Talon bit back a smile, realizing Leland could play a very important role in their plans. Of course, Leland likely wouldn’t be happy about it, but the arrogant fool wouldn’t suffer long.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Lexi’s scream cut through the room and had Zane instantly awake and ready to rescue her from whatever danger she faced. Looking around, it didn’t take long to realize that the danger Lexi faced was in her mind. Sitting up in bed and trembling, Lexi seemed to be struggling to come out of the haze of her nightmare.
Wrapping his arms around her, Zane rubbed his cheek against hers. “It’s okay, angel. You just had a bad dream.”
“Yes, just a dream,” Lexi mumbled, as if she were trying to convince herself.
“Do you want to talk about it?” he asked, settling her back onto the bed with her head resting on his chest. Lexi didn’t resist, merely molded herself against his body with a sigh.
There was a hesitation before she spoke, and he wasn’t surprised when she moved the subject away from her dream. “Why do I feel so safe with you?”
Zane stroked her hair back from her face. “You shouldn’t, considering how much I want inside of you right now.”
“You really need to stop saying that,” Lexi insisted.
“Why?” he asked. “It’s the truth, and I’ve never been one to lie about how I feel.”
“You shouldn’t say it because it makes me forget all the reasons it’s such a bad idea to have sex with you.”
Zane chuckled. “Then I’m definitely not going to stop saying things like that. I want you to forget all your reasons for turning me down.”
“You’re impossible,” she scolded, but he heard the smile in her voice.
“Most people say that,” he told her.
“I have trouble trusting people, Zane.” Her voice sounded defeated and beaten down in many ways. “That’s always made it impossible for me to have a real relationship with anyone. I spent a year in a mental institution.”
“What’s that?” Zane asked, only vaguely familiar with the term.
“A hospital where they treat people with problems like mine. They put me there because they decided I was crazy. I guess, some of those facilities are nice, but the one I went to sucked big time. It was like spending a year in hell, and I wasn’t sure I’d ever get to leave. In fact, they used to tell me I would be there for the rest of my life. As it turned out, I was there until my insurance stopped paying the bill. The staff there thought they could do whatever they wanted to us because no one was ever going to believe a bunch of unstable kids. We also had restricted visitation that was always supervised by staff. If one of the patients started talking about stuff they shouldn’t, they were pulled from the visitation room with some bullshit excuse. I never even tried because I saw what happened to some of the other kids—not that I was allowed to see my mom most of the time I was there anyway. Sometimes, I have nightmares about the stuff that happened there.”
Zane’s arms tightened around her, and he wished he could go back and kill all the people who had hurt her. The idea of being locked up with no hope terrified him, so he could understand why it would give her nightmares, even without the abuse. “I’m sorry you had to go through that. Why did they put you there?”
“I was thirteen when I tried talking to a new girl at school. She was dressed kind of strange, so I figured she’d get teased by the other kids. Since I was used to being the weird kid, I decided to warn her about the worst people at school. The only problem was, she lost it when she realized I could see her, and she started screaming and clawing at my arms. I tried to stop her, but I couldn’t pull her hands away. The school called an ambulance and the police to help me. Everyone insisted I was clawing at my own arms even though they couldn’t figure out how I had no skin under my nails. Still, there seemed to be no other explanation since they only saw me there, shouting and tugging near my arms. According to everyone around, there was no girl with me.”
“So, you saw something that wasn’t human,” Zane surmised. “The girl could have been any number of creatures, and she probably felt threatened when you could see her.”
“At the time, all anyone knew was that I was insisting some girl no one could see had scratched me. They decided I was crazy and insisted on me being locked up for my own safety. When my mom disagreed, the courts got me taken from her. She was only allowed one supervised visit with me the entire time I was there because she kept fighting to get me back and insisting that I didn’t need to be locked up. They said she was detrimental to my recovery.”
Zane’s heart ached for his mate. “I can’t even imagine what you went through, being locked up like that.”
“That’s probably why I like camping so much,” she mused. “I don’t even sleep in a tent if the weather is nice enough.”
“Sleeping outside on a warm night is the best,” Zane agreed.
“My mom hated camping, but she took me a lot once she got me back,” Lexi told him.
“I’m glad she understood your need for freedom. While I hate that you suffered, it sounds like your mom took good care of you when you got out of that place.”
Lexi let out a sad sigh. “Actually, I wasn’t allowed to go back to my mom when I was released. They put me in foster care, insisting my mom was still a danger to my mental health. At first, I wasn’t even allowed to see her. Luckily, my first foster family were really great people who did a lot to get me help dealing with the stuff that had happened while I was locked up. My first foster dad filed complaints and even contacted the media about the hospital.”
“So foster care is a system where they sent you to live with another family?” Zane asked. He was pretty sure that’s what it meant, but wanted to confirm.
“Yes,” she said. “It’s not always great, either. My first family lost their license to do foster care after trying to help me. Then I got moved to a group home for troubled teens. That was a scary place. I’m not sure why nothing bad happened to me, but there were a lot of assaults, including a few rapes, in the year I was living there. The people running it didn’t care, and nothing ever got reported. It wasn’t as bad as the hospital, though, because I could at least leave when I wanted to. As long as we were home for inspections, the people running the group home didn’t care where we went.”
“No wonder you have nightmares.” Zane was amazed Lexi was holding things together as well as she was. He was beginning to understand why she was so pessimistic about their future together. This just proved that she needed him even more than he’d originally guessed.
“Yeah, but I don’t have them as often anymore,” she assured him.
“I’m assuming you eventually ended up back with your mom, since you said she took you camping,” he surmised.
“Almost two years after they took me away from her, just before my fifteenth birthday, they let me go home to my mom. I had to take blood tests on a regular basis to prove my mom was making sure I took my meds. I also had to see a psychiatrist that was approved by the child welfare people, and we had countless visits from social workers. Needless to say, they never really trusted my mom. It was nice being home with her.”
“But you still didn’t have much freedom,” Zane finished for her.
“It was worlds above what I’d had,” she said. “My mom was great about getting me what I needed to feel more in control. I started taking classes at a mixed martial arts studio and working out at the gym.”
“What are mixed martial arts?” Zane asked.
“I’m not really sure how to explain that,” she said thoughtfully. “In the simplest terms, I learned to fight using several techniques, but it’s much more than that. I learned control and gained self-confidence.”
“So, you’re a good fighter?” Zane was suddenly dying to see what she could do. As a shifter, he had a real thing for strong women.
“I’m not bad,” she replied. “I’d tell you my belt level, but something tells me it won’t mean anything to you.”
/> “Probably not,” he admitted. “You could show me later. The vampires have a huge training center, and some of the rooms are designated for fighting.”
“Really?” she asked. “The vampires won’t mind?”
Zane shook his head. “Try to get some more sleep, and I’ll make the arrangements later.” The sun had just started to rise, and something told him Lexi needed more sleep.
“Thank you, Zane,” she said, and he was relieved when she continued to use his chest as a pillow.
“Anything for you, angel,” he promised, knowing that was the truth.
“Then, can I ask you for one more thing?” she asked hesitantly.
“Sure,” he replied as he stoked her hair back from her face.
“What you said about being inside of me,” she began hesitantly.
Zane’s breath hitched, and he tried hard to convince his dick not to get his hopes up.
“I’d really like that.” She lifted her head to give him a flirty smile. “Do you think you can help me with that?”
Chapter Thirty
Lexi could not believe she’d just asked Zane to have sex with her, especially after she’d made such a big deal of telling him they shouldn’t have sex. There were plenty of reasons why this was a bad idea, but none of them seemed to matter at the moment. That was probably proof that horniness killed brain cells.
“I think you’re overdressed for this occasion, don’t you?” he asked as he rolled her onto her back and ran his fingers along the edge of her panties. She’d been thankful that whoever had picked out her clothing had selected plain bikini panties. At least, she had been, until this very moment. Now, she wished for some lacy scrap of fabric that would drive Zane wild.
“I should undress,” she told him, blushing when she heard the way her voice sounded more matter of fact than sex-kitten. “I’m not very good at this seduction thing.”
Zane chuckled as his finger continued to stroke the edge of her panties, making her long to have his fingers slide under the edge to touch her. “You should probably know that telling me I can have you again is all the seduction I need. At this point, I’d probably explode if you did anything more. Besides, I’m not one of those males who needs fancy games. I like playing in bed, but it should be natural, not work.”
Zane got to his knees and guided Lexi up to a sitting position, before gripping the bottom of her shirt and slipping it over her head. Lexi moved to her knees and pressed her mouth to Zane’s, enjoying the way he moaned as she kissed him. All nerves vanished the moment she pressed her lips against his. No longer was she worrying about how long she’d known him, or all the crazy things going on in her life. The only thing on Lexi’s mind was how right it felt to touch Zane.
Zane let her control the kiss as he reached around to cup her ass and pull her even closer. He guided her forward and dropped back on his heels to pull her onto his lap so she was straddling him with his impressive erection pressed against her. Lexi felt the tension in his body, yet he still allowed her the freedom to slide her tongue past his lips and tease his mouth.
“You make me want you so much, Zane,” she breathed against his lips.
“I’m yours, Lexi,” his rasped out. “Any time you want me, you can have me.”
Hearing his promise made in such a desperate tone, her own self-control snapped, and this time, her hands cupped his face as she kissed him. Zane nipped her bottom lip and took control of the kiss. With one hand, he tore her panties off and reached between their bodies to stroke her already aching clit. She was wet and ready for him. Pulling back from his kiss, she arched her back, pushing herself against his hand.
“I need you in me now,” she demanded.
Zane chuckled. “Not yet.”
“Yes, now,” she insisted, and then moaned when his fingers lightly squeezed her clit.
“I’ll fuck you when I’m good and ready,” he breathed out, leaning forward to take advantage of her arched back by pulling one of her nipples into his mouth and suckling it so gently she wanted to beg him for more pressure.
“You feel ready,” she moaned.
He released her nipple and blew on it. “Despite what my behavior at the hospital may suggest, I’m not into quickies,” he clarified. “Every time you let me in your body, you should expect me to thoroughly enjoy playing with you first. Pick a number.”
“Huh?” she asked, not understanding his request.
“I want to know how many times I should make you come before I bury myself in your body,” he explained and then lightly grazed her nipple with his teeth, nearly making her scream. “Give me a number, angel,” he coaxed.
“Zero,” she insisted. “I just want you in me, Zane.”
“Three it is,” he said with a laugh.
Lexi moaned, already well on her way to her first orgasm from Zane’s fingers expertly working her clit. His circular strokes started out gentle and increased in pressure and speed as she rocked against him.
“Give me your mouth,” he commanded, and she instantly obeyed. His hand on her ass squeezed as his lips moved against hers in a hungry, dominant kiss. Zane’s kiss, combined with the way his fingers strummed her clit, quickly sent her over the edge, and she whimpered into his mouth as her orgasm hit. She struggled to pull away from his fingers because the pleasure was almost too much, but Zane’s hand on her ass held her in place as his fingers gentled, bringing out the last of her spasms.
Before Lexi could react, Zane pushed her onto her back, settling between her legs. Grinning down at her, Zane dangled her torn panties over her head. “Wanna try something fun?”
Lexi couldn’t help it, she laughed. “Are you saying what we just did wasn’t fun for you?”
“Oh, it was fun alright, but this is a different kind of fun.” Then he thought for a moment and added, “It’s still the type of fun that ends with you climaxing, but this is a little kinkier. I want to tie you to this bed with your panties. Are you game?”
With a nervous laugh, Lexi eyed her panties. “I’m not sure that’s even possible.”
“I can always grab another pair to work with,” Zane assured her.
Lexi hesitated. While the idea aroused her, it also scared her some. “I don’t know about this.”
Zane reached forward to stroke her cheek with the back of his knuckles. “Don’t shy away from me, angel,” he murmured before brushing his lips against hers. “Nothing I do to you should make you uncomfortable.”
“I’m afraid of giving up that much control,” she admitted shyly.
“Then I’ve got another game we can play.” His playful grin was back in place, and Lexi was definitely intrigued.
“What did you have in mind?”
“I’m going to let you tie me to the bed,” he explained, his heated gaze drifting to the slats on the headboard and then back down to her face. “While I’m tied up, you are going to do everything I tell you to.”
Lexi smiled. “I kind of like the sound of that. You get control, but only as much as I give you.”
“Even if you were tied up, that would still be the case,” he assured her. “Now, tie me to this bed so I can make you scream.”
Lexi moaned because Zane really did say the hottest things. “Okay, but I’m pretty sure I can’t tie you up with my panties.”
“Not to worry,” he assured her, as he stood and stripped out of the shorts he’d been sleeping in before tearing the top sheet on the bed into long strips. “These should work.”
Lexi licked her lips and nodded. She’d never tied a guy up before, and she was really looking forward to it.
Getting Zane tied to the bed was harder than she’d imagined. Apparently, she really sucked at knot tying, and it was made even harder by the fact that Zane kept trying to get one of her nipples into his mouth while she tied him up. Finally, he was tied to the bed as well as she could manage.
“You are a naughty kitty,” she scolded while waving a finger at him.
Zane grinned. “I’m just hungry,”
he practically purred. “Why don’t you come up here and give me one of your sexy breasts to suckle.”
When Lexi hesitated, he quickly reminded her, “You know the rules. I’m tied up, but you take orders from me. Let me taste you and make you even wetter.”
Leaning over his face, Lexi watched as Zane sucked one of her nipples into his mouth and swirled his tongue around it, eliciting a moan from her. When his teeth scraped her nipple, she started to pull back, but his heated gaze held her in place. “Don’t pull away, angel.”
Lexi moaned, loving his sexy commands.
“Give me the other one,” he ordered, and she shifted so he could repeat his sensual torture on her other nipple until it was achy in a good way and pleasure shot straight to her core.
Lexi was dying to have Zane inside of her, so she slid over his hips, which caused her nipple to slip from his mouth.
“No one told you I was done with that,” Zane said, lifting his hips to grind against her when she settled over his dick. “Is that what you want?”
“Yes,” Lexi answered on a moan.
“You want to ride me until you come around my cock?” he crooned. “You want me to fill you with this?” He moved against her again.
“Please, Zane,” she panted out. “I need you in me.”
Zane chuckled. “But I’m still hungry. I want you to slide up here and feed me, angel. You can ride me when I tell you to.”
When she put her nipple near his mouth again, Zane shook his head. “I need something a little more substantial. Come all the way up here and ride my face. I’m dying to taste your sweet pussy again.”
Lexi moaned and moved up until she was straddling his face. Zane’s tongue immediately darted out to flick across her clit, stroking it as she rocked back and forth on his face. In this position, she had complete control of her own movements, but she still had to follow Zane’s orders. It was an erotic mix of power and submission.
Zane’s tongue moved lower to circle her entrance before returning to barely touch her clit with the tip of his tongue, and she couldn’t stop herself from pushing against his mouth to increase the pressure.
Impulsive Destiny Page 15
