“I know I need to stop hiding from myself. I’ve let my head lead my life all along, hiding from the fear inside me. Fear of exactly who and what I am.” I inhaled a long breath and let it out slowly. “It’s time I learn to trust my heart.” I let out a soft sigh. “My heart wants you.”
He shifted so quickly that I was left dizzy. I ended up under his body as his lips blazed a trail along my neck, stopping briefly at the pulse point there to place a light kiss on the vulnerable spot where my blood flowed just under my skin. “I will not disappoint you again, My Love.”
Yes, you will, my head insisted while my heart leapt for joy. I guessed it would take some time for the two to align.
* * * *
Later, after we showered, Ian went to his office to begin negotiations with Chaos, while I went down to the kitchen. Justice sat at the table and filled a mug with coffee and I joined her. Ian’s kitchen was well stocked, not only for my benefit, but also for his shapeshifter bodyguards and staff. Vampires consumed very little food, not because they couldn’t but it wasn’t necessary for their survival. Vampires only ate when it pleased them to do so.
“So, what shall we talk about?” I asked Justice.
She snorted a laugh. “I suppose you’d like to know what I am and exactly how I managed to shove that little jolt into you. No offense, by the way,” she added with a wry grin.
I returned her smile. “None taken. Now, shall we continue with the pleasant conversation or just get right down to it?”
She laughed and shook her head. “I knew you were blunt.”
I leaned forward with my elbows propped on the table. “What else do you know?” I rested my chin on my hands.
“That you’re to be protected at all costs,” she said firmly.
I sat back and took another sip of coffee. “Are you telling me you would take a bullet for me?”
Justice simply shrugged and I felt a surge of panic well within me. “What about Shia?” I couldn’t hide the anger and outrage in my voice.
“I assure you that Shia will be safe. You have my personal guarantee on that. I will not allow any harm to come to Shia.”
I let out a sigh of relief.
“Thank you.” My voice softened.
Justice gave me one short nod of acknowledgement.
“Why do you do this, risk your life for someone you’ve never met before?” I’d met bodyguards before, but never one assigned to me and they were not exactly the kind of people you settled in for a heart to heart talk with. Still, my curiosity won out over common sense once again and I needed to know. If Justice was to risk her own life to protect mine, I wanted to know why.
“I pick my own hours and I don’t care if I live or die.”
“Why?” I heard myself ask before I was even sure I wanted to know the answer.
Justice simply shook her head and something about the look in her eyes kept me from pursuing it further. I could have insisted on an answer but I doubted I’d get an honest one, if any at all. We sat in silence for a few moments. I didn’t want to ask why she didn’t care if she lived and I knew she didn’t want to answer me. I got up and refilled my cup.
“You really have a spell on Ian, you know.” Justice leaned back in her chair. “Vampires are notoriously emotionless, but Ian, he’s one of the most emotionless vampires I know. I’ve never seen him smitten.”
“Smitten?” I nearly choked on my coffee and sat back down.
She smiled and nodded. “He’s in love. It’s about time too. It’s not healthy to be alone for as long as he has. I’m happy for him.”
“How old are you? You don’t look any older than I am,” I asked, evading the whole “love” thing.
“I’m decades older than you,” she replied.
“Have you and he…?” I hedged, struggling and failing to keep the jealously out of my voice.
She slapped her hand on the table and snorted a laugh. “Hell no! He’s an arrogant son of a bitch and like I said, I’ve never seen him so full of emotions. Angry, worried and frustrated. Shit, I don’t think he knows what to do with it all and if that isn’t love, well…” She shook her head and her voice grew serious. “Ian would die for you,” she pinned me with her eyes, “or kill for you.”
“I don’t need anyone to do my killing for me,” I said a little more defensively than I meant.
“I’ve heard that about you,” she said approvingly. “But if it comes down to you or me, save yourself. You have something to live for.” She stiffened her spine. “I don’t.”
Before I could reply, Shia, Cody and Quinn bounced into the room. “Mama says we can swim in Ian’s big pool today!” Cody said excitedly.
“Only if Leah says it’s okay,” Quinn added.
Two little excited faces, all smiles and teeth and what could I say? “That sounds like a great idea.” I was actually a little surprised to find that I meant it. I turned to invite Justice along but she was already gone.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
The water was the perfect temperature, cool enough to be refreshing and warm enough to be relaxing. It reflected off the ceiling of the atrium, providing a light show above me. Cody and Quinn practiced diving and cannonballs, and raced each other back and forth across the pool so many times I was tired just watching them. Shia was in the water with them while Justice stayed on the pool deck well away from the splashing boys, yet close enough to keep us all safe. She refused a bathing suit and stayed in her street clothes. In part, I’m sure, to hide the numerous weapons I knew she had on her.
I stood on the deck, watching the boys demonstrate their diving skills when they both froze, their eyes becoming narrow and catlike as they stared behind my head. I instinctively wrapped them in my arms and shielded them with my body as I turned toward whatever threat lay behind me.
The boys wiggled out of my grasp and jumped up on Ian who held one in each arm as if they weighed nothing at all. He placed a kiss on each boy’s cheek then set them down where they immediately dove into the water to splash him. He simply laughed and continued walking toward me, his eyes appraising me in the somewhat skimpy bathing suit I’d found in my closet. I felt myself blush. “You look ravishing,” he said with a devilish glint in his eye.
“So you picked out the suit?” I asked, swallowing my reservations and turning slowly to model it for him. I was thrilled that by the time I completed my rotation Ian’s smile had turned lustful.
“Shia did, actually. Remind me to thank her.” He wrapped his arm around my waist and placed a gentle kiss on my lips. “And to send her shopping for you more often.”
“I must admit, I would not have picked something so revealing.” I kissed him back.
“Revealing. Humph! You should have seen what he wanted me to buy for you,” Shia bubbled up from behind me while she dried the reluctant boys off with a beach towel.
“Then thank you for this,” I replied.
“I’m going to get the boys ready for bed.”
“Awww!” they cried in unison.
“It’s nearly bedtime,” she reprimanded.
“Behave for your mom tonight and perhaps we will swim again tomorrow,” I chimed in.
Cody and Quinn escaped their mom’s grasp and wrapped their little arms around both Ian and I. “Maybe Ian will swim with us?” they asked.
“Only if Leah will wear this bathing suit again,” Ian said wickedly.
“Pleeeeeze!” the boys begged.
I bent and gave each one a kiss on the tip of their nose. “Only if you behave for your mom,” I warned.
“You two have to leave tomorrow.” Shia spoke with her eyes cast to the floor, her voice low.
I looked at Ian but he only shook his head slightly, enough to silence me.
Shia wrangled the boys out of the atrium. Justice nodded once then left, giving Ian and me privacy.
The door had barely closed behind them when Ian swung me back into his arms and pressed his lips to mine. I melted into him then giggled stupidly when he hef
ted me up and cradled me.
“I’m wet,” I protested.
“And now, so am I,” he whispered against my mouth, then carried me over toward the spa.
“Why is Shia upset? Where are the boys going?” I asked, hoping they weren’t leaving because of me. If that was the case, Shia should go with them.
“They must return to the clan every other weekend. They are Therian and require the proper training to control their beasts. They stay with Shia’s father for a couple of days.”
“Shia is good with this?”
“She knows it is in the best interest of the children.” He sighed. “However, it is difficult for her when they are away. I am hoping that your presence will ease her distress.”
“So I’m a distraction.” I smiled up at him.
“Definitely.”
“When will Shia get back?” I asked as he caressed my arms, raising goose bumps.
“She’s not going. Falcon is flying them there.”
I sat up so fast we nearly bumped heads. “Flying?” I asked. “Falcon can fly?” My voice rose an octave with disbelief.
Ian’s laughter echoed throughout the atrium. “He is a pilot, My Love. Have you never heard of Falcon Aviation?” he said when he was able to catch a breath.
“The Falcon Aviation that provides free flight service to patients and their families to receive medical care?”
“He also has some much more lucrative clients.” His smile was still wide with amusement. “You thought he could fly,” he accused chuckling.
“Yeah,” I admitted, feeling like a complete ass.
“Falcon is his vampire name, My Love.” Ian settled me back down into his arms. “Most vampires adopt many names throughout their existence, it helps to acclimate to each new environment.”
“Ahh.” I wondered what other names Ian had gone by, but was distracted by Ian’s nibbling at my ear.
“Perhaps you remember the first time I brought you into the atrium?” he asked while hitting a series of switches that brought the spa and waterfall to life and dimmed the lights.
I let my head fall back to look up at him.
“Mr. Nightwalker, are you planning on taking advantage of me?” I grinned.
“That is an impossibility.” He set me on the bench and I felt my disappointment rise. “You always have the advantage over me,” he added, a look of wry satisfaction telling me he fully noticed my disappointment.
His hands busied themselves undoing the buttons on his shirt, slowly. The man knew how to tease. Each loosened button revealed another inch of the gloriously pale skin that covered Ian’s well-defined muscles, from the wide chest with just a sprinkling of hair that trailed all the way down to the low-riding waistband of his pants. By the time he undid the button on those pants, I was practically salivating. I stood and grabbed the lapel of his shirt to ease it off his shoulders, skimming his skin with the tips of my fingers as I slid it down his back. I trailed my hands across his wide shoulders, letting my fingers play in the hair at the nape of his neck. I let my fingers glide down his skin, splaying my hands out and kneading occasionally, and was rewarded with a shiver of anticipation from Ian.
“My Love,” he whispered before his mouth again took mine with a new sense of urgency.
I felt the top of my bikini fall away and instantly Ian’s hands took its place. He teased my nipples until they were aching with need, but still, he didn’t relent. I moved my own hands around to the front of him, just above his partially open zipper, and teased the hairs that led down to where his own need stood at attention. His tongue explored my mouth while mine explored his. Tongues tasting and teeth nipping until my breath was little more than short pants of air. I lowered his zipper, ever so slowly, while he pressed his body up against mine, demanding, and receiving, more. I hooked my thumbs into his waistband and tugged until his pants started to slide toward the tiled floor. Now, more than ever, I was glad Ian went commando. I was envious of his jeans, hugging his body so tightly. I dropped to my knees. He kicked his pants aside, his eyes blazing down on me so fiercely I could actually feel the heat. I smiled up at him wickedly and let my tongue wet my upper lip, tracing it from one side to the other. A moan escaped him yet he never took his gaze from mine. I ran my palms up his powerful thighs, relishing in the strength as his muscles twitched beneath my fingers in response to my touch. I moved my hands up to the more delicate parts of him, cupping him gently then slowly running my tongue from the base of his shaft to the tip. A growl came from deep within him and I had the pleasure of seeing his head fall back in ecstasy. I took him into my mouth and sucked until he tickled the back of my throat. Slowly, so slowly, I retreated, nipping and swirling my tongue around him along the way until my lips reached the delicate tip of him again. I let my tongue play and taste, and then without warning took him down as far as I could go. I delighted in the way he throbbed and pulsed inside me while animalistic moans came from deep within his own body. In that moment, he was mine.
Mine to tease, mine to torment, mine to pleasure.
He slowly lowered himself to sit on the bench next to the rippling water of the spa. I adjusted my position but never released him. Ian’s hands found my shoulders and a feeling of satisfaction welled up inside me when I raised my eyes to see sheer ecstasy on his sharp features. I smiled around him, then watched his eyes roll back as I found a steady rhythm. I felt his body tense then suddenly he lifted me onto his lap. I moaned in protest until his hand slid down my back and started removing the remaining part of my swimsuit. He stood and carried me to the chaise, setting me down as the rest of my suit fell to the floor. His eyes pierced mine with an intensity I had never felt before and I knew, just knew, more than lust was looking at me from the depths of his soul. The raw emotion I felt from him was almost too much for me to take and just when I thought I would look away, one side of his mouth curved up in a devilish smile.
“My turn,” he said hoarsely as his hands began to roam across my chest. He held both breasts in his palms as if testing the weight of them while his thumbs slid slow circles around my nipples. His fingers continued to trace a path down my stomach to encircle my belly button. His mouth followed the path of heat his fingers had made, taking time to dip into my navel. He lifted each of my legs over his shoulders and settled between them.
His fingers teased and glided along my thighs, moving closer and closer to my core. His hot breath grazed upon my skin as he kissed my center just as he had kissed my mouth. Gentle, slow suckling followed by long strokes of his tongue. I watched as his eyes grew midnight blue and the small flecks of white, like stars in the night sky, glowed from them. His power flared and the sheer strength of it raised goose bumps as he savored my body. I felt the pressure build and roll low in my stomach until all of that power and pleasure burst from me. Still he lapped at me with his tongue, prolonging my orgasm.
My body rocked and bucked against his mouth as he thrust his tongue deep inside me to the place where every sensation pointed only to Ian. Nothing else existed except the two of us. He pulled away from me and my legs fell off his shoulders. Ian leaned over me and wrapped his arms around my back, shifting so we were settled further up in the chaise. He poised himself just above me, just resting at my opening. I wriggled beneath him, trying to take him into my body. “Please, Ian!” I begged. “God, now!”
He chuckled then penetrated me, the sensation of hot silk over steel gliding into me, filling not only my body but also my soul. He withdrew as my body writhed around him. He hesitated and the sound that came from him was no longer a laugh. “I love how your body responds to mine,” he all but growled. “You are perfect, Leah Wolfe. Just as you are, you are perfect.”
He wrapped his hands around my thighs and pushed himself back into my slick folds. He held himself there as he carried me to the spa. The warm, almost too hot water swirled around me, increasing my arousal. We found a rhythm that licked flames of passion between us until the pressure was so intense my head thrashed from side to
side and Ian swallowed my scream of release with his mouth. I felt his strokes falter and stutter until his own body erupted, pulsing his seed into me with such intensity it brought me to orgasm once again.
Ian rolled onto his back, taking me with him until he was beneath me. I lay with my head on his chest. Every bone in my body felt like it had disintegrated and I was left helpless in his arms. Ian brushed my sweat-soaked hair from my face. We lay like that, with the soothing waterfall sliding into the spa, until my eyes grew too heavy to keep open. Just before sleep took me I heard, “You’ve stolen my heart and my soul, My Love. I have never been happier in my existence.”
Chapter Thirty
“Get up Leah, there’s trouble!” My eyes flew open to see Cougar standing above me.
I fumbled at the empty space on the bed next to me. “Where’s Ian?” I asked, suddenly alert.
“He’s out looking for Chaos.”
Ian hadn’t said a damn thing about leaving to meet with Chaos. I guess it wouldn’t have really mattered much. Until my safety was guaranteed I knew Ian wouldn’t have let me anywhere near Chaos. “He thinks Chaos is here?”
“You’d better hurry. Joaquín is here, insisting on seeing you. I know he’s your friend but … things are getting ugly down there.” He turned and strode out the door, closing it behind him.
Once Cougar left, I dressed in record time, strapping on my gun as I walked out of the bedroom. I followed Cougar down the stairs toward the voices of Joaquín and Shia as they tossed insults at one another.
Joaquín stood in the foyer, his face red and twisted with anger. He held his fists clenched tightly at his sides. “I’m the Chief Detective on this reservation. Get the hell out of my way!” he roared, inches from Shia’s face.
“That doesn’t mean jack shit to me. You’re not getting past me until I’m told otherwise!” Shia bellowed back.
Joaquín stood tense, his body language threatening.
“It’s the middle of the night, Joaquín. What the hell are you doing here?” I asked.
The Order of Chaos Page 15