“I…I am?” Liv could scarcely believe it but she couldn’t refute what she’d seen.
“You are, Lilenta,” he growled softly. “So here’s what I want you to do—just relax and keep your eyes on me and let me fill you. Don’t worry about anything, just let yourself be open to me and I promise you won’t regret it.”
“All right,” Liv breathed. Doing as he said, she let herself fall into the drowning golden depths of his eyes and tried to be as open as possible. In me so deep. So full. So right…And then Baird groaned and she felt him touch bottom within her at last.
In me, God, he’s finally all the way in me. All except…She had the sudden urge to look down and see how in the world this was going to work but Baird shook his head.
“Stay with me, Lilenta. Just concentrate on letting me fill you.” With a low growl, he leaned forward and captured her mouth in a passionate kiss as he pressed even harder and deeper inside her. Liv felt herself stretching but in a good way, her sex opening as it never had before. Then there was a warm sliding sensation and a throbbing around her entrance that was intensely pleasurable—almost like a mini-orgasm. Then something smooth and hard pressed against her clit, shooting electrical tingles of pleasure through her entire body.
“God, what—?”
“My mating fist.” Baird kissed her again. “It fills you and stimulates you at the same time. Do you feel it?”
“Yes.” Liv rocked experimentally against him, feeling the hot, hard flesh rubbing her sensitive pearl once more. God, it felt incredible!
“I’m inside you now—all the way inside,” he murmured. “We’re joined, Olivia. We are one.”
The words almost brought tears to her eyes and a feeling of rightness—of wholeness she’d never felt before—swept over her. In that moment Liv felt herself to be completely opened and owned. She knew that his mating fist was filling her, could feel it swelling to lock them together as he had told her it would, but there was no pain. Only the pleasure of being so open for her lover, her mate. Only the delicious knowledge that Baird was all the way inside her and that he would be there for a long, long time as he bonded her to him forever.
“I love you,” she whispered. “Love you so much.”
“Love you too,” he whispered hoarsely.
“Prove it.” She threw his own words back at him playfully and then rocked against him in a move designed to tease and entice. It worked.
“Oh, I’ll prove it, Lilenta,” Baird growled. “Don’t worry about that.” He surged upward and Liv gasped as the deep thrust shot a spike of pure pleasure down her spine.
“Baird!” she gasped as he did it again. “God, that’s amazing. More!”
“I’ll give you more.” With another low growl, he thrust up again and then again. Liv gripped his shoulders and tried to match his rhythm. As she did, she felt the bliss cresting inside her, spiking high and hard and deep as he filled her again and again, over and over, taking her, loving her, bonding her to him forever.
“Baird,” she moaned, rolling her hips in time with his thrusts. “I…I’m almost there. So close…Just need…”
“I know what you need.” Reaching between them he found her throbbing clit with the broad pad of his thumb and began to stroke in time with his thrusts inside her. “Look at me,” he whispered roughly when Liv’s eyes closed with the overwhelming pleasure. “Look at me while I touch you, Olivia. Look at me while I fuck you. While I bond you.”
Liv’s eyes fluttered open and she met his intense golden gaze. “Baird,” she whispered, unable to say more.
“Now,” he growled. “Come for me, Lilenta. Come for me so I can fill you up, so I can flood your pussy with my cum and make you mine for always.”
It was too much. With a low cry, Liv felt herself tilting over the edge, losing herself completely in the pleasure of being bonded to the man she loved.
* * *
She didn’t know how long it lasted or how many times she came. There were periods of hot, wild fucking where Baird pounded up into her as though he was determined to mark her as his own. But there were also long stretches where he barely moved at all. Instead, he filled her with a slow, rocking movement while he looked in her eyes and told her how much he loved her. He came in her over and over, just as he had promised he would and each time she felt it as she never had with a human man, felt his hot seed filling her and making the connection between them even deeper. And each time he did, it released something in Liv’s body, making her come too. She moaned as she felt herself contract around him, pulling him deeper with every spasm of pleasure. “That’s right, Lilenta,” Baird murmured, watching her eyes as she surrendered to the bliss. “That’s right, come for me. Let yourself go and come.”
Liv did as he said, giving in to him completely, letting him take her where she needed to go—where they both needed to go so badly. She only wished it could go on forever.
But though it lasted longer than any sexual experience in her life, the bonding was finally over. Baird withdrew from her slowly and carefully and Liv curled herself against his side, resting her cheek against his broad bare chest. She sighed with contentment as she felt his strong arms settle around her and hold her tight.
“That was amazing.”
“It was perfect.” Baird stroked her hair away from her face. “Exactly what I’ve been dreaming of from the first minute I saw you.”
“You mean from the first dream-sharing?” Liv looked up at him. “When you were…when the Scourge had you?” She wasn’t sure if mentioning the enemy would bother him but Baird still looked perfectly calm.
“Yeah. And it’s okay, Lilenta. We can talk about it.”
“What happened?” she asked cautiously. “I mean, how did you stand it?”
Baird’s eyes were shadowed. “It wasn’t easy. The krik-ka`re was every bit as bad as I thought it would be.”
“You didn’t have to do that, you know.” Liv looked at him earnestly. “Didn’t have to trade yourself for me.”
“I wanted to.” He stroked her cheek. “I was glad to, Lilenta.”
“But what you went though…what you endured for me—”
“None of it matters now,” he cut her off firmly. “It was rough, sure. But even though I let all my shields down I still had you, somewhere in the back of my head. Your scent, your taste, the color of your eyes. Even though he tried to twist it, the AllFather couldn’t take that away from me. It kept me sane no matter how bad things got.”
“But how did you get away?”
He sighed and shifted to a more comfortable position. “The details are kind of hazy. I remember the AllFather telling me the Scourge had something special—a little surprise he called it—for my brothers on the moon. He took me with him, I think because he wanted to taste my pain when I saw how he was decimating my fellow warriors when there was nothing I could do about it.”
“But you did do something about it,” Liv pointed out.
Baird grinned. “Yeah, I did. I waited until he and that son of his—the one with the red and black eyes—both left the shuttle to confer with their commanders. I couldn’t do much at that point but the AllFather had left me the ability to pilot.”
“Sylvan said he does that sometimes. Leaves prisoners with useful abilities so that he can…can use them and feed on their pain at the same time.” Liv shivered.
“Well in this case I’m glad he did. I knew I had to act fast because when he came back he was going to make me pull the trigger on my own kind—make me blast the other Kindred warriors who were fighting on the moon. I couldn’t let him do that—couldn’t let him force me to kill my brothers.” A look of hatred and determination passed over his face as he relived the scene.
“Of course you couldn’t,” Liv murmured with a shudder. Baird might be able to recover from torture but the shame of murdering his brothers in arms would have killed him for certain—even if he hadn’t wanted to do it.
“I took the ship around to the worst of the fighting an
d landed her. It was hard to make my body work—it didn’t want to without the AllFather’s say so. But somehow I managed it. I couldn’t talk but I went to the hatch and waved. Some of the other warriors saw me and got the idea. A bunch of them piled in and we got away.”
“You saved a lot of lives,” Liv told him softly.
Baird kissed her. “That wasn’t really what I was thinking about, though. I was concentrating on the idea of seeing you again. I…didn’t want to die without looking in your eyes one more time.”
“Oh, Baird.” Liv threw her arms around his neck and buried her face in the side of his throat. “I was so afraid. You just sat there and stared and I couldn’t make you respond to me. And Sylvan had told me not to hope too much…Sylvan!” She sat up. “Oh my God, he has no idea. And he was so worried about you. Baird, you should tell him.”
“Why don’t you tell him yourself? Bebo…” Baird snapped his fingers and the little blue teddy bear creature came waddling up. It made little grunting noises of delight when Baird scratched it between the ears. “Yeah, I’m glad to see you again too,” Baird murmured, smiling. “Good boy. Now fetch the Think-me.”
Bebo scurried away and came back with the thin metal wire circlet held loosely in his mouth. Baird took it, patted his head, and handed it to Liv. Or tried to hand it, anyway.
“Uh-uh, forget it. That’s what got us into so much trouble in the first place.” Liv backed away, her hands held up to ward him off.
“It’s all right, Lilenta.” Baird placed the thin metal wire on her head, around her temples. “We’re bonded now. Your mind is linked to mine—there’s no way the Scourge can intercept anything.”
“You’re sure?” She touched the cool wire tentatively, adjusting it. “I don’t want you getting in trouble with the Kindred Council.”
Baird frowned. “Well, we will have to go before them and explain what happened and why we’re bonded after having a breach of contract in the first place.”
Liv froze. “We do?”
“Don’t worry about it, Olivia. I’ll take care of it.” Baird smiled at her. “Now why don’t you bespeak Sylvan and let him know I’m back in the land of the living.”
She looked at him uncertainly. “You’re sure you don’t want to do it yourself?”
“Just do it.” There was a twinkle in his eyes she didn’t quite understand but Liv decided to go with it anyway. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on the blond warrior who she supposed was now her brother-in-law. “Sylvan? Sylvan, can you hear me?”
“Olivia?” His mental voice was as cool as his physical one but this time it was tinged with surprise. “Why are you bespeaking me?”
“Because I wanted to tell you that Baird—”
“That Baird is back,” A new and familiar voice cut in. Liv opened her eyes in surprise and stared at her new mate. Baird grinned and tapped his temple. But she had bespoken Sylvan, not him. So how—? “It’s an effect of the bond we share now,” Liv heard him say inside her head. “Limited telepathy.”
“Baird? Baird is that really you?” Sylvan’s mental voice cut in. His tone was much less cool now—in fact he sounded like he was going to burst with excitement.
“It’s me, Brother,” Baird assured him. “Olivia brought me back. And, as you can tell, we’re bonded now.”
“That’s wonderful.” The relief in Sylvan’s tone was unmistakable. “How did she bring you back?”
“How do you think?” Baird sounded amused. “I just wanted to let you know and ask you to set up a time for us to meet with the Council. There are a few things we need to get cleared up.”
“There are indeed.” Sylvan sounded thoughtful. “I take it you’re asking me to set it up because you’re still…ah, indisposed?”
“Let’s just say we’re gonna be unavailable for awhile.” Baird gave Liv a look that made her shiver.
“Again?” she thought before she could stop herself. “But we just spent hours—”
“And we’re going to spend a lot more than that. There aren’t enough hours in the day for me to show you how much I love you, Lilenta.”
“All right, I think I’d better let you two go.” Sylvan’s mental voice was dry and slightly amused. “It sounds like you have better things to do than talk.”
“You got that right, Brother.”
“Good bye, Sylvan,” Liv barely had time to say before Baird took the silver wire off her head and pulled her in for a heated kiss.
“Come on, Lilenta. Let’s take this someplace more comfortable,” he murmured, scooping her up in his arms.
“Maybe the bathing pool?” Liv suggested. “I’m, uh, kind of sticky. In fact, I think we both are.”
“You have to get dirty before you can get clean. And we’re going to get a whole lot dirtier before we’re done.” Baird kissed her again as he carried her into the bathing room. “Gods, I love you. So damn glad you’re finally mine.”
Liv felt a warm rush of desire as she wound her arms around his neck and kissed him back. “I love you too,” she murmured. “Let me show you how much.”
“You can show me all night,” he promised her. “And I’ll show you right back.”
It sounded like a great way to pass the time to Liv. As she sighed and snuggled in his warm, strong embrace she was glad she’d finally found her way to him. It had been a long and winding road but at last she was where she belonged—in Baird’s arms—and she never wanted to leave.
Twenty-Three
“So the Council absolved you of all wrong doing?” Sylvan raised an eyebrow in surprise.
“They were very understanding.” Baird smiled at his brother and clapped him on the back. They were at their favorite bar, the same one they’d met at over a month ago to discuss how badly things were going with his new bride. Everything was completely different now but he felt he’d been neglecting Sylvan for the past few days and he wanted to catch up.
“Understanding is an understatement.” Sylvan raised a finger to order a drink. “It probably helped that you saved so many during your escape but I still can’t believe they forgave you for bonding her even after a breach of contract.”
“They did, though.” Baird ordered a drink as well. “There aren’t even any sanctions against me and Olivia is cleared of all wrongdoing too, since she used the Think-me without knowing what she was doing.” He frowned. “That really was my fault in the first place for hiding it from her. But I was afraid if she knew she could get out of the contract so easily she would. She was so determined to get away at first.”
“Almost as determined as she is now to never leave your side,” Sylvan said, smiling a little. “Where is she, anyway?”
“Spending time on the Think-me with her sister. Now that we’re bonded they can talk as much as they want.” Baird laughed. “They’re planning our bonding ceremony down to the last detail. Sometimes I think the damn thing is glued to her head.”
“It’s a good thing the Council loosened their restrictions. And I understand they’re going to let Olivia’s sister come up to see her more often than usual?” Sylvan’s tone was carefully casual and he looked down at his drink as he spoke.
Baird nodded. “Twice every Earth month. It helped that two of the newest Council members are Twin Kindred. When I explained that Olivia and Sophia are twins they decided it was cruel and unusual punishment to keep them apart so much. In fact, there was even talk of letting Sophia move up here permanently.”
“Oh?” Sylvan’s eyebrows shot up. “Is she going to?”
Baird shrugged and signaled for another drink. “Don’t know. She has a career on Earth she doesn’t want to give up. Speaking of which, I want to thank you, Brother. Olivia is really happy working in the med station. She says our technology is fascinating.”
“She’s very accomplished and she actually feels deeply for the patients she treats.” Sylvan looked thoughtful. “It’s given me a new outlook on the whole situation.”
Baird laughed. “You gonna change your cold-bloo
ded ways? I thought Tranqs never learned to feel until they found a bride and blooded her.”
“I’m not looking for a bride as you know,” Sylvan said stiffly. “I’m simply saying that I—”
“I know what you’re saying,” Baird interrupted him. He leaned in, taking a closer look at his brother. “Look, I hate to say this but you don’t look so good. Are things still crazy at the med station?”
“No, that’s cleared up since we routed the Scourge and sent them back to their ships.” Sylvan sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose between his finger and thumb. “I just…haven’t been sleeping well.”
“Bad dreams?” Baird asked sympathetically. He’d had a few himself after his second escape from the Scourge. Luckily Olivia was always there to soothe him and remind him they were safe in each other’s arms. He felt sorry for his half-brother, with no bride to warm his bed. If only Sylvan would retract that damn vow he’d made but Tranq Kindred took such things very seriously. It would have to be a matter of life and death before Sylvan would break his word, especially since he’d made the vow not just to himself but to the Mother of All Life.
But Sylvan was shaking his head. “Not bad dreams, no. They’re just…strange. I don’t know what to think of them.”
“Maybe you should go to the temple and ask a priestess to interpret them.” Baird took a sip of his drink.
Sylvan’s normally pale cheeks went red. “No, I…I don’t think that would be a good idea. I’ll be fine anyway. They’re just dreams.” He shook himself and motioned for another drink. “So speaking of your bonding ceremony, where will it be held? Here or on Earth?”
Baird frowned. “Olivia had her heart set on being married—uh, bonded—at the same religious landmark her parents used. But after the way her shuttle was taken by the Scourge the last time she tried to go to Earth, she’s agreed to have it here.”
“You think she’s still in danger from the Scourge? But they let her go—it sounded to me like whoever they were looking for, Olivia wasn’t it.”
Brides of the Kindred Volume One: Books 1-4 Page 36