by J C Gordon
Caleb could feel the tenseness in her body and he slowly pulled his lips away from hers and trapped her gaze with his. “Relax, Rhianna,” he whispered softly. “I won’t hurt you, I promise. I take no satisfaction from sex if the woman beneath me is not enjoying it just as much as I am.”
She stared at him with wide lavender eyes, her trepidation plain to see. “You’re too big,” she whispered back. “It’ll hurt.”
He sighed and sat up, resting on his knees, and pulling her up with him until she was astride him, his amber gaze intent in her face. “Did someone hurt you?” he asked softly, correctly guessing the reason for her sudden fear. He saw the answer in the way that her eyes turned away quickly.
“I’ve only done this once before,” she heard herself say, flushing with embarrassment when she realised she’d just blurted it out.
Surprise crossed his face and his eyes narrowed slightly. “Why?” he asked in a gentle, almost hypnotic voice.
“I wasn’t very good at it,” she answered, flushing a darker shade of pink and biting her lip nervously. Would he send her away now that he knew she was a disappointing lover? The thought of going home, going back to the world that she so desperately wanted to stay away from almost made her burst into tears.
Caleb felt a stirring of rage deep within him. He found himself feeling strangely angry that a man had hurt this beautiful woman in such a way that she was now afraid of her sexuality and the pleasures to be found by joining with a man.
Only a very inept lover would leave a woman feeling she was inadequate in bed, he knew that from years of experience. This stunning woman had given the precious gift of her virginity to some man and been left wanting at the end of the experience because of his ineptitude.
“We are all novices at the start, sweet one,” he breathed softly, stroking his fingers lightly over her neck. “The true art of lovemaking is the choosing of your partner so they can teach you the joy of expressing yourself openly and with passion. It sounds to me that you erred in your judgement when you chose your first lover.”
She blinked slowly at him, feeling a slight smile tug at her lips. He sounded so condescendingly arrogant in his statement. He was obviously trying to make her feel better, but was doing a piss-poor job of it. It was almost as if this sensual man knew the art of making love but had no concept of the emotions behind it. It was as if he viewed it as a skill he ticked off; one that he was proficient at. It made him kind of endearing, and it didn’t stop her wanting him.
“Trust me,” Caleb whispered, and then gave into the temptation to lick against the raging pulse in her neck. She shuddered at his touch, another sexy moan leaving her lips, and he suckled harder, fighting the urge to bite deep.
Rhianna moaned again, feeling her fear evaporate as her desire rose swiftly once more. She was aching to feel him slide deep inside her, to have him move within her and stroke her erotically. She shouldn’t be responding to him like this, she was confused by her reactions, and the fact that she was actually naked in his sitting room, waiting for him to claim her.
Moreover, it would be a claiming. It would be outright possession and she knew it. Making love with Caleb would be like nothing she had ever experienced before and probably never would again after this one night.
“So exquisite,” he murmured softly, stroking a long finger slowly against her cheekbone. His amber eyes were burning with desire, his jaw clenched as if he were struggling to hold himself back.
She shivered in pleasure, her breath rushing out in a harsh gasp. “Can you teach me, Caleb?” She wanted so badly to know the pleasure he’d hinted at earlier. She was certain that he was the correct choice of lover to show her what her body was capable of experiencing.
His eyes flared brightly, his lips curling sensually. “Did you really think your statement would make me change my mind about having you?” he asked with a hint of incredulity in his voice. “Rhianna, you won’t be leaving this house until I have pleasured you into exhaustion.”
The stark promise in his words made her stomach flip over and her breath rush out loudly. The heat in his eyes was an inferno, and his hand was suddenly at the nape of her neck, pulling her towards him. He stopped when their lips were a hairsbreadth apart.
“I’ll show you pleasure you’ve never dreamed existed,” he breathed against her lips.
Then he kissed her and she forgot who she was. His lips slanted over hers, his tongue brushing her lower lip boldly before slipping inside her mouth to taste her leisurely. She moaned into his mouth, her tongue reaching to taste him as he was tasting her.
Caleb’s head spun as their lips touched, and lust coursed through his body. He had never tasted a woman so intoxicating before. Her lips were so soft, her tongue hesitant against his but quickly becoming bolder as she surrendered to his kiss. He was instantly caught in a dual lust. His fangs threatened to elongate and he had to fight his bloodlust hard to prevent her finding out what he was.
One kiss and he was at the edge of his control. Her mouth was more delicious, more deadly to his senses than the sweet taste of her body he had already indulged in. It was astounding that this woman could bring him, an Ancient, to the point of almost revealing his race by such a simple touch. Nevertheless, she was and his instincts were kicking in wildly, his hand tightening around the back of her neck.
He was an Ancient of his people, but he was also a Council Enforcer, called upon to take on Assignments to protect their race when humans came too close to discovering their existence. He was proficient in the art of mind control, slipping into fragile human minds and steering them from the course they were on. However, sometimes that skill was worthless. Sometimes more direct methods were required when a human had a natural shield that prevented him from using his abilities. When that occurred he had to use other means to protect his people. Violent means.
Caleb Ryder could kill with no hint of remorse. He had done so before, and would most probably do so again. A human life was a small price to pay to keep his people safe. He took no pleasure from the killing, but he felt no guilt for it either. Vampires didn’t have emotions. Not for humans or Weres. They could form deep attachments to their own kind but the other races meant nothing to them. Weres were despised and humans were simply food and sexual release.
If a vampire became attached to a human then they Sired them into their race. On a very odd occasion, they would leave them human and choose to take them under their protection, but that practice was almost non-existent now. Humans had such short life spans none of his kind were willing to suffer the pain of losing them when they died after a few short decades.
The woman in his arms was threatening his control. He was seconds away from revealing himself to her and endangering his race. His thoughts were clouded, too disjointed to test her mind to see if she was one of the compliant ones. His fingers tightened fractionally around her nape. One little burst of strength and her neck would break, snapping like a twig.
Caleb realised what he was doing and slowly released his hold on her, easing back and taking a deep breath as he fought to get his feral side under control. He was better than this. He didn’t go around losing control like a new-born Youngling. What was it about this woman that affected him so much?
A few deep breaths and he was in control again, his feral nature hidden deep within himself. He was reluctant to destroy the innocent creature before him. She piqued his interest, and stirred his blood as no other.
He could slip into her mind now his control was back, and yet he didn’t. He was afraid to in case he found she was a natural shield. If he discovered that then his choices would be taken from him. No, he had to maintain the cold discipline he was famed for.
He stared into Rhianna’s face for a long moment and then he kissed her again slowly.
This time his control held, and he savoured her softness, running his hands slowly down her body until he cupped her breasts gently. Relief washed through him, followed swiftly by the deep hunger she spurred in him
. Slowly and methodically, he teased her to arousal, brushing his thumbs over her taut peaks until she cried out softly and shivered against him.
His lips trailed over her heated flesh, sliding lower as he kissed every inch of her creamy white skin, licking and nibbling as she moaned softly and clutched at his shoulders. His natural dominance loved how she clung helplessly to him. It was a primal thing, so intrinsically male that it spanned all races, human, vampire and Were. Having a woman submit to the pleasure a man gave them brought out the predator in a man, he became the hunter, and the female became the prey.
The beautiful redhead under his hands was indeed his prey, and he intended to mark her delectable body so all others would know he had claimed her. The thought surprised him, and he stiffened for a moment, before her sweet scent captivated him again, and he continued down her body.
Rhianna surrendered to his touch, her hands sliding down to his chest as his fingers stroked her body relentlessly. His muscles contracted under her fingers, a low animal sounding growl erupting from his throat sending a thrill through her body.
Caleb’s head rose, and there was something so feral in his expression that her heart fluttered wildly and she moaned softly, liquid heat scything through her to gather between her thighs. She was embarrassingly wet down there, could see his nostrils flaring as his eyes darkened to a rich, deep shade of amber. He was scenting her arousal. She had noticed that scent played a large part in Caleb’s life by the way he had scented her neck earlier, the way he had inhaled so close to her body before his wicked mouth had ravished her until she had shuddered and cried out her pleasure.
He used all of his senses to full effect when he made love, which was probably why he was so damned good at it and she was a quivering wreck, almost at the point of begging him shamelessly to complete the act, to come inside her body and drive her wild with pleasure.
She leaned forward and pressed her lips to his chest, delighting when another throaty growl escaped him and his hand threaded in her hair and held her to his hot skin. His taste filled her mouth, hot, heady, primal and masculine. Her tongue flicked lightly against his nipple and he shuddered.
“Harder.”
Another order, another demand that made her shiver with pleasure as she realised that her touch was as heady to him as his was to her. Any nerves she’d had about not being good at this faded, and she rasped her tongue more boldly against him.
“Bite,” he ordered, his voice sounding strained, his body taut with need.
Rhianna scraped her teeth against the hard peak and a deep groan left him, his fingers digging almost painfully into her scalp. She repeated the caress and then moved across his chest and treated his other nipple to the same fierce nip.
Caleb shuddered wildly at her soft teeth scraping over his skin. Her hot mouth was sending fire spreading through his body, his imagination running rampant at the thought of how her sweet lips would feel against other parts of his body. He could feel his feral side rising again, and knew if he lost control, he could possibly hurt her. He didn’t want to hurt this delightful woman, this strange blend of innocence and passion with a hint of fragility which ran deep within her.
Reluctantly he pulled her mouth from his body, bearing her back against the rug to loom over her. His need was at fever pitch and so was hers. The time for play was over; it was time to possess, to claim, and to indulge the dual lusts that drove him.
Caleb watched her face as his fingers danced down her luscious body, sliding between her legs to feel her wetness, to stroke against her molten heat. He pressed a finger deep inside her, watching her arch up to his touch, a sweet cry leaving her lips. Her pleasure was written all over her exquisite face, her lips parted, her cheeks flushed with colour as he moved his finger deep within her. He pressed another digit inside, teasing her body into readiness for his. She made the most incredibly sexy sounds as he stroked her, his cock throbbing with each throaty moan.
Gripping her hips firmly, he positioned himself at her opening, no longer able to deny himself. He had to slide deep inside her, had to feel her tight warmth embrace him. Her eyes flew open and he saw a hint of hesitancy in their stunning lavender depths.
She still felt doubt. Her body reacted with desire, but her mind still held back. It angered him that she couldn’t let go completely, couldn’t allow herself to just feel. The brief burst of anger soothed almost instantly as another emotion came over him, one he didn’t recognise but reacted to instinctively.
“I would never hurt you,” he said softly, moving his hands under her back to raise her up. He sat back on his knees again, pulling her astride him, their bodies touching but still not yet joined. Her wet heat caressed him and he groaned softly.
“What if I disappoint you, Caleb?” she whispered, burying her head in the side of his neck, her breath caressing his skin and making him shudder.
His arms held her tightly, raising her body until she was aligned with his. “You could never disappoint me.” The words came out with little thought to what he was saying. He was pulling her onto him as he pressed up to begin his journey into her body.
Caleb found he had no control over his reactions to her. What should have been a night of satisfaction of his two basic urges was turning into something he didn’t understand, and didn’t want to understand. All he knew was he wanted to pleasure the beautiful redhead in his arms as much as he wanted to take pleasure from her.
He pressed deeply, pulling her onto him until they were fully joined. The heat that exploded through him took his breath away. She was perfection, made for him. Holding her tightly, he stroked into her body, her sweet cries filling the air along with her intoxicating scent.
He moved with long, deep strokes, taking her gently until he was sure her doubts were completely gone, that she was lost in the heady bliss of their bodies riding together. Then he bore her back to the rug, increasing the pace of his movements, his lips feverish against the side of her neck as his bloodlust rose swiftly.
He needed to feed. The deep rich scent of her blood was pulsing through him, making his gums ache with the need for his fangs to be buried in her sweat slickened skin. His tongue rasped over her body, sliding down to her breast to lick and nibble at the hard tip.
Rhianna was mindless with pleasure, her body humming as Caleb did such wicked things with his hands and mouth and the hard, thick masculine heart of him. She moved with him, clutching onto his shoulders as he suckled at her breast and moved harder and faster within her. She couldn’t breathe, tension surrounding her, coiling deep inside her as she felt herself climbing steadily higher towards a fall which she knew would be exquisite and yet terrifying as well. Caleb had the power to give so much pleasure that everything would pale into insignificance afterwards. She knew she would never be the same again after this one night with him.
His bloodlust hit critical point. Caleb’s fangs elongated as he felt Rhianna reach the peak of her pleasure. She shattered with a lusty scream and in that moment, he pierced the fragile skin of her breast. His soothing toxin immediately took away the brief sting of pain and heightened the intensity of her climax. Her rich, warm blood filled his eager mouth, and he suckled hard, his head spinning from the combination of her body gripping his so painfully tightly, and the intoxicating flavour of her life essence trickling down his throat.
Caleb ground into her hard and pulsed deeply, ecstasy rippling through his body as he bathed her with his seed, enhancing her own pleasure with his. He pulled against her breast once more and then carefully extracted his fangs, instantly healing the small wounds with his tongue as he shuddered once more and surged deep within her.
His heart thundered hard in his chest as he rested against her body for a moment before he withdrew slowly and lay beside her on his back. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d taken such pleasure from a woman. It had definitely been a long time, of that he was sure.
He lay there with his eyes closed, savouring the pleasure he’d received and the feel of her
hot blood coursing through his veins. His reaction to Rhianna had been out of the norm, and he knew he would need to address that, but for the moment he was too sated to care. She had been totally amazing, so utterly fascinating, engaging him on a level he hadn’t expected. His big body still hummed with the sweet bliss she had given him and a slow, satisfied smile curved his sensual lips.
He finally turned his head to the side and saw Rhianna had fallen asleep beside him. It was to be expected after the way he had ridden her body and pleasured her. In addition, he had exhausted her even further by feeding from her.
He slowly ran a hand down her side and over her hip but she didn’t stir. His fingers tangled in the silky softness of her luxurious hair, and he trailed it slowly threw his fingers. It was like a living flame in the glow of the firelight, rich and deep, and so soft he found it hard to let go.
Smiling contently, Caleb rose from the rug. He didn’t bother dressing again. He was only going to bed, so it was pointless doing so. He grabbed a thick woollen throw from over the sofa and placed it almost reverently over the sleeping woman. She would be comfortable enough on the rug, it was thick and the heat of the dying fire, plus the throw, would keep her warm enough until morning. Grabbing his clothes, he headed upstairs to his private rooms, feeling more satisfied than he had in a long time.
~~~~~
Rhianna woke when the first rays of sunlight filtered into the room through the large French doors. For a moment she lay there, completely disorientated, wondering where she was. Then her memory returned and she gasped and blushed, sitting up straight and groaning softly at the slight discomfort between her thighs.
She looked around the room seeing no sign of Caleb. Her face burned hotter as she thought of what they’d done the night before, of what she’d done. She had actually gone home with a complete stranger and had sex with him.
She couldn’t believe she had behaved so wantonly, so out of character for her. It didn’t help that she’d enjoyed it so much either, that she’d actually participated so eagerly in her own ravishment at the hands of the stunningly beautiful man.
