by CJ England
Gallegar swallowed the saliva that suddenly pooled in his mouth. The thought of running his hands over her body sent fire racing through his veins. He watched as she pulled a jar of aloe lotion from the stand next to his bed and opened it.
She smiled sweetly at him. “Danolas sent me a message saying he left this for us. Do you want me to do you first?"
He realized immediately the only thing more dangerous than him touching her would be Kira running her hands over him. He groaned out loud, deep green fire beginning to burn in his emerald eyes. His voice was hoarse, as he answered her. “You first!"
Handing him the aloe, she laid back against the soft sheets. He sat up and leaned over her. His hand slowly undid the buttons on her pajama top, until the only ones still fastened were those covering her breasts. Gently, he separated the top so her stomach was exposed to his gaze.
Her heart began to beat faster as she took in his hungry look. She watched as he poured a quantity of the aloe into his palm and rubbed his hands together to warm it. When his fingers finally touched her body, she let out the breath she didn't know she was holding.
She felt so good. He carefully smoothed the lotion over the reddened skin on her belly. He moved his hands slowly, enjoying having an excuse to touch her in this way. He rubbed lotion into the sides of her waist and then deliberately brushed the soft flesh at the top of her panties. He felt her react, grimacing as he felt his body respond in return.
He breathed in Kira's spicy scent, mixing with that of the aloe. His fingers skimmed just underneath the waistband of her panties and she gave a sharp gasp as her hips moved into his searching hand. He cursed under his breath, as he caught the powerful scent of her female arousal and his cock thickened and grew until it threatened to rip out the front of his pajama bottoms.
Groaning, he turned slightly, hoping she couldn't see the erection that was throbbing so hard it was almost painful.
Kira could see it. And that, added to the touch of his hands on her already stimulated body, was enough to make her heart race. She watched him through her eyelashes as he smoothed the cream, dropping lower and lower on her body, until his fingers brushed against the fine curly hair that protected her womanhood.
When she jumped, he muttered a ragged apology and started to move away, but she grabbed his hand and held it to her. Their eyes met and both were lost.
Gallegar moved so he was laying half on her prone body as he cupped her face in his hands. He smoothed cream over the facial burns the demon had left behind and then with a sigh, slanted his mouth over hers.
Desire burned through them both, as they fought to get closer to each other. He pulled her fully underneath him, his shaft nudging between her soft thighs. Only the thin silk of his pajamas and her panties separated them from each other.
Kira couldn't help but move against him, as she felt the throbbing heat of his penis. So badly she wanted to take this to its natural completion, but she knew they couldn't. Her mind fuzzed as his lips left hers and trailed a line of kisses down her neck to the swell of her breasts where they rose against the low neckline of the pajama top. She held his head against her, delighting in the feel of his teeth and tongue. He tasted the line of her breasts and, growling a little, popped open the last button of the pajama top that was keeping her beauty from him. Released, her breasts rubbed against his chin and they both groaned at the contact.
Bending his head, he took a hard nipple into his mouth and rolled it with his tongue. She cried out and arched against him, loving the feel of his mouth on her. He groaned and pressed harder against Kira's body, his erection dampening the silk between them.
She instinctively spread her legs apart and the head of his silk covered penis pushed into the silk covered folds of her body.
He gave a tortured moan as he slid just inside of her and she gasped in surprise. He held himself stiffly, and she shuddered against him. When she felt him slip even deeper, he opened his eyes.
"Do not move, A Ghra ... ” he rasped. “For both our sakes, be very still."
Kira froze, and doing so, she could feel the racing heartbeat of the man above her as he throbbed just inside the opening of her body.
"Gallegar,” she whispered. Everything in her wanted to arch into him, but she was suddenly afraid of the intensity of both their emotions. What had started out as a bit of a flirtation had suddenly escalated into something much, much more.
Slowly, he withdrew from her, falling back against the pillows. They were both silent as they waited for their racing hearts to slow down.
When they were calmer, he pulled her close to him. She could feel how hard he still was and her body reacted to his heat all over again. “Gallegar,” she whispered again.
Turning on his side, he looked deeply into her eyes. “I am sorry for letting it go so far. The only excuse I have is I lost control for a moment. I didn't realize what was happening until too late."
Kira gazed back at him worriedly. “Am I still a virgin?"
He smiled. “Yes, you are virgin still. Perhaps not quite as innocent as before, but chaste, nonetheless."
"You were inside me.” She blushed and hid her head inside his shoulder. She felt him chuckle.
"Only a little,” he said, his cheeks reddening as well. “It happened so fast, I couldn't stop it.” He made a face. “I didn't want to. I wanted to do more; to love you the way I should be able to."
She tenderly stroked his face. “I did not want to stop either. I have no control when it comes to making love with you. I will try, but I do not think I am strong enough. As I do not want to stop touching you altogether, you will have to be strong for both of us."
He sat up a little and stared at her. “I beg your pardon? Are you asking me to protect you ... from yourself?"
She nodded. “That is exactly what I am doing."
Gallegar narrowed his eyes at her words. “And does this mean you think you can tease me without getting what you deserve? That you can let your emotions go and I will control them for you?"
In a fast movement, he rolled her back underneath him and pressed his still throbbing erection back into her softness. “Is that what you think?"
Kira gave a little squeal. “No! I promise to try to be good. I promise."
He chuckled, as he rolled her on top of him. “I will hold you to that promise. When it comes to making love to you, I am not very strong myself. I think about it too much. I walk around in a state of constant arousal when you are nearby."
He gave her a little shake, as he noticed her look of speculation. “Yes, I am aroused whenever I touch or see you. Now you know, so don't make it any worse. We both may find out something we didn't plan on."
She smiled at him, the love apparent in her eyes. “I would rather be with you and be tempted, than be apart from you."
"As would I, A Ghra..."
She reached over and picked up the jar of aloe he had dropped. “Now it is your turn to be rubbed. I will take care not to inflame you any further than you already are.” Sitting up a little, she opened the jar and began to smooth the cream over his tight itchy arm, smiling at his sigh of relief. “It does feel good, doesn't it?"
Gallegar looked up at the woman who lay trustingly on top of him. He hadn't been kidding when he had told her he couldn't promise to be in control over their passions. He had never before felt what he did with Kira. His love for her had a way of completely taking over.
He lay silent, submitting to her ministrations. When she was done and had closed the jar of aloe, he took her face back into his hands. He kissed her again and though there was a shimmer of the passion felt before, this was a tender kiss—one that spoke of trust and deep abiding love.
Tears came into Kira's eyes at the difference. She kissed him back, answering him the only way she knew how, with her whole heart pouring from her lips. When the kiss ended, he tucked her back down on his chest and sighed shakily.
"I love you, A Ghra ... You are my reason for living."
"You
saved my life today.” She shook her head at him, when he started to protest. “Oh, I know the others helped, and neither of us would be here but for them, but you risked yourself for me. You got hurt protecting me."
He raised her chin so she could look into his eyes. “As I said before, you are my reason for living. I took no risk today. The risk would have been living without you.” He pressed a loving kiss to her forehead. “Now, go to sleep. We both need our rest."
"I love you, Mo Chridhe..."
"And I love you, A Ghra..."
Chapter 7
Three Weeks Later
Kira stretched her arms over her head, her body aching with exhaustion. She looked around at the newly finished room, satisfaction apparent in her eyes. Her loft was almost done. Her Chosen had worked long hours to make sure her dream had come to pass. It hadn't been easy.
She knew Lucas would be glad when she moved in. He made no effort to hide his disgruntlement that she was staying with Gallegar. In fact, it had been difficult being around Lucas, period. After her first night at Sanctuary, she had tried to explain to him what she was feeling, but it hadn't gone well at all. Nothing she said made a difference.
After that, Lucas kept pretty much to himself. He came to their meetings, but held himself somewhat apart from the company. Danolas tried to talk to him, but got nowhere. Lucas still looked at Kira's choice of residences as a personal betrayal.
Even though Kira was broken up by his treatment of her, she still insisted on staying with Gallegar. That in itself was telling. Where before, Kira had done all she could to keep peace in the company, now she was willing to let Lucas stay angry with her. Her priorities had changed. All the Chosen wondered about that.
The wounds Gallegar and Kira received at the Gate had all but faded in three weeks. Kira's body and cheeks held just the faintest touch of pink, while Gallegar's arm was barely red, like he had mild sunburn. The itching had stopped completely, leaving Gallegar bereft; now he couldn't use the excuse of putting on cream to touch Kira.
The wardings had all gone as planned. It was the one bright spot in the last weeks. Kira and all the Chosen had been warded the very next evening after the battle at the Gate of Hell. Noah and Gabriel were warded as well, so now, none were in any danger.
It had been suggested wardings be put over all the Ethereals and vampires in the city, but Danolas and Koran quickly explained the power needed to spell all those people and then maintain the wards would drain them both dry.
Gallegar had given orders to his people that all were to stay within the walls of Sanctuary, unless specifically given permission to leave. It had only been a few weeks and Gallegar knew eventually some of his flock would go stir crazy. He just hoped the demon would spring his trap before everything fell apart.
While the vampires seemed to follow Gallegar's order easily, the opposite was true of Patrick's Ethereals. Patrick had arranged with the other Chosen to have his people reside behind the wardings of their domains where they would stay safe. But an Ethereal is by nature, a wandering creature, and not easily caged. More insidiously, the shades were being drawn back to their own domain, by the siren call of the demon within the Gate. Daily, Patrick had to go back to The Haunted House to drag away shades that didn't have the strength to fight the summons.
Finally, he took Koran's advice and put together a unit of his strongest and most trusted shades to help him. He gave each in the unit a section of the city to watch over and then also put several shades around The Haunted House as well. Danolas and Koran warded each of the unit members, so Patrick felt a little more in control of his people.
But Patrick couldn't hide from the inescapable fact he would very probably lose some of his people when the Gate opened. The upside to the extra shades wandering about was it would make the demons think Kira and the Chosen had relaxed their guard. Patrick desperately hoped the trap would spring quickly, when most of the shades were safe in other domains.
Tonight was the first night Kira would stay in her loft and she would be joined by all the Chosen and their protectors. They had wound up splitting the downstairs area into seven separate rooms and two full bathrooms. Five of the rooms were for the Chosen and each had made their own spaces into miniature domains of their own. Each room was as different as the man who created it.
The other two rooms were set up with bunk beds for the protectors, two sets to a room. Automatic shades were built into both of the rooms, for the sake of the vampires. The rooms were decorated casually, since the protectors could change on any given day.
Gallegar's room had been constructed entirely by him and his men. They filled in the window with the same type of brick that made up the building's walls and left no room for even the smallest crevice of sunlight to filter through. He left the wood paneling and just cleaned it and the brick.
Even though the room was small, Gallegar brought in the biggest bed he could fit. It left no room for anything else, but since his greatest hope was to share Kira's loft bed, he didn't worry much about the size of his room. He placed wardings on the door he shared only with Kira.
The rest of the loft was Kira's to decorate. She started in her loft bedroom, since it had been closest to being finished. She, like Gallegar, left the natural brickwork and wood accents. She added wrought iron candleholders and lamps to match the railing that surrounded the loft room. She found a quilt with bright colors interwoven in it, and added a heap of pillows in matching shades. Bedside tables sat on either side of the bed.
Unbeknownst to everyone else, Kira installed ceiling to floor curtains that automatically ran on a hidden track around the metal railing. They completely enclosed the upper bed loft. If Gallegar happened to be sleeping in her bed, she wanted to make sure he would not be damaged by the morning sun.
The walk through closet also held her dresser, to save room in the bedroom itself. Since the closet connected to the bathroom, it was simple to grab clean clothes once she'd showered.
The bathroom she decorated brightly as well. Splashes of color against a creamy background of soft off-white helped it feel fresh and clean. The Jacuzzi tub made Kira feel decadent, but the thought of long baths lessened the guilt amazingly.
She wandered back into the big main room of the loft. This was her favorite room. She had dragged each of her Chosen out during the last few weeks shopping for furniture and accessories to make the loft a home. Even though they groaned at going, Kira felt they all had a good time. But being men, they couldn't admit it to her, themselves, or God forbid ... each other.
Standing now in the center of the room, Kira knew it had all been worth it. The room was of brick and wood, with a stone fireplace at one end. Benjamin had built a mantel of matching wood over the fireplace and Kira bought hurricane lanterns to decorate it. The flickering flames of the newly built fire danced on the brass lamps. Kira bought several couches and loveseats to place around the fire. She set this area up as her “living room".
Rag rugs were placed strategically on the now polished hardwood floor and bookcases covered one entire wall. There were few books in it now, but Kira looked forward to filling it up. Tables and an oak chest were placed near the couches. Art pieces depicting the different supernatural beings she loved were hung or arranged all over the room.
The open space next to the kitchen boasted a beautiful dining room table. The table was a polished slab of oak, with iron pieces decoratively built into it. Cushioned armchairs stood along its sides. Since Kira knew they spent a great deal of time discussing business while eating, she was intent on making it as comfortable as possible for all of them.
All in all, everything gave the loft a homey natural feeling that made Kira feel at peace.
The blast of a car horn caught her attention and she ran to the window just in time to see a dark green limousine pull up to the curb in front of the loft. She watched as Benjamin unfolded his long frame from the driver's seat. He looked up at the window with a grin and motioned her down. Kira fairly flew down the stai
rs.
"Well, sweetheart ... whadda ya think?” Benjamin motioned to the limo with a grand gesture. “It took a little longer than we thought it would to put it together, but it's ready to go!"
Kira gazed at the beautiful automobile, clapping her small hands together in joy. “It is just as lovely as you said it would be, Benjamin. I want to see inside."
"Wait!” Benjamin cautioned. “We have to do this right.” He walked over to the door and giving Kira a low graceful bow, opened the door for her. “After you, my Lady."
She sank into a low curtsy and gave Benjamin a smile. “Thank you, my Sovereign.” Giggling, she climbed into the back of the limo. After a moment, Benjamin followed her.
The inside of the car made Kira gasp in shock and delight. Even though she had seen the brochures and looked carefully at the pictures, it did not prepare her for what she saw.
The interior of the car was done in off-white, with the seats a dark cream. There was a single seat in the back that stretched the width of the limo. It was long enough that Benjamin, who was the tallest of the Chosen, could lie down comfortably. Running along the far side was another seat; this one was about three-quarters the length of the back one. This seat started at the back and went forward until it ran into an area where the fridge and bar was kept. Directly across from the back seat, was yet another bench seat that ran right behind the driver's area. Above this, was an entertainment center, complete with TV, stereo and DVD player.
Sinking down on one of the soft cushions, Kira looked around at all the features and shook her head. “It is truly amazing, Benjamin. All of these luxuries."
Benjamin grinned as he reached up and turned on the DVD player. Moments later, The Three Musketeers began playing. He watched as Kira broke into a smile of remembrance.
"All the comforts of home, plus a few extras. The windshield and windows are all bulletproof; plus the tint on the glass is strong enough to protect Gallegar if he gets caught in daylight."
"How do you know that?” Kira questioned worriedly.
