by Carly Fall
He sighed. Someone should be close to Faith. Like right next to her. He looked at Cohen who had his eyes on the dance floor. “She okay?”
Cohen just looked at him and rolled his eyes.
Rayner steeled himself and took a peek.
Holy Christ.
Faith was on the dance floor with the football dude, and another guy had come up behind her and started grinding his crotch into her behind. Faith pulled away a little, which put her closer to the football guy. In a second, she was sandwiched between the two, both of them bumping and grinding on her, their hands on her waist and ribcage, laughing, and taking a moment to slap a high five.
He didn't bother to see if she was enjoying it. He stood up from the table, and somewhere in the back of his mind he heard Cohen yelling at him to stop.
Ain't gonna happen.
He plowed through the crowd, thinking of all the ways he could kill those two. When he got to Faith, he pushed both guys away from her. She stared up at him, her big, brown eyes angry. He didn't care. No one, especially a couple of stupid human steakheads, got up on his Faith like that.
Both guys came back at him. “What the fuck, man?” the football guy said. Rayner noticed the crowd around them back up, giving them space for whatever was about to happen, but allowing for a front row view.
“Take a hike,” Rayner said loud enough so they could hear him over the music, his eyes never leaving Faith's. “Get out of here before I have to remove you myself.”
The guy who had come up behind Faith said, “You really don't want to mess with us.”
Rayner tore his gaze from Faith's face and looked at him. The guy was big, but Rayner guessed he had a good fifty pounds on him, not to mention centuries of training in the art of killing. “Do you really think that a couple of asshole football players scare me?”
“Rugby.”
Rayner rolled his eyes. “Bring it on, fucker. It's going to end the same way. And that's with you bloody, probably needing a few stitches.”
“Rayner,” Faith said loudly, putting her hand on his chest, “stop it.” He could tell she was angry, but trying to diffuse the situation.
He wanted both guys to throw a punch. He wanted it so badly he could practically taste the blood a split lip would give him. And then he would pound them into the ground, getting out all his frustration and aggression.
“Guys,” she said, putting her hands out to the sides as if she could stop the men if they came at Rayner. “Stop. Please. Just...we'll go this way, and you go that way, okay?”
The two men stared at Rayner for a second and then began backing away. “Pussy,” one said before he turned around.
With the situation diffused, the people on the dance floor turned their attention back to each other, ignoring Faith and Rayner.
Faith looked up at Rayner. “How dare you?” she hissed. Rayner could see the anger in her face. Her brown eyes were dark, vicious. “You are NOT my keeper, Rayner Johnson. Do you understand that? You have no say over what I do, or who I do it with. You...”
Rayner watched her lips move. The words were registering somewhere in the back of his mind, and he knew she was right. However, as he stood in front of her, watching her angry eyes, somewhat hearing the enraged words that she said, he felt his system going into high gear. Jesus, she got him cranked. Then she pointed a finger in his face while she yelled at him, and his cock was like a rock. An unbending, unyielding rock.
Something in him snapped, and he knew he was done. He let out a long breath, as if he had been holding it in for the past two days. He couldn't fight it anymore. He wanted Faith, but the snap also included another variable. The warrior focused on going home broke, and he felt like the drive and determination that had powered him all these years might never return. He wanted to have some fun. He wanted to get piss-ass drunk. He wanted to dance. She brought out that something in him that had been dormant for so many years. Decades. He wanted to live.
He felt alive.
He reached over, put his hand on Faith's neck, and began to pull her close. She resisted at first and hit his arm. He didn't remove his hand, but he stopped pulling on her. She yelled some more. Somewhere in there was a question, something about him understanding that she was her own person, and he nodded. If he could have spoken, he would have vowed to her that he comprehended every word she had said, but the words were stuck somewhere between his brain and mouth.
Her bluster seemed to deflate like a tire with a hole in it, and Rayner pulled her close. When they were body-to-body, similar as they were the night before, Faith said, “Don't. Don't do it unless you—”
His lips on hers stopped the conversation.
Sweet Jesus. They were soft, fluffy pillows that tasted like heaven. He assumed if he could eat heaven, this was how it would taste. Tequila. Spearmint. And raw female. A groan escaped him and landed in his throat.
Their lips moved over each other, their tongues dueling with lust and desire. He felt her hands snake around his neck, and he pulled her in tight, wrapping his arms around her tiny waist. Her breasts pushed tightly against his chest, and he wanted nothing more than to be skin to skin. That dream came back to him, and he knew it would be even more amazing with the real deal.
He pulled away. Yes, he wanted Faith. But he also wanted to live. He wanted to party. “Faith,” he growled, “will you dance with me? And don't say no.”
She threw her head back and laughed. When she met his eyes, he noticed that they sparkled with life and happiness. “Do I have a choice?”
Rayner exhaled and looked at the ceiling, then back at her. “Of course you do. But I would prefer it if you chose me.”
The smile faded and she gazed up into his eyes. She softly touched his cheek. “When you put it that way, I don't have a choice, Rayner. It's always going to be you.”
He pulled her close and buried his nose in her hair.
Body to body, they began swaying to the beat of their own music.
Chapter 36
Two hours later, Cohen and Hudson were nowhere to be found, which was fine with Faith. Her and Rayner sat in their booth, her head heavy with a tequila buzz, her lips being worked over by Rayner’s. He tasted so good. Better than she could ever have imagined. He was just so...manly.
He pulled away and tucked her closer to him under his big arm. She rested her head on the area between his chest and shoulder, then wrapped her arm around his waist. She saw the two boys she had been dancing with—and they were boys compared to Rayner—throwing her dirty looks every now and then, but whatever.
She had been okay dancing with the first guy, but she wasn’t happy when the second guy came up behind her and sandwiched her like that. She was just about to start pushing when Rayner walked up. Well, he didn't really walk; he bullied his way through the crowd toward her. She was relieved, but angry at the same time. Relieved that she wouldn't have to deal with the situation herself, but irritated that Rayner thought he had any say over what she did. And afraid of the fight that was brewing just below the surface of the three of them.
The kiss they had shared on the dance floor made her knees weak. Literally. She held his neck so she wouldn't collapse in a heap of swooning woman. Either that, or she would have wrapped herself around him. He did something to her that no other man ever had. When they were physically together, it was like an energy overtook her inner system, and that energy radiated outward as if she would burst. It was heat, flames, and an unrelenting ache.
“Do you feel like dancing again?” he asked.
She did, but she didn't. She was really happy just where she was. What she did want was some fresh air.
“Can we go for a walk?” she asked lazily.
He nodded and motioned their server over. “My friends and I will be back,” he said loudly over the music. He slid a twenty across the table toward her. “Here's a little something to keep the table for us.”
She nodded. “Got it. Saw one of your friends head into the bathroom with three women. M
y guess is he won't be lasting long.”
Rayner smiled. “You'd be surprised.”
She laughed and placed a small sign that said “reserved” on the table. “Your table's safe.” And she moved on.
Faith felt herself rock in her heels and held on tightly to Rayner's arm. As they exited the club, she felt a blast of cold, which helped her to get her wits about her. They strode down the street silently, and she noticed that she took one-and-a-half steps to one of his.
“What changed?” she asked.
He smiled. “Nothing. Nothing changed, Faith. When I saw what those two guys were doing to you...well, it made me go just shy of complete lunacy. And then, frankly, you...just wore me down.”
They walked in silence for a moment. “Well, I'm glad.”
He stopped and turned to her. “Faith, it doesn't change anything. You still need to go home tomorrow. It's still...dangerous. You and I can't...we can never be...”
A man bumped into Rayner, apologized, and quickly moved on. Faith noticed how Rayner put himself in between her and the intruder. She smiled sadly at him. “I know, Rayner. I don't know your reasons, and I know you aren't going to tell me. But we still have a few hours left tonight, so we may as well enjoy them. Together. And we'll deal with the goodbye tomorrow.”
He drew her to him and kissed her forehead, not saying a word. They walked a couple more blocks, and Faith couldn't help but notice how Rayner was scanning the area, looking at each person as if he were memorizing faces. He was definitely on high alert.
“Ready to head back?” he asked.
She nodded. Her head was clear and she felt revived. She was ready for round two.
“Let's do it,” she said as they turned around.
Chapter 37
Was it really going to be this easy?
Charles couldn't believe his luck as he followed Faith and the Warrior down the street. He had been out and about looking for other redheads to present to Diego. He highly doubted he would see Faith again, but here she was, right in front of him.
What were the odds of that? He guessed somewhere near zero.
He smiled to himself as he followed them. Charles had gotten his ass chewed by Diego about losing Faith. Being talked to like that, especially by a human, wasn't easy to take. He knew that if he had been in the same room as Diego, he would have killed the guy.
He overheard the Warrior say something about Faith going home. Home, as in back to her apartment? Well, he would just have to follow and find out. He wasn't going to do anything about snatching Faith with the Warrior around. He wanted a clean take-down, and if he tried with the Warrior around, there was going to be spilled blood. He preferred it not be his.
He thought about taking out his knife and stabbing the Warrior right then and there, but decided there were too many people around. The Warrior would fight; the good Samaritans would call the cops...definitely not a great plan.
So he would do what had to do, which was wait until the time was right to snatch her again.
He almost ran into the back of the Warrior as he and Faith suddenly stopped in the street.
"Excuse me," he mumbled quietly, putting his head down. The Warrior had put his body in between him and Faith so she couldn't see him. He wondered if she would recognize him. She had only seen him for a few seconds, so he doubted it.
He continued walking down the street, a little lift in his step.
Diego will be pleased to have his chosen one.
Chapter 38
Rayner came awake suddenly. His eyes flew open, unsure if everything had been a dream. Then he felt an arm snake around his waist followed by a content sigh.
He smiled and grabbed the hand.
No, it hadn't been a dream. Reality had treated him to the best night of his life here on Earth.
He closed his eyes and thought about everything that had happened.
After their walk, they had headed back to the bar and they’d hit the dance floor. He had marveled at the way her body gyrated against his as they moved together, the loud beats of the music pounding in his ears, vibrating his body.
Or maybe the vibrations were from Faith. That was definitely a possibility.
After an hour they had met back up with Hudson and Cohen. More drinks flowed. More dancing. More of him and Faith moving against each other, hands exploring, lips moving, bodies twisting.
He remembered when Cohen had tapped him on the shoulder while he was in a sweaty entanglement on the dance floor with Faith.
“Time to move, man,” Cohen had said.
“Fuck off, Cohen.”
“Wish I could. It's last call.”
Rayner remembered he had wrapped his huge body around Faith and kissed her deeply.
He got out of bed and headed for the shower. Oddly enough, he wasn't hungover. Just really tired. Rolling in at 3:00 a.m. could do that to a male. He turned on the hot jets and stepped under them, letting the water pound his face, bracing himself against the wall with his hands.
However, that wasn't all that was doing last night. Once they got back to the silo, he and Faith had headed to his quarters. They had slowly undressed each other. Hands that had once been roaming over clothing were slowly exploring blessed bare skin.
They had fallen into bed, taking their time. It wasn't a hurried exploration, but more of a determination on each of their parts to know every inch of the other.
Her pink nipples had beckoned him, and he answered with his tongue, his lips. He had licked a trail from her belly button down to her sex, planted a kiss on her inner thigh. He wanted to dive into her core, but held back. Instead, he had peppered her legs with kisses all the way down to her toes.
She pulled him back up so that they were face to face, his erection lying devastatingly close to her warm center. He could not, would not, go there. He had to maintain his SR44 form. Had to.
He rolled, pulling her on top of him, her hair caging them in red fire. He wondered what it would look like in the red glow of his eyes, which reminded him that the contacts were bugging the shit out of him.
As she had straddled him, her wet core settling on his stomach, he ached. His bones hurt from the want and desire traveling through him...the flames, hotter than the color of her hair that licked through his body. He looked at the glow on his skin of his SR44 form. He closed his eyes for a moment, getting a grip on himself. It always surprised him when a human female couldn't see his SR44 form that shimmered on his skin when he had sex.
When he was certain his SR44 form wasn't going anywhere, he opened his eyes and took one of her breasts in each hand, slowing running his thumbs over each nipple.
“I love these,” he had whispered. “I love how they fill my hand. Almost overflow them. They're perfect for me.”
When she stood up, his erection was ready to impale into her, but he held her in place. Good God, he had wanted nothing more than to slide into her slick sheath, but he couldn't. “I can't Faith. No.”
She moved off him and lay by his side. “Why? I'm on the pill. I'm clean. You aren't?”
He had stroked the soft skin of her cheek. “No. I'm clean. I just...can't. Please, Faith. Let me love you in other ways.”
Her eyes had flared, not certain what he’d meant.
“Let me show you,” he said quietly.
He was on top of her quickly, buried between her legs, lapping at her core as if he had just traveled through the desert without water for a month. He slid a finger into her heat, making her gasp and her back arched off the bed.
“Yesss, Rayner,” she had hissed as she grabbed his hair with both hands. “Yeeessss.”
That was all he needed to hear.
Two orgasms later, he had wiped his lips with the back of his hand and slowly made his way up her body, stopping at her breast for a little taste. He never knew himself as a breast man, but then he had never met Faith. Actually, he could spend hours exploring every inch of her, over and over. So he guessed that made him...a man of Faith.
&nb
sp; She had quickly turned the tables, her mouth finding the gold hoops through his nipples, and the way she gently tugged on them with her teeth…he was so fucking happy he had kept them in. Each pull shot a bolt of energy through him, every single one landing at the tip of his cock.
She had worked her way down his body as he had done on hers, but when he felt a soft lick at his tip, his hips had bowed off the bed, a groan letting loose. When he had looked down and seen her hair spread out all over him, her big, brown eyes staring up at him with a naughty glint, her lips around his...
Yeah, last night had been amazing. More than amazing. Phenomenal. No, even more than phenomenal. What was better than phenomenal? Shit, he didn't know. All he knew was that it had been the best night of his existence. Period. He had worried about losing his SR44 form as he watched it shimmer above his skin. He had experienced pleasure, but he and Faith hadn’t had intercourse. Never having been in love, just having sex with women, he hadn’t seen his SR44 come out during the act very often. Last night it had hovered above his skin like a red fog almost all night.
He thought about what had to be done today. He needed to drive Faith home and say goodbye. Then he had to come back here and continue on with his existence that he didn't realize was so miserable until he met Faith.
His mind spun as he tried to come up with options to make it work between the two of them. There were just too many roadblocks in the way, both of his own doing and of the reality of the situation.
He imagined telling Faith exactly what he was. And let’s just say that the conversation went well and she was okay with everything and wanted to be with him. He would have to give up his SR44 form in order to do that, because he sure as shit would want to make love to her over and over again. If he made love to the woman he loved, he could kiss his SR44 form goodbye. He would begin aging as humans did, and he certainly would never get home to his family and his beloved forest. He didn't think he was on board with that. What if he gave up his SR44 form and then he and Faith didn't last? That would put him in a terrible position of a human male with SR44 tendencies without his mate. He would be an empty vessel with no chance of getting home. Hell, just thinking about it made him want to put a bullet in his own head.
