weak and not willing to respect the traditions. He did respect them. He would have to find another way.