by Vonna Harper
He released her hair, then finger combed it until it lay across her shoulders. The gentle gesture had her fighting more tears. After running his finger down her spine while she mewled and fought the tickling sensation without releasing him, he gripped her left ass cheek and drew it away from the other.
Undone by the sensation, she lifted her head and stared. The moon and stars, however, offered her no escape, if in truth she wanted one. The power was in his hands, in the fingers claiming her breast and buttock. If she hoped to regain command of her body, there was only one way.
Fighting her body, she opened her mouth. His cock now rested against her tongue, pushing it flat. For a moment she thought she might gag, then her throat relaxed and the taste of him slid down it.
He guided her buttock back into place only to draw it out and away again, making her mewl once more. As determined as she was to meet him challenge for challenge, he was now one step ahead of her because every time she started to suck or lathe his cock, he either flattened her breast against her chest or slid a finger between her ass cheeks.
No more! She couldn’t handle—
Furious, she touched her teeth to blood-swollen veins. He responded by pressing something, maybe his thumb, against her rear opening. She nearly howled.
“Who’s going to win?” he demanded. “And if this is a battle, why?”
Releasing him, she shook her head. “I don’t want to fight.”
“Then what?”
Before she could begin to formulate a response, he took her waist with both hands and lifted her up and over him. She helped by positioning her legs on either side of his hips, then stopped with her ass in the air and his cock poking her belly. A moment later, she rocked forward and then down so his cock slid along her sopping sex lips. The sleek glide brought her within a breath of climaxing. She gasped.
“What?” he demanded. “Are you—”
“Not yet.”
“But soon?”
“Yes.”
She didn’t want to be in control, needed his strength over and around but mostly inside her. Following instinct, she reached between her legs and guided him into her. Yet desperate as she was to be filled, she willed herself to take him slow. Slow and strong. Her mouth hung open, and she breathed as if she was dying. Taking hold of her hips, he guided her downward journey. Thighs straining and hot, she opened her sex to him, took him one inch at a time. It couldn’t be, of course, but her womb felt as if he were nestled in there. Then her belly greeted him followed by her breasts. Next would come her throat and she’d be lost. Gone.
“Yes!” he grunted. “By all that’s sacred, yes!”
Finally her buttocks rested on him with his length caught and sheltered inside her. Even as hunger screamed at her and her pussy burned, she simply held him. Learned his contours and made them hers.
Hands planted on his chest, she tried to do the same with his features, but even with the moon’s help, there was too much shadow to make out his mouth, nose, and eyes. Shoving aside her unease, she rose slightly. Her clenched cunt muscles brought him with her.
“By the sacreds—”
“Hush,” she warned. “The others—”
“Will envy us.”
She rewarded him by settling back down, but with need clawing at her from every direction, she couldn’t remain still, prompting her to once more lift herself a little. This time she relaxed her muscles, causing his cock to slide along her channel. Even with her mouth tightly closed, a low moan drifted into the night air. She followed the sound upward, maybe clear to the top of Raptor’s Craig, then her thoughts, and more, returned to the man under her.
Still trying to comprehend the change in their relationship, she set about bringing pleasure to both of them. Muscles working endlessly, she lifted herself, then slowly collapsed, rose and retreated. Sometimes she brought his cock with her. Other times she fantasized she was giving it freedom only to settle down, his maleness stretching her inner walls and tearing more moans from her.
Even with cool air all around, she started sweating. Unable to pace herself, she pushed her thigh muscles to their limit. Faster and faster she fucked this man, her hair flying about, sweat sticking to her, her cunt on fire.
A climax rolled over her, a quiet thing that suddenly exploded, forcing her to close her teeth over her lower lip to keep from crying out. The explosion was still tearing at her when he pulled her down on top of him, his cock lodged tight inside her.
“Nakos?”
“Quiet.”
Quiet was a place she could go to ride out her climax. It still pulsed deep in her core as he rolled onto his side, taking her with him. Then he was on top, his cock sliding out but back in again a heartbeat later. She stared at him, let the moon distract her.
Under him.
His.
Now it was his turn to plow into her. His greater strength rocked her, and she bent her knees and planted her feet on the ground, clinging to him all the while. Instead of pausing while she repositioned herself, he continued to thrust. His cock completed her, retreated, completed her again.
She couldn’t stop moaning, couldn’t close her mouth. More sweat joined what was already there, and she closed her arms around him, holding on to him as if he were life itself. Her pussy caught fire.
Another explosion. Sparks flying skyward and shooting through every vein, muscle, and bone. The combustion rolled through her, slipped off into space only to slam into her again. His hot seed flooded her. She smelled his sweat, his cum, heard his sobbing breath.
Then it ended. Slowly.
Groaning, Nakos lifted himself off Jola and settled himself on his side with an arm flung over her breasts. Before long he’d have to go in search of the blanket they’d shared, but for now he was content to have the sleeping pad under them and her beside him.
Judging by her breathing, he surmised she was nearly asleep. If she slipped over to the other side, responsibility for her warmth would rest with him, something he hadn’t imagined concerning him when he’d first accepted his assignment. He wanted to let her go into that place where nothing mattered or registered, but if he did, he suspected he’d never tell her what he now wanted—no, needed—to.
Not giving himself time to ponder why, with her, he’d decided to share something he thought he’d always keep to himself, he reluctantly moved his arm from her breast to her shoulder. Marginally less consumed by her than he’d been a moment ago, he watched as her eyes opened.
“I’ve always lied,” he blurted, dragging his attention to the night. Feeling protected by it, he continued. “To everyone.”
“About what?”
“My grandparents’ deaths.” The words had been said. There was no taking them back.
“They weren’t killed by invaders? Their hut wasn’t burned?”
“It had been torched. Nothing was left.” In contrast to how he felt, his voice was emotionless but maybe that was the only way he’d get through this.
Rolling toward him, she lay small, warm fingers on his upper arm. “But you weren’t the first to see what had happened? Was that what you’d lied about? You wanted everyone to believe—”
“That wasn’t it.”
“Then what—”
“Let me talk.” Eyes unfocused, he slipped into the past. “My grandparents had built their hut near the river because the earth there was rich. They grew a great many things on that land and fished year round. Although many considered the location the best Ekew had to offer, it meant they lived some distance from the rest of our people, who’d chosen a higher elevation.”
“They were vulnerable.”
“Yes. The invaders had come by water in small, well-made boats they carried around rapids. When they saw my grandparents’ garden and the deep, quiet pool where generations of fish fed, they must have decided they wanted the place for themselves.”
“You weren’t there when the invaders arrived? But weren’t you a young boy?”
“I was in my tenth sum
mer.” His throat threatened to close up, and he couldn’t shake off the memory of a too-slender youth with feet and hands better suited on someone much older.
“Ten. Between youth and man.”
She already understood more than he thought she would. Maybe she sensed where the telling was taking them. “I wasn’t there because I’d wanted to attend spring’s celebration. My grandparents insisted they needed my help in preparing the land for planting, but I argued that another two days wouldn’t make any difference. By the time I returned…”
“It was too late.”
It was, but not for the reason he’d told her earlier. “I spotted the smoke before I reached the hut. I kept telling myself that they were burning weeds, but I knew better. Then, when there was no hiding from the truth, I was afraid to go any farther.”
Still resting her hand on his arm, she leaned back a little, and he guessed she was trying to study his expression. Hopefully the night would keep its secrets because these might be the hardest words he’d ever spoken. He still didn’t understand why tonight, with her, everything was spilling from him.
“Scouts had alerted us that strangers had come to Ekew, but the shaman—Tau’s father—said we had nothing to fear from them. Seeing the smoke, I knew he’d been wrong. Horribly wrong.”
“Couldn’t you have gone back to the village and asked the warriors to come with you?”
With both of them on their sides facing each other, their knees touched. Although they’d recently fucked, her presence so distracted him that he rolled onto his back and stared at the sky. After a moment, she sat up, took his hand, and held it between hers.
“I don’t know what you want from me,” she said. “Would you rather I say nothing? Wait for you? Or maybe you need me pushing you a little.”
How could he have once thought her less intelligent than him? “I need to get this out, but it’s hard.”
“You’ve started. That was the hardest part.”
Not sure she was right, he nevertheless nodded. Then, staring at the stars, he pushed on. “I wanted to turn around and run back the way I’d come, but before I could take the first step, I heard my grandmother scream.”
“Ah—she was still alive?”
“Yes.” His tone became flat and emotionless. “They both were. Burned. Badly burned.”
Her ragged breath was nearly a twin of the one he’d just taken.
“Somehow they’d gotten outside, but they’d collapsed. They were holding onto each other, my grandmother screaming and my grandfather—he kept making a sound I’ve never heard from a human throat.”
Jola’s hold on his hand tightened. Pulling this proof of her strength into him, he continued. Although he plowed through the telling as quickly as possible, he left nothing out. When he saw what had been done to them, he’d tried to get his grandparents to stand so he could help them into the river with its cooling water, but neither had been able to move. They’d begged him not to leave them, but he made a number of trips to the river, filling the family’s water bladders each time and dragging them behind him. He’d poured the water over the worst of their burns, beseeching them not to cry out as he did. But they had.
“Then Grandfather ordered me to stop. He grabbed me with what was left of his—and…” The old memory of the stench of burned flesh stopped him.
“I’m here, Nakos,” Jola muttered as she settled his hand on her soft thigh. “Don’t forget, I’m here.”
And because you are, I’m saying things I never believed I would. “He—he begged me to end his wife’s agony, and then his.”
“Nakos? Are you saying—”
“Yes.” His eyes became hot coals while ice clogged his veins.
“It was you who killed them, not the enemy.”
Much as he needed to thank her for saying what he still wasn’t sure he had the strength for, he couldn’t because his throat had closed down again.
“Nakos, don’t blame yourself.”
“They were my life,” he managed. “Before—before they died, I’d been upset at them for expecting me to work instead of sharing in the festival. On my way home I’d realized how selfish I’d been. I was feeling guilty because they had to do my share of the labor, and I had decided to apologize. I never got the chance.”
She’d kissed the back of his hand and returned it to her thigh before the gesture registered. “They know.”
Thank you for saying that. “I pray they do.”
“Believe me, they do. My parents, particularly my mother, tells me that when I become a mother, I’ll understand how deep a parent’s love is. It must be the same for grandparents. Besides…”
“What?”
When she didn’t respond, he rolled back toward her. Looking at the night had been easier, yet he needed her gaze on him.
“What were you going to say?” he prompted.
“That—that you did what they couldn’t for themselves. You put a swift end to what would have taken a long time.”
Yes. “Who was I to decide when they should die, to take the decision in my own hands?”
“Don’t do this to yourself!” She started to scramble onto her knees; then, perhaps seeing something he wasn’t aware of in his expression or voice, she sank down beside him, resting her head on his chest. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to try to stop you from talking. You’ve kept this inside for so long. It’s time for the truth to come out. The words, your doubts—those things don’t matter as much as leaving nothing behind does. There isn’t more, is there?”
He hadn’t told her what he’d done to stop his grandparents’ hearts from beating, but that would have to wait for another time, if it ever happened. “No,” he managed.
“How do you feel?”
His feelings? He almost told her that he’d had years in which to reconcile himself to what he’d done, but holding the truth to his heart was far different from what had just happened. “I don’t know.”
“More at peace, maybe?”
She was right, in a way. Even with pain still tearing at his throat and his heart in agony, he experienced a sense of freedom he’d never expected.
“I hope you are,” she continued. “Nakos, thank you for trusting me with this. Do you want to say more? Details maybe. I don’t know what to ask, or whether to say nothing.”
“Say nothing.” Night air pressed against his shoulders and legs to remind him of the world beyond the two of them. When he ran his hand over her back, she shivered, and although he wanted to tell himself that his touch was responsible, he couldn’t. “It’s getting colder.”
Rolling away from him, she grabbed the blanket and pulled it over both of them. Having her move against him like that sent erotic messages to his cock, but although it stirred, he didn’t try to encourage it. Truth was, he felt more exhausted than he had just after they’d had sex. His mind was drained; his emotions had slipped off into a place he couldn’t reach.
Drifting, he again rubbed her back. This time he found no goose bumps, just a long, slow shudder that spoke of an emotion that had nothing to do with the cold. Leaving her to deal with it, he studied one star after another until his lids closed. His breathing lengthened out. A moment later, he heard himself snort. Instead of turning onto his side so, hopefully, he wouldn’t snore, he concentrated on one slow breath after another.
Sleep drifted over him. This time no nightmare waited.
21
She didn’t love Nakos, nothing like that.
Still, as she watched him get ready for the day, Jola acknowledged an emotion she’d never expected to feel where the Ekewoko were concerned. She still didn’t understand why he’d shared his deepest secret with her, but even more important, she hoped he didn’t regret it. They’d said nothing when they’d woken up. Instead, they’d rolled away from each other and sat with their backs still to each other. But before that, she’d felt his erection against her belly and acknowledged the soft warmth between her legs. Those responses, she told herself, were primal
and primitive. They had nothing to do with what she felt for Nakos or whatever his thoughts about her might be.
As soon as he’d relieved himself, Nakos had joined his friends in rekindling the fire and pulling out strips of dried meat to eat. Assuming they’d share their food with her, she got dressed and walked off by herself so she could urinate. Then she returned and knelt before the fire warming herself.
Farajj had been tying his sleeping mat into a bundle, but now he stopped and studied her. “What happened to her ropes?” he asked Nakos.
“I took them off her.”
“So I see.” Farajj exchanged a look with Ohanko. “I told you. The Wilding has been tamed.”
“Maybe,” Ohanko muttered. He handed her a piece of meat. “Is my friend right?” he asked her. “You’ve become Nakos’s pet?”
Although she wasn’t sure what “pet” meant, she sensed it was less than complimentary. “I belong to no one,” she replied.
“Maybe. Maybe not. Why aren’t you running away?”
“Stop it,” Nakos interjected.
“Stop what?” Ohanko asked.
“Whether she stays or leaves is between her and me.”
Ohanko and Farajj exchanged another look. “Our orders—” Ohanko started.
“You heard our lord,” Farajj broke in. “And Tau. They’re determined to learn where the falcons nest and where, maybe, her people live.”
“We’re here.” Nakos pointed at Raptor’s Craig. “We can find the trail.”
Despite the seriousness of the moment, Jola couldn’t stifle a small smile. How little Nakos and the others knew. The Falcons had nothing to fear from three men many hundreds of feet below them. They never would.
“What will it be, Jola?” Nakos asked her. “Do you guide us, or do we find the way on our own?”
She stared up at the man who’d impacted her life in so many ways. A part of her longed to show him what it meant to be Falcon, to be as honest with him as he’d been with her last night. But his revelation about his grandparents had touched just the two of them, while anything she said or did impacted her people’s future.
