Charisma

by Wendy Stone

  “Did something bad happen there?”

  “My foster mom was kind, I guess you could say. But she had so many kids and her husband wasn’t the nicest man to be around. The first time I opened my mouth to sing, they started looking at me like I was some kind of freak.”

  She was spooning soup into her mouth almost as fast as she had the salad. When she saw Kadian watching her, she dropped her spoon. “I’m sorry,” she whispered, feeling the blood rush to her face. “I guess I don’t know how to eat in a place like this?”

  “You’re fine,” Kadian said, reaching out and covering her fisted hand on the table with his warm one. Charisma almost gasped at the heat she felt, the attraction, and the need to have that hand touch her again. It was almost a physical pain and she slipped her hand out from under his.

  “I’m sorry,” he said this time. “Did I hurt you?”

  “N-no,” she said breathlessly. “It…It felt good to have you touch me. Too good. If it feels so good, shouldn’t it be wrong?”

  “Who taught you that?” he asked, his eyes on hers.

  “Well, being on the streets makes you wonder when stuff just comes your way. You’re helping me and I don’t know why. You’re treating me to a meal in a swanky place like this and don’t expect anything out of it. You’ve taken me to a place with nice people who seem to care about you and about me and I don’t know why?” She inhaled, having spoken so quickly that it had all come out in one big rush.

  “Charisma, hasn’t anyone just cared about you?”

  “Not since my momma died,” she said, her fingers pleating the fancy tablecloth as she looked down into her lap. She felt uncomfortable under his jade colored gaze, as if he could see inside of her and knew the terrible things she’d done to survive. It made her mad thinking that she should be sorry for killing the men who wanted to take her to Hood. Hood’s agenda for her would be that of pet. He would keep her for what she could do, sing. He’d want to use her voice, for what good it could do him. “Hood, he wanted me to…”

  “I can guess what Hood wanted from you,” Kadian interrupted. “I’m not going to allow him to hurt you, Charisma,” he said softly, reaching out to find her hand again. He held it gently, twining his fingers with hers.

  Charisma felt her face flaming again as he held her hand up, letting his long, strong fingers slide between her own. Her heart thumped hard in her chest, as if trying to escape and she felt a strange stirring between her thighs. “I don’t know what to say to you,” she whispered fiercely. “You touch me and I feel so weak and so hot, all at the same time. You’ve rescued me and you don’t even know me. Why are you doing this?”

  “Because,” he said, “I touch you and I want to keep on touching you until you’re writhing under me in passion. I can’t help it if I want to take care of you. You’ve wriggled your way under my skin and I don’t want to let you leave.” He watched her face, knowing that his words had touched a chord in her. Her fingers trembled where he held them before closing over his skin. Her thumb traced a line across the back of his hand, sending sensations of need until he could feel his cock hardening in his pants. He hadn’t had a woman affect him like this, and this quickly, ever.

  “Are you still hungry?” he asked softly.

  “N-no, but you’ve ordered all this wonderful food…”

  Kadian signaled to the waiter and he came hurrying over. “We want to take the rest home, please wrap it up and bring me the bill.”

  “There’s no bill, sir. Your meal is on the chef tonight.”

  “Tell the chef I said thank you.”

  “I will, I’ll be right back with your bag, sir.” He picked up the soup bowls and hurried toward the kitchen.

  “Will you go someplace with me?” Kadian asked Charisma.

  “Where?” she asked breathlessly. His thumb was brushing against the sensitive skin of her wrist and distracting her.

  “I could tell you, but I think I’d rather show you instead. If you’ll trust me?”

  She nodded, her voice too raspy to risk answering. He got up, letting go of her hand only long enough to slip her sweater over her arms. Taking the bag the waiter brought, he led her outside and to the back of the restaurant where they’d parked. Helping her into the car, he quietly closed her door before quickly going around and getting into his own seat. The bag of food was put in the back seat, where it perfumed the car with its spicy aroma.

  Shoving the gear shifter into first, he started the car and slowly pulled out. Having borrowed one of Lukah’s cars, he cursed his choice of a manual transmission instead of an automatic. Quickly driving along the shoreline, he parked the car, getting out and grabbing a blanket from the trunk. Then he went to her door, opening it and helping her out.

  “You might want to leave your shoes in the car,” he said.

  He held her hand while she balanced to get her shoes off and then closed the door. They headed down the long line of sandy beach to a place above the water line, where they could sit and watch the moon rise over the lake.

  He spread the blanket out, helped her sit down and then dropped beside her. She lifted a handful of sand, letting it sift slowly through her fingers. “I’ve never been to the beach before,” she said. “I always thought sand would be coarser, not so soft.”

  “Some are softer,” he said. “There are black sand beaches in Hawaii where the lava rocks have ground down through the years until it’s like walking on baby powder.”

  “Black sand?” she asked, her eyes on the way the water washed against the shoreline.

  “Yes, I could take you there someday,” he said. “You’d love Hawaii.”

  “Did you like it there?” she asked, turning her head to look up at him.

  “I did, but it was a little bit bittersweet.”

  “Bittersweet? Why?”

  Her eyes were on his and he felt the strong urge to kiss her once more. “I was alone on an island that seemed perfect for lovers. There are so many trails to walk and beautiful island waterfalls. The flowers, even the touristy things seem to revolve around couples.”

  “Waterfalls?” she asked, her eyes lightening.

  “Oh yeah, I found one that if you climbed a few of the rocks behind it, there was a cave you could go into.”

  “The water was like a door?” she asked.

  “Yes.” He cleared his throat, drawing her attention.

  “Charisma?” he whispered. “If I were to kiss you right now, would you think I wanted to be like Hood?”

  He heard her gasp and saw her breasts moving against the thin material of her dress. Her nipples were hard, pressing against the material. “No,” she said softly, her eyes on his lips.

  “No, you don’t want me to kiss you, or no…”

  “No, I won’t think you’re like Hood. You are nothing at all like him. His eyes are dead,” she said, her fingers moving over his cheek, touching the roughness of the stubble on his face. “Yours are warm and alive.”

  He took a deep breath. Her voice, and the tentative way she touched him, made him feel too clumsy when it came to touching her. Like a bull in a China shop, a cliché that a man who sometimes had to deal with wings could totally understand. “You’ll tell me if I hurt you?” he asked, his eyes on the soft pink bow of her mouth.

  Her lips parted and her pink tongue slipped out, moistening her lips. Then his mouth was on hers, tentative and gentle. He barely grazed her lips, brushing over them again and again until she made a frustrated noise and fisted his hair in her hands, drawing his mouth down to hers. He feasted upon her mouth, teasing the corners with his tongue until she opened under him.

  Charisma found herself on her back on the blanket and wasn’t quite sure how she got there. But she didn’t want to leave. Kadian was laying against her, his mouth a fiery brand upon her own. She didn’t want him to stop. Her arms snuck around his neck holding onto him and playing with the soft tendrils of hair that teased her fingers.

  When he grew bolder, his tongue dipping between
her parted lips, she could only sigh and meet his tongue with her own, rubbing against it until it felt as if he were igniting sparks of sensation all over her body, though his hands hadn’t left her side. He groaned and she felt it tremble through her, adding to an inferno between her thighs that was driving her mad.

  He lifted his head slowly, his eyes taking in the reddened skin, the swollen lips and the almost shocked expression in her eyes. “What’s wrong?” he asked, kissing her nose and then her lips again, lightly.

  “My stomach feels strange,” she answered honestly.

  “Strange? Strange how?”

  “Like all fluttery and hot and I’m shaking but I’m not cold, not in the least.” Charisma pressed her hand to Kadian’s chest, not hard enough for him to move but keeping him where he was. “I liked kissing you,” she said.

  He smiled. “I liked kissing you too,” he said, his hips flexing to press against her thigh. “I’d like to do it again.”

  Charisma smiled, her hand slowly sliding down his stomach toward the top of his jeans. She heard his soft groan mix with the sound of the waves and the crickets singing in the grassy part up by the car. A warm breeze blew gently against her and she let him press down against her, trapping her hand against him. His lips were warm, insistent, and passionate, parting hers and kissing her until a moan sprang free.

  He rolled until she lay atop of him, letting her feel the ridge of flesh that grew inside the borrowed pants he wore. Her lips slid down his throat, her tongue coming out to taste his skin. She could feel him shaking against her.

  “Are you cold?” she asked, lifting her head to touch his face with her hand.

  “Anything but,” he said, his eyes meeting hers. “You do this to me, Charisma.”

  “I make you shake?” she asked and then smiled.

  Her smile was almost feline. He took her chin in his hand. “Don’t look too smug, little one.”

  “Kadian?”

  His hands slid down her back to her hips, cupping the softness of her firm bottom before he replied. “Yes, baby?”

  “Are you trying to seduce me?”

  “Would you mind if I were?” he replied, running his hand up the small of her back until he reached her shoulders.

  The sweater she wore was hampering him and he found the ties, pulling them free and pulling the sweater off her arms. Her hands came down, steadying herself even as she felt the heat of his hands on her back.

  “I guess I’d hoped there’d be more of a commitment between me and the man who seduced me,” she said huskily. She sat up, straddling his stomach, her dress around her slender thighs. Her legs were bare, soft and silky feeling.

  The soft wind blew her hair, the curls falling over her shoulders even as she tried to push them back. He stared up at her, his body aching with desire, and finding her so beautiful, he could hardly touch her.

  “Does that mean you don’t want me to make love to you?” he asked, his fingers creating designs on her legs. “I won’t, if you don’t want me to.”

  “It’s my choice?” she asked, surprised.

  “Charisma, you make it sound as if I’d force you. Nothing, and I mean nothing, will happen between us that you don’t want to happen.”

  “Then if I asked you to take me back to Lukah’s home and make love to me?” she asked softly.

  “I’d carry you to the car and we’d go to Lukah’s. If you don’t want me touching you, I’ll sleep in the tub. It’s up to you, baby.”

  Charisma seemed to think it over, then her arms moved slowly to the thin straps that held her borrowed dress up. Sliding them off her arms, she let the top of the dress fall to where it caught on her waist. Her skin was startling white in the light of the moon. Dappled shadows played across her flesh, both hiding and showcasing the small pink nipples that topped her breasts.

  She seemed to be waiting for him to say something, holding her breath as she anticipated his scorn.

  “You’re so beautiful,” he said softly, his hand rising to cup the barely there flesh.

  “I’m too small,” she said, dipping her head so that her hair covered her face.

  “No, you’re perfect,” he said, drawing her down and holding her where his mouth could reach one pearled pink tip. He suckled her, opening to take as much as he could inside. She whimpered in pleasure, wanting more and he gave it, rolling her to her back to come up between her thighs. Her hands were in his hair, holding him to her breasts as she arched under him. When he let one tip go, his fingers played, twisting and pulling on it as he nuzzled lower, his mouth open over the small ladder of her ribs, nibbling on her skin while she giggled at the touch.

  “You’re tickling me,” she said, grabbing his head. He got up on his knees, taking hold of the dress. “Rise up,” he said softly. When she obeyed, he pulled the dress off her long legs, his eyes falling to her bare loins.

  Her slender stomach flared out to sexy lush hips, topped with curly red hair on her mound. His eyes rested on that sight for a moment before going to her face and raising an eyebrow in question. “I’m homeless,” she said. “Underwear isn’t usually a big deal for me.”

  “I’m glad I didn’t know this before dinner,” he growled, yanking off his borrowed shirt. “I’d have been hard pressed to keep my hands off you.”

  “And now that you do know?” she teased, though he could hear the insecurity in her tone.

  “Charisma, you’re likely to give me a heart attack. I’m going to be imagining this every time I see you, no matter what you’re wearing.” His fingers brushed over the soft curls before sliding between and caressing the outside lips of her pussy.

  She gasped, her legs going limp. Her hands reached for him, dragging him down. “Kiss me,” she begged before pulling his mouth to hers.

  Her lips were hot, her tongue eager as it slid into his mouth. He groaned at her taste, her kiss making him forget everything but the touch of her lips on his. “You are a siren,” he whispered against her lips. “I need you.”

  His fingers explored, finding her wet and hot, her clit hard against his finger. He heard her moan and felt her tense beneath him. He slowed his touch, playing with her clit until she shuddered. Then and only then did he go to the opening of her core. He slid one finger in, gasping at how tight she was. His finger moved and he watched her face, seeing her wince just a bit. “You’re a virgin, aren’t you?”

  “Y-yes,” she whispered.

  The dragon inside of him roared. She was virginal. How long had it been since he’d tasted the blood of a virgin? It was the sweetest of flavors, one almost impossible to resist. He slowly removed his finger, sliding down her body, his lips pushing her pleasures higher and higher until she moaned and thrashed under him, unable to think of anything but him She gasped as she saw him between her thighs. He stared at her, his tongue slowly lapping at her wetness. As she watched, she saw his eyes change. No longer human, he stared at her with the eyes of the dragon.

  His tongue changed as well, growing thinner, more agile, slipping into her to lap at her virginal core.

  “What are you doing, Kadian?” she moaned, feeling the tickle of his fingers on her clit. Then she felt his hands move, his finger pushing into her, opening her, ripping through her virginity. His tongue was there, lapping at the blood that came from the torn hymen, driving himself to the edge of madness as he tasted her innocence.

  When he rose over her, he was fully man again, his eyes gentle and apologetic. “I’m sorry, Charisma. That was a terrible thing for me to do. My kind used to exist on the blood of virgins. But that blood is hard to find. When you told me you were, I couldn’t resist a taste of that sweetness just once more. Are you all right?” he asked, brushing her hair off of her forehead.

  “Yes,” she said. She could feel his cock, hard and insistent, throbbing against her through the thin barrier of his pants. “Now that I’m no longer a virgin…” she slid her hand down his back, using her nails to tease him.

  “You want more?” he asked, gri
nning.

  She nodded, her fingers reaching for the fastening of his pants. She undid them, slowly unzipping him and pushing them down. He helped her, ridding himself of his pants and then rubbing the head of his cock in her wetness before slowly pressing inside of her.

  “Oh,” she gasped as he stretched her. “That’s not your finger.”

  “No,” he managed to smile, though the clasp of her core on his cock was making him want to plunder and ravage. “Definitely not my finger. You’re okay?”

  “Yes,” she said, shivering in pleasure. “I feel…full,” she said finally.

  “You aren’t,” he said, “not yet.” He moved atop her, pushing slowly until he was firmly inside of her, stopping and letting her get used to him.

  “Is that it?” she asked, sounding a bit disappointed.

  Kadian laughed, he couldn’t help it. “No, baby that’s not all. Hang on to me,” he growled, his mouth nipping at the skin of her throat. He began to stroke inside of her creating a friction that made her head spin.

  “Oh,” she said, her head falling back against the blanket. Soon she was meeting his thrusts with her own, her nails scoring his back as her whole world focused on that one spot where they joined. Her breath was raspy and harsh. Her hands grabbed at him, wanting more and still more and getting it.

  He couldn’t believe how wild she’d become, her every moan and cry like a melodious song to the stars above her. She held him tightly, demanding more, demanding everything he had to give.

  The pleasure was spellbinding. Her body moved under him, dancing with every move of his. She gave and he took, she moved and he countered, he thrust and she cried out his name. His body slammed into hers and he felt her tighten, felt the rain of her passion drench his cock with the sweetness of her spending. That heat and wetness, the knowledge that he was her first, her only, it sent him over the edge and he filled her with his seed, spurting until he felt hollowed out by the pleasure she gave him.

  Rolling off her, he stared at the cloudless sky, the stars dancing above him. His hand sought out hers and he held onto it as if worried that she would leave him. “Charisma,” he panted, turning his head to stare into her sweet green eyes. “I think I’m falling in love with you.”