by C. L. Parker
More . . .
Something she couldn’t describe began to build in her nether regions, like a fire being stoked until it began to blaze out of control. Tori’s fingers pushed through his hair, and unaware of her own actions, she fisted his locks tightly. The red hot coals of the inferno began to hiss and pop, until suddenly, they exploded and she squeezed her eyes shut while crying out from the release. Her body stiffened, and she felt the rhythmic pulsing sensation between her legs as she came undone, followed closely by a gush of warmth to her center.
Unable to hold herself up any longer, Tori collapsed and her fingers released their hold. After a few more sweeps of his tongue, she could feel Dante beside her. He gathered her up in his arms as he rolled her onto her side to face him.
That gloriously beautiful mouth was on hers once again with a kiss that nearly zapped any remaining energy she had. And then she was falling, drifting into what could have very well been an abyss, but when she smelled the distinct aroma of rain-soaked earth and heard the soft crackling of a fire burning over the steady trickle of water on water, she knew she was back at the fairy mound. She opened her eyes and was met by a satisfied gleam in Dante’s eyes.
He placed a soft kiss to her lips. “I promised I’d make the trip worth your while. Was it?”
With her breaths still shallow and her heart rate erratic, Tori nodded. “Very much so.”
Dante chuckled and pulled her against him. More. He’d given her more. And all Tori could think was that it still wasn’t enough.
Nothing.
That’s what Dante had seen of the inner workings of Tori’s mind while in his sanctuary—a place where everything about her should have been as plain as the cute little nose on her face. Yet he saw nothing. It just wasn’t possible.
Part of him wanted to demand an answer from her, but he knew that wouldn’t render any results. She was keeping secrets from him for a reason, although he couldn’t fathom what that reason was.
When Dante woke the next morning, Tori was lying with one leg thrown over his and her head resting on his chest. Although he couldn’t see her face, he knew she was awake because she was running her nails through the trail of hair on his abdomen again. With each pass, she pushed at the waistband of his sleep pants like it was an intrusion. Her touch felt so good he couldn’t help the natural reaction his body had to it. And it definitely didn’t help that she had taken to sleeping in only a thin camisole and panties.
Jesus, the woman was going to be the death of him.
“Tempting to just slip your fingers under, isn’t it?” his morning voice croaked.
Tori’s hand froze in place.
“It’s okay, Angel. I like it, and I really don’t want you to stop, but don’t be surprised if you see some tenting in about five seconds.”
Her fingers resumed their previous path, back and forth, back and forth. Every now and then, her nails cut a zigzag line through what he liked to refer to as the trail to the Holy Grail, and his skin pebbled with goose bumps.
“It’s so soft. I like the way it feels.”
Dante chuckled. “I had imagined those words might be a little different when referring to my nether region. The first part, anyway.”
Tori playfully smacked his stomach. “You’re such a pervert, Dante Dickens.”
“Oh, I’m the pervert? This coming from the woman who plays coy for the better part of the time she’s been here and then all of a sudden can’t stop touching me? Christ, woman! Have you any idea how hard it is to endure your constant teasing?”
He wrapped his hand around his cock through his sleep pants, stroking up and down, giving her visual proof of his words.
“This is how hard it is. It’s the complete opposite of soft, and these,” he said, cupping his sac, “are in a tremendous amount of pain, thanks to you.”
“Can I see it?” she asked quite boldly.
“What?!” He chuckled, rubbing at his eyes. He could not have just heard that.
“I want to see it.”
“See what?”
Silence.
“You still can’t even say the word, yet you want me to pull my breeches down and show my cock to you?”
More silence.
He ran his fingers through her hair and then traced the shell of her ear. “You can have anything you want, Angel, but if you want it badly enough, you’ll do it yourself.”
She hesitated only a moment before her dainty hand flattened against his abdomen, moving slowly as it inched closer and closer to the waistband of his pants. Dante held his breath when she hooked her fingers underneath and lifted the material away. He was commando because he never slept in underwear. His cock was so engorged the waistband of his pants barely kept it contained in the first place, so he knew she had been greeted with an up close and very personal view.
He let out a slow, steady breath when her eager fingertips touched him, skin to skin, for the very first time. His cock twitched, reacting of its own volition as if greeting the woman that had been driving it insane for the better part of the time since her arrival.
“I think it likes me,” Tori said with humor in her voice.
“Oh, yeah. He definitely likes you, Angel.”
“He?” she asked, petting it with one finger.
“Well it’s not a fucking girl!” He put his hand over hers and pulled it from his cock, letting the waistband cover him again. “How about we not tease him so early in the morning? He can get quite grumpy when he’s roused and then not put away properly.”
Tori tilted her head up to look at him with a pleased smile. “I can take care of him for you.”
Dante looked up at the ceiling because no way could he look into those beautiful teal eyes while her words replayed in his head and not take Tori up on her offer. There was something more going on with her, and he had to maintain focus on figuring out exactly what that was before letting their physical relationship develop any further. Already it seemed that part was spiraling out of control, so it was up to him to keep a level head for the both of them. He would not take advantage of Tori when it was obvious she was terrified and clinging to him for some sort of protection. His job was to provide that protection, but to do so adequately; he needed to know what had her so terrified to begin with.
He smiled down at Tori and kissed her forehead, not wanting her to feel bad for his predicament. After all, he couldn’t rightly blame the woman after all the pleasure he’d given her as of late. It was only normal for her to feel the need to reciprocate, even if he was sure it wasn’t simply for that reason.
“It’s quite all right, Angel. No time for that this morning, I’m afraid. If we don’t show ourselves soon, my doting mother is going to feel the need to check in on her adoring son, and we wouldn’t want her to find me in bed with the likes of you diddling my man bits, now would we? She might think you’re a harlot and I’d feel simply terrible if your good name were to be smeared in such a manner.”
Tori giggled. “Oh, no, we wouldn’t want that. The shock would send her to the kitchen to bake goodies for the better part of a month.” She put her finger to her chin and looked up in contemplation. “Actually, Sinclair’s cooking is really good. Maybe I should tell her about the things her darling baby boy can do with his tongue. Imagine the goodies we’d get out of that.”
Dante suddenly flipped her over, and she laughed as he playfully nipped at her neck while tickling her ribs. “If you ever want to be on the receiving end of what my tongue can do again, you will think twice about saying anything of the sort. Now, enough of you, harlot! I shall not allow you to hold me to your bedchamber any longer.”
Tori laughed at his Royal Shakespeare Company voice as he climbed over her and out of the bed. “Where are you going?”
“As far away from your wicked seductions as I can get, lest I fall prey to temptation.”
“You’re such an ass.”
“What’s that? I have a great arse, you say?”
Tori growled and threw a
pillow at him, but he side-stepped it with a chuckle.
Actually, the trip to Dante’s sanctuary produced more questions than the intended answers he sought. So, the agenda for the day was to enact plan B. Not his first choice since it pained him to bring her any sort of harm, but at least he knew she’d heal quickly.
He shuffled into his room and opened his wardrobe, pulling out a pair of underwear and sweatshorts. After stepping into them, he grabbed a shirt and a pair of socks. Not hearing any movement from Tori’s bedroom, he went back inside, finding her still in bed, snuggled under the covers with his pillow over her head.
“What’s this, Angel? Are we being lazy today?”
She groaned as she lifted the pillow to look at him. “Why are you dressed? I vote you get back into bed and we spend the rest of the day right here.”
Dante pulled a shirt over his head and sat on the edge of her bed to put on his socks.
“Tempting, but that would be counterproductive. Time to get up and get the day underway.”
“Why? Are we going back to the mound today?”
“No, Angel. I think it’s time we get back to our training, don’t you? Wouldn’t want to be caught out of practice.”
He yanked the covers back, reconsidered her suggestion of spending the day in bed together, and then shook the thought from his head.
“I’m going to brush my teeth. If I come back to find you still in bed when I’m done, I’m going to carry you into the bathroom and throw you into a very cold shower.”
He gave her perfect ass a playful smack to accentuate his point, reconsidered again, and then went to the bathroom before he really did fall prey to temptation.
Plan B. Time to dig deep into his bag of tricks even if it meant giving up a secret of his own.
Half an hour later, Dante and Tori were in the training center of the basement. He had figured she would whine about doing something that actually involved, well, doing something, but she hadn’t. In fact, she was dressed quicker than he had anticipated and pressing against his body at every chance she got while they both tended to their morning rituals. When Dante got a spot of toothpaste on his shirt and took it off to change, she had stared hard at him in the mirror, her eyes flaring with her Light. If she only knew how dangerous it was to keep tempting him like that, she might have thought to keep her obvious physical attraction to him under control. It was becoming harder and harder, quite literally, for Dante to keep from giving the woman exactly what she wanted.
“So,” Tori said, while stretching in her yoga pants—not the least bit distracting. “How would you like your ass kicking today, Dante?”
“Oh, I don’t know, Angel. I’m feeling pretty lucky. In fact, I think today just might be the day that the tables are turned and you find yourself at my mercy.”
Dante forewent the stretching exercises and went to stand in the center of the mat.
“Aw, that’s so cute how you think you actually stand a chance when history has shown anything but.” Tori giggled at his expense and nonchalantly walked toward him. “I wonder how it is that you came to be the Guardian of the Guardian when the one you’re charged with protecting is perpetually kicking your ass. Seems more likely that I’ll be the one protecting you in the end.”
“Is that so?” Dante asked, taking her playful taunt in stride. “Well, if you’re so sure of yourself, perhaps you’d like to put a little wager on today’s bout.”
“Oh, Dante, I hardly think that would be fair. I’m just not the type of person who gets a kick out of taking candy from a baby.” She brushed nonexistent lint from his shoulder and looked up at him while batting her lashes.
Dante gave her a tight, humorless smile. “Put up or shut up, Angel. It’s as simple as that.”
Tori’s hands went to her hips and she cocked a curious eyebrow at him. “What did you have in mind?”
Dante pulled his shirt over his head and tossed it to the ground—to make the offer even more tempting to her, of course.
“If you win, I’ll give you what it is that you and I both know you really want. Me . . . in any way your heart, or body, desires.”
That flare of Light was back in her eyes as Tori looked him over like he was a prized turkey hanging in the butcher’s window. Yeah, she wanted him.
“But that would be a win for you as well.”
Dante considered that. “I suppose you’re right. An added bonus then, to sweeten the pot. Not only will you get what you covet most, but I’ll also stop asking for answers to questions you obviously don’t want to answer, and I won’t mention my concerns to your parents . . . or mine.”
At first, Tori looked pissed off at the threat Dante had hinted at, but once she realized the value of the prize he was offering, something akin to relief spread across her face and her shoulders relaxed. It was apparent she thought she had already won the grand prize and felt her worries had been alleviated.
“Okay, I’ll buy that. And, not that it’s likely to happen, but if you were to somehow manage to win, what do you get?”
“Well, my winnings won’t be nearly as fun as yours. Should I happen to pin you to the mat and get you to admit defeat, you’ll merely be required to answer one, teeny-tiny question for me.”
Her shoulders lifted with tension again and the self-assured smile faded. “Which is?”
He shrugged. “I really don’t see the need to ruin the surprise now. Besides, it’s just a question. Can’t hurt much.”
Dante could practically see the wheels turning in her head. She was going to back out. It was time to appeal to her more competitive nature and drive the final nail in the coffin.
“What’s the matter, Angel? Not feeling quite as confident? Because if you’re scared I might win . . .”
Tori scoffed. “You wish.”
She pushed off his chest, turning to walk confidently back toward her end of the mat.
“The word is ‘uncle,’ Dante. Try not to choke on it when I make you spew it all over the mat.”
Before she was in position, Tori turned midstride, a ball of energy already suspended between the palms of her hands. Dante didn’t even have a chance to take a defensive stance before she pushed her arms forward and the ball careened toward him. Not a moment too soon, he jumped and twisted into a barrel flip, landing on both feet effortlessly. Tori’s jaw dropped into an outright gape.
Dante gave her a disapproving scowl. “Well now, that wasn’t very nice.”
Two balls of Light formed in his palms at will and he launched them both at the same time. Tori was caught unaware when they struck their target like a one-two punch to the gut. She doubled over as her skin absorbed the energy and her eyes flared to near white. For a mortal, the blow would have been detrimental to their health, but for a Guardian, the absorption of a fellow Guardian’s Light only made them stronger—not that there wasn’t still pain associated with the fierce strike of a battle blow.
Once the initial shock of the energy had dissipated, Tori looked back at Dante. She clutched her stomach with ragged breaths, but she still managed to get her words out.
“How . . . how did you do that?”
Dante felt bad for hurting her, but considering the injuries he had endured by her hand, a little vindication seemed apt.
“You thought you were the only one with tricks up your sleeve? I’m a Guardian. I guarantee I’ve been training just as hard as you, if not harder.”
“But you’ve never been able to do that before.”
“There are a lot of things you haven’t seen me do before now.” Dante smirked. “But it doesn’t mean I haven’t been able.”
“You’ve been holding out on me?”
Dante shrugged. “No more than you’ve been holding out on me.”
“I’ve been practically throwing myself at you!”
His words had held dual meaning like a double-edged sword. He was sure she knew what he really meant, but it was still curious to watch her address the most embarrassing, which only further proved h
ow important it was for him to get the truth out of her.
“Yes, you have. But as tempting as that’s been, I have this thing called an ego. So when a woman throws herself at me, I expect it’s because I’m so damn irresistible she just has to have me inside her. But you . . . you’re doing it for a completely different reason—one that has nothing to do with my animal magnetism, which brings me to my next point.
“When I said you’ve been holding out on me, I meant you’ve been keeping secrets. Why is that?”
Tori ignored his question and charged at him with all the speed and ire she could muster, which was a lot seeing as how she’d just absorbed two healthy servings of his Light. One, two, three orbs of energy, each just as angry as she was, preceded her advance and took aim at his crotch. Smart move on her part; hit him where it would really hurt.
Dante cupped the target in his hands and kangaroo bounced into the air to avoid having his family jewels caught in a sling. Once he reached an unimaginable height, he arched into a back flip, but with the concern over his most prized possession, he hadn’t had the sense to tuck his knees. His long legs extended fully and the tip of his right foot caught Tori under the chin. She sailed backward and landed hard on the mat with an audible oomph.
Having landed with two feet firmly planted on the ground and one arm extended to maintain his balance, Dante reacted swiftly. Tori had lightning quick reflexes, and he knew better than to underestimate her. He shot forward to where she lay to pin her to the mat. Just as he reached her, Tori kicked out and caught him in the chest. Like a ball of iron being shot from a canon, Dante flew through the air until his back smashed against the mirrored wall. The force of the impact shattered one pane of the thick glass, forcing Dante to curl in on himself to avoid having an eye taken out.
