Braxim pranced by, his shoulders back proudly as several handsome, young Equus pushed closer in curiosity. Emily giggled, obviously delighted to be the center of attention. “Dorothy, I should be mad at you. But since none of this is real, I think I’m going to accept Braxy’s invitation to his tent so I can…um…lie down. I’ll see you later.”
Dorothy eyed the large horsemen who were obviously excited at the prospect. “Are you sure you ought to do that, Emily?” She felt a pair of warm hands caressing her bare shoulders.
“She’ll be fine. They won’t hurt her. Trust me.”
She waited for the young centaurs to disappear, spinning on her heel to confront the wizard. “Trust you? Why on earth, or in Oz…God, I can’t believe I just said that…should I trust you? You dated my sister and stole my best friend. You teased me until you’re all I could think about and then you leave. Like a fool I followed you, only to find myself marching naked and barefoot on the wrong side of an arrow, and being chased by insane bird people. Not a good track record so far, my friend.”
Z took one step closer, forcing her to crane her neck to meet his gaze. “You chose to come here. You said my name and called the storm. Why?”
“Temporary insanity brought on by the poppy field. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ll go find Emily before she’s trampled by those young studs and catch the next tornado out of this madhouse.”
She only took two steps and then he was there, lifting her into his arms as an angry wind whipped around them. “Oh no, my sweet. You’re in my world now. I won’t let you get away from me again. I think it’s time you and I got a few things straight.”
They lifted off the ground, the wind taking them over the campground and into the mountains beyond. Dorothy bit her lip, Z’s expression seeming to forbid further conversation. Plus the whole floating above the ground thing was really throwing her off. Aunt Glen had never taught her how to do this. Aunt Glen. Would she be worried? She hadn’t returned from her vacation by the time Dorothy had left, so she had no way of knowing.
Thoughts of her elderly relative disappeared as they dove into a dark crevice hidden within the mountainside. “Where are we—” The darkness gave way to an unearthly blue light.
“We’re home. My home. And, Dorothy? This time nothing and no one will interrupt us.”
Chapter Four
It was beautiful. She’d thought he was taking her into a cave at first, but it was a palace, hewn out of crystals and gemstones and magic. She didn’t know where it was coming from, but light poured in from every corner, colored by purple and blue stones, warming the room.
Velvet pillows and low tables gave the room a Moroccan feel. “You live here?”
Z leaned against the far wall, watching her study the room. “On and off. I am bound by the pleasure of the king. But occasionally, when I need to be alone, I come here.”
Dorothy tilted her head. “Alone?”
He chuckled mirthlessly. “Yes. I can find ‘company’ anywhere I please. But it pleases me to have a sanctuary all to myself. And now, it pleases me, even more than I thought it would, to show it to you.”
She ignored the leap her heart gave at his words. It didn’t mean anything. She couldn’t let herself forget who she was dealing with. “So what now?”
He stood away from the wall, his fingers reaching up to undo the top button of his white linen shirt. Dorothy took a step back. “What are you doing?”
He took another step. “Earning your trust.” Another button undone. “I never had any interest in Emily. She was merely a way for me to get close to you. I never touched her.”
Dorothy bumped against a piece of furniture, altering her retreat without looking where she was going. “You’re interested in everyone. You forget I had a bird’s eye view of just how interested. Why should I believe you?”
He slipped the shirt off, and it dropped to the ground. Dorothy swallowed. He was beautiful. The ruby amulet lay against his lean, smooth chest, stomach muscles rippling with his slow, deliberate movements as he continued to stalk her. “I was never intimate with any of them, not after seeing you, and you know it. I wanted you to know me. To know my appetites. To want me not in spite of them,”—he smiled—“but because of them. And don’t lie and say you didn’t enjoy every minute of it.”
She had. Dorothy heard the rushing of water and she looked behind her. He’d backed her into a room with a small waterfall. Steam rose from the heated pool at its base. This was a bathroom a woman could die happy in. But first she had to know.
“And Kansas?”
“He was fated to be the king’s consort. The magic of our world called him, but yes, I sent the storm. Yes, I was attracted to him. And yes, I slept with him. That is what you wanted to know, isn’t it?”
The waterfall blurred before her eyes. “Yes.”
“Look at me, Dorothy. Please.”
He was naked. Gloriously, unashamedly naked, aroused and looking at her as if she were the only thing he wanted in the universe. If only she could believe that.
He held out his arms. “I stand here before you, Zenamulous of the Crow Warriors, the king’s wizard, from a line of wizards dating back to the time of Transformation. I have never used my magic to increase my wealth or power, though occasionally I have used it to increase another’s pleasure. I have never repressed my passions, but I’ve never forced them on anyone either.”
His chin lifted proudly, but Dorothy could see a hint of vulnerability darken his gaze. “And from the moment I saw you, I knew you were mine.”
The ball was in her court. She could see it in the way he held himself so still. He wouldn’t use words or powers to woo her, wouldn’t take her in his arms or sweep her off her feet. She would have to make the next move. She would have to choose to trust him…or not.
In spite of her pique, in spite of her insecurities and his past, the choice wasn’t hard at all. Hadn’t she ridden a storm to find him? A few steps were nothing after that. She stopped directly in front of him, making sure he had a clear view. One twist of her fingers and the blanket fell silently to the floor.
His fiery stare scorched her skin. There could be no doubt he liked what he saw. His nostrils flared when she laid one tentative hand on his bare shoulder, skimming it down his arm to wrap around his wrist. He raised his eyebrow and she smiled, lifting his hand and covering it as it cupped her breast.
Dorothy closed her eyes, reveling in the feel of his hand on her. “Oh none of that.” Her lids lifted, startled at Z’s low command. “I want you to see everything. To look in your eyes as I make you come again and again and again.”
Just that quickly she was trembling, arousal coating her sex and heating her thighs. He inhaled. “Makers, you smell amazing. I don’t think I can wait to taste you.” He knelt in front of her and she gasped, grabbing his shoulders as he pressed an open-mouthed kiss against her clit. He spread the lips of her pussy wide and flattened his tongue against her, as if he were absorbing her into his blood stream.
Z growled against her sex, the vibration weakening her knees until she was leaning heavily against him, her body bowing over his, hair grazing his back. He grabbed her waist, pulling her down to the floor and lifting her legs over his shoulders.
Dorothy lifted her head to watch him staring at her from between her thighs. She felt a moment’s insecurity. Her body was totally visible, completely open to him. He sensed her hesitation. “You have the most sensual body I’ve ever seen. Soft curves of silk and cream. I could drown in you. You are a goddess, sweet Dorothy. Let me worship you.”
Her head fell back against the cool floor as he disappeared between her legs. She gasped when his tongue thrust deep inside her sex, his palms spreading her ass cheeks wide, opening her completely to him.
When his thumb, damp with her juices, pressed against her ass, she trembled. Hadn’t she fantasized, as she’d watched him entering that young, beautiful man, watching the look of pain and ecstasy on his angelic face as the wizard rode him tha
t first night? Hadn’t she touched herself and dreamt of him inside her in that way? So forbidden. So wanton. Oh God.
He pushed through the tight muscles, biting her inner thigh at her groan. “No one has ever touched you here.” It wasn’t a question. “I will. I want you on your knees, begging for my cock in your ass. Shit, I could come just thinking about how you’ll feel around me. You’re so tight, baby, but you can take me.” He twisted his thumb inside her, and she screamed at the fullness.
“Not yet, but soon. Now I want to feel you come against my tongue, taste your sweet cream.” His actions matched his words, his tongue sliding deep inside her pussy, fucking her as he pushed his thumb in and out of her ass.
She couldn’t hold back. “Z!” She climaxed against his mouth, her hips pumping against his face, pressing down to force his thumb deeper. Her body was a firestorm of sensation. Wave upon wave of pleasure engulfed her as Z delved deeper, drinking her in as though he couldn’t get enough of her taste.
He reared up onto his knees, his mouth shining from her juices, his eyes wild. “I can’t wait. I’ve never wanted anyone this much. I want to get inside more than I want to breathe. Let me in, sweet Dorothy. Let me have you.”
A sense of inevitability, of rightness, washed over her. She opened her arms, wrapping her legs around his waist to pull him close, and smiled. His groan rumbled deep inside his chest, and he bent down to take her mouth. She could taste herself on his tongue, and she tilted her head, wanting more.
But he ripped his lips away. “I want you to watch.” He wrapped his strong fingers around her thighs, holding them high and wide, giving her the perfect view of his flushed erection caressing her thigh. Oh my. A feminine thrill made her shiver. She couldn’t look away. It was a beautiful monster. And she was getting wetter just imagining it inside her.
His sharp cheekbones had darkened to a deep, burnished gold with his arousal, and he bit his lip as his cock slipped through her wet heat. “You are a witch, aren’t you, baby? You’ve stolen all my control. No. Fuck, don’t move…just…give me a… Ahhh.”
His cock powered through the clinging walls of her sex, stretching her until she wasn’t sure he would fit. Her back arched as he kept coming. He held her legs higher until her ass was completely off the floor. “Oh God, Z!”
“Yes. Take it all. Makers, you’re so…” Their cries of pleasure mingled when his hips were finally pressed flush against her own. A thundering echo bounced off the gemstone walls. The pool water rippled as their powers joined along with their bodies.
Dorothy felt the floor beneath her warm, the sultry wind surrounding them, lifting her hair until it caressed his shoulders. His jaw was clenched, and she knew he was trying to go slow, to draw out the pleasure. But she felt greedy, starving for more. “Don’t hold back. Please.”
Their gazes met. Pure need and perfect understanding. The sounds of hurricane force winds couldn’t drown out their cries as he gave her what she wanted, fucking her hard and fast until she didn’t know where she ended and he began. This was no gentle wooing. The seductive wizard was gone, replaced by a madman who couldn’t get deep enough, couldn’t stop calling her name as her pussy clenched around his cock.
“Dorothy, shit, Dorothy. Come, baby. Surrender. I want to feel you squeeze my cock. Oh yeah, like that. Yes. Yes.”
Dorothy soared off the edge. She was in the eye of the storm, riding the fury of the wind. And then he was there with her, touching her mind, her soul, her power with his. They were meant. Fated. One. She saw all her worries and fears disappear at their connection. How could she not trust him when he was a part of her?
She came back to awareness with his forehead against her chest, suckling her nipple, as he jerked against her with the last of his orgasm. Her arms wrapped around him, hands gently caressing his back. “Holy moly.”
“Indeed.” He lifted his head, his smile more carefree than any she’d seen. Then she noticed his amulet. “Um, your necklace is glowing.”
“Just a little. No one is in immediate danger this time. The king just wants to meet with us as soon as we can get back to the base.” He stood, a sound of regret escaping him as they separated. He picked her up and walked into the heated pool. “But we have a little time. First, I really think you’ll enjoy this.” He lowered her into the water and she groaned at the heavenly sensation. “Mmm.”
Z knelt behind her, rubbing her shoulders. “I wanted you to know that I sensed you when the storm found you. I’m sorry I wasn’t waiting when you first arrived.” He smirked. “I also didn’t realize you would bring Emily along.”
“Less talking, more rubbing. And why does the king want to talk to us?”
“Bossy already. Okay. He probably wants to know if I’ve told you what’s going on. I’m sure you’ve noticed by now that all is not right in our land.”
Dorothy nodded, leaning against him. “The bird people shooting at us gave me a little clue. Is that why you had to come back?”
“Yes.” Z nuzzled her neck. “The palace has been taken over by…by someone we used to know as a friend. The matriarchal clans, the Gliders and the Arachnids, have sided with her. The Equus and Felix have remained with their king, as well as all the Crow Warriors. The only ones who’ve remained on the fence are the pleasure droids. Our whole world is divided.”
She didn’t have the heart to tell him that his touch, combined with the warm, soothing water, was making it difficult to pay attention. Arachnids? Felix? “Who is she?”
Z sighed. “We’ve always known her as the GW. She’s been gone for over an age. We didn’t know where or why she had left. She’s the one who initiated the era of Transformation, the one who taught us how to rise above the great darkness that had covered our world. We held her up as a hero of our people. But when she returned, well, let’s just say it wasn’t the family reunion we were imagining.”
The GW? If they were in Oz, than wouldn’t those initials stand for… “Are you talking about the Good Witch? As in ruby slippers? As in Glenda?”
The long silence made Dorothy pull away and turn to face him. He grimaced, shrugging. “That’s right. Glenda. Only according to Kansas, he knows her as Aunt Glen, his old next door neighbor.” She blanched as he continued. “Apparently, she’s a little upset, and looking to undo all of her creations unless…”
“Unless?”
“Unless every wizard in Oz is rounded up and executed, or she finds the spell of unmaking, whichever comes first.”
Chapter Five
“Dorothy, wait!”
“Wait? Wait? Don’t talk to me. I can’t believe you didn’t tell me as soon as I got here that my Aunt Glen is…well, damn it I just don’t believe it. She would never hurt a fly.”
Dorothy whirled on the path to face him. “Do you know that I once killed a spider by accident, and she sent me to my room without dinner? We had to have a full on, miniature Viking funeral on the beach, and she actually cried. She could never hurt anyone.”
“Except wizards.”
“Except—” She couldn’t deny it. Her whole life Aunt Glen had loudly and continuously proclaimed her hatred of wizards. They will betray you. They lie. They will steal your power. Dorothy had had nightmares as a child about a white-bearded, long-robed demon who came to steal her soul. And the look in her aunt’s eyes whenever the mere word was mentioned, well, her antipathy ran deep.
“Okay, you have a point. But I still don’t believe she would ‘unmake’ anyone.” With that, she turned and began to march once more toward the twinkling lights of the camp in the distance. She needed to talk to Kansas.
The Equus standing guard bowed and let them pass into the tent village that had been created by the king’s allies. Dorothy saw feline-looking humans covered in fur, several more centaurs, and even one or two silver women scattered amongst the golden throng. Emily’s blonde head was nowhere to be found.
Z jogged ahead of her and pointed to the largest tent, leading her there without catching her eye. She knew h
ow he felt. Honestly, she wished he hadn’t told her. She wanted to bask in the afterglow of the best sex of her life a little longer, instead of learning that her relative could possibly be the most famous witch in history. Oh and just for that extra touch of spice, said aunt was ordering the death of Dorothy’s new boyfriend.
Super.
She ducked beneath the flap Z held up for her and smiled when she saw Kansas. He seemed to be in a heated argument with the king. He looked so earnest, pushing his hair out of his eyes and leaning his hands on the table. She’d missed him so much.
“She needs to know everything. It’s the only way. I’ve known her most of my life. She’ll do the right thing.”
“She is pretty sure you’re talking about her, so she was wondering if she could be a part of the conversation.” Dorothy crossed her arms, twinkling eyes belying any pique.
“Dorothy! You’re just in time for dinner.” He walked over to her, putting his arm around her to guide her to the table.
Z’s hand on his shoulder stopped him. “I will present her to my king.”
Kansas looked confused, but the king jumped to his feet, a huge grin spreading across his stunning face. “Kansas, let her go.”
Kansas met Dorothy’s eyes and rolled his, causing her to laugh before making a show of backing away with his hands in the air. Z took Dorothy’s hand and entwined their fingers. She met his gaze and was blown away by the emotion there. He walked her to the handsome monarch with all the ceremony, as one would expect if they found themselves in an actual palace.
“Your Majesty, may I present to you the good witch Dorothy, ally to the wind, friend of all and keeper of my heart.” Dorothy’s gasp was ignored as Z kept his gaze on the king. “I ask my king for his blessing.”
Surrender Dorothy Page 4
