by Sky Winters
But then she thought about the hypnosis that the men performed, about the pallid, corpse-like skin that everyone in the society had, and the red capsules that gave their drinks the color of faded gore. She didn’t know what to believe. She pushed the thoughts of what, exactly, was going on out of her mind as best she could as she stood up and looked around the room.
The bedroom was large, much bigger than her apartment, but like the rest of Kieran’s home, sparsely-appointed. There was a dresser made of white birch, and a walk-in closet that was completely empty.
What a waste. She imagined what it would look like filled with the types of luxurious and elegant clothes that a woman who could afford to live in an apartment like this would wear.
There was nothing in the room with which to occupy herself.
Well, Kieran did say that I could help myself to anything here…
With some trepidation, she left the bedroom and stepped into the hallway, then into the main room. Kieran was nowhere to be found. Though the lights were still on, the apartment was deathly silent. She raised her hand to her ear, to make sure her hearing aid was still in place. It was, and as she touched it, feeling the cool plastic with her fingertips. She wondered if her disability had anything to do with why the men at the auction were unable to hypnotize her.
She put aside these speculative thoughts as she walked toward the space near the window where Kieran had stood earlier. And when she reached the spot, she noticed something that had been blocked from her view before by one of the bookshelves. A small stairway led up, to a door in the ceiling. Deciding that some fresh air would do her good, she moved with quick steps to the liquor cabinet, made herself a small drink, and went back to the stairs, which seemed to me made of simple, clear plastic bordered above by a handrail no thicker than her wrist.
Undoing the latch of the door, she pushed it open, the cool air of the evening rushing in. Though there was a chill to the fall breeze, the cold didn’t bother her. She made her way up the rest of the stairs, and stepped out onto the roof. What she saw forced her to pull in a small, sharp gasp. There was a rooftop terrace, a wide, circular area with a 360-view of the city that was even more spectacular than the one from the apartment. Nora could see everything from here: The magnificent Art Deco spire of the Chrysler Building, the faraway skyscrapers of the Financial District, with the World Trade Center towering above them all with its jutting, angled form, and the endless expanse of lighted grids that was Brooklyn. Then she turned, and the long rectangle of Central Park stretched in front of her, its angled form contrasted by the smooth curves of the water and streets that existed within its sharply-defined space.
And standing with her back toward her, his figure set perfectly within the shape of the park, stood Kieran, his arms stretched outward, his hands clasped on the railing that outlined the terrace, the silver shape of the full moon visible in the sky beyond.
The wind was a low, hollow howl as she moved toward him. She wanted to find some way to get his attention, figuring that sneaking up on a vampire was probably an unwise thing to do.
“Couldn’t sleep?” he asked, turning his head just enough for Nora to see his profile backlit by the city lights.
“Not a chance,” she said, moving toward him with hesitant steps, the fingers of both hands wrapped around her drink.
He turned, seeing that she was still in the underwear that she had been wearing since he bid on her.
“You know, I have women’s clothes here,” he said, a sly smirk forming on his mouth.
Nora looked down at her mostly-exposed body, and immediately became self-conscious. It had been a while since she’d had to worry about waking up and a man being around. “It wasn’t exactly the first thing on my mind,” she said, feeling the skin on her face turn a light shade of red.
He slipped out of his jacket once again, walked toward her, and draped it over her shoulders. “As much as I like seeing you in my clothes, we’ll really need to do something about your outfit situation if you’re going to be staying here.”
Just like before, the warmth of the fine material of the jacket and the rich smell of his scent made Nora’s head swim. She took a sip from her drink, and walked with Kieran toward the railing where he had been standing.
“This is quite the place,” said Nora, the wind blowing around them in soft gusts.
“It is. A gift from someone close to me,” he said, looking off into the distance.
“I think I can see my apartment from here,” she said, pointing toward the north end of Central Park.
A moment passed. Nora took another sip of her drink and found her eyes following one of the orange veins of traffic as it moved along the side of the park. The faint sounds of the city—cars honking, sirens, the clanging of trucks along the road—wafted up to them in soft echoes. She found herself standing closer to Kieran. She couldn’t tell if it was from the chill in the air, or something else, but something pulled her toward him.
“This has been an unbelievable night,” said Nora, hoping to coax some conversation out of Kieran.
“Yes, a fitting introduction to our world.”
“But…” Nora hesitated, then blurted, “but…how much danger am I in? Who is that other vampire who wanted me so badly? I just need to know what the hell I’ve gotten myself into.” She could feel tears of fear and frustrating forming in her eyes.
“You’re safe, for now,” he said, putting his large, firm hand on Nora’s shoulder, “and I’m going to make sure you stay that way.”
He took in a short, shallow breath and measured his words carefully. “Marcus Ricci. From the Italian society. An arrogant, troublemaking fool. Our people live and die by our discretion, and vampires like him threaten that with their very nature. He was a wealthy man before he was brought into our fold, and has become even wealthier since. Our people are very conscious of things like status, and power, and having someone like him enter our world with so much influence has been… destabilizing, to say the least.”
“Then why was he even… turned?” she asked, the terminology of Kieran’s kind sounding strange to her as she spoke the words.
“Hard to say. When we bring in new members, it’s a measured, drawn-out process; some might say too drawn-out. We avoid bringing in new blood, so to speak, from those with established wealth, high status, fame for this specific purpose. Some suspect that Marcus found out about our world and paid one of us to turn him.”
“And what do you think?”
“It doesn’t matter. He’s here, and unless he breaks one of our cardinal rules, he’ll be here for a long while.”
Nora took another sip of her drink. And as she looked down at her glass, she saw that the distance between her body and Kieran’s had closed even further. She didn’t know what it was; she should be running in fear from this man. But there was something about him, something about his scent, the way he moved, the way he looked her, almost through her, with those eyes that seemed to glow with heat amidst his pallid, cool skin, like twin campfires in tundra.
“But I’ve seen his type before. Hot-blooded and thin-skinned; a dangerous combination. He must’ve seen the same thing in you that I saw. And it’s only because I hadn’t bid on anyone before that I had enough money to outspend him.”
Nora traced the rim of her glass with the tip of her finger. “And… what was it exactly that you saw in me?” she asked, her voice soft.
Kieran finally turned to face her. “It wasn’t a thing, it was a feeling,” he said, again taking time to carefully choose his words. “When you see something, someone, and you know that you need them to be a part of your life.”
By now Nora was even closer to Kieran, the skin of their arms nearly touching. Whatever feeling she was experiencing that was drawing her closer to him, he seemed to be feeling it, too.
Kieran then turned, leaning his side on the railing; Nora did the same. Though he was facing her, he was looking away, off into the distance, his full lips pursed, appearing deep in tho
ught. Nora found her eyes drifting down, staring at his firm, strong hands, up to his thick forearms, which were toned and covered in a smattering of dark hair against pale skin, then to his chest, where the top two buttons of his shirt were undone, revealing the outlines of hard pectoral muscles.
The feeling of hot tightness was returning, and she was becoming aware that this feeling was something that she wasn’t going to be able to resist for much longer. Part of her hoped that Kieran would bid her goodnight, and leave her here alone, not succumbing to the man who now owned her. But the greater part of her, the more insistent part, implored him to see, somehow, how she was feeling, and to make his move.
Kieran turned to her, looking upon her small, delicate frame draped in his suit jacket, her full lips in a glistening pout. Without thinking, he moved his hand up to her face, feeling the soft lines of her jaw against his palm. Nora closed her eyes and leaned in his touch, his skin cool, hers flushed and warm.
Protestations began to form on Nora’s lips, but before they could take form, Kieran leaned in, and took her mouth in a slow, lingering kiss. Nora was shocked, at first, her body tense. But a second of his touch was all it took her to loosen, to lean into the body that was now pressed against hers. At first, the kisses were light and chaste, but as he read her body, his mouth opened enough for his tongue to lick her bottom lip, sending hot, tingling shivers up the goose fleshed skin of Nora’s neck.
Chapter 10
Nora sensed the light, oak taste of whiskey on his breath, along with the strange, copper tang of the blood, and the heady scent that surrounded her when she wore his coat was now surrounding her, flowing up and around her like a thick, swirling mist. The scent went straight to her head, making the lights of the city in the corner of her eye blur into a glowing mass.
Nora responded to Kieran’s kiss, slipping her hands into his shirt, feeling the smooth, cool texture of his skin against her fingertips. Her hands moved farther back, until they were behind his shoulders, and she found herself pulling him into her. She hoped that he sensed what this meant, her need to have him close, against her, and wanting this without words. He understood. He matched her movements, slipping his own hands under the suit jacket as he continued to kiss her, and slipped it off her body, leaving her standing there in her bra and panties.
Kieran stood back for a moment, drinking in the sight of Nora standing before him. But only for a moment. Then, he moved toward her with deliberate speed, placed his hands on the curves of her hips, and leaned in. He began to kiss her, starting with the delicate incline of her shoulder, then moving up, along the side of her neck. Each kiss sent a charge down Nora’s body, and she could feel the skin of her legs prickle with gooseflesh. He continued, reaching the small divot behind her ear, kissing her, his tongue giving her skin gentle licks.
Nora took in air in soft gasps as he kissed her. Her hands began to work faster, undoing the buttons of his dress shirt and peeling it from his skin. She looked down as Kieran continued, admiring the sinewy tone of his lean, muscular back illuminated by the soft light of the moon. Her hands moved down farther, exploring his upper body. She ran her fingertips along the tight, clean muscles of his hips. And once they reached his belt, she hesitated.
“Do it,” he said, his breath hot against her ear.
Kieran moved back to her lips as she undid the buckle, then the zipper, before pulling his pants down in a swift motion. He stepped out of his shoes and stood before her wearing nothing but a watch, his necklace, and a pair of skin-tight boxer briefs. Nora’s breath began to draw quicker at the sight of his body, and as he moved toward her, taking her in his arms, she was gripped with the fear that he, his essence, would consume her.
Kieran reached around Nora’s back and unfastened her bra, letting it drop to the terrace floor. Nora’s now-bare breasts felt cold in the night air, and her nipples became small and hard. Kieran sensed this, and moved down to her chest, taking the flesh of her breasts into his mouth, one after another. Nora bristled with pleasure as his tongue danced across her nipples, the gentle, wet prodding of his tongue nearly sending her into spasms. As he kissed her breasts, his hands moved down along her body. And when they reached her waist, his fingers wrapped around her panties and pulled them down.
Nora shivered, her body now bare in the evening chill.
“You won’t be cold for long,” he said, rising, and placing his right hand on her inner thigh.
He then took her hand into his, and moved it down his stomach, across the fabric of his underwear, until it rested on the long shape of his now-hard cock.
“How does my cock feel?” he asked.
“So good,” said Nora, dragging the backs of her fingernails against the length of his penis.
“You make me so fucking hard,” he said, whispering into her ear. “From the moment I saw you, I knew I had to have you, to be inside you.”
Nora’s breath was sharp at his words, and she became wetter the farther he moved his hands up her thigh. He continued to kiss her, and when he reached her pussy, rubbed the length of her lips with the side of his finger.
“I can feel how much you want me,” he said, now rubbing her clit.
Pleasure began to seize Nora, blurring his words. “I... I do,” she said, her voice low and pleading.
At this, Kieran slid his fingers into Nora, first one, then two. At first, his movements were slow, and gentle. But over the next few seconds, he began to move faster inside of her, more rhythmically, massaging her clit with her thumb. The sensation was almost too much for Nora; her knees began to grow weak and her breathing grew sharper and faster, and she was forced to brace herself against the terrace railing just to stay standing.
“You’re so fucking beautiful,” he said in between kisses, still moving his fingers in and out of her. “I need to taste you, right now.
With that, he scooped Nora up by her legs and sat her on the outcropping wall of the barrier. A sly smile on his face, he moved down, spreading her legs apart as he descended. Nora felt self-conscious at first, but her mood changed as soon as she felt the first exhalations of hot breath against her pussy, followed by the first darting explorations of his tongue.
He started slow, teasing her lips with short, quick licks, letting the pressure build in her. Then, he slipped his finger into her, moving in and out of her as he kissed and licked along her inner thighs. After a time, he moved his face closer to her pussy once more, and spread her lips apart with his fingers.
The first touches of Kieran’s tongue against her clit nearly sent Nora into uncontrollable shocks of pleasure. Just like before, he started with gentle teases of the tip of his tongue. But as Nora became more turned on, he began placing the flat surface of his tongue against her clit, moving it up and along her in slow drags, so slow that she could sense the exact texture of his tongue as he moved. He kept this up, unceasing drags of his tongue against her, his fingers still moving in and out of her at a firm, constant rhythm. Nora’s gentle gasps turned into moans as he did his work on her, and her back began to arch. His licks began to grow faster, and greedier, and Nora could feel herself become wetter and wetter with each second. And as he pleasured her, he wrapped one burly arm around her waist. With the other, he reached up, cupping her right breast, kneading it with gentle presses of his fingers and making slow circles around her nipple. The pleasure was overwhelming, and the only thought she could hold in her mind was the screaming, burning need to have Kieran inside her, right now. But he sensed this, and continued to tease her, lapping at her clit, gliding his fingers into her, only taking breaks to lay more kisses upon her inner thighs.
At last, she couldn’t take any more. But she wanted to give something to him, first. She slid her fingers through his now-tussled hair, and beckoned him up. He rose, and in the light of the moon, Nora could see that his lips were glistening with her. He gazed at her with his narrowed, sly eyes, wondering what she had in mind. Placing her hands on his hipbones, she gave him a gentle push back, just enough
room for her to move toward him.
Kieran stepped back, and Nora knelt in front of him. He grinned, knowing what was coming, and she returned his grin with hungry eyes. Nora’s face was directly across from the last bit of clothing Kieran was wearing, his tight, form-fitting boxer briefs. Even in the low light of the terrace, she could see the outline of his cock straining against the fabric. Wrapping her fingers around his waistband, she pulled down his underwear, and his long, smooth cock sprang out in front of her, already completely erect. She looked at his cock with anticipation. Nora knew she wasn’t the most sexually-experienced girl, and what she was about to do was something she had only done a few times before. But something about Kieran, something about his devious, piercing eyes, his flawless pale skin, and his hard muscular body made the idea of taking him in her mouth unbelievably appealing.
She licked her lips one last time, and, to her surprise, felt Kieran’s firm hand grip the back of her head. He pulled, just enough to send that strange, but intoxicating, mixture of pleasure and pain through her body.
“Suck my cock,” he said, his voice firm.
Nora was ready before, but something about his deep, commanding tone made her even more aroused than she was already. Wrapping her fingers around the base of his shaft, Nora began with quick kisses up and down the length of his penis. Kieran let out low moans as soon as her lips touched him, and she responded by darting her tongue around his cock, taking extra time with the curves of the head. After a minute of this gentle licking and kissing, Kieran could take no more. He took and even firmer hold on her hair, and guided her mouth to the end of his length. Nora then opened her mouth and, with slow, careful movement, took nearly the entire length of his hard, firm cock in her greedy mouth.
Chapter 11
“God, that feels so fucking good,” Kieran said, his voice wavering with pleasure.
