Queen of Quarantine

by Caroline Peckham

  Her gaze lifted suddenly to meet mine and my heart catapulted into motion once more, blood pounding through my veins at a furious pace as the need to go to her overwhelmed me to the point of immobilisation.

  My grip on the railing before me tightened until I was certain my fingernails were gouging crescents into the wood. Neither of us moved. We just stood staring at one another while a storm built between us and my skin prickled with the energy that was entirely her.

  If I moved so much as an inch, I was going to break. My control would snap. I'd take her, possess her, consume her and devour her in every way possible until there was nothing at all left of either of us.

  She broke the stillness between us first, holding my gaze as she began to walk. My jaw clenched with tension as I held myself immobile, watching, waiting, trying to figure out this enigma even though I knew I'd never get an answer to her.

  She was an impossibility. An answer to all the things I'd been missing. An itch I'd been needing to scratch for longer than I could recall. A piece to a puzzle which I'd assumed would always remain incomplete.

  She took the stairs slowly, pacing up them one at a time, my heart thumping with every step she took, my limbs trembling from how tightly I held them contained. If I broke now there would be no coming back from it.

  My head turned slowly as she climbed the stairs, keeping her locked in my gaze until she made it to the top of them and moved towards me at that same, measured pace.

  There was an orchestra starting up in my head, playing a piece I'd never heard before but was desperate to compose. Because it was the music of her. It was every beautiful, intricate, complicated note of her perfection, it was a symphony in the making, a story with unbound potential. It was dark and brutal and light and powerful, pure and tainted. Her. The girl who tamed monsters. The one who owned me.

  My dick swelled with an ache that I felt right through to every single bone in my body and for each step she took towards me, the throbbing need in my entire being only grew.

  Tatum fell still at my side, her blue eyes flaring with so much heat that it burned me as she met my gaze. Her skin had regained its healthy glow, her lips like two red rose petals and her eyes the most stunning shade of sapphire I'd ever encountered. Her nipples were hard and pressing against the fabric of the white shirt she wore, visible through it even in the patchy moonlight that spilled through the stained-glass window. It gilded her in a rosy silver colour which only made her seem more ethereal than ever.

  I wasn't even sure how long we stood staring at each other, my normal grasp on every precise minute of time slipping away like it didn't matter at all as I looked upon the face of my deity.

  Her tongue swept across her bottom lip, making a growl of desire rumble in my chest as her eyes dragged down my bare torso to the less than subtle outline of my cock which bulged through my boxers for her.

  Tatum shifted, her knees bending as she began to sink towards the floor, but my hand snapped out and I caught her wrist before she could kneel, shaking my head as confusion grew in her eyes.

  "You don't kneel for anyone tonight," I said, my voice raw as I fought to contain the worst of me, desperately clinging to the chains that bound the demon in me as they began to slip through my grasp.

  Her lips parted on what I was certain was a complaint, but before she could utter so much as a sound, I turned fully to face her and dropped to my knees instead.

  Tatum sucked in a sharp gasp and my resolve began to shatter, my fingers brushing against the tips of her toes as I gave one final bit of energy into trying to resist her before realising I was fighting a battle I'd already lost.

  I slid my hands forward, my fingers slowly carving lines across the tops of her bare feet before encircling her ankles. I dragged my hands up her calves as her breaths came deeper, my chin tipping back as I looked up into her eyes. I continued the path of my fingers up her legs, caressing the soft skin at the backs of her knees before venturing higher up her thighs, only stopping when the fullness of her round ass was clasped tightly in my grip.

  I groaned as I realised she didn't have any panties on, my fingers digging into her warm flesh as I tried to find the strength to restrain myself.

  “If you don’t want me like this, tell me now,” I commanded, holding her gaze as her pupils dilated. “Because I’m teetering on the edge of a knifepoint here and I need you to make it clear to me. What do you want, siren?”

  A beat of silence hung between us with no words puncturing it, then Tatum took hold of the hem of the t-shirt she was wearing before peeling it off of her body to reveal her nakedness beneath.

  Her chest rose and fell heavily as she tossed the shirt aside and I didn't even give a fuck that it must have landed in some reckless heap on the floor as I just stared at her, golden hair cascading down around her face as she looked right back at me.

  "All hail the queen," I breathed, just loud enough for her to hear and her breath hitched as I tugged her forward a step and my mouth landed on the heat of her bare pussy.

  Tatum's hands moved down to grasp my tightly curling hair and she drew me closer, taking as much as she could from me as a breathy moan escaped her lips.

  The symphony in my head was building in pace now as I caressed her with my tongue, basking in the shivers of pleasure I drew from her as I circled her clit, my hand shifting between her legs until I was driving two fingers into her drenched pussy.

  She cried out as I pumped them in and out in perfect synchronicity with the movement of my tongue on her clit, playing out the music I was hearing on her body as my thumb teased over her ass. She gasped as I exerted a little pressure, her grip in my hair tightening as my name slid from her lips and my cock throbbed with an ache I was desperate to satisfy, precum making it slide against the fabric of my boxers. It was the tiniest bit of friction but combined with the taste of her in my mouth and the feel of her pussy tight around my fingers, it was enough to make me groan.

  I pumped my hand faster, my thumb pressing down on her ass a little harder with each thrust until I finally drove it into her too and she came with a cry loud enough to make Monroe say something in his sleep down on the couch.

  The sound of her coming for me was enough to fracture the last fragments of restraint I was clinging to and I lurched to my feet, lifting her into my arms and winding her trembling legs around me as I kissed her hard and hungrily.

  I slammed her back against the bathroom door, grinding my cock between her thighs and making her whimper as I drove my tongue into her mouth and tasted the perfect mixture of her desire dancing between us.

  Tatum's hands were still in my hair, gripping almost tight enough to yank it from the roots and I growled as I thrust against her harder, the barrier of my boxers the only thing dividing us as her wetness soaked them.

  Monroe murmured something again and I growled as I took a hand from her ass, reaching for the door handle and spilling us into the bathroom. I wasn't sharing her. Not now. Not this first time. This was going to be me and her and I wasn't going to stop until the two of us couldn't even remember our names, let alone our problems. They'd had their chances to claim her like this and now it was mine.

  I kicked the door shut and locked it for good measure as Tatum took her legs from around my waist, landing on her feet and scraping her fingernails down my chest as she went for my waistband.

  I tangled my fingers in her hair, kissing her bruisingly as she shoved my boxers down and my cock sprung free, hard and aching and desperate.

  It was pitch black in here with the door closed but our bodies were so in sync with each other that it didn't make a bit of difference.

  I caught her hips and turned her around, bending her over the sink and driving my cock into her with a savage thrust that made her scream as my balls struck against her clit.

  She was so fucking tight, her pussy gripping me and making my dick throb with more need than I'd ever felt in my life.

  My fingers curled around her hips and I started fucking
her as hard as I could, a wild beast unfettered and unable to stop as she cried out and gasped and cursed my name at least as often as she praised it.

  The products on the shelf above the sink started rattling with the force of my thrusts and I didn't even give a shit as they all began to tumble down onto the floor.

  Let chaos fucking reign for my goddess.

  The darkness made the music in my head seem louder, her voice pitched in pleasure the perfect melody to the crescendo I could feel coming. But I wanted to see her. Needed to watch her come apart for me and shatter and fall into my grasp, never to let her go again.

  I released my hold on one of her hips as I reached for the light above the mirror, my fingers slipping over cool glass as I cursed and panted and she moaned for me even louder.

  I finally managed to find it, yanking the string then slapping my hand down hard against her ass just as I lost control of my body and Tatum called my name as the light flickered on. Her blue eyes met mine in the mirror as we both came hard, crying out in pleasure, her pussy milking my cock for all I had. I didn't think I'd ever come as powerfully as that in all my life and as I drew back, panting and aching in all the best ways, I turned her around to kiss her softly.

  "Saint," she murmured, her arms coiling around my neck and I found I really liked her touching me like that. Even if it was unexpected or out of control, I wanted more of it. Every last drop of it.

  "I love you, Tatum Rivers," I growled, painting my fingers down her chest, stroking the full rise of her breast and teasing her hard nipple. "I didn't think I could even feel something like the things I feel for you. I didn't think there was enough good in me for it. And my love isn't something light and freeing, its obsessive and toxic, controlling and insatiable. But I feel it all for you.”

  "I love you too, Saint," she breathed. "You may be the worst person I've ever gone up against but you're also one of the best. I feel alive when I'm with you in the most incredible of ways and I just want it to go on and on and never end.”

  "Never end, huh?" My lips turned up at the corners as my hand moved between her thighs, tracing through the mess of my cum which marked her, stained her, proved that I really had claimed her.

  Her hands caressed my chest, running back and forth across the words of my tattoo and I liked that a whole hell of a lot. I liked her having control almost as much as I liked taking control of her.

  "Tell me what you want," I growled, walking her back until we were inside the shower and I flicked the water on.

  "To own you," she breathed, her eyes full of honesty. "Just like you own me."

  "Just me?" I asked as I reached up to remove the shower head from the holder to spray it between her thighs and wash away the mess we'd made there.

  "No," she panted as I used my fingers to help wash her off then moved the shower head closer to her clit. "I want to own all four of you."

  That should have pissed me off. That would have been the normal reaction, wouldn't it? But instead of that, my cock was hardening again and I was thinking of all the ways we could make that dream come true.

  "Good," I breathed, kissing her as I slid the shower head over her clit and devouring the moan that fell from her lips.

  The water pressure was fucking heavenly here. I'd made certain it was when the Temple had been converted for us and I kept kissing her as I shifted the spray back and forth between her thighs.

  Tatum moaned as I toyed with her nipple and every unexpected touch of her hands on my flesh just made my pulse race faster as I continued to play with her.

  My dick was aching for her again already and I knew I was never going to fully satiate this need in my body for her. My addiction was only growing, my dependence deepening and I intended to take as many highs from it as I could before exhaustion forced us to stop. Because I could see no end to it aside from that.

  Tatum gasped as she got close to her orgasm, her hand grabbing my bicep to direct the shower head to the exact spot where she wanted to feel the pressure of that water.

  I released my hold on her breast and shifted the dial on the shower, changing the temperature to bitingly cold just as she came, the combination of pleasure and shock driving her body to new heights.

  Her scream was beyond the confines of this bathroom and I was certain she must have woken the others by now, but I didn't care. Tonight she was mine. Tomorrow we'd figure the rest out.

  I flicked the shower back around to hot and placed it above us again as I lifted her up and pinned her to the wall. My solid cock pressed against her heat and I looked into her eyes as I hesitated there with water crashing down over us.

  "My whole life I've fought with all I have to maintain control in everything," I said to her as she looked down at me, her hands resting on my shoulders, wet hair sticking to her skin. "And then you came along and brought more chaos to my life than I ever would have believed I could handle. I tried to break you. But you were the one who broke me. You forced me out of my comfort zone again and again until I no longer knew what comfortable felt like. You make my skin itch with a need for more. And you are that more. I hope you realise I'm never going to let you go now."

  "Do you promise?" she breathed, making my soul burn for her as I pushed forward, my cock sinking into her like it was made for that purpose alone and I groaned at the perfection of that feeling, of her body owning mine.

  "I promise, siren."

  A smile lit her lips that was so pure and bright that it set my heart racing and as our bodies began to move together once more, I found myself feeling lighter than I had in as long as I could remember.

  Tatum Rivers might have been the perfect bait for the monster in me, but she was the balm for it too. She had tamed four broken, wild men and all we could do now was worship her and hope she never wanted to escape us. But either way, I wouldn't be letting her go.

  I woke in the arms of a different monster for the first time in two weeks. Saint lay behind me, my body curved against his as he held me, not a single layer of clothing parting our heated flesh. His muscles were locked around me, keeping me his captive even in sleep. But it turned out, he was my captive too and I wouldn’t ever be releasing him.

  My skin buzzed and hummed from what we’d done last night. Saint had claimed me with the punishing ferocity of the Devil. And I wouldn’t have had it any other way.

  My eyes fluttered open and I took in the time staring back at me from the clock on his nightstand, my confusion giving way to a little knot of panic. Oh shit.

  It was three minutes past ten and Saint was going to lose his head. What the hell happened to the alarm?

  He stirred, his mouth brushing my neck and I arched into him automatically, savouring the way his touch sent a rush of electricity through my flesh. His cock was hard and pressing keenly into my ass as I ground my hips back against him, a sigh leaving him that was so un-Saint, it made me grin. He sounded content. And when was the last time the black hearted beast who resided in this church was ever content?

  I reached out quickly, knocking the alarm clock so it wasn’t facing us before rolling over to look at him. He arched an eyebrow at me. “I am quite aware of the time, Tatum. Who do you think turned the alarm off? A fucking pixie?”

  My lips parted in shock. Like, legit shock. “Why?” I balked. “And why aren’t you climbing the walls right now?”

  He grabbed my waist, tugging me flush to his body and kissing me, his tongue driving into my mouth in controlled movements that seemed to press every button of my desire. He broke the kiss before I was even close to done with it, leaving my lips tingling and hungry for more.

  “There is only one time which matters right now. And that is the time I am spending with you,” he said, his eyes devouring me as they trailed to my mouth, my throat, my breasts. “Besides, you still need rest. I am not above breaking my routine, for that purpose alone.”

  “I’m completely fine now and you know it. You don’t ever break your routine,” I said. “It makes you crazy.”


  “Well I am hopelessly crazy then, I suppose,” he said, sounding entirely sane and sexy as hell. He pushed me over onto my back, moving on top of me in a fluid motion, pressing his weight down as the tip of his hard cock slipped against my slick entrance.

  A breath snagged in my throat as I gripped his powerful shoulders, raising my hips as I urged him to take me. But he didn’t, he smiled darkly, watching my expression as he held me in suspense, revelling in having me in this position. I still couldn’t quite believe he wasn’t descending into world war three right now over the damn time. But I certainly wasn’t complaining.

  “Aren’t you craving control over your day?” I asked huskily as he trailed a line of kisses along my jaw, each one considered and deliberate.

  “I have you at my mercy, how much more control could any man desire in this world or the next?”

  My stomach fluttered and I turned my head to seek out his mouth, but he denied me it, forcing my head back the other way with his fingers so he could continue delivering kisses how and where he wanted.

  “You’re actually a total romantic, do you realise that?” I teased breathlessly, my core so soaked, I was pawing at his hips in an effort to draw him into me. But he’d probably have me fall like the Berlin Wall before he gave me what I wanted.

  “Romance is a concept. I simply speak the truth as I perceive it,” he reasoned.

  “That’s what makes it romantic,” I continued to taunt him, running my hands down the hard planes of his muscular back. He flexed over me, a growl rumbling through him that reminded me of the animal in him who had claimed me last night. He’d finally relinquished control. Complete and utter control. And it had been for me. Maybe he really didn’t need his routine today.

  “So are you going to live wildly now? Get up at seven minutes past any hour you like, skip the gym and eat a bowl of Cap’n Crunch for breakfast?” I joked, but he winced, his expression becoming tight.

  He tried to draw away, but I gripped his arms, refusing to let him go as guilt washed through me.