When Shadows Call

by amanda bonilla

  My body thirsted for something, but I knew not what. Azriel continued to kiss me until our breaths melded together as one. My skin tingled with a pleasant heat and my hips thrust toward Azriel’s hand in a silent plea. I broke our kiss in a gasp as his fingers found my core, and I cried out as he caressed me in a way I had never imagined.

  “Azriel.” His name on my lips elicited a moan of approval, almost a growl as it rumbled in his chest. Sweeping waves of pleasure brought me to the precipice of something . . . the answer to the need that had grown within me.

  In one fluid motion, he took me in his arms and lifted me from the tub. Water splashed across the tiled floor and dripped from the edges of the tub. Azriel claimed my mouth in a deep, bruising kiss that left me breathless as he carried me into the next room. With total disregard for the pristine bedding, he lay me down on the duvet. I took in his magnificent form, my eyes devouring every inch of his exposed body from his corded arms, to his strong shoulders, down the muscular ridges of his stomach, and past the dusky line that trailed from below his belly button and disappeared in the waistband of his trousers.

  His dark eyes shone with an otherworldly light. Awestruck, I could do nothing but stare at his masculine perfection. I’d discarded all thoughts of modesty or propriety. Azriel had become my guardian angel. My rescuer. My savior. I wanted him like I’d never wanted anything in my entire life. Our souls had become one when he made me a Shaede. He had given me strength—both in body and spirit—and an eternity to explore both. And in return I wanted to give him the only thing I had to give: myself.

  I eased myself to the edge of the bed. Fingers trembling, I reached out, grazing my fingers on the flat expanse of Azriel’s stomach. His muscles clenched and his eyes became hooded. I cursed my innocence, wishing I could be the beautiful seductress he deserved. Nibbling at my bottom lip, I looked up at him, and lost myself in the endless depths of his eyes while my hands wandered to the fastenings at his waistband.

  I took a deep breath, savoring the scent of summer blossoms and spring rain. But underneath the heady fragrance was something sweeter still, like warm honey. “That smell,” I murmured. “It’s wonderful.” I couldn’t describe what my senses absorbed. My body reacted to the scent, pulsing again with need. “It’s you, isn’t it? I think I can smell your . . . your desire.”

  Azriel seized my face in his hands, gazing intently into my face. “Extraordinary,” he breathed with a slow shake of his head. “So very special.”

  Every word from his mouth was pure seduction. Each glance, charged with sensual energy. Even in these intimate moments, he showed me there were more lessons to be learned. Azriel wanted me as much as I wanted him. He made sure I’d gleaned the truth of it not only from his actions but through the intoxicating aroma surrounding him. No longer afraid or worried for my lack of experience, I released the top button at his waistband, and then moved to the next.

  His breath hitched in his throat as I unfastened the last button and slid my hands along his hips to ease his trousers down over his glorious backside. As the fabric pooled at his feet, I allowed my gaze to wander as I memorized every minuscule detail of his body. I’d never seen a naked man before, and marveled at the sheer strength and perfection displayed before me.

  “Do you like what you see?” Azriel asked.

  Yes. God, yes. I reached out to touch him, to feel the magnificent hard length of him, when he stayed my hands. “Not yet, love. I told you, I wanted to worship you with my mouth,”—he flashed a devilish smile— “and I intend to do just that.”

  Azriel eased me down on the bed, passing his palms down my body as he knelt where my legs dangled over the edge. My bones seemed to dissolve as he planted light, warm kisses from my knee, up the inside of my leg. The curls of his hair brushed my thighs and I couldn’t help but reach out and comb my fingers through the silky strands. His breath felt cool against my still wet skin and I shivered.

  He guided one leg so it rested on his shoulder. I held my breath in anticipation of what would happen next, but nothing could have prepared me for the bliss that burst upon me when his tongue passed slowly over my center. The way he seemed to savor that first moment of contact as much as I did sent me into a dizzying spiral of ecstasy. He moaned against my flesh and the vibration caused me to arch against him as I pushed the back of my calf against his shoulder. For so many years I’d been nothing but an ornament: untouched, placed on shelf for display. Azriel treated me as something more, and finally . . . finally, I felt like a woman.

  Each stroke of his tongue brought me closer to abandon. Nothing mattered but this moment, the blinding pleasure that tore my breath from my chest in desperate gasps of air, the delicious heat as Azriel’s mouth explored that most secret part of me as if he’d known my body for an eternity. I writhed against him, the soft pressure of his tongue circling my flesh before he fastened his mouth over my center and sucked. He tasted me this way, alternating his tongue and mouth until I thought I would die from the intense pleasure of it. I felt as though I would implode, like my body had taken a deep breath and held it.

  And then, I came apart.

  I cried out as thousands of stars burst within me, an explosion of sensation that blossomed from my core outward like its own solar system. Lost to the pleasure, my brain seemed to go completely numb. I savored each delicious pulse that spread like rippling waves, lifting me on clouds of pure sensual bliss.

  My breathing slowed along with my racing heart, and Azriel rose above me. The expression on his face caused my pulse to skitter, the dark desire burning in his eyes like fuel to the dying embers of my passion. He’d given me more pleasure than I’d ever known, but still I felt empty. Incomplete. And that desperate need for completion rose within me once again.

  “You are magnificent.” He stood naked and proud before me, and I wanted to take in every detail of his body. But the intensity of his stare, the wanton desire burning in the dark depths held me transfixed. “And you are mine. Forever.”

  “Yes.” The word came as nothing more than a hoarse whisper.

  With the slow precision of a hunting cat, Azriel crept up the length of my body. His naked skin branded me as he positioned himself over me, supporting his weight on his forearms. I leaned up, impatient to have his mouth on mine, and met him in a deep, intoxicating kiss that left us both breathless. The hard length of him pressed against my slick core, and I tensed, suddenly unsure.

  “Trust me,” he whispered against my mouth.

  His tongue caressed mine and I relaxed. Slowly, he entered me, pulling out and then venturing in a bit further. I hadn’t been ready for the mild discomfort as my body prepared to accept him. I braced myself and nestled my temple against his shoulder. He took his time, careful not to hurt me, though his body shook with need. His palm cupped the back of my neck and he brought my face to his. “Look at me, Darian,” he said.

  With each gentle, shallow thrust, my discomfort eased and he quickly brought me back to that place of intense need. My breath came in little bursts of air, my eyes locked on his, my body responding naturally, my hips pressing toward his. I no longer wanted him to take such care. The emptiness within me demanded to be filled, I felt as though I’d go mad in want of it. “Azriel,” I said. “I need . . . you.”

  His mouth seized mine as he entered me fully, consuming the sound of my cries. I thought I’d known what to expect, but even so, my body had not been prepared for his size. He paused and planted feather-light kisses on my cheeks and across my jaw. I could sense his desire, smelled it heady in the air, and still, he put my comfort before his own. I moved my hips, slowly easing my body against his. Azriel groaned, a deep, rumbling sound that sent a thrilling rush through my bloodstream.

  Still careful not to cause me undue pain, Azriel adopted an easy rhythm, his hips rocking against me with an erotic precision that had me thrusting against him with a wantonness that surp
rised me. He chuckled against my ear and gripped my hips in his palms. I couldn’t get close enough, it seemed, to satiate the hunger growing within me. I clutched his shoulders, as hard and smooth as marble in my hands, and dug my nails into his flesh. Pulling him close, I wrapped my legs around the backs of his thighs and arched desperately against his chest.

  He drove into me, harder now, his pace quickening with his own desperation. The flames of desire licked at my skin, consuming me fully. “Yes,” I said, through gasps of breath. “I need you, Azriel . . . just like that.”

  I nipped at his shoulder, tasting the saltiness of his skin. Azriel gripped me tighter, his pace now a heated frenzy of need that echoed my own. I had never known such perfection as this moment and I knew that I was indeed his. Forever. Azriel was the sun and I had no choice but to be caught in orbit. The world melted away, the sound of my heart beating was silenced by the ragged sounds of our mingled breaths. A frenzy swept over me, my need for release overwhelming any further conscious thought. My body tightened again, the sensation that I had curled in on myself as I waited for release. It burst upon me, infinitely more intense than before, and as I screamed his name, Azriel cried out as well, his body shuddering against mine as we were swept up in the tempest of our combined release.

  Azriel relaxed against me, and I reveled in the way his body felt pressed against mine. “Extraordinary,” he said in a rush of breath before giving me a light kiss once, and again. “Gods, but you are extraordinary.”

  I quirked a brow, curious at the way he said ‘gods.’ But my mouth—in fact my whole body—felt so incredibly sated that I didn’t think I could muster a single word. We lay entwined for several moments, and when Azriel withdrew from my body, I felt a hollowness that made me want to pull him to me once again. He gathered me up in his arms and held me tight against him while absently stroking his fingers up and down my arm.

  Eternity. That’s what Azriel had given me. I thought of the many days we would have together, endless nights of pleasure and new experiences.

  “Tell me about the Shaedes,” I said, surprised at the still passion-thick sound of my voice. “I want to know what it is that I have become.”

  “I’ve told you all you need to know.” Azriel nuzzled my ear and I shivered.

  I turned in his arms so that I could face him, and I marveled at the way his solid form seemed to quaver in the darkness. He appeared as a mirage glistening on desert sand. I looked at my own arm down to my fingertips, which despite the coming of night still appeared solid. “There have to be more,” I said. “Please, I want to know.”

  Azriel put his mouth to mine, his tongue caressing my lower lip with sensual purpose. I broke away and tried to speak, but he kissed me again and held me tight to him. Pushing against his chest, I put enough space between us that he couldn’t silence me.

  “I could spend a century’s worth of nights doing nothing more than kissing your beautiful mouth,” he said. “And I will. I will kiss you, and taste you,” he paused to put his lips to mine, “and pleasure you every night until the end of time.”

  My body responded to his words, flushing me with warmth. I wanted nothing less than forever with him. But I’d lived in fear under Henry’s control for so long. I didn’t want to live the rest of my life in ignorance. “I don’t want your kisses. I want answers.”

  He traced his finger along my cheek, down my jaw and throat. My breath caught as he dragged his finger down my breast, pausing to circle my nipple. “As long as you’re with me, there’s nothing you need to know.”

  “Why do you seem like a mirage once the sun sets, and I seem more solid?”

  “I am born, and you are made.” He tried to stop the questions with another kiss.

  “But you can look more solid if you choose,” I said.

  “Glamour for human benefit. It’s nothing for you to worry about.”

  “You don’t need glamour during the day,” I pressed, eager for information.

  “Neither do you,” he said in an offhand way.

  “What about the others? Are there others like us wandering the earth?”

  Azriel let out an exasperated sigh. “No. We are the last. The only ones of our kind.”

  “Tell me something else,” I begged. “Anything.”

  “Really, Darian, you are like a whining babe.” His dark eyes turned cold, but he softened the cruel edge by taking my hand in his. “‘Why, why, why?’ It drones in my ears. Why don’t I ask you some questions?”

  “Such as?”

  “Are you deadly?” he asked.

  I thought back to the waterfront, to the man whose neck I could have broken with a simple twist of my hands. “If I want to be.”

  “Are you strong and quick as the wind?”

  “As strong as you and just as fast,” I replied.

  “Can you pass as shadow during the night, and are you confined to corporeal form during the day?”

  “I can, and I am,” I said, almost pouting.

  “Then do not worry about what you do not know. We are immortal. The only weapon that can kill us is a blade forged with magic, and even I don’t know where one might be. We are alone in this world, and you have nothing to fear.” His mouth hovered close to mine. “Ask me no more.”

  Azriel’s fingers ventured from my breast, down my stomach, and further still. He cupped my sex in his palm, working his fingers against my slick flesh. Questions seemed trite when all I could think about was resuming our erotic play. I had an eternity to get my answers. Right now, I only wanted him.

  Chapter 7

  Azriel told me once that when you live forever, a week can pass in the blink of an eye. Fifteen years did just that. The world changed around us, and I welcomed it just as I’d embraced my transformation from human to Shaede so many years ago. We lived in exciting times. Tumultuous times. And there was much to keep the ambitious occupied.

  “You know, you could make good money as a rum runner.” I fiddled with the fringe on my knee-length dress rather than meet Azriel’s gaze.

  When I finally looked up, he gave me a sardonic smile. Fifteen years, and I still felt butterflies swirl in my stomach as if we’d only just met. “I don’t care about the money.” He drained the last of his bourbon and set the glass down on the table. “Besides, where’s the challenge in that? Half of the police force is paid off, and the politicians . . . ? Volstead Act or not, they’ve all got cases of liquor in their basements. Prohibition is a scam. Any idiot could run booze down from Canada.”

  I knew how Azriel spent his free time. He was right, we didn’t need the money. Azriel had enough to keep us comfortable for the rest of our lives. No, transporting illegal alcohol across the Washington border from Canada just didn’t have the thrill that killing did. He’d become an assassin. And he lived for that excitement. Azriel spent his nights killing for money, and I waited at home like an obedient wife. Though in truth, I was neither. I craved excitement, as well. I needed something to fill the endless days that spread out before me like the rolling waves of the ocean.

  “Does what I do offend your moral sensibilities, my love?”

  I looked at the people around us. Men and women whose lives would pass in moments compared to my own eternal existence. “No.” And that was the truth. I’d become something apart from humanity. Besides, I knew what the dregs of their kind were capable of. There were a good many of them who deserved to die.

  Azriel pulled the cork from the bottle of bourbon and refilled his glass. “Then what is it?”

  I sipped my martini and squared my shoulders before I answered him. “I want to go with you the next time you take a job.” He leaned back in his chair and laughed, nice and loud. I narrowed my eyes, not pleased that he considered my request humorous. “Do you think this is a joke?”

  “Oh, not at all, my love.” Azriel took my hand in his
and brought my palm to his lips. “On the contrary, I find the idea quite . . . appealing.”

  The seductive tone of Azriel’s voice caused my stomach to tie itself into tiny knots, and I smiled. I felt a sense of power at the way I could arouse him so easily. And he’d demonstrated, time and again, that he could do the same to me.

  “Tomorrow night,” he said, rounding the table and pulling me out of my chair. The layers of red fringe on my dressed danced and shimmied with my every move, and Azriel spun me around like a ballerina before tucking my hand into the crook of his arm. “How I love the current fashions,” he mused. “It seems that you wear less and less with each passing year.” He placed a kiss at the juncture where my collarbone met my shoulder. “The more exposed flesh, the better.”

  We drew many admiring stares as we walked out of the speakeasy. Women devoured Azriel in a glance, always looking as though they were undressing him with their eyes. Most people treated him as if he were royalty. A sheik. Or an exotic prince passing the time in a foreign country. He would never correct anyone’s misassumption. He carried himself with a certain regality and arrogance that fueled conjecture wherever we went. And he loved the attention.

  * * *

  “Gods,” Azriel said from the doorway. “You look . . .”

  I turned in a circle to give him the full view of my ensemble. “Awful?”

  “I was going to say, ‘You look good enough to eat.’”

  I laughed, finding his attraction utterly ridiculous. I straightened my necktie and dusted some imaginary lint from the arm of my suit. Azriel bought me the men’s clothing earlier in the day, saying it would be too conspicuous to go out with him otherwise. I flung a long overcoat across my shoulders and set the fedora at a jaunty angle on my head. I couldn’t help but giggle when he came at me with a hungry growl and pulled me against his chest.