He pressed forward anyway, stretching the tender flesh of my anus painfully as he entered it. I hissed in a breath and arched my back, tried to relax and failed miserably. Hard to do that when a damn tree trunk was being shoved up your ass.
I pushed at his hips in a futile attempt to slow him down. “Jesus God, Marco. You’re too big for me.”
“Take my blood. Swear you’ll protect Elizabet.”
“Like I’d let anything happen to her.” He eased out slightly, pushed in again, and I yelped when something tore. “For the love of God.”
A soft rumble of laughter shook his chest. “Whiny little bastard, aren’t you.”
“You’re twice as big as Devin,” I said through gritted teeth. “And not nearly as kind.”
“He enjoys having me like this.”
“Yeah, well.” I ignored the spurt of jealousy over something as silly as Devin’s other lovers. He was older than me, way more experienced. And I wasn’t the first pet he’d brought to Elizabet. “I don’t.”
“You will endure it for the sake of your mistress.”
He flipped our positions on the bed and sprawled out on his back. I scrambled around for the lube. Where was it? There was always at least one tube hidden in the bedspread… There it was, next to Elizabet’s hip. I had just enough time to squirt a liberal glob onto the tip of Marco’s engorged dick before he grabbed me with impatient hands and guided my ass toward it.
“You’ll like this, little one.”
“I doubt that very much,” I said drily. Didn’t understand all the fuss Marco was making. Devin was plenty strong enough. I was a fledgling by comparison. But I would endure it, for Elizabet’s sake. “Stop wiggling.”
“Get on with it, then. Haven’t had a new ass in a while.”
I rolled my eyes. Hadn’t had a new ass in a while. Jesus. How crude could one man be?
He smacked my ass smartly and I moaned as a flood of pleasure rolled through me. That I liked, well enough that I brought his hand back to my ass and let him spank me as I eased myself down, taking his thickness into me. His hands made merry with my ass cheeks, slapping them until they were hot and red and my dick throbbed with the beauty of it.
When he was in as far as he would go, or as much as I could stand, anyway, I leaned down and licked his pulse with the flat of my tongue, teasing him until the pain of having his thick length in my ass eased. Once it did, I struck, sinking my fangs into his flesh and leaving them there when a sharp wave of pleasure rolled off of him. I grabbed onto it and rode the connection back into his mind, learning him as I went.
He had taken hold of my own mind so easily because he was Elizabet’s. My eyelids slid shut as the connection deepened and I immersed myself in Marco, meshing his mind with mine as the rich power of his blood lashed across my tongue. Love her, protect, worship. His hands pressed down on my thighs, urging me to fuck him. I rolled my hips backward, taking more of him, more still, until he was all the way in, sunk deep into my ass, stretching me so far, so hard. Dimly, I was aware of Elizabet’s soft cries and Devin’s release, but they were overshadowed by the strength of Marco’s personality, and by his enduring love for his beautiful mistress.
I was wrong about him, so wrong.
He surged up into me, fucking me with an almost tender regard.
This is what he did for Elizabet, loving her. The weight of decades, no, centuries of life pressed down upon me.
Tired, so tired. Can’t leave her.
As I took my fill of his blood, he filled me with a lifetime of service and knowledge. Memories swirled through me, senseless, overlapping, and then clarity. As he fucked me, edging us both closer to release, I saw a memory that wasn’t his, of me with my finger touching a man’s chest, my eyes eerily black and cold, my expression pleasant as I twisted my way through the man’s mind and made him live through every one of his deepest fears.
That was the strength Marco believed would protect Elizabet, the strength of my mind. No wonder he wanted me to…
Another memory passed, me sagging against the chains holding me to the end of the bed, and him watching, distracting Elizabet until it was too late. Fuck it all. He’d known what was happening that night and let it with the thought that finally, someone had come along who was as strong as him.
I let go of the connection abruptly, withdrew my fangs from his throat, and closed the gaping holes I’d left with gentle laps of my tongue on his skin. He gasped and grunted, and then his release throbbed through me as he came. I held him, feathered kisses along his hard flesh, and let him enjoy the pain he’d given me.
A man that devoted deserved a bit of a reward, though the whole thing still pissed me off.
When he was finished, he stretched and rolled under me, smiling like a man well satisfied.
“You’re a good fuck,” he said. “See why Devin loves you.”
I gave a half laugh. “You’re lucky I didn’t break your dick off.”
“You like what you’re becoming, little pet. Don’t deny it.”
Jesus. I guess he had my number. “That doesn’t make what you did right.”
“I did what I had to.” His hands skimmed up my back, and in his gaze I saw an emotion I’d never seen before on the stoic favorite: Hope. “You would’ve done the same.”
“Maybe.” Probably. If Gianna and I were in the same situation, yeah, I’d do pretty much anything. Couldn’t blame a man for protecting his heart. “Don’t screw with my head again.”
He laughed, honest amusement rolling out of him. “As if you could stop me. You’re not that strong yet, Eric, but you will be. Eventually.”
I gave him a sour look, which made him laugh harder. Elizabet curled up beside us, Devin behind her. I eased myself off of Marco’s monstrous dick, wincing as I did, and then the four of us shared what turned out to be a light-hearted night of pleasure.
Later, Dev and I wandered back to his room and showered together. After, I let him tend my ass, which had bruised under Marco’s attentive hands, and the tender skin of my anus. The bruises would fade within a day, if not sooner. My anus? I’d probably be walking funny for a while.
I expected Devin to find that a little humorous and was surprised by his worry. I peered at him over my shoulder, and gave up when he pushed my head into the pillow to keep me still. “What’s wrong?”
He swabbed salve along the crease of my ass, pressed soft lips to a tender spot on one ass cheek. “Marco doesn’t play with the pets often. That’s twice now he’s singled you out.”
“Jealous?”
“No,” he said, and then, “Yes. Marco rarely takes lovers, but it does happen.”
“Really?” I hadn’t uncovered that tidbit while I’d been romping not-so-happily through his mind. “I thought he and Elizabet were as close to exclusive as a vampire could get.”
“Hardly. Occasionally, he’ll even take other women, if it furthers Elizabet’s cause.”
I pressed my lips into a thin line and tried not to stiffen under his hand.
He rolled me over and covered me, bracing himself above me so that our hips were aligned. “You’re holding something back.”
“Jesus, Dev. It’s not like we’ve had time to reveal all our deep dark secrets yet.”
“Something about Elizabet. Tell me.”
I couldn’t, not yet. Marco hadn’t asked for my discretion, but the very fact that he’d taken the time to tell me his concerns mind to mind was enough for me to exercise some. Dev would need to know the whys of Marco’s need to make me stronger, but hopefully not for a good, long while.
I tangled my hands in his hair and pulled his mouth down to mine. God, I loved that, loved the silky strands of his hair wrapped around my fingers, the feel of his lips moving over mine. A languid heat rose deep in my gut and my dick hardened. I rolled my hips against his, savored the slow slide of skin on skin.
He pulled away on a low gasp. “You’re trying to distract me.”
“Is it working?”
“Mmm. Yes, I think it is.”
I laughed and scraped my fangs over his throat, felt his shudder echo through me. I’d already had a nibble there earlier, when we were playing with Elizabet and Marco. I’d had all of them that night, and they me, cementing our separate bonds and building new ones. It was the best part of being a pet, that connection, the belonging that rose from it.
“Let me fuck you, Dev,” I murmured. “You feel so good when you’re wrapped around me.”
I rolled him onto his back, tucked an arm under one of his knees, and eased my dick into his tight, welcoming hole.
He stopped me with a hand on my chest, above my heart. “Do you let Jason do this to you?”
“No, not yet.”
It was coming though. We both knew it.
“Can I be there when you do?”
I drew back, considered the raw need in his expression, the flash of something I couldn’t quite define. “I don’t know when it’ll happen, Dev. It’s not like I’m really ready for that with another man.”
“You let Marco take you.”
“Not exactly. Marco kind of took what he wanted. I went along with it so he wouldn’t break me in half with that tree trunk of his.”
He breathed out a laugh. “Jesus, Eric. You didn’t tell him that, did you?”
“Pretty sure he grabbed it from my mind.” I peppered kisses down his throat, nipped at his collarbone. “You can pretend I’m that big and beg and plead with me, if it makes you happy.”
“Oh, Eric,” he whispered, and batted his eyes like a coy Southern belle. “You’re so big, so manly. Don’t hurt me, love. I’ll do anything you want, if you’ll just be gentle.”
I laughed and flexed my hips, beginning the hard fuck I knew he wanted. “That was pitiful.”
He grinned and skimmed his hands across my back, raising a tingling heat wherever he touched. “Hey, nobody ever accused me of being a good actor.”
“Nobody ever called you a good fuck to your face either, I bet.”
“He said that?”
“Yeah, he really said that.”
I shook my head and added a sharp thrust at the end of each stroke. Dev rolled his head back against the pillow on a low moan, and that was the last sound either of us made for a long time to come.
Chapter Three
Elizabet slipped into the bed beside me well before the sun rose on the new day. “Eric, dearling, waken for me.”
“I’m awake,” I mumbled and rolled toward her, gathering her into a loose embrace automatically. The fresh scent of her skin washed over me as I snuggled into her soft curves, an oddly comforting combination of wildflowers underlain by a faint hint of blood. “What’s wrong?”
“Marco has shared some wonderful news with me. I could not sleep for thinking on it.”
“Oh?”
“He says your woman is pregnant with your child, conceived two months prior.”
My eyes popped open. Shit. Marco, that fink. I should’ve found a way to push him out of my mind the first time I’d discovered him there.
Elizabet’s mouth brushed mine in a fleeting kiss. “Oh, Eric, this is wonderful news. I cannot believe you withheld it for so long, you naughty boy.”
“Eh, well. I was waiting for the right time to tell you.” Behind me, Dev shifted in his sleep, pulling the covers tight between us. I eased them back and pulled Elizabet closer. Her heart beat slower and her blood moved more sluggishly than ours, so she tended to chill easily. “We haven’t even told the ‘rents yet.”
Well, mine, anyway. Gianna had told her mama as soon as she knew. I was still surprised her dad hadn’t come after me yet with a shotgun and used it to prod me down the aisle.
“You will. Oh, dearling. I cannot wait. You will marry your woman, yes?”
“Yeah, in three weeks or so, soon as Jason, er, my favorite can shake free of basketball. Tournaments. Devin said he’d help.”
Or, rather, Devin had said he’d use his special brand of mental persuasion to coax Jason’s coach into setting him free for one day and the two surrounding nights, long enough for a bachelor party, the wedding, and the wedding night. I wasn’t about to try having sex with my new wife without Jason there to hold the cold man back, if the worst happened and he broke free of my control.
“I shall as well, should you need me.” She ran a finger down my chest, scratching gently. “Will the ceremony be in a church?”
“Yeah, but a small one. We’re not having a priest, just a judge, since the baby’s on the way.” I felt a curious tug, a keen yearning to… I followed the emotion back to Elizabet and glimpsed a memory of her cradling an infant in the crook of her arm, gazing at it with a tender longing that stabbed at me. I smoothed her hair back with a comforting hand, kissed her forehead. “You and Marco should come. It’ll give you a chance to meet my family.”
“You are a good man, Eric, and will make a fine father.” Her sigh feathered across the skin of my throat. “We shall attend your ceremony, and after, I shall bind your favorite and your wife to me, claiming them so that they will always have my protection.”
The offer touched me. She didn’t have to do that, almost never did it with her pets. I had a sneaky suspicion she did it now out of consideration for my future status as a full-blown vampire and ally. “Thank you, Elizabet. I’ll text Marco with the date and time.”
“Please do. I look forward to meeting the woman who captured your love, and your favorite. He sounds quite delicious.”
I laughed softly. “He can be.”
Her lips found mine in a soft kiss farewell. “I must return to my chambers and rest before the day begins.”
“Let me walk you back.”
“There is no need, dearling. Marco awaits me at the entrance to this chamber.”
Of course, he did. One day, I was gonna find a way to detect that man’s movements, the way I could others’. “I’ll see you soon.”
“And I you. Sleep well, my pet.”
“You, too.”
She padded across the room, a vivid portrait of a woman even in the dim moonlight streaming through the windows. Marco murmured quietly to her, then the door closed on them, shutting me in with Devin, who lay still beside me.
I scooted across the bed and wrapped myself around him, my front to his back. “You heard?”
“Yes.”
He held himself so stiffly. A tiny thread of hurt pinged through our bond, echoing against my heart. “Want to talk about it?”
“No. Yes.” He relented enough to bring his hands to mine, pressing me into his stomach until I could feel every strand of muscle in his abs. “Not really.”
“Well, that was clear as mud. C’mon, Dev. Tell me what’s wrong.”
He was silent for a long time. “Everything will change when you get married.”
“Some, yes, but not what’s between us. In fact, once everything’s settled, I was hoping to spend more time with you, have you over some.” I buried my face in his neck, inhaled the woodsy scent of him. “Make love to you when it can be just us.”
“And how are you going to manage that with a wife and a favorite to appease? Let’s be realistic here, Eric. They’re going to take up a lot of your time, especially when the baby arrives.”
“Just hear me out, Dev. I can’t have sex with her without Jason around. It’s too dangerous, and Jason can’t be around a lot until basketball’s over.”
“So this is about the sex.” His voice was flat and hard. “Is that all I am to you, a place to stick your dick?”
“Jesus. No. Would you listen? I’m trying to tell you that I want more of you in my life, more than what we have here. Yes, there’s gonna be sex. I thought you’d want that.”
“I do. Maybe not the way you’re saying, though.”
“Then how? Just tell me and I’ll try to make it happen.”
His hand tightened on mine against his stomach. “You chose him as your favorite.”
So that’s what this was about. “He’s a lot st
ronger than you.”
“I can be strong.”
“I know, Dev, but not like this, not when I…”
Shit. I hadn’t ever shared what was in my heart with him, and had all but promised myself I never would. In an instant, I broke that promise. Screw it. Devin needed me the same way Gianna and Jason and even Elizabet and Marco and the vampire queen did, maybe more.
“I love you, Dev. The cold man…”
“What?”
“I love you,” I said. “The cold man senses that and uses it to gain the upper hand. It’s why Jason will move in with me and Gianna after the wedding, so he can help me fight the cold man off.”
“You love me? For fuck’s sake, Eric. You love me and you’re just now telling me?”
I blew out a frustrated breath. “Doing the best I can here, Dev. It’s not like my life has been a steady stream of normal since you walked into it.”
He flipped over in the bed and pushed me onto my back. “You love me. Fuck everything else.”
“Dev, wait. Marco…” I hissed in a breath as Devin pushed into my ass, aggravating the tender skin. “Is everybody in this house suddenly allergic to lube?”
He laughed against my mouth and pulled out. “Sorry. Didn’t think I’d ever hear you say that, and now that you have, all I want is to be in you.”
“You run around with that thing ready all the time?”
“Only when I’m with you.” He shifted and his dick slid between our bodies. “Why do you think Cassie gives me so many hand jobs with you sitting inches away?”
“Er.” I’d always assumed that was because of a pet’s naturally overactive sexuality. Half the time, I ran around sporting a hard on, just because, even with Jason helping me slake the need, though he wasn’t around too much these days. February was not the best time for a college basketball player to have a lover. “What does she think of this?”
“She wants to fuck you.”
My cheeks heated until they all but glowed in the dimly lit room. “Jesus, Dev. Just blurt it out, why don’tcha.”
“This is why I love you. My shy little Eric with that fabulous intellect and a dick made for loving.”
The Vampire's Pet (The Vampyr Book 1) Page 22