“Are you sure?”
“Positive. I do know a few potions beyond those used for tattooing,” she purred in my ear.
That was all I needed to hear. I hadn’t realized that I was holding up her entire weight, so when my hands relaxed, her body came crashing down on mine in a single, swift stroke. A groan was pulled out of us both as she was impaled on my hardened body. She was so tight I thought for a second that I would lose myself right there, but I regained my focus. She sat still, her head thrown back so that her long blond hair cascaded down her back in a waterfall of golden waves. Her white skin seemed to glow in the dim light of the room. Her lips were parted as if she were frozen, a soft moan escaping her throat.
“Ride me, Trixie,” I commanded in a rough voice.
With her hands braced on my chest, she slowly rose up and slid back down, her body convulsively tightening about me so that I groaned again. By the second stroke, my hips raised of their own accord, meeting her so that I was buried that much deeper inside. I lifted my hands and cupped both of her breasts, rubbing my thumbs over her pert nipples. Her body jerked once at the new touch and I felt her muscles contract again, squeezing me tighter, so it was harder to slide inside her.
She rode me slowly and steadily, her breathing a soft pant while her eyes remained closed as she soaked in all the sensations. We could have gone on all night like this, but it wasn’t what I wanted. I wanted to feel and hear her orgasm as it shattered her body.
“Faster,” I said in a low, rough voice. As Trixie picked up her pace, I released one of her breasts and slid that hand down her body to where our bodies met. I pressed my thumb into her clit and steadily massaged her. Trixie jerked, losing her rhythm for a second as she leaned even closer, moving her hands from my chest to my shoulders. A shiver ran the length of her body while she tightened around me. She became even wetter, sliding over me so easily now.
“Gage,” she gasped, staring down at me.
“Let go. I want to feel it,” I said.
She squeezed her eyes closed while her breathing grew heavier. “Gage . . . I . . . I’ve never wanted anything so badly. Please . . .”
I lifted my hips, picking up the pace, pressing my body as deep into hers as I possibly could. Her body was unlike anything I’d ever felt before. So perfectly warm and wet and tight, as if she had been made just for me. A perfect fit. But it wasn’t enough. I needed to feel her orgasm break across me. She was so close, I could feel it. Her body convulsively tightened and relaxed around mine while she softly cried my name over and over again, her breaths coming in sharp little gasps.
And then she shattered. She sat straight up, her back bowing as every muscle in her body tensed. She gripped me so tightly that it was as if I was pressing my body into a warm velvet fist. A scream erupted from her while I continued to move inside her, stretching out the orgasm as long as possible. It was only when she finally collapsed on top of me, her body still vibrating, that I stopped moving.
The feel of her orgasm had pushed me to my own breaking point, but I held on with clenched teeth. Her body continued to convulse around me even though neither of us was moving. Wrapping my arms around her body, I carefully rolled her onto her back with my body still buried deep inside hers. She blinked a couple of times, looking around herself and then up at me, a surprised expression crossing her face. With my hands braced on either side of her head, I slowly slid out of her and then pushed back inside with the same slowness. Trixie sucked in a deep breath, as if steadying herself.
“Ready for round two?” I said with a smile.
“Round two?” Her voice wrapped around me, warm and heavy, like honey.
I continued to move inside her, pulling out almost completely before plunging back in again until I felt her hips rise. “I want to feel it again.”
“Another orgasm?” She sounded surprised. Her slumberous eyes widened as she gazed up at me.
“Yes.”
She chuckled, slightly throwing off my rhythm as my own strained body was fighting my control. “Not this time. It’s your turn.”
“Are you sure?” I asked, stopping midstroke in confusion. “I want to make you happy.”
“I’m quite happy, but I will be happier when I feel you. Please, Gage,” she said softly, raising her hand up to trail along my cheek. “Give me that piece of you.”
“Everything I can,” I murmured.
I started moving inside her again without thinking about it. Leaning down on my forearms, I grabbed her mouth in a rough kiss. Behind me, I could feel her dig her heels into the bed so that she could lift her body to meet each of my strokes. I broke off the kiss suddenly as a deep groan escaped me. I was steadily losing my tight control as she clenched her body around my cock, holding me tighter. I squeezed my eyes shut, wrapping my mind around the last bits of control I had, determined to give her as much pleasure as I could, but she was determined to break me.
“You feel so good,” she moaned in a heavy, breathless voice. “So hard. So deep. Please, Gage . . .” Her breathing sped up again and I could feel her body tightening around mine. She was close.
“After you,” I gritted out.
“Stubborn man,” she cried as I leaned back, balanced on my knees. I grabbed her ass with both of my hands, tilting her slightly upward so that I could bury myself even deeper while picking up my pace. Seconds later, a scream was ripped from her throat while her body convulsed around mine. The last of my control shattered as I pounded into her body. The orgasm I had been fighting since she first pressed her body against mine exploded over me. I came so hard that her name was torn from my chest in a rough cry. I moved inside her, losing myself to the perfect feeling that tightened every muscle until my body gave out and I collapsed on top of her.
It took me more than a minute to gather both my thoughts and strength again. I pulled my body free of hers and rolled onto my back, still breathing heavily. Beside me, Trixie rolled onto her side, pressing her body along the length of mine. I opened my eyes to find her looking down at me with an exquisite smile, while her hair was spread about us in perfect disarray.
“Please say that I don’t have to move.”
“No moving for a while,” I said, still breathing heavily.
“Good, because I don’t think I can.”
I chuckled, causing her to lift her head to look me in the eye. “I take it you’re pleased.”
“Mildly so,” she said with a shrug.
My head popped up. “Mildly so?” I rolled her onto her back while I hovered over her. “Really, Miss I Don’t Want to Move?”
Trixie laughed as she leaned up and kissed me. “Well, that’s what you get for asking stupid questions.”
It was a stupid question. I had heard her scream my name and felt her orgasm twice. We worked well together, our bodies fitting together so perfectly. I rolled onto my back and heaved a deep sigh as I stared up at the ceiling. Fatigue gripped my body and I found myself fighting to keep my eyes open. I had been exhausted before I came up to the apartment with Trixie. Now it felt as if I had tapped the last reserve of energy I had. I still had to find some way to drag myself back to my own apartment. I was tempted to just pull the covers over both of us and go to sleep where I was, but I didn’t want to complicate things more than they already were. I wanted to take this slowly.
Besides, I still had to find the answer to my problem with the grim reaper and Tera. I preferred not to have Trixie looking too closely into my activities since it was unlikely that they were going to be of the legal variety. She had enough to worry about with the Summer Court. I didn’t want her dragged into my mess if I could protect her from it.
“You have to go, don’t you?” she suddenly asked, her voice filling the long silence that had settled between us.
I smiled, looking over at her. “Have you become a mind reader now?”
“No, you just had that look.”
“What look?”
“That worried look.”
“I’ll happ
ily stay if you want me to stay,” I offered before I could stop myself. I wasn’t ready to leave her alone. It was more than just a concern for her safety and the threat of the Summer Court. I loved the feel of her naked body against mine. I loved listening to her soft breathing in the silence of the room. There was something deep inside me that needed to hold her as she slept, but I kept those thoughts to myself. “I thought it would be best if I left. I didn’t want to complicate things more. I wanted to take things slowly. I wasn’t expecting this tonight.”
Moving to lie across my chest again, Trixie threaded her fingers through my hair in a gentle caress. “I understand,” she whispered with a smile on her lips. “You can leave on one condition.”
“What’s that?”
“You promise that we can do this again sometime.”
I laughed deeply, wringing a laugh out of her. But her laugh was cut short as my left hand settled between her legs and rubbed against her still sensitive clit. Her laugh quickly deepened into a moan as she pressed her forehead to my chest.
“Definitely. There are too many things that I still want to do to your body, and I will never get tired of hearing you moan my name,” I whispered in her ear. I returned my hand to my side and she slowly lifted her head.
“You’re going to be the death of me,” she said.
“Hopefully not for a very long time,” I replied as I leaned up and kissed her.
Trixie slowly rolled off me and I reluctantly sat up. With a sigh, I pulled on my clothes, which were scattered around the room. Trixie also got up and put on her thin strip of silk panties and a T-shirt. I couldn’t remember ever seeing her look so beautifully disheveled. Her hair was spread about her shoulders and her face was wiped clean of previous worries. I prayed this relaxed and sated state would follow her into sleep. She deserved a good, deep sleep.
With her hand entwined in mine, she accompanied me to the front door and pressed a long, lingering kiss to my lips.
“Stay inside. I’m going to set the protection spells and then leave. I have some errands to run tomorrow, but I will come back to see you as soon as I can. I’ll think of a way to sneak you into my apartment,” I said.
“Are you sure about this?”
“Movies and junk food with you?” I cocked my head to the side as my mouth curved into a broad grin. “I can’t think of any better way to spend a Sunday.”
“I’m talking about the spells.”
“Positive. I’m not leaving you unprotected. Even if I stayed the night, I would cast the spells. I need to know that you’ll be safe.”
“I will be.”
I pressed one last kiss to her lips and then stepped outside, pulling the door closed behind me. The sound echoed through my chest, rattling me for the first time. I had to deal with this business of the grim reaper, no matter what it took. If I was dead, there would be no one to protect Trixie, and eventually the Summer Court was going to get her if I wasn’t there to intercede. And I would do whatever it took to protect her, even if it meant taking on the Summer Court, the warlocks, and death.
Chapter 19
Exhaustion gnawed on my bones and tore at my muscles as I finished casting the first protection spell on the door. The only person who could lay a hand on the doorknob was Trixie or me. Otherwise, anyone else would be thrown from the small balcony and knocked unconscious before landing below in a useless heap. As I reached the ground, I grabbed a piece of broken brick from the parking lot and scratched some symbols in the first few wooden steps leading up to the apartment. I layered on a second spell, protecting the staircase from any intruders.
Heaving a deep sigh, I turned my attention to the small open area behind the shop that led to a narrow alley running between the buildings on this block. The night was quiet. The only cars traveling on the street could be heard in the distance, while there was no sound of people walking on the sidewalks to the local bars. A stray breeze caused an old aluminum can to rattle down the alley before hitting a building. I stood in the silence, trying to convince myself that there was no reason for me to feel this growing unease.
My eyes were skimming over the region one last time when they finally tripped over a lean figure standing on the opposite side of the alley. I hadn’t seen him there moments ago, but I knew he had only just appeared. There had been no surge of magical power on his arrival, but Simon knew how to appear and disappear without causing a ripple in the energy that filled the air.
Adrenaline surged through my exhausted frame, reviving me. He wouldn’t be allowed to threaten my companions. I hadn’t expected him to seek me out again so quickly. I thought he would take more time strategizing. But then, I wasn’t fully aware of what was at stake for him. There was something going on in the background that I wasn’t privy to, and he was determined to take my life.
“You’re not welcome here,” I called out while mentally reaching for the energy swirling around me. This contest was only going to be won by the strongest and the fastest. My wand was still tucked in my sock, but I couldn’t bend over to get it without exposing myself to Simon’s attack. I had managed to keep Trixie preoccupied enough that I didn’t think she’d noticed it when I got undressed or put my clothes back on. She didn’t need such an obvious reminder of my otherness.
“I can’t recall any time when I was welcome in your life,” Simon replied. The warlock stepped closer, crossing the alley to enter the back area of the shop. The concrete that separated us was cracked and weeds were growing up through the fissures. Bits of trash speckled the open area, seeming to stand out in the moonlight.
I was suddenly aware of the glass ampoule around my neck, as if part of his soul was calling out for the rest of him. The container was still, but I could feel an energy brushing against me as his soul swirled within its cage.
“I had no desire to see you again so soon, but it seems you have something that belongs to me. I want it back,” he said, his voice growing cold.
“I could say the same. Are you willing to make a trade?”
“Unfortunately, I can’t do such a thing. I have a need for your patch of soul, though I’m sure you can’t afford to be without what little you still possess.”
“Then I guess you’ll just have to come take it from me,” I said, beckoning him forward.
Simon raised both of his hands, throwing a blue ball of lightning at me. I lunged out of the way, my arms scraping along the rough concrete as I landed on my stomach. I rolled onto my back so that I could see my attacker as I launched a similar attack. My ball of energy just missed as he slipped out of its path, letting it pound harmlessly against the brick wall behind him. The thick darkness of the alley was shoved aside in a brilliant flash. Shadows lunged away from us before the darkness flooded back in again, like bloodthirsty spectators eager for the first splash of red. The explosion of light lasted long enough for me to pick out some dark bruises and long cuts along Simon’s face. I knew that I had caused some of that damage, but I wasn’t responsible for it all. He had someone else causing him problems too.
I rolled to my knees when he threw the next ball of energy at me. A wave of pain tingled up my arms as I caught it in both hands. I gritted my teeth as the force shoved me backward, several feet across the concrete, but didn’t waver. With a grunt, I threw the energy back at him and quickly followed it with my own. Simon easily dodged the first, but the second sent him spinning to the ground. Pushing to my feet, I thrust one hand toward the sky, summoning a boiling cauldron of black clouds. Thunder rolled above us and lightning jumped through the sky. A part of me longed for a nice sharp blade, but I would make do with the power from the heavens.
“Do you think that you actually have the strength to beat me with lightning?” Simon scoffed as he clambered to his feet again. I replied with a bolt landing just in front of him. The warlock stumbled backward, raising one arm to shield his eyes against the bright light that filled the small alley.
“There’s nothing you can do that I can’t do better!” he shoute
d. I concentrated on controlling the storm that hung right above us. I had already pumped so much energy into it that if I wasn’t careful I could quickly lose control of it. We couldn’t afford the kind of devastation that would ravage the area if the storm slipped from me.
As I focused on directing more lightning at Simon, it felt as if a large hand wrapped around my throat and squeezed tightly, threatening to close off my breathing. I couldn’t stop myself from raising both hands and clawing at nothingness as I struggled to catch my breath. The hand tightened and proceeded to pull me, on my back, across the open space behind the tattoo parlor. I commanded the lightning to pound the ground where Simon stood, but I was blind to his exact location. If I was lucky I would take him down before I was strangled to death.
And then the invisible hand released me. Holding my throat, I rolled onto my stomach and looked up at where Simon had last been standing. The air rushed from my lungs. Trixie stood behind him with one arm thrown across his chest, her other hand holding a large knife tightly against his throat. I don’t know how she’d managed to sneak past us both unnoticed, but I wasn’t going to question this change in events.
Shoving to my feet, I gathered together the energy swirling about me and reached out for Simon’s soul once again. This time I would simply pull it from his body and release it into the air. The soul would not be able to reenter the body and the warlock would be dead. Sure, I would lose a year of my own life for killing him with magic, but it was a price I was willing to pay for Trixie. Only those with a death wish attacked a warlock.
As I pressed the energy into his chest, I could see Simon’s eyes widen in shock. The warlock disappeared, preferring a hasty retreat rather than continue this fight. Whispered words tripped off my lips as I scanned the area with both my eyes and my powers. My breath lay trapped in my lungs for several seconds as I waited for him to reappear, but there was no lingering essence of him in the air. Simon was gone, and considering that he had suffered such a quick beating, I was willing to bet that he wouldn’t be returning soon. I had some time to plan.
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