Brazen Moon

by Ruth D. Kerce

  She gently placed a wooden, keepsake box her mother had given her into a side pocket within the pack. No way was she leaving that behind.

  A small sound drew her attention to the window and she tentatively stepped forward. With a shaky hand and a tight stomach, she slowly slid open the curtain and looked out at the view she’d become so accustomed to over the years. She breathed a sigh of relief when a demon wasn’t staring back at her. The sound had probably been a car or something equally innocuous.

  Just getting up the nerve to look outside on her own made her feel stronger. She glanced down at her wrist which was already bruising from where the incubus had latched onto her.

  Everything she had ever believed in had disappeared, been turned upside down. Now she would have to embrace a new life. Her heart pounded way too hard, beat way too fast. Fear plagued her. Fear of the possibilities and of the unknown.

  Maybe if she considered all of this as research, she could handle it better. She was getting an inside look into a society that very few believed even existed. When this was over and she felt safe, she could return and write a number of papers on the subject. Maybe she could even get a grant from the college for some additional research.

  Somehow she’d have to figure out a way to bring back scientific proof though. Otherwise she’d be viewed as batty. Maybe something existed in her own blood…

  If she did manage to prove her demon genetics, she’d have to publicly admit the truth about herself. She didn’t know if she’d ever be ready to do that. She didn’t want to be shunned because people believed her to be evil.

  Strong arms circled her waist from behind. “Are you all right?”

  She leaned back and took in Ashe’s strength and scent. Rugged. Addictive. “I don’t know.” She let out a heavy sigh. “Am I crazy?”

  “For accepting all this?”

  “Yes.”

  “You saw the proof.”

  “Yes, I did.” Not scientific, but witnessed with her own eyes nevertheless. “Are there any other surprises I should know about?”

  “Probably.” He kissed the side of her neck, letting his lips linger.

  She didn’t try to get away from him. Nor did she question him further, when that’s all he said. She felt safe in Ashe’s arms, now that she’d gotten over the shock of what he was. What she was.

  Regardless of their bloodlines, she believed he was a good man with a good heart. And she believed that about herself. From the beginning he’d wanted to save her. Maybe he needed saving too.

  She couldn’t even be mad at him for ripping apart her life like this. He hadn’t done it knowingly. Having to protect her had brought chaos into his life as well. He’d almost said as much, that he’d thought he could protect her just by fucking her, so she’d have his essence on her. Since that hadn’t worked, now he was submerged in her life for the long haul. Even so, he seemed to embrace the responsibility.

  “Do not worry.”

  With a gentleness that made her sigh, Ashe pulled open her robe and eased it off her shoulders. He obviously wanted her. Again. Something in her blood craved him too, even now when they should be thinking about escape. Given what she knew about her genetics, maybe that made sense. Or maybe it was just a convenient excuse for letting go of all her normal inhibitions.

  She turned in his arms and searched his eyes. So beautiful, even in their dark depths. So possibly deadly, if crossed. She had so many questions that she’d been hesitant to ask. But one question seemed more important than the rest.

  His eyes narrowed. “What is it, Dalila? What is troubling you so?”

  He’d seen right into her thoughts. He seemed more in tune with her than any other man she’d known, which was a true comfort. “Beyond the obvious?”

  He smiled slightly. “Yes.”

  “If I ask, you’ll be angry with me.” She didn’t fear him anymore, not on a personal level, but she also didn’t want to cause more conflict than they’d already had.

  The tense look on his face eased. “Never.” He caressed her arms.

  Despite her wariness of asking, she plunged ahead, needing to know for certain that neither of them would be changing into some sort of monster down the line. As a researcher, she knew better, but as a newly informed cambion, she harbored doubts. “Can a demon, or half demon or even part demon, like me, be good, or are we destined for darkness?”

  He paused before answering and dropped his hands to his sides. “I do not know, Dalila.”

  His answer shocked her. It was not what she’d expected or wanted to hear. Certainly he had some sort of an answer. He lived the life. She’d sensed his goodness and she believed herself to be good. But if a change was inevitable at some point, no matter what she believed, she needed to know.

  He seemed to sense how important his response was to her for he continued, albeit in measured words. “You are more human than demon, so for yourself, I would not worry. For me, perhaps my human half gave me a conscience. I would like to believe that I have enough goodness in me to fight any evil that would try to overtake me.”

  “Demons don’t have a conscience?”

  “No. But I do. I know the difference between right and wrong, Dalila. I know how to love.”

  Love. She gulped. A generalized statement, but still, every nerve ending inside her tingled.

  His hands resumed their journey and traveled up and down her body. “You do know that I care about you?”

  She did believe that. Before everything had gotten so crazy, they’d been building trust, a friendship, a growing attraction. Then everything went into fast forward, blender mode—churned up and melded into something she hadn’t recognized or ever expected. “Yes. I know.” She wanted to say that she cared about him too but he put his finger to her mouth before she spoke. Had he anticipated her words and hadn’t wanted to hear them? She wasn’t sure what to think about that.

  When Ashe leaned down to kiss her, only then did her thoughts truly ease. The two of them, and what they felt for each other, was something she could grab hold of. He must feel the same. She sensed it as a woman, even without scanning him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and put her trust completely in this man, this half demon, who said he knew how to love.

  In a show of possession that she desperately needed from him, his lips claimed hers. She pressed her nakedness against him. His bare chest against her breasts sent an explosion of sexual heat through her.

  Reluctantly she broke the kiss because she needed more than his mouth. She tore at his pants, wanting him naked. She intended to ravage him, so she could feel as if she had some control in her life. Besides, her body was on fire for him.

  He didn’t resist her and stepped out of his pants after she yanked them down.

  She dropped to her knees in front of him and took his already stiff cock in her hands. The velvety feel over the hard-as-steel shaft fascinated her. Drops of pre-cum on the wide, reddish head caught her attention and she leaned forward to lick them off.

  His fingers immediately tangled in her hair, not roughly or demandingly. He simply guided her to take his cock inside her mouth.

  She kissed the head of his cock, then slowly slid her lips over it as he urged. He groaned low in his throat, his pleasure obvious. She sucked softly as he massaged her scalp.

  His musky scent and taste filled her senses. She felt the tenseness in his body grow and pulled back before he came. She wanted them to come together.

  When she looked up, Ashe helped her to her feet. His hands cupped her face. “I will never let anything bad happen to you.” His mouth covered hers in a deeply tender kiss. When he pulled back, they both were breathless. “Let me make love to you.”

  Her voice caught in her throat and she nodded. This was the second time he’d said that to her and she had no doubts that his words came from the heart.

  He lifted her into his arms and carried her to the bed. Gently, he laid her down and lowered his body to hers. She wrapped herself around him as he slowly slid h
is cock into her pussy, one slow inch at a time, until he was buried deeply inside her.

  “Oh, Ashe…”

  His lips covered hers and he eased his tongue into her mouth. He began moving his hips slowly. She clung to him as they moved together. Joined as they were, somehow Dalila felt complete, as if Ashe were her other half. She knew that sounded starry-eyed, but her whole future seemed so clear to her now.

  Ashe plucked at her nipples until she tore her mouth from his. “Oh geez! I’m going to explode.”

  He rolled them over until she was on top, riding him. “Fuck me, Dalila.” He smacked her ass. “Forget about everything else but coming.” He slapped his hand down on her butt again. Once. Twice.

  “Oh!” The sting of the spanks drove her crazy with lust. She rode him hard, needing everything he could give her. She curled her fingers into his chest hair. “Yes, yes!”

  He reached up and twisted her nipples until she whimpered. “Ah fuck, your cunt contracts like a vise when I torture your tits.”

  “Oh, that feels good. Don’t stop!”

  Ashe grabbed her sides and rolled her over. “I need to come.”

  His hard body against her softness and the intensity in his eyes almost sent her over the edge. She raked her nails down his back, causing him to groan.

  He thrust into her repeatedly. “Come hard, mea domina.”

  The pleasure grew inside her, building and swirling, until it exploded in one huge orgasm. “Ashe!”

  “Fuck!” His body tensed as he came at almost the same time she did. “Yeah! Oh yeah.”

  After long moments of sheer ecstasy, they both slowly descended from their sexual high and relaxed beside each other on the mattress.

  Ashe reached out and touched her hand. She felt a small tear slide down the side of her cheek. She laced her fingers through his and let her eyes drift shut.

  Ashe heard Dalila’s even breathing and knew she slept. He squeezed her hand and suddenly his emotions slipped from his control. “I love you more than I ever thought possible,” he whispered in a barely audible voice.

  Earlier he had feared to hear those same words from her. To actually hear them, would have sent him to his knees. He already felt completely under this woman’s spell. Now was not the time to reveal that weakness to anyone. Not even to her. Still, he could not keep his words from flowing while she slept. “I will never leave you, Dalila, unless that is your wish. This I swear.”

  He looked toward the window. They would need to get out of here soon. As long as they kept moving, they could avoid the incubi. Maybe he could even find them some sort of sanctuary where they could stay put for a while. Somehow he would see to it that Dalila had a fulfilling life.

  She deserved that. They both did.

  * * * * *

  “I’m done packing.” Mentally ready for the journey ahead of her, Dalila took one last look around her bedroom as she and Ashe dressed.

  They hadn’t slept for long. Ashe wanted to leave as soon as the moon was no longer visible.

  She wondered what would become of her things. She grabbed a small stuffed bear and shoved him into her backpack.

  Would she even be remembered?

  She had no family left to worry about her. Her friends would wonder and gossip about her disappearance, no doubt, but then they’d go about their lives as if she never existed.

  After pulling on his shirt, Ashe disappeared for a few moments and then returned with his leather jacket. He grabbed her backpack off the floor and peered out the window toward the early morning sun.

  “We need to leave now. We will put as much distance between us and this town as we can before dark. Get to someplace that is not such a hot spot. A place with no portal to hell. That will make it harder for them to find us. Are you sure that you have everything you want to take?”

  She nodded and grabbed her favorite jacket.

  In silence, she followed Ashe to the front door. He left first, giving her a last moment to look back at the place she’d called home since she’d started teaching at the local college.

  She was going to miss her old life, though she didn’t feel the level of regret and sorrow that she’d expected. That was good, for somehow she knew that, no matter her perceived long-range plans, once she put this part of her life behind her, once she left this town with Ashe, she’d never be heard from again.

  Coming to terms with her future had somehow calmed her and new emotions were slowly beginning to take hold. Hope. Expectation. Even love.

  Softly, she closed the door and turned to join the man she’d come to trust and care for above all others. She clutched his arm and smiled up at him.

  “I’m ready, Ashe. Let’s go.”

  About the Author

  Ruth D. Kerce got hooked on writing in the fifth grade when she won a short story contest—a romance, of course. And she’s been writing romance ever since.

  She writes several subgenres of romance—historical, contemporary and futuristic. Her books are available online in many internet bookstores. Her short stories and articles are available on several websites. She has won or placed in writing contests and hopes to continue to write exciting tales for years to come.

  Ruth welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website and email address on her author bio page at www.ellorascave.com.

  Tell Us What You Think

  We appreciate hearing reader opinions about our books. You can email us at Comments@EllorasCave.com.

  Also by Ruth D. Kerce

  Adam 483: Man or Machine?

  Diamond Studs anthology

  Lord Viper

  One Naughty Winter Night

  Sins of Adaven

  Stripped

  Virgin Seeks Bad-Ass Boy

  Wanton Surrender

  Wanton Temptation

  Xylon Warriors 1: Initiation

  Xylon Warriors 2: His Carnal Need

  Xylon Warriors 3: Flames of Arousal

  Xylon Warriors 4: Ecstasy Bound

  Young Stud

  Discover for yourself why readers can’t get enough of the multiple award-winning publisher Ellora’s Cave. Whether you prefer e-books or paperbacks, be sure to visit EC on the web at www.ellorascave.com for an erotic reading experience that will leave you breathless.

  www.ellorascave.com