by Kate Wendley
Sebastian haltingly said in between masculine groans, “And someday I want you to touch me. Ahh…” He rocked his hips against her before more determinedly saying, “I want your hands on my naked body. I want your kisses everywhere. I want your body against mine.” He thrust his hips against hers and they both cried out as his words stopped and they frantically moved in time with each other wanting more, more, more…
His passionate kisses and hard body finally sent her over the edge and she cried out as she orgasmed. He quietly gasped as he jerkily thrust against her, then stiffened in her arms. She watched his face while he came and it was the most erotic thing she’d ever seen. He was the sexiest man in the world.
When he finally relaxed, he held himself off her, watching her with his still golden eyes. They were quiet for a time while they both caught their breaths, a small smile eventually coming to his luscious lips. “Your eyes are gorgeous when they glow. I mean, they’re gorgeous anyway, but God you’re beautiful.”
She smiled at his unabashedly simple complement before he swiftly lowered himself on top of her again and kissed her lightly on the lips. She startled and he chuckled in a very masculine way before he pulled back. His smile reached his eyes and her initial self-consciousness disappeared when he said, “That was incredible.”
She pet his cheek and he nuzzled against her hand, sighing contentedly as he closed his eyes. He seemed so comfortable in his skin, she was actually jealous. When he opened his eyes and looked at her again, she was immediately reminded that he was an alpha. His presence was powerful, and she knew she felt him carefully restraining himself earlier. “You’re different than I thought you’d be.”
He smiled and cocked his head in curiosity.
“You’re the Alpha Wolf but you’re gentle, except you’re not really gentle, are you?”
He tensed. “Did I hurt you?”
She played with his hair as she said, “No, that’s not what I meant. You have so much power, but you held back. I could feel it. But you still, uh, got what you wanted.” She blushed when she said that. She wasn’t used to talking so openly about sexual things.
A very pleased looking smile crossed his face. “I want you, yeah, but it’s not exactly me holding back from something I want, it’s me finding out who you are and what you like. I wouldn’t say that was hard on me. It just made things more exciting.”
He kissed her forehead, then swiftly rolled them off the sofa and onto the floor with her landing on top of him. She squealed in surprise, then laughed as they settled on the ground. Looking happy and relaxed, he wrapped his arms around her, and she nestled into him feeling like life couldn’t be any better than it was right now.
**
Sebastian eventually left to get back to work, and Jade stared at herself in her bathroom mirror. She ran her hands over her body like he’d done earlier. God he made her feel alive, or was that her cat doing that? She frowned at that thought. He woke her up in every way imaginable, and she wasn’t sure she wanted that. She liked not thinking about her cat. She liked just being a human being.
Her thoughts drifted back to how careful he was with her. He was the nice guy she’d always wanted to date… except for him being a wolf and for him being so incredibly strong compared to her. But was that really so bad? Maybe she was just being too skittish with him. Could she trust him if she wanted to go a little further?
She stared at her reflection as she thought more about him. He was less talkative than she’d ever fantasized about. And he pushed her a little about the blood exchange, but he didn’t tease her for being skittish and weak, not like a lot of other shifters she’d dated.
He didn’t say much about her not liking her animal, and it bothered her that she didn’t know what he thought of that. She never asked him, either, because then she’d have to admit out loud all the awful things she thought about people being animals, and it would be rude because he was one, too. He seemed to like his wolf, though, and it made her realize that was different than her fantasy of him, too. In her fantasy they never did animal stuff, or even thought about it. It just didn’t exist. In real life he was a wolf and she was a jaguar, and there was no way around their need to shift at full moon every month, or any way to ignore their other animal abilities.
She frowned at the mirror. He was a wolf, and not just any wolf, he was the alpha. He had to be strong and get involved in everything that had to do with being wolf. She wasn’t involved in that kind of stuff and he never talked about it with her. Did he not want to share himself with her?
Did she want him too?
A memory of him asking her to just hold him and touch him ran through her head. He’d gone without a friendly touch for way too long. Even his parents abandoned him when he came into his mind reading power and it made her heart hurt for him. He had no family or close friends besides the Master Vampire, Anthony, and her own alpha, Zach, but they were guys. They didn’t take care of his emotional and physical needs…
She shivered in desire as she remembered his hard body pressed against hers…
A crazy thought ran through her mind. Maybe she could drink just a little blood to slightly increase her strength… or maybe not.
She curled her lip and went back out to the living room to watch some TV before bed.
**
Sebastian’s mind was on Jade as he worked in the kitchen the rest of the night and early morning. Cooking for the night crowd and then preparing things for the breakfast rush was usually pretty relaxing for him. He was mostly alone back here with only a few staff, and the noise of the club was muffled from the sounds of the kitchen and from it just being a walled off room.
Tonight he couldn’t clear his head, though. He felt good and satisfied by Jade’s friskiness earlier tonight, and he smiled as he remembered their night, but some things about her were starting to nag at him. She didn’t like her animal and thought drinking blood was bad, so what did she really think of him?
He liked his wolf and felt most at peace when he shifted into his animal. And blood… he shivered. He had no qualms about drinking blood, and in fact tried not to think about it too much. He’d strayed a little too far over to the dark side after he developed his mind reading power, so much so that when he first thought about ripping someone apart and tasting their blood, he initially shocked himself, then started fantasizing about it. Luckily for everyone, that was about the time Anthony stepped into his life.
These days he didn’t fantasize about hurting people, but he also had no qualms about tearing into someone when they deserved it. In fact he enjoyed it. It was part of why people feared him, maybe a lot of the reason, but he only did that when the situation called for it. He didn’t hold back when it happened, though. He was full blown, all out wolf when he needed to be, and it felt good. It felt natural.
He spent so many years being the outcast in this community that he long ago lost any reason to care what people thought of him, even now that he finally had a stable life working with Anthony and Zach to oversee the family. Jade didn’t fit into a world like that. She was so far opposite it wasn’t even funny. But he wanted her. Both he and his wolf wanted her bad. She was nice and sweet and calmed his constantly tense nerves. She made him feel safe and good.
She made him feel like he was just a normal, decent man, even though he knew he wasn’t.
Chapter 14
Sebastian actually went shopping for new clothes just to take Jade to the concert at Piedmont Park she wanted to go to. It was a Halloween themed event with a few bands playing, though it wasn’t anybody he normally listened to. Just the fact that she wanted him to take her on a date made him smile. She actually wanted to be seen in public with him.
He brushed his teeth, got dressed and grabbed his jacket before checking with Oskar upstairs in the restaurant to make sure he was doing all right without him tonight.
“I’ve got it covered, sir.”
Sebastian nodded and almost made it out of the club before Zach harassed him.
“Looking good for the ladies!”
He rolled his eyes and smirked. “Shut up.”
Zach gave him a thumbs up and he felt good as he left to go get Jade. He hiked up to the third floor and knocked on her door and waited… and waited some more. He knocked again. “Jade? Are you there?”
He heard movement and the door flew opened. “Sorry! I was getting ready in the bathroom and didn’t hear you.”
He couldn’t help a groan as he looked her over. Her outfit was a bit sexier than she usually wore. “You look nice.” He stepped into her apartment, forcing her to back up while he kicked the door shut behind him and pulled her close. He snaked an arm around her waist, then cupped her cheek and lightly brushed her lips with his own. She whimpered as he playfully pulled back once or twice before finally kissing her.
She was sweet at first, her movements soft and delicate, but as his body warmed up to her soft curves under his hands, she slowly became needy for him. It turned something on in that animalistic part of him that just wanted to possess her and make her his.
Their kisses became more frantic than nice, and he was soon kissing and nipping his way down her neck as he roughly whispered, “Mine.”
She instantly started purring. It startled him at first, and then he couldn’t help chuckling. He eventually released his possessive hold on her, his frisky mood subsiding for now.
She pouted at him. “What?”
“You’re adorable. And sexy. Did I mention sexy? That too.”
She reluctantly smiled as she narrowed her eyes at him.
“Are you ready to go?”
“Let me go check my makeup again.”
With an exaggerated sigh, he said, “Ok. I’ll wait.”
She gave him a playful scolding with her eyes, then raced off to the bathroom.
**
Sebastian had a nice time with Jade at the show even though the mellow pop music mostly bored him. She liked it, though, which was all he cared about.
What he was more distracted by was her off and on purring while he had his arm around her in the park. At first it was cute, then it was more than that. It made him think that she really, really liked being around him. Who else was like that in his life? He could relax around Anthony and Zach, but they were guys. They were different. This was a woman, his dream woman of all people, and she was totally happy in his arms.
It made him feel guilty for thinking she might not belong in his world. Did she have to know everything about him? Couldn’t they be happy with her still being oblivious to many things he did?
He didn’t have the answer to all the questions floating around in his head, but he did know that being with Jade was the best he’d felt in his whole life, and he wanted the chance to make this work with her.
Chapter 15
Jade was having a girl’s night with some coworkers at one of their houses, so Sebastian only got to see her for a few minutes before she left. He was actually glad to have a night off from her because he felt like he needed some time to think about things.
Whether or not Jade felt comfortable enough to purr around him, and whether or not he loved having her in his arms, she still hated her animal, even calling it dirty and disgusting. She thought tasting blood was beyond gross, and most of all, she was too skittish for him to talk to about important things in his life.
He felt closed off from her in a lot of ways, like their relationship was make believe, and she was just as closed off from him. She was so worried about taking things slow and needing things to feel right, that he was starting to think that meant that whatever was going on between them didn’t feel right to her.
He felt frustrated and wanted some time to think, but it was too busy in the club and restaurant for him to get away by himself.
Anthony was distracting him, too. Through their blood connection he felt like something was off with him. He looked over at Zach and Kaia by the pool tables and decided against asking if they knew what was wrong. Zach was busy talking up a group of people, and kept Kaia by his side so she’d be safe while Anthony did some work in the office.
Sebastian didn’t like being nosy and all touchy feely like Zach was a lot, but he couldn’t relax feeling Anthony’s weird mood at the edge of their blood connection. When the customer rush died down a little, he made his way to the office and closed the door behind him. Anthony looked up expectantly as Sebastian sat on the couch inside.
“Hey. Everything ok?”
Anthony looked confused. “As far as I know. What do you mean?” He jerked in alarm, “Where’s Kaia?”
He put his hand up. “She’s fine. She’s hanging out with Zach. I was referring to you. Your mood’s weird tonight. What’s up?”
By the look on Anthony’s face, he knew what Sebastian was talking about.
“I apologize if I’m distracting you.”
Sebastian scoffed. “Come on man, that’s not what I meant. What’s wrong?”
Anthony stared through him for a time. “I’m not sure. I’m having a hard time concentrating this evening, but nothing in particular is on my mind. Nothing out of the ordinary, I should say.”
“Nothing going on with Ethan? Or Torin?”
Anthony waved a hand dismissively, then leaned back casually in his chair. “No. I don’t think that’s it. Perhaps it’s the favor I need.”
“Favor?”
Anthony sighed, then levelled a gaze at him. “Kaia’s spending the night tonight. For the first time.”
“And…?”
He sat up a little straighter and fidgeted in his chair. “And I’m vampire, Sebastian. She’s never seen me asleep before.”
A shock went through him remembering his own first time seeing a sleeping vampire. It was Anthony, of course. “Did you tell her what to expect?” Like that he’d look and feel like he was dead? No heartbeat, no rising and falling chest with the breaths he wasn’t taking, and impossible to move because he became stiff as a board. Oh, and cold. Very, very cold.
“We talked, and she insists she’ll be fine with it… but I’m still worried.” He frowned. “I know this is a strange request, but since you and Kaia seemed to have formed a bond…” He sighed and looked blindly around the room, then continued more awkwardly. “Will you stay in my bed with her and I to be there in case she gets… scared?”
“Uh… sure man, sure.”
**
Sebastian joined Zach and Kaia in the club while Anthony did a little more work. After a while he kept thinking he heard Anthony’s voice, but when he turned his head, he could still see him behind the partially closed door of his office. Sebastian looked around in confusion for whoever must be in the club tonight that sounded a bit like him.
It was another hour before he clearly heard Anthony say, ‘I hope she can deal with seeing me like that.’
Sebastian said, “It’ll be fine,” then looked around in shock to realize Anthony wasn’t anywhere near him. He left Kaia with an oblivious Zach to go find out what was up.
“Hey man, what the hell’s going on? I’ve been hearing your voice for the last hour and then just heard you talking to me, except you’re still in here.”
Anthony frowned, hard, and Sebastian’s jaw dropped when he clearly heard him say, ‘Is this the Vampire Mother’s gift?’ except Anthony’s mouth never moved.
“Who’s the Vampire Mother and what gift did she give you?”
Anthony’s eyes went wide. “What? You heard that?” Then, ‘Focus, focus. I need to be able to tell who this is affecting.’
Sebastian didn’t say anything this time, he just quietly stood there to give his friend time to think.
Anthony said, “Thank you,” then looked startled as he stared at Sebastian. “You didn’t say that out loud, did you.”
His question was a statement, but he answered anyway. “No.”
Sebastian felt something, then. Anthony was using his power somehow, but in a way Sebastian had never felt before.
“Say something else to
me in your head please. I think I can feel the link. I need to learn to control this.”
Just like Sebastian had to learn. He wondered how hard it would be for Anthony to gain control, and if he couldn’t, if it would mean he could read anyone’s mind without even having to touch them like Sebastian had to.
He startled when he realized he could feel Anthony’s presence in his head.
Anthony said out loud, “I don’t think this is the same as your power. I can’t see or search out anything in your mind, I can only hear you if you speak in your mind. You can feel me when I link us?”
He nodded.
“What about now?”
Sebastian concentrated but didn’t think he could feel anything anymore. To be sure, he asked Anthony again who the Vampire Mother was. Anthony’s expression didn’t change.
“I don’t feel anything now. Did you hear me talking to you?”
With a relieved sigh, Anthony said, “No.”
He flatly asked, “Who’s the Vampire Mother?”
He didn’t miss the immediate tension in Anthony. His expression went blank and Sebastian felt real fear in him.
“Please don’t ask again. You don’t want to know, and I don’t want to risk anyone’s safety by disrespecting her… request.”
Sebastian’s eyes went wide as a series of images flashed through his mind of Anthony battling a creature here in his office.
Anthony jerked and leaned forward to steady himself against his desk. “Dammit! I need to control this. Please, you must not speak of her to anyone.”
Sebastian’s hands shook as remnants of Anthony’s emotions during his battle with the woman coursed through him. He sat back and grasped his hands together to keep them still as he took deep, even breaths. Seeing those images only renewed his deep seated fear of Anthony’s power, and Anthony had actually been scared of the woman. How powerful must she be?
Anthony took some deep breaths for a while, then said, “I need calm for the rest of the night. I need to focus and learn control. Would you mind spending some time with Kaia? When she gets tired, will you escort her downstairs?”
