Grabbing up my staff again, I rose to my feet with a push of my powers. I stuffed all my stray thoughts down into a ball in the pit of my stomach so my mind was finally clear. Before I had my feet properly set, Danaus came at me again with sticks flying. I beat them back, and actually managed to overpower him enough to forced him to take a step back. My usual vampire speed was returning as I focused on the fight before me. Danaus struck out with his right hand, and I easily blocked it, but it was a feint. He jabbed with his left hand, hoping to catch me in the middle of the chest. I twisted out of his reach, balancing most of my weight on my right foot. As he started to pull back from the missed blow, I once again swept down with my staff. This time the jo¯ staff hit its mark, slamming into the back of both of his legs. Danaus hit the mat flat on his back, knocking the wind out of his lungs.
Grinning, I stood over him with the jo¯ staff pointed at his throat. “Shirt, please.”
“I’m still wearing my shoes and socks,” he patiently pointed out.
“And I said shirt. Now.”
I stepped backward, returning to my side of the sparring mat so he could sit up and pull his black T-shirt over his head. He tossed it to me and I caught it with one hand. Bringing it to my face, I pretended to take in a deep whiff. “Ahhh . . . I smell fear,” I said before tossing the shirt over to the side of the room.
Danaus gave a deep chuckle as he pushed to his feet again. A new feeling twisted in my stomach as I watched the play of muscles before me. His stomach was flat and lined with thick muscles, while his arms bulged as he flexed the muscles and took up position with the eskrima sticks. The shirt had been a mistake. I now had a new distraction, and this one wasn’t as easy to push away as it danced before my eyes. Damn it, I should have said shoes. I could only hope standing before him in a lacy red bra was having a similar effect, but I wasn’t willing to rely on it. Danaus had an unnerving focus when he wanted to win.
As we stepped back into the fight, I struggled to clear my mind so I could focus solely on the blur of eskrima sticks. As Danaus started to circle me, I thought I had an opening at last. I raised my jo¯ for an overhead blow, but he blocked it with one hand striking me with a redondo by whipping the free stick about to slam against the back of my head. My head jerked forward, but I had enough focus still to snap the end of my staff forward in hopes of catching him in the knee with the end. Unfortunately, he shifted out of the way in time and took a step back.
“Jeans,” he said, ignoring my attempts to strike when we were supposed to have already separated.
Temper and frustration rising, I threw my jo¯ staff down to the ground with a loud clatter while I unbuttoned and jerked off my pants. I threw them at Danaus and quickly picked up my staff. He had enough time to toss them over to where my shirt lay before I was attacking again. I was half naked and feeling more than a little vulnerable, but my temper was also flaring. Danaus and I were usually evenly matched in most of our sparing matches, but I was letting him take advantage of my distraction and losing to him in a most embarrassing fashion.
We exchanged strikes back and forth for several minutes, neither gaining the advantage over the other. I blocked one of his strikes with my staff, but his eskrima stick slid down the pole, smacking into my hand with enough force to bloody the knuckles. I didn’t release my jo¯.
Danaus took a step backward, lowering his guard. “Bra.”
“That doesn’t count as a strike! You didn’t mean to hit me!”
“A strike is a strike.”
“I’m not giving it to you.”
“I think you will,” he said with a narrowed gaze. He dropped the eskrima sticks and approached me. I backpedaled, but was unwilling to strike at him if he was unarmed. As he reached me, he grabbed my jo¯, pulled it out of my hands and dropped it on the ground. He wrapped his right hand around the back of my head, grasping a handful of hair as he pulled me roughly against him, locking his lips over mine. I didn’t hesitate, kissing him back with the same passion as my eyes fell shut. The fingers of his right hand tightened in my hair while his other hand cupped one of my breasts. His thumb brushed over the nipple, causing it to harden beneath the thin layer of lace.
I fought back an evil smile as I suddenly grasped both of his arms and swept my leg behind both of his, taking him to the ground. I landed on top of him, laughing. “I think that officially counts as a strike,” I announced with a smile. “Give me your pants.”
“I’m still wearing shoes and socks,” he pointed out with a smug smile.
I shrugged as I moved to straddle his lower hips. “I guess you’ll just have to lose them along with your pants.” Reaching down, I unfastened the button on his jeans and pulled down the zipper before he grabbed me. He flipped me onto my back and came to kneel between my bent knees.
“I think that counts as—” he started to say, but I halted the words in his throat by rising up on my elbows and kissing him. I got the point—he wanted me to relax and stop second-guessing myself, but now I was ready to get down to business.
Shifting my weight to my left elbow, I reached up and ran my hand over his chest, loving the feel of his warm, smooth skin lightly laced with dark hairs. I deepened the kiss, tasting him, memorizing him the same way I did every time I made love to this man. I wanted him burned into my brain so there was no getting him out. I wanted him so deeply ingrained in me that I walked around with his scent wrapped through mine. A part of me still longed to have his blood filling my veins, but I refused to feed off him. I wanted Danaus to remain pure and untouched by my kind. He was to remain above the reach of the food chain.
Danaus reached behind me and with one hand unsnapped my bra. He quickly swept the bit of fabric aside so my breasts were free. My nipples brushed against his chest, teasing us both before he finally lowered his head and took one breast into his mouth. My head fell back and a low moan rolled from my throat as the first wave of delicious sensations slipped through me. My knees on either side of his hips tightened, holding him in place.
With my right hand, I slid my palm down his flat stomach and inside the waistband of his boxers. The tips of my fingers teased across the head of his hardened member, causing it to jump at my touch while his hips jerked forward. I tried to slide lower so I could run my hand down his shaft, but Danaus caught me by the hips and held me in place. His mouth switched to the other breast, while his hands started to pull my panties down off my hips.
Reluctantly, he pulled away from me so he could completely pull off my red panties, leaving me lying completely naked before him. The hunter stared at me with dark hungry eyes. Putting his hands on my knees, he spread my legs apart, leaving me vulnerable and aching for his touch. His right hand slid down my knees along my inner thigh to settle between the sweet folds of flesh to touch my clitoris. My hips instantly rose off the mat as I jerked at his touch. His finger easily slid deep inside of me, earning him another moan before he slid it back out again.
“You’re wearing too many clothes,” I choked out when I could think clearly again.
“I guess you should take care of that,” he murmured, sliding his finger inside of me again to erase all thought. His hand left me and I prepared to move when his mouth settled over the same spot his hand had been only a second earlier. His tongue invaded me, pushing me past all rational thought as a part of me hovered on the edge of an orgasm, but I wasn’t willing to give in just yet. I wanted him panting and desperate as well.
Grabbing a fistful of hair, I pulled him up so he was nearly lying on top of me, and then I slammed him down on his back. I quickly climbed on him so I was facing his feet, allowing me to jerk down both his pants and boxers to his knees. He was partially trapped by his clothing, limiting his movement and leaving him at my mercy. I wrapped one hand around his hard penis and raised it up so that I could run my tongue along its long length. Danaus groaned and bucked beneath me, then clenched my hips with both of his hands as I carefully took the entire length of him in my mouth.
He gra
bbed me and pulled me backward so he could return his tongue to my clit while I sucked on his hard cock. My thoughts swam in a warm pool of pleasure, pulling me back toward the orgasm I had been fighting moments earlier. I was close, but I needed more.
Sensing my physical frustration, Danaus lowered his head and focused on kicking off his shoes. I gave his cock one final suck before letting it go. The hunter jerked off the last of his clothes in one quick motion then pulled me beneath him. He entered me in one thrust, causing me to scream in pleasure.
Foreplay was over. No more teasing. No more taunting or gentle touches. With his hands braced on either side of my head, Danaus pounded deep inside of me while I wrapped my legs around his waist, lifting my hips to meet each of his thrusts. After only a couple of minutes I was crying his name as the orgasm ripped through me like a hurricane pounding the shore. My body gripped him buried deep inside me, squeezing him tighter until he finally exploded as well, wringing a groan of pleasure from him before he finally collapsed on top of me, his body trembling.
We lay together in silence for several minutes with him still deep inside me. I listened to his breathing slowly even out while his heartbeat returned to its normal rhythm. To my surprise, Danaus started chuckling. I looked over at him, raising one eyebrow, but he only motioned toward the wall closest to me. I turned my head to see the private bedroom I used during the daylight hours.
“So close to a comfortable bed, and yet so far away,” he said wearily.
I snorted, looking back over at him. With my hand, I moved some hair from his face so he could see me clearly. “Yeah, but this was more fun.”
“True.”
“Besides, we had yet to properly christen this room,” I teased. To our mutual delight, we discovered that we both had a ravenous sexual appetite, and during the past few months we had taken the time to have sex in most of the rooms of the house as the moment struck us. For some reason, the sparring room had been left out until now. It proved to be far more comfortable than the kitchen, but still not as nice as my bed in my private chamber.
I smiled at him, letting my fingers run down his hard jaw to rest for a second on his chin. “Thank you,” I whispered. Between the sparring match and the sex, he had managed to distract my thoughts and in some strange way restore my confidence. He believed in the decisions that I was making and the direction I was heading. Danaus believed in me.
“We’ll get through this. Nick, Rowe, and all of them. I’m here with you. I’m here to stay,” he said, leaning his head down to press a kiss to my fingers. “I just ask that we use a bed next time. I’m getting too old for this shit.”
Arching my back, I threw back my head and laughed. Danaus laughed as well, letting the sound bounce off the walls and fill the house, holding the darkness at bay.
Eighteen
Anxiety clawed at Rowe. While he had never been particularly talkative during our journey east, he seemed to grow even quieter as we approached the edge of the city of Savannah. This was the Fire Starter’s domain, and during our recent time together, he had made no secret of his animosity for the nightwalker. With her alone lay all his frustration and rage regarding his attempts to free the naturi from our cage. I wondered whether he was truly capable of working with her in an effort to stop Aurora. Did his need to protect and save his own people outweigh his hatred for Mira? Doubt ate at me.
Fully cloaked from the view of humans, we drew in our wings and settled lightly in a small opening that appeared to be a park in the middle of the city. I took a couple steps away from my companion and shook out my wings, giving them one last good stretch before allowing them to completely disintegrate.
When I awoke at sunset, he was already speaking with some of the other animal clan members while eating a quick meal. Rowe and I never spoke of what happened down by the stream, but then, I didn’t know what to say. Had it only been a splinter of time never to be repeated? Had we both suffered a moment of weakness and simply needed the physical closeness of another damaged creature? I didn’t want to consider whether there was something more. Didn’t dare to hope.
But none of that mattered now. I had to get him to Cynnia and focus on the coming war with Aurora. If either of us actually had a future when this was over, we would face those questions then.
“Where is she?” Rowe demanded in a low, rough voice. His question startled me after the long silence, causing me to flinch. Closing my eyes, I reached out—despite all Cynnia’s cloaking and protective spells, I could find her no matter where she was. After only a couple seconds her energy popped into existence for me on the other side of the city.
“She’s not too far from here,” I said, starting to walk in a direction that took us deeper into the city.
“Is she with the nightwalker?” Rowe’s voice grew harder and colder.
Gritting my teeth, I fought to keep my tone calm and even as I continued through the park. “I can’t tell, but she will be able to sense that I am back in town. She will know that it is best that we not meet with the nightwalker present for the first time.”
Rowe gave a soft grunt, which brought me to a sharp halt. I spun around and pointed an index finger at him, poking it into the middle of his chest. “You agreed to this. You agreed that you would not only hear Cynnia out with her plan, but that you could work in concert with the Fire Starter. Was that all a lie?” Something else stirred in the pit of my stomach as I wondered if there was more that he could be lying about. I knew Rowe, I knew the manipulation he was capable of, and I would not be used by him so he could get close to Cynnia.
“I can’t wipe away centuries of animosity just because your sister hopes to save our people,” Rowe snapped.
“Well, you’re going to have to find a way to handle it.” I was beginning to regret taking the iron collar off before he had his meeting with Cynnia. I was always so careful, but he had successfully overcome my methodical logic and caution in the name of . . . what? Companionship? Compassion? A connection with another creature I had never felt before?
I was losing my edge, my focus. I lived for one reason only: to aid Cynnia in any way possible. And now I was letting Rowe distract me. Tightening my fists at my sides, I started to turn my back on Rowe and to resume walking across the park when he stopped me by laying his hands gently on either side of my face, forcing me to meet his gaze.
“Mira and I have a long, dark past. I can’t just push those emotions aside no matter how dire the circumstances,” he said as he ran his thumbs across my cheekbones.
I took a step back, away from his touch and nodded once, fearful that he was attempting to manipulate me through my emotions for him. “And I will not do anything that will allow you to jeopardize Cynnia’s life. You agreed to listen fairly and with an open mind to her argument. If you do anything that I deem a threat to her safety, I will not hesitate to kill you.”
A smirk curled one corner of his mouth and he leaned in toward me. “You think it will be that easy?”
I smiled back at him as I placed my hand over where my whip was clipped to my hip. “It’s never easy, but I don’t miss when it comes to Cynnia’s safety.”
“After what happened with Aurora, your loyalty to your younger sister is . . . interesting,” Rowe said, taking a step back to allow me a little more breathing room.
“Cynnia believed in me first and she has always believed in me. I will not abandon that trust and faith.”
Rowe spread out his arms and bowed his head to me. “I will listen to what she has to say.”
I believed him. If Rowe was going to attack Cynnia, he was going to go through me first, and we both knew it. After what had happened at the stream, I didn’t feel this was the best arrangement, but at least I could say it was an honest one and I knew where we all stood. The weight on my shoulders was no lighter as I led Rowe through the city toward my sister, but it was something I finally understood. Questions regarding the two of us after the events at the stream still hung heavy in the air, but now was not the ti
me to bring up such seemingly trivial things.
We finally stopped at a narrow town house in the heart of the historic district of Savannah. There was a For Rent sign leaning up against the side of the front porch, where the owner had left it following Cynnia’s recent arrival. Her witch companion Shelly was handling all the human details of renting safe residences and procuring some basic foods, while Cynnia was supposed to be hidden at all times and guarded by her contingent of followers.
When I scanned for Cynnia, I had picked up the presence of four other naturi near her, while a larger gathering waited on the outskirts of the city for a signal from the young princess. Kane and his people would be moving more slowly through the woods, but I knew they would be there soon enough. We needed to secure both the assistance of the nightwalker and Rowe as quickly as possible so that everything I had told the lord of the animal clan didn’t turn out to be a lie.
As I put my foot on the first step leading up to the house, the front door swung open and Shelly stepped into the doorway with a broad smile. The young human woman seemed to be a perpetual ray of sunlight streaking across the land, no matter how bleak the circumstances. Despite her constant chipper attitude, I believed in her sincerity when it came to protecting Cynnia. From what my sister told me, both of them had been through a great deal when they traveled from Savannah to Machu Picchu. Cynnia trusted her, so I did as well.
“There you are! We were beginning to get worried,” Shelly announced, plopping both of her hands on her hips as she stepped out onto the porch. “Cynnia seemed to be expecting you a few days earlier.”
“There were some complications,” I murmured as I mounted the steps. A new weariness crept into my bones as I reached the front door landing. A breeze blew from inside the house, carrying with it the scent of wild flowers. There was a feeling of safety in that smell. I had completed the first leg of my mission and I was tired. Cynnia and I were a long way from accomplishing our goal, but at least I was back with my sister. The nagging fear of something happening to her while I was absent could fly away for the time being.
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