I had the sudden urge to kiss him, so I did. Not on the mouth, but over his heart. I felt him stiffen as my lips met his skin, felt him shudder as I kissed lower and lower, then darted my tongue out to capture his nipple.
“Kenna,” he barked breathlessly, shooting a hand up to grip my sodden hair. When he didn’t stop me though, I took the nipple into my mouth and bit down.
Lochlan’s roar shook the bed.
I was suddenly on my back again, blinking up at him as he lowered himself on top of me. The moment our bodies connected, every inch of me burst awake. I stared up at him in silent wonder, at a loss for words. There were no barriers between us. Just his skin on mine. His chest heaved against my breasts, our stomachs flush together. When he settled his hard erection between my thighs, I arched into him and moaned softly.
He watched my reaction to him as if I were the most fascinating thing in the world. As if I was his world. Before I could catch my breath, he cupped my backside and slowly rocked against me. I dug my nails into his back and groaned his name. He did it again and again until I was a trembling ball of need. Then he lifted up and positioned his erection at my entrance.
My eyes jerked open and I gasped.
He paused, carefully searching my face. “Are you scared?”
“N-no.” I bit my lip. “Maybe a little.”
“Are you worried that you’ll lose control?”
I shook my head. “No, I think I can handle it. But . . . I don’t know if I can handle . . .”
His brows knit together when I refused to finish. A blush rose to my cheeks. He studied me a moment more, then slowly smiled. “Me? You think you can’t handle me?”
My blush deepened. “Well, I mean, you’re huge. And I’m . . .” I shrugged, suddenly unsure of myself. It felt so weird, talking about his penis like it was going to attack me. Well, it kind of was. Gah.
He laughed softly, then pressed a kiss to my forehead. “You can handle me, McKenna. We’re soulmates. Our bodies were created for each other.” When I still looked uncertain, he whispered in my ear, “Let me prove it to you.”
My heart skittered as he circled the tip around my entrance, teasing, challenging me. He continued to do it until all I could think about was having him inside me. Filling me. Completing me. I wanted this ultimate connection with him. I wanted to experience all that our bodies could give to each other. I wanted to be his, and I wanted him to be mine.
So I pressed upward, enough that he slid in an inch. He immediately stretched me tight and my thighs clenched around him, trembling uncontrollably.
“Relax, McKenna,” he soothed, nuzzling my neck as he pressed down, stretching me further. “The pain will be fleeting.”
I didn’t respond, too busy trying not to panic as he filled me more and more. When he was finally seated fully within me, I struggled to breathe. He waited patiently, stroking my hair while I adjusted. The sensation of having a piece of him inside my body was overwhelming, to say the least. It felt both utterly foreign and perfectly right. Like he was indeed created just for me.
When he began to move inside me, guiding us into a steady rhythm, I was calm enough to handle it. To handle him. Somehow, my body had made room for his, letting us both experience a closeness that words couldn’t express. It was transcendence. It was music without sound. Thunder without rain. A dance only our bodies knew.
And when we were both panting, singing, with the highest form of pleasure, our bodies carrying the notes higher and higher, we became one.
One body. One mind. One soul.
We were no longer our own. We were each other’s. Our bond was complete.
A feeling unfurled inside my chest, one I couldn’t quite describe. But as it settled into place beneath my sternum, warmly pulsing with contentment, I knew that it was him.
My soulmate.
34
KENNA
The distant shattering of glass jolted me from a deep, dreamless sleep.
Lochlan’s arms flexed around me, letting me know that he had heard it too. A thin sheet had divided our bodies while we slept, but nothing else. The moment he felt me stir awake, he snuck a hand beneath the sheet and cupped my breast. I moaned as warm tingles erupted over my skin, his touch instantly hardening my nipples.
“Morning,” he mumbled, although it wasn’t quite dawn yet, judging by how dark the room still was. He nuzzled my neck where he’d bitten me and pinched my alert nipple.
I gasped, coming fully awake.
My toes curled as he began to lazily play with it, gradually heating my blood to a simmering boil. “Lochlan,” I said, biting my lip when his fingers drifted to my other nipple. “I heard something break.”
“A maid probably dropped a breakfast tray.” He pressed his erection against my backside, making it very clear where his mind was at. My eyes closed when his hand slid downward to caress my stomach, moving lower and lower with each stroke.
An ear-splitting shriek shattered the moment.
Lochlan was off the bed and jerking on pants a second later. Still in his vampire form, he fixed his glowing red eyes on me and said, “Stay here. I’ll be right back.”
As he whooshed from the room, I gaped after him for a moment, then scrambled out of bed. No way was I going to be the damsel in distress. Something might be wrong. My blood ran cold when I envisioned Isla wandering out of her room, unable to stop herself from attacking one of the staff.
I yanked open drawers, putting on the first shirt and boxer briefs I could find. Then I dashed across the room and into the hallway. The moment I did, someone rammed into me. I hit the wall, crying out as sharp pain bloomed in my shoulder. Before I could reorientate myself, hands hoisted me up and over a shoulder. As I lashed out, trying to break their hold on me, a furious roar shook the hall.
I felt Lochlan’s terrible wrath in and around me as he bore down on us. A second later, he pried the hands off my body. A loud snap cleaved the air as bones broke. My would-be captor screamed and dropped to his knees. I scrambled away and ducked behind Lochlan, who reached behind him to pull me close. My eyes darted around, widening when they saw masked figures closing in from both sides. There were at least a dozen, and they were all pointing weapons at Lochlan.
Silver ones.
My heart stopped. Memories crashed into me, of Lochlan being shot over and over by silver bullets. Fear rose up, nearly choking me. And then everything slowed as Lochlan whipped around. He grabbed my arms, fear blazing in his own eyes. But not for himself, I realized. For me. And then . . . he did the unthinkable.
He shoved me backward into his bedroom and slammed the door shut. Leaving him to face the threat alone.
Horror froze me in place. Then I found my voice.
“No!” I screamed, lunging for the door handle. I twisted and yanked, but it wouldn’t budge. I was trapped. Trapped inside while Lochlan—my soulmate—was left fighting for his life. I relentlessly pounded on the door, screaming for Lochlan as chaos reigned outside. Pain bloomed in my chest, his pain, and I howled, nearly falling to my knees.
Silence descended beyond the door and I stopped breathing.
“Lochlan?” I whispered, frantically searching for any trace of his emotions inside me.
But they were gone. Snuffed out. Like he was . . . he was . . .
“Nooo,” I wailed, crumpling to the floor. I clutched my chest as pain consumed me—my pain—and curled into a tight ball, trembling uncontrollably.
Before I could fully succumb to my grief, the door handle rattled. I froze. Seconds later, the entire door shook as someone kicked it. Again and again, until wood splintered and the door flew inward with a resounding wham. I scooted away before the door could hit me, but remained on the floor, too distraught to stand.
Everett stumbled in, catching himself before he could trip over me. He took one look at my face, then grabbed my arm and hauled me upright. “He’s not dead. Stop crying.” He blinked hard, as if struggling to focus. His expression abruptly sharpened as he leane
d forward to smell me. “You reek of sex. And . . .” He pulled back, disbelief stamped across his face. “He claimed you.”
I didn’t deny it, too focused on what he had said about Lochlan not being dead. “W-where is he?”
“Taken.”
My stomach dropped. “By who?”
“By your fake aunt, that’s who. Which is why I need you.”
I jerked my head back. “Aunt Tess was here? But . . . why do you need me? You hate me.”
His expression flattened. “It seems that I was wrong about you. Tell me one thing: Are you Loch’s mate?”
The air sputtered from my lungs.
At my deer-in-headlights look, his lips pulled back in a silent snarl. “Great. Well, at least your usefulness has increased. You’re coming with me.”
Before I could protest, he dragged me out the door and down the hallway. I craned my head around to see the damage left behind, surprised when I couldn’t find any bodies or discarded weapons.
“The SCA is known for their efficiency,” Everett said, correctly reading my troubled frown. “They almost never leave behind evidence of their presence.”
“But . . . how did they even get in here?”
“The correct question is, who told them that you were here?” He ripped open a stairwell door and forced me to descend.
My mind reeled at his words. They’d come here, because of me? Fresh pain squeezed my heart. That meant Lochlan had been taken because of me.
“Where are we going?” I finally thought to ask, my bare feet scrambling to keep up with him.
“First, we’re getting you some clothes,” he said with a sneer, glancing down at my borrowed apparel. “Then, we’re going after Loch.”
My breath hitched. “But how? I can’t leave this island.”
He snorted. “I know a little more about this island than you do. As for leaving, you’re not trying to escape, right?”
“Well, not exactly. But—”
“Then you won’t be breaking the deal you made.”
As we burst from the stairwell onto the fourth floor, I dug my heels in, yanking free of Everett’s grip. “Wait. We need more help. We should take Kade with us at least. He’s good at tracking.”
Everett rounded on me, not bothering to hide his annoyance. “Kade is still unconscious, as are my father and Troy. I was too when this all happened. We had a private meeting last night after the ball, and someone managed to lace our drinks with silver. This was an inside job. Someone has betrayed us, and until I find out who, it’s just you and me, witch.”
I blinked, horrified. Fates, this was getting worse and worse. “But . . . but Kade wouldn’t—”
“I don’t trust anyone right now,” Everett interrupted, his ire rising.
I fisted my hands and blurted, “Well, how am I supposed to trust you? You’re the one who threatened to kill me, remember?”
He released a frustrated sigh and shook his head. “Because I would do anything to protect my brother from harm. And if you are his mate, then you’re under my protection as well.”
I stared at him, caught off guard by his sincerity. Sure, he was still a violent egomaniac in my book, but I didn’t doubt his words. Which was why I found myself saying, “Then lead the way.”
He shook his head again, an actual smile curling one side of his mouth. “No, Miss Belmont. You lead the way.”
I frowned. “I don’t understand. How?”
His brows lifted. “You had sex with him. The mate bond is complete, which means that your minds are now telepathically linked. You have the ability to share thoughts and images with each other, and can therefore track each other’s whereabouts.”
Shock couldn’t even begin to describe what I was feeling. Did Lochlan know this would happen? If so, why didn’t he tell me? “But I . . . I-I don’t know how to—”
“Do you love my brother?” Everett abruptly said.
My mouth fell open. Holy crap. How was I supposed to answer that question?
“Well, do you?” he persisted, his blood red eyes picking me apart piece by piece.
I squirmed in place, realizing he wasn’t going to accept anything less than the naked truth.
So I blurted, “Yes.” Then swallowed a gasp, surprised that I’d actually admitted to it out loud. And to Everett, of all people.
When his jaw hardened, I braced myself for the inevitable violence. But it never came. He simply stared at me, as if to make certain I spoke the truth. Then he slowly nodded. And said something I never in a million years thought he would say.
“Then find him, Kenna. Save him. Because without him, there’s no way in hell you’ll be able to break the curse. He chose you, whether he meant to or not, and your bond is now the only hope our kingdom has.”
The story continues in book three of the steamy, pulse-pounding A Touch of Vampire series . . .
Dear Reader,
At least the cliffhanger wasn’t as bad this time, right? Right??? Thanks so much for hanging in there, and I truly hope you’re enjoying this journey! If you are, I would be forever grateful if you could leave a short review on Amazon (doesn’t have to be fancy, every review makes a difference). I am also thrilled to say that book three, Fate Touched, is available for pre-order! Get it here!
Thank you so much for reading!!
Love, Becky
ALSO BY BECKY MOYNIHAN
The Elite Trials trilogy: (complete dystopian romance series)
Book 1: Reactive
Book 2: Adaptive
Book 3: Immersive
Genesis Crystal Saga: (urban fantasy romance)
Book 1: Dawn till Dusk
Book 2: Fall of Night
Book 3: Stars till Sun (coming soon)
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I really had to stretch my imagination with this book, and I honestly had a lot of fun. Although witches and vampires aren’t a new concept, I enjoyed putting my own supernatural spin on things and changing up some of the norms. Continuing to add the loose fairy tale retelling element was also tricky, but I hope you were able to pick out the subtle (and not so subtle) nods to my favorite fairy tale, Beauty and the Beast!
I want to start off by thanking two very important people in my life who don’t read my books but continue to support me and my writing journey: my husband and daughter. I’m grateful for your patience when I get lost in the writing hole and your interest in my stories. Although neither of you are into romance, I forgive you, lol.
Next, I want to thank two beta readers who I can always rely on: my best friend Melissa McMurry and my smut writing buddy Kate Anderson. I don’t know what I’d do without you two!!! Love you!
I also need to give a huuuuge thank you to the readers who continue to faithfully read each and every one of my books. Your support is everything to me, and it brings me so much joy to stock your libraries with more and more books. Thank you for chatting with me on social media and being my friend!
And lastly, I want to give a big thanks to all my new readers who fell in love with Shadow Touched and are excited to finish this series with me. I can’t wait to find out what happens in book three, aahhh!! Yes, you read that right. Even I don’t know how this series will end, mwahahaha. It’ll be good though. Promise.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Becky Moynihan is a bestselling, award-winning author of YA/NA Fantasy & Science Fiction. Her debut series is The Elite Trials, a YA dystopian romance. Her newest series, A Touch of Vampire, is a steamy paranormal vampire romance. She's also co-written the Genesis Crystal Saga, an urban fantasy romance series.
Becky's stories contain strong, snarky females and hot, alpha males. Expect to find several romantic tropes in her books, especially enemies-to-lovers. Her stories are fast-paced and filled with lots of high-stakes action, tension, angst, and mystery.
To stay up to date on new releases, sign up for her monthly newsletter:
www.beckymoynihan.com/newsletter
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Curse Touched: A Paranormal Vampire Romance (A Touch of Vampire Book 2) Page 30
