The ocean extended for miles and miles, an endless blue-green expanse. They were in a small inlet with massive black cliffs surrounding them and jagged rocks along the beach. She shivered at the thought of falling from those cliffs. No one could survive such a drop.
Thoughts of such an injury made her think of the scars Karn bore. “Where did you get the scars on your chest?” she asked before she could stop herself.
But Karn didn’t seem to mind. “From an injury when I was a cub,” he said as he raked his hand through his hair, almost feeling again the claws of the jaguar that had nearly killed him. “My brothers and I were foolishly out in the middle of the night when we should have been in bed.”
“We all make mistakes, Karn.” Annie gave him one of her gentle smiles. “We just have to let go of them and live for today.”
Karn gave a grunt, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.
“Do you have any brothers and sisters, other than Alice’s and Alexi’s husbands?” she asked.
“My youngest brother is Ty.” He laced his fingers through Annie’s, giving him a more intimate contact with her. “And my sister Mikaela…she no longer speaks to the family.”
They continued to walk down the shore, and he answered her questions the best he knew how. Whenever the topic became too close to his steel-encased heart, he steered it away.
Annie’s hand was small in his grip, and he felt more relaxed than he had felt in an age. “Tell me of your home and of yourself,” he said as they kept just out of the reach of the waves pounding the shore.
“Home seems so far away right now.” Her brown sugar eyes seemed distant now, as if she had traveled elsewhere in her thoughts. “I’m a college professor by day, a closet artist by night.”
“My mother was an artist.” Karn squeezed Annie’s hand tighter as he thought about the woman who had raised him, who had loved him, and who had left him when she passed away. “Her name was Elinara.”
“I would have loved to have met her,” Annie said.
Karn didn’t understand why he felt compelled to tell her about those he had loved and lost. Perhaps it was to make sure she understood why he would not love again. “My mother died many years ago of the magical fever that took my father and my betrothed, Ima, as well. It was their fault that they caught the fever. They fooled with magics they had no business disturbing.”
“I’m sorry.” Annie squeezed his fingers in return and her eyes told him how deeply she meant it.
He shrugged, stuffing away the feelings that no longer mattered. What was done was done, and he had learned to steel his heart long ago. “What of your father and mother?” he asked.
She sighed and gave a sad smile. “I never knew my father, and my mother often said she wished I’d never been born. My only real family are my cousins Alice and Alexi and my Aunt Awai.”
Karn came to a stop and pulled Annie into his arms. He brushed his lips over her forehead. “I also feel sorrow for your losses, kitten.”
“I’m okay.” She looked up at him and pressed her body against his. “Do you understand why it’s so important for me to see my cousins? To make sure they are alive and well?”
“Yes.” He brushed a strand of hair from her eyes. “You will see them, soon.”
Karn truly could not help himself as he moved his lips to hers and gently kissed her. At the back of his mind he knew that if he was not careful she would expect more of him than he was willing to give…more than he could give.
They continued walking together, hand in hand, both silent.
Annie’s heart ached for Karn and the loves he had lost, and she wished there was some way she could help heal his heart.
Wind tossed her hair and moist, salty air brushed her face. The ocean roared as waves broke against the shore and a shrill call like seagulls filled the air. But when she looked up, the birds were green and blue with brightly colored faces like parrots.
When they reached a small cove, Karn pulled Annie near the smooth rocks and drew her into his embrace. She gasped as he slid his hands beneath her cloak and palmed her bare breasts. It was exciting having him touch her like he was, out on the beach.
Karn felt the nipple rings and his mate’s engorged nubs and his cock hardened. “I must have you,” he said as he brushed his lips over hers. “Now.”
Annie’s cheeks were flushed, her eyes glazed with desire. “Yes, Sire.”
Her willingness to call him Sire when she was aroused almost made him roar with pleasure. He led her to one of the smoother boulders in the cove and removed her cloak. After he tossed it onto one of the smaller rocks, he commanded, “Stand in this spot, put your hands against the boulder, and widen your thighs.”
Trembling with excitement, Annie turned around and braced her palms against the flat rock. He had ordered her to stand just far enough from the boulder that she was bent at the waist. Cool, moist air chilled her breasts and her ass, too.
Karn pushed her dress up over her hips, fully exposing her butt cheeks. “No one will see us, right?” she asked. Somehow the thought both excited her and scared her.
“No one, kitten,” he said, and she felt the soft caress of a leather strap over her bared flesh. “It is time for your punishment. Do you remember why you are being punished?”
Annie swallowed. She wasn’t sure she liked the idea of him using a strap this time. What if it hurt? She would tell him to stop, and he would, she was certain. “Yes, Sire,” she said. “For not being at the breakfast table when you came into the room.”
“Very good. You should never deny me pleasure that is mine by right, and spending time with you when I wish it is a pleasure indeed. ”
She heard the rustle of leather then felt the head of his cock against her entrance. Annie was still aching from needing to come earlier. What if she came without permission? How would he punish her then?
Karn drove his cock into her core and she didn’t have time to think any longer. All she could do was feel. God, he stretched her, filled her, making her whole body shiver.
She felt the first lash as he started moving his cock in and out. The lash was light and didn’t even sting. He continued thrusting into her pussy, and drawing back out again in slow, even strokes as he lashed her ass again and yet again.
“Your skin is a lovely cream color,” he murmured. “It pleases me how your ass turns pink from the strap while I fuck you.”
The sensations were wild. Pain mixed with a sort of bliss that made her arch herself up higher to take more of the sexual punishment. Mist continued to fall on her backside, her hair, her cheeks. The roar of the ocean blended with the sound of the strap striking her again and again. From being engorged with the tightened nipple rings for so long, her nipples ached and throbbed, which mingled with the pleasure and pain Karn was inflicting on her.
Closer and closer she came to orgasm until she was there, standing on the precipice as though on the edge of one of the surrounding cliffs. “May I come, Sire?” she asked, barely able to speak while he was driving his cock in and out of her pussy and whipping her.
“Hold,” he commanded, slapping her a little harder with the strap.
Annie yelped and almost came, but his confident instruction kept her from exploding.
“Now, kitten,” he shouted. “Climax for me now.”
A different kind of orgasm took hold of her. One that seemed to radiate from her pussy like ripples in a pool of water. Small at first, then larger and larger until it filled her from head to toe. Her body shook and trembled against Karn’s body.
Vaguely she was aware of his shout and then his warm come filling her core. He leaned against her back and wrapped his arm around her belly. Annie sighed, enjoying the feel of his muscular body as he held her, loving the feel of his cock still inside her.
Annie knew it was too late for her. Karn might not want to love her, but she was falling in love with him.
Chapter Eight
Annie perched on the cushioned window seat in her chambers, her
arms wrapped around her bent legs, her chin on her knees, and Abra curled up on her toes. It had been raining all day and she and her cat had been confined to their room. Karn hadn’t come to see her yet today and Annie missed him.
Likely Abra did too. Annie sniffed. “Traitorous cat,” she murmured as she pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose. The little beast seemed rather smitten with the dark and brooding man.
Not unlike her mistress.
It was shadowed and gloomy outside, matching Annie’s current mood. Inside, the fire crackling in the hearth kept the room warm, but she could feel the chill from outside radiating through the windowpanes.
Annie had actually lost count of the passing days. Had it been two weeks, or maybe three? Every day Karn spent a few hours with her, teaching her countless ways of pleasuring him. In turn he fulfilled almost all her sexual fantasies and introduced her to things she’d never dreamed of.
She wore his collar all the time, but he only had her wear the nipple rings on occasion. They added to the erotic play, and she really didn’t mind calling him Sire when they were enjoying sex together. She was glad he didn’t insist on her referring to him as Sire when they were in public. Ever since the day she had let him know how much it bothered her to be seen in a state of undress in front of others, he’d been much more aware of her feelings and needs, as if he had an extra sense.
“And I can’t get enough of him,” she murmured and her warm breath fogged the beveled glass pane closest to her.
Today, though, she was stir crazy, wanting to be outside enjoying the non-existent sunshine and good hard sex with Karn. At the thought of him, she brought her fingers to the red collar that marked her as his possession. Why did it feel so comfortable, and why did she actually like it?
God, I’m addicted to him. His touch, his smell, his body, his cock…
But what really attracted her to Karn was his intelligence, his dark and sensual nature, and the times he rewarded her with a slight smile.
Yeah. The smile curls my toes.
The more time she spent with Karn, the more she grew to admire him as a man and as a King. He ruled gently but firmly, and even though he didn’t show it, she knew he cared deeply for his subjects. She wondered if the villagers realized that.
Annie’s fingers lightly caressed the diamond-shaped crystals on her collar as she thought about their most recent excursion just days ago. Karn had taken her through the village and she’d seen the amazing sights that she still couldn’t get used to, such as machines that operated by magic and carts moving without horses or motors. If a man was building something and ran out of nails, all he’d have to do was hold out his palm and a handful of nails would appear, seemingly out of nowhere. On a previous trip to the village, Karn had explained to Annie how he and his people were able to manipulate matter along with a good dose of psychic energy.
Even for a college professor with multiple degrees, the concept was mind-boggling.
The admiration the villagers had for Karn was obvious in the way they spoke to him, and her appreciation for him grew even stronger. His subjects treated their King with a kind of reverence. Not like an old friend, but as a mentor and someone they respected greatly, yet feared, too.
The villagers had responded to Annie’s warmth, to her questions, and her interest in their lives and their work. She had the feeling that she could give them what Karn couldn’t or wouldn’t…heart and soul and love.
Annie moved her hand from her collar to pick at the hem of her ruby red mini-dress. It was another one of those snug and sexy outfits that she had grown used to wearing, but it was a little more elaborate and risqué than her other dresses. Its neckline plunged so low that a good portion of her breasts showed. It molded itself to her full curves, and it was backless all the way down to the crack of her ass. Beya had brought it to her earlier, explaining that Sire Karn wanted her to wear it today.
What’s he up to this time? Maybe he’ll tear it off me like he did the first time we made love.
Well, the first time we had sex, that is.
She sighed and wiggled her bare toes beneath Abra’s weight. The cat simply yawned and stretched then went back to resting. Annie smiled, but then it faded as she thought of her cousins. It frustrated her that Karn wouldn’t take her to see Alice and Alexi, but when she pressed the matter, he punished her. She actually enjoyed the punishments, but she didn’t seek them out. Although she’d been tempted…
She pressed her nose and forehead against the fogged pane and the cold seeped under her skin and caused her nipples to harden.
Would Karn be coming soon for her?
Annie had met several of the people who worked in Karn’s mansion, mostly in passing, but for the most part Karn kept her to himself. He never let her spend time alone with anyone but Beya. Even then, Beya only came in long enough to serve her meals before she disappeared.
And Beya really did just that. She could vanish into thin air, leaving sparkles in her wake that would twinkle and then disappear. Annie smiled. Beya was kind of like a fairy godmother or something.
A knock at the door jarred Annie from her thoughts, and she swung her legs down. At the same time she almost knocked Abra off the window seat. The cat glared at Annie, then gracefully jumped down and vanished under the bed to sulk.
Annie couldn’t help a smile as she walked across the room and opened the door. When it swung open she stepped back in surprise at the sight of two drop-dead gorgeous women.
Both wore nothing but red collars, nipple charms, and twin smiles.
“Such a fair one,” murmured the stunningly beautiful woman with dark eyes and skin the color of a raven’s wing. A single white lock highlighted her features, traveling from her forehead, down to her shoulders. “I am Aleana.”
“And I am the sorceress Kalina.” The woman with brilliant amber eyes and black hair took Annie’s hand in hers. “You will make a lovely Queen.”
Annie was too unsettled to say anything other than, “Er, thanks.” She had a hard time not staring at their perfect bodies, beautiful breasts, and shaved mounds. For some reason the sight of their naked bodies caused a tingle in her pussy that radiated up into her belly.
Her cheeks heated as she blurted out, “Why aren’t you wearing anything?”
Aleana shrugged and Kalina said, “We enjoy the freedom.”
The sorceress tugged at Annie’s hand. “Come, or we shall be late to the tea party. Sire will not be pleased if we keep him waiting.”
At the thought of Karn erotically punishing Aleana or Kalina, a rush of jealousy seared Annie’s veins. It came as no surprise to her, though. She’d already come to accept the fact that he meant more to her than a casual sex partner.
She was in love with him.
Unfortunately for her, it was clear Karn didn’t feel the same way.
Karn paced the tea room, his jaw set and his mood even more sullen than normal. Lord Kir, his friend and guest, was watching Karn with an amused expression on his strong features.
A low growl rumbled in Karn’s chest. Just the thought of Annie made his cock spring to life, and he ached to thrust into her quim. Ever since he had drawn Annie into his world, he could not get enough of her. He felt the fierce need to protect her and had no desire to bed any other women, or to share Annie in any way.
Today that would change. He had planned the da’mea, a “sharing tea,” to return to the ways of his people, and to watch his future Queen being pleasured.
Kir, lord of Emerald City and of the mountain wolf clan, leaned one shoulder against the wall and folded his arms across his chest. “You have fallen for the maid,” he stated as if it were fact. “You are in love with her.”
“No.” Karn’s response came out as a growl and he paused his pacing and shot Kir a dark look. “She is naught more to me than a willing wench who will serve as my Queen.”
“Sire,” Kalina, said from the doorway behind him.
Karn turned and his attention immediately shot to her,
only to see Annie beside the sorceress, hurt glistening in her eyes.
And yet, Annie stood between Kalina and Aleana, her chin high. His kitten was so beautiful his heart ached, but the pain in her brown sugar eyes caused a knot to form in his gut. Obviously she had overheard his callous words.
For a moment, he battled regret. Then, with a sigh, he decided fate had done him a favor.
Better she know now.
“You kept me waiting.” He kept his expression stone hard as he gestured to the low tea table, surrounded by large black velvet cushions. “Be seated.”
Tears threatened to well up in her eyes, but she wasn’t about to let Karn see how much he’d hurt her. She kept her head up and avoided his midnight gaze as she moved toward the low table set for eight. Her face felt frozen and her heart just as cold after overhearing the tail end of what Karn thought about her. She had hoped he would grow to love her, but obviously that had been an empty hope.
The low rectangular table was the centerpiece of the room, but there were also decorative tables around the room, black vases with gold inlay and filled with red flowers. On the walls were three majestic oil paintings in rich wooden frames of burnished gold. The pictures were all stormy seascapes that went well with the room. Despite her hurt at Karn’s words, her artistic sensibilities were attracted to the incredible detail in the paintings. If only she had her art supplies, she could at least lose herself in her work until she saw her cousins again.
Kalina and Aleana seated Annie between them on one side of the table, as if protecting her. The cushions were large and Annie’s molded to her body as she sank into it. Like the other women, she sat cross-legged. The mini-dress hiked up to Annie’s hips, almost exposing her mound, and cool air brushed her bare folds.
It was then that she noticed the gorgeous man with one shoulder hitched against the wall. The man’s chest was as bare as Karn’s, and just as broad and muscular. He had sapphire blue eyes, golden-blond hair to his shoulders, tanned skin, and his breeches were tight, molded around the thickness of his cock. Obviously he was turned on.
Wonderland: King of Diamonds Page 9
