by Ophelia Bell
The sweet, pungent aroma of the wine filled her senses. Numa bent and extended her dragon tongue, flicking it lightly at the underside of his cock, beginning at the trickles of wine that had covered his balls and lapping it up before encircling his shaft and sliding up. She licked him clean, only to have him tip the glass again, spilling more wine over his hot erection.
Once again, she carefully sucked every inch of him clean, and he repeated the process, this time upending the glass and flooding his crotch with what remained.
Numa descended on him, sucking at his balls and stroking his cock with one hand. Dion watched, enraptured as she made full use of her agile tongue to clean his entire length. His chest heaved with pent-up desire, and she bent to take as much of his throbbing tip into her mouth as she could fit, sucking and swirling her tongue along the underside. She reached between his thighs where his ass met the mattress and found the flared end of the toy still buried in his backside. She twisted it once, pulled it partway out, and pushed it back in.
Dion’s head flew back and he let out a deafening roar that shook the entire room. His hands tangled into the blankets and his hips jerked up. Numa gripped him tight with both hands, stroking swiftly as his cock erupted in thick, shining streams of semen. At the same moment, the overwhelming potent power that had built in his aura came bursting forth, flooding Numa with more magic than she’d ever tasted before. Her body shuddered at the intensity of it, nearly sending her into another climax of her own.
Dion’s orgasm lasted for several minutes, until finally, his aura dimmed and shrank, and his cock softened in her hands. His eyes fell closed and his entire body went lax.
Numa released him gently, and with a thought, dissolved the conjured toy in his ass.
Leaving him barely conscious on the bed, she wandered into the bathroom for a towel.
“I don’t think it should be me,” Dion said.
Numa froze and turned back to look at him. “It isn’t your decision.”
“Perhaps not, but my motives weren’t pure when I came. You deserve better. If either of the others can give you enough power, please choose one of them.”
She returned to the bed and carefully wiped his belly clean, growing lightheaded from the mere scent of his potent seed.
She kept her lips clenched tight and slipped off the bed again, tossing the towel into a hamper nearby. In a tight voice, she said, “I will choose who is best suited for the task. Your remorse or my desires are not factors. Now, if you don’t mind, I need time to get ready for Cade and Zephyrus.”
Grabbing the golden bands around each of her arms, she slipped them off one at a time and set them on a table by the door, then opened the door and held it. She avoided looking at him, furious at his sudden change of heart. After all his posturing, had she done something wrong to earn his rejection?
“You are a good girl, Numa. Too good. I will still help, but I don’t deserve you as a mate. Today made that crystal clear. Please choose wisely. Whoever he is had better be good enough for you.”
He left the bed and strode across the room, pausing at the door beside the table that held his matched pair of golden cock rings glinting in the sunlight. Reaching out, he traced the beveled edge of one. “Keep these. They suit you. And they are more than mere ornaments. They will enhance the stamina of your chosen mate—or mates—if you use them as they are intended. You will win this.”
Numa swallowed, avoiding his gaze when he fixed it on her once more. “Just go. Tell Cade to come when he is ready.” Her heart ached when he nodded and departed. Within an afternoon, he’d turned her entire plan on its head.
Sweet Mother, why couldn’t Fate have made this decision for her?
Chapter Ten
Waiting was an exercise in endurance for Cade, if there’d ever been one. He’d spent a little time catching up with his friends and falling head over heels for the tiny girl Vrishti had given birth to. Deva was already a precocious toddler, testing her legs and her parents’ patience and parroting their every word as they held conversations around her. To think that when he’d arrived, she was only on the verge of even being born.
Once he left the new family to some private time, he wandered the lodge feeling anxious and out of sorts, a mood that wasn’t aided one bit by the impatient wind spirit who shared his body. He tormented the kitchen staff, rummaging for snacks, then wandered into the interior gardens seeking whatever peace could be found. He paused at the water’s edge and stood looking at his reflection, frowning. It didn’t look like him…
“We need a plan,” Zephyrus said, startling Cade. Not only was the face looking back not his, but its lips had moved, and Cade knew he hadn’t spoken.
“Zeph … That you?” he asked, tilting his head this way and that, then winking each eye. The face in the pool reflected his movements, but was a very different-looking fellow, one with close-cropped, dark gray hair and a neatly trimmed salt and pepper beard. Handsome fuck. Almost as handsome as Cade himself.
The face smirked. “You’re as cocky as Dion in more ways than one. Yes, it’s me.”
Cade settled onto his knees and tapped the pool with his finger. The reflection rippled, but the features only looked wobbly for a moment before returning to the clear, calm reflection of the smiling, mischievous Zephyrus.
“Don’t suppose you have a plan, do you? I can match the man in stature, but who knows what he’s got up his ass where power’s concerned?”
“We may not be able to outmatch his power, but Numa is a dragon … With my wind, we can drive her fire magic hotter, which feeds more to us. You’re no Miteradoro like those two Rainsong boys who have Gaia’s power in their pocket. Can you hang onto some dragon juice without feeding it straight to the goddess?”
Cade slipped a hand between his legs, hefting his balls through the fabric of his trousers. “Can give it a shot. These boys haven’t had much action in ages. I stayed away from the human women back in Black Mountain. Didn’t want to risk one getting attached. It ain’t easy for the girls to have a taste without wanting more, if you catch my drift. And the ursa females don’t want a sad old single bear like me.”
The Wind’s voice grew suggestive. “Are you game for a little … experimentation? It won’t be quite the same as fire magic, but I can pull some of my power into you and see how you manage.” His eyes sparked with the subtle challenge and his lips tugged to one side.
Cade narrowed his eyes, but smiled back. “I’m game for whatever you care to throw at me.”
“Good, then strip.”
Cade grunted in amusement. “Is that how it is? How ‘bout I show you mine and you show me yours?”
A low chuckle sounded inside his head. “You want to see mine, you pretty much have no choice but to show me yours. Until this is over and Gaia’s willing to grant me living flesh of my own again, this reflection’s one of the only ways we get to see each other.”
“About that … Why don’t you have a body of your own? Not that I mind sharing the wealth Gaia gave me, but all the ursa shamans have a system that’s been passed down since the dawn of time to make sure they have a body ready for them. Seems like the turul might have overlooked something.”
For the first time, Zephyrus failed to meet Cade’s gaze. His cheek twitched and he lifted his hand to rub at his beard. “It’s our choice. My brothers and I like the freedom of the open sky, and wingless bodies only weigh us down to the Earth.”
“I can get on board with that,” Cade said with a grin as he tore his shirt over his head and untied the string of his borrowed trousers, letting them drop to his ankles. “Free as the wind is my personal motto, in case you were wondering.” He gave Zephyrus a wink and stood close to the water, looking down at the now naked reflection.
It was strange not seeing his own thick thighs and bulky, muscular torso. But despite the distortion of perspective from the angle of the water, the man he sa
w was impressive. Zephyrus was as tall as Cade, with arms and shoulders easily as wide and thick, but from the waist down he was more slender, with a slim torso made of angular planes of muscles hardened over centuries and long, toned legs.
“You ain’t a runner like me, are you?” he commented.
Zephyrus glanced down and laughed. “No, but I do fly.” He stretched out his arms, flexing his shoulders. “Birds of prey are usually happy to let the spirit of a Wind possess them. I spend much of my free time soaring inside the body of a falcon.”
“That’d be the life.”
“I can make you feel like you’re flying,” Zephyrus said, his expression growing more serious, his voice gruff. The tone wasn’t lost on Cade, and it struck an odd chord inside him … one he hadn’t felt in a long, long time.
He cleared his throat, his heart pounding. “Somehow I didn’t think we’d have that kind of partnership. Didn’t think I’d ever have that kind of partnership again. I don’t do halfway, you should know. This … chance we have with Numa is likely the last chance I’ll ever have for a mate.”
“Even if we fail—which we won’t, by the way—it doesn’t need to be the end for you. Don’t forget I’m inside your head, Cade. I can see what you lost, what it meant to you. What he meant to you. If we can be that to each other, I think it can give us the advantage we need.”
Cade tamped down the tightening burn of that old pain. A lover lost, one of countless who had fallen victim to the very enemy his kind were in the final throes of battle with at this very moment. But they’d only been portal guardians, not high-ranking enough for any widespread mourning among the ursa. He had borne the grief in his solitary fashion for so long he’d simply grown used to not having someone to help shoulder that burden.
Through clenched teeth, Cade said, “It ain’t that fucking easy.”
“Then don’t decide now. But do consider the offer and at least let me show you what I can do to improve our odds. The more your desires sync with mine, the better off we’ll be.”
Forcing himself to take a breath, Cade nodded. His gaze drifted down to the hardening cock between the other man’s thighs, the sight causing his own groin to heat and tighten. “Let’s just get one thing straight: I’ll bottom for you this once, but if we stay together, your ass is mine.”
Zephyrus laughed and rubbed the back of his neck. His gaze slid away, then back, and he eyed Cade’s erection. “We might have to work up to that,” he said, pointing between Cade’s thighs. “If I get a new body, it’ll be a virgin.”
“Well, ain’t that half the fun? The working up to it? Tell me what to do.”
“Get into the water and float on your back.”
Cade waded in until the cool water covered his hot erection, then dipped beneath the surface to wet himself thoroughly. When he came back up, he stretched out, spreading his arms wide and staring up into the shimmering blue sky above where the barrier of the temporal bubble blocked them from the outside world.
“Close your eyes,” Zephyrus said, his voice a near whisper rasping inside Cade’s head. It tickled erotically at the base of his skull, once again reminding him of the intimacy he’d shared with only one other man. He closed his eyes, wishing his heartbeat would slow down.
Wind rustled the trees and plants around him, warm air rushing across his exposed skin. He remained floating, his hair drifting out around his head, waiting for whatever it was Zephyrus had in mind.
“Relax and open your mind to me, Arcadius.”
Cade inhaled slowly, letting his mind drift the way it did when he ran, his strong legs carrying his huge bear form to whatever destination he chose. During those runs, he was wild and free, much the way he was on the motorcycle he rode in the human town he had lived in outside the Sanctuary portal.
A cool gust washed over his skin, making his hard cock tingle and his nipples stiffen. Then a whooshing sound filled his ears and the world spun and tilted. For a second, he expected to find himself face down in the water, but breathing was still easy and he relaxed.
“Open your eyes,” Zephyrus said.
Cade did as he was told. When his lids fluttered open, he was greeted with a view of the Earth such as he had never seen before. Instead of a blue sky high above the Rainsong gardens half-blocked by tall trees, he saw nothing but open sky with the horizon far ahead. Wind ripped through his hair and across his skin, chilly but crisp and invigorating. He turned his head and spotted mountain ranges in beautiful shades of dark blue-green, softened by the moisture-dense haze he’d grown accustomed to in the Blue Ridge Mountains he’d come to think of as home.
“We ain’t really flying, are we?”
“Yes and no. This is in your head. Your body is still floating in the pool, but you can experience it as though it were real. Look at me.”
The voice that had previously only reverberated inside his skull seemed to come from a distinct direction now. He turned to see a huge bald eagle, its golden eyes sharply focused on him. The big bird blinked and let out an ear-splitting screech, then banked and dove toward a mountaintop. Cade laughed and followed, his body twisting instinctively as though he’d always known how to fly. He didn’t have wings, though, which helped remind him this was only a waking dream of a sort, though it definitely felt real enough.
He followed the eagle down through the valley, skimming across the tops of the trees until the forest opened up to a huge, sun-drenched rock face that overlooked more of the mountainous vistas. The eagle landed, and by the time Cade caught up to him, Zephyrus stood naked on the rock in the bird’s place.
Simply knowing what they were about to do had him aroused beyond rational thought. It didn’t matter that this was all in his head; when Zephyrus stepped close and looked into his eyes, his entire body ached to close the distance. It had been decades since he’d felt the touch of a lover, and this man may only be a spirit, but if he could camp out inside Cade’s mind and still want him, that counted for something.
“I need you as much as you need me,” Zephyrus said. “And I don’t intend to abuse this partnership. Do you understand how important this is to me?”
“You love her,” Cade said. “That part was crystal clear when she walked into the room. I can’t say I feel the same yet, but I see why you do.”
“By offering us both to her, we will by necessity become hers. When it’s done, what we have doesn’t need to continue. We can be her mates without a relationship of our own, but I don’t want to discount the potential for more. If we can be true partners to start with, we’ll be better off for it. I’m sure you understand that as well as anyone could. I just want to make it clear that I am not using you.”
Cade shrugged. “Even if you were, I’d intended to enjoy it and see where it takes me. I’ve been alone too long to pass up a chance like this.”
“I’m serious,” Zephyrus said, closing the distance so their faces were barely an inch apart. He gripped the back of Cade’s head with one hand and squeezed. “This partnership was a surprising opportunity for both of us, not just to win Numa, but to find each other. I need you to be sure it is what you want, not only because it happens to be the thing offered and you have nothing to lose by taking, but because you actually want it. You want her. And me.”
Cade swallowed, his eyes burning from an unexpected surge of emotion he couldn’t quite place. He remembered the wistful sense of longing he’d had after seeing Numa’s sister, Aurum, and her mates together. He’d wondered what it would be like to be marked by a dragon, claimed as the mate of a creature so beautiful.
Numa was every bit as beautiful as her golden sister, though she had darker hair and fairer skin. She was somehow both more delicate and stronger at the same time, with a kind of quiet grace that reminded him of trees swaying in the breeze, or ripples across the surface of a lake. She fascinated him in a way no ursa female ever had, and he couldn’t deny a draw to her unlike an
y he’d felt for a woman before.
As for Zephyrus, the wind spirit’s desire was already in his head, and that alone made Cade’s blood hot to know the other man. Whether something deeper came of it, he wouldn’t know unless he tested their connection. He feared wanting more if that wasn’t meant to be, but Zeph’s speech managed to shatter that illusion. If Cade was indeed the risk-taker he claimed to be, he could let himself want more and not be afraid to own that desire.
Cade let out a soft chuckle and reached up to cup the back of Zephyrus’s head in return. “Call me a greedy bastard, but I fucking want it all. Every last bit.” He spoke the last syllable with lips brushing against Zeph’s, the other man tensing against him. But when Cade closed his mouth over his, the spirit groaned into the kiss and sank into Cade’s embrace.
He hadn’t realized how much he missed this feeling until he was wrapped inside it once again—to be held by a lover, with the promise of something even more lasting than he could have ever imagined. If they did this right, they could have her too, but they would have each other regardless.
Zeph tangled his fingers in Cade’s hair, his warm body flush against Cade’s chest, their hips pressed together and erections hotly resting side by side. He hated for it to end after so long without, but they had little enough time as it was. Cade finally pulled away, breathing heavily and resting his forehead against Zeph’s.
“Tell me what to do.”
Zephyrus nodded. He reluctantly stepped back, then slid around Cade to stand at his back, hands resting on his shoulders.
“Keep your eyes on the mountains,” Zephyrus said. “Listen to the wind and follow my lead. When I give you my power, focus on holding onto it, and if you must release it, try to give it back to me, though the earth will try to take it from you. Numa will need us to prove we can build enough power without spending it too soon. I don’t have the capacity to see what a dragon sees, but you…” He slipped his hand down Cade’s belly and between his thighs to cup his balls. “You have your own built-in meter, if you know how to sense it.”
