“I’m going to take you here, baby. Right here where anyone could find us, watch me fuck your ass.” His fingers slid out of her sex and coated her ass with her own arousal, his index finger pushing inside while he nibbled teasingly on one rounded cheek.
Dorothy pushed back, already mindless with excitement from the fantasy he was creating. “They’ll hear you cry out. Hear you call my name and beg for more, beg for every last inch of my cock. They’ll watch me take you and know you’re mine. You know it too, don’t you, Dorothy? You know you’re mine.”
“Yes!”
“Good girl.” To reward her, his tongue traced her ass, pressing inside with his finger, causing her to arch her spine and moan. The wind started to blow gently around them and Z chuckled softly against her skin. “I hope those tents are nailed down, baby. I have a feeling we’re in for some stormy weather.”
Wetness coated her thighs. She could feel her clit pulsing to the beat of her pounding heart. She couldn’t think, couldn’t speak. She could only push against him, silently begging for more. For everything.
“So impatient. So perfect. Are you ready for me, baby?” She tried to nod, whimpering her assent. The whimper turned into a long, low moan as he took his fingers away and replaced them with the wide head of his cock. The pressure was intense. It was too much. It wasn’t enough. He pushed through with a growl, and then he was there, inside her, her internal muscles clinging to his erection.
The slow drag and pull had her close to weeping. She’d never felt anything so intense, so all consuming. Her fists clenched and unclenched, gripping the grass on the forest floor until its sweet odor surrounded her. She knew this smell would always remind her of this moment.
Inch by inch, thrust by torturously slow thrust, he worked his way in until she felt his back bowing over her body, his hips pressed against her ass. “Oh Makers, Dorothy. I can’t…it’s never been so good. You’re so tight you’re bruising my cock, baby. So tight I don’t know how long I can last.”
The trees were swaying harder, leaves falling to the ground as their foundation bent in the breeze. Dorothy could feel Z’s energy mingling with hers, more intensely than it had before. She could almost feel his restraint. He was trying to be gentle again. For her. She dug her elbows into the ground and powered her hips back into him, tightening her muscles hard around him.
“Fuck, Dorothy, what are you doing?”
“Begging.” Her voice was rough and raw, matching her emotions. She looked at him over her shoulder with a ragged grin. “Surrendering.”
He narrowed his eyes, one hand tightening on her hips while the other slid up to grip her shoulder. “Finally.” The wind howled joyfully, sending his long black braid flying as he lost the tenuous grip on his control.
She screamed his name as he pumped inside her; full and deep, hard and fast, over and over until she worried she might pass out. Yes. This was what she’d wanted. This claiming. This conquering. A small pocket of vibrating air appeared between her legs, wrapping around her clit and humming against her sex, inside her.
“Tell me you love it.”
“I…oh shit…I love it.”
“What, baby? What do you love?” He wrapped her hair around his fist and tugged gently, arching her neck as he rode her. She knew what he wanted her to say.
“I love your cock. I love your big, delicious cock in my ass.” He growled, and she smiled. Two could play this talking game. “Make me take it, make me take it all. Harder, Z, fuck me harder.”
“Witch,” he gasped, all words forgotten as he fell on her, hands beside her on the ground, his hips pounding her into the ground. But Dorothy wasn’t done, she sent a bit of her power out, until he shouted in surprise at the energy pressing between his ass cheeks.
The trees were nearly bent over, rocking in a rhythm to match the frantic couple. “I’m coming, baby.” Z’s shout whirled through the tempest. “I’m coming. Fly with me, Dorothy. Come for me. Now.”
She flew. Out of her body and into the stratosphere. And he was with her, soaring into the heavens. When they landed he was on his back, and she was trembling in his arms, shaking like a leaf from the sheer intensity of the moment.
God, she loved him.
He touched her cheek, the fine tremor in his fingers proof that he’d been just as affected as she. “My sweet Dorothy.” She felt his lips on her forehead. “If you only knew how very much I lo—”
“Beneath the moons my eyes can see,
A heartless wizard wandering free,
His soul is dark, his eyes are cold,
He’d be worth more were he pure gold.”
The voice echoed overhead, and Dorothy jumped up, spinning wildly. She knew that voice. “Aunt Glen? Z, that’s…Z? Z!”
He was lying where she had left him, his arm curved around a body that was no longer there, his lips forming the words she’d been longing to hear. She knelt to touch him. He was hard, frozen like a statue. A beautiful, golden statue. “Oh no.”
A mad rustling filled the forest. Creatures came out of the shadows, headed straight for her. No. Not for her. The moon hit their forms, and she realized that these must be members of the Arachnid Clan. Men and women with multiple arms and strange eyes. And they were all reaching for Z. “No! No, do you hear me? You can’t have him!”
“Let him go, Mistress. Trust me. They won’t hurt him. Not yet.” The low whisper came from behind the tree. Dorothy didn’t want to listen to it, wanted to call the wind. But how could she fight against a witch powerful enough to do this? And there were so many of them.
“He’ll be fine, Mistress. I’ve got a plan. Let them go.” It was a feminine voice, one she’d never heard before, but she trusted it instinctively. Tears streamed down her face when she crawled away from the body and they swarmed around it, dragging the statue of her lover away.
“Why? Why is she doing this?”
Two warm fur arms wrapped around her, covering her in a blanket. “A woman does crazy things when her heart is broken. And when you’re a witch as powerful as Glenda? Crazy means something a hell of a lot more terrifying than keying your ex’s car.”
Dorothy opened her eyes, surprised by the Earth reference. It was a female Felix, covered in beautiful orange fur. She was gorgeous. And she looked familiar. “Do I know you?”
The feline laughed, nodding as she hugged Dorothy close. “Yes, Mistress. You know me. But more importantly, I know Glenda. And I’m going to help you, your sexy wizard and that stubborn old witch too. Maybe even myself in the bargain.”
She seemed to see the confusion in Dorothy’s eyes and her smile grew. “It’s me, Mistress. Suki. Now let’s go wake the king and fill him in on our plan.”
“Su-Suki? My Suki? Our plan?”
“Our plan.” Her cat nodded emphatically. “Now come on, try and keep up. We have a world to save and, almost as important, I’m starving. I haven’t had a good meal since you left me with old Mrs. Goldstein. That woman is notoriously stingy with her sardines.”
“I was Glenda’s maid. A gift from the Felix Clan for all her good works. It didn’t take long, though, for the two of us to grow close. So close that I was the only person she told when she fell in love with her wizard.”
Suki munched on a plate full of what looked to be oysters as she enthralled her small audience. “I’d never seen her so happy, so carefree.” She shrugged. “I suppose when you’ve been responsible for saving and helping to establish an entire world, you don’t have a lot of time for fun.
“Anyhoo, when the wizard betrayed her and broke her heart, well, you’ve never seen anyone so shattered. She had no family to turn to. Two of her three sisters had been killed during the great war, and everyone in Oz only seemed to want her to do something for them. So she went to stay with her last remaining sister, who’d fallen in love with a man from Earth. And I went with her.”
Dorothy stood, pacing behind the king and Kansas. She didn’t want to feel any sympathy for her aunt. She was too upset,
terrified imagining what Z might be going through. But it snuck in anyway. How lonely must Glen have been? How devastated?
“So you’ve been in Earth cat form all these years? That sounds like quite a sacrifice.” The king sounded impressed, and Suki preened.
“Not the entire time. For a while she helped me look like everyone else. I was very sexy as a human female, let me tell you. And we painted the town. There’s something about Earth. It grows on you. You should make young Kansas there take you sometime. Actually, it wasn’t until Dorothy was born that Glenda asked me to be a guardian.”
She met Dorothy’s gaze. “She always said there was something different about you. Something special. She worried about you all the time. And I had already had two lifetimes’ worth of being human, I thought it might be nice to be pampered for a while. And you, Mistress, spoiled me rotten. Thank you, by the way.”
“No problem.” Dorothy held her aching head. “Suki, when are we going to get to this plan of yours?”
“Oh that.” Suki popped a sardine into her mouth. “Mmm. Well, I was thinking that you and I get cleaned up, get a little shuteye and then head over to the palace to talk to Glenda and get her to release your magical mancakes.”
“That’s your plan?” Kansas shook his head. “You think she’ll stop looking for the spell of unmaking, stop threatening to kill all wizards and leave the palace quietly after a little chat?”
“She has the spell of unmaking.” The king was grim. “It dwells in the mind of every wizard. It’s too sensitive to trust to paper or stone. She has Z. Our only consolation is that she’ll never be able to break him. She’d have to kill him.”
“That does not console me.”
“You do need sleep, Dorothy. It’s nearly morning.” Kansas embraced her, rocking her the way he used to when she’d had a horrible day and needed his shoulder to cry on. Only this time it didn’t soothe her. The only arms she wanted around her had been taken from her. And she wasn’t sure what she could do about it. She didn’t have her aunt’s abilities.
Or did she? “So my grandmother was just like Aunt Glen? The same abilities?”
Suki smiled, nodding. “They were a sight to behold when they were together. All with command over the elements, over the gems of the earth, over people. The family talismans, the gem that helped focus their power was of course—”
“Rubies.” All three of them responded at the same time.
Suki nodded. “It makes their spells a thousand times stronger than they would be with just their powers alone. If Glenda didn’t have her ruby…”
“We might just have a chance.” Dorothy let Kansas settle her onto the plush blankets as the small group continued to discuss the possibilities. Let her eyes close to their low murmuring voices. She fell asleep with the image of Z’s golden features frozen with an expression of such tenderness that her heart ached.
There had to be a way to get through to Aunt Glen. But family or not, she would do whatever it took to save the man she loved. She only hoped they wouldn’t be too late.
She’d thought it would be harder. Dorothy had been ready to fight Gliders and Arachnids and battle their way into the palace. But it seemed they’d been told to expect them. Everyone stepped aside, allowing Dorothy and Suki, the king and Kansas, and, unbelievably, Braxim and Emily, to pass.
It was a little anticlimactic.
They went to the throne room, and Dorothy couldn’t control her cry. Statue Z was standing beside the throne, arm still curved, face still beautiful. “Z!” She ran toward him, only to be stopped by an invisible shield. The same kind of energy field Aunt Glen had used to protect their house.
“Dee, honey, what were you thinking? Did you learn nothing after all these years?”
Her aunt stood there, looking the same as she always had. Dorothy steeled her spine. She glanced at Z again. “Me? What were you thinking? You’ve turned a living, breathing person into a statue. Displaced a king and nearly started a civil war. I thought you were somewhere in Bermuda.”
The king stepped forward. “GW, we have always honored your memory and the gifts you gave us so many years ago. For the sake of my people, I ask you to give up this desire for vengeance and allow peace to return to our lands.”
Aunt Glen crossed her arms, tapping her foot as she looked at the unusual group. Suki caught her eye. “Suki, you told them, didn’t you?”
Suki shrugged apologetically. “I love you, old friend. But Dorothy deserves to be happy. And she won’t be happy without the wizard you’ve currently turned into a giant chunk of bling. I just don’t think you’ve thought this whole unmaking plan through.”
A deep voice had them all turning around. “This is an impressive rescue party, but you’re all too late. Once that stubborn woman makes up her mind, that’s the end. It doesn’t matter who you are, or if she is actually the one in the wrong. She’s the GW. And she has spoken.” The gorgeous older man with shock-white hair and dark golden eyes came to stand beside them, his hands tight fists at his sides.
“You!”
Dorothy’s head whipped between the two elders, her jaw dropping. “Is that…?”
“I am Aden.” The Wizard bowed to Dorothy and her cohorts. “First wizard created for the king’s ancestor. And apparently the reason your realm is in chaos. Glenda, Zenamulous has done nothing to you. Nothing but fall in love with a witch. A crime I was guilty of as well.”
Suki hissed, stepping toward the man with her claws spread threateningly. “How can you talk about love, A? You betrayed her. You slept with everything that moved, and, what’s worse, you tried to steal her powers.”
Aden sighed, shaking his head. “Suki, you are a true and loyal friend, but you are wrong.” He snared Glenda’s gaze, his own intense. “I never shared another’s bed without you right beside me. Never made love to anyone but you once you accepted me. But you believed. Without asking me you believed the jealous gossips. You never trusted my love.”
Dorothy laid her hand on Z’s chest, directly over the now golden ruby necklace. Her heart ached for them, both of them. It was obvious Aden was telling the truth. It was just as obvious that she and her aunt shared the same fears about their sensual, magnetic beaus. Were they enough for the wizards? Would one witch’s heart be enough for a lifetime?
Glenda shook her head, but there was doubt in her eyes. “How can I believe anything you say when I heard you speak of stealing my abilities and claiming them for your own? And Suki saw you looking through my spell books in my private sanctuary when you knew I wasn’t there.”
Aden took a step closer, running his hands through his hair in frustration. “Why didn’t you talk to me, Glenda? Why didn’t you ask me any of this? All these years wasted.” He sighed.
“No one could believe I would be okay being with a witch far more powerful than I. I spent a lot of time explaining to those closest to me that the greatest power you had was your heart. And it was that I wanted to make my own. I never kept my feelings for you a secret, Glenda. Hiding behind curtains was your department.”
Glenda winced, and he shrugged. “As for the book. The king refused to allow me to claim you in the customary way until I discovered whether or not there were any rules against us coming together—creator and created—in your library. You were the only one of your kind left in Oz, and I’d wanted it to be a surprise.”
Kansas spoke up. “Hold on, let me get this straight.” He pointed at Dorothy’s aunt. “This was why you left Oz without a word to anyone? Why you stayed away for literally generations and gave Dorothy nightmares about evil wizards? That was all the proof you had that he’d betrayed you?” His voice rose is disbelief. “You didn’t catch him in the act? You didn’t even talk to him?”
“Kansas, my love, don’t piss off the GW.” The king’s voice was hushed, but it echoed off the walls.
“No, he’s right.” Dorothy leaned closer to Z. The gold warmed beneath her hands and it gave her strength. “Aunt Glen, you’ve been so angry and hurt
for so long that you can’t see what’s right in front of your eyes.” She smiled at Aden. “When a wizard loves you, it’s for keeps. And Aden loves you.”
Dorothy looked up into the solid gold face of her wizard, all the love she felt in her eyes. “I would rather have a single day of that kind of love, than an endless lifetime without it.”
Waves of heat began to roll off the statue. So hot Dorothy could barely touch it. In moments she was gazing into sensual whiskey eyes. “…love you, Dorothy.” He finished the sentence she felt she’d been waiting to hear her whole life.
“I love you too.”
“I’m such an old fool.” Dorothy tore her gaze from Z’s to find her aunt crying in Aden’s arms. “I knew, a part of me knew, but I was so afraid…”
The wizard held her tight, eyes closed with emotion. “I should have traveled the storm to find you, but I was too damned proud.”
“Uncle Aden. Glad you made it.” Everyone turned to look at Z. “When I realized he was the one your aunt was upset with, it all fell into place. I grew up on stories of his one true love, and thinking how crazy my old Uncle A was for living the life of a sexless hermit all these years, when there were so many willing partners to be had.”
Glenda’s jaw dropped. “All this time?”
Aden’s smile was tight. “All this time. And I’ll be damned if it’s one minute more. Your Majesty?”
“Yes, wizard?” The king stepped forward.
“Your Majesty, may I present to you the good witch Glenda, creator of the Crow Warriors, friend of all and keeper of my heart. I ask my king for his blessing.”
Z smiled at Dorothy as Aden repeated the wizard’s vow. The king smiled in relief. “You have it, with all of my heart. I ask only that your heart keeper dwell with us in peace, that all the clans can live in harmony once more.”
Surrender Dorothy Page 6
