by Ivy Sparks
Zoe sobbed and Dravak took her into his arms. She buried her face into his lab coat, holding onto him as if he were her rock. Ellie turned back to me, her eyes wide in alarm. “Did someone die?”
Anger overwhelmed me at the innocent look in her eyes. She was completely oblivious to the danger she put herself in. She was completely unaware of her actions. “You don’t even know why you are here?” I gripped her hand. She tried to pull away from me and I gripped tighter.
“I got a little sick.”
“You could have died.” It took everything within me not to shout, scream, or throw something. “You shouldn’t have been outside.”
“You keep me locked up in here like I’m a princess stuck in a castle.”
“There is a reason I haven’t permitted you outside. We still haven’t run—”
“All the tests,” Ellie finished. “I know. But I’ve been so cooped up. All I wanted was to see the outside world and you won’t let me.”
Won’t let her? She hadn’t even asked me before. “I’ve been trying to keep you safe.”
“For yourself.”
Ouch.
I released her hand, throwing myself away from her. I was storming out. I knew it was childish, but I couldn’t stand this anymore. We were spinning around in circles and if she couldn’t understand I only wanted to keep her safe, we had nothing else to discuss.
“Fine,” Ellie grumbled. “Go. But you can’t keep me locked up in here forever.”
I whirled around. “I don’t keep you locked up in here to prevent you from leaving. I keep you here so I don’t have to worry about you dying while I’m gone. To keep you safe until all the safety measures have been taken. That’s why you’re stuck here, in this castle.” I threw my hands up, gesturing to the surroundings. “You’ve never told me you wanted to go outside anyhow. How was I to know?”
She stared at me with those wide green eyes. I didn’t know if I had reached her. I ran my hand through my hair before turning and leaving, slamming the door behind me.
Ellie
I knew I messed up when he left. The look in his eyes, how worried he was. I knew I was being selfish. I wasn’t a prisoner, but it felt good saying it then. It didn’t feel so good now, sitting by myself, with the image of Zoe crying while she held onto Dravak.
The whole thing had been a blur. I had gotten caught up in the emotions, in hearing that Zoe was heading out, the excitement of seeing the outside world. I didn’t want to wait around for permission at the time, and now I realized how wrong I was to not ask Vorian first. Maybe, deep down, I felt like I was being locked up here as a way to control me. Now I knew for sure it had only been for my safety.
I knew I really messed up when Vorian didn’t come to dinner. I sat at the table, scraping food back and forth on my plate while I stared at his empty chair, waiting, hoping eventually he would come. Then I could apologize so everything could return to normal.
I waited an hour before I gave up, pushing myself away from the table. I walked down the steps, pulling the earrings out of my ears. They were green and brought out my eyes. I had hoped they would make me more attractive. Zoe told me they looked nice when she prepared me for dinner this evening. She was unusually quiet and I felt like I must’ve broken something. I looked at the elevator on my way back to my room, wondering if Dravak was down there and if I could talk to him about the incident. I decided to take a detour.
When I entered the lab, I found a different Adonian than the one I had expected. He was wearing a visor, his wings pulled in tightly to him. Only his defective wing skimmed the floor. A part of me wanted to turn around, but I stepped forward. Another part of me wanted to apologize so everything would be forgotten.
If it could be.
I hovered over Vorian, waiting for him to notice me, but he didn’t turn around, didn’t acknowledge my presence. I walked around so I was standing across from him and forced a smile. He still didn’t look up. “Watcha doin’?” I asked, hoping to sound casual.
“Working.”
“Oh.” I waited, but he continued ignoring me. “You weren’t at dinner.”
“I wasn’t hungry.”
I nodded and watched him work. The pipes and metal plates were lined, reminding me of another device Dravak showed me before. “What are you working on?”
Vorian sighed. “Wings.”
“Weren’t you working on another pair?”
Vorian turned off the blowtorch. “These… I was making these for you.” He glanced up briefly. “I was going to reconfigure them to the size of your body. That way, maybe, you and I could fly some time. It might make life here easier and give you a sense of true freedom, once your body has fully adjusted to our atmosphere.”
He was making these for me? God, he was the sweetest beast I had ever known.
I walked around the table to stand in front of where he sat. He stared up at me, looking uncertain. I turned the sides of his visor, making the screen disappear before pushing back his hair. He closed his eyes, inhaled, then leaned in toward me. I leaned forward. “I’m sorry,” I whispered in his ear. “Can you forgive me?”
Vorian’s blue eyes met mine, then he nodded curtly. “Yes.”
“I know I worried you.”
“I don’t want you to feel like a prisoner here.”
“I’m not.”
His lips were so close to mine, his eyes focused on my mouth. I leaned toward him, placing my lips against his, allowing my tongue to trace his bottom lip. His hands snaked up my back, pulling me toward him. His tongue delved into my mouth and I sucked on it, slow and deliberate, enjoying his growl.
My hand tugged at his hair while the other massaged his shoulder. He pulled me into his lap, with my legs straddling him. I ground against him and he groaned, his hand cupping my breast, pawing at it. My hand caressed him from his shoulder to his wing, then he pulled away, bucking his hips against me, his gaze questioning me.
The door began to open and I scrambled off him, while he quickly patted down his frazzled hair. He stood quickly, stuffing his hands into his pocket.
Dravak walked toward us, shaking his head. “Zoe is still a mess,” he said, scowling. “You were far too harsh with her.”
“I’ll talk to her,” Vorian said, taking my hand and pulling me toward the exit.
“Where are you going?”
“Dinner.”
Vorian
I didn’t know exactly what I was thinking, only that I wanted to be alone with her. We walked toward her room, her hand still in mine, the need growing within me. What was I thinking? She was a human, yet all I wanted was her. Pressed against me. Her mouth on mine. Me entering her while she groaned beneath me, begging for more.
Sure, Adonians in the past took human lovers, but it was always frowned upon and never lasted, especially if they were in the court. I glanced at Ellie, her hair ruffled, her lips swollen from my kisses.
But I was defective. And she looked past that, unlike any Adonian woman.
We stopped at her bedroom. I watched her open the door, hoping, like all the previous times I stood here, that she would invite me inside. Her gaze met mine and she entered, leaving the door open.
I followed, kicking it shut with the heel of my boot.
My hands gathered her against me as I pressed my lips against hers, breathing her in. I pulled her leg around me, bringing her close so I could grind against her. Her moan urged me on. I grabbed her ass and her legs straddled around me.
I pressed her against a wall, grinding against her, enjoying each little sound she emitted. I pulled up her dress, my hand cupping against the moistness I found there. Her hand pressed against my hard shaft, which strained for release.
The scent of her arousal washed over me, sending shivers down my spine. I entered her with a finger while I stimulated the sensitive nub above her entrance. Her head thrashed back and forth, moans escaping her. Once she managed to regain some semblance of control, she deftly untied my pants, reaching in to touch me
.
A growl escaped me and I bared my fangs. The sudden need to sink them into her neck overtook me, but I fought it.
She was human, I told myself.
Not only that, but the fangs were reserved for fated mates.
I slipped another finger inside her and she whimpered, her mouth finding mine again. I moved us away from the wall to the bed, her legs still straddling me. She unbuttoned my shirt and pulled it off me, then kissed a path from my neck down to my collarbone.
I pulled her dress off her, exposing her pale breasts. I took a nipple into my mouth, sucking lightly, my teeth teasing. Her hands pulled at my hair, pushing me closer. My thumb circled her nub and she arched against me as I sucked harder.
I pulled away, ripping off her panties and tossing it haphazardly behind me. My shoes and pants followed soon after. Now we were naked and facing each other, fully exposed. She gazed back at me, her eyes heavy with desire.
Ellie
He was huge. It was huge. Everything about him looked like he could tear me apart. The Adonian cock was truly something to behold. Its hue reminded me of the male birds I saw in picture books, so colorful in order to attract females. Its impressive width, its ridged length, all of it looked like it was sculpted for my pleasure.
My eyes traveled along the shimmering scales that ran up his arms and over his shoulders. His wings twitched behind him and expanded as if blocking off my attempts at running away. Was this even going to work? How was I ever going to fit all of that in little old me?
He crawled toward me, slowly like a predator about to pounce on its prey, with his fangs bared, a low growl emanating from his throat. I would be scared if I didn’t just have him moaning underneath me moments before. I stopped his approach with a hand on his shoulder and he backed away, his eyes widening as if I injured him. “Is everything okay?” he asked, gathering my hands into his and kissing them. “We don’t have to do this.”
“It’s fine,” I said, pushing him onto his back into the pile of pillows behind him. “I want to do this.”
I hovered above him, kissing a path from his neck down to his sizable cock. His breath hitched, his length twitching as it felt my breath on the sensitive skin. I licked the tip lightly, his hand finding my hair, stroking the locks away. I took the tip of him into my mouth and sucked, tasting his sweet precum.
His groans lit a fire in the pit of my stomach, so I grabbed the length of him, pumping it lightly, stroking him. The heat in me heightened as I tasted him more. I groaned, wanting more of it, sucking as much as I could. He bucked against me as I tried to swallow as much of him as possible.
But he clearly didn’t want to waste his seed in my mouth. Vorian grabbed me and hauled me up. I pressed my groin into him, urging him to fill me. The heat swarmed around me and I couldn’t get enough of him. My kisses found his chin, his lips, his neck.
“Tell me you want this,” he hissed into my ear, his hard length pressing into my entrance, my legs on either side of him.
“I want this,” I begged in a hoarse whisper. As soon as the words slipped from my lips his mouth found mine and he arched up, his cock entering me.
I whimpered as my body pressed into him. I gradually adjusted to every inch of him as he pumped slowly at first. Eventually I took him all the way to the hilt, and I gasped as my pussy pulsed around him, stuffed like never before.
I felt an aching need to be filled with his seed. I needed more of him against me, inside me. He lavished my shoulder with kisses, then licked and kissed my neck. I tilted my head to give him better access. My body rocked against his, but it still wasn’t enough.
I wanted all of him. I needed him to spill himself into me.
Vorian
The urge to bite her shoulder was a primal need I forced myself to forget. My fangs continued baring and I kept pushing them back, licking her and kissing her neck. It was the only thing I could think about as I pushed into her, not wanting to hurt her. She pushed back, more forcefully, her nails digging into my shoulder.
I really wanted to bite her. I never felt that way with any Adonian. Not even my ex-fiancée.
She pulled me over her, arching and bucking against me, her legs pulling me forward so I was on top of her. “Harder,” she gasped, grabbing my hips.
Did she know what she was begging for?
Ellie’s head thrashed against the pillows, her hands pulling at me. “I want you, Vorian.” She groaned as I entered her deeper. “Yes,” she gasped. “Yes!”
I thrust inside her, intending to go slowly, but she moved quickly against me, her tight wet walls surrounding me, tightening the harder I went, the faster I drove into her. I pounded into her, enjoying her groans of pleasure that turned into screams for more. My hand gripped her neck, covering her enticing pulse. Her scent surrounded me, making it impossible to escape her.
“I can’t…!” she cried and I shivered, pushing into her harder. “I can’t hold back any longer!”
I felt near the edge, I held on until she screamed her pleasure, until her wet folds shuddered, before pouring myself into her warm core. My climax felt like it wouldn’t stop as I filled her to the brim, only then collapsing on top of her.
My hand moved away from her neck, the need to lick her and comfort her taking over. I licked her shoulder, pressing kisses against it. I inhaled her and groaned. I wanted to bury myself into her scent forever.
I wanted to make her mine.
And then it dawned on me.
Those kinds of thoughts didn’t happen with just anybody. This maddening, uncontrollable desire wasn’t a product of mere lust.
She really was my mate.
Chapter Twelve
Vorian
My mate.
It made complete sense. This urge, this need I had to fill. I touched her face as she slept, stroking away the tendrils of hair, delicately massaging her shoulder. I couldn’t stop touching her, didn’t want to stop. Everything about her was amazing and lovely. Her red lips, her sweeping lashes, her plump breasts.
The smell of her.
What if she didn’t want this?
What if she didn’t want me?
The thought seemed to break something inside me, forming an ache I didn’t want explored. I wasn’t whole; I couldn’t entirely protect her with my broken wing.
I couldn’t bear the thoughts any longer and shook them from my mind, pushing them as far away as possible.
She was my mate. I should wait and see how she took the news first before passing any judgment.
Her eyes fluttered open, halting any thoughts I had. I kissed her as I nuzzled her nose. Her lips lifted into a smile against mine. Already I was becoming aroused, the memory of her body grinding against mine returning.
“You’re insatiable,” she said when I pulled away, her hand caressing the side of my face.
I chuckled, kissing her neck and groaning when her backside wiggled against me. Her hand found my hard shaft, caressing it as her lips pressed against mine, her tongue entwining. I sucked on it, my cock twitching at her groan.
“Ready for round two?” she asked, her mouth mere breaths away.
I growled. “Yes.”
We spent the whole day together, touching each other, our mouths barely leaving each other. I held her against me, gently. I couldn’t get enough of her. I couldn’t stop kissing her, licking her neck, wanting to consummate our fated paths, but knowing it wasn’t the right time. I needed to tell her what it all meant, but I didn’t want to scare her away.
I didn’t want to lose her, now that I finally found her.
Eventually, we pulled away from each other when the stars were gathering in the night sky. When Ellie went to the bathroom to wash, I got dressed and called Zoe to bring us food.
When she entered the room, she smiled coyly up at me. “So she’s doing better?” Zoe asked cheerfully, sniffing the air.
“Yes, she’s fine.” I looked behind me, wondering if Ellie was done with her bath.
“By the smells
of it, she’s doing very well.”
I rolled my eyes and moved, watching Zoe set the tray on the table. “I heard you and Dravak made up?”
Zoe shrugged. “For now. He’s been very nice to me ever since you were so mean.” She changed the subject before I could respond. “So, Ellie?”
I sighed. “Not now.”
“I smell her all over you.”
I groaned. “I don’t want to do this now.”
Zoe frowned and I realized we were, in fact, doing this now. “You need to be careful.”
“I know.”
Zoe pointed toward the bathroom and shook her head. “If anyone discovers this, she is going to be in worse trouble than she was before.”
“I know that Zoe.”
“You need to—”
“Zoe,” Ellie called, sounding breathless. She dried her hair with a towel, her body wrapped inside a robe. She strode toward Zoe gracefully, smiling with red lips. Lips I wanted to taste once more.
Zoe inhaled, her eyes widening as she turned toward me. Her eyes widened even more, her mouth opened.
“What is it, Zoe?” Ellie asked, but her attention was on the food. “I’m feeling much better, in case you were worried.”
Zoe inhaled again and she gasped.
She knew.
I shook my head, hoping she wouldn’t say anything, needing her to not say anything to Ellie. I needed to tell her myself. It was my duty as her mate. My gaze met Zoe’s and, as if reading my mind, she clamped her mouth shut and nodded.
“We will talk about this later,” she whispered when she passed me.
I stifled a groan and focused on the creature in front of me. She smiled back while chewing on a slice of meat, her hair damp. I stalked toward her, grabbing her and setting her in my lap. I fed her more meat, her lips sucking the excess sauce off my fingers. She really was going to be the death of me. I didn’t understand how I went this long without tasting her again.
