Sharpen the Blade (The V V Inn Book 6)

by C. J. Ellisson

  A flash of despair flits across her mind, squashed before she allows it free rein. Where does the despair come from, what worries her? Unwilling to allow any of our outside stresses, any of the problems we’re facing, to come between us, I decide to take her choices from her. To force her desires to the surface.

  I reach into my underwear and haul out my swollen length, lowering the fabric until it supports my balls, pushing them up on display. Unwilling to beg for her touch, I stroke my own flesh, pumping one roughened fist up and down, watching as my wife’s laser sharp focus zeroes in on my every stroke.

  “Where do you want it, baby?” I ask. “Do you want to touch it? Or do want it in your mouth?” My own breathing becomes rough as I continue to stroke my flesh. “Do you want to feel me deep inside your pussy?”

  The power rushing through my veins feels heady. I know I can take her all night. Over and over again. I will make her scream and writhe in pleasure.

  Her thoughts meld with mine. Enticing me to stroke a bit faster. She’s waging an internal battle of whether or not she wants me to finish this way. Whether or not she wants to watch me reach completion, shuttering and moaning my pleasure through my own efforts, because watching me touch myself turns her on—or whether she wants to bring me off on her own.

  “Or maybe, just maybe, what you really want is me pushing gently into your ass?” I grin as her breathing hitches. “Don’t worry. You know I can eventually make it fit.” Her mouth opens in a small little O of surprise. Glancing down, I see what has triggered her response. Moisture weeps from the slit of my cock, tempting her to lick and suck it, to draw the salty goodness into her mouth.

  With her blood strengthening me, it’s like a triple dose of Viagra winding me up all night. I know from past experiences I’ll be able to reach multiple releases, my cock never softening all night.

  I smile as her hidden thoughts come to me. “You’re a bad girl, Dria. You want it all, don’t you?” Yes, yes, she does. I can feel it in her mind, she desires everything I mentioned. My slick dick cramming down her throat, my flesh slapping against her hips as I pummel deep inside her moist heat, ohh… and then the tight, silky confines of her ass as I slowly slip back and forth in forbidden bliss.

  “I will give it to you all, my love. Everything your heart desires.” My wife meets my gaze and smiles.

  Her sharp canines have elongated, and her eyes bleed black with desire. “Oh yes, I want it all. And I will have it.”

  And with that, she leaps, her body slamming into mine and staggering me back a step. Her midsection flattens my cock against my stomach, as she reaches up on tip toes to drive her teeth into my neck. I hold her close as pleasure spills throughout my body from the wound. The ritual words spill from my lips as they did before I drank her blood.

  “My life is your life, the blood in our veins will bind us for all eternity. There is no beginning, there is no end, there is only one. We combine to make a bond that is unbreakable, binding your soul to mine.”

  CHAPTER SIX

  JON

  After running for a half hour to calm down, I storm into the cabin, my face still hot with anger and indignation, and slam the door shut. Candy sits on the couch in the small living room, her face composed and unreadable.

  “What the hell do you think you’re doing, pretending to be a goddamn dog to a master vampire? Were my instructions to stay in the cabin so repellant, you had to find something more fun to do?” My arms wave around while my voice gains in volume, my eyes widening in desperation. Guess that run didn’t help as much as I’d hoped. “Jesus, Candy, she could kill you with a freakin’ thought. Why couldn’t you just wait?”

  I stalk over to Candy’s position on the couch, practically looming over her in my agitated state. Her long, dark wavy hair, lean strong body, and uncluttered beauty call to me, reminding me of how much I’ve missed her the past few weeks. It requires work on my part to resist the urge to take her in my arms and kiss her senseless—especially when my first instinct is to shake her for her recent actions.

  A goddamned dog! What was she thinking?

  “Hi, honey,” she says, keeping her voice level and quirking up an eyebrow, like she’s talking to a crazy person or something. “Good to see you, too.”

  “Don’t ‘hi, honey’ me. What the hell game are you playing?”

  Her face changes quick-fire, her mouth turning down and her expression closing. That’s one way to tell me she doesn’t like my tone or my words. I’m stepping onto tricky ground, and I know it. But dammit, doesn’t she realize the danger she’s put herself in?

  “Are you done?” she asks, reaching up to twist her necklace between her fingers.

  “With what?”

  “Are you done yelling at me? ‘Cause one thing I know for sure—I don’t have to have to put up with anyone talking to me like that.”

  Did she really think we’d be talking about this bullshit quietly and calmly? “Like what? Like I care about what happens to you?” I turn from her and begin to pace the tight confines of the cabin. It’s an energy-releasing habit I know I picked up from tiny, scary, and bitchy, but I can’t help myself. The movement helps keep control of my inner wolf. “Like I worry for your safety—especially when you heedlessly put yourself in harm’s way with an incredibly powerful, and volatile, vampire? Am I supposed to meekly sit back and never voice concern over your actions?”

  “News flash, bucko: I survived a long time on my own before meeting you. Give me some credit.”

  “Really? Credit for what, hiding in the shape of a man while living in a werewolf pack? You shift form and think that makes you safe? Is that the same logic you applied to changing into a dog and cozying up to Vivian?”

  “Give me a break. Just because I did things in my past, or present, different than you would, doesn’t make it wrong or dangerous. Have you thought through what will happen when she finds out?”

  “Of course, I have!” I stop pacing and turn to face her. “That’s why I’m so pissed off you’ve pulled this stunt.”

  She tilts her head to the side and looks at me, making me stare into the brown eyes I’ve missed and wish I could drown in. “What do you think will happen, Jon?”

  “I think she’s going to be fucking pissed you lied and pretended to be a dog.”

  “No, Jon, that’s not what I’m talking about. What do you think will happen when she finds out about us, about you and me sleeping together? Having a relationship? Or how about me living here in your cabin on her property? A stranger, cozying up to her vampire servant?”

  “I... Uh…” I look away, annoyed I don’t have an answer at the ready. “Truth be told, I don’t know exactly what will happen. I’ve never been in this situation before, but I can guarantee it would have gone smoother if you hadn’t made her fall in love with a freakin’ dog she’ll never get to keep.”

  She brushes off my words about Vivian falling in love with a dog. “I’ll tell you what will happen. Are you listening? Really listening and not ready to fly off the handle again?” I reluctantly nod, doing my best to curb the raging temper and control my inner beast. “If you and I become a permanent item, she’s going to insist I swear my loyalty to her—and more than likely, she’ll do that with a blood bond. Immediately. She’ll make me her vampire servant just like you. Anything else could leave her open to danger down the line. And she knows it.”

  I stare down at the woman I’ve resisted admitting to myself that I’m falling in love with, and really see her sincerity and worry. She’s afraid, too. But brave enough to try something crazy because I matter to her. All at once, my anger leaves me. She’s right. Dammit. I may not agree with her methods, but she could be reading the situation correctly.

  Vivian might very well not give her a choice. She may make her submit to a bond immediately. Especially at a time like this, when our enemies are actively seeking more soldiers. I don’t want to think about it. And maybe that’s my problem. I haven’t wanted to think about the consequences. I�
��ve been too busy trying to see if what we have is real.

  Unhappy with the distance separating us, I sit on the couch next to her, and try to pull her close with one arm. “Hey, that may not be what she does.”

  She chuckles, a mirthless sound if there ever was one, and I can feel the tension inside her as she resists my embrace. “You can continue drinking that Kool-Aid of delusion all you want, but I bet you my life she’ll bind me to her.”

  I rub a hand across her shoulder blade. “Being bound to her isn’t so bad. She’s a kind person under the pointy teeth, red hair, and flashy clothes. She’s been exceptionally careful with me and has never tried to take my free will.”

  “But you had a choice in the initial bonding, didn’t you?”

  “Yes, of course. If anything, I kind of pushed her into it.” At her raised eyebrows I add, “That’s a story for another time. But you’d have a choice. I’m sure of it.”

  “Hah! Yeah, sure. I’d have a few minutes to decide my fate—maybe. If I was lucky.” She adjusts on the cushion, turning to face me. “I needed to get to know her, Jon, on my own terms—before I make a choice that could affect the rest of my life.”

  “Wow, that’s kind of heavy when you put it like that.”

  “Now add in the fact we’ve only known each other for a month. Would you be so eager to blindly sign over your freedom, blood, and possible sanity, without some kind of hands-on background information first?”

  Considering the time we’ve known each other is probably exactly why I didn’t examine the consequences too closely, I opt instead to address why she’s behaving the way she is. “Is that what you’re doing? Playing as a dog in some misguided attempt at research?”

  “Playing?!” she shouts, pulling from my lingering touch and standing up to tower over me. “I was in disguise. This is not a game to me. Not at all. This is my future. And I resent you thinking I’m trying to play a damn game.

  “Do you have a better idea for getting close to someone you don’t know, who could kill you in a blink, but you want to get to know them, somehow, without their knowledge? Frankly, I thought the plan was rather ingenious. How else could I be near enough for her to let down her guard and have a chance to get to know her?”

  “Come on! Do you really think tagging along as a dog will help you ‘get to know her?’ Don’t kid yourself—she’s not human, and normal rules don’t apply. She’s a manipulative, dangerous, and deadly creature. What is there to get to know?”

  “You just said she was kind! And I have learned valuable information on my own already—she also loves animals, she’s loyal, protecting who and what she loves, and she’s just the type of person you want on your side in a fight. She’s not some self-centered, power-hungry, killing machine like a few of the other vampires I’ve known.”

  “That’s right, you’ve said you have experience with vamps before. That’s how you knew to give me advice when we had the big game hunt here this spring.”

  “Yes. I knew if you and I were going to make it past a few months I’d have to commit to your master. And that’s a big step. She may be reasonable about letting me leave if you and I don’t work out, but I bet it would only happen if I agreed to a mind-wipe.”

  “You really think you’d have any choice in ‘agreeing’? If a master vamp doesn’t want you to know something, you can pretty much bet your life that you won’t know it for long.”

  “Dammit, Jon,” she says, her voice rising with her intense feelings. “That’s precisely my point! How could I assess my risk if she was expecting me? How could I see what type of person she is underneath the mask of leadership and power if she reined in her behavior to not scare off her servant’s potential mate?”

  Mate.

  My heart stutters in my chest.

  Wow. Did she say mate?

  Could this thing between us really be real? Could I have found someone for the rest of my life? Could we lead a pack together? I want her in my life more than I’ve wanted anything in a good long time.

  I wait a moment, unsure how to respond. This could be more than I ever dreamed possible.

  “What?” she demands, uncertainty blooming on her face over my silence. “Did I say something else to piss you off? Or maybe you would prefer a mindless bimbo who can’t think for herself?”

  A soft smile crosses my face. “Do you really think we could be mates?”

  “Of course, I think we have a possibility, you dolt.” She returns to the couch and sits close to me, grabs my face in both hands and stares into my eyes. “Do you really think I would have stayed here once I learned you belonged to a master vampire if I didn’t think we could have a real future together?”

  My arms wrap around her, drawing the sexy shifter close and squeezing hard, a squeak of surprise emitting from her. I nestle my mouth between her head and shoulder, planting a soft kiss on her neck. I drift further up her necklace and my lips singe in pain.

  I draw away and stare at her necklace. “Are you wearing silver? What the hell?”

  “I’ve had this on for weeks, didn’t you notice it before?”

  “I guess I never kissed it by accident. How can you wear silver?”

  “Shape-shifters don’t react to silver. Our issue is with copper. In addition to it burning us like silver does for Weres, it’s antibacterial properties inhibit our ability to hold another form. Didn’t you know that?”

  “If you’re the first shifter I’ve known, how would I know?”

  She nods in agreement. “Okay, good point. Sorry I didn’t tell you sooner. I’ll take it off.”

  As she reaches up to remove it, I halt her hands. “Leave it.”

  “Really? I don’t want to hurt you by accident.”

  “It obviously matters to you, where did you get it?”

  “My parents gave it to me. A long time ago.”

  “Then that’s even more reason you should keep wearing it.”

  She shakes her head, and pulls her hands free, reaching for it again. “I can easily put it back on when we’re done.” She kisses my mouth lightly while slipping the chain from her neck and putting it aside. “I’d rather not burn these delectable lips. They do good work.”

  I laugh and draw her close, the happiness inside bubbling to get free. “Good to know.” I resume kissing her neck, stopping between each one to whisper. “I’ve dreamed of finding someone to spend my life with.” My breath hitches with emotion, and I push past it. “For too many years, I feared I’d always be their third wheel.”

  Her arms shift to embrace me, one hand moving up and down in a soothing motion across my broad shoulders. “Oh, honey, she’s a good woman. She never took your heart and used you. She left you free, at least as much as she could, for you to find your own happiness. From what I’ve seen and heard from you and others, she’s a fair person. Her primary focus appears to be safety—that of her husband, the inn, and the seethe.” A soft chuckle escapes her. “And she’s got a soft spot for dogs.”

  I pull back and gaze into her eyes. “That’s another thing. How did you know to pick a Pit Bull?”

  “I saw an old black and white picture of Viv and Rafe posing with a Staffie in their office. A Staffordshire Bull Terrier is kind of a smaller cousin to the Pit, I figured it was a close enough match without being too suspicious.” At my look of alarm, she continues. “I swear I didn’t break in and go through their stuff while you were out of town—I’m bold, not stupid. We were in there when you were searching for a file, remember? That’s when I noticed the pictures sitting among a few collected pieces on the shelves. They looked really old—black and white with a tannish hue.”

  My face relaxes. “Good, because frankly I don’t know the full extent of her abilities. I’d hate to discount the chance she could possess some type of super-sniffer and would know someone not in the seethe was in their apartment.”

  “Nope, rest assured, I didn’t do anything illegal. Despite what you think of me taking the form of a dog to get close to her, I do
have some sense of self-preservation. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have survived in Romeo’s pack as long as I did—despite you thinking I was ‘hiding’ as a man. Some situations you just steer clear of, like nosing around someone’s private things without an invite to do so, no matter how tempting it may be.”

  “I’m glad you’ve got a good head on your shoulders.”

  She arches an eyebrow. “Is this the same guy who barged in here a few minutes ago ready to rip me a new asshole?”

  Regret seeps in, but I refuse to feel guilty. “Come on… don’t hold it against me. I was scared and you didn’t tell me what the hell you were doing or why.”

  “Uh-huh. God forbid your girlfriend has an idea of merit on her own?”

  “Don’t go putting words in my mouth, Candy.” I smile, aiming for devilish and full of innuendo. “I’d much rather have something else in my mouth.”

  My hands trail down, whisper soft and full of promise, but not pushy in case she’s still mad and not interested. A sigh escapes and tension leaves her body, as if she’s melting into my touch.

  Not hearing a no, I take things further, lowering her to the couch and proceeding to kiss my way from her ear down her neck. Another soft sound of acceptance spills forth, encouraging me further, and I bite down gently on the skin between her neck and shoulder, mimicking the traditional bite werewolves use to mark a mate. A shiver shudders through her, seeming to coax her back from the edge of sensual bliss.

  “Oh, really?” she rasps in a teasing tone, as my fingers delve under the edge of her shirt. “What else could you want in your mouth… my tongue?”

  I chuckle against her heated flesh, and nip her once more. God, I want so badly to bite through her flesh and mark her as mine. In time, I remind myself, in time.

  Deciding on my next point of attack, I ease her shirt up, exposing her stomach and sheer bra. Drawing the stiff point of her nipple into my mouth, I suck the tip, gently biting down when her back arches in pleasure.