That startled a laugh out of me. “What?”
He sighed. “Look, I know you’re Fae and not a wolf, but this thing with Malcon—”
“Jerrod, I adore you, but this isn’t something you should stick your wolfy snout into.”
He made a rude noise. “That’s what Malcon said before I left his house.”
I checked my watch. It was three in the afternoon on the West Coast. And it was only Wednesday. “Why isn’t he at work? Is he sick?” My voice caught a bit as I asked it, and worry coursed through me.
“Not exactly. That’s what I’m trying to tell you.” I heard him take a breath before he launched into an explanation. “When wolves are mated, they can’t go without their mate long term. A couple of days, maybe a week max. But you’ve been gone more than a month. I mean, if you die, it’s different, the connection is cut, but you’re alive. He’s still bonded to you.”
I thought about it. We hadn’t gone more than a day or two without being together the entire time I was in L.A. “I’m assuming when you say ‘can’t go without’ you’re not talking about sex.”
“No, I’m not. I’m saying Malcon is suffering on a level you obviously don’t understand because I know you’re not cruel enough to do this to anyone deliberately.”
Closing my eyes, I felt a harsh pang ricochet through me. What a horrible gamble Malcon had taken when he only gave himself a month to change my mind about mating with him. It sounded as if he was paying an even more horrible price for losing. I forced the hardest question I’d ever asked out of my throat. “Is…is he dying?”
“I don’t know.” My belly cramped tight at Jerrod’s answer. “I’ve never seen what happens if a wolf goes long enough without. Most of the time, I’d expect the wolf to track his mate down, but Malcon doesn’t want to force you.”
A breathy laugh escaped me, tears welling in my eyes. “Stubborn ass.”
“I called him worse before I left a few minutes ago.” I could all but feel the wolf’s frustration vibrating through the phone. “He’s not hearing it. I’ve never seen him like this. So, just come put him out of his misery, okay?”
Now it was my turn to sigh as I sank on the bed and dropped my face into my palms. My voice came out muffled. “It’s more complicated than that.”
“I don’t doubt that.” Jerrod didn’t bend an inch, his tone steely. “But I do doubt Malcon’s going to hold on to his sanity much longer unless you get on a plane to California and find a way to work something out between the two of you. He’s not a bad guy, and he doesn’t deserve what he’s going through.”
“This isn’t my fault.” Oh, yes it was. I hadn’t made him mark me as his mate, but I had left him behind on principle. Guilt pounded through me. Guilt and pain and misery and loneliness that was crippling. What the hell was I doing? I didn’t have to live like this. I could put both Malcon and me out of our misery if I wanted to. I could have him forever if I was willing to take a risk on him, with him. I imagined living every single moment with Malcon, and then I imagined living without him as I had for the last month, hording all my independence and sharing none of my life with anyone. No contest.
The truth hit me, and I realized that I loved him. And what wouldn’t I risk for love? I closed my eyes and let the sweetness of that realization flow through me, soothing the ache in my soul.
Jerrod made an impatient noise. “It’s not about blame or responsibility, Pixie. It’s about species and biology. It’s about a good wolf hurting a hell of a lot because his mate isn’t here. Whether you want to be his mate or not, you are.”
“Thanks for calling.” And I hung up on him and whatever else he might have said. Jerrod wasn’t who I needed to be talking to.
Malcon was.
He didn’t answer my knock, but when I tried calling him, I could hear his cell phone ringing inside the house. He never went anywhere without that thing. He was as bad as I was about always having it with him. So, he was home and he just didn’t want to see me.
My heart seized on the next thought. What if Malcon really was dying because I had abandoned him? What if I was too late? Pressing my palm over the lock on the door, I concentrated hard.
“Open,” I whispered fiercely. The air shimmered around my hand, golden sparks of magic flashing. Fairy dust. It came from the world around me, flowing through me as I called upon it, manipulated it the way my kind did. I heard the lock click and smiled in triumph.
Pressing on the door latch, I stepped into his living room. “Malcon?”
He sat slumped in the chair where we’d made love that first night, staring into the crackling fire. Even though my heels clicked on the hardwood floor and I knew he should have been able to smell me from a mile off, he gave no indication he knew I was there. Concern pumped through me, making my heart trip hard against my ribs. I discarded my jacket on the coffee table and hurried over to kneel beside him. Still, he didn’t move, but I could see his face. Shadows cast dark circles under his eyes and lines bracketed his mouth.
“Malcon?” I set my hand on his arm, and he jerked, finally looking at me.
He blinked slowly several times as though just waking up from a deep sleep. “Is this a dream?”
A tremulous smile curled my lips. “No, I’m really here.”
“That’s…good.” His gaze returned to the fire.
I blinked, and my concern kicked up to real panic. I understood now what Jerrod had said about Malcon losing touch with reality. I had to get through to him. Just coming here hadn’t done it.
Well, there was one easy way I knew to make a connection with Malcon. It had never failed us before. I stood, hiked my skirt up and straddled his lap. He startled, his palms cupping my hips automatically.
My hands balled in his shirt. “Malcon, look at me.”
His gaze snapped to mine, his fingers bit into my flesh and the return of sanity sharpened his ebony eyes. “Pixie.”
“Hi, there.” I tried to make my smile bright, but it crumbled almost as soon as it formed. I swallowed, so relieved that I hadn’t driven him crazy that tears welled in my eyes. Clearing my throat, I looked down. There was so much I needed to say, to explain, and as many times as I had practiced the words in my head on the plane ride from New York, my tongue just wouldn’t work now that the moment was upon me.
He gathered me as close to him as humanly possible and buried his face in my throat. His big body shook, and I could feel his tremors running through me as well. “Pixie.”
“I’m here. Shh. I’m here.” I slid my fingers into his soft hair and rocked him, telling him over and over again that I was here. It was good to be back in him arms. Tears slipped down my cheeks, and I was shaking as badly as he was.
He groaned like an animal in pain, but eased his grip on me to look at me. “For how long?”
“As long as you need me.” I wiped my damp cheek on my shoulder. “I’m sorry I left you, sorry I hurt you. I’m here for as long as you’ll have me.”
A shudder rippled through him and his tone darkened, his eyes flashing to blue and then back to black. “You don’t want to make that kind of offer.”
I met his gaze, cupping his strong jaw in my hands. “Yes, I do.”
“Even though my answer is going to be ‘I need you forever, Pixie’?”
“Yeah.” I nodded to emphasize the word and grinned.
He sucked in a breath, closing his eyes. “Pixie, you’re killing me.”
“Literally.” My palms tightened on his jaw, and the grin died as guilt ripped through me again at the deep grooves bracketing his mouth, the hurt stamped on his face.
Opening his eyes, he searched my face. “I didn’t want…to be like all the other men. I didn’t want you to feel guilty about leaving, didn’t want to cage you or change you. I want you just as you are. I wanted you to be willing. I thought you were that first night, I really did. And I’m so sorry.”
“I know.” Stroking my fingers down his cheek, I leaned forward to rest my forehead on his a
nd gave him the whole truth, gave him all of me, gave him what he deserved. “I love you. And loving you changed me, changed what I needed. You didn’t cage me, I did that myself by not recognizing what I felt for you. I locked myself into the same pattern I’ve followed with all the other guys. That wasn’t your fault, Malcon. You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“I marked you when you didn’t understand what I was doing. I should have made sure.” Regret darkened his midnight gaze, deepening the lines beside his mouth. “But I fell for you fast. Even without the mating instinct, I’d love you for the rest of my life.”
A laugh came sputtering out and it tangled with a sob. I was so relieved I hadn’t ruined this beautiful, precious connection between us that I had to blink back more tears. “Why? I’m pushy and rude and a pain in the ass.”
“You really can’t guess?” A smile lit his face.
“No.” I shook my head and shrugged. No other person I’d met besides my brother had ever managed to live with me for more than a few months at a time. “I like myself just fine, but why would you want to put up with it?”
“For so many reasons.” He pulled me tighter against him, and the passion that always sparked between us flared to life as the heat of his hard cock burned through our clothes. That little smile of his I loved played over his lips. “I’ll give you a list if you do the naked magic thing.”
“Does the list start with the naked magic thing?” The corners of my mouth twitched, but I pinched my eyes closed, set my hands on his chest, one palm over his heart and drew the magic into myself, forming a picture in my mind of what I wanted. Warmth flowed through my limbs, and suddenly I could feel his skin under my fingertips. When I looked at him again, we were both nude.
He laughed. Really, truly laughed, and the last of the shadows fled his face. I smiled at him and moaned when his long cock filled me slowly. He moved gently underneath me, as if to savor every moment. His palms slid up and down my back, his dark gaze caressing my face as though trying to memorize the contours. “You said once that you raised Stephen because there wasn’t a choice. He was family. That’s what being the pack Alpha is for me. It’s duty. I find it fulfilling, but it doesn’t bring me joy. You do that, Pixie. You’re funny and sweeter than you like to pretend. You don’t play games, and you have zero tolerance for bullshit. You have no problem getting in my face when you’re upset about something I’ve done. Do you know how refreshing that is for someone in my position? You’re like a breath of fresh air. I can be myself around you, and you like me that way. You like that I don’t play games either, that I don’t try to dick you around.”
“You think so?” Emotion banded my chest until I couldn’t breathe. This man understood me better than anyone ever had before, maybe better than I understood myself.
“I know it.” Fire burned through me as we arched together, his cock stretching my sex with each thrust. Still slowly, but we’d soon lose control and explode together. I couldn’t wait. His palms curved under my ass, pulling me tight to the base of his cock. “I can see it in your eyes when we’re together. We make each other laugh. I didn’t have anyone in my life like that before you.”
“What about Jerrod and his mates?”
“When push comes to shove, I’m still their Alpha.” He shrugged, rolled his pelvis to change his angle of penetration, and I had to work to keep hold of the thread of our conversation. I knew it was important, but damn, the things he could do to me with his body.
“T-true.”
He paused in his movements and I gripped his shoulders, snapping my gaze to his. “When I can feel my duty getting a little too heavy, you remind me to laugh. I need that. I need you. I don’t want to tell you how to live your life. I just want to be a part of it. I want you to want me to be a part of your life.”
“I do want that. I want you.” And I could prove it to him. Offering him a wicked smile, I sank on his hard cock and made him clench his jaw. “Remember when you asked me how Fae mate?”
“Yes. I remember every moment I’ve ever spent with you. Even when we were arguing.” His eyes widened as the implication of my question hit him, and his fingers bit into my flesh.
I gathered the magic to me, felt it skip and dance like golden lightning around my arms and down my body as it grew in strength and power. Then I pressed my palms to his cheeks. My wings burst from my back to flutter madly, and I could see in his eyes a reflection of the glowing magic in mine. His breath caught, but he didn’t try to pull back. Instead, I saw wonder there, and he leaned into my touch.
God, I loved this man.
Pushing the magic forward, I arched my hips into his and he followed my lead. Our gazes locked and we moved hard and fast, his hard belly slapping against mine. The carnality of it was beautiful, left me gasping for breath. I could see love and trust in his eyes, and I let him see mine. The depth of emotion made the sex better for me than it ever had been before, even with him. His eyes burned ice blue, the wolf and the man giving me what I needed. Every time he entered me, my walls closed around him, and I could feel the Fae magic building higher and higher inside me until it was almost painful. I gave him a little more with every swift stroke, but I wouldn’t be able to contain it much longer. I didn’t want to. I wanted to bind him to me, meld our souls until he was mine and I was his. Forever.
He pulled me closer to him, ground his pelvis against my clit, and my control snapped. My power slammed into him full force, filling him as he filled me. A low howl issued from him. His hand fisted in my hair, jerked my head back, and he sank his fangs into my throat again, exactly where his original bite had been. I screamed and we came together, bodies and souls twining in the magic of both our races. My sex milked the length of his cock, but neither of us stopped. A sob wrenched from me as another orgasm exploded through me and another was right on its heels. It went on forever and ended far too soon. I collapsed against him, spent. His fingers stroked through my hair, pulling my head up until our sweat-dampened foreheads pressed together and we stared in each other’s eyes. Tiny sparks of gold flickered in his eyes as my magic pulsed through him.
“I love you, Pixie. I love you so much—I have since the first moment I saw you.” The naked vulnerability on his face was something I knew no one but I would ever see. “Fight with me, get mad at me, I don’t care, but never leave me again. Never.”
“I won’t. I can’t. I love you, Malcon.” Tears slid down my face and I held him as tightly as he held me, needing to be as close as we could be. The connection that cycled between us, binding my soul to his, would grow stronger and stronger every day for the rest of our life together. And the craziest thing about it was that that sounded just perfect to me. There was nowhere in the world I would rather be than right here in his arms. I’d meant every word I said. Loving him hadn’t caged me, it had set me free, free to fly as high as I could go, free to be myself as I never had been with anyone else before.
Free to love and be loved.
About the Author
Crystal Jordan began writing romance after she finished graduate school and needed something to fill the hours that used to be eaten away by homework. Currently, she serves as a librarian at a university in California, but has lived and worked all over the United States. She writes paranormal, futuristic and erotic romance.
To learn more about Crystal please visit www.crystaljordan.com. Send an email to Crystal at [email protected] or join her Yahoo! group to join in the fun with other readers as well as Crystal! http://groups.yahoo.com/group/crystal-jordan
Look for these titles by Crystal Jordan
Now Available:
Treasured
Total Eclipse of the Heart
Big Girls Don’t Die
It’s Raining Men
She loves them too much to change them. Until they turn the tables on her…
It’s Raining Men
© 2009 Crystal Jordan
In the Heat of the Night, Book Three.
Every one of Candy’s
werewolf instincts tells her that Michael is her mate. He’s a lawyer—smart, sophisticated, and handsome. The catch? He’s gay. There is no way she’s going to try to change who he is. Then she meets his lover Stephen, a seductive Fae-siren jazz singer, and she’s positive she’s got a screw loose somewhere. Mates with not one, but two gay men?
She’s definitely doomed to be single forever.
Michael and Stephen know that their unexpectedly flirtatious advances have thrown Candy for a loop. But there’s method to their madness—they’re both serious about her. And they plan to make sure she never spends another birthday alone.
Enjoy the following excerpt for It’s Raining Men:
Fire flooded my system, and my hips moved in the kind of sensual rhythm I couldn’t control. I clung to him, opening my mouth on his neck to suck and nip at his salty flesh. The wolf demanded that I bite down hard. I shuddered, holding back on my instincts to move against him in wild abandon. He pushed his pelvis into mine, working me in the hard, insistent tempo that took me right to the edge of orgasm but didn’t allow me to fall over. “Michael, I’m so close. Please, I need more.”
“Not yet, not yet.” He froze, and I died a little. My claws slid forward and dug into his shoulders. He grunted and shrugged against my hold. I loosened my grip, stroking an apologetic hand down his back.
He startled when he looked at me, his mouth falling open in shock. I pressed my fingertip to my mouth, and I felt my fully extended fangs. My eyes would be icy werewolf blue, the wolf wanting her mate. And my appearance obviously scared the shit out of him. I expected to feel a pierce of regret, but the wolf was too much in control, and I was too far gone to care that he would reject me. Unwrapping my legs from around his waist, he set me on my feet. I nearly cried out again, for entirely different reasons. My clawed fingers flexed and I turned away, not daring to look at him. The emotional pain would come later, when only the woman was left to deal with the hurt.
Crazy Little Thing Called Love: An In The Heat of the Night story Page 5
