My Mom swayed on the couch and Dad obligingly wrapped his arms around her, his eyes turning to me in anger. “Young lady that is not funny!” he growled at me.
“No, not amused? I actually think it’s hysterical,” I laughed at him. “Better start thinking up names now, it won’t be long until she’s out to here and won’t have time to think of anything. If I remember my anatomy lessons correctly, Elves only take twenty weeks to gestate.” He stared at me, uncertain if I was joking or not, and I turned to Kit and asked, “Can you get me a pregnancy test?” He grinned and snapped his fingers; four appeared on the table in front of me.
“One for each,” he chuckled then sat back in his chair again, a mischievous glint in his eye.
The look on Dad’s face slipped to one of disbelief and then a light came over his face as he turned and stared down at Mom. She looked like she might pass out at any moment but managed to smile weakly up at him when his eyes turned possessive and he pulled her more firmly into his arms just before he kissed her.
“Hey!” I yelled. “You two need to get a room… somewhere else! Somewhere far, far away,” I mumbled when they pulled apart and Dad gave her another hug and murmured her name softly. “Do you mind? Your child is in the room! Well actually all five of us are.”
Dad laughed at me and snuggled my Mom in against his body. “And where exactly would you like us to go?” he asked me with his tongue in cheek. “You were the one that brought me here.”
Oh great, and Mom needed to go with me tomorrow night so we could all pretend that Amras was my Father. This is just great. Dad stiffened and swung his silver eyes in my direction, the smile on his face sliding away to be replaced by something dark and very dangerous. “I don’t think so,” he muttered then speared Amras, who lifted both his hands as if to say, it wasn’t my idea!
“Roark,” Mom nudged him and he turned to look back at her, his features rearranging themselves into something tender and possessive. “I have to go with Lexi… but maybe we can rethink Lord Amras. After all if I am expecting...” And she blushed and slid her hand over her flat stomach. “The Queen will not argue.”
I glanced at Gareth with a grimace and squeezed my eyes closed. “Someone needs to R.S.V.P. for us,” I told the group, then calmly called, “Areth?” Opening my eyes to find the beautiful woman seated on the air in front of me. I jerked my chin toward my Mom and she turned, drifting to the table so she could stand and bow. “Princess Shaylee, it is always an honor to be seen by you.”
“Areth,” my mother acknowledge then glanced at my Dad. “This is Roark, Lexi’s Father.”
“Greetings Roark ‘e Venth Silver and Father of our most cherished Lexi.”
Roark seemed charmed by the beautiful little Gnome and smiled at her. “I offer my thanks, Areth, for your care of our daughter.”
“Areth…” I began, pulling her gaze away from my parents. “We need… another suite of rooms. Can you make it self contained, and preferably as far from ours as possible, maybe that way,” I told her, pointing toward the elevator. “On the other side of the foyer and down a very long hall. I’m sure my parents would appreciate their privacy.” I know I certainly would! Beside me Jace laughed and I glared at him, my eyes flashing gold. His amusement died in his throat as he bit his lip and tried to look innocent.
Areth nodded and smiled. “I will send my son immediately,” she replied, then turned back to my Mother. “Congratulations, Princess, on your upcoming births.” She closed her eyes for a moment then opened them with a bright smile. “I sense the five of you will come though the delivery in good health.” Mom actually paled but nodded her head as Areth glanced over at me, winked then disappeared.
“Goddess… the five of us,” Mom whispered her face turning pale. “I thought she was joking.”
I couldn’t help it, I threw back my head and laughed until Gareth poked me in the ribs and frowned down at me. I thought of something and looked around. “Hey Mom?” I asked. “Where is Mi?”
Mom glanced around with a worried look as if suddenly remembering where she was and what she was supposed to be doing. “She must be entertaining the Queen,” she muttered and glanced up at Roark, who shook his head and frowned.
“No, Shaylee, I haven’t seen you in nearly twenty six years. Your Mother came between us once already! Forget it. You, my love, are not going anywhere!” he growled.
On the chair across the room Owen snapped his fingers and tossed two card keys onto the table. He tilted his head and informed the group, “Your suite is prepared.”
“Perfect,” Dad replied, his eyes focused on my Mother as he stood and gently pulled her to her feet.
“I’ll just show them to their rooms,” Jace said as he also stood and crossed to the hall.
“Well, he didn’t seem all that broken up over Marcus,” Kit remarked when Jace rejoined us and flopped onto the couch.
“He was a little distracted,” Gareth replied, his voice sounding distressed. “It isn’t every day a Dragon finds out he’s just impregnated the love of his life.” Then he stood and disappeared down the hall without saying another word.
When I turned to Jace he shook his head. “Leave it,” he whispered, then he too disappeared down the hall and I heard the elevator ding out in the lobby.
I glanced at the table and noticed the cards and gift still sitting there. When I reached for the black box, Kit snapped his fingers and it slid out of my reach. I frowned and stared at it, my gaze focused while I thought ‘here’ at a spot on my side of the table. I jumped and Kit hissed when the box skidded across the table like a drunk on a Friday night binge.
“Did you do that?” Amras asked, his eyes turning to Kit who frowned and shook his head. “Owen?” The big man also gave a negative sign and they all looked at me.
I picked up the box with a grin, and then the cards and wandered down the hall to my room. I hadn’t finished my work out earlier but didn’t feel much like it anymore. Instead I slipped into my room, dropped my goodies in the nightstand drawer then pulled off my shirt and pants and kicked off my shoes. Maybe a vigorous swim with Spot would make me feel more human and less unsettled.
I was stretched out lying naked on my stomach drowsing when the four of them entered the sauna. Beside me on the towel, Spot raised his four foot long head and let out a ‘cuff cuff’ noise deep in his throat. I reached over and scratched his eye ridge, letting our resident Wyrm know it was okay and they weren’t going to hurt me, at least not intentionally.
“I’d never hurt you unless you asked me to,” Kit told me. “Sometimes pleasure can be painful.”
The four of them set to humming in their minds and with my shields down it was like mini electrical fields racing across my body. Sparking and shocking as their focus jumped from nerve to nerve.
“Can I help you boys?” I asked, not even bothering to open my eyes when they stopped a few feet from my towel.
“May we join you?” Owen asked and I cracked open an eye and glanced up at him. They were all in the process of pulling off their clothing. I sighed and put my cheek back on the towel.
“Sure, why not? The water’s that way,” I told them, jerking my thumb in the general direction of the huge underground heated pond. Heated because Spot breathed fire and didn’t like it cold. “I think we’re going to need more towels,” I called out loud and a pile appeared near the edge of mine. The sound of splashing drew Spot, who soon abandoned me so he could play in the water with the others. He was probably hoping for a nice game of catch. I paid no attention to them, too busy worrying over last night and everything that had happened since to be concerned about a little skinny dipping, or that I myself was already undressed amidst the four of them. After all, they had each seen everything I had to offer.
Areth had stopped by earlier and we’d had an educational chat about fifth level Demons, and I had learned quite a lot about wrath and anger. Apparently the fifth level is dedicated to those that live vindictive and hateful lives. The beings are rule
d by Verrine, who is a second level Thrones. He is said to rule over thirty legions in Hell. Unlike the sixth level, wrath was usually caused by harm, or a perceived harm. That might explain Marcus’ behavior last night after Gareth and I had returned from the hall to the restrooms. If he had somehow gotten mixed up with a fifth level Demon, he might be struggling with anger. Anger being a response to the perception of threat, and not just physical. According to Areth it was also brought on from an imagined injustice, or negligence, humiliation, or betrayal. Marcus might consider my tryst with Gareth as a betrayal, given that I’d called him mine and indicated he was made for me personally.
I suspected it might be something more than that though. Something along the lines of Valentine somehow getting control, or breaking the contract with a fifth level and using him to control not just Marcus, but Belinda too. I’d have to ask Dad about that… later. In the meantime I was trying to come up with ways to help Marcus. I know everyone thought he was a lost cause, but he had asked for my help. I couldn’t just let it go without at least trying. Besides I suspected getting Marcus free of Valentine was somehow the key to neutralizing the threat to Jace and Gareth, something I was very interested in.
This business of being me was getting complicated. Between juggling the men, dealing with my parents, convincing the Queen to let me keep Amras, figuring out what to do about Valentine so that Jace and Gareth were safe, getting through yet another party and trying not to go completely round the bend… lets see, did I forget anything? Oh yeah, learning to handle the new and exciting talents that just kept popping up in my life… well my dance card was just a little full at the moment.
Drops of water sprayed me as Kit flopped onto his back on my oversized towel where Spot had been lying. “Talents are a good thing,” he told me. “It keeps it interesting around here.”
“Can we talk about Alan for a moment?” I asked.
“Why?” he demanded.
“Because I’m curious about him, that’s why. Come on! Just tell me about his abilities so we can all move on. Otherwise….,” I warned him, “I swear I’ll take my questions directly to him. You think he’d deny me answers if I cracked open my red door?”
“He’s already had a taste of that. Or didn’t you know you leaked all over the table last night?”
“Well if you hadn’t been trying to attack him, I wouldn’t have had to.”
He draped his arm over his eyes and muttered, “And that was before your little episode in the hall with Cursed and Gareth. He got a big heaping helping of taste!”
“Well so did Dten and Eldel and you aren’t complaining about either of them? What makes Alan any different?”
“You are my first, Lexi. I’m not likely to share you and I’m a little sensitive around other’s with similar talents.”
I pushed up off the blanket and stared at him in surprise. “I’m your first…ever? You’d never had sex with anyone?” I whispered in shock.
The arm slipped off his face and he slowly turned to face me. “My first woman ever,” he corrected. My face must have looked as confused as my mind was because I simply didn’t know how to respond to that. Either he’d had sex or he hadn’t.
Kit pushed up on one elbow and turned toward me. His fingers ran over my shoulder and his face had a look I couldn’t place. “I thought you understood… when I told you there were no females of the second level,” he explained, his voice having gone cautious. “It’s only men.”
“So you… you…” I stuttered, not knowing what to say to that.
“Waited very patiently for you,” he completed my sentence. “But I am thousands of years old, Lexi. And even Demons have needs, especially those of the second level.” And he flopped back onto the blanket and closed his eyes. “And sometimes Demons of the sixth level,” he added with a grimace.
My mind stumbled over his last sentence and… could it be? “Kit you…didn’t steal my papers from work… you didn’t steal them at all, did you?” I asked, my voice having gone soft with amazement.
He grunted and ran his hand over his chest and down his stomach. My fingers followed the trail he made down his body and I felt myself tighten when his fingers brushed over the silver tipped curls at the juncture of his thighs and he casually stroked himself. “You wouldn’t have enjoyed Knight. I promise you that, rage and sex is not a good combination,” he replied. “So maybe you’ll understand why I don’t want to hand you over to another. I earned you, he didn’t.”
I put my cheek back on the towel and tried to comprehend everything he’d just told me. What about the others? Did he resent them, too?
Kit sighed next to me. “I’m a Lust Demon, Mistress. Why would I deny my very nature?”
“So it’s only Alan you have issues with?”
“If you hadn’t noticed… we have an interesting situation here. It seems to be working. I don’t think anyone is eager to… add to the mix.”
I thought about that too and finally asked, “It’s not Alan I’m really concerned with. It’s that when he spoke… it did things to me. I wasn’t prepared for that.”
He cracked open and eye and his fingers stilled. “Lust, like rage or anger, can be used as a weapon. What he did was nothing more than that. He simply used his voice instead of his body. You, Mistress, could do the same if you chose.”
I could… I hadn’t realized! I’d only ever thought lust or desire at someone like I’d done in training room. And I’d never been on the receiving end before. “You’ve never done that to me. Used your voice on me, I mean.”
His red eye speared me in place while his hand moved in his lap and I felt my mouth go dry and had to lick my lips. He grinned suddenly and chuckled. “Why would I need to when it’s so much more fun to tempt you in other ways?”
I suppose he had a point. It wasn’t as if Alan could have dropped his pants in the middle of the meeting and touched himself for my pleasure.
Kit raised an eyebrow at me. “Not really his style.”
“Could you please stop doing that?” I muttered, it was very distracting. “We’re having a conversation here.”
“But it feels good,” he teased, his voice having gone soft and sexy. “Not nearly as good as when you touch me, but satisfying all the same.”
I had to close my eyes for a moment and push down the desire rising in me. I licked my lips again and felt a tightening down below.
“Mmmm,” he whispered, having gone up on one elbow again. His body cupped toward mine, his knee bushing my thigh. “Do you remember how I felt buried inside you? How it felt as I grew to fill you completely while you writhed beneath me?” he asked, his voice pressing in against me causing pleasant sensations to explode across my body. I watched him though silted eyes as his hand wrapped around his erection, sliding down his turgid length. Liquid heat invaded me and I felt the pressure building within. “Would you like to touch me?” he tempted, glancing down at himself, drawing my eyes while he stroked slow and steady. “To feel the smooth heat of me filling your palm while your fingers caress me.” My hand twitched and my palms tingled at his words.
“Kit,” I warned, and he smiled.
“Mistress, use me” he whispered, leaning in closer so that his breath feathered over the skin on my shoulder. “Let me pleasure you.”
When I made no objection, he slid his leg between mine and eased his body over me, pressing against my hip and bottom, teasing me with the long hard length of him. His long black hair spilled across my back, the damp strands sending a chill through me. His chest pressed me into the sand as he rubbed himself across my skin like a cat might. His lips found my ear and he began whispering all manner of things he’d like to do with me, to me. Things that made my blood flow faster and fevered my mind until I was gripping the towel and nearly moaning. When he slid his other leg between mine I was already hot and wet and oh so ready for him. He entered me, and as he had the one other time we’d made love, he paused to hold himself still above me.
“Is it enough?” he
asked as the weight of his chest pinned me to the towel.
I lifted my hips against him and knew that there was more and that I wanted it all. “No!” I breathed and moaned again as I felt him grow larger inside of me.
“Mistress, you must tell me what you desire” he urged, holding himself still. And I felt him jerk inside.
“Kit… damn you! More” I growled and held on tightly while he stretched me wide with the size of him. “Yes… yes,” I whispered as I closed my eyes, savoring the feel. Only then did he begin to move, his hips slowing sliding out of me until I whimpered and arched myself back toward him, my body begging for more. He kept up this torture for several minutes, his tempo steady.
“You know what I want,” he whispered. “Let it go.”
I bit my lip and shook my head.
He wrapped his foot around my thigh and his arm around my waist and flipped us over. With my back pressed to his front, he slid his hands down my body and into the fold between my legs. I turned my face into his neck as he quickly brought me shuddering and clutching at his hips beneath me. “Open the door,” he urged. “Give it to me.”
Again I denied him, my teeth biting down on the skin at his neck. He growled and thrust into me using his feet and thighs to shove deeper so that he bumped up against my cervix and I gasped. His hand worked me again while the other ran over my body, finding my breast and rolling my nipple. This time when I came his voice was low and urgent, his own excitement growing as I inhaled and pressed my heels into the sand finding my balance to ride him. “Why must you fight me?” he growled next to my ear, then he hesitated and added, “Please… oh please, Mistress.”
I bit my lip and slid myself down his length while mentally I reached for my little red door and cracked it open. Within my mind I gathered the desire that bubbled and whirled behind that door and shoved it outwards. Kit bucked and grasped in my arms, forcing me down onto him as he lifted his hips and pierced me over and over. His breathing increased as I rode him. “Again,” he begged and I fanned the desire at him, coating us both with a thick blanket. His fingers tightened on me and he leaned up onto his elbows, pushing me onto him as he rose to meet my downward thrusts.
Dragon Rage Page 10
