by Cara Carnes
“I just wish there were enough aquamarine stones for everyone to have one.”
“There will be. Your researchers are the best around, and I am definitely sold on their effectiveness. I expected to be out of my mind by now, but I’m not.”
The heated skin below his fingers and the erratic breathing told him more than her words did. She was trying to hide her level of need from him. His Rina was a fighter. “As long as it helps you, I’m willing to believe in just about anything right now.”
She looked into his eyes. “When tonight is over, I want you to keep this. There is no way the Council would allow me to go to the retreat with this.”
Pain sliced through him, along with an overwhelming sadness. It engulfed him, quickly followed by the rage he’d held on to previously. Losing her would be worse than dying. He had fallen in love with Rina. The realization slammed into him. How the hell had that happened?
He settled the tendrils of curls springing down her face behind her ears and kissed her lips. Her soft response made him want to weep. He prided himself in being strong and unemotional, but this slip of a girl had snuck past his defenses and tucked so deep into his heart he had not known she was there. And he was about to lose her.
The tears that streamed down her face were salty when he licked them away. He covered her with his body as she wound her legs around his. Devouring her soft, pliant lips, he demanded her tongue submit to his. Nails scraping down his back forced a groaned response from him.
Breaking away from her mouth, he savored the sensation of her shuddering in his embrace when he bit and sucked her neck. His hands roamed over her body once again, pinching and twisting her nipples into a hardened state of need.
Her audible gasps urged him to bite her nipple playfully. Every taste, scent and reaction she had bored its way into his memory. He slid his hand between their bodies and groaned. Her pussy was wet and ready for him.
Capturing her moan in his mouth, he drove into her heated core. The tight sheath clutched his cock as her little body began moving under him.
“Remain still, Rina. You are so tight you need to adjust to my size before I can continue.” Anguish filled his words. Battling an entire legion of Zacoris would prove an easier feat than remaining still inside her. Sweat broke out on his brow and his breathing became even more labored.
Her soft moans and whimpers did nothing to strengthen his resolve. The sheer heat of her pussy surrounding his cock was enough to make him want to fuck her hard and fast. The tightness added torture to the already impossible task.
Moving slowly at first, he groaned at the sensation of her pussy gripping his cock greedily with each thrust. Never had fucking a woman felt this good. He looked down, enthralled by the vision of her lying there with her eyes closed. She was clearly enjoying being filled with his cock.
“Fuck, it feels so good being buried inside you.” Her hands roamed down his chest, digging into his flesh. Driving into her harder forced a louder cry from her.
The pendant danced in time to her bouncing tits, both moving in unison to his thrusts, each one deeper and more demanding. Her eyes were open and staring into his as he fucked her harder. Anger welled up inside him when he saw the silver depths of them. It was his fault Rina wasn’t how she had been.
Were her responses only because of the tagratis conversion? Guilt washed through him. He despised the thought of her in the depths of a sexual hunger so great that she’d respond to any man in this manner.
Pulling out, he positioned her on the bed on all fours and drove into her from behind. The soft whimper of protest died when she moved to meet each thrust. He felt like an ass, but he couldn’t bring himself to look into those eyes right now. And this position allowed him better access to that sweet body of hers.
He treasured the way her body responded to his touch, and growled when she sat back and placed her body flush with his, her small hands squeezing his thighs as she rode his cock hard and deep. Roaming his hands over her body, he played with her nipples and rubbed her clit. When she climaxed around him, he thrust harder and his thumb rubbed her clit. She convulsed around his cock and he whispered in her ear.
“That’s it, Rina. Let go.” He cried out as his own release followed hers. He fell onto the bed beside her, the rise and fall of her beautiful breasts with each deep breath almost made his cock hard all over again.
Kandos looked in her eyes when she turned over and nestled against his body, her leg thrown over his thighs. “You are amazing, Kandos. The legend is true.”
He pulled her into his embrace and her body pressed firmly against his felt right. It felt too real to be for only one night, but it was.
“You were the one who brought out the primal side of me. I meant to be slow and methodical about it, but I wasn’t prepared for how good you would feel around me.”
“Nothing could prepare me for you being inside me. I wanted to crawl up inside you and remain there.”
Kandos wanted to laugh at the irony—he thought she had been in his heart and soul all along. There was no way the Council would allow him to visit her. People of his high rank simply were not allowed access to tagratis females.
“Which of your brothers do you think will try to kill me for touching you first?” He had taken grief from them for the past couple of years because they sensed his attraction to her. He had sworn never to act on it, and he had failed on that promise as well.
“Touching me? That would be Dane since he’s the overprotective hothead of the family. But fucking me spins into an entirely new realm. Tavis is closer to me emotionally and would probably jump into the fray because of that.”
Kandos heard the sadness in her voice when she spoke about her brothers. “They will come and see you frequently, and your sister is there doing research. You won’t ever be alone.”
“But you won’t be able to come, will you?”
“No.” Kandos knew that even giving up his position would not get him there. The Council prided itself on his race maintaining an aesthetic, impartial stance on the plight of the tagratises.
“Then we need to get this attraction out of our systems tonight, don’t we?” He watched Rina turn over and wrap her arms around his neck. She brought his mouth down to hers and kissed him with a hunger that matched his.
Chapter Three
Rina smiled and rested her head on Kandos’ chest. She had worn him out. The big bad Kandos had met his match tonight. Glancing up at him as he slept soundly, she didn’t have the heart to wake him yet but felt the burning need welling up inside her again.
The aquamarine stone warded off a great deal of the discomfort. Kandos took care of the rest with a hunger that met her own. The sense of impending loss had hit her hard earlier, but Rina knew it would be okay. One night with him would last her for eternity.
Hoping she had the courage to do what she knew she needed to, she had to leave here and report herself to the Council without his being there. His friendship meant too much to her and she suspected he would fight the decision rendered with his last breath. She loved him too much to see that happen.
The thought took her by surprise. She had admitted her attraction long ago, but the depth of her emotions stunned her. His words, soft caresses, demanding kisses and hungry desire drove her love for him out of the dark corner it had hidden in.
So many fantasies raced through her mind and she wanted to experience them all with Kandos. Circumstance prevented that, but she fully intended to memorize every nuance about him as a sexual partner. With that knowledge she could live out those dark desires in her mind when the conversion took full control of her.
She slid quietly off the bed and looked around the spacious chamber. Going over to the corner, she picked up the bunny painting and stifled a gasp when she saw the oil painting of herself that had been tucked behind it. Kandos had captured every nuance of her face, down to the shimmering sparkle of her eyes.
Guilt flooded her as she choked back the tears. She had no business
rifling through his private belongings. Looking around the room, she saw his other dismal attempts at painting flung forgotten in the corner across from her. The quality of this one stunned her. How long had he spent working on it? The way he had captured her eyes and her full lips made her look…erotic.
Her heart still slammed in her chest and she remembered all her paintings hanging in his primary living chamber. It was the only decoration in his home, and every painting she had ever given him adorned his walls.
Eyeing the cords of his uniform, she smiled and brought them to the bed. Thankfully one of his arms was already strategically positioned above his head. She took a cord and looped it around the bedframe, carefully securing his wrist.
He stirred quickly, but the grogginess he undoubtedly had aided her. His other wrist was secured before he could protest. His eyes displayed his shock as he looked at her.
“What are you up to, Rina?”
Allowing the seductive urges she felt coursing through her body to take control, she smiled and slid her hands down her body. The mesmerized look in Kandos’ eyes awakened her wild side, feeding her inhibition.
“I merely wanted a little extra playtime. You can keep sleeping.” She straddled his powerful thighs as she said that, guaranteeing his full interest as her hands roamed up and down his strong, powerful body.
Kandos had the body of an Ancient Earth Greek god and didn’t even realize it. Corded muscle covered every inch of him, and Rina intended to feel every single ounce of it. Her hands massaged his powerful thighs, moving upward to run along his well-defined stomach. His sinewy chest rose and fell from labored breathing.
All that straining flesh stimulated her, and his intense scrutiny added fuel to her already sensitized nipples, which hardened into aching buds. She knew he could break free of her flimsy restraints at any point, but he clearly intended to give her the playtime she wanted.
“You’re being such a good boy, Kandos. What should Rina give a good boy like you?” She whispered the question as her hands grasped the base of his enlarged cock. The sheer width of it prevented her hand from grasping it fully, but that didn’t stop her from trying. As one hand began stroking his cock firmly, she used her other hand to massage his balls.
“You are a little witch.”
The low, husky tone in his voice made her shiver in anticipation and the glazed look in his eyes sent tingles down her body. She bent her head and kissed him hungrily, demanding that she remain in control of the kiss.
His kissing surpassed her experience level by leaps and bounds, but she had learned quickly under his tutelage earlier. Taking possession of his mouth in a kiss meant to claim his as hers, she bit his lower lip gently when he tried to take control.
The thick rigid organ in her hand swelled even larger. “I see you are more than ready for me, but since you are all tied up, I guess I’ll have to touch myself to get ready for you.” She grinned when his agonized groan filled the room.
She closed her eyes and her overly heated skin responded easily to her gentle caresses. Erratic breathing filled her ears, and she wasn’t sure whether it was his or her own. All she knew was she wanted to see his eyes for herself. Remembering the detail of the eyes in her portrait, she knew how much he must have adored her eyes. As a self-proclaimed artist, she knew the number of hours he must have spent getting them just right. The conversion had robbed the color from them, and it was the only constant reminder now that she was a tagratis.
She massaged her breasts and tweaked her nipples into aching peaks of need. “I like how you do this better, Kandos. I love the way your mouth felt on them. The way you took it between your teeth and pressed down just enough to make me weak with wanting.”
With his intake of breath, her pulse raced faster, and a renewed sense of daring raced forward. She slid her hands down her stomach and spread her legs wider. “And the things you did down here blew my mind. I didn’t know it could feel that good. Your mouth and hands drove me over the edge so easily.”
“Release me, Rina, and I swear it will be better than you could imagine.” The soft, masculine voice wrought with need excited her.
“Oh no. You get to watch me take you. All you have to do is lie there and take what I give you. Feel me mount you.” She slid her fingers into her dripping-wet slit, brought the moist finger up to her mouth and heard his sharp intake of breath when she began sucking on it.
Smiling, she delved her fingers deeper into herself and moaned, feeling her thumb rub against her clit. “You knew just how hard to rub it.” She brought her fingers back up and opened her eyes.
The heat from his intense stare almost undid her resolve. “Do you want a taste?” She brought her fingers to his full lips and watched him suck them into his mouth.
Whatever made her think she could outmaneuver this master in the bedroom ran straight out the door the second his tongue started licking and tasting her fingers. When he started moving her fingers in and out of his mouth, she lost all ability to breathe. The sight of his tongue savoring her juices was too erotic to handle.
She straddled his huge, hard cock and slowly slid herself down onto it. She was filled fuller than she remembered. The urge to ride him overcame her. Submissive in nature, she had never ridden a man before. Then again, she had only been with one man and even that hadn’t lasted long.
Not knowing what to do next but refusing to admit that, she whimpered. When he began moving under her she moaned and matched his pace. She sighed when he stopped and she controlled the pace herself.
It was so liberating to choose the depth of the thrusts. She bit her lip to stifle her response to the experimentation, short, quick thrusts followed by slow and steady, deep lunges.
Each maneuver elicited a response from Kandos, who clearly intended to let her have full control of the situation. She ran her fingers down her body and played with her breasts but kept her eyes closed even though she knew he was watching every move she made. Bringing her hand down to where they joined, she rubbed her clit gently.
She whimpered when she found a new rhythm and method that allowed her full penetration while also rubbing her clit against Kandos. When her pussy began to convulse around his cock, his loud groans filled the room. Sighing in contentment, she cuddled up against his powerful frame and bit his nipple playfully before untying his hands. His arms enclosed around her, and a sense of belonging crept into her soul.
“You really are a little witch.”
“I warned you that you would be the one tied up. Now you know I tell the truth about these things. It’s best that you remember that.” She giggled, his hand slapping her ass firmly.
“Don’t get sassy or I’ll show you what position I really wanted to take you in earlier.”
She moaned and looked up at him. “Afraid you couldn’t handle it?”
A tug of her hair brought her lips into position for his. “That isn’t far from the truth.” She savored the sensation of their tongues colliding, battling for control of the kiss. Ultimately, she submitted to his seductive talents.
“So what surprise did you have for me earlier?” Rina always loved the surprises Kandos would bring for her over the years. He seemed to know the little things that would please her. Trinkets from other worlds he had gathered during his voyages found their way to her every year.
“Oh yeah. I almost forgot.” Rina punched his arm as she sat up. His amused tone was filled with laughter when he came off the bed. “I don’t know if witches deserve surprises.”
She smiled, looking up at him. “Please. I’ll be a good girl if you show it to me. I promise.”
“Wait here and I’ll be back shortly.”
Rina curled up into a ball in the middle of his bed and looked around wistfully, willing to give just about anything for this night to never end. Her bare feet touched the cool surface of the floor when she went over to his transmitter and turned it on. It wasn’t something she wanted to think about but a message needed to be sent to her brothers, one that Kan
dos could never read.
Swallowing her tears, she typed the message, knowing it would probably take them days to find it. They had to know everything that had happened, and most important, needed to make sure Kandos would be okay after she left. She wished she had the resolve to do a hologram message, but knew she couldn’t hold back the tears she felt welling up in her eyes that long. She pushed the send button and turned, her gaze falling on Kandos.
“I’m sorry. I should have asked first. I just wanted to send a message to my brothers.”
“I would have given it to them personally.”
She smiled, bringing her arms around his neck. “I know, but they might not be in the most receptive mood.”
The way he picked her up so easily made her feel small and delicate, the way his strong, powerful body exuded strength and determination from every pore. He made her feel treasured and important, which was something she was unused to. Except for her family, Rina rarely trusted people with the depth she did Kandos. “I believe one surprise was ordered.” He carried her into the bathroom and set her down on the counter.
