by Winter Rose
“Are you fucking kidding me?” I shouted toward the infuriating Elf.
“Luna, back down,” Luke whispered.
“Yes, Luna back down or it will be clean-up for a month,” Ehre sneered.
She is mine. Ehre’s thoughts were as clear as day in my mind.
“Let’s get one thing straight, buddy.” I walked up to him and poked his corded bicep. I am nobody’s! Just because I have to bond with you, it does not mean you have an input on what I do and who I speak to in my life! In retrospect, I probably looked like a crazy woman, standing there, staring at him while shouting in my mind.
Ehre looked livid.
“Myers here is an Elite Recruit. I am his commander. If I tell him he has cleaning duty for the rest of his fucking life, it will be so. Do I make myself clear?” he growled.
“Lu, it’s okay,” Luke’s pained voice pleaded with me.
“No, Luke, it’s not.” You are punishing him for your own jealousy! And gods, he was jealous. If murder were a look, that would be how to describe the expression on Ehre’s face as he looked at Luke’s hand pulling me back.
“One month’s clean up, Myers, and the longer you stay here, the larger this number will get!” I looked behind me to Luke’s torn face. Luke was a soldier and obeying a superior’s command was mandatory.
The fact that he didn’t scamper there and then showed that he cared. Ehre was far from impressed, jealousy so strong raged through our bond.
“Just go, Luke. I’ll come to see you tomorrow,” I promised, causing Ehre to swear in Elvish through the bond.
I patted Luke’s shoulder, trying to convey I was fine.
Mine! Ehre hissed in the bond.
“It’s fine, just go. I’m glad that you are here, Luke.” His pained expression made my chest ache as I turned away. I stomped passed Ehre who stood in my path, his eyes alight with anger.
Mine! I was getting really fucking tired.
I. AM. NO ONES! I shouted in my head as I barged passed him with all my might—fucking arsehole.
Chapter Thirty
Laying on the bed in the chamber that had been assigned to me, I concentrated on evening out my breathing.
How dare he! Fuming, I replayed the moment before Ehre had interrupted.
“I think he was about to kiss me,” I whispered to myself, touching my bottom lip where Luke’s thumb had grazed only moments ago. Did I want that? “I kissed Ehre,” my voice shook. Gods, what have I become?
Twenty years of no male attention whatsoever, then all of a sudden, five men, no gods, come along. I sat up. Five men! I couldn’t deny it. I had feelings for all of them. I wanted to blame the others on the fact that they were my bound Guardians, but it went deeper than that, I knew it did. And what about Luke? Where did he fit in this?
A knock on my door dragged me away from my lamenting, and I maturely buried my head under the linens.
“Luna,” Vulcan’s unmistakable voice caused shivers to run down my spine as he cracked the door open. “I can see you, you know, in that dress you’re a bit difficult to hide.” I pulled the pillow off my head, cursing May for the hundredth time today, and sat up to find him smirking.
“I had hoped you would have longer with your friend. Ehre is …”
“An arsehole?” I supplied with my usual description of Prince Arsehole of Arsehole Land, himself. Vulcan laughed. His laugh was a wonderfully full sound that made my insides warm and fuzzy.
“Yes, my brother is not much of a people person.”
“Understatement of the century,” I growled, earning myself another one of his toe-curling laughs.
“He is not all bad,” he crossed the room to sit on a chair that was pushed against a table laden with food. Pouring himself a goblet of wine, I watched as the light caught his tattooed arms.
“So people keep saying,” I muttered.
“I noticed that the blood before was not agreeable to you?” My stomach rolled in remembrance of its sour taste. “Magnar says that the older stuff is less palatable, it is not as apparent to me because it’s not my only sustenance.”
“Why does he drink it then?” I had wondered this before. I wasn’t being dramatic; the blood had tasted off. It would have been physically impossible for me to drink it without throwing my guts up.
“We do have several willing … donors here in the castle,” Vulcan cleared his throat. “But bloodletting is an extremely private ritual.” I shifted uncomfortably as I remembered just how private it actually was.
“Donated blood allows Vampires to be sustained, but it has more benefits when fresh. Because of the side effects of drinking a powerful Vampire’s blood, most vamps drink the blood of different species. Nobody wants to know that their thoughts are being read.”
“You mean like Magnar’s personal harem?” I tried and probably failed to sound nonchalant.
Vulcan laughed again.
“Ah, I’d forgotten that you had a run-in with Gretta.” Fire hair’s name was Gretta… I prefer fire hair.
“Erm, how is she doing?” I almost wanted to feel guilty about knocking her out … almost.
“She was a little worse for wear, but she will survive. I was surprised that you didn’t just kill her. Most would, in the same position.” I thought about it.
“I don’t see the need in taking a life when there is another option. I don’t take murder lightly.”
“An honorable trait.” The smile never reached Vulcan’s eyes.
“I suppose you want to erm … bond,” I said, walking toward the table. Vulcan’s eyes flickered, his Dragon pushing to the surface. I held my breath, anxiety clawing its way up my stomach.
Vulcan frowned.
“No, not tonight. It is probably not the best idea for me to bond with you … until my brothers do.” He stood, unfurling his tall frame which dwarfed my own. “What I wanted was to show you something.”
“Are we going back down to the ball?” I tried not to sound as miserable as I felt about the prospect.
“Gods, no,” he laughed. “I would rather battle Hades himself than spend another second there.”
Each time the god of death’s name was mentioned, a foreboding feeling crept up my spine.
“For someone who hates parties, you sure seem to attend a lot of them,” I remarked.
“It’s the time of year; this is nothing compared to Ignis. My mother throws a ball nearly every night.” As he spoke of his birth home, his features darkened.
“What did you want to show me then?” I asked, craving his rarer lighter side to reappear.
The side of his mouth lifted, his eyes sparkling.
“Follow me.”
I walked beside Vulcan as he led us to the opposite side of the hallway. Only two doors were visible; one was the doorway to Magnar’s chambers and the other, his. My heart hammered in my chest. It seemed as though we were heading to a dead-end, and I was painfully aware that I was alone with this man. Why does that though both excite and terrify me?
Vulcan breathed out and stopped dead in front of me.
“You are killing me, Luna,” he groaned before bending the knee. “Luna Moon, I swear to the gods and on my honor as your Guardian and a Warrior that I will never see danger befall you. You will never suffer at my hand, and I will only ever touch you when you ask it of me.” Still kneeling, he leveled his eyes with my own. I was completely lost for words.
“As I told you before, my Dragon is extremely aware of your emotions; I can sense your fear. That you are nervous because I am alone with you.” His Dragon’s eyes flickered. “Know that you are mine to protect. I will never hurt you, Luna.” His voice was just above a whisper his brows furrowed; he had read my emotions all wrong.
“I accept your Warrior’s oath, Vulcan Ignis, but I am not afraid of you. You … being alone with you makes me nervous.” My heart hammered in my chest as I watched him try to riddle it out. He was still on his knees, when I moved toward him. His face now was level with my own. “Vulcan, I don’t
know what to say. You make me … I just don’t want you to think I’m afraid of you. I’m more afraid of my body’s reaction to you.”
His eyes heated, nostrils flared as though he was smelling the air around me. Then it finally dawned on him what I was saying. I was rewarded with a smile; it took everything in me not to kiss those upturned lips. Wow, where did that come from? I moved my eyes away from his mouth and back to his eyes. His Dragon’s eyes.
“You do not fear me?” He sounded terrified of my answer.
I sighed,
“Vulcan, you came to me at a time when I needed you the most. You found me and brought me here … into the Elites. You took on my debt with the Koray. You stopped me from killing Ehre, putting yourself into harm’s way. You brought my friend here, and now you just swore a Warrior’s oath so that I felt safe walking down a hallway with you …What in the worlds do I have to be afraid of?”
“You make me sound like one of the good guys,” he sounded astonished.
I just shook my head.
“Vulcan, you are one of the good guys.”
His eyes glistened; his Adam’s apple bobbed in his throat. He nodded like he didn’t trust his voice just yet. When he stood, the air in the hallway shifted with him—bringing with it the smell of fire and leather—all man. I couldn’t help the thrill that his words caused. I will only touch you when you ask—such a precise way to say it.
As we reached the end of the corridor, Vulcan pushed against a stone wall; I was beginning to fear for his sanity until the stone clicked and moved inwards.
“A secret passage?” my eyes ogled. “Would have been nice to know about that on trial day, before I plunged to my death,” I grumbled.
“I didn’t want to give you the advantage of actually beating my record.” Vulcan laughed.
“And yet, I did.” I winked, completely smug that I made him laugh once more.
I followed his giant, crouched frame down the never-ending staircase until eventually, we reached the bottom. He opened a small wooden door which led to a wooded area, and I welcomed the smell of the forest as it surrounded me.
“I thought we could go for a run?” Vulcan’s voice was rough; his eyes glistened in the moonlight.
I looked down at my dress and pulled the skirts so that they tucked into my waistband.
“Loosen me up, will you?” I faced my back toward him and took a deep breath. Vulcan took a step toward me; his internal furnace made my body painfully aware of his nearness.
He cleared his throat, “I’m afraid that I am not as learned in the art of corseting as my brother Luna.”
I chuckled, “Yes, he was impressively quick; I wonder how many corsets you would have to take off to become that much of an expert?” My sentence ended with me sounding a little more jealous than I would have liked.
“How in all the gods? Where do these things even begin?” Vulcan was running his hands over the laces and even through the dress’ bones, I was painfully aware of his fingers against my back. Gods, I needed this run. “Is there a magical pocket in this infernal thing?” he grunted.
Oh shit … My face heated as I reached around my lower back to feel for the gap in the skirts. I could hear him swallow. Several moments past, neither one of us spoke.
“How attached are you to this dress, Luna?” His fingers bit into my sides, and I thought that I would combust at their touch.
“Not very … why?”
As soon as the answer left my lips, in one clean movement, Vulcan tore the back of my corset. The sound reverberated against the still night; my heart hammered within my heaving chest.
His hands fell away, and I dared to reach around my back, to inspect the damage that he had wrought. Somehow, Vulcan had managed to tear the corset but keep the fabric of the dress still intact. Thank the gods. Air flooded my lungs, and I swore to never take breathing for granted again.
“Better?” Vulcan had stepped closer, his breath tickling my right ear. My stomach flipped, and my thighs clenched, I faced him.
“Much,” my traitor voice sounded breathy and dazed.
I could no longer stare into his heated gaze, for fear I would submit to him, and allow him to consume my soul. Needing something, anything else to do, I twisted my torso and rolled my shoulders, testing the dresses durability before shrugging. This was as good as it was ever going to get in this tent. Vulcan chuckled before he followed me in a slow jog.
As we moved, he did not try to make conversation; he just allowed me to set the pace and ran with me in complete silence. Running for me was therapy for my soul and for some reason, Vulcan knew that I needed this.
When I was younger, running allowed me to compartmentalize my emotions and just forget for a while. Only when I ran was I able to escape being the outsider. Alone in my own world, it was just me and nature.
I noticed Vulcan start to slightly picked up the pace, and I pushed further until I was just ahead of him. He ran a little faster until he was a few feet in front of me, and my competitive side rose its head.
It’s on Dragon, I thought as I raced past him.
It was mere seconds before he was next to me again, a satisfied grin on his face. I allowed my focus to become singular as I worked toward the speed I only reserved for when I was alone. I heard Vulcan chuckle behind me as I pushed myself faster and faster, determined to win this race.
Vulcan, it seemed, was just as competitive as me. No matter how fast I pushed myself, he matched the pace easily. A clearing was coming up ahead, the tree line in the distance thinning.
“Last one to the opening has to give the other a foot rub!” Vulcan shouted and then broke out into the fastest sprint I have ever seen.
I hesitated slightly, before I allowed my body to give in to my instincts, catching up to a laughing Vulcan, I sped past him.
“Eat my dust!” I screamed like a madwoman giddy off the endorphin high I was getting. As I reached the opening, I stopped and cheered, before being followed closely by Vulcan.
“And the winner is LUNNNAAA MOOONN!” I cupped my mouth and shouted. Vulcan fell on his back, panting and laughing.
“So how about that foot rub?” I asked. Sitting before him, I held my foot outstretched, laughing. Never in a million years did I expect him to sober, sit up, and untie my boot. My laugh died on my lips as his big hands pulled my foot toward him. He began to knead my sole; I couldn’t repress the moan if I tried.
“You don’t have to do that,” I breathed, while my head screamed if you stop I will cut you!
“Fair’s fair, Luna,” he smiled, and I sat back on my hands.
“I would have made you rub mine.” He grinned, and I couldn’t help but smile as I watched him work at my aching feet.
“That feels so good,” I whispered. “My feet have been through so much torment this month; I didn’t realize how much they actually ached.” I was talking because I was nervous, but Vulcan just smiled. He was quiet and concentrated, and after a while, I just melted into his touch.
He untied my second boot and started to work on my right foot.
“Did the Wolves ever see you run that fast?” he asked.
“Just Sarah, and just once, I didn’t need any more of a reason for them to think I was a freak; so I ran alone mostly.” His knuckles circled my arch, and I bit back another moan.
“What about Luke?”
“What about him?” I asked.
“Did Luke run with you?” His voice seemed to lower an octave.
“Luke and I were sparring partners. I normally run alone.” This seemed to satisfy him.
“Why? Why do you run alone?”
I huffed, not really wanting to go there while I was in such a good mood.
“Life at The Estate isn’t the easiest if you’re not Lycan. I had a lot of run-ins until I learned to defend myself, then, people just left me alone. My teachers and the Kingsleys resented that I was there and never let me forget that. So … I don’t know, running allowed me to escape for a while. I was able to fo
rget what was bothering me and be free.” I looked up toward the star-encrusted sky. “I suppose it’s as close as I could get to flying.” Vulcan stopped his massage, a smile crept up on his face.
Every time I saw one of his smiles, I felt as though my heart would explode.
“Would you like to fly, Luna?” he asked.
My eyes bugged as I tried and failed not to sound too breathless.
“Really?” Vulcan stood and walked backward, his steps slow and graceful. He stopped about fourty meters away and pulled his jacket off, then he peeled off his tight shirt, his biceps flexing as he did.
Oh. My. Aphrodite! I had seen his body before, but not when I was alone with him.
Vulcan was strength personified; his sheer mass would rival that of Hercules. I had the overwhelming desire to run my tongue across the peaks and valleys of his chest and stomach. And gods, that vee. The vee dipped low into his trousers; trousers that were now being undone.
I dragged my eyes away from Vulcan’s confident gaze, my stomach clenching. I closed them quickly, even though the sound of his laughter and pants being shed taunted me.
All I would have to do to see him naked is open my eyes.
Chapter Thirty-One
Power pressed down upon me; thousands of tiny sparks raced across my skin. The energy in the air had changed; it became so thick and weighted that it was almost impossible to breathe. As soon as the crushing sensation began, it ceased. I looked up.
Vulcan in human form was impressive but in Dragon form … I had an overwhelming urge to cry in reverence. He was probably the biggest thing I have ever seen, each scale the size of my head. His scales, like his skin, were the color of midnight. Polished obsidian, they reflected the moonlight as though Nyx herself, played a role in his creation. Reds and gold framed his head and tail, the color of a glorious sunset. His eyes in this form were the most breathtaking thing I had ever seen; they held the sun's fire within their depths.
“Hi there,” I crooned, unable to halt my hand that raised toward his beautiful face. Yes, I was petting a Dragon like a damned dog.
