Eternity (Descendants of Ra: Book 1)

by Tmonique Stephens

  “Anywhere, anytime,” she groaned, then lost all sense of reality when Roman flipped her onto her back and paid the same attention to her nipples that he paid to her neck, suckling the hard peeks through the lace of her lingerie, gently chafing his five o’clock stubble against her nipples. She didn’t want this to end.

  Stella gasped when he pulled the thong aside again and dipped inside her. One finger flirted with her entrance, teased her swollen clitoris, and then penetrated deep, pumping until her hips joined and set the rhythm. Senses on overload, she couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think as Roman stirred the well of lava firing her soul, turning her inside out with need.

  Another finger entered her. Her slick folds spasmed. Writhing, hands fisting the sheets, chest heaving, she came.

  Before she could recover, he yanked the thong from her body and his tongue delved between her nether lips and curled around her clit, gently sucking and licking until she cried out.

  He switched their positions again. Suddenly she was on top. He slid deep inside, filling her hollow space with his pulsing erection, sending her orgasm into overtime.

  Stretched wide, insides burning for him to take her, Stella’s eyes locked into his blue orbs. Ecstasy and anguish, the two emotions played across his handsome face.

  “Ride me.”

  An order or a plea, she didn’t care. Her slick muscles clenched in eager response and her hips rose and inched their way down. Slack-jawed, gasping for air, Roman’s eyes rolled back in his head. Heart full of love, his steel sliding into her heat, invading her body, her mind, her soul, and she welcomed him, accepted him. Loved him even more.

  “Do that again.” He begged.

  She did. Head thrown back, hands braced against his pecs, Stella set a scorching rhythm that left her man clutching the headboard while his hips surged up to meet her thrusts.

  “Stella.” Body rigid, he swelled within her and she shattered, waves of pleasure rippled in every direction. Bands of steel encircled her and pulled her into the shelter of his chest. The world fell away and all she had was the man she loved, pouring his love into her body and heart.

  Cradled in his arms, Roman eased her onto her back. Still firm inside her wet heat, he kissed her sated senses into full awareness and he moved inside her again.

  Her eyes snapped opened and she moaned at the passion etched on Roman’s face. He dropped his head into the crook of her neck and spread her thighs wider. Her fingernails scrapped his back, his sides and trailed down to his ass. He growled and she whispered, “What are you waiting for? Take me.”

  Thundering into her, sensations whipped through her, sending her into rapture as Roman shouted her name and came.

  Almost asleep, Roman lifted her from the bed. He carried her to the bathroom and into a warm shower. Reverently, he bathed every inch of skin. With a soft towel, he patted her dry and carried her back to bed. Settled against him, his chest pillowing her head, Stella listened to the words rumble from his heart to his lips.

  “With everything I have, I love you. Where you go, I go.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY- FOUR

  Stella stretched against Roman’s back. Then trailed kisses down his spine. He stirred but didn’t wake.

  A giggle erupted. For the first time in weeks, the boulder on her shoulders was gone. She slipped the nightie back on and struggled into his robe. The heavy flannel wrapped around her twice before she belted it tight. Burying her face in the collar, she inhaled deeply and took the clean woodsy scent of him into her lungs.

  So this is what love feels like. This giddy sickness that made you want to sing and throw up at the same time.

  Desire spread languidly through her body as she watched him from the foot of the bed. She went to him, pulled to his side by bonds forged twenty centuries ago and during the last two months, and kissed his stubbled cheek. Another day and he’d have a real beard.

  She danced down the stairs and fixed a plate of leftovers. With a bottle of water, she took her meal out onto the porch.

  A huge moon hung low over the water and bathed the woods in an iridescent glow. In the heavens, millions of stars captivated her. The lake mirrored the night sky, beckoning her. She peeled the robe from her body and strolled to the lake. Wading in, the water lapped at her toes and climbed up her body. When it swirled around her waist, plastering the lacy lingerie to her, she dived in.

  Beneath the surface, she swam deeper to the center before surfacing to float. The deliciously cold water caressed her. She missed Roman. He should be here with her, floating in the water, doing things to each other. The lurid thoughts caused her to shiver.

  She started back to shore to wake him but stopped. He was already awake and standing on the bank, his profile to her.

  “Roman. I was just coming to get you. Why did you get dressed? Take those clothes off and come in.” He didn’t look at her.

  Stella swam closer until her toes brushed the pebbled lakebed. She swept her hair out of her face. He hadn’t moved.

  “Roman?”

  Slowly, he pivoted.

  It wasn’t Roman.

  ~~~~~~

  The soft press of Stella’s lips on Roman’s back pulled him from slumber. He wanted to pull her beneath him, but he was too groggy to budge. She’d drained him of all energy. Completely sated, he gathered his strength and reached for her. Instead, he found an empty spot.

  “Stella?” He shot out of bed, dragged on a pair of jeans and jogged downstairs. “Stella,” he called again, receiving no answer because she wasn’t there.

  “Roman.” Her voice came from outside. “Take off your clothes and come in!”

  An image of her naked, water touching all the areas he recently loved made him throb.

  Her scream shattered the fantasy.

  From the porch, he spotted her in the lake. He took a step and he caught movement in the corner of his eye.

  Everything, his hearing, breath, and heart stopped. Daniel stood knee deep in the water . . . between him and Stella.

  “Daniel?” Roman took a step forward.

  “Surprised to see me?” Daniel eased further into the water.

  No, but damn I thought I had more time.

  “Yes. How is this possible?” Roman tracked him. In his peripheral vision, Sella remained shoulder deep in the lake.

  Daniel laughed a harsh grating sound that echoed in between the trees. “Did you think you’re the only one with power?” Another step, the water now lapped mid-thigh.

  Stella moved. Slowly, she shifted to the left, closer to the cabin.

  “Tell me how you’re still alive.” Roman inched toward him.

  “Divine providence. Like you, I’m immortal.” Daniel dove in the water.

  “Swim, Stella!”

  Roman ran into the lake after him. Legs kicking, arms slicing, his body cut through the water. Deep in the lake, he dove beneath the murky waters, searching for Daniel. A few feet down the weak moonlight faded leaving nothing but inky gloom. Still, he swam deeper, unwilling to give up. His mind raced to Stella.

  Did she reach the shore? Had he circled around him and killed her?

  Lungs burning, he kicked to the surface and gulped pine-scented air. Something grabbed his leg and pulled.

  ~~~~~~

  Stella’s arms ached and trembled by the time she reached the shore. Frantic, she searched the lake for Roman and Daniel, but not even a ripple disturbed the surface.

  Get a weapon!

  She scrambled up the bank, the water dragging at her. Sharp rocks nicked her hands and feet, but she ignored them and ran toward her goal. The cabin.

  Something splashed behind her. She spun and for a second, Roman appeared. His head peeked above the surface of the water. Before she could scream his name, he was gone. Sucked beneath the surface, leaving only a few ripples to prove he was once there.

  She streaked to the cabin. Yesterday, before he returned to the Jeep, he handed her a gun, then she put away the food, but what did she do before that. Her gaze da
rted around the room.

  Think!

  Frozen between the kitchen and living room she forced her brain to slow down and heard a roar. Stella bolted to the living room window in time to glimpse Roman airborne. He landed bloody in the shallows—and didn’t move.

  Oh God! Did Daniel do that? Frantic, she flung things everywhere. She had to find the gun. Suddenly, she remembered and snatched up the accent pillow she tossed onto the table during that first night.

  And there it laid, the H&K.

  ~~~~~~

  Roman didn’t know what grabbed and dragged him under the water, but it wasn’t Daniel. Daniel didn’t have claws that climbed up the side of Roman’s body from ankle to chest.

  Roman brought his feet up and kicked. He connected and the claws pulled free. Then he swam hard. With each stroke, pain blossomed while the moon shimmered overhead. Something slammed into him and launched him into the air. He hit the shore with a disturbing crunch and couldn’t move.

  When was the last time I had my ass seriously kicked? Oh yeah, age fifteen, Reign beat the shit out of me. Can’t remember why.

  He heard a splash and raised his head. From one hundred feet away a reptilian monster walked out of the lake. The same beast from Central Park—but perhaps a bit bigger—or maybe his blurred vision made the animal seem larger.

  A crocodile face with razor-sharp teeth in a snout that snapped open and let out a bellow no human could make. Its misshaped head balanced on a neck that fanned out like the hooded neck of a cobra. Mottled gray and white pearlescent scaly skin twinkled wetly in the moonlight while a barbed tail flicked back and forth against the massive body.

  He didn’t care what Quin said, this couldn’t be Daniel. But Daniel went into the water. And this thing came out.

  “You came up here to hide. There isss no hiding from me. I have tasssted your blood and the blood of the other. There’sss no place either of you can hide that I will not find.”

  “Daniel?” He had to ask.

  “No longer. I am Alamut.” The Thing barked and bobbed its head.

  Shit! It talks.

  “Daniel isss dead,’ the creature hissed. “My turn now.”

  Gunshots echoed. Roman’s head snapped toward the sound. Stella ran toward them, firing.

  The beast flinched and blood sprayed. Bullets entered his flesh but didn’t slow him down. The creature walked toward him, unfazed.

  Roman lumbered to his feet. He needed a sword. He grabbed a thick tree limb lying near him. “Stop, get me a—”

  Arm outstretched, razor sharp claws fanned out and lunged for Roman’s throat. Quickly leaning out of the way, the claws narrowly missed his neck and took a chunk out of a nearby tree. Roman brought the branch up and clubbed him. Once, twice, three times, beating the thick skull.

  Stunned, Alamut stumbled and slid down the steep embankment. A roar erupted from his throat and the seven-foot nightmare charged. Roman blocked one clawed limb and delivered a punch to the beast’s shoulder joint. A loud crunch and the arm dangled. Alamut roared again and grabbed what was left of the branch in his teeth, ripping it from Roman’s hands. Then slashed his bare chest.

  Roman staggered back, putting distance between him and his enemy as Stella continued to fire until the clip emptied.

  “Leave!” he yelled.

  The tail whipped around and slammed into him. Tossed into the air, the ground didn’t provide a soft landing. Bones in the process of healing snapped on impact. The beast turned its attention to Stella. With a sickening, grinding crunch, the arm popped back into place.

  Adrenaline surged through Roman. Broken bones aligned and healed. Torn muscles knit together. He gathered his strength and sprung to his feet. He ran to a nearby tree stump and launched himself onto the beast’s back.

  ~~~~~~

  Stella’s brain couldn’t process the animal emerging from the lake near Roman, but that didn’t stop her from firing. She emptied her gun into its back and gasped as the bullets ejected from the bloody holes, and the scaly flesh sealed closed. Its head swung around and its eyes nailed her. Blue eyes. Fear made her legs wobble, but she wouldn’t run away. Live or die, she wouldn’t leave Roman.

  But it didn’t want her. The animal ignored her and continued stalking Roman. She tossed the useless gun to the ground and streaked back to the house. A sword is what they needed and on the living room wall hung an arsenal of steel. She dragged a chair beneath the biggest one she could reach and yanked it from the wall. The blade landed with a thunk, embedding the tip into the hardwood floor.

  Frenzied, she cut her hand on the sharp metal as she freed the sword and carried it out of the house. At the last minute, she grabbed the sword she trained with from beside the door. Unbalanced by the blades, she tripped down the stairs and landed on her knees. Sharp pebbles dug deep and tore her skin.

  Roman stood between her and the beast. Blood covered him, but his wounds closed while he continued to fight. She dropped her sword and lunged to her feet.

  “Roman!” she shrieked.

  His head whipped around.

  Arms straining, she heaved his sword in the air. Roman beat the monster back and raced for the weapon.

  Stella watched its arc and knew the blade wouldn’t reach him. His only hope would fall short between them.

  The beast pushed Roman away, dropped to all fours, and scuttled for the weapon. She couldn’t let him have it. Grabbing her small sword, she made a dash for Roman’s weapon and almost grasped the tip when the beast leaped and snatched it from the ground. Claws wrapped around the hilt and swung the blade in a small arc aimed at her head. Bent backward, twisting, the blade passed centimeters from her jugular.

  Slammed to the ground, air exploded out of her lungs. Air rushed painfully back inside when the deadly metal came back around.

  She blocked his blow with her sword. The blade reverberated and pain radiated up her arm, into her shoulder. Her muscles jellied. The beast raised Roman’s sword again. She couldn’t handle another blow.

  Roman leaped on the animal’s back, grabbed its snout, and twisted. The blade dropped from its hand and landed inches from her head. But its claws were just as deadly as they reached behind and dragged across Roman’s back and arms. But he didn’t stop twisting the thing’s neck. Vertebra grated together, crunched, and finally snapped.

  Still. It wouldn’t collapse.

  Sensation returned to her arm, her nerve endings firing pain up from her fingers to her shoulder. She rushed to her feet and circled behind the creature and Roman.

  “Go!” Roman ordered. The beast rolled, crushing him beneath its bulk. Then snatched him up and slammed his body into a tree.

  “Ssstay Ssstella and watch him die,” it hissed.

  Claws squeezed his throat. “Why are you doing this, Daniel?” Roman croaked. “I adopted you as my son, made you a Brother.”

  “I never wanted to be a Brother!” it snarled, “One of many, doing as ordered, always in the shadow of everyone. Never knowing what I am—until now.”

  She stumbled back and crashed into an outcrop of rock. That thing was Daniel? And It talked! Actually spoke! Its eyes rotated back and its penetrating gaze nailed her to the spot. In a parody of a grin, rows of jagged, nightmarish teeth showed. Then it snagged the discarded sword and skewered Roman through the chest, pinning him to the tree.

  “No!” Stella screamed and rushed forward to save him. Snake-like and spiked at the end, the beast’s tail pounded the ground in front of her, blocking her way. She raised her sword to hack at it, but the tail wrapped around her.

  Powerful, rhythmic muscles clenched tight with each exhale, compressing her ribs, lungs, and heart until fireworks sparked her wavering vision. Any second everything would cease to matter. If she could raise her sword . . . she tried, gathering what strength she had left, but she couldn’t.

  However, she didn’t need much strength to aim the blade at the base of its tail and thrust down. Recently sharpened, the blade embedded deep in the meaty tiss
ue.

  The beast dropped her and spun.

  “I killed you once,” she wheezed. “I’ll do it again.” She took a shaky step back. “Come and get me, you fucking bastard.”

  Then she stumbled between the trees, disappearing into the night.

  CHAPTER THIRTY- FIVE

  Though the moon was high, a thick tree canopy blocked a good portion of the light. Speckled, the moon hid and revealed equally. Stella prayed she staggered in the right direction, toward the traps Roman had laid.

  “Ssstella.” Close behind her, the thing’s snake tongue and long snout brutalized her name. In the middle of thick trees, she hazarded a glance over her shoulder. Nothing followed her. She didn’t believe it. The beast was on her trail, hunting her like she wanted.

  A rocky outcropping stopped her.

  Damn, she went the wrong way.

  A tree creaked, then splintered and crashed onto the rocks inches from her, showering her with branches, leaves, and chunks of wood.

  “Run, Ssstella. I like to chassse you,” hissed from the woods.

  She couldn’t see him. So perfectly he blended with the night. But she spotted the chimney of the cabin. She had an idea where she was and where the traps were hidden.

  The moonlight flickered before disappearing behind a cloud bank. Plunged into darkness, she ducked low and took off in that direction. A freight train made less noise barreling through a quiet town, but there’s no way to be silent crashing through the woods, running for your life, in the dark.

  “Slow down!” A voice warned her. Automatically, she obeyed and didn’t have a chance to wonder who, what, where, when or why. The ground gave way beneath her feet, pitching her forward. The scream that rose in her throat ended in a grunt when she slammed into the dirt wall of a pit. Holding onto a thick root, Stella tried to pull herself up, but she slid lower, cutting her foot on the sharp end of a spike.

  Instead of leading the animal to a trap, she was in one.

  And her sword was gone, lost somewhere below. Her shoulder throbbed in time with her speeding heart. She reached up and searched for something to hold onto, another root, anything.