“You’re not naked yet, so I need to finish my job,” he said after a time, his forehead pressing into hers as he came up for air.
“Very well. You may proceed,” she laughed.
When he’d removed her jeans and socks she turned around, nearly bare now, to let him at the clasp on her bra. But instead, he took his time. Pulling her straps down, laying soft kisses on her shoulders. Under her bra she felt her nipples peak, desire sending blood raging through her body.
“Your scar,” Lumen breathed, his fingers finding the mark on her shoulder that was living proof that she was meant for him. Those undulating parallel lines, the symbol of the Water Dragon. Gently he ran his fingertips over their surface, possessive and affectionate at once.
“My Neko,” he said softly.
“My Dragon.”
“You’re so beautiful,” he said, kissing the spot that his fingers had touched.
“Do all Seekers have scars like this?” she asked.
“I don’t know. But I imagine that all Seekers have some sort of mark, be it internal or external. Something to pull them towards their rightful mate.”
Finally, he unclasped her bra and let it drop to the floor before her.
“I’m just glad that I have your mark,” she said, turning back towards him, her naked breasts now occupying his line of vision. “Glad that my body has always known who and what it wants.
His eyes went to her nipples, puckering to hard tips in the slight cool of the room, just as his cock hardened for her, pressing eagerly against the restricting fabric of his trousers, which were quickly growing to be a confining nuisance.
“Dear God, I’m glad you have my mark too,” he said, descending to his knees on the hard white marble of the floor. Easing his face towards the wonderful place between her legs, he breathed in her scent. Heady, luscious.
She hadn’t showered since the previous day, and so much had happened since. But every bit of her smelled wondrous, life-affirming. After everything that had passed, she was still his sensual sex goddess.
As he lay soft kisses on her belly, her hands went to his hair, digging in, guiding his perfect head to the place just under her breasts. A hand slipped into her panties, his middle finger searching, finding her wetness. That sweet, beautiful pussy, always so demanding of his attention. So ready for him.
But after a moment he paused, pulling back.
“Are you feeling all right?” he asked, turning his aqua eyes upwards to look into hers. “I don’t want to presume…”
“Better than all right,” she said, smiling down at him. “I’m so, so happy to be with you again. But let me get into the bath and clean myself off before you spend too much time with your mouth on me. I don’t want to associate this moment with the scent of…”
“Umbra,” he said, raising himself to stand, a tight hand on the tub’s edge. Rage began to bubble up again, but he managed to keep it at bay for the moment. “You can smell him on you?”
She nodded, her eyes moving away from his.
“I’m sorry. Then let’s get you cleaned up straight away.”
He guided her panties down to the floor and led her by the hand into the high-walled tub, watching as she submerged herself, the water distorting her perfect body but rendering it no less beautiful.
Between her legs he could see the strip of dark hair, his mouth watering for her, and he knelt beside her, hand reaching for a bottle of body wash that sat on the tub’s edge. He squeezed a little into his palm and began to work it into her skin, beginning with her shoulders. Down one arm, then across her chest to look after the other. And then he drew his fingers over her neck as she raised her face to the glass ceiling, her eyes closing.
His fingers, slick with lather, slipped over her right breast, pausing for a moment to stroke body wash over her hard nipple as she let out an audible exhale of pleasure.
His eyes moving over her, he rubbed his hands together, then spread the wash over both nipples at once, drawing them long between his fingers as he watched Neko’s lips part in ecstasy, her arms relaxing atop the sides of the tub as her body sank lower into the hot water.
“That’s better, isn’t it?” he asked, his voice a deep exhale of its own.
“Mmmm,” she replied, her grin widening.
“But we’re not done yet. I need to wash all of you.” He slipped a hand downward, fingers tracing a line over her stomach to find its way to the sweet spot between her legs. Her knees parted, welcoming him and encouraging him to continue.
With an expert touch he pulled gently at her folds, index and middle fingers massaging the pink flesh around her clit. From her gasp he knew that he was pleasing her, as well as teasing—that she was waiting for him to finally touch that magical place that would make her hips thrust forward under the water.
Not just yet. In a moment, he thought.
His fingers found her opening, the middle tip slipping inside her, seeking her sleekness. And when he found it, it was he who let out a gasp. She was a marvel of nature, her body knowing just how to encourage him.
He pushed his finger in deeper, pulling out again, and repeated the motion, the heel of his palm finding her sensitive clit and pressing gently, even as she sank lower into the water.
“This is the best bath I’ve ever taken,” she moaned, her face all but submerged by now.
“It’s not over yet,” he whispered. “There’s the post-bath bath to be had when this is done.”
“Oh?” Her eyes were still closed, but her smile told him everything he needed to know. She understood, and she welcomed whatever he had on offer.
“The tongue bath, I call it,” he said. “Where I ensure that you’re as clean as can be.”
“How generous of you. And after that, will you make me dirty again?”
“God, yes. Very, very dirty.”
“Good.”
Back Under the Heath
At the darkening end of a day spent in bed, marvelling at one another’s bodies; the flavours, the textures, the perfection of their mutual lust, Neko rose at last and draped Lumen’s white robe around herself.
Four times. Four times he’d been inside her since her bath, and though she would happily have taken him again, her mind was beginning to shift to other matters.
“I think I’m ready,” she said, stretching her arms over her head as though the day were only just beginning.
“For what? More sweet, sensual Dragon love?” he asked, teasingly rolling onto his back, his hand moving to the beautiful shaft between his legs.
“Yes—but later,” she laughed. “I’m talking about the meeting. I should call Bertie and set it up for tomorrow afternoon.”
At these words, Lumen froze. Neko could see in his eyes that she’d caused him pain. All the playfulness had left him, all pleasurable thoughts chased from his mind. Only a silent torture branded on his face.
“What is it?” she asked, sitting back down on the bed, a hand going to his chest as though to feel for the steadiness of his heart. And there it was, solid and strong as always, though perhaps a little accelerated.
“Nothing. Just—you reminded me that we have duties, and that staying here, making love for the next five years, is not a realistic plan. We have to go out into the world again and fight. We must find the Relic. Which means that you’ll be in danger again.”
“You’re right about all of it. We can’t stay here for the rest of our lives—we have things to do.” The corners of her lips ticked up, unwilling to be brought down by dark thoughts. “But I can certainly envision myself making love with you on a daily basis for five years straight. Remember that.”
“Will you promise it?” he asked. His face was still serious. Still humourless.
So that’s it, she thought, sending the words his way as her eyes peered into his, her smile fading. She could feel his pain now, spreading across her own chest like wildfire. Your fear of losing me is as intense as mine, of losing you.
Yes, he told her. The thought of i
t kills me, little by little.
“Well, you asked me if I can promise,” she said out loud. “I can promise you that I want five years straight of you, and then another seven hundred. But as for making love every day, I can’t promise that I won’t suffer the odd headache.”
“Headaches are all right, and I have a cure for those,” he replied, his voice as smooth and sexy as always, a hint of play re-entering the timbre. “Just see to it that your head and neck remain attached to your shoulders. I can’t lose you, Neko.”
With one strong hand he pulled her on top of him, her robe splaying open, breasts crushing into his chest as he kissed her again.
“Sexy, overly protective Dragon,” she laughed. “I promise that my head will stay on.” Her fingers reached down, seeking the beautiful object between his legs and finding it. “Now, you promise me that this beautiful part of you will always get hard for me.”
She gave him a gentle squeeze and, as though to prove her point, his blood rushed to meet her touch, hardening him almost instantly.
“I think that’s the easiest promise I’ve ever had to make,” he laughed.
Neko shot him a wicked smile before slithering down his body, her lips teasing him as her tongue collected the drop of sweetness that had formed at the tip of his cock.
“For God’s sake, woman, call Bertie!” he yelled, tormented by the pleasure of it all.
“In a minute,” she moaned, tongue slipping along his shaft. “I just have to do something first.”
It was an hour later, after other business had been tended to, that she finally made the call. And after some concerned chirping from Bertie, who appeared to be perfectly well other than her mothering snarls of “I cannot believe you went to Beggars’ Alley alone,” and “Foolish girl!” the meeting was set.
Tomorrow it would be up to the Dragon shifters to welcome the Syndicate into their hiding place under Hampstead Heath.
But for the time being, sleep was first on the agenda.
* * *
In the middle of the night, Neko found her mind occupied once again with vivid dreams.
A face came to her, clear this time, though unlike any that she’d ever encountered. Those pale, large, bright eyes stared into her own. The features were a woman’s, and beautiful, if one ignored the fact that she seemed drawn, thin and pallid.
In her way she resembled Umbra—the Umbra that Neko had first met in her office. The weak-looking, though handsome, man who seemed devoid of pigmentation. But this woman had a profound kindness in her, not the coldness of the Controller whom Neko so despised.
The two women stood facing one another in a dark place, a circle of light surrounding them, coming from an unseen source.
All around them, dark shapes moved in, threatening, but their faces never coming clear. A sweetness made its way to her nose, the scent of a Forsaken who had just fed.
The scent of danger, of pending death.
“He will find you. The Forsaken is coming for you, Neko,” the woman whispered. “He’s looking, and there is no escape.”
“What do I do?” Neko asked, her eyes moving to the dim, threatening shapes. “How do I fight him?”
“Draw him to you—it’s the only way. Weaken him. Kill him.”
“But how do I weaken him? He’s so strong…”
No reply came.
A moment later, the woman’s face disappeared. But in its place, another showed itself, sending Neko’s mind reeling into an abyss of torment. In a harrowing flash Umbra stood over her, his shadow cast across her mind.
A creeping smile formed on his lips just before he lunged at her, his eyes widening, mouth opening to reveal jagged razor teeth, seeking her flesh.
Neko shot upright in the dark bedroom, gasping for breath, adrenaline kicking in and telling her to run. To get far, far away.
As she pressed a hand to her chest she realized that she was soaked in sweat. She looked around her, reminding herself that all was well; she was safe in bed with her lover.
It was just a dream.
“Neko? Are you all right?” Lumen asked, his voice sleepy as he rolled over to face her.
“Mmm,” she replied, lying back down, inhaling deeply in an attempt to calm her racing heart. Don’t let him know, an internal voice told her. Don’t tell him what you saw. “Just a bad dream,” she whispered. “Go back to sleep.” She lay a reassuring hand on his chest.
And I’ll try to do the same.
* * *
“It’ll be fastest to transport them here ourselves,” Lumen was saying.
He and Neko had just arrived in the Guild’s tunnels under Hampstead Heath, the beautiful grassy expanse north of London. An attraction for tourists and locals alike, all of whom were oblivious to the Dragons who dwelt under its acreage.
By now, Neko had grown used to riding on Lumen’s back, and she’d been grateful for the afternoon view of sprawling, grassy fields flanked by birch, oak and sycamore trees. Something about being so high above the world temporarily did away with worries about threats that haunted her mind. Umbra and his ilk couldn’t touch her—or Lumen—up there. Almost nothing could.
And now they were in the safest place in the world, standing underground with Aegis on the uneven cobblestone surface that served as a landing pad for flying déors, other Dragon shifters surrounding them: the Guild members, Kabal, Kliev, Minach and Tryst. But in addition were several other Kindred, including Minach’s twin, Lyre, and Aegis.
Two other men, Aramis and Domnal, had come in from their homes in the north near the Scottish border, summoned by the Guild to help in their fight. Both men were beautiful, as all Dragon shifters were. Domnal was striking, a shock of dark brown hair threatening constantly to fall into his eyes. Aramis had the red hair and light skin of his Viking ancestors, his eyes piercing, almost white in their ethereal coldness.
Each was unattached—unbonded, as some called it—single, as humans liked to say. Like most of their kind, they’d been disturbed by the news of an uprising of Forsaken.
The shifters of the north were familiar with stories of the half-breeds, having been instrumental in the fight in the days when the Forsaken were still a threat in their part of the country. And so, for the foreseeable future, the two men would stick around the Heath, helping in any way that they could. Much as Dragons were solitary creatures, they were a loyal bunch when it came to supporting their kind. There was no way that a Dragon was willing to watch his kin be victimized by something so vile as the Forsaken.
Neko stood some distance from the shifters, watching, her fingers stroking her neck in the place where Umbra had grabbed her a few days earlier. The marks had faded to virtual nothingness, but the memory of his cold hand clamped on her flesh like a steel vice was as clear as if it had been occurred only seconds ago. A reminder of what the creature could do, of what he was. That he wanted more than the Relic; he wanted her life.
He will find you, the air around her seemed to whisper, the voice in her dream returning to pulse through her waking mind like a heartbeat. She winced her eyes shut, willing the words away. Leaning back against the wall, her eyes opened to see if anyone else had heard what she had. But the Dragon shifters continued to speak among themselves, oblivious to her torment. Even Lumen was engaged in conversation with Minach, seemingly unconcerned.
It seemed that in this fight, she was on her own.
Lumen had told her that Dragons often had flashes of what he called the Sight—the ability to see what was to come, or what was occurring elsewhere in the world. And she supposed that her dream might have been a result of skills acquired from their bond. It had been so oddly real, so deeply inside her mind that she couldn’t help but believe that the woman, whoever she was, had truly wanted to help.
Everything inside her now dictated what she must do, but the thought of it was terrifying. It would mean deceiving Lumen; hiding her thoughts from him, and ultimately it would require a separation between the two of them. Something neither of them wanted.
But she forced her mind away from darkness, recalling her earlier dream and the happiness she’d felt at its conclusion. The pleasure at thinking of their future together, and the confidence that all of it would come to pass. They really would find the purest happiness.
Confidence came back to her now, chasing away any grim thoughts.
“Neko,” her mate’s voice said, pulling her away from her mind’s internal efforts to calm itself. He was moving her way, a look of concern in his eyes.
She turned to him and smiled, her expression sincere. For the moment pleasure filled her—and for the rest of the day, she would do her best to remain positive.
“Will Bertie be expecting the Dragons’ arrival at the tower?” he asked, his own mind clearly occupied with thoughts of the meeting to come.
She nodded. “I told her to expect them, and she’s gathering some of our best Hunters now, to help.” Turning to the other shifters, she addressed them for a moment, forcing her mind away from thoughts of her dream, banishing the voices haunting her mind. “I suggest that you arrive at the Syndicate’s tower in human form, rather than flapping around it. You don’t want to draw Umbra’s, or anyone’s, eyes sooner than necessary. Do your best to look human until you’ve gathered the Syndicate members.”
The words almost made her laugh—these men were the farthest thing from human, of course. Beautiful, enormous, otherwordly beings. Only Tryst stood out, far smaller than her male counterparts. But she was so beautiful as to cause Neko to avert her eyes on occasion. The Hunter could only imagine how many heads such a woman would turn on the streets of downtown London.
Lumen, who had been examining his mate for a moment, turned back to his fellow Kindred to issue his command. “Go, then. You heard what Neko said. Be vigilant and cautious in your approach, but fly back here in your déors, and quickly. Neko and I will stay here. We’ve brought some weapons with us to hand out, and there are others in the vault. When we’ve assembled, we’ll discuss our next move.”
Dragon Hunter Box Set: A Dragon Shifter Serial Page 23
