by I. T. Lucas
20
David
Sari dropped her purse on the table and opened the hotel-supplied restaurant and entertainment guide. “We should order takeout before everything closes.” She sat on the bed and started flipping through it. “There is a surprisingly good selection of restaurants in this little town. What are you in the mood for? There is Mexican, Indian, Thai, and the usual assortment of fast-food offerings.”
“The question is whether any of the restaurants are good.” David walked over to the window and parted the drapes. “And also, whether any of them are still open. In small places like this, everything usually closes at seven.”
“It probably depends whether it’s the tourist season here.”
“It’s not.” He joined Sari on the bed. “It ends in October.”
“Then we should hurry up.”
“I’m not hungry.” He smoothed his hand over her shoulder. “Not for food, anyway.”
“What about Lisa?”
“She had a sandwich at the hospital cafeteria. She should be good until breakfast.”
“I’m worried about her. She didn’t take the news about Frank well.”
“It’s not easy for her, that’s for sure. But she made it very clear that she wanted to be alone and that she is going to keep the connecting door between the rooms closed.”
“Did she mean it, though? Kids sometimes say one thing when they mean another.”
“She meant it.” He cupped the back of Sari’s head. “Does it make me a bad son and brother that all I can think about is making love to you?”
“It doesn’t.” She leaned into him and kissed him softly. “I want that too, but first, I need to make sure that Lisa is taken care of and that we have something to eat when we get hungry. Let’s at least get some snacks.”
His Sari always considered everyone else’s needs before hers.
“Can’t you ask Bowen or Magnus to do that?”
“That’s a brilliant idea. I’ll ask them to get the stuff and leave it by the door because we are tired and going to sleep.”
“Are you tired?”
She gazed at him with hooded eyes. “Do I look like I am?”
That was a dangerous question. If he told her that she looked tired, she might get offended. But if he said that she looked fine, she might think that he wasn’t attentive.
Sari wasn’t like other women, and he didn’t need to navigate around potential minefields with her, but it never hurt to use a little diplomacy.
“You look as stunning as always.” He brushed her hair aside and trailed his lips over her soft cheek. “Do you want me to call Magnus while you take a shower?”
“I have a better idea. I’ll text him, and then we will both take a shower.”
“I like the way you think.” He kept trailing kisses down her neck. “But, since I’m an immortal now, I would like to test my new stamina. We can start in bed and continue in the shower.”
“I need my phone to text Magnus.”
“Yes, ma’am.” David got up, retrieved Sari’s purse from the table, and handed it to her.
“Thank you.” Reaching inside, she pulled out her phone.
He sat behind her and continued kissing her neck as she typed the message. When his teeth scraped the delicate skin, her fingers faltered. “Can you please stop for a moment? I can’t type like this.”
“You are a demigoddess.” He kissed the spot he’d scraped. “You can do anything.”
“You’re so bad. Aren’t you supposed to be the good guy?”
“Good guys are no fun.” David smoothed his hand up Sari’s ribcage and cupped her breast.
She gasped, and as a whiff of her arousal reached his nostrils, a wide grin stretched over his face. “You smell delicious. I want to eat you all up.”
A shiver rocked Sari’s body. “Later.” She cast him a glare. “Now, let me finish this text before the stores close.”
“No problem.” He let go of her and whipped his shirt over his head.
Her eyes traveled over his bare torso. “That’s not fair. You are still distracting me.”
Smirking, David pushed to his feet and rested his fingers on his belt buckle. “You don’t have to look.”
“Oh, but I do.” She lifted the phone. “I can speak my message while watching you.” Her eyes didn’t leave his chest as she activated the speech to text feature. “Magnus, can you please send Bowen to buy food before the stores close? Please leave the purchases by the door. David and I are going to nap.”
“You’d better check it before hitting send. God only knows what the dictation software did with your Scottish accent.”
“Right.” Sari’s smile turned into a frown and she looked down. “It’s fine. William improved the voice recognition software on clan-issued devices.” She dropped the phone on the nightstand and leaned back against the headboard. “Now I can give you my full and undivided attention. Please proceed.”
“Would you like me to strip for you, Madame Chairman of the Board?”
Sari grimaced. “Did I sound too formal? Too bossy?”
“You sounded commanding.” David released the buckle and went for the zipper. “Which is sexy as hell.” He lowered it slowly, and as he pushed his pants down, Sari’s amused expression turned covetous.
21
Sari
The slow striptease ended when David kicked off his shoes, toed off his socks, and then pushed down his jeans faster than Sari had ever seen him do before.
Just like his improved sense of smell, his speed was fast approaching that of an immortal. Curiously, though, his fangs hadn’t started growing yet.
Should she be worried?
So much had happened since David’s induction that it seemed like weeks had passed when in reality, he’d woken up from his coma just the day before. Under normal circumstances, his gums would have started hurting in a day or two, but given the stress he was under, it might take longer.
Still, there was no reason for concern, and instead of worrying needlessly, she should concentrate on her mate, who, for some reason, had left his briefs on. Was he suddenly shy?
“I need to kiss you.” He climbed on the bed and took her mouth.
Starting soft and sweet, David worshiped her mouth, and as he deepened the kiss, Sari’s inner tigress took over, and she pushed him down on the mattress.
Straddling him, she rubbed her core on the hard ridge, which was regrettably still covered by fabric, and devoured him with her lips and her tongue.
It had only been a couple of days since the last time they had made love, but she was starved for him as if they hadn’t been together in months.
He seemed just as hungry, pushing her trousers and panties down without letting go of her mouth.
She lifted just enough to whip them off her legs and then went back to rubbing her nude center over the fabric of his briefs. Still kissing her, David tackled her blouse buttons, but he was fumbling, and there were too many of them, so she impatiently tore off the last two and tossed the garment on the floor.
The bra was next, and as David leaned up and took her nipple between his lips, an electrical current blasted through her body.
The feel of his hard length pressing against her core was like a promise of bliss, and it would be even better without the barrier between them.
Lifting off him, she reached her hand into his briefs, but as she gripped his velvety smooth shaft, David jerked and let go of her mouth.
Sari loosened her grip. “Did I hurt you?”
“No, sweetness. I’m just too close to the edge. If you touch me, I’m not going to make it to the promised land.”
“We had this conversation before.” She moved her hand back inside, brushing her fingers over the mushroom head. “The night is still young, and we can make love as many times as we want.” Moving down between his thighs, she lowered his briefs just enough to give her access and wrapped her hand around the hot length.
David caught her wrist and looke
d into her eyes. “I want to be in you when I come.”
His tone was demanding, but his eyes were pleading, and Sari was helpless to refuse him anything when he looked at her like that.
Releasing him, she pushed back on her haunches and dropped her arms by her sides.
His eyes blazing with heat, he lurched up, and in one swift move, had her lying on her back with him on top of her. Gripping her wrists, he pulled her arms over her head.
David didn’t say anything, but he paused and looked into her eyes as if asking permission.
Sari was more than happy to grant it. She had no problem relinquishing control to him and letting him take the driver’s seat.
“I love you,” she breathed. “And I need you.”
His eyes softened, and he kissed her, pouring his love into the act instead of saying the words back to her. And when the kiss turned hungry and demanding, he answered the second part of her statement.
He needed her just as much as she needed him.
Hungrily. Ferociously.
With his lips kissing and sucking, his teeth nipping and scraping, and his hands kneading and pinching, her fire turned into an all-consuming inferno in seconds. Then his finger glided inside her wetness, and Sari was catapulted to the ledge overlooking the precipice.
A feather would have been enough to push her over. Instead, it was the heel of his palm pressing against the center of her desire.
As the orgasm exploded out of her, she had to bite his shoulder to stop herself from screaming.
David groaned, and a moment later, his hard length was poised at her entrance.
When had he shucked his briefs?
Lifting onto one arm, he looked into her eyes as he surged forward.
“Yes!” Sari gasped.
He took her mouth, silencing her as he pulled back and surged in again.
Forgetting all about her implied promise to keep her arms over her head, Sari buried her fingers in David’s muscular bottom and arched up.
Kissing her deeply, passionately, he tried to go slow, but then his control snapped, and he began to move faster, harder, deeper, and she was right there with him, arching up to him and spurring him on.
Except, when things got out of control, only one of them could remain in the driving seat, and Sari surrendered.
Somewhere in the back of her mind, Sari was cognizant of the fact that Lisa was in the next room.
Perhaps later she would feel embarrassed, but right now, she didn’t care.
The bed seemed to be anchored to the floor, and the only sounds in the room were their ragged breathing and the slapping noises of their bodies. Nevertheless, the music of their desire was loud enough even for mortal ears.
Swept away by the intensity of their lovemaking, Sari was once again climbing fast toward a point of no return, and as the rubber band snapped, she released a silent scream into David’s mouth.
His arms tightening around her, he thrust once, twice, before erupting inside her.
For long moments, neither of them moved. With their chests fused together, she couldn’t tell which erratic heartbeat was hers and which was his, or where she ended and he began.
Lifting his head, David kissed her softly. “Thank you.”
Sari chuckled. “No, thank you.”
“You know what I mean. It isn’t easy for you to give up control. I’m thanking you for trusting me to take care of you.”
She cupped his cheek. “I trust you with my life, David. How could I not trust you with my pleasure?”
Instead of answering, he kissed her again, but as his shaft twitched and then swelled inside her, he lifted his head with a bewildered look on his handsome face. “You weren’t kidding about the speedy recovery.” He withdrew and then thrust back again. “I feel like Superman.”
Wrapping her arms around his torso, Sari laughed. “You were always a superman to me.”
22
Kalugal
As Kalugal walked into the master closet, he found Jacki looking at an open suitcase overflowing with her folded garments.
“Why are you packing already?”
“I want to take my time and decide what to take and what to give away.” She waved a hand at her section of the closet. “But I love all of the things that you bought for me, which is a lot. But then most of those things are not going to fit me in a couple of months, so perhaps I need to donate them.” She sighed. “I don’t know what to do.”
He took her hand. “Easy. Shamash will pack all of your things, and you can decide later which you want to donate. The halfway house girls would be thrilled to get a bunch of nearly-new designer clothes.”
“That’s true. I didn’t think of that. I was worried about taking too many suitcases with us on the plane. I don’t want to arrive at the village with a mountain of luggage, looking like some spoiled rich man’s wife.”
“No one will know what’s in the suitcases. They would assume it’s mostly my stuff.”
She glanced at his side of the closet. “You have more clothes than I do, which means two mountains of luggage.”
“So what?” He pulled her into his arms. “I don’t care what they think, and I don’t want you obsessing over nonsense. Let Shamash take care of it.”
“I don’t want Shamash to handle my things. It still feels weird to have people serve me. And since you found out about the pregnancy, you’ve not let me do anything. Do you want our child to have a crazy mama? Because if I don’t find something to do, I’m going to lose my mind.”
“You have a charity to run.”
She rolled her eyes. “That takes care of half an hour a month. What about the rest of the time? You have your business and your hobby to keep you busy, not to mention your grand plan for taking over the entire world.”
He ignored the jibe. “You can do whatever you want as long as you don’t overexert yourself. You can read, take online courses, and do whatever else can be done from the comfort of the couch.”
“I need to stay physically active. It’s not healthy for the baby or for me to sit around all day.”
“You can go for walks. With me, of course.”
“That actually sounds nice. We can take morning and afternoon strolls through the village, sit in the cafeteria, and meet up with friends. I’m really looking forward to our new life there.”
“I’m glad.” He kissed her forehead. “Whatever makes you happy makes me happy.”
She eyed him from under lowered lashes. “You don’t sound very convinced. What’s bugging you?”
“Nothing you should worry about.” He waved a hand in dismissal. “I don’t like the idea of staying in a small, basic house that has no room for my staff. I was thinking about forgoing a security detail and having Atzil and Shamash stay with us instead. We will get one of those three-bedroom houses, so each of them will have his own room. Or they can share a room, and I’ll put two more men in the other.”
Jacki grimaced. “The beauty of a small house is that we don’t need to have staff to take care of it. I was actually looking forward to having it all to ourselves.”
“And who’s going to cook for us?”
“I will.” She lifted her hand to stop him from answering that. “Pregnancy is not a disability, and pregnant women all around the world are working and taking care of their homes and their children. Besides, I love to cook, and I even like tidying up.” She put a hand on his shoulder. “How about it, Kalugal? Do you want to play house with me until our mansion is ready? I can show you how to use a duster.”
He assumed a mock horrified expression. “I’m not licensed to carry such a dangerous weapon.” Placing his hands on her hips, he pulled her against his body. “But seriously, my men are getting paid to serve me. If I don’t have work for them, they will become restless and start looking for trouble.”
“So, what are you saying? That I have to let them clean and cook for us?”
“I’m afraid so. It’s one of the drawbacks of being my wife. I know it’s a
huge sacrifice, but there is just no way around it. I’m so sorry.” He kissed the tip of her nose. “Let me make it up to you with great sex.”
Jacki burst out laughing. “I don’t know how you can say stuff like that with a straight face. You’re such a comedian.”
Kalugal pretended to scowl. “Do you think that I’m joking? Everything I said is true. I don’t have enough work for my men out here, and I will have even less in the village. I don’t need them to guard the gate and patrol the grounds.”
“They will be busy courting the ladies.”
“True, but that’s not a full-time job.” He sat on the wardrobe bench and pulled Jacki onto his lap. “It’s important to feel needed and useful. Regrettably, most of my men are ex-warriors, and that’s all they know how to do.”
“I have an idea.” Jacki shifted to get comfortable. “You could open up a private security firm. That’s a perfect job for them. Or you can have Kian hire them for his rescue missions.”
“I like the private security idea. I don’t want them working for Kian.”
“Why not?”
“Because I will lose them to him. The reason I wanted to have my own section of the village was not security. I need to retain control over my men.”
“You wanted to build your own place because you are a snob, and you didn’t like the modest accommodations Kian was offering you.”
“That too.”
“What about your archeological digs? Can’t you use your men for that?”
“None of them are interested in archeology, and digging is beneath them. I need to give them work that’s suited to their particular talents. That’s why I like the security firm idea. What I don’t like about it is having to manage it.”
“Let Phinas or Rufsur do it. Or maybe one of the others can manage it.”
Kalugal shook his head. “Once it’s up and running, I can assign it to someone else. But none of my men are capable of lifting a business off the ground.”
“Perhaps you are underestimating what they can do. After all the years they’ve worked with you, I’m sure they’ve picked up some skills.”