In response, he brushed the strands of hair from her neck and dropped a light kiss there. The action was greeted by more of the little whimpers, so he licked a trail up to the tender spot where jaw met throat. Reaching around to cup her curves, he realized by the feel that she wore only the barest of lace undergarments. His fingers splaying over her breast brought another slow twist of her hips to his and he rewarded it by nipping at the lobe of her ear.
Cole released his hold to glide his hand over the flat plane of her stomach. He gently nudged it between the press of her thighs, cupping her there. Ella moaned and he saw the flicker of her sooty lashes against her cheeks. She whispered his name once more but with actual awareness this time. A tiny smile pulled at the corner of her lips as she pressed upwards for more intimate contact with his palm. He tugged at her earlobe firmly with his teeth and took pleasure in her shivering when he coaxed, “Wake up, Sleeping Beauty…it’s time for your kiss.”
Pressing her onto her back, Nicholas could see a true awareness now in her smile, but she kept her lids down. Ella was very much enjoying the feel of him waking her. He kept up the pressure of his hand below, feeling her flesh warming for him through the material. His lips pressed to hers in a barely-there kiss until she gave his a flick with her tongue. Rather than take it deep and hot like she wanted, he teased her. Sliding the length of his finger firmly down to the center to her core and back up, Cole then resumed the pressure of his palm against her mound.
She offered him another taste, pressing her tongue insistently against the seam of his lips. Cole repeated the slow slide of his finger once more before he opened his mouth for her. Taking advantage of the invitation, Ella let her tongue play over his fangs, not ceasing until he growled low in his throat. At the sound, her eyes fluttered open to see the shiny black of his peering down. He growled again and massaged his palm in a circular motion against her heat, “Someone has been teaching you to kiss, Princess.”
Brushing the lace aside with his exploring fingers, he pressed one finger slow and deep into her center. At her gasping clutch of his shoulders, he began moving it deep. His lips descended to her neck and his head nudged hers to the side with his promise, “I have so many things that I am going to teach you, Ella.” Cole drove his fangs into her neck, just as he pressed a second finger deep and used his thumb to push on the sensitive nub nestled in her slick folds.
The bite stung, but it barely registered with Ella. Cole’s seductive promise and gifted hands has inspired a level of lust in her that caused awareness of anything else to evaporate. Ella was surprised when he took only one long sip at her neck. Licking at the wound, he kept up the steady intensity of his fingers. She was already bucking up against him, quite desperately needing to reach the place he could so easily take her. His next words brought her to a utter stillness, “Do you remember the last time I bit you that way, Ella?”
She did, now that he had dragged her out of her wanton state by raising the issue. Cole lifted his eyes so that he could watch her response. Immobile now beneath him, she remained that way except for her quick nod. He witnessed her eyes flare wide and the quick intake of her breath with her racing thoughts. In the next second, intense want flooded those same eyes and Cole had the impression it was not due to her body’s need for fulfillment.
He increased the intensity of his play, loving the evidence of her arousal as he intimately explored her satiny warmth. Her head reactively rolled to the side when his mouth lowered to the column of her throat again, his words were hushed against her skin, “This way Ella…do you understand what I want from you now?” He pressed his fangs hard and deep into her neck once more, eliciting a cry that was equal pain and pleasure, because he had simultaneously increased the intensity of his driving fingers.
Again, he followed with only one drink before he released the bite. Nicholas rose over her, his hand resting on her heat, but stilling. His face was harsh with the restraint required to keep from responding to his instincts while he peered down at her. Impatient, the intense look he gave her demanded an answer.
Her utter dismay over his cessation of their play was obvious but she was also certain the other option he was offering was one she wanted more. Her softly worded response held her plea for it, “Yes Cole, I do.” Ella nodded desperately to assure him. His eyes narrowed while he studied her face.
Cole withdrew his hand and slipped it down into his jeans’ pocket to retrieve a small container. Round, metallic, and no bigger than a contact case, Ella gave it a curious glance before fixing her gaze to his. Her begging words and the press of her body to his combined in an entreaty that was hard to resist, “Please Cole…do not go away this time.”
His gaze was blazing hot and he only gave her a curt nod. Whether he was just acknowledging her request or agreeing Ella could not tell. He rolled on her, pinning her to the bed with the length of his body. Capturing a wrist in each hand, Cole locked them too against the mattress on either side of her head. Ella felt the press of cold metal from the container against her palm, but forgot all about it when he dropped his mouth to hers and began kissing her senseless.
Ella was eager to experience whatever Cole had planned. He was an expert at pushing her body to respond to his touch in any way he might wish, but tonight there was an added intensity behind his seduction. His kiss was driving her mad and she just wanted…more. Her response was unrestrained; holding nothing back, the enticing dance of her body beneath his bespoke her desires.
Her movements along with the thoughts of what the night would entail were pushing Cole near his breaking point. His commanding voice was gritty with need, “Cease, Witch.” It took long seconds to register and longer minutes still before she could understand what he had said and stop the straining motion of her body against his. When her eyes lifted, he could see her desire, but she remained motionless, “Ella, tell me that you don’t just want me to pleasure you tonight. Tell me that you want my mark…and you want it as badly as I need to give it to you.”
His words from that night long past came back to her. They had been in her brain all these weeks and she had come to terms with it well before now, “Cole…I want this.” Ella shifted enough that she could stretch up and place a soft kiss on his chin before relaxing back down. Shifting her head to the side, the offer of her neck confirmed her words.
“You want to be mine?” Her whisper was tremulous when she admitted without hesitation that she did. He licked at her pulse and followed with a harsh, possessive growl, “You are mine, Ella. There is no walking away after I claim you this way. Do you understand?” Ella nodded, but he was not satisfied, “Give me the words, Ella.”
Ella gazed up at him. She nodded once more, her words earnest and hushed, “Yours Cole…always.”
He accepted that and released his grip on her wrists. Loosening the lid on the container with the rotation of his fingers, his eyes did not leave hers. Ella had come down from her arousal enough during their conversation to become curious and tried to raise up to peer into the contents, but he used his weight to keep her body down.
At her exasperated sigh, Cole remembered that she had absolutely no idea what he was holding, given her very limited knowledge of his species. He explained as he tossed the lid to her bedside table, “Ella, you are immortal. Your nature allows you to heal completely from my bites.”
Ella nodded; she assumed the whole marking conversation was more ritual than actual marking for that very reason. Cole continued dipping his fingertips into the contents until they were covered with a clear, liquid substance, “If I hinder your ability to heal, you will bear scars from my bite.” He was already rubbing the lotion against the throb of her pulse and her skin was beginning to tingle at that spot.
“This,” he nodded to indicate the container he laid next to her, “will interfere with your healing ability.” He was amazed that she was only listening, offering no questions and no resistance, “The scars will only be visible to the Vampire, with our acute vision. They will not mar
your beautiful skin.”
Ella was merely laying there in a languid pose. Her easy acceptance and trust hit Cole hard and prompted a wave of guilt. Ella was giving him everything and she had no idea that she was not just giving herself to a Dark. By taking his mark, she was letting him claim her as his mate, giving herself to the Warrior of Dark. At that moment he hated the moniker and all the wicked deeds and death that were wrapped up with it, but he still hated the Light more. He would never let them have Ella. Selfishly, he pushed the feeling back and spread the liquid over a larger area on her neck. Ella would never need to know of his identity or the evil he was responsible for in the Realm.
The tingle was spreading over her neck, and she shifted impatiently, wondering what had given him such pause. Her rambling thoughts fostered one that was of grave importance to her and it slipped out, “Do you know how…” He watched the blush creep up her cheeks when she stopped abruptly. He was admiring it as he waited for the liquid to dry on her skin, and he grinned over her sudden embarrassment.
Taking a deep breath, Ella continued in a rush, feeling the heat in her face escalate while she stumbled over the words, “…To mate…I mean…with a witch Cole, to do…I mean…to reproduce, you know…between the two species. It isn’t done…well, not in the Light any more…not since…”
She was adorable in her rambling discomfort, and as she trailed off he rubbed his lips over her ear, “Yes, lass, I know how to mate with you.”
Ella made a face at him. She could hear the laughter in his words, knew he was having fun teasing her.
Cole nibbled at her ear and then continued, his voice a touch more serious than it had been a second ago, “I also know a most closely held secret amongst the Ancients and a select few within the Realm…how my kind can reproduce with yours.” He nuzzled her cheek tenderly then, “I have every intention of giving you those three children that you so desperately want.”
Ella grinned self-consciously and she believed him. She had forgotten until that moment about their late night talk, when he had questioned her of her desires of her life if she were to stay outside the Realm. She had gone into great detail about her want for a family and a home, all the way down to the details of the old Victorian house that she dreamed of with a sweeping covered porch, surrounded by nothing but woods and hills, as a place to raise her children.
She could feel the pull of the film that the drying liquid left on her skin. Trusting him completely, Ella rubbed her body up enticingly against his, “I want your mark Cole…please.”
His arousal for her was barely in check and her sweet admission just about pushed him over. Cole eased up so as to run both his hands slowly down her body, skimming from her shoulders to ribs to hips. Her gaze met his when he paused with his hands there, gazing down at her, “This won’t do Princess.” At her confused look, he offered, “Normally, I would be taking your body the same time that I mark your neck.” His fingers toyed with the scant material on her hips, “But I will not do that until I have your vows…”
It was imperative that he have her vows. Witch vows were sacred, unbreakable. He would swallow his distaste and perform that one Light ceremony with her, but only because it suited his purpose. Ella could never forsake him, no matter what came to pass, once she gave them to him. He trailed off as he coiled his fingers around the lace fabric below and tore it loose with a hard twist of his hand. She held her breath while she watched him studying her before he dropped hand down to her core. He intently studied the play of his fingers over her heated skin, not daring to look up when she questioned, “You do not believe in my vows. They are a ritual, a covenant made in the Light.”
He slowly pressed two fingers deep letting her rotate her hips in reaction before he answered, “Yes, Ella, but you believe in them, so you need to give them to me.” Cole pushed deeper and at her gasp of pleasure, he began an easy rhythm into her molten center, “I’ll have them before I claim your body, Princess.” He thought she may have nodded her agreement, but wasn’t certain as her body was already moving hotly against his hand.
Tonight he wanted to love her slowly while he marked her. His other arm slid around, up under her hips, raising them and holding her still as he dropped his lips to her wet heat to suckle at that sensitive bit of flesh hidden there. Her breathy sigh echoed; Cole knew she loved to be pleasured this way.
Increasing the tempo of his fingers, he turned his face to nip at the creamy flesh of her thigh. His eyes shimmered black when he lapped at the little bit of blood welling up there. “You intoxicate me Ella.” He returned his lips to her center, applying swirling circles with the tip of his tongue.
She was tossing her head, nails raking at her bedding, panting, getting so close. Cole pressed harder into her, increasing the pace of his touch. Opening his mouth he lapped at her until he felt her trembling as she reached for release. Cole turned his mouth away to her thigh and nipped again, taking the droplets of blood on his tongue, before returning his mouth to her.
He repeated the wicked torture over the next hour, not letting her get closer than the very edge before he brought her back down with his tiny bites. She was begging incoherently by the time he began the last teasing round, he knew she was maddened with need.
He mumbled against her flesh, jerking her hips up hard to press his mouth into her, “Are you mine, Ella?” Her response was a near scream, “Yes Cole….yes.” He lapped harder, circling his fingers slowly inside, “Forever, Ella?”
Her response was breathless and impatient, “Yes…Damn it Vamp…please!” He chuckled against her skin and bit down gently on that center of pleasure buried in her folds. Flicking lightly with his tongue, he maintained the hold with the press of his teeth… his little witch was irresistible when she begged so prettily.
He kept up that action and quickened the thrust of his fingers and was rewarded by her hoarse cry. Cole was certain every neighbor heard her. Ella arched up in her pleasure, her body shuddering hard with each long awaited wave. Jerking her up against him to where he knelt above her, Cole cupped the back of her head and held her tight. Her eyes were unfocused when they found his and he dropped a sweet kiss to her lips while moving her head to the side to expose her neck. Then he growled possessively, his instincts shredding his control, “Mine Ella…always.”
His fangs breached her skin in a savage bite and he did not ease the force of it despite her shocked gasp. Ella tensed against him even as he withdrew and marked her again lower on her throat. Her body was still trembling with the pleasure he had given her, despite his frenzied bites. He was crazed to possess her, to mark her as his. The hours of pleasuring her had left him barely hanging on to his sanity and his willpower to not claim her in every sense.
Cole pulled back, only to bite down a third time, twisting his mouth to tear at her flesh as he did. He knew the lingering evidence of his mark her would be vivid and unmistakable to those with the supernatural ability to see it. Letting his fangs remained buried this last time, he drank thirstily at her sweet blood. Despite her whimpering pain due to that frenzied last bite, Ella locked her arms around his shoulders.
He took more than he should. When Cole finally released his bite and pulled back, her eyes were drowsy, her movements lethargic. Knowing she would need to sleep hard for a few hours to recover, he had no issue waiting to show her his surprise now that his instincts were sated. Cradling her up in his arms, he turned and dropped to the bed. Reclined against the pillows, he kept her tightly against his chest, tugging her comforter up over her.
She was a ragdoll in his arms as he moved her head to inspect the wounds. He had ravaged her neck and looking at the evidence of it on her flesh, Cole was nearly overcome again. He was hard and hot and itching to complete the rite of taking the witch as his mate and in his bed. His self-inflicted abstinence these long months was difficult. Adding the pressure of what was now happening in the Realm, he was chaffing under the ongoing restraint that kept him from fully claiming her.
He would need he
r vows soon and as he laid his head back in effort to regain his composure, her words assured him that he would not be without them long. She was mumbling against his chest, already half asleep, “I love you, Cole.”
Cole tucked her closer to him, rubbing his chin across the top of her head, frowning. He had had no doubt that she did. Ella was naïve, innocent and the polar opposite to everything that he was. The words mattered too much to him, more than he had thought they would. The problem was that she only knew a small part of him…Cole. He was beginning to hate hearing that name on her lips.
He had never lied to her, but his carefully constructed answers had shielded the facts about him that she would consider vital. Nicholas had reasoned that her finding out those details would not happen unless or until he decided she would. Their existence together would be outside the Realm. If she was in love with the person that she had met here, that was who he would remain. Outside the Realm, this was his existence.
Nicholas believed there would be no interference in the life he made with Ella since none save Myrrdyn had shown interest in her all these years. The Sorcerer of Light must also now realize the girl was nothing more than a witch of unremarkable power. Nicholas had oft wondered himself why Ella was not more - he would have thought that she would have possessed extraordinary magic and been a key in the Light. He had watched her carefully and knew for certain that she only had Fire magic. He was also certain that Myrrdyn had never tried to convince her to return to the Realm, as he most definitely would have if Ella had been a key. Ella adored the Ancient and would not have defied him.
Forsaken (Ancients of Light #1) Page 11
