He caressed one of her legs and gently lifted it to rest on his shoulder. With his other hand, he stroked himself in a smooth, unhurried gesture that mesmerized her. Her body wept at the sight, sending aftershock pulses radiating through her.
“Oh, Kean.” She let out a needy sound and fell back against the pillows. He was going to drive her absolutely crazy. Even the most exquisite orgasm of her life hadn’t quenched her desire for him. If anything, it had only made the burn more intense.
He kissed the inside of her calf. “What is it, baby?”
She whimpered and writhed her hips as much as her position would let her.
“What do you want?” He brushed the tip along her slick entrance.
She moaned, her body aching for him to fill her.
“You want this, you have to say it, baby. What do you want?” His gaze burned her, made her nipples sting.
“Kean… please.” She pressed her face into the pillow, her cheeks tingling. She never talked dirty in bed, and was sure if this got any more erotic she would just explode. “Please.”
“Just tell me what you want, Bri, and I promise I’ll give it to you.”
Her body quivered uncontrollably. He kissed her leg again, then trailed his fingers down to her core. She jolted at the contact, her flesh swollen and sensitive from his earlier attention. He dipped one finger barely into her and swirled it as he massaged her with his thumb. She arched, biting the inside of her cheek.
“Know what I want?” Kean stroked both of them faster. “I want to make you come so hard you scream. I want to feel you squeezing my cock as I fill you up. Is that what you want, baby?”
She tossed her head from side to side on the pillow. “Yes! All of that. Please, now, Kean!”
He braced above her with one arm. She stared up at him. Kean, about to be inside of her. He guided himself in slowly, his attention riveted to the joining of their bodies.
When she flexed around him, his jaw went slack, and his eyes fluttered shut. “Gods, don’t do that. I won’t last.”
“Kiss me.” Bri’s fingers danced over his face. This was an incomparable moment — to be one, finally, after so long apart. She wanted to be as close as possible.
“I will baby.” He took up a delicious rhythm that matched the pulses in her body like the melody and harmony of a song. “You have to come for me first.” His hips undulated in precise, merciless strokes. He built her into a frenzy like that, then quickened and deepened his thrusts. Her second orgasm shook her very foundation and left her in a hazy euphoria as it receded.
Kean remained deep inside, his breath catching with every shudder of her muscles. Sweat glistened on his brow, his shoulders, and Bri had to taste the salt of him. To feel the hot rush of his release. To see him as mindless with pleasure as he made her. She wrapped her legs around his and yanked him forward. He caught himself in a push-up and hovered over her, waiting.
“I want…” She licked her lips. He throbbed inside her, and she tightened around him on a sigh. There wasn’t an ounce of modesty left in her. He’d stripped it all away to reveal the wanton creature underneath. She slid her arms around his neck and nipped at his chin.
“I want you to come inside me, Kean,” she whispered into his ear.
He sank onto her chest, propped on his elbows, and leaned his head close enough that she could taste herself mingled with the sweet peppermint on his breath. His lashes nearly brushed her cheeks.
“I just want you,” he said, and began his torturous rhythm again.
This time he worshiped her with his body as he took her mouth. His tongue twisted around hers, demanding. He sought her hands, which were gripping the sheets over her head, and pulled them free to twine their fingers together. He swiveled his hips in the cradle of hers, the head of him kissing her so deeply she felt the rest of the world melt away.
Nothing else mattered but the sensual rite they were performing: true union of their flesh, their spirits.
This is real.
Their bodies melded together. Kean’s eyes burned into hers with the aching hunger and lust she’d been so afraid to face before because she thought it would undo her. Now she fed off of it, and swallowed him in. She didn’t feel undone, she felt re-forged. All the time she whimpered, a wordless plea for him to give himself over, to break down the final wall between them.
“What do you want, Bri?” He gritted his teeth as he ground them into pleasurable oblivion, rolling over her again and again in just the right, maddening way.
“You. Always you. Only you.” She squeezed his hands, his hips, pressed her aching breasts against his chest. Anything to spur him on.
“Why do you want me?” He thrashed against her harder, held her closer, rode up higher, grew hotter and harder inside her. So close…
She cried out, senseless, dizzy.
“Why, baby?” His breath was a furnace blast on her ear. “Tell me, Bri.”
He pinched her lower lip between his teeth before licking it with soft laps. Kean was always like that — fierce, but tender. She’d forgotten how much she loved it, loved him. How had she lived so long without this?
With each pound of his body against hers, she wound tighter and tighter towards an inescapable answer. Nothing had ever been so true. Nothing had ever been so hard for her to say. Her eyes teared up as she watched him. The expression on his face was hard, determined, utterly Kean. He was claiming her. He’d mastered her body, made her a prisoner of desire, but the battle wasn’t over until she gave him what he wanted most.
“Why?” he asked again, almost desperate.
The tears spilled down her cheeks as she made her confession, gifting him with what had always been his. “Because I love you. I love you, Kean.”
“Briana.” Her name tumbled from his lips as he tensed over her, fell into her, gave her everything. She cried out as the sensational heat of it pushed her over the edge with him in a surging tide of release, of destiny. As she’d always known: she was his.
It was done. Her Fate was sealed. She could never live without him now.
He collapsed beside her and trailed his other hand up and down her side. “I love you, Briana Celene Spurrier.” He circled one nipple with his finger. “I always have and I always will.”
“I know.” She smiled. “Ever since I beat up Bobby Struxness for stealing your Gummy Bears. I think we were five.”
Kean chuckled. “Naw, you still put the fear of the devil into me then. I think it was when we were ten, and you practiced kissin’ on me. I know I made a fuss, but I liked it.” He scooted a few inches away and propped on his elbow. His thumb brushed over her lip, and he studied her with glassy eyes, pleasure-drunk. “You are so beautiful.”
She smiled, basking in the flush of afterglow. Of love. Now that she’d opened herself to it, it penetrated parts of her she’d thought long dead and barren. They surged to life with almost painful potency.
Kean was the only person on North Wake who could tell her she was beautiful without her adding the words “like your mother” in her head. She knew he saw the resemblance, but he also saw past it. He saw Bri for who she was — flaws, scars, and all — and he still loved her.
Why hadn’t she come back sooner? Why had she left in the first place? How had she abandoned the only person who could truly see her? The thought of the pain she’d caused him felt like an ice-cold trowel digging through her chest. She let out a shaky breath. “I’m so sorry, Kean.”
He frowned and pulled her to snuggle under his chin. His scent was the strongest there, evergreen and mint. “It’s all right, baby.”
“No. It’s not all right.” She shook her head. “How can you forgive me so easily? I just left you here. You said it yourself. I walked away and never looked back. Because I’m too much of a coward. How can you love me still?”
The stubborn crease between his brows told her that he was about to end this discussion once and for all. “I never stopped loving you. It broke my heart when you left, but I knew you’
d come back, and we’d be together like we were meant to be. I never let myself even think about letting go of you.” A faint smile whisked up one corner of his mouth. “And since I’ve been so heartsick for so long, I can’t punish you the way I should. I’m just too damned relieved to have you in my arms again. So, enough of that. You need your strength for the ritual tonight. Rest.”
She gave him a wicked grin. “I slept for fourteen hours. I think we can find something better to do than rest.”
Chapter Seventeen
Astrid couldn’t have asked for a more perfect setting to do ritual. The clouds had cleared and the winds had settled, as if they understood something important was culminating between the heavens and the mortal plane this night. The full moon hung low over the tops of the sprawling Madronas, casting the clearing in an ethereal light. Yellow grasses looked like burnished gold, rocks cutting through like silver blades. Beyond the ledge of Lover’s Bluff, the water stretched in a smooth expanse of dull slate.
Nights like this made her wish for someone special to share them with. But for now, her best friends were enough. Bri was home, and from the looks of things would be staying for good. The three of them would finally be a coven. She felt as though her whole life had been leading up to this, that she was finally setting the proper course, with love as the compass, her real family true north.
Kean laid out the wool blanket, and Astrid arranged the tools for the full moon ritual. Now that they were free of Gawain’s tyranny, they had no need for ceremonial robes or the traditional garb of theatrics. She preferred her magic straight-up. And now they could practice anywhere and any way they pleased.
Bri had quizzed them over dinner as they waited for the moon to rise. She said she was sick of feeling handicapped. Now that she’d committed herself to becoming a practicing Zyne, Astrid figured Bri would take it just as seriously as any pursuit in her life. Which meant she would be lecturing them in a matter of weeks.
She followed Astrid’s instructions to the letter, placing candles on the wooden stakes at each of the four directional corners. Lover’s Bluff was a common setting for earth rituals, fertility rites, and handfastings, so the stakes stayed all year. To a casual passerby, they were just the buried posts of a half-constructed picnic shelter.
Kean went behind Bri, dumping water on the grass and stomping it down with his boot. That had nothing to do with a fire risk. The two of them hadn’t spent more than a few minutes not touching all evening. The deed was obviously done, and Kean was even more smitten, which she hadn’t thought possible.
Astrid shook her head. As much as a part of her wanted to gag on all their sugar-talk and twinkly-eyed looks, it also made her heart swell to see them finally reunited. Bri and Kean were simply better together than apart. They filled in each other’s weak spots, softened each other’s hard parts. Perfect complements. It made her believe there was someone like that out there for everyone. Maybe even her. Maybe now that her best friend was an Oracle, she could help her out in the dating department.
Bri laughed as she bent over the northern candle, and Kean came behind, pouring and stomping. “What? I’m a firefighter.” She whirled and bounced up on her toes to kiss him, giggling in a free and easy way that made Astrid smile. “I know. I was just picturing you in a Smoky the Bear hat.”
“Does that get you hot?” Kean murmured, gathering her to his chest.
Astrid rolled her eyes and tried to focus on her preparations.
“Uh… definitely not.”
Astrid glanced up to find both of them staring at the trailhead.
Kean squinted into the shadows. “What?”
Astrid lit the lantern and held it up. Bri pointed, her mouth slightly open. “I swear I saw Gawain there just a second ago.”
“He must be coming up the hill.” Astrid resumed her cross-legged seat on the blanket and pulled her Level Three Primer back into her lap. With time, Bri would learn the difference between intuitions and reality. Anticipating arrivals was a typical Oracle trick.
“I’ll handle it.” Kean capped his water bottle and tossed it aside. At that moment, Gawain emerged from the tree line. Bri sighed, a sound heavy with both relief and frustration.
She frowned to herself. Bri must hate not being able to anticipate or even understand her own powers or trust her senses — she was a perfectionist and a control freak. If they didn’t watch her carefully, she could go all wispy on them. A lot of Oracles did. Too much time walking between different worlds, not knowing which way was up. She needed to train hard on grounding herself. Not that any of it would matter if they couldn’t get her Inner Eye open. She’d glued it shut with sheer will alone — typical Bri. The only person to ever go up against bull-headed Kean and win.
Astrid studied the pages of the Primer as if the reassurance she sought was inked there. It wasn’t. They could initiate Bri, bind her in a coven, and hope that her blossoming power did the rest naturally. She hadn’t had time to prepare, but they couldn’t wait. It was a sink or swim initiation. Some would say reckless, on the full moon, with so much magic built up. But they just had to trust the Universe to cut them a break. In any event, the last thing they needed was Mr. High and Mighty spewing negativity all over the place.
Kean met Gawain halfway down the worn path from the altar site. “Sorry, this is a private party, Sheriff.”
Bri knelt on the blanket beside Astrid and unpacked the wine, cornbread, and honey from the picnic basket. They both pretended not to listen to the exchange.
“I sent around a notice about doing ritual outside tonight. Didn’t you get the memo?”
“That notice was for North Wake coven. We’re practicing on our own license now.”
“Trial license,” Gawain corrected. “Sorry, but I have to ask you to return home. It’s not a safe time for this sort of activity.”
Astrid and Bri exchanged a look. Of course it wasn’t safe — that was the point. Somebody had to do something about the murderer haunting North Wake. Other than put a lid on it and hope it went away.
“Are we breaking the law?” Kean sounded bored. Astrid raised her eyebrows. Apparently getting laid had leveled his temper out. Maybe she should try that.
“No,” Gawain said.
“Then we appreciate the warning, but I think we can handle ourselves.”
“It would serve you to remember who you’re dealing with, Fitzgerald. Your license is a short-term gig, and you might regret your attitude later.”
Both Bri and Astrid dropped all pretense of not watching. Kean had the height advantage, but Gawain was right up in his face.
“That a threat?” Kean asked, lower.
“Just an observation.”
“Very good Samaritan of you. Now, beat it.”
Gawain eased away and sighed. “I’m just doing my job. But you three always did follow your own rules. I think it’s a shame, you dragging Briana into this after everything she’s been through, but I’m not surprised. Just know that if any of you step out of line, I’ll slap another prohibition on you faster than you can blink.”
His shadowed silhouette tipped its hat towards them, and then he turned on his heel and marched away, clicking on his flashlight.
Astrid shook her head. Some things never changed. When they were kids, Gawain had followed the three of them around, wanting to be a part of the gang. But it never would have worked. He was too much of a straight arrow. Too by the book, rules, and all that shit. Basically, a total drag. And he was way too fun to screw with. She called after him, letting a hint of her power leak into her words. “G’night Sheriff! Watch out for roots.”
A skid and thud, followed by a curse, sounded from down the path.
Sucker.
She sniggered and winked at Bri, then filled the brass wine chalice to the brim. After a large, fortifying gulp she passed it over, flipping open another spellbook and marking the page with a loose feather. “So, we’re gonna do an initiation-coven-forming-combo tonight.”
Bri leaned in t
o read over her shoulder. “What’s an Inner Eye, exactly?”
She tapped Bri’s forehead. “That’s the center of your Oracle power. You have to open it to turn on your Second Sight.”
“How?”
“First we’ll bind you in the coven, so your magic will have a channel, then we’ll initiate you, which is basically calling on the Cosmos to recognize your Zyne destiny. From there, I’m hoping your powers just take over naturally.” She was over-simplifying, but didn’t think telling Bri she was totally winging it was the best way to instill confidence. As long as she stayed relaxed and didn’t fight her powers, things should be okay. Hopefully.
Bri took a sip of wine, scrutinizing Astrid’s expression. She played with her eyebrow piercing and pretended not to notice. After checking a few more references, she pulled off her scarf and outermost fleece, took a deep, centering breath, and shook her muscles loose. She could do this. It was her destiny. Their destiny. Something had to go right for once.
“I set a warning ward in case he comes back.” Kean joined them on the blanket.
Bri shifted to make room for him and glanced over Astrid’s shoulder. “So, an initiation-coven-forming-combo?”
“Right…”
Initiating Bri was simple. She’d seen it done dozens of times, as members of the community came of age and chose the Zyne path. The coven binding was a bit trickier. She’d only participated once, and it hadn’t been her power driving the ritual. The trine-binding complicated things to a whole other level. It had to be just right.
Bri’s brow knit together and she had that “wtf?” look on her face, frustration curling her lip.
Astrid smiled, realizing how much she must trust them to be willing to go ahead with this. “Basically, we’re going to take each of our connections to the Conduit and braid them together, Bri. To do that, we have to forge your connection first. That’s what your initiation is about.”
Rain of Ash: Skydancer Book 1 (The Zyne Legacy) Page 15
