by Montana Ash
Jasminka threw her head back and laughed. Her wonderful long hair brushing against his hands where they still rested on the curve of her butt. “Yes. Bey Buggles. Can you imagine?”
Bey groaned, “I don’t want to. Let’s not repeat this conversation. Ever.”
Jasminka laughed and slipped a sneaky hand under his shirt. “I’ll tell you what – I’ll make you a deal. If you agree to naked cuddles, right here and right now, I won’t tell Axel about the world’s eighth natural wonder – aka Buggles.”
“Uh.” The sound he made was unintelligible as her hand made its way up and over his nipple. He gulped, “You want to have sex down here?”
Jasminka raised her eyebrows, her hands pausing in their motion to lift her skirt. Seems she already thought it was a done deal. “Problem?” she asked.
“No,” came his quick response. “I’m all for sex with you. Anytime. It’s just ... my wine,” he finished, rather lamely.
“Are you pouting? You’re pouting!” Jazz pointed a finger at his face, her laughter ringing in his ears. “Oh boy! I get it now. This wine is like your boy toy. Like tools, or a car! The wine is your baby.”
Beyden sniffed, taking immediate offense on behalf of every male on the planet. “The wine is not my baby. And just for clarification, men don’t have toys.”
Jasminka laughed, dark eyes twinkling behind those sexy glasses of hers. “And there is that grumpy face I’ve come to love. You know when I first arrived, everyone talked you up as the nice guy – the gentle giant with the heart of gold. But all I saw was Mr Cranky-pants.”
“I’m not cranky. I am – and was – justifiably irritable due to severe injuries incurred bravely in the heat of battle,” Bey informed his lover, primly. For some reason, his response just made the usually staid doctor laugh even more.
Jazz cupped Bey’s face, “You really are adorable, aren’t you?”
“Adorable? Cranky-pants? Toys? You really know how to emasculate a guy, don’t you?” Beyden grumped. “I thought we agreed to cease certain descriptive words relating to me. Adorable was one of them.”
Jasminka hummed, her hands travelling from his face, down over his chest, before coming to rest over his hardening cock. “You don’t feel very emasculated to me.”
Beyden grunted, “I don’t?”
“Uh uh. You feel decidedly masculine.” Jazz slipped the button undone on his pants, lowered his zipper and freed his hard length. She stroked her palm up from root to tip a few times before cupping his balls. “Now, what do you say we open up a good bottle of red and I use you as my own personal wine glass?”
Beyden felt his eyes cross, “Corkscrews are over there.”
NINETEEN
Jasminka raised the bottle of Pinot Noir to her lips, taking a healthy swallow. The Domaine Leroy Richebourg Grand Cru was delicious, Jazz thought, as it should be. Beyden’s amber eyes had widened in horror when she had first plucked it from the shelf. Apparently, only seven hundred bottles of wine were produced from the estate each year, making the bottle of red rather exclusive. Eyeing the vast expanse of naturally tanned skin that spread out in front of her like an all you can eat sexual buffet, she knew she could do the rare bottle justice.
She had eased Beyden out of his clothes, ignoring the self-conscious way he tried to keep his leg and its raw scars out of sight. He was still very aware and insecure about it. She planned to put those insecurities to bed. Exploring her sexuality was yet another thing Jazz had done thoroughly after shedding her old skin. Needless to say, the Jasminka before the Jazz, was a rather starched, sexually repressed individual. But the Jazz she was today liked sex. She liked it a lot. Her first experience with the knight in front of her had been earth-shattering in its intensity. And the heart-to-heart and snuggle session after had been an unexpected bonus. But now she planned to show her man just how much he turned her on – dodgy leg and all.
He was still defining himself by his physicality and she couldn’t blame him. He was a soldier who was facing the prospect of soldiering no more. But he seemed to forget that being a paladin wasn’t all that he was. For example, he was a man. A very, very fine man, she thought, licking her lips.
“You just going to stand there?” Beyden cocked an eyebrow, muscled bicep flexing as he lazily moved one arm behind his head.
“On the contrary. You got to play last time. It’s my turn now,” she informed him, and was gratified to see his Adam’s apple bob and hear his audible swallow. She smiled, “Do you know what I wanted to do to you when I first saw all this amazing skin exposed?” Ignoring the stiffening of his body, Jazz ran her hands from his scarred calf and over his large thigh, before settling right next to his already jutting cock. Disregarding it for the time being, she leaned over him, her mouth a whisper away from his, and murmured; “I wanted to ride you like a mechanical bull.”
“Fuuuuck!” came his hissed reply.
Jazz laughed softly, “There’s that potty mouth.” She gripped his length, marvelling at the silkiness of flesh over hard steel. Sitting back on her haunches, she lifted her dress in one smooth motion and was naked from the waist up. She hadn’t been lying when she’d said she never wore a bra. Her breasts were a pathetic A cup – almost. But under the heat of Beyden’s stare, she felt like the sexiest woman on the planet. Standing quickly, she shimmied out of her yellow underwear – the colour had become a favourite of hers – and promptly straddled Beyden’s waist, careful to avoid his jutting manhood.
“I’ve ridden a mechanical bull a time or two, and baby – I am very proficient at it,” she told him, using her professional voice. Even as she watched Beyden began to pant. “Thirsty?” she enquired. Without waiting for an answer, Jazz picked up the bottle of wine once more and took a healthy mouthful. Leaning down, she coaxed his lips open with her own, kissing him leisurely and coaxing him to taste the sharpness of the wine on her tongue.
Beyden moaned, his hands rising to grip her hips briefly before caressing over her spine and finally into her hair. “Delicious,” he muttered against her lips.
“Me? Or the booze?” she asked, her body begging her to do as she promised and ride her man to completion. But she was enjoying the leisurely pace too much. The pressure was building by slow degrees and she revelled in feeling all of that contained power beneath her. Besides, she had promised not to waste the wine.
“The wine of course. Do you know how much that bottle runs for?” Beyden teased and nipped at her lips, his smile sexy and his eyes bright.
He’s so gorgeous, she thought. I could love him so easily. Even as she admitted that to herself, she knew it was a lie. Because she was pretty sure she already did. Not willing to explore the revelation yet – or the complications it wrought – she teased Bey with the bottle, hovering it over his chest. “Wrong answer,” she said. She saw his eyes widen a second before she upended the bottle, the red liquid splashing over his chest and creating enticing little rivers as it found the dips and valleys of his abs. She heard him curse but ignored it in favour of exploring those intriguing ridges with her tongue.
Over the next ten minutes, Jasminka chased down every last drop of wine with her tongue. There was no inch of skin left on the knight’s body that hadn’t been subjected to her wandering hands and the indecency of her mouth. The slow build had reached fever pitch and she could tell Beyden’s patience was waning by the way his hands gripped her harder and the harsh breaths sawing from his mouth.
“Cowboy up,” she muttered, licking his lips one last time. That was all the warning she gave him before she tilted her hips and slid slowly down his length until her butt rested on his thighs. Relishing their combined moans and the delicious feel of Beyden stretching her wide, Jazz threw her head back. Bliss, she acknowledged.
“Jazz. Move,” Beyden growled impatiently under her and she didn’t bother to deny him. The time for teasing was over.
Jazz willingly impaled her body on Beyden’s over and over again, creating a furious rhythm that was erotic as hell b
ut entirely unsustainable. Beyden’s body glistened with sweat and the rough sounds he made as she fucked herself on his dick had her release rushing quickly to the surface. Collapsing forward, she placed her hands on his pecs and used them to gain even more leverage. She pistoned her hips wildly, Beyden meeting her thrust for thrust, the look in his eyes as frantic as she knew hers must be. The new angle hit all the right places inside of her and she went off like a rocket.
“I love you!” she cried out, the words leaving her lips without conscious thought as stars burst behind her eyelids. His surprised exclamation was quickly followed by a rough groan as Beyden buried his face in her neck, thrusting erratically a few more times as he wrung the pleasure out of their bodies until there was nothing left to give.
She was so blissed out that it took her a few minutes to realise the sudden stiffening of the body beneath hers wasn’t due to pleasure. Levering herself up, she looked at Beyden’s face, only to stiffen in alarm – and fear. In all the time she had known him, she had never seen him look like that. It was the look you would give an enemy.
“Bey?” Her voice quivered as she quickly scrambled backward.
“You love me?” He asked, voice flat and lifeless as he sat up.
“What?” she asked, confused for a second before she remembered her shouted words in the height of passion. “Oh, umm ...”
“That’s not gonna happen,” he snarled, pushing himself up so fast he obviously forgot about his leg. It collapsed under him, his pained curse filling the room.
Jasminka rushed to his side, only to be pushed away harshly. She gasped, feeling the sting of tears in her eyes even as a flash of anger surged within in her. What the hell was going on? Picking up her dress, she quickly slipped it over her head, not wanting to be naked under the weight of his amber-eyed glare.
“You love me? Really?” He laughed harshly but the sound held no amusement. “Wow you must be a glutton for punishment.”
“Beyden, what ...?” she managed to stutter. Jazz had noticed his tendency for mood swings over their acquaintance but nothing like this. This was almost like a bipolar episode or a split personality. One moment they were sharing the most intimate kind of pleasure two people could be, and the next he was acting like he couldn’t stand the sight of her.
“Come on doctor, are you really going to tell me you’ve fallen for this?” he gestured to his scarred leg, the old injury still appeared red and inflamed even though the deep gouges were beginning to turn shiny. “Huh? A messed-up knight who can no longer perform his duties and is kept around for the sheer amusement of his colleagues.”
“Beyden, where is all this coming from? Have I ever once given you the impression that your injury bothered me? Has your family?” Jasminka was confused and hurt, but leading the emotional charge was concern. The man in front of her was not her Beyden.
Beyden snorted in derision as he climbed clumsily to his feet and began to angrily yank on his clothes, “Of course. Do-gooder doctor doesn’t have a problem with physical imperfection. Let me guess, my sparkling personality also sucked you in.”
“I love your personality,” she countered, softly, though she knew it was pointless. Beyden wasn’t listening.
“Or maybe this is some remnant of your fucked-up childhood, huh? Poor Jasminka didn’t get any love from her parents and at the first sign of affection from someone, she latches on.”
The painful words made her heart stutter but she raised her chin, looking her lover in the eye; “Beyden, you’re being cruel.”
“Cruel? I’m being truthful. And realistic. Which is more than I can say for you,” he countered.
Jasminka merely shook her head and began to inch her way out of the room. This was too much. He was too much. She had no idea why her words of love – words she had never uttered to another living soul – had triggered such a negative reaction in him. But she wasn’t interested in sticking around to find out. If she did, she’d likely flatten the big oaf. She didn’t care who he was or what was going on with his wounded psyche. She wasn’t going to stand there and be torn down. Never again.
“Running? But I thought you loved me?” Beyden sneered. “Tell me, what exactly did you think was going to happen? Did you think this thing between us was going to go somewhere? Come on, Doc, you’re smarter than that. This was about gratitude and convenience. We were handy to each other. That’s it.”
“That’s not true,” Jasminka responded, but his harsh words were beginning to take effect and she felt her own doubts creeping in. Had she been kidding herself? Had Beyden somehow been hiding this part of himself from her the whole time? No, she told herself. There was no way he could have kept such disdain from her. Even moments ago he had been hugging her in comfort. His affection had been real. As was the pleasure of the body moving under hers – the intensity in those yellow eyes. Something was very wrong. She needed Max. She was now at the base of the stairs and thankfully Beyden hadn’t made any movement in her direction. But he was still talking, a flood of verbal vitriol she knew she wouldn’t be able to un-hear no matter the circumstance.
“All that aside, you’re human. You’ve got maybe another fifty years, max. I’m a knight born with magic flowing through my blood. I’m going to live hundreds of years. You think I’d settle for someone who’s going to get old and grey when I live in a society filled with endless beauty and youth? What’s more, you’re old by human standards. Forty-six right? Far too old to have children. You think I want to be with someone who can’t provide me with children?”
Okay, as strong and as independent as she was, she still had a breaking point. And Beyden had just found it. Fleeing up the stairs, she slammed the door, not looking back even when she heard a tortured howl coming from below. It sounded more like a wounded animal than a man, but Jasminka couldn’t bring herself to care.
TWENTY
Even as he spewed the hateful words, Beyden felt the horror of his actions wash through him, leaving him feeling nauseated and confused. He had no idea where such vile words had sprung from. He only knew that Jasminka’s admission of love had triggered a deep anger within him. His headache had also reached a fever pitch and the pounding pain had added to his feelings of resentment. He had just run out of steam and was feeling physically and emotionally exhausted when Jazz fled the room.
Releasing a bellow of pure outrage, Beyden felt himself crumble and it had nothing to do with his leg. What had he done? Why had he said those awful things? Sure, he’d had his dark days since he was hurt and his doubts about his self-worth were steadily increasing. But he’d never felt anything but gratitude and appreciation for the lovely doctor he had just hurt so horridly. In fact, he would give anything to hear her say those three precious words again so he could say them back. Because yes – he loved her too. He wasn’t sure when lust and like had morphed into love. But he absolutely knew the roiling mass of feelings churning inside of him were more than just simple affection. No, only love could hurt like this, he thought. So why had he hurt her so badly? It was like he was a completely different person.
“Beyden! What’s going on? I just saw Jasminka run from here as if the hounds of hell were after her. Weren’t you on a date?” His mother appeared at the top of the stairs, speaking all the way down until she was standing in front of him.
“Mum ...” was all he was able to choke out before he broke down and cried in his mother’s arms like a small child.
“There, there. Whatever it is, we’ll fix it,” she crooned, stroking his back.
He choked back a sob, “There’s no fixing this. I ruined it – ruined everything. I don’t know what came over me. I –”
“That’s quite enough,” his mother interrupted him. “You’re getting a tad hysterical and it’s not helping. Take a few deep breaths and tell me what happened from the beginning.”
Beyden felt an inappropriate laugh bubble up. He was a tad hysterical? He was afraid he was a going a tad insane is what he was. Still, he allowed his mother to comf
ort and soothe him, even though he didn’t deserve it, and told her everything. He left out the part where Jasminka had ridden him like a professional rodeo star but included everything else from the headaches to the giant mood swings. She was frowning by the end of his tale and when she touched his face with her fingers, he felt a warm tingle penetrate his skin. It wasn’t anything like Max’s powers, but he still recognised a warden using vitality.
He pulled back, “Mum, your abilities won’t work on me. You’re a beast warden, remember?”
She eyed him drolly, “A beast warden? You don’t say. I am fully aware of what my powers can and cannot do, Beyden. We humans are all mammals – just another type of animal,” she informed him.
He felt his mouth open in shock, “Are you telling me your element allows you to manipulate human energies as well?” He knew he sounded incredulous, but he had never heard of such a thing. His affiliation was with the beasts as well and he had never felt even a hint of recognition from his domain in relation to humans. Animals only. Even as he spoke, she was shaking her head.
“No, I haven’t been keeping my ability to work with humans a secret. But what I said is true; you are a mammal and I can get a feel for your vitality at the very least. I do think it’s a little off. But I’m no expert. I think we need to call in your Order.”
“But they’re not really my Order are they? I mean, the link is broken, Max isn’t technically our liege anymore. Maybe we’ve been fooling ourselves, and –”
“Beyden!”
His mother’s voice penetrated his paranoid ramblings. He looked down to find Zombie growling at his feet next to a mewling Angel. He blinked, when had they arrived? “What?”
