“If you’ll excuse me,” Kaj told the heurosp before sauntering toward her.
When he approached, Acadia smiled up at him. “You wanted to speak with me?”
His smile was sexy. “I wanted to spend some time with you.”
“Oh?” He held out his arm and she easily slid hers through. “Where are we going?”
“I thought we’d go for a swim.”
She chuckled. “Really?”
“Yes. Really.”
Because she had no reason to decline his request, Acadia fell into step with him. They strolled beyond the kitchen, through the front formal living space, then to the hall that led toward the garage and the entrance to the pool. Kaj paused to open the door for her, then held it while she stepped inside.
Acadia was instantly hit with a wall of humidity, the scent of chemicals strong in the air.
Kaj took her hand, this time leading her around the Olympic-size pool with its eight lanes and over to the enormous hot tub that regally sat in the far corner.
“I do not have a swimsuit,” she informed him.
“Neither do I.” His smile was wicked.
“Then I guess we shall wear nothing,” she teased.
“Sounds like a perfect plan to me.”
There was a strange fluttering in her belly, something she wasn’t sure she’d ever felt before. Acadia found she liked the sensation because it was something akin to anticipation mixed with desire.
Kaj released her, then took a seat on one of the many chairs that lined the space. He quickly removed his boots and socks, then pulled his T-shirt over his head. His jeans were discarded next, and then he was standing there in a pair of silky black boxer briefs that hugged his muscular thighs nicely.
Acadia felt her face warm, as though this was the first time she’d seen a male in this state of undress.
When he moved to stand behind her, she sucked in a breath as his warm fingers found the ties that held her dress together at her back. He didn’t rush to undress her, his fingers sweeping over her skin ever so lightly as he freed her from the confines of the silk.
Before the velvet gown could fall to the floor, she held it to her breasts, a hint of nerves giving her pause.
When she turned back, she was shocked to see Kaj strolling away from her. But there was nothing to fear, because he was simply retrieving one of the plush white towels that were kept poolside. He returned, holding it open as though providing her with a barrier to shield her nakedness.
Because she didn’t have a modest bone in her body, Acadia easily slipped out of the dress, then laid it over the back of one chair before taking the towel from his grasp. She was captivated by the hunger she could see sparkling in his light green eyes, though it was obvious he was attempting not to ogle.
With the towel loosely wrapped around her, Acadia made her way to the stairs leading down into the warm water.
As she stepped down into it, she tossed the towel to the edge, keeping it from getting wet. She was sinking into the depths when the jets came to life, causing the water to bubble up around her, offering a hint of privacy though she knew he could still see her if he wanted to.
Acadia was surprised when Kaj kept his boxer briefs on, walking down the steps to join her. When he was thigh deep, he sank down until only his shoulders were above water. It was then he held out his hand to her, tugging her toward him as he maneuvered into one of the many contoured seats lining the outer edges of the oversized tub.
Allowing him to situate her on his lap, Acadia relaxed against him, her back to his chest, the warm water easing the strain of the night.
“What did you want to talk about?” she prompted when they’d both gotten comfortable.
“I didn’t.” His arms slid around her, holding her against him. “I simply wanted to spend time with you. Just sit with me, Acadia. Let me hold you for a while.”
How could she possibly deny him that when it was what she wanted more than anything else?
Here, alone with him, his strong arms banded around her, Acadia felt complete and safer than she’d ever felt before.
It was then she realized this was the first time they’d done this since he returned to the mansion. Sat quietly, comfortably. No expectations.
Just the two of them.
At peace.
After assisting Elizabeth back to her bedroom and getting her situated in the new bed Amethyst had designed specifically for her needs, ensuring she could get in and out of it on her own, Bijou made her way toward the game room.
Reidar, Blāz, Raksa, and Miklós were getting set up to play pool, so she plopped herself down on the leather sofa to watch.
“What brings you out so late?” Blāz asked as he moved around the pool table so he could take his position to break.
“Just trying to wind down,” she told him.
“Not sure this’ll help. I’m gearing up to kick some angel ass. Might get noisy when I make them cry.”
Yep, that was what prompted the ruckus that followed. The angels took offense to the vampire’s comment, coming back with their own taunts. For the next half hour, the four of them went head to head, two at a time, the next in line playing the winner. And true to his word, Blāz did kick some angel butt, eliminating his opponents one after the other, time and time again.
She’d gotten so caught up in their good-natured ribbing, Bijou hadn’t even noticed that Oliver was standing in the doorway leading to the hall, watching as he leaned casually against the door. While he focused on the others, she stared at him. For some reason, that darkness she’d noticed within him was more prominent, as though it was growing stronger. What was it, she wondered. She’d never noticed anything like it before.
Not that she usually got readings on people like this. Almost like an aura, only internal, as though it surrounded something hiding within him.
Oliver’s eyes snapped to her face, and Bijou started to look away but found herself trapped by his gaze, as though he was holding her there. Neither of them moved, eyes locked. Her breath was lodged in her throat. There were so many things she wanted to say to him. Starting with an apology for the rift she’d put between them. Her own selfishness had wrecked the good thing they’d had going, and she had lost the one real friend she’d had in a long time. Truth was, Bijou missed Oliver, missed the times they’d spent together.
While she wouldn’t necessarily say she was attracted to him, it was as though she was drawn to him, pulled in by something deeper.
As far as humans went, he was on the handsome end of the spectrum even if he wasn’t necessarily her type. Physically, at least. But she wasn’t so shallow as to only look on the outside. No, with Oliver, it was about what was inside. He was funny, smart, and easy to be around. Even if he was standoffish to others, he’d never been that way with her.
“You want to play?” Blāz offered Oliver.
“No. I’m good.” With that, Oliver stood tall, then turned and left.
Bijou was tempted to follow him, to hash this out right here and now. Something kept her rooted to that damn sofa, though. Fear, perhaps. What if she apologized and he rejected her? Told her to get lost? She wasn’t sure she could handle that from him. It was easier to remember the good times they’d had, to pretend they had simply drifted apart rather than risk him refusing to ever speak to her again.
A sense of longing overwhelmed her, but it wasn’t for the male who’d left. No, Bijou missed her mother. Had she still been alive, Bijou wouldn’t have hesitated to talk to her about this, get her mother’s opinion. She’d always looked to her mom for guidance.
“Hey, you okay?”
Her eyes shot up to see Blāz bending over her, his expression reflecting his concern.
“I’m fine,” she blurted, though she was anything but.
He obviously didn’t believe her, but he nodded anyway, gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze.
“All right, children. What do you say we make this worthwhile?”
The voice preceded the
male, and a second later, Apollo stepped into the room. The healer seemed larger than life, although Blāz, being the tallest in the room, stood a good three or four inches taller.
“What’s at stake, Doc?” Blāz countered.
Bijou watched as the two males locked eyes for a moment. Intimidation. That was what they were doing. Daring the other to up the ante.
Chuckling softly at the excessive testosterone being tossed around, Bijou got to her feet. “I think I’ll call it a day,” she told them. “Good luck to you all.”
More ribbing ensued as the five males began hassling one another, their voices booming through the open space. The sound trailed after her even as she made her way around the open area and down the hall to her bedroom. When she passed Oliver’s door, she paused for a moment, considered knocking and telling him what was on her mind.
As was usually the case, she didn’t, choosing instead to tuck her tail and move on.
One of these days, perhaps she’d get the nerve to settle this between them. And if not, maybe she’d simply move into the Lair and see how long it took anyone to notice.
Yes. That was likely the best idea she’d had in a long time.
Kaj wasn’t sure how long they’d been in the hot tub, but he was content to remain right where he was for as long as possible.
With Acadia propped on his lap, his arms wrapped securely around her, he was at peace for the first time in a long time. In fact, the only times he’d ever been this content had been when he was with her. However, he’d never simply held her like this. Not unless they were in bed, succumbing from exhaustion, usually after an intense bout of mind-numbing sex.
But he wasn’t after sex. Not this time.
No, he’d told himself he wanted to spend time with her. Didn’t matter what they talked about or even if they talked at all. Kaj merely wanted to be in her presence.
“I think we might prune in here,” she finally said, her voice soft and relaxed.
“It’s possible. Would you like to get out?”
She chuckled. “No.”
“Me neither.”
Her hand slid over his arm, gliding up and down over his skin. The lightest of touches that did so much to his body.
“I miss you, balisra,” he whispered, pressing his lips to her shoulder.
“I miss you, too.”
“I should probably get you up to your bed.” It wasn’t that he wanted to leave her, but the sun was inching higher in the sky beyond the protection of all those shutters and thick drapes, and they both needed their sleep.
“I want you to feed first,” she said, her tone firm as her hand held his arm to her torso.
“Here?”
“Yes.”
It wasn’t like he wanted to argue. He needed to feed and this was as good a place as any.
“And you?”
“I’m good until tonight,” she said softly. “But I will come find you at nightfall.”
“I want to touch you,” he rasped against her ear. “Let me make you come with my fingers, balisra.”
The sharp inhale and the way her body bucked against him told him she wasn’t opposed to the idea.
“Spread your legs for me,” he urged, sliding his hand over her thigh.
Acadia did as he instructed, her hand coming over his as he slid his fingers over her sex. Even in the water, he could feel her slickness, the way her body eased the way for his fingers to enter her. He took his time, grazing her clit lightly, teasing her as he pressed his lips to her shoulder, sliding higher. When she leaned her head back, baring her neck for him, providing him access to her vein, Kaj’s fangs descended in anticipation. Still he refrained, teasing her, building her higher. And when he plunged two fingers inside her, he pierced her neck.
She cried out, her body pressing into his as he fingered her at the same time he drank from her. His cock was rock hard, but it had been since he joined her in here. It was the reason he’d left his boxers on. He had no intention of taking this further. Not yet. Not until his female understood he wasn’t simply in this for the pleasure she brought him. He wanted to take care of her, to love her, to spend their eternity together.
Come for me. He pushed the words into her mind, loving the way her body clasped his fingers as he urged her higher with the rhythmic press of his fingers.
“Kaj…”
God, he loved the way she said his name. That single syllable from her lips was the most erotic thing he’d ever heard.
Holding her in place with his mouth, he slid his other hand between her thighs and teased her clit relentlessly as he fucked her with two fingers. She shivered and moaned, pinned in place against him as he drank from her. Kaj closed his eyes and let the erotic sounds drift in his ears, the sweet warmth of her body against his, the way her sex clamped down on him.
When she came, it was with a brittle cry that nearly had him coming himself. He staved off his own release by focusing on bringing her down while he continued to feed. She settled against him, her breaths raspy. Her hand came up to cup his face, holding him to her neck as he took more from her, but not too much. By the time he was finished, her breaths had returned to normal. After he sealed the wounds he’d inflicted, he shifted her so that he could find her mouth with his.
Kaj was lost to her. Completely and totally overwhelmed. He’d never felt anything like this before her, because she was his other half, the part that would make him whole.
“I love you,” he whispered softly when he pulled back.
She didn’t say the words back, but he didn’t have to hear them. He knew how she felt even if she was hesitant to tell him. One day she would trust him enough to open up to him. And when that day came, he would be by her side for the rest of their existence.
“Let me get you up to your room.”
Acadia nodded, then pressed her lips to his once more. He knew it was her way of expressing what she wasn’t ready to say. And he was more than willing to take whatever she was willing to give.
Chapter Ten
“You can’t beat me, angel,” Blāz told Apollo for the millionth time since the male had joined them in the game room.
For the past couple of hours, the other angels had slowly trickled out, one by one until it was only him and the healer. From what Blāz could tell, Apollo refused to give up, despite the fact he’d been beaten a dozen times.
Apollo took the chalk and rubbed it over the end of his stick as he moved around the table, studying the layout of the remaining balls.
“Perhaps I’m not looking to win,” the male rumbled.
“No?” Blāz stepped back to allow Apollo to move by him.
But the healer didn’t stroll by. No, he made sure to brush the entire front of Blāz’s body with his own. The heat that transferred between them was exactly what had been arcing since the male had stepped into the room. At first, he’d thought he had imagined it. Figured it had something to do with those fantasies he’d indulged back at the Dungeon, when that other male had been on his knees.
When Apollo didn’t immediately move away, Blāz pressed his hips forward. “What’s your angle, healer?”
“Whatever you want it to be.” The male leaned forward, taking aim at one of the stripes while he pressed his ass to Blāz’s groin.
Yeah, there was no missing what he was getting at.
“What makes you think I’m interested?” he growled softly, placing his hand in the center of Apollo’s back.
The male took the shot, missed, but he didn’t immediately stand.
“Feel interested to me,” Apollo countered.
Not liking the fact that Apollo was fucking with him, Blāz quickly moved away, shifting to settle the fucking steel pipe that had grown between his legs.
“That’s him,” he told Apollo. “Not me.”
The male’s dark, rumbling laugh had Blāz’s cock pulsing.
“I saw you with Elina earlier,” Blāz snarled. “Don’t play me, healer.”
Apollo stood tall, his bro
ad shoulders squaring as he approached. “No one’s playing here.”
Blāz recalled the way Apollo had been talking to the Fae earlier. The two of them had looked mighty cozy down in the infirmary when Blāz had come through.
Not willing to back down, he faced off with the male. “I’m not sure I’m your type.”
Those pale blue eyes raked over him. “You’re definitely my type.”
“So you swing both ways?”
Apollo met his stare head on. “I tend to go after what intrigues me.”
“Yeah, well, you’re not my type.”
Another laugh rumbled in the space between them, and Blāz forced himself to back away. He had no desire to get into it with the healer. Last thing Blāz needed was to cozy up to an angel. He had better things to do with his time, thank you very much.
Turning his attention back to the game, Blāz lined up his next shot. Sank it. Then another. And another. He let his frustration fuel him as he put all the solids in the pockets, then followed it by sinking the eight ball. When he was finished, he put his stick back on the holder on the wall.
“It’s inevitable,” Apollo said, stepping up behind him, crowding him between his hard body and the wall.
“Only in your dreams,” Blāz retorted.
Warm breath fanned his neck when Apollo said, “Don’t I know it.”
“Notice I said your dreams, not mine.”
“Whatever you have to tell yourself, vampire.”
Blāz knew his body was betraying him as he swayed on his feet.
“Whenever you’re ready, the offer stands,” Apollo rasped, his lips barely brushing Blāz’s neck.
“I’m not sure you can handle me,” he shot off, locking his knees to keep from falling.
“I’m willing to find out if you are.”
Spinning around, he was nearly nose to nose with the male. Blāz was a few inches taller, his shoulders broader, his body bigger, but there was something about the damn angel that made him feel small in comparison. He wasn’t sure what it was, perhaps the dominating personality or the anticipation glittering in those baby blues. Whatever it was, Blāz wasn’t willing to bite.
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