Romancing the Recluse

by Michelle M. Pillow

  “Mm, yes, Samantha,” he whispered, so light she barely heard it.

  Viktor’s kisses were great, but they didn’t compare to the intimate taste of his flesh in her mouth. She braced her hands on his thighs, kneading the thick muscles beneath her palms. Looking up his body, she saw his face strained in pleasure, his muscled chest heaving for breath as he held himself rigid. She sucked harder, feeling him close to release. Samantha wanted him to come in her mouth, wanted to taste that intimate part of him. Her lips clamped down hard and pulled. He moaned, jerking violently. His body tensed and he came, releasing his seed into her mouth with a loud, unashamed cry.

  Samantha pulled back and licked her lips, watching him carefully. The corner of his mouth pulled up, tugging at a secret place within her heart. Why was she fighting him so hard? Every emotion she felt was for him. But how did she know if what she felt was real?

  “Ma’ aphania,” he said, his voice low. Viktor held out his hand, curling his fingers. “Come. Lay down for me. Let me taste you.”

  Samantha’s pussy was wet and aching with need for him. She climbed off his legs, moving to his side. He lifted a thigh as she moved, brushing his leg against her nipple. The bud tweaked in response, though it was already hard with just the idea of being touched by him. His smell engulfed her senses as she crawled next to him. Her hair fell forward, hiding her face as she peeked through her hair. Then, slowly, she pulled it aside and tossed it over her shoulder.

  “You’re beautiful,” he whispered, reaching for her cheek. “So beautiful. I ache to look at you. I ache for the sweet taste of your cunt on my lips.”

  Samantha had never heard a man sound like he did. His eyes earnestly looked into hers. His voice was soft with the truth of his words. She believed him, felt that he was telling her the truth.

  “Ma’ aphania,” he whispered. “I love you.”

  She opened her mouth to respond, but no sound came out. He held up his hand a second later, covering her lips with his fingertips. Samantha wasn’t sure what she would say to him if she had spoken. He was a dragon. He was different. Love couldn’t happen so fast, could it? Was Viktor confusing great sex with love? In many ways Samantha wanted to believe she was idealistic, but in truth, she was a product of her time, her world. She had no doubt that Viktor was an old soul. His true age was reflected in his eyes. He didn’t belong wholly in the cynical place the world had become. No, Viktor was lost in an ideal, a time that no longer was.

  Samantha didn’t know how she knew it, but it suddenly became so clear to her. Viktor was lost in her age of sarcasm and pessimistic thought. She pulled his hand down and asked softly, “How long?”

  “How long what?”

  “How long have you been down here? How long have you hidden from the world?”

  “A hundred years, give or take.”

  Samantha nodded. That would make sense. The Victorian era. A time of fine ladies and elegant gentleman. Tradition still ruled at that time, as did notions of not only duty but ideals. The world had gained so much since then, but it had also lost so much. She was used to the fast-paced bustle, even as she felt she had nothing to do. Viktor was used to the solitude of the cave life he’d chosen. Could two people so obviously different be together? She looked around his cave. He’d never belong in New York, not as he was. And she would never belong here. Since Fredrick and her breakup she’d been crazy without a job, without a purpose. It was unrealistic to think that now Viktor and his solitary cave would become her purpose.

  “So long alone. Why?”

  “Do not speak,” he said, though she had no intention of saying anything. “Lie on your back. Let me make love to you. Let me show you how I feel for you, Samantha.”

  Persuaded by the look on his handsome face, she turned and lay on her back. His hands found hold on her body, caressing every last inch as he gave her a slow, erotic massage. Tossing her hands above her head, she took in the sensations, enjoying them thoroughly. His lovemaking was slow compared to the first time.

  He lightly pinched her nipples, sending jolts of ecstasy straight to her lower stomach. She squirmed on the bed, spreading her thighs in a plea for him to continue down. Viktor’s mouth followed the path his hands had taken, sprinkling teasing kisses along her form. His tongue flicked every so often, adding a warm tingling just like when he kissed her mouth. Working his way down one leg, he stopped to kiss the top of her foot before lifting it to his shoulder. Her body was parted even more as he came forward, licking and kissing a path straight to her ready pussy.

  He wrapped his lips around her clit, sucking gently. Samantha cried out, pushing up into him. Her leg still draped over his back and she tightened it, pulling him to her. Warm pleasure centered between her hips. Viktor ran his expert tongue along her wet slit, lapping up her taste.

  Suddenly, a hot mouth latched onto her clit, sucking hard. She let out a soft pant of surprise. The man’s hands gripped into her hips, holding her where he wanted her. Oh, it felt so good. Viktor’s mouth moved with such expert precision. His tongue slipped between her wet folds, reaching up into her, and he nibbled her lightly. Her head fell back on her shoulders and she began to tremble.

  “Mm,” he moaned, his voice vibrating intimately against her.

  “Ah,” was all Samantha managed to answer.

  A finger slipped inside her ready body, hitting the sweet spot hidden beyond the folds. She panted and whimpered, her body naturally washing his lips with her cream. As if playing an instrument, Viktor took over her body, strumming it with perfection, building the tormenting pleasure as he built her to coming.

  His mouth became more aggressive. Samantha gasped and panted, so tense she could no longer thrust her hips. It was too much. She couldn’t take it. Viktor’s beautiful eyes met hers just as his tongue swirled her sensitive bud once again. Coming hard, she met her release in a tremendous force of passion. The climax took over until she could only ride it out.

  When finally Viktor stopped moving his mouth, only to pull back with a smug grin, her body collapsed. Flushed and disheveled, Samantha couldn’t move. Her limbs felt like jelly and her heart was racing so fast it was like she’d run a marathon.

  “Wow,” she whispered, trying to catch her breath.

  “I see you like my risbrosius.”

  “Mm-hmm.” Samantha giggled, feeling giddy. “Very much so.”

  Viktor lay by her side, running his hand over her throat in a tender caress. “You no longer fear me. I can feel that you don’t.”

  “No, I don’t fear you, Viktor. I should, but I don’t.” Samantha swallowed, reaching to rub her palm over his cheek. “I don’t understand any of this. I should be scared out of my mind. I should be screaming right now or trying to escape.”

  “There is no escape from fate,” he whispered, kissing her lightly. She tasted her cream on his lips and opened wider for more, but he pulled back. He brushed his nose along the side of hers. There was a sadness in his eyes, a hesitance.

  “It was a woman, wasn’t it?” Samantha asked.

  Viktor didn’t move. His lids dropped over his eyes, shading his gaze from her.

  “That’s why you’re hiding here, isn’t it?” Samantha shook her head. A pain worked over her heart. Viktor must have loved the woman deeply to have gone into hiding for a hundred years. How could she compete with that?

  Did she want to compete with that?

  Swallowing, Samantha knew the answer. She’d always known the answer. Yes. Every ounce of her wanted Viktor. She looked around the cave. Crazy or not, she wanted whatever life she could have with him.

  This is crazy.

  Love is crazy.

  This is love.

  “Viktor? Why won’t you answer?” Even as she asked, Samantha felt her heart breaking just a little. Did he pine for another woman? He’d said he loved her, but there were different types of love. “Who was she?”

  “Her name was Elise. She didn’t love me.” He glanced up only to look down again. His fingertips s
kated over her flesh. “She said she did, but she didn’t. We were to be mated.”

  “What happened to her? Did she die?”

  “Eventually, I imagine she did. She was mortal after all.” Viktor sighed. “I didn’t stay in contact with her.”

  “And did you mate her?”

  “No. In the end, she married another of her father’s choosing for money. The last I saw of her was her looking back at me from her new husband’s carriage as it carried them away from the church. That night, her wedding night, I got a letter to meet her. Instead, I burnt the letter, left my London townhouse and walked away from the world.”

  “You just left? Just like that? What of Fredrick? Your brother? Your family?” Samantha sat up.

  “They have known where to find me. In that way we are connected.” Viktor rolled on his back, threading his hands behind his head. “You’re disappointed, aren’t you?”

  Samantha nodded, unable to lie. “A little.”

  “In me?” He gave a short laugh. “Because I ran from life?”

  “Because you’d lived one before me,” she whispered. “I can’t compete with a dead girl. I can’t compete with some woman you’re carrying around in your head, pining over for the last hundred years.”

  “Do you want to compete?” His voice dipped.

  “No, I don’t want to have to.”

  “I’m not asking you to, Samantha. She was a long time ago.”

  “And yet…” Samantha shrugged. He tried to touch her back, but she scooted to the end of the bed. “You know, I have responsibilities. We left New York in a hurry. There’s bills to pay and the apartment is surely going to want an explanation as to why my bedroom ceiling is charred and my window broken.”

  “Laurie…sorry, Frederick has seen to it for you. He’s taken care of everything. He’s even offered to have your things sent here, if that is your wish.”

  “No, Viktor, that is not my wish. I don’t wish to live in this cave.”

  “Then where would you have us go?”

  “Viktor—”

  “You are my mate, Samantha,” he broke in, his voice rising in a mix of anger and frustration. “It cannot be undone. Like it or not you are immortal and you are mine. It happened. It’s done. We don’t have to live in this cave, but we will be together. Tell me you can’t feel it. I dare you.”

  “It’s not the cave, Viktor, it’s you. You’re filled with the memories of some long-lost love.”

  “No, I’m not.” He rolled up, pulling her into his embrace. Samantha stiffened. “I want to make you happy. I don’t even think about her.”

  “Viktor, you hid out in a cave for a hundred years and you only came out again because of the threat of becoming sterile and probably impotent. You don’t pine for a hundred years because you had a little crush. That woman meant something to you.”

  “No, she didn’t. I ran from the changing world. I know it doesn’t make sense, but I ran from loneliness—the loneliness of crowds. There is nothing lonelier than being in the middle of a crowded room and feeling isolated, as if you had nothing in common with those around you. So I came here.”

  Samantha swallowed. Now that she could actually understand. How often did she look around New York’s crowded streets, feeling as if she were completely alone?

  “Do you know how crazy this sounds?” she asked.

  “Do you realize you’re in bed with a dragon? Most of your kind would call that crazy, if I’m not mistaken.”

  Samantha giggled. “No, you’re not mistaken.”

  “Come here. Kiss me,” Viktor’s lids lowered over his eyes and his voice became a seductive murmur. Glancing down at her mouth, he leaned slightly closer.

  “Is that a demand?” she giggled. Why was she resisting so much? Viktor was right. He was her fate. She could feel that it was. Looking at him, she had no protest left.

  “I like to think of it as an ardent request.”

  She kissed him, long and deep. When she finally pulled back, she whispered, “The children don’t have to be reptiles, do they?”

  “No,” he chuckled. “They will be born human.”

  Moaning, Samantha reached for him, falling back as she drew him to her mouth. Their tongues danced between them, mimicking the lively movements of their hands. His body was hot, his flesh deliciously smooth. She wanted to make love to him forever.

  As he came above her, angling his legs between hers, he looked deep into her eyes. She felt his cock probing her, rubbing up and down her wet slit. His hips flexed into hers. Viktor braced himself on his hands, easing his large erection into her. He thrust inside, sliding with the aide of her natural cream, prying her apart as he claimed her. Samantha arched as he fitted himself deep.

  “Viktor,” she moaned, grabbing the sides of his face. “Ah, Viktor.”

  He thrust faster, easing in and out. She moaned in approval, grabbing her breasts and tweaking her nipples. She groaned as Viktor thrust. It was too much. Her body sang with her desire for him. She wanted more, always more. It didn’t take long before they were climaxing again.

  Viktor collapsed against her, his weight braced by his elbows. His harsh breath beat against her ear. Moaning slightly, she closed her eyes.

  Samantha’s body was so relaxed that she couldn’t keep her eyes open. “I don’t know how or why, but I love you, Viktor.”

  “And I you,” he said.

  “This is crazy,” she insisted, still not moving.

  “Shh, rest. You’re going to need it.”

  “But—”

  “Shh,” he chuckled, covering her mouth with his hand.

  She kissed his palm, before rocking her head to the side to free her mouth. “I just have one more question.”

  “What’s that?”

  “You seriously don’t expect me to live in a cave with you, do you?” Samantha giggled.

  “No, we’ll live wherever you wish.”

  Chapter 14

  Epilogue - Nine Months Later

  Samantha smiled, patting her rounded stomach as she looked over the bright, clear water off the island of Mykonos. The island was part of the Cyclades off the mainland of Greece and was an odd mixture of subcultures, blended into the ancient land of the Greek Gods, backdropped by whitewashed buildings created by unknown folk artists and sandy beaches.

  Greece was the land of her husband’s birth. Viktor. Her husband. Even now the idea of him made her smile. Between the two of them they had enough fortune to do as they pleased and yet they were the same in the fact that they didn’t want more than a family and a quiet, peaceful life.

  Rubbing her stomach, she smiled, sensing him nearby. She’d come to terms with their joined immortality. The babies within her kicked, as if they too sensed their father. According to the doctor it was one boy and one girl.

  “Hey, beautiful,” Viktor’s smooth voice came from behind. He wrapped his arms around her, supporting her weight as his hands fanned the bottom of her stomach. “Why don’t you come inside and relax?”

  “The babies will come tonight and I want to watch the sunset,” Samantha whispered.

  Viktor’s breath caught and he instantly swept her off her feet. Kissing her in happiness, he said, “Fine, my love, but then it’s straight to bed.”

  Being near him, she couldn’t help but hear the words that often filtered through her head. She felt complete happiness in his devotion to her.

  This is crazy.

  Love is crazy.

  This is love.

  “Aphanio,” Viktor whispered as the sun touched the horizon. “I love you.”

  “I love you too, my darling,” Samantha whispered, laying her head on his shoulder. “I love you too.”

  The End

  Keep Reading!

  Dragon Lords: Barbarian Prince

  A Michelle M. Pillow Fan Favorite series!

  * * *

  Breaking up was never so hard...

  Going undercover at a mass wedding as a bartered bride, Morrigan Blake has eve
ry intention of getting off the barbaric planet just as soon as it’s over. Or, more correctly, just as soon as she captures footage of the mysterious princes rumored to be in attendance.

  After a euphoric night, Morrigan discovers her spaceship left without her, and Ualan of Draig is claiming she’s his wife. It’s not exactly the story this reporter had in mind. And to make matters worse, the all-to-seductive alpha refuses to take no for an answer.

  * * *

  Being cursed by the Gods was never so frustrating...

  Prince Ualan is prepared to follow dragon-shifter tradition and marry the woman revealed to him during the Breeding Festival. When the stubborn, yet achingly sexy, Morrigan refuses to accept their shared fate and his supreme authority over her, it is all he can do to keep from acting like the barbarian she accuses him of being.

  Barbarian Prince

  CLICK HERE to get the book!

  First Chapter Excerpt

  Wanted: Galaxy Brides Corporation seeking 46 fertile humanoid-compatible females of early childbearing years and A5+ health status for marriage to strong, healthy Qurilixian males at their annual Breeding Festival. Possibility of royal attendance. Must be eager bed partners, hard workers. Virginity a plus. Apply with official health documents, travel papers and IQ screen to: Galaxy Brides, Phantom Level 6, X Quadrant, Earthbase 5792461.

  * * *

  The idea had been simple. Uncover illegal virgin trading practices by Galaxy Brides Corporation. For years it had been rumored Galaxy Brides used outlawed medical techniques to restore women’s virginity. With planetary wars, an increase in pirate ships attacking lone fuel docks and questionable repossessions by the Larceny Casino Ship, virginity really shouldn’t have been a big deal. And yet, it was. Virgins meant more trade with the numerous barbaric, male-populated, humanoid planets eager for fertile young brides. If the story broke, it would be huge. It was just the sort of thing to make a star reporter’s career. It had everything—evil corporations, illegal activity, sex and deception.