And then he leaned forward and met her parted lips, closing his eyes as warmth filled him.
It was a slow, slow kiss—the kind that said seduction, the kind that lured you in like smoke curling around you. Her mouth was the sweetest thing he’d ever tasted, and her tongue was the hottest thing he’d ever experienced. Gently, he angled the kiss deeper, until gentle wasn’t gentle anymore and everything became a hot, racy sensation.
Hands dug into his waist, fingers holding desperately as she tilted her head up and kissed him back. Fuck, if she wasn’t the warmest vampire in the world.
Warm and soft. Delicious.
He nipped her lower lip, had the pleasure of hearing her make a sound against his mouth as their tongues did a sensual dance. Unable to help himself from tasting further, he removed his mouth from hers and cruised his lips down her throat, even while he pressed his body against hers.
“You’re trying to seduce me,” Lucinda accused. He had the satisfaction of hearing her voice turn unsteady as he continued his ministrations. His hands steadied her waist before sliding up and settling just below her breasts.
Fingers tightened on his waist again before she abruptly pushed him off, panic setting in her eyes.
“We can’t do this,” she said.
“We already are,” he murmured with a groan.
“This can’t turn serious,” Lucinda insisted—yet her hands did not move, instead sliding up to his chest. “This is—you’re just attracted to me because you shared your blood.”
Bull.
“If that’s what you think,” he agreed unconvincingly.
“I can’t submit to a shifter’s seductions.”
There was a charge-filled pause.
And then it was Lucinda pulling him closer and kissing him again, body molding against his and making every pulse inside him roaring.
Nothing was slow this time, and Finn became bolder as his fingers trailed inside her dress, sliding against soft thighs before reaching a whisper of cloth. He touched the cloth, felt her moisten and couldn’t resist sliding a finger in, touching her core, wet and warm and pulling tight against him.
A thousand words of pleasure sunk in his head as his finger sunk inside her. His mouth continued kissing hers, mimicking the movement of his fingers in a fast, steady rhythm, feeling her wind tighter and tighter, going to that precipice where control was gone and only pleasure existed. Higher and higher as he curled his finger.
Lucinda exploded in a combination of heat and power, a highly sensitized orgasm that had Finn going harder inside his pants, had his desire for her reaching a scale of unbelievable proportions. Images of taking those breasts in his hands, of kissing her continuously as his cock slid inside her wet heat filled his mind, and the dragon inside him urged to take, to pound inside her until he found his own bliss.
Her body slumped against him, and the images faded. The scent of her orgasm filled his nostrils, and Finn buried his head in her neck as he fought the overwhelming need.
Eventually, the roaring settled down to a steady beat, and Finn found their arms still wrapped around each other.
And he knew he was in too deep.
*****
In the end, Finn respected her last request—that of not spending the night in her cottage and causing further complications. He ended up taking the taxi close to headquarters neighborhood, stopping a few blocks away to take a leisurely stroll.
He passed darkened alleys and kept on alert, but no rogue vampires crossed his path. He supposed that was a good thing, considering the last few years Robbie was here, the streets were practically rampant with them. He was bound to believe it was good luck, though a part of him thought it good leadership on Lucinda’s part for keeping them off the streets.
The familiar building of their headquarters loomed ahead, and Finn immediately slipped inside the side entrance, kept secret from most prying eyes. He passed some shifters he knew by face, some by name, though not enough to call them friends, as he wasn’t really a regular visitor of this place. Robbie had been the point person before—and now it was Henrik, leaving Finn and Charlie out and about on missions assigned to them.
The resident doctor shifter, Annie, swept past him in a flurry of blonde curls, giving him a gaze of recognition followed by a friendly, warm smile.
“Finn! Didn’t expect to see you here.”
Finn grinned. “Hi, Annie. Long time.”
“Long time indeed. You on a mission?”
“Guess you could say that,” he replied vaguely. “Have you seen Henrik around?”
Annie’s eyes shifted to something behind her, where Finn sensed a movement. There was a deliberate clearing of throat that had Annie smiling again before excusing herself, leaving Finn alone.
Well, not entirely alone.
“You certainly have a lot of explaining to do,” Henrik commented as his hello.
Finn turned around and smirked. “Tell me where to begin.”
Henrik sighed. “Come on. Masters would need to hear this.”
*****
As predicted, Dylan wasn’t pleased. His frown became deeper by the second as Finn calmly listed down the reasons why he needed to keep guarding Lucinda, even if the vampire clan no longer asked the shifter clan of it.
Henrik listened in silence with a thoughtful expression on his face, keeping his opinions to himself as Finn finished. Silence descended the room as his explanation was absorbed.
It was Dylan who spoke first.
“So you think it is viable to continue being the vampire leader’s guardian even if you’ve already been dismissed?”
“By Oscar, who holds no say in the matter to begin with,” Finn replied promptly. “It was Lucinda who requested for our help in the first place.”
Henrik nodded his head slightly in agreement. “He’s got a point, Dylan.”
Silence again. Then Dylan sighed. “If you really believe it will not be detrimental to our future relationship with them… then you may continue with your task. I’d hate to have a war with the vampires in my hands, especially with Mya still at large.”
“It will be,” Finn confirmed. “If I keep Lucinda alive, then she’s our best chance for keeping the peace.”
Dylan clasped his hands together, nodding his silver-blond head and brown, wolfish eyes boring into his. “Make sure the mission remains a secret.”
Finn nodded, knowing any sign of the agreement would still be met with hostility by the other shifter clan leaders.
“I’ll take care of that,” Henrik promised in a murmur.
The casual meeting was adjourned as Dylan headed off to attend more meetings, leaving the two behind at the entrance of his office. Henrik signaled Finn to follow him, and they walked in companionable silence until they reached Henrik’s official quarters on the south wing. He ushered Finn inside, letting him sit on the available couch as he rummaged in his luggage, then headed for the mini-bar in the room’s small living room area.
Henrik handed Finn the cup of coffee and glass of brandy first, and Finn accepted both gratefully. A few sips later, the dragon clan leader handed Finn something else: two small vials containing a gray, cloud-like liquid. The gray color was darker than the one Henrik had given him before.
“Same potion,” Henrik confirmed before Finn could ask. “Stronger, can last longer hours. A day, tops. Use them wisely.”
“Sophia’s getting more talented at this,” Finn commented with admiration.
Henrik smiled. “She’s always been. Now rest up. You have a long day ahead of you tomorrow.”
With his mind resolved and his body tired from the long trip and the tense meeting with the vampires, Finn followed Henrik again as the other led him to separate quarters—not as lavish as Henrik’s, but the bed looked soft and inviting.
His thoughts returned once more to Lucinda, and the way she let go of her control for a few seconds in his arms.
Then he followed Henrik’s advice and crashed into sleep.
CH
APTER THIRTEEN
The battle was to take place behind vampire headquarters, where a magic spell similar to the one at Lucinda’s house concealed a vast area that resembled an outdoor battle arena, but with the sunlight covered by another spell. It was where the battles had often been held, the alternate location being in a remote area in Southeast Asia—an island surrounded by white sand and tropical sea. Naturally, the vampires hated the light and preferred New York, so the alternate was as good as dead.
Lucinda was early, of course. It was never her habit to be fashionably late, especially when it came to witnessing the fight of vampires who could potentially be her allies in the long run. She was wearing a long dress the color of emerald green—a flowy thing that subtly brought out her curves and the color of her eyes. It was one of her favorite dresses, and she paired the outfit off with a simple chignon twist of her blonde hair and diamond earrings. Silver heels completed the look, sparkling every time she crossed her legs.
The arena was halfway full by the time she got there, and Lucinda wasted no time in getting seated and waiting for the first fight. She sat with most of the council members at an area reserved for them, sort of like a box elevated higher than the other seats. Oscar was there, wearing dress robes the color of gold and decidedly stiff as he waited beside her.
“Good morning, Oscar.”
“Good morning.”
Those were the only words between them, and Lucinda inwardly sighed in relief at the lack of chit-chat.
The first battle started in exactly twenty minutes, with an announcer telling the crowd the names of the participants. Lucinda recognized the first as the crown prince of a small city in Europe, Eli, and his participation surprised her enough to have her attention focusing. Battling Eli was Diego, the apprentice of a council member who had readily volunteered yesterday.
No weapons or magic were allowed during the battle, as their strength were often tested by their sheer body and mind power. The two parties walked to the middle of the arena, standing in soil and waiting for the gong to sound. Once it did, the fight started with no preamble, as the two vampires charged each other with unbelievable speed.
Eli won easily enough, with Diego delaying the win only by a few minutes and some notable blocking moves. The way Eli spared Diego's life after, even offering his hand towards the fallen loser, told Lucinda exactly what kind of leader he would be should he win. She quietly noted him down in her mind, hoping to see him again—winning—in the upcoming fights.
The next to step in the field were the middle-aged council member named Hugo and the young member Mary. Mary looked fiercely beautiful in her fighting pants and corset top, her face filled with determination. Hugo's face was blank.
The gong sounded, and the fight began. Mary showed a finesse and grace that reminded Lucinda of graceful predators circling their prey, while Hugo showed immense brute strength. This fight was longer than the last, with the two fighters a perfect balance as they tried to bring each other down. The first minutes were in Mary's favor as she delivered blow after blow and knocked Hugo down once, and the crowd was roused as the fight was about to come to an end.
Then Mary messed up suddenly at her last kick, and Hugo didn’t think twice in grabbing the leg still in the air and throwing her down. He slid on top of her, fangs showing out as he used both hands to grab hold of her neck, then twist it, and pull it out of her body. Blood sprayed on the ground, and Mary’s head was tossed aside like a ball.
Out of the corner of her eye, Lucinda saw Oscar give the whisper of a smile and nod in approval. She herself kept her expression as blank and serene as possible, not saying a word as Mary’s body was removed by assistants and the arena was cleaned efficiently.
The killing was pointless, but for some, it was a show of power.
For others, it was simply for sport.
“You just lost yourself one council member,” Lucinda murmured, unable to help herself.
Oscar glanced at her before turning his eyes back to the ground. “We always have the means to replace.”
It sounded like a threat more than anything, even if the delivery was mild. Lucinda chose not to comment.
Raphael came next, pitted against a French female warrior who served as an ambassador in Rome. It was twice as long as Hugo’s and Mary’s battle, with Raphael showing his skills with the utmost passion of someone craving to win. He fought with precision, reminding Lucinda exactly why he’d been second-in-line before she dismissed him. Obviously, he wanted the role back. The female warrior, a redhead named Dana who was older than Lucinda by a few years, gave as good as she got—but what she had in strength and power, she lacked in stamina as the battle wore on and her face took on a tight expression. Soon, Raphael was taking the lead, and he easily beat Dana during the last few minutes as he delivered a powerful punch that knocked Dana out cold, but not dead. The crowd went wild, a testament to Raphael’s popularity, and he nodded his head in acknowledgment to the cheers. Then his lean body, which had crouched down during the last punch, turned to Lucinda as he stood back up.
Dark eyes met hers, and he bowed down at Lucinda as if she were his queen. Sincerity and grace radiated in his movements, and the crowd’s cheering only grew louder.
Lucinda didn’t tear her gaze away from his, meeting it head on. It was Raphael who finally broke the connection as he walked out of the arena and the announcer shouted the next set of names.
And the fight continued.
*****
The battle wore on until late afternoon, and Victoria became prominent as the unknown, new player who beat everyone she ever came across. Her sultry beauty made her a popular bet, and the idea that she was sired by the governing council head gave her the nod of approval from most of the crowd.
It should have pleased Lucinda that she was potentially going to be working with someone powerful physically and politically, but an unsettling feeling stayed in her stomach as she witnessed Victoria’s fights. While the woman exuded the qualities of a vampire who could potentially be a strong future leader, her methods involved a brutality that just skimmed the surface. Any longer in the vampire world and it was going to come out—and possibly unleash a force that would do more harm than good to them all.
The only one matching in power to Victoria was Raphael, and Lucinda wasn’t sure she was ready to forgive him yet for selling her out. But Raphael never killed his opponents, merely incapacitated them temporarily to win and move to the next round.
None of Victoria’s opponents lived.
Victoria’s battles mostly finished first, and Oscar didn’t waste any time in watching the others still lined up to fight. He bid the other council members goodbye and gave a stiff nod in Lucinda’s direction before leaving, and soon the other members left one by one as well. While the crowd still hadn’t dwindled in the regular seats, Lucinda was left alone in the elevated box, trying to keep her own interest from waning as more fights commenced.
A few minutes later, she found her eyes trying to close and had to blink the several times to keep them open.
“Eyes on the ground, sweetheart. We wouldn’t want our uptight citizens thinking you’re not paying attention.”
Finn’s familiar voice snapped her upright as she glanced around subtly. She was still alone in the elevated space, meaning…
“Invisibility potion.”
“My ever convenient friend,” Finn said in amusement beside her.
“How long have you been here?”
“Since the first fight, but I’ve been roaming. I have to say, your spot here’s the best so far.”
Meaning he’d been taking the role of guardian and had mingled with the vampire crowd, invisible, for a good day without getting detected. The fact that no whiff of suspicion arose meant he was just as good with stealth as his fighting skills.
Images of last night and the way she fell apart entered her mind, and her breath stopped at how raw and fresh it still felt. She’d initially thought him harmless, just a guardian
who would eventually be out of her life.
He was far from harmless.
And she was in danger from far more than him getting caught.
They watched the second to last fight in silence, kept the silence as the announcer shouted the names of the last two opponents. Lucinda knew them, but for the life of her couldn’t recall their status in the vampire world as her body became hyperaware of Finn beside her. Despite not sensing him at all, she knew he was there—could practically feel the warmth radiating from his body, just as it did last night.
His hardness had been rubbing against her thigh when she came last night, and it wasn’t a feeling she was going to forget anytime soon.
A warm hand rested on her thigh, branding her skin through the dress' soft material. She held herself straight and kept her gaze on the fight, and he took it as assent and rubbed his palm in a circular motion—much like a caress, but more seductive.
An invisible mouth settled on her ear and kissed. She shivered.
“Cold?”
“No,” she said out loud.
More, her mind screamed.
The hand that was rubbing slid up inside her skirt, thumb smoothing whisper touches before settling over her panties. Arousal pulsed inside Lucinda, a primitive beat. She closed her eyes when his finger slid in, controlled her breath when he started a motion that was bound to make her come undone.
Cheers rose from the crowd, announcing that a crowd favorite had won again. Her eyes opened to see, but her vision blurred as he hit the spot she needed the most—that one spot that sent desire higher and higher, setting her body trembling. She was going to come. She was going to come apart again.
In the middle of a scattering of predators who'd kill him when they found out.
Reality crashed like a group of boulders crashing over her body. Abruptly, Lucinda stood up, disconnecting any contact with Finn as she realized the big mistake she was making. The earlier thought returned, clear and bright as it flashed through her mind over and over.
“I love you, Lucinda.”
His words rang loud and clear, and her heart soared. Then it crashed to the ground again, just like her reality, and she cast it aside to preserve her own sanity—and his.
Dragon: The Clan Legacy Series Page 21