by Tina Gerow
She chewed deliberately as her thoughts turned back to her conversation with the seer, and she frowned. She’d spent her entire life not quite sure who she truly was and now in a handful of days she was supposed to suddenly smack her forehead and have some grand epiphany?
And yet, if she didn’t, Lerik and Max would die for failing to safeguard her. What choice did she have but to move forward and trust that things would work out all right in the end? After all, her confidence had already improved along with her assassin and healing abilities. The only thing holding her back was her fear that Lerik only wanted this body she’d borrowed and not the true woman beneath.
She smiled grimly as an idea formed. If Lerik knew the real woman underneath the hot body and stripper boobs, and accepted her, faults and all, then maybe she could put her fears behind her. Hell, it was worth a try, wasn’t it?
“Astiria, what troubles you? You seem sad.”
She glanced up from where she’d been staring into the fire, her half eaten hare suspended part way to her mouth. “Sorry, I was just thinking.” Laying the food aside, she licked the juices from her fingers and smiled when Lerik’s eyes darkened in response. If he ever could accept the real Astiria, then maybe she could be truly happy here, whether she was insane or not. She was sure there would be no lack in the horizontal extra-curricular activities department.
“Lerik, do you think we can take some time on this trip to get to know each other?”
His seductive smile zigzagged arousal through her veins, arrowing straight between her legs.
She shifted in her seat against the fallen log and held up her hands to keep him for reaching for her. “I meant talking. You know, getting to know each other—hopes, dreams, favorite colors, that sort of thing.”
His rumbling laugh answered her. “I would like that as well, Astiria. I know much about you from speaking with Max, but I realize you haven’t had the same time with me, what with recent events. What would you like to know?”
“You grilled Max about me?” All thoughts of her plan fled before her under the curiosity of what Max had told Lerik.
“He told me of your love of reading and of gargoyles.”
Heat flooded her face at the blatant revelation of her secret vices to this Adonis sitting before her.
“I didn’t know about it when I sent Max, but it seemed to work out well for all. Saile, the Seer, promised that whomever I sent would be successful since you and I were destined to be together.” He took a last swig of ale from the pouch on his belt before stretching out his long legs before him, and crossing them at the ankles. “Max also told me how unhappy you were in Earrath and of your past with the one you call, asshole ex-husband.” His eyes darkened with sudden anger, and his fingers tightened into fists. “It is a good thing I did not go into Earrath, for he would’ve paid dearly for treating you so callously.”
Shock slapped Astiria like a sudden open hand, and she decided to study her boots so she wouldn’t have to meet Lerik’s gaze. “I can’t believe Max told you all of that.”
Firm fingers found her chin and gently raised her face until her gaze was captured by his. “There is no shame in your past, Astiria. We all have one, even I. He was not worthy of you.”
The tenderness she saw in his gaze threatened to shatter her into a million pieces, and sudden panic surged through her. The small clearing closed in around her and she had to get away somewhere where she could breathe. She bolted to her feet and when he reached for her, she pushed her palms forward, and the now familiar pink tendrils of her stun spell snaked out to hit him squarely in the chest.
His grip loosened, and before he had time to recover, she turned and fled into the darkened forest.
Her feet had a mind of their own and carried her until her adrenaline ran out. Then finally, mercifully, she collapsed in a bed of pine needles on the forest floor and cried until sleep took her.
~~~
Astiria woke to the sounds of soft snoring beside her, mingled with the soft shushing of the wind playing through the tops of the pines. Even before she opened her eyes, she recognized the warm fuzzy lump she cradled in her arms as Max. She sat up slowly, careful not to wake her tiny protector and came face to face with Lerik, who sat watching over her.
She knew she should be embarrassed for her behavior last night, but she was too spent from crying to feel anything. Instead, she walked toward him, relief washing through her when he opened his arms and allowed her to sink into his embrace.
He smelled of forest and man, and she inhaled imprinting the scent into her memory. Grabbing two handfuls of his tunic, she allowed the comfort he offered to seep into her, until she found her voice. “I’m sorry, Lerik.” She wasn’t sure he heard her whispered words until he kissed the top of her head and stroked her hair.
“There is no need, Astiria. I realized that my intrusion into your past overwhelmed you. I have no excuse but that I have waited for so long for a woman like you. A woman who is caring, and loving, yet strong and resilient—a woman who is a force to be reckoned with and who can love me for something besides how I look or what I have…”
She stiffened in his arms and leaned back to look at him. Could it be true? That this man had the same fears she herself had? Instead, she asked, “How can you know any of that about me after only a few days?”
He traced a callused thumb over her bottom lip and searched her gaze. “You were brave under attack from Marsoon’s minions and even braver before his lies. You were willing to stop and heal me in the desert when you were still in danger, and you’ve shown nothing but tenderness and honesty toward both Max and myself, not to mention my damned opinionated wood-elf, Oopec.”
She opened her mouth to protest, and he placed a finger against her lips to silence her.
“I realize you and I are both attracted to each others’ outer forms, but attraction either increases or decreases as you get to know the inner person. And with each passing moment, I want you more, until each breath is labored when I’m in your presence.”
His words hit her like a blow, and she thought back over the past few days. She’d found that while Lerik could be stubborn, demanding and domineering, he could also be sweet, sensitive, vulnerable and playful. And he was right. The thought of leaving him tore her heart out.
She had to find a way to complete her coming of age quest and keep Lerik and Max safe. Without thought, she tipped her face up and kissed him, a gentle slow burn igniting between them. She threaded her fingers through his hair, dislodging the leather thong capturing his silky mane as his arms tightened around her, his fingers kneading her flesh.
The kiss broke, and Astiria leaned her forehead against Lerik’s. “I’m scared, Lerik. I’m scared of the same things you are. Scared that no one, not even you, can love the woman underneath. But you make me hope, and I think we need to stop wasting time and get me leveled.”
He chuckled, the sound reverberating through her body, tightening her nipples and causing her to sigh. “You’re right, of course, my Lady. Shall we?”
Chapter Six
For the rest of the day, Astiria followed Lerik as they trekked on toward the main portal, through jungles, through forests, through valleys and around lakes. Astiria practiced with her daggers and then with a short sword Lerik had brought, and managed to hit level ten in both healing and her assassin skills just as the sun touched the horizon, bringing dusk.
As the silvery column of light disappeared, elation flowed through her and she threw herself into Lerik’s embrace. “I did it. I really did it.”
“I had no doubts you would, Astiria. As I’ve said before, you are a fighter. My fighter.”
She grabbed his tunic pulling him down for a searing kiss, which smoldered and turned into something more tender and infinitely more precious. She’d reached level ten and was now a fully sanctioned adult by the terms of Verrath. She wasn’t about to waste time making her first adult decision. “I want you, Lerik,” she whispered against his lips.
&
nbsp; His dark chocolate eyes opened, and his searing gaze captured hers. “Are you sure?”
“For once in my life, Lerik, I’m absolutely sure. I want you…only you….”
He swallowed her last word inside his mouth as his lips captured hers, and he crushed her body against his. The heat from his skin burned through her, and she slipped her hands beneath his tunic, tracing the muscular planes of his chest. He growled deep inside his throat and picked her up, tossing her over his shoulder like he had the first day they’d met. Only this time, she laughed, a sense of freedom flowing through her like heady wine.
He pulled his bedroll from his saddlebags and spread it out over the soft sand of the lakeshore before gently setting her on her feet, her breasts rubbing against him all the way down. She reached back behind her neck to untie the top of her assassin leather armor, letting the leather fall away to reveal her breasts, the nipples peaking as the early evening air brushed over them.
Lerik’s breathing came in harsh pants, and an obvious erection strained at the front of his pants. “You’re so beautiful, Astiria. I want to see all of you.”
She slipped off her boots and then a few more opened ties allowed everything she wore to slide off her to pool around her feet. His molten gaze raked from her face, down over her breasts, to the patch of dark red hair between her thighs and then all the way down to her bare feet. He seemed rooted to the spot, as if she might disappear. The vulnerable look on his face almost undid her.
She stepped forward and pressed herself against him, laughing when his erection hardened impossibly against her stomach. “Am I going to be naked all by myself, or are you going to join me?”
As if her words had snapped his invisible chains of his control, he crushed her to him, his hands everywhere at once, and she allowed the fire of his need to consume her. The soft leather of his tunic and trousers against her naked skin felt forbidden and erotic, and she moaned as the material scraped over her heated flesh.
Lerik pulled his tunic over his head, dropping it to the forest floor before capturing her lips once again. The springy hairs on his chest rasped over her engorged nipples, causing a surge of moisture between her thighs, and she groaned as frustration burned through her at the clothing still between them. She fumbled with the laces on his trousers until his erection sprang free into her hand.
She wrapped her fingers around the width of him, her other hand cupping the soft sac below. Lerik growled, and in the next instant, she found herself on her back on top of Lerik’s bedroll, with his muscular body pinning her to the earth.
He gave her no time for thought or action before his lips and hands began a thorough inventory of every inch of her body. He scraped his teeth over a sensitive spot just above her right breast while his roughened hands explored her hip and stomach before sifting through the springy hair at her juncture. Heat spiraled through her as she traced the hardened muscles of his back and shoulders.
Another impatient growl and he captured her hands over her head as if her explorations had threatened his hard won control. His mouth closed over her breast as his fingers separated her feminine folds and delved inside. Sensations broke over her, threatening her sanity, and she couldn’t form coherent thoughts, she could only feel. She bucked against his fingers while she struggled against the iron grip of his hands, wanting to touch him, wanting to drive him as mad as he drove her.
He only continued his slow ministrations, slowly thrusting his blunt fingers inside her as he switched his attention to the other breast, sucking and laving until she thought she would scream.
His erection lay heavy against her hip, and she longed for him to replace his fingers with his thick cock. “Please…” She tried to say more, but the words wouldn’t form under the onslaught of the sensations. His thumb found her clit and slowly rubbed while he continued his slow torture with each thrust of his fingers. Her internal muscles clenched around him, and she bucked her hips seeking the release that he held just beyond her reach.
He bit down on one swollen nipple, pushing her over the edge, molten sensations flowing through her, stealing her breath. When her mind cleared, he knelt between her knees, his large hands cupped under her ass. Before her fuzzy mind registered what he was up to, he lowered his dark head and his tongue laved over her in one long swipe.
She gasped, and then he traced circles with his tongue on the soft underside of her clit, the sudden rush of arousal through her system almost sending her flying off the bedroll. But Lerik’s strong hands anchored her, her world narrowing to the fire each motion of his mouth brought.
When her breathing hitched, coming in short choppy pants, he shifted and slipped inside her. She gasped at the very full sensation of him filling her at last, and her heart melted when she looked up to see an almost reverent expression in his dark gaze.
He captured her mouth in a slow sensual dual of tongues, matching the rhythm set by their bodies. She reveled in the sensations of his springy chest hairs rasping against her sensitive breasts, while the scents of pine needles and earth rose thick around them.
The world spiraled down until it only included the two of them and this stolen moment of bliss. Astiria gave herself up to the moment, needing to meld her soul with Lerik’s in a way she didn’t quite understand. She wrapped her legs around his waist, changing the angle and making them both groan at the deep penetration. Sweat beaded on Lerik’s brow and she smiled as she wiped it away and nipped at his lower lip.
“Astiria…” He whispered her name as he drove into her with new urgency.
She grabbed his muscled ass in both palms to pull him fully inside with each thrust. The familiar tightening deep inside her womb heralded the beginning of her orgasm. “Let me feel you come inside me, Lerik. Make me yours…”
He growled against her lips as his urgency increased and he pistoned into her, driving her over the edge. She contracted around his thick shaft as pleasure flowed through her like warm honey. But he didn’t stop, he reached back to wrap one large hand around the back of her knee, bending her leg so he could drive himself even deeper inside of her.
She moaned and reached out to blindly grab the edge of the bedroll along with some pine needles, trying to anchor herself against the intense invasion. “God, yes. Lerik, please…”
“Look at me, Astiria.” His words came through gritted teeth as if he fought a hard battle for his control. “I want you to watch me while I fill you with my seed.”
The possessive words drove her over the edge and with the first contraction of her orgasm, his hot seed spilled inside her, filling her with warmth and love.
Love?
She pushed the thought away and ran her hands through Lerik’s hair, enjoying the weight of his body on hers.
There will be time for thought later. Now, there is only Lerik.
~~~
Max’s growl brought them both out of their reverie, and Lerik rolled off her, grabbing his sword and brandishing it over her. Fumbling through her discarded clothes, Astiria palmed both her daggers and looked around them for any sign of a threat.
Max bolted through a space between two trees, his teeth still bared. “Goblin army almost here. They march toward portal.”
“The portal?”
Lerik scowled and pulled on his trousers, tunic and boots. “If they can stop us before you enter the portal, you will be unable to complete the quest. You’ve reached level ten, but you must enter the portal to finish it.”
Astiria shrugged into her armor, pulling on her boots as she jogged up the hill after Lerik. “How far is the por…” Her words trailed off as she reached the top of the hill and saw it.
The portal pulsed in front of her looking like a writhing sphere of ectoplasm. It briefly reminded her of an old cartoon where a small white blob of goo called Shmoo was the main character. However, where Shmoo was cute, this portal looked as if it would swallow her whole—and according to the Seer, it just might.
“You must go through now, before they come.”
Taking a deep breath, she turned to Lerik. “No matter what happens…”
He closed the distance between them, cutting off her words with a savage kiss that scrambled her senses. When he pulled away, her eyes burned with unshed tears that threatened to overwhelm her.
“I love you, Astiria. That is all you need remember.”
Sounds of horses riding hard broke through the stillness of the forest, reminding her to hurry. But small fingers of doubt prodded her, and she threaded her fingers through Lerik’s silky fall of hair and pulled him close until his breath whispered across her lips. “Lerik. No matter what happens, please remember that I love you too. Always.”
His triumphant smile was enough to melt any woman within ten miles. This time his lips were gentle, a mere brush of flesh upon flesh, which threatened to crumble her shaky resolve.
Damn it! I know myself, and I’m happy with who I am now. So, why am I so worried about this?
“Astiria, portal turning colors!”
Max’s words broke her out of her thoughts. If she didn’t step through the portal, Marsoon would stop her and Max and Lerik would be in danger, not to mention she couldn’t officially finish her quest and come of age in Verrath, which would also condemn them.
It was time.
She ran her thumb across Lerik’s lips and smiled up at him, memorizing his every feature. Then she turned to Max and held out her arms. He scrambled up, throwing his tiny arms around her neck. “No worry, Astiria. You belong with us in Verrath.”
She brushed a kiss over his fuzzy cheek before handing him to Lerik. “Well, guess we’d better get this over with so we can go plan our joining.” Her words would’ve sounded confident if her voice hadn’t wavered. Damn.
