Legendary Beast

by Barbara J. Hancock

  And he knew for a fact that a reclaimed and polished hip tub was waiting in the dressing room of the master suite.

  “So, does that mean you’re the Light Volkhvy king?” Lev asked his twin brother. Their gazes met in the mirror, and for one second they remembered a time when they’d both hated all witches. They’d been traumatized by the curse for centuries, and neither of them had known if anyone at Bronwal would survive. Least of all each other. Since then, Lev had revealed to Soren that the white wolf had never been as lost as he’d seemed. He’d merely been preparing in the most extreme ways possible to rescue his mate and his child.

  “Technically, I’m a prince consort. Although the Light Volkhvy seem intent on referring to me as their queen’s champion,” Soren said. “Fanfare wherever I go. Food. Adoration. What can I say? You get used to it.”

  “Not the food. Maybe everything else, but I don’t think I’ll ever get used to the food,” Lev confessed. “My wife isn’t a queen, and the food is still sumptuous.”

  “And the soft beds and hot running water,” Soren added.

  “How does Anna feel? Is she ready to rule now that Vasilisa has stepped down?” Lev asked. He could finally say the former queen’s name without anger. There would always be painful memories, but Madeline had helped him come to grips with the past and prepare to step into a happier future, together.

  “Even as a waif, Anna ruled. She took care of us all from the shadows. Everyone seems to think I watched over her for centuries, but I assure you it was the other way around,” Soren said.

  Soren was dressed in more modern clothes. He was wearing a “tuxedo” that seemed, like Lev’s pants, to have been tailored for a smaller man. The cloth conformed to his muscular physique like a second skin. Lev secretly thought their wives enjoyed the Romanov build and occasionally made suggestions to the seamstresses after fittings.

  “She is a fine queen, brother. I promise to serve her well,” Lev said. The words carried the weight of the entirety of his former wild rebellion. And he meant every one.

  “Can you love a witch, too, Lev?” Soren asked. It was almost time to go down for the ceremony. They had laughed and joked for an hour as they’d prepared. Now they stood side by side at the mirror. So alike, but so different. Together forever, even when they were apart.

  “I can and do,” Lev promised.

  He’d once attacked Anna when he’d thought she was going to hurt Soren. He’d been feral, as far from his human form as it was possible to be. He’d been lost to his obsession of finding his wife and child, eaten alive by grief and loneliness.

  Anna had forgiven him. Now Soren did, too. He grasped Lev’s upper arms and pulled him into a hug that was almost as fierce as Ivan’s. Only the pounding on his back was more tempered than the alpha wolf’s, in that it didn’t cause him to cough and pull away.

  Someone knocked. It was Ivan, standing at the ready when Soren opened the door to him.

  “It’s time,” the alpha wolf proclaimed. No one argued. No one ever would. Well, except maybe for the three children who were held by uniformed nannies behind him. Lev walked out and ruffled Trevor’s strawberry blonde curls. His son laughed and the nanny smiled.

  “He’ll be in the front row, sir,” she said.

  “No. I think he’ll walk with me,” Lev replied. He reached for Trevor and placed the toddling boy on the floor. It had been a year since they’d rescued him from the marked Volkhvy. Lev adjusted his stride to accommodate Trevor’s uncertain steps, but the boy seemed eager to grasp his hand and walk by his side.

  The great hall was lined with people. The survivors of Bronwal and the Light Volkhvy mingled on both sides. Only Vasilisa was avoided. She sat on a chair placed with honor near the front of the crowd, and there was an obvious space around the powerful witch where humans gave her a wide berth. Soren and Anna’s twins felt no such reserve. As their nannies carried them into the hall, they began to reach and beg for their grandmother. Vasilisa welcomed them with open arms, and the little girls sat on her lap and played with her silvery hair.

  “Good luck, brother,” Lev said to Soren with a chuckle, as his brother walked ahead to stand with Ivan at the front of the hall, where the ceremony would take place. Lev followed with a more measured tread. A witch with a harp played soft music in the distance. A human with a pipe joined in.

  In a spur-of-the-moment decision, Lev paused in front of Vasilisa and bowed to the former queen. Trevor copied his father with a giggling laugh. She had cursed them, but she had also saved them. It was important for all of the guests to see that it was time to move on.

  When he rose from his bow, Lev saw that Madeline had arrived. She waited for him at the front of the hall. He and Trevor walked together down the aisle. Lev could hardly breathe. His wife was the most beautiful warrior he’d ever seen, and that was saying something in a family filled with lovely, strong women.

  Finally, he and Trevor reached Madeline’s side, and the entire room erupted in applause. Anna stood, prepared to perform the ceremony. She looked like a queen in her bright green suit. But as the applause continued, she broke into a smile and joined the multitude of guests in their clapping. Trevor pulled his hand free from Lev’s and started clapping and dancing as well.

  And then, buoyed by the excitement, their rambunctious toddler shifted. There was no thunder and the ground didn’t shake. There was only an atmospheric pop, and a large gray puppy took the place of the boy, gamboling at their heels.

  Gray just like his grandfather, Vladimir Romanov.

  But Trevor would redeem the Romanov name. Lev could hear it in his laughter. Could hear it in his joyful barks.

  Ivan quietly said Trevor’s name, and the gray puppy went to his alpha’s feet. He sat down and fell silent. The crowd also quieted. When the alpha spoke, everyone listened. Lev reached for Madeline’s hand as Anna proceeded with their renewal of vows.

  * * *

  The revelry had lasted into the wee hours of the morning. Lev and Madeline had slipped away well before the last keg was tapped. During their last dance, long after Trevor had been taken to the nursery, Lev had leaned close to Madeline’s ear and murmured a sensual invitation she couldn’t refuse.

  “The copper tub is waiting.”

  Madeline laughed as the guests cheered when her husband swept her up into his arms and carried her out of the hall and up the stairs. Then she moaned when his lips found hers.

  They discovered the master bedroom had been transformed into a private retreat, following Lev’s instructions. The downy bed had been turned down, and spruce-scented candles filled the air with memories of their most recent first kiss. In front of the fireplace, the copper tub had been filled with steaming water.

  “I know we’ve updated all the bathrooms, but this tub has sentimental value,” Lev growled against the sensitive curve of her neck.

  Madeline agreed. Especially when Lev placed her feet on the floor to search for the fastenings at the neck of her gown. He groaned his approval when the top of her bodice came free and the ruby chiffon slid off her breasts. The corseted bra cupped the globes of her breasts, as if to raise them toward his lips. He accepted the invitation. Lowering his face to her exposed cleavage, he nipped and nuzzled. Then he took the edge of the satin fabric in his teeth.

  She gasped as he tugged, and he looked up at her reaction with the white wolf’s eyes.

  “Don’t stop,” Madeline ordered.

  Her wolf obeyed.

  He bit and pulled the satin, and the delicate silky strings gave way from their hooks. The corset’s laces loosened, and the bra came free. Lev released his bite, and the undergarment drifted to the floor. Madeline’s breasts peaked in the air beneath Lev’s intense gaze. He didn’t raise his head. Instead, he closed his mouth over first one nipple and then the other. He suckled until Madeline moaned his name and buried her fingers in his hair. The circlet that bound his hair at the temples was dislodged. It fell with a clang to the floor, but neither of them paused. Madeline rej
oiced as his long waves fell free across her bare breasts.

  “I’m going to bathe you. I’m going to lather and love every inch of you,” Lev promised.

  Madeline thrilled at the memories that his promise brought to life. Then she gasped when he reached with impatient hands to pull her loosened dress and her underwear off her body. The satin and chiffon fell in a scarlet puddle around her ankles. Her pale skin was left bare and trembling beneath his perusal.

  “Your ruby dress was beautiful, but I think I prefer auburn curls,” Lev said. He reached for her mound and cupped it gently to show just which curls he referred to. Madeline leaned into his touch as her knees went weak. And then she reached for his broad shoulders when a questing finger burrowed into the curls to find a more intimate spot.

  “Lev,” she moaned.

  “Yes, Maddy? What do you need, my love?” Lev murmured roughly into her hair. She was leaning against his shoulder now. She’d twined her arms around his neck. Her breasts pressed up against his hard chest, and his free hand had come around to hold her to him.

  His other hand was buried in the curls between her legs, and his fingers were doing marvelous things. She throbbed, and his fingers slid with the moisture her excitement created.

  Lev chuckled when her hips began to undulate against his hand.

  “Is that what you need?” he asked.

  “Yes. Please,” Madeline begged.

  “But I promised you a bath first,” Lev replied.

  He withdrew his teasing hand and lifted her to place her in the hot water. The heat immediately heightened her arousal. Steam rose up her legs, tickling and enticing. Lev stood back to enjoy the sight of her standing naked in the tub in front of the fire. His eyes were dark in the dancing firelight supplemented only by the scented candles.

  “My warrior’s need laid bare and beautiful,” he murmured. While she watched, he unbuckled and removed his vest. She could see his dusky nipples on the rounded pecs of his muscular chest through the thin rough silk of his white shirt. But not for long. Because he ripped the shirt off his head, ignoring the sound of torn seams in his impatience. His tight leggings rode very low on his lean hips. She could see a hint of gold hair low, beneath his navel. She could also see what her nudity was doing to him. The large swell of his erection bulged out, obvious in the tight pants.

  “Bath first,” Lev said when he noted the direction of her eyes. He stepped close to the tub and placed a finger under her chin. He lifted until she met his gaze. “Are you hungry for me, Maddy?”

  “Always,” she replied.

  He dipped to kiss her in reward for her raw honesty. The pulse between her thighs increased with the sudden plunge of his tongue between her lips. Their mouths slid together. The tongues twined, and Madeline reached to press against the bulge of his erection with one hand. She weighed and measured his excitement through the leather until he was panting into her lips.

  “Still want a bath first?” she asked, questioning his resolve.

  “Oh, yes. I’ve been anticipating this all day,” Lev said.

  He pulled her hand away from him and raised it up to place a kiss against her heated palm. Then he released her so he could undo the lacings at his waist and pull the leggings off his hips and down his legs. Madeline clamped her thighs together to try to still the ache that arose when she got a glimpse of his massive erection. He was as excited by their play as he meant to make her.

  “Lev,” she said.

  He stepped to her once more. On the way, he stooped to retrieve a sponge from a basket on the hearth. She was in the tub. He was out. But he stood close enough that her breasts brushed his chest. He brought the sponge up to her face and teased it along her jaw.

  “Shhhh. I’m here. You’re here. We have all night. We have every night. And I have such plans,” Lev said.

  He leaned to kiss her again, but this time he only gave her a gentle sultry taste and one dip of his tongue into her mouth, and then along her lower lip. She was breathing quickly from his teasing. He raised his face from hers and lowered the sponge. Along her neck, down between her tingling breasts. And lower still. To her stomach, over the curly mound he’d already teased.

  Suddenly, Lev crouched to dampen the sponge in the hot water. He reached in the basket for a bar of soap, but as he lathered it, he looked up at Madeline. His head was even with her knees, very close to the core of her that throbbed from his earlier touch. As if he knew what she was thinking, Lev leaned closer to her legs and kissed the inside of her knee.

  Madeline reached for his hair and buried her fingers in his blond waves. She squeezed and he chuckled. This time he didn’t say “bath first,” but she knew he thought it because he brought the soapy sponge up and washed the knee he’d just kissed. Then he lathered her higher, trailing the massaging motions upward, and her blood flow seemed to follow until her core pulsed with need and her head grew light.

  “Your curls look so inviting when they’re damp for me,” Lev said.

  “You make me wet,” Madeline confessed. “No tub necessary at all.”

  Lev dropped the sponge and replaced it with the palm of his hand. His fingers glided on the soap. He brought up his other hand, and suddenly both of his big, powerful hands were massaging her soapy thighs. He’d dropped to his knees beside the tub. Water and soap trailed down his muscled arms to dampen his chest.

  And then both of his thumbs met at the crux of her mound. They gently penetrated to tease and slide and open her. She threw back her head, overwhelmed by the sight of her wolf on his knees in front of her. Then he speared the bud he’d revealed with his tongue.

  Madeline cried out. Her body jerked as a sudden explosive orgasm rocked her. Lev moved his hands around to cup her cheeks as he continued to thrust his tongue along the tender crevice he’d found. He heightened and extended her pleasure until her knees gave out and only his strong arms wrapped around her kept her on her feet.

  “Is the bath finished?” Madeline gasped when she could speak again. Lev stood. His erection jutted out in front of his hips. She pressed against him and his steely hardness. She throbbed for more than his tongue.

  “Definitely,” Lev replied. He moaned and rocked against the warm press of her body. She wound her arms around his neck, and he raised her up by stiffening his spine so that her toes came up off the bottom of the tub, and her curly mound teased against his erection. She joined her legs around his waist, and the teasing grew more serious. He penetrated her with just the tip of his hard shaft, and it was her turn to rock against him. He chuckled against her lips as she hungrily sought his kisses, with frustrated murmurs and whines as the deep penetration she craved eluded her.

  She panted as the teasing inch of stimulation drove her crazy with need. Her body was now moist inside and out. She was damp from the bath, and perspiration, and need. She soaked his shaft, and he slipped a little farther inside in spite of his supreme control. But Lev only relented when her whines became more urgent. He lifted her into his arms and cradled her to his chest. She tightened her arms to hold on. The scent of spruce was now joined by the scent of musky sweet excitement.

  “I never know who I’m teasing the most when we play,” Lev said. He backed away from the tub toward the bed.

  “Tell me what you want,” Madeline murmured into his hot neck.

  “I want to bury myself inside you. Forever,” Lev said. “And you?”

  “I want to make you howl,” Madeline said.

  Lev took her with him as he fell back on the bed. She landed across his chest, but in moments, she had rearranged herself so that she straddled his stomach. His erection was hot against her bottom, and she wiggled against him to tease his swollen shaft, and also to tease herself against the golden trail of curls that led to his groin.

  “I will, Maddy. I’ll howl for you. Always,” Lev promised.

  She loved his promises.

  Especially when she helped him fulfill them.

  Madeline rose and slid back to position herself
above his erection. He reached to place his thick shaft against her opening. She undulated her hips to tease her moisture against him. He cried out her name, and then shouted in pleasure when she lowered herself back down to engulf him.

  “Howl for me,” she ordered against his lips. She matched the thrusting of her hips with the thrusting of her tongue. Lev growled against her deep kisses and grabbed her hips. He pumped up into her and aided her movements with his strength, until the rapid friction caused her to tense and clench as she began to orgasm around him.

  Her tightness slowed him down, but he didn’t seem to mind. He only lifted his hips more insistently to drive into her tightness. Madeline rode him, just as she had done when he ran through the woods with her on his back. She followed his movements; she reacted to his every groan and sigh. This time they were as one. Joined. Connected. Never to be broken apart again. The bounce of his thrusting stimulated her nipples, and she peaked again. As she clenched and shook, his whole body went rigid, as hard as it was possible for a human to be, and then he did howl for her. He threw back his head and howled his release, long and loud and not caring if the whole world witnessed their connection.

  Ruby light glowed from their eyes as they collapsed in each other’s arms.

  A long time later, after they had drifted lazily in the candlelight and the afterglow of their connection, Madeline rose on her elbow. She looked down at the big wolf she’d married. He looked rumpled and loved, but still wild. Lev Romanov would never be tamed.

  Lev opened his eyes and caught her stare. A large smile curved his full lower lip. As always, it softened his lean, hard face. He reached for her hand and raised her ring to his lips. He held her gaze as he kissed the ruby.

  “You knew you could shift when you carried me through the forest on your back. But you didn’t. You almost ran yourself to death as a man to carry me away from the wolves,” Madeline said.

  “You would have refused to ride on the white wolf’s back. I offered you a man’s back instead,” Lev said.