by Ivy Barrett
His mouth returned to hers for a moment then he continued his descent across her sensitive skin. With sudden urgency, he tugged her shirt off over her head and tossed it aside. She kicked off her shoes while he stepped back and attacked his own clothing. Garments went flying and boots thudded against the floor. She laughed then gasped as he pulled her to him and continued his assault on their garments.
They paused, facing each other, naked and breathless. Golden shards blinked to life within the depths of his eyes. His gaze swept from her head to her feet in a slow, appreciative caress. Her chest flushed and her nipples tingled. Tension rippled through her abdomen and her core clenched, more than ready for the possessive thrust of his cock.
So beautiful. The words whispered through her mind as he bent to her breast and latched on to one tender nipple. His fingers caressed while his lips pulled and sensation dropped from her chest to her core. Firm and greedy, his mouth worked one nipple then the other, back and forth until she squirmed and shivered.
Without warning, he swept her up in his arms and moved to the bed. He set her down and an impulse so strong it couldn’t be ignored made her face the bed and bend from the waist. This was how their relationship began and now it felt incomplete to make love without her bottom smoldering from the firm stroke of his bare hand.
She looked back at him. Please. I need this too.
Anything. Always. He moved to her side and brought his hand down against one side and then the other. His fingers teased her skin as it warmed, tracing the crack between her cheeks before he delivered two more stinging slaps. More?
Rather than respond with words or thought, she wiggled her bottom, savoring the heat. He spanked her again and again, not stopping until she moaned out loud.
Better? He covered both cheeks with his hands, not squeezing, just sharing the heat.
Much. She sighed and straightened, ready to move on to other pleasures.
He crawled onto the bed and arranged himself on his back then he opened his arms with a sexy smile. Kneel over my face. Let’s do each other.
She shivered, understanding what he suggested yet never having tried this position before.
Come on, love. He motioned her forward. You’ll like it. I promise.
Careful to clear his face, she swung one leg over his head and settled her weight on her knees. The heat in her bottom flared as she moved into position, which in turn intensified the ache between her legs. Her pussy was situated directly above his mouth, his warm breath teasing her damp curls. Oh, this was wicked. She shivered again then leaned forward, lightly resting her breasts on his belly. Steadying herself with one hand, she encircled his cock with the other and angled it toward her mouth.
His tongue traced her slit, teasing her folds without really parting them. He brushed across her clit and her inner muscles tightened, accenting the emptiness. His hands rubbed her hips and thighs, pausing occasionally to carefully squeeze her ass.
She concentrated on his sensitive tip, swirling her tongue around him and sucking ruthlessly. He groaned and bucked, pushing his shaft deeper into her mouth. Wetting his length with her tongue, she slid her lips up and down. His hips matched her rhythm, controlling the depth of each stroke.
I need you so badly. He sounded miserable. I’m not going to last long.
Don’t fight it. Come for me. I want to feel you lose control.
His mouth pressed against her, his tongue taking on the rhythm of her mouth. Tension gripped his abdomen, hardening the muscles beneath her breasts. She bobbed her head and pumped his shaft with her hand. A rich, salty taste spread across her tongue and she groaned. Centuries of training and self-discipline were no match for their desire. The knowledge thrilled and excited her.
She pulled back, sucking on his tip while her hand stroked his shaft. He grasped her hips and thrust his tongue into her passage. His hips bucked hard, forcing his cock to the back of her mouth. He came in hot, pulsing jets, his thighs shaking. She licked and swallowed, determined to keep up with him.
His arms wrapped around her and he rolled, sweeping her beneath him. She laughed and his cock slipped free of her mouth. With a soft growl, he climbed off her and pulled her to the middle of the bed.
Now it’s your turn to lose control.
It was the only warning she would receive. He settled himself at her side and slipped one arm beneath her neck. His mouth claimed hers in a deep mating of lips and tongues. Their breaths mingled along with the taste of their passion. She touched his face and squeezed his shoulder, knowing her freedom wouldn’t last much longer.
Raise your hands above your head and keep them there. You do not have permission to touch me.
Willingly submitting to his directives was even more of a challenge than being restrained. Slowly, she raised her arms and entwined her fingers, knowing it was the only way she’d be able to keep herself from touching him.
He feathered caresses across her torso, teasing her ribs and stroking the curve of her breasts while intentionally ignoring her nipples. Slipping one hand between her thighs, he covered her mound and stared into her eyes.
So hot. His middle finger eased between her folds and he smiled. And so wet. Did you enjoy sucking my cock?
You know I did.
He circled her opening, drawing her attention to the need still pulsing there. I want to hear you say it.
I enjoyed sucking your cock. Knowing you can’t control how much you want me is exciting.
And what do you want now?
This was a rare treat. He seldom gave her a choice. And he loved prolonging her arousal. She chose her words carefully. I want you to use your mouth to make me come really hard. Then I want you to fuck me until we’re both exhausted.
As you wish. Mischief made his gaze sparkle as settled on his knees between her thighs. He pushed her knees up and back, spreading her legs wide. His thumbs parted her outer lips and he licked his way from her vaginal opening to her clit.
Already aroused from their earlier play, her body sizzled with sensations. She tried not to wiggle, tried to concentrate on the gentle brush of his tongue. Her inner muscles contracted, tension building to the point of pain. She needed to come, but she needed the fullness of his cock even more.
He closed his lips around her clit and gently sucked. She cried out and arched into the caress. Pleasure released within her, blasting her senses in short, sharp bursts.
That might have been hard. I don’t think it qualifies as really hard. He draped her legs over his shoulders and raised her hips off the bed. Understanding washed through her as his mouth devoured her pussy. He would torture her with pleasure. Push her to the brink of insanity before he finally fucked her.
A smile parted her lips and she quickly turned her head, not wanting him to see how much his strategy pleased her.
* * *
Fane sucked her essence into his mouth and let it soothe his ravaged composure. Surrendering control, even in so pleasurable a way, incited his primitive nature, made him restless and… savage. He wanted her writhing beneath him, wild and wanton, unable to conceal how desperately she needed his cock inside her.
He sucked on her folds and swirled his tongue inside her core, never staying in one place long enough to trigger another orgasm. Her arousal trailed from her cunt, leading his mouth lower, toward her other opening.
She gasped and moaned, tossing her hips and arching her back. One of her legs slid off his shoulder, inadvertently presenting him with a better target. He passed his tongue over the tiny rosette, her murmurs driving him on. Circling the puckered flesh with his tongue, he reached around her hip and found her clit with his middle finger.
“Fane!” Her voice broke into a ragged sigh. He carefully rolled her clit between his thumb and forefinger and she shook with a powerful orgasm. She’d taken him like this on the metaphysical plane, but never in reality. It would take time and patience if he were to initiate her properly. His desire for her was too raw, too
intense.
He eased her leg down and knelt between her thighs. She bent her knees, opening herself with unmistakable invitation. They’d fucked before, but somehow this felt different, special. He guided his cock to her entrance then looked into her eyes.
His hands slipped under her ass and he angled her toward him. Cassie held her breath as he drove his thick length into her slick heat. She was ready, oh-so ready. Ravenous hunger blazed within her mind. This was Cassie, his Cassie. Without restraint or artifice, she revealed herself to him, open as she had never been before.
You’re so… beautiful. Shaking with gratitude and tenderness, he drew back then thrust deep. He claimed her with his body and his mind. She drew her legs up high against his sides and caressed him with her inner muscles. He stroked her breasts for a moment then kissed her. His tongue mimicked the steady rhythm of his cock.
He flowed through her, warming her with his body and his energy. Her body caressed his, attuned to the forceful slide and the inescapable penetration. She moved with him, relaxing into his rhythm, following his lead.
Urgency rushed up through him, spilling over into her. She defused the sensations, sending them outward as he drove faster and harder between her thighs. Her nails dug into his back and he ripped his mouth away from hers, unable to maintain the kiss in his frenzy. His hands returned to her hips, pulling her ass off the bed while his body shuddered violently.
Her pleasure pelted him in shocking jolts as he came deep inside her. She greedily absorbed his release, her body echoing each sensation. Her cunt milked him while they floated in a cloud of utter bliss. She surrounded him and flowed through him, and nothing had ever felt so perfect.
As if to mock the tranquility they enjoyed, someone pounded on the door. Fane groaned as he separated their bodies and scrambled off the bed. He grabbed his pants off the floor and tugged them on as Cassie covered herself with the bedding.
“This better be important,” he snapped as he triggered the door.
“I’m not sure how he did it, but the bastard is gone!” Mal Ton’s expression was thunderous.
“Which bastard? What are you talking about?”
Taking a deep breath, Mal Ton continued in a calmer tone, “We sensed a disturbance then heard a scream. By the time we got to the holding cell it was too late. One of his guards is seriously injured and the other is dead.”
The pieces fell into place and Fane grimaced. “Max?”
Mal Ton’s frustrated nod said it all. “He sucked the guards dry and teleported to… who knows where. The only thing we know for certain is he’s no longer in the Underground.”
Chapter Nine
A flash of light snapped Nehalem from her troubled thoughts. She’d been tossing and turning for the past couple of hours, but sleep evaded her. If her perimeter shields had been breached, intruder alerts would have sounded. But lightning didn’t strike inside a building!
She snatched her robe off the foot of her bed and lowered her feet to the floor. Fear sped her pulse and made her skin tingle. She’d been wound up since she returned from Saronta. Still, she hadn’t imagined that flash.
Creeping through the darkened hallway, she approached her living room. Moonlight streamed in through the windows, outlining the furniture while concealing details. The front door was still locked, the security indicator pulsing green.
A muffled moan disturbed the tense atmosphere, drawing her attention to the shadowed corner beside the sofa. The shadow moved and she gasped. “Security—”
“Nehalem, don’t! No one can know I’m here.”
That voice. She knew that voice. “What are you doing here? How did you get in?” Daniel Keller, aka Max, could teleport, so the last question was moot. “What do you want?”
His only reply was heavy breathing. Was he wounded? Despite her misgivings, she crossed the living room and knelt beside him. He was curled up on his side, knees drawn toward his chest. There didn’t appear to be a wound, but something was definitely wrong with him.
“Half of Protaria is looking for you and the other half thinks you’re dead.” She brushed the hair back from his face. Even in the moonlight he looked emaciated. “How did you get away from Fane?”
“It wasn’t easy.” He groaned but managed to push himself to a sitting position. “Did I make it through without tripping the alarm?”
“Yes,” she admitted, “but you can’t stay here!”
A sad smile quirked one corner of his mouth. Even fatigued and defeated he was appealing. “I have nowhere else to go.”
Misfits, that’s what they were, drawn together by mutual enemies. Their paths had crossed often in the last few years. They used each other and fucked each other, but it had never really been romantic. “It’s too dangerous. Bryson will kill us both if he finds you here.”
“So we’ll make sure he doesn’t find me.” He took a deep breath and finger-combed his hair out of his eyes. “I just need a few days then you’ll never see me again.”
“A few days to do what?” Max had always procured things she couldn’t hope to access. Not to mention his ability. Interplanetary teleportation. If she helped him escape, would he allow her to collect his gift? The possibility was certainly tempting. But she sure as hell couldn’t trust him!
“I need to make other arrangements,” he evaded.
“I might have a better idea.”
He chuckled, one of his brows arching. “I’ll be happy to fuck you, but I’m exhausted right now.”
“I’m not interested in your cock.” She ignored the tingles ignited by her memory. The last thing she needed was another man making demands on her! “However, I am interested in your power.”
“We’ve fucked before and you didn’t absorb my power.”
“I’ve never actively tried to absorb your power.”
His gaze drifted from her face to her breasts before he asked, “Why not?”
“I didn’t have a reason to teleport.”
“But you do now?”
“The details are none of your business.” She had no intention of telling him about Project Chrysalis. It was her one chance at freedom and she wasn’t going to share it with anyone. “I’ll smuggle you off-world in exchange for your power.”
“What if you’re unable to ‘collect’ me?”
“That will be my problem as long as you let me try.”
He licked his lips and stared into her eyes. “You’ve made me curious as hell. You realize that, don’t you?”
“Curiosity is the least of your problems.” She dismissed his comment with the wave of her hand. “Let’s get you to bed.”
* * *
Cassie spent the following day in the lab with Allen. Ostan checked in from time to time, but he was the first to admit the crisis was well beyond his knowledge base. Sarah had already responded to the nanites. Her vital signs were stable and Ostan was weaning her off the sedatives.
Allen had prepared a treatment for Lorelle and it was on its way to Stilox. They should know in the next day or two if she responded as well as Sarah.
Late in the afternoon, Allen paused and looked at Cassie. “Is Fane…? Are you here of your own free will or…?”
She wasn’t sure when Allen had learned Fane’s identity. She thought the mutants had been careful not to call each other by name. “I was kidnapped by a rogue mutant named Max. Fane and Mal Ton rescued me. I’ve been here more or less willingly ever since.”
“It’s the more or less that worries me. Has he done anything to you that you didn’t welcome?”
“No.” She touched his arm and smiled. “Our relationship is complicated, but Fane is one of the good guys.”
Allen sighed. “I’ll let it go, but you have to promise me you’ll tell me if he does anything… I won’t let anyone hurt you, Cassie. Even if they are one of the good guys.”
His concern was sweet, yet she felt compelled to defend Fane. “He won’t hurt me. You don’t need to worry abo
ut that.”
“All right.” He turned back to the control console with another sigh. “This would be so much easier if the Faundi were still around.”
“What do you mean?”
“Widespread mutations didn’t take place until Faundi DNA was introduced into the mix. I’ve been able to map the effects of the original lentavirus. The variations stemming from the Faundi DNA are far harder to trace. Without an unsullied template, it’s almost impossible.”
“I think I might be able to help.” She pushed back from the workstation. “I’ll be right back.”
Rather than searching the entire Underground, she sent out a search pulse and located Fane. He was in his office with Mal Ton. No surprise there. She rushed to meet him, anxious to share Allen’s revelation.
She hadn’t expected resistance from either of them, so their reaction puzzled her.
“It’s impossible,” Mal Ton said. “The only thing that has kept Fane alive is the fact no one knows who the fuck he is.”
Fane’s approach was less abrasive, but no less vehement. “Sweetheart, your father and many others hunted my people to extinction. Or at least they think they did. Allen isn’t the only one who believes the key to controlling mutant abilities lies in my DNA. If your father learned that I’m Faundi, he would tear this planet apart looking for me.”
“Allen isn’t trying to control mutant powers,” she objected. “He’s trying to reverse them.”
“He might be now, but one naturally leads to the other.” His expression was closed, his mind guarded. “The temptation is just too strong. The Faundi are dead and they must remain that way.”
“So we let the rest of your people follow them to the grave?” She couldn’t believe this was an issue. “The mutation cycle will continue until everyone succumbs. Do you want to end up like one of those creatures who attacked the shuttle?”
“You won’t let that happen.” He smiled, but the warmth didn’t reach his eyes. “You saved Sarah without delving into my DNA.”
