“No, I don’t. I’m too dark complected to look just like her.”
“Color makes no never mind. If it did, do you think your daddy would have married your mamma?” Standing, he crossed the room, smoothed her hair back from her brow and pressed a kiss to the center of her forehead. “I see your grandma in you every day.” He blinked, his eyes shining with unshed tears.
Gently grasping her chin, he tilted her head back. “Please be careful with Ceno. There’s something... off about him. I don’t know if I can survive losing you, too.”
Standing, Sela threw her arms around his neck and inhaled the familiar scent of cherry pipe tobacco, peppermint, and whiskey.
“Oh, Grandpa. I love you, too.” She kissed him on the cheek and gave him one more squeeze before she stepped back. “I’d better go do the dishes and get my butt in bed. I don’t know what the heck I thought when I told Ceno breakfast would be at nine, sharp.” Her cheeks warmed as she gave her grandfather a wry grin. “I told him if he misses it, he’s S.O.L.” She raised her brow and met his gaze. “So are you, so I hope you’ve had your last shot of whiskey.”
“I have,” he said with a nod. “I refuse to be sleeping off alcohol with a stranger in our bunkhouse. And, just so you know, Betsy’s out of the gun safe and standing sentry by my bed.”
Sela turned and headed for the kitchen and the dirty dishes. “I hear ya on that one, Gramps. I hear ya.”
Chapter Eight
Ceno had just climbed out of the shower when he heard the door to the bunkhouse close. His beast rammed at the barrier holding it back. If it was an intruder, it wanted to defend its mate, and if it was Sela, it wanted nothing more than to claim her.
As quickly as he could, he slipped his jeans on over his still damp skin and headed for the front.
“Hi.” Sela stood leaning against the door. The smell of soap, melon, and her own sweet scent surrounded her.
“Hey,” he said as his urgency fled and he slowed his approach. “I thought we were all going to bed in preparation for an early morning.” He tried to keep his expression blank, but he wasn’t sure if he succeeded. Hell, he wanted nothing more than to grab her, throw her on the bed, and claim her.
“Yeah. I thought so, too.” She tucked a stray lock of damp hair behind her ear. Her gaze darted around the large room, never quite locking with his. “I thought maybe I’d ask if you needed anything.”
He wanted nothing more than to tell her he needed her in bed and under him. “As much as I enjoy your company, I’m not sure this is a good idea, Sela.”
“I know that.” She sighed. “I can’t tell you why I came here. For some reason, I just knew that I had to come see you, and if I didn’t, I would regret not doing so for a long, long time.”
“One of those feelings you say you don’t have?” He cocked a brow. “Your being here might be a bad idea for more than one reason. If you can’t be honest with yourself, how can you move forward with anything in your life? Believe me when I say I’m not a fickle man. I know what I want, and right now, I want you. However, once I have you, I’m not going to want to let you go. Can you deal with that?”
“I’m not sure what you mean.”
“Let’s just say that the men in my family know the women they want to spend the rest of their lives with within the first few moments of meeting her.”
“Are you...” She cleared her throat. “Are you saying that I’m that woman for you?”
“Would you run from me screaming if I did?” He tilted his head to the side as he tried to read her expression. The scent of her fear and arousal grew stronger every moment she stood before him. His beast rammed at the mental gate holding him in check, and still, Ceno stood still, watching Sela’s every movement, listening to every erratic breath. The sound of her heart drumming against her ribs reached his ears, and he wondered if it was because of her fear or her arousal.
“I don’t know.” She sucked her bottom lip into her mouth, and Ceno almost groaned aloud. Goddess, what would it feel like to have those lips pressed against his or caressing the sensitive skin of his cock? “I have never done this before in my life. The only other man I’ve even entertained the idea of sleeping with had been my ex-husband.”
“You were married once?”
“Does that bother you?”
“Nope.” He shrugged. “Not unless you want me to kill him.”
“Right.” She laughed. “Try to be serious here.” She met his gaze, her eyes posing the silent question. Would he kill him if she asked?
Probably. But he hoped she wouldn’t ask it of him. As a rule, he didn’t like killing, not to mention the fact it would drive a wedge between them eventually.”
“I am serious. The fact that you’ve already been married carries no significance with me.” He leaned against the doorjamb and crossed his arms. Though he wasn’t narcissistic, at least he didn’t think he was, he knew he and his brothers attracted most females. He wasn’t sure it was their looks as much as their height and build. Perhaps the females on Earth still looked for strong males to father their children. Whatever the reason, his bare chest and unbuttoned waistband caught her gaze and held it for some time.
“Good.” She ran her tongue over her upper lip and took a step forward. “I really don’t know what I’m doing here.” She laughed nervously. “I should be in the house, minding my own business.”
Darlin’, I’m so glad you’re not.
“I-I guess, I’m just trying to say that I would like to see if that quick kiss between us earlier was a fluke or if it would always be that way between us.”
“Honey, I’m betting it will always be that way between us.”
“But wouldn’t you like to know for sure?” She licked her lips again.
Every time the tiny tip of her tongue darted out from between her lips, his stomach clenched and his heart pounded harder. He wanted her more than he dared to admit to anyone but himself.
“Yes. I would love to know for sure. I’m only afraid you won’t be able to handle it if we go all the way from strangers to lovers in one day.”
“I-I don’t know, either. Like I said, I’ve never been a one-night-stand kind of girl. However, something keeps building inside me. I can’t keep my mind off what I think it would be like to be with you. It keeps building inside me, and it feels like I might explode if I don’t kiss you again.”
When she stepped closer, Ceno noticed she wasn’t wearing a bra. Her large breasts stood high and firm. Hard nipples poked through the thin material of her blouse. The scent of her arousal grew stronger and stronger until he thought he might be dizzy with it.
His cock throbbed behind his zipper, and every moment he stood before her, he fought the urge to reach down and release it from the denim prison holding it at bay.
She stepped forward, a slow approach, until she stood directly in front of him, her delicate hand resting on the center of his chest.
Ceno met her gaze, staring down into her beautiful hazel eyes. First, they were brown then green then blue. Somehow, they changed before him, being one color and every color, at the same time.
How could one man so lose himself in a woman he barely knew? What a gift this woman was to him. She was everything he’d always wanted in a woman. Every curve, every dimple in her skin was pure perfection. Never had he thought to ever find a Goddess on Earth, yet she stood in front of him.
One arm reached up and circled his neck, drawing him down for her kiss. Slumberous eyes stared up at him, turning chocolate brown as she stood on her toes to press her lips against his.
A roaring in his ears had him drawing her close as molten fire raced through his blood. He’d wanted to taste her from the moment he’d watched her punch JC in the face. The little tease after dinner wasn’t enough. It would never be enough.
If they lived for a thousand years, he would never tire of Sela or her kisses. He only hoped he could convince her of that.
Chapter Nine
Sela tightened her arms aroun
d Ceno’s neck. Never before had anyone kissed her so thoroughly, so completely. His arms, wrapped around her, caging her like steel bands, and she didn’t care. He made her feel sheltered, protected, safe, in a way she hadn’t felt in years.
After a few moments, he pulled away, trailing little kisses over her cheeks and jaw.
“I want you, lincha. I need you, more than you could possibly believe. I need to taste you, to touch your soft skin, to arouse your beautiful body. I need it more than I need to breathe, more than I need to exist.”
Panting, he rested his forehead against hers, his hands grasping her upper arms. “I can’t wait another moment to have you. I need you that much.”
He straightened and stepped back, his body shaking, as though he expended a great effort just to move away those scant few inches.
“I don’t know how long I can hold myself back, keep myself from throwing you down on that narrow bed and making you mine.” He met her gaze, his expression tortured. “Leave now, or submit to the beast you bring out in me. There can be no in between.”
“This can’t be forever. I can’t promise forever.” She shook her head. “Not tonight.”
“You have no idea what you’re doing to me.” He ran his fingers through his hair.
Her hands itched to do the same. She loved the strange, platinum color and the way it brushed gently against her arms. Why hadn’t she thrust her own fingers through his hair when she had the chance?
“What I’m doing to you?” She laughed. “What you’re doing to me should be illegal. I’ve never felt this way about a man before, not in less than a day, anyway.”
Besides, what she’d felt for Jack paled in comparison. She’d never wanted Jack so much she’d been willing to kiss him on the first day they’d met, let alone basically show up in his bedroom, willing to sleep with him.
Her stomach clenched as her nether parts wept with wanting Ceno. Sela had no idea what had come over her, but she found herself wanting him more and more. It was as though he exuded some sort of pheromone that drew her to him, no matter how much she fought the urge.
She needed to be with him, and she didn’t know why.
Lifting her chin, she met his gaze. “I will submit to you, but only for tonight.” She shook her head. “I can’t promise more than that. I won’t promise more than that.”
Ceno held her gaze for a moment, the burning intensity in his gaze nearly made her change her mind. In fact, she actually stepped back a pace before he nodded.
“I promise not to claim you, lincha. No matter how much I might want to.”
Leaning down, he took her mouth in a hot, hard, demanding kiss. Reaching down, he cupped her ass in his big hands and dragged her closer. The long, hard length of his shaft branded her lower half as he molded her body to his.
He tasted faintly of mint as he thrust his tongue into her mouth. He caressed her ass with his big hands, pulling her closer and closer until somehow, she’d wrapped her legs around his waist and he was carrying her to the bed he’d made.
The scent of fabric softener tickled her nose as he rested her on the clean sheets.
“You have no idea how long I have searched for a woman like you. How many times I dreamed I would find you,” he said as he trailed kisses over her jaw and down to the vee of her blouse. She’d left the top three buttons undone because it had been warm, but that wasn’t enough for Ceno.
Reverently, he parted her blouse, releasing one button at a time. Every time he revealed new flesh, he paused and worshipped it before moving on.
“You’re so beautiful, lincha.” He kissed the underside of her breast before moving higher and higher.
Sela arched her back with a groan when warm lips covered the tip of her right breast. With slow precision, he licked and sucked her hard nipple until she thought she might scream with the pleasure of it, then he moved to the other.
Heat pooled low, sending waves of desire and a flood of moisture straight to her sex. She writhed beneath him, her fingers digging into his scalp, pulling him closer and closer until she thought she might somehow draw him inside.
“I’ve waited so long to feel your skin against mine.” He rubbed the rough stubble on his chin over her taut nipples before tugging her shirt from her body. “I’ve longed to see my mate spread before me, a goddess awaiting supplication.”
Moving lower, he unbuttoned her jeans, sliding them slowly down her hips, kissing and licking his way down over her stomach, to the waistband of her panties.
Her muscles clenched; she groaned as he ran his finger gently along the crease of her thigh, lightly brushing her labia.
“You’re so soft, baby. I want nothing more than to bury my face between your legs and lap up the sweet honey flowing from your beautiful cunt.” Leaning down, he inhaled deeply and groaned. “Think about how it will feel when I spread your smooth thighs, press my face against your delicate pussy, and taste the sweet, sweet nectar pouring from your sex.” He tugged on the waistband until he exposed her smooth skin.
Sela usually kept herself waxed. She felt cleaner that way. She felt the urge to cover herself when he drew her panties down over her legs. She wasn’t a thin woman, and she knew it. Her belly was too soft, and her hips too wide, yet Ceno made her feel beautiful, as though she hadn’t one flaw.
“Goddess, Sela, you are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.” His awed comment convinced her he meant every word he said.
Spreading her legs, Ceno settled between them. Reaching under her, he grasped her fleshy ass in his hands and lifted her, as though she weighed nothing or next to it.
“Please, Ceno.” She thrust her fingers into his soft hair, needing him to do something, anything, to release the tension building within her.
She felt like such a floozy, a loose woman for spreading herself before him, but she couldn’t bring herself to stop the madness. She didn’t want to stop it. If she only had this one night, at least she could grow old knowing that she had truly lived, at least for one glorious night.
“Ceno!” His name fell from her lips on a scream.
Without warning, he sucked her clit into his mouth, his tongue working over the little bud. She arched her back, the tension growing tighter and tighter until she was certain she would snap, break into a million pieces. It didn’t take long for her to tip over the edge. With a sob, she came into Ceno’s mouth as he lapped up every drop of cream from her body.
Slowly, he crawled over her. His jeans gone, she could see his heavy shaft standing between his thighs.
Her eyes widened as she realized he was every bit as big as he’d appeared earlier. No stuffing there.
Reaching up, he smoothed the hair from her face. “Are you sure, baby?” He pressed the head of his cock against her opening. “You won’t hate me in the morning, will you?”
“No.” She shook her head. “I won’t hate you.” She cupped his cheek before sliding her hand around his neck, drawing him down for a kiss.
How could she hate him? If she didn’t know it was impossible, she might have believed she was beginning to love him, but that was out of the question. She might want him with a passion that was unwise, but she couldn’t love him, not already.
Ceno eased forward, gently pushing his thick length into her. He was big. Bigger than she’d thought, but he took care not to hurt her.
Slow thrust after slow thrust, he worked his shaft deep inside her, until the warmth of his sac brushed against her bottom. Then, he stilled, waiting for her body to stretch, to adjust and become accustomed to his unusual length and girth.
When she thought she might go mad with the waiting, he finally eased himself from her body, only to push back in.
Sela gasped, the friction almost too much to bear. In and out, he rocked over her, thrusting his shaft deep, the thick length dragging over her nerve endings, pushing her higher and higher. Her muscles tightened as he rocked over her, drawing little moans from deep inside her.
Her hands slid up his arms, her finge
rs tightened on his biceps as she panted below him. Again and again, he thrust deeper and deeper until she was certain he would always be a part of her and would never want him to leave.
“Faster... harder.” She panted beneath him, her nails digging into his arms. “Please, Ceno.”
With a growl, he pounded into her. The headboard of the small bed slammed into the wall like a drumbeat.
Impossibly, his cock thickened inside her. His thrusts grew faster, more erratic as he growled over her, his strange white-blue eyes practically glowing in the light. Closing her eyes, Sela came. The orgasm washing over her in increasing waves of pleasure as he groaned above her. Driving deep, he held himself still, his body jerking over her as he emptied his seed deep.
It wasn’t until that moment that Sela realized neither of them had thought about using a condom. Was she crazy or just plain stupid?
Chapter Ten
Ceno showered early; he didn’t want to miss breakfast. Women didn’t cook for him often. Usually, he had to make do with whatever he or his brothers cooked up in their community kitchen.
If memory served, it was Deno’s turn to cook, and he shuddered at the idea. Usually, his younger brother did anything he could to make his job easier, which usually meant leftovers—spoiled leftovers, to be exact. Eating anything that fool decided to warm up was like playing Russian Roulette with food, only everyone who ate it got sick.
“Hey, Reno,” he said when his brother answered his phone. “I might have good news, and I need your help. All of you, if you can close up shop for a few days and drive to Arkansas.”
“Don’t tell me you can’t manage to find any gold.” Reno sighed, his exasperation evident. “Even that lazy fool Deno figured out he could get all the gold we need from pawn shops, and gold and silver brokers.”
“I woke you up, huh?” Ceno checked his watch. It was after eight. Usually, Reno was up and going by then.
“Yes. As a matter of fact, you did. Birgit and I had a... late night.” The unmistakable sound of sheets rustling came through the connection.
Magic, New Mexico: Seducing Sela (Kindle Worlds Novella) (Zolon Warriors Book 2) Page 5
