by R. A. Boyd
“It worked?” Willow asked, stepping toward Samael as if being closer to him would make him answer faster. “The spell worked?”
“It worked.” Samael nodded and looked over to Cass. “You do not need to free him of his rage, Cassiopeia. I wonder who will free you of yours. When the time comes.”
Confusion pulled at Willow’s features as she listened, but what confused her more was the fact that Cass didn’t flinch at Samael’s words. She knew what he spoke of.
Cass nodded once and gave him a tight smile, and for the first time, Willow could see a quiet rage seething beneath the calm demeanor inside of Cass. She had a secret that apparently only she and Samael knew.
It had to be about Louis Erin. That had always been something that relentlessly teased the back of Cass’s mind. She could barely control herself when his name was mentioned. And he was right here in New Rose.
Flutters of panic buzzed in Willow’s chest as she watched Cass and Samael stare at each other.
Willow knew what would happen if Cass went off the deep end. This clan may not survive. I’ll kill Erin myself, she thought.
The crack of Samael’s voice pulled Willow from her thoughts. “You will do no such thing, Sister. Remember what I said a few days ago.”
She remembered. He’d told her not to do something stupid. How the hell was getting rid of Louis Erin for the sake of the Ghost clan considered foolish?
“Trust me,” Samael said. “The Ghost shifters will be much stronger when this ends. They will be united. Trust me.”
This all sounded like a shit-show waiting to happen. But she trusted Samael. She nodded and moved toward the salt circle to help Paige close the spell.
“I’m going to release Paige from the circle, and then Samael is going to take Samiyah,” Willow said, more for everyone else’s benefit than her own.
With a few memorized words, Willow used her magic to open the circle. After Paige stepped out, she sealed it again, waiting until Samael took hold of Samiyah’s soul before they let Ronin out. He was still unconscious, but at least now Willow could see the rise and fall of his chest as he took in deep breaths.
Samael lifted his hand, and the round prison of Heaven’s Flame floated to him on a nonexistent breeze. “Thank you. He will be properly taken care of.”
Without another word, he walked toward the edge of the clearing and disappeared.
Willow stared into the darkness for a few heartbeats. This was all going to get so much worse before it got better. And it depended on Cass. At any other time, Willow would have been overjoyed to know things depended on Cass. She was strong, responsible, and put the well-being of the clan before everything. But revenge and hatred had a way of twisting a person, and Cass already had the beginnings of both of those toxic emotions slithering beneath the surface of her calm exterior. She hid it well. How had Damon not picked up on it?
A muffled groan sounded behind Willow, and when she turned around, she could see Ronin trying to sit up. Thank all things holy, he was okay.
More than anything, she wanted to touch Ronin. Hug him, comfort him, finally look into her mate’s eyes and know that it was him. Just him.
Not Samiyah hiding, waiting to take control.
Not his raging beast waiting to kill anyone who got too close.
Just him.
Just Ronin.
Her fingers itched to caress his tan skin and run the pads of her fingers down the defined mounds of his abs. She longed to be kissed by him until her lips were swollen and tender. Her body tingled at the thought of his hands touching and memorizing every inch of her. Her core contracted as she took in his large frame.
Wow. Just one look at Ronin made her feel things that should be inappropriate at a time like this. He’d just gone through hell. Not just physically, but mentally and emotionally.
She ran to him and lost her balance as she tried to step down into the hole they’d dug when they thought Cass was going to have to bleed Ronin of his rage. His eyes were low as he gazed down at his body, looking as if this was the first time he’d ever seen himself. He scrubbed a hand down his face, taking in a deep breath that filled out his broad chest and wide shoulders.
His sweat-soaked tee-shirt clung to his body, and Willow could make out the delicious curves of his muscles. His nipples were drawn up, and his Adam’s apple dipped as he swallowed.
His muscular thighs flexed beneath his black sweatpants, and his chest heaved as his abs tightened on every breath. Even with the wild glint to his dark eyes, he was the most beautiful man she’d ever seen, and Willow wanted nothing more than to finally taste his kiss. They had an unspoken agreement that they would wait until Ronin was all alone in his head before they took their relationship past the limits of where they tried to keep it.
But who were they kidding? They’d already bonded so deeply that Willow couldn’t imagine making it through the rest of her life without him. She belonged to him just as much as he belonged to her. She never knew what she’d been longing for until she’d brushed her fingers along his cheek last week.
The entire time she worked hard in the coven to make sure everyone stayed in line and did their job, Willow knew she wanted more. Sariel always teased her, telling her she needed a vacation, but Willow understood herself enough to realize it was more than that. She wanted love, a partner, a confidant. Someone strong enough to handle her on the worst of days. Someone she could support. Someone who would support her. Someone she could love, and someone who would love her unconditionally.
And here he was, gazing at her as if she were the Sun and he was made to revolve around her life-giving light.
“Ronin,” she sighed, kneeling next to him as he surveyed himself. “Are you alright?” she asked, waiting for him to look up at her. “You can come out of the circle now.”
A quiet snarl vibrated from between Ronin’s pursed lips, and when his gaze shot up to meet hers, Willow gasped.
His eyes glowed bright with his beast. Golden shining orbs that made her think of the full moon being reflected off a tranquil lake. One side of his mouth was raised as he bared his teeth at her, growling like an injured animal.
Shit. Samael was wrong. Cass still needed to drain the hatred from his beast.
Before Willow could call forth a spell to slow him down, Ronin reached forward and wrapped his long fingers around her throat.
Chaos erupted all around them as she heard the Ghost shifters getting ready to take Ronin down and save her. Zeke already stood behind Ronin, an undulating blue energy ball forming in his hand.
Willow’s heart hammered in her chest as she thought of the man she loved getting pummeled by the Ghosts.
Ronin’s lips curved into a smile a fraction of a second before he pulled her closer to him, crashing his lips over hers. Craving filled Willow from her brain to her belly as Ronin pushed his tongue beyond the seam of her mouth. His teeth clacked against hers as he possessively drank from her.
As one of Ronin’s strong hands held her firmly around the throat, the other snaked its way up her back until he fisted her hair at the nape of her neck. Heat flooded Willow’s core as Ronin let go of her throat and grabbed her by a belt loop, shifting her body beneath his as he climbed on top of her.
“Are we supposed to be helping?” Paige asked, voice going higher with each word. “I don’t think they should do that on top of a thrice-blessed blanket. It’s sacred.”
“Looks like they’re about to bless that bitch a fourth time,” Audra replied. “At least he’s not trying to kill her. That’s a plus.”
Willow didn’t have time to tell them she was fine and to get the hell away from them. Things were about to get fun.
She wrapped her arms around her mate’s shoulders and urged him on, opening her legs wider to let him settle between her thighs. His erection pulsed in his pants, and the friction beat through her as if it were her own heart.
If he wanted her right now in the middle of the woods, she would want his sexy ass right back.
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“Umm… we’re going to go.” Cass’s voice sounded amused and grossed out at the same time, but Willow could not give any less of a shit if she tried.
The retreating sounds of their footfalls filled Willow with an uninhibited satisfaction.
Ronin drove his tongue deeper into her mouth as he unbuttoned her pants. Willow worked to get his shirt off, and then she managed to pull off her own. The two seconds it took to break away from their kiss to take off their tops took way too long. Ronin’s large, hot hand cupped her ass. He caressed his way up her body until his fingers were at the front clasp of her bra. Instead of taking it off, he yanked down the soft material until her heavy breasts spilled out above the cups.
He trailed warm kisses from her lips, down her jaw, and to her neck. Wet heat dripped from her pussy as Ronin’s teeth grazed one of her nipples. His fingers bit into her soft, rounded flesh as his tongue drew circles around one hardened peak and then the other, stopping to bite and lick and suck on her pebbled nubs. A soft moan floated past her lips as she watched his tongue work her over.
He took his time, mouth exploring her breasts as if trying to figure out exactly what made her respond. But he didn’t need to try and figure her out. Every touch, every kiss he offered felt as if he were designed just for her. A roadmap of her body and what she liked must have been imprinted into his mind. He touched her like he’d been doing it for years and knew her through and through.
“Please, Ronin…” she sighed. Good lord, this man knew how to make her beg.
She needed him to fill her, make her come. Until a few moments ago, she didn’t know how much she needed his cock buried inside her, balls deep until his piercing glowing eyes bore into her. The excitement that coursed through her was unlike anything she’d ever experienced in her life.
In one long swoop, Ronin slid his hands down her body and pulled off her pants, panties, and boots. He lowered himself back onto her, and the heat from his body electrified every inch of her. The muscles of his hard chest abraded her sensitive nipples, and the feel of his restrained cock beneath the fabric of his pants drew a frustrated growl from her. His body was flush against her soft curves. Why wasn’t he naked?
He kissed her again, and his lips held her captive. His tongue delved into her mouth, drinking in her sighs of pleasure. He tore his mouth from hers and kissed down her body, stopping to bite and kiss and knead the full flesh of her middle.
“So soft and fucking sexy,” Ronin muttered against her skin. His tongue traced a line from her belly button to the curve of her thick thigh, right next to her pussy. “I have been waiting to taste your honey. Every time you looked at me, every time I got close enough to touch you, your body called to me. My animal has been scenting your arousal, and I’ve been holding it back.” He looked up at her from between her legs. “Can I have you?” he asked softly.
He could have all of her, and she was definitely going to take every part of him.
Willow reached down and cupped his face, basking in the feel of his breath against her silken entrance. “Yes.”
Bone-deep desire pulsed through Willow as she watched Ronin’s lips move closer to her pussy. His large hand lifted one of her heavy thighs over his shoulder. His head dropped between her legs, and his lips slanted over her entrance just as she watched his tongue slide from his mouth. She tilted her hips upward, and Ronin smiled.
“I’m going to suck your pussy, Willow,” he said, voice deep and raspy with his beast. His eyes stayed glued to her slick folds. “I’m going to fuck you with my tongue. Or maybe you want to sit on my face and ride yourself off to as many orgasms your body can take.”
He sounded like an animal, and damn-it, she loved it.
Men had talked dirty to her before, but hearing Ronin say these things to her sent a shudder through her body that made her think she could orgasm from his words alone.
“All that,” she panted. Her mouth was dry and her body was on fire. She was usually reserved, but right now, she felt overwhelmed and untamed. “I want to do all of that. And I want you to fuck me.”
His massive shoulders bunched as he lowered his mouth to her core.
Willow’s body heaved as Ronin’s warm tongue stroked right up her slit, and a helpless groan of pleasure climbed up her throat. He speared his tongue between her wet folds and tasted her. His full lips locked on to her clit, sucking and tugging on the small bundle of nerves. She thought she would float away on the carnal pleasure of Ronin tasting her. Her hips rolled forward as he brushed his tongue against the responsive, aching bud. He softly bit her clit, and a burst of pleasure rocketed through her body. Grabbing her by the ass, he ate her pussy, sucking and biting, and then switched to thrusting his tongue inside her drenched slit. Her pussy clenched almost painfully. He felt so fucking good.
Her ass lifted from the ground as he pushed two fingers inside of her, curling them until the tips of his fingers pressed firmly against her G-spot.
“Oh, Ronin,” she cried out, basking in the feel of the pleasure he pulled from her.
She pumped her hips against his face and hand, loving the rhythmic feel as he sucked her clit and fucked her with his fingers. She was going to fly apart soon.
Willow ran one hand down her body and took a handful of Ronin’s hair. She held him to her center as a coil of heat began to unfurl low in her belly. A deep rumble worked its way up Ronin’s chest, and when the snarl moved through his mouth, the vibration grabbed hold of Willow’s orgasm and forced it from her body. A tremble snaked up her spine as the orgasm ripped through her.
She cried out as she came, body jerking away from Ronin’s mouth as he continued to suck and bite her clit and massage the contracting muscles of her pussy. The release took her over, and she didn’t care who could hear her scream his name over and over until her voice was a hoarse whisper.
Her eyes were lowered to slits, and she watched Ronin pull his glistening fingers from her soaked pussy.
He lifted his hand and sucked her wet desire into his mouth. “I could consume you every damn day and it still wouldn’t be enough.”
That sounded like a plan. Having him do this to her every day would ensure she never got anything done, and right now, that was a fantastic idea.
As Ronin kissed his way up her body, Willow shook from the aftershocks of the orgasm. His lips sent new tendrils of lust rushing through her. Somehow while she was still coming down from the highs of Ronin, he’d taken off his pants. He knelt between her legs, cock proud and long and thick, jutting from his body beneath a dark smattering of hair. His shaft throbbed with need. Willow wanted to lean forward and take him into her mouth, lap at his cock and clean away the bead of moisture that sat on the mushroom-shaped head of his dick.
His body was perfect. Defined thighs, biceps, chest, and six-pack abs. She couldn’t wait to have him buried inside her as they both urged the other toward an inevitable orgasm.
He leaned over her body and fisted his cock. He teased her entrance, sliding the length of himself back and forth along her slit, coating his shaft with her passion. His eyes rolled closed as he slid his cock into her, stretching the walls of her pussy as she watched him enter her.
“Fuck,” he muttered, lowering himself and resting his forehead against hers. “Your cunt is so hot. So tight. Are you okay?”
She was more than okay. He was trying to be gentle with her, but she needed him deep inside her right now.
“Take me. Give me all of you,” she demanded, lifting her hands to cup his face. “Fuck me, Ronin.”
He nodded once and then shoved the length of his cock deep into her pussy. They both shouted as his hips pushed forward and rested against hers.
The walls of her pussy quivered and stretched as she adjusted to his invading size. The ache brought on by his cock made her feel more alive than she’d ever been during lovemaking. Had she really ever made love before this moment with Ronin? He’d grounded himself into her mind and into her heart, so much that it felt like they’d been
making love the entire time they accepted each other as mates.
With his forehead still resting against hers, his brown eyes were locked on her face as he began to move. Her back bowed from the ground as the delicious friction of his cock stroked the walls of her cunt. Each time hit hips met hers, he rubbed his pubic bone against her clit, stimulating her body in so many ways.
Ronin gripped the back of her neck and licked at the seam of her lips until she opened for him. “So wet and tight. It feels like your pussy is sucking my dick.” He sucked her lip into his mouth and gently bit her. “I won’t bite hard enough to bring my beast back. I promise.”
Willow hadn’t even thought of that. She trusted that he wouldn’t bite her without permission, and she knew he wasn’t ready to have his beast back yet.
But he could have her. All of her.
His grace might be inside of her, waiting to go back home to him, but this would be more than enough for now.
Ronin pressed his body tight to hers. The warmth of his flesh, the flex of his hips against hers, the drive of his cock into her pussy, and the heat of his mouth against her lips started a climb deep in her body. Willow clutched her arms around his torso as he pounded into her.
Her core clenched around Ronin’s cock as his fingers dug into the soft, dimpled flesh of her thighs. Willow lifted her hips in time with Ronin’s thrusts as he drove deep inside her, her inner muscles clutching around his hard cock.
The orgasm rocketed through her as everything went silent, and fireworks exploded behind Willow’s eyelids. The release that ripped through her body caught her off guard, and she screamed Ronin’s name as if it were a prayer that would save her soul from the depths of Tartarus.
Heat blasted from her belly, radiating out until it filled every space inside her. From her toes to her fingers to the ends of her hair, Willow basked in the release Ronin demanded from her body.
