He walked over to the table and picked up the bowl. He had not seen a living plant since before he had been sentenced to Windsong. He didn’t even believe it possible to nurture such things here but there it was, full and alive. The leaves were thick and supple and scattered around it were small buds where new growth would soon make an appearance. It was beautiful.
“Where did you get this?”
“I had Ian bring it to me. It’s yours.”
Hunter stared across the room at her, filled with surprise and concern. The bowl he had in his room held nothing but dirt, dirt that he had brought with him from the gardens of his old homestead. He had felt the need to bring a piece of home with him when he had first come here. Being that it had been roughly a century ago, he had let go of that part of his past and simply kept the bowl to change the dreary scenery of everyday life. It was not pretty. It did not hold sentimental value. It simply was. But now, filled with lush foliage Hunter could hardly take his eyes from it.
“How did you do this?”
Talia approached him with caution and as she stopped in front of him, she removed the bowl from his hands and placed it back on the table.
“My gift grows stronger every day and every day, the plant does as well. Like all living things, I am linked to it and it does as I do.”
Hunter believed that he was an intelligent man, that he had spent the last century of his life putting his time to good use and learning all he could about all things magic. He felt that it had been an important task and that someday his knowledge would be of use. Now, he wasn’t so sure. He wondered if most of what he had read had been lies conjured by the Council of Elders, released to the masses purely to satisfy their simple need for knowledge, no matter how real or untrue the knowledge actually was. From what he had learned from his readings, new life in the Keep was not possible. That was why babies were never born there. It never occurred to him that there could be another reason, a reason so simple yet so amazing that it came wrapped in the beautiful package that was Talia.
She was a Light. A gifted so unique that only one was ever in existence at a time. Their power was stronger than any magic ever created or passed down from generation to generation, and there was not a single soul who could stand up to one and win. The gift was said to breathe life into everything that surrounded it and to maintain the natural balance of magic itself. The key element to the tales of a Light, though, was that they were all fables. Stories of an ultimate power that every magical being desired and searched for, that the gifted fought wars over, and that the Elders adamantly claimed did not exist.
Hunter knew she was a Light. She had told him so during their first meeting, but hearing her say it and seeing the truth of it were two different things.
When he looked down into her crystal-blue eyes, he no longer saw the Sleeping Beauty that he had helped rescue. He saw a precious gift that had been discarded into the darkness of the chambers, simply to be forgotten and never found.
He saw hope in a world where it no longer existed.
Chapter Nine
“Who else knows about the plant, Talia?”
Hunter’s words had come out almost as if he was scolding her, but she did her best not to take offense. Worry often brought out a harsher side to people and although she could see the concern on his face, she knew that he was also feeling a great sense of purpose. She reached out and took his hand in hers, no longer fearful that he would pull away, and led him over to her bed. When she sat down, he stood above her for only a moment and then positioned himself beside her.
His chocolate-brown eyes stared deep into her soul and as much as she desired for him to lean over and kiss her, she doubted he would. Hope had opened up about bits of Hunter’s past while he was off keeping his distance from her and had warned her that if she truly did want to be with him, she would have to be a patient woman. Talia thought perhaps it was Hope’s intent to sway her to forget about him, but Hunter had become her sole desire and she was not about to give up on him. It was strange, though, to be so drawn to a man that she barely knew. They had no history together, he was not familiar to her in any way, and up until the day he saved her from the Veil they had had no knowledge that the other existed. All of that aside, Talia wanted him. He was a unique soul with an even more unique gift and his ability to wield it with ease was impressive to her. He may have believed that his gift controlled him, but Talia had seen an Empathic gift control its bearer and Hunter was far more in control that he could ever imagine.
“No one else knows. I brought you here so that I could show you and the only other person who has stepped foot in my room is Hope. Of course, she doesn’t look at my décor, or lack thereof. She comes here to check in on me and to talk about Ian. Sometimes you as well, but mostly Ian.”
“You don’t entertain your friend here?” Hunter eyed her with great intensity and Talia was having a hard time reading him.
“If you are referring to Josef, I do not entertain him at all. And he is my friend, but that is all he is or ever will be.”
She watched as Hunter closed his dark eyes and lowered his head so that his chin rested in his chest. His shoulders were slumped and his breathing appeared to become labored. Talia had not seen anything that could have caused such a change in his demeanor and immediately felt concern. She reached out her hand and placed it on his forehead, feeling for the onset of a sudden fever but when she touched him, his flesh did not burn with sickness. Talia ran her fingers up through the thickness of his black hair and down to the base if his neck.
In response to her touch, he slowly lifted his head, and in his eyes burned a desire that took her breath away. Before she could speak, Hunter leaned forward, grabbed her face in his hands, and firmly pressed his mouth to hers.
Talia accepted his advance without hesitation and as their lips parted, their tongues swirled together and desire flooded through her body. His mouth was warm and sweet and as his lips moved across hers, she savored every moment for fear that he would pull away and run.
As if in answer to her concern that he was about to leave, Hunter pulled out of their kiss, looked deep into Talia’s eyes, and smiled. He shifted his body up further on to her bed and leaned his back up against the pile of pillows, taking Talia’s hand and pulling her to him. He guided her up so that she sat straddled atop his lap, and as the swollen bulge of his penis pressed against her, he whispered, “I will only leave when you are ready to be rid of me.”
“Then you will never leave.”
Hunter placed his hands on her legs just above her knees and slowly moved them up her thighs under the hem of her dress, caressing her skin with his soft touch. As he traveled his hands along the roundness of her hips and up the sides of her slender stomach, he leaned his head back closed his eyes and pulled in a deep breath. She could feel the pulse of his penis under her as it continued to swell with his desire.
Talia knew that he not been with a woman during his time at the Keep. A century of solitude, by his choice, as penance for his crimes. She reached down, grabbed ahold of the dress, and lifted it up over her head, revealing her near naked body so that he might see that she willingly gave herself to him. She was not enchanted, was not seduced by his gift. She was there with him because she wanted him, not because his gift had snagged her.
She placed her hands on his face and lifted his head so that he could see her.
“Hunter, you know my heart. You know that I am here of my own free will and that my desire for you is true. Please look at me.”
When he opened his eyes, his dark-brown stare drank in her body and she felt beautiful. He moved his hands up and pulled free the knot that had kept her cotton wrap tightly bound around her breasts and freed them. They were full and round and her pink nipples hardened against the sudden chill of exposure. Hunter cupped each breast in one hand, kneading them softly as he rubbed his thumbs across her nipples. His touch gave her more pleasure than she could recall ever experiencing and her pussy moistened with desi
re. Leaning forward, he ran his tongue across each nipple in turn before he pulled one into his mouth to suckle at it. He pinched the other one between his fingers and Talia’s pussy began to throb and ache for release.
Hunter released her nipple from his mouth and leaned over to give its twin the same affection, and as he did so he trailed his fingers down in between her ample breasts, along the flat of her stomach and down into the crevices between her thighs. He slid his fingers across the folds of her skin and as he pushed them open, he revealed the pulsing nub of her clit. She felt him push his finger down in between the folds of skin and drag it along the juices that were already dripping along the lips of her pussy. With a slick finger, Hunter made circles around the tip of her clit and Talia couldn’t help but call out for him. His touch caused her desire to build up within her and as she yearned for release she pulled his mouth from her breast, kissed his lips and leaned back so that she was lying on the bed.
She kept her legs parted and she felt Hunter shift so that he was now hovering above her. He leaned down and licked then kissed each of her nipples before trailing her body with more kisses. His lips were soft and his kisses were light and airy as he moved down along her stomach until he reached the small patch of pale-brown curls that led to her pussy. With gentle fingers he combed her hair away and revealed the bright-pink nub that was hidden within. Anticipation flooded her and she parted her legs even more, begging him to consume her.
His mouth hung in the air just above her and Hunter stretched out his long tongue, slowly dragging it up the full length of her wet pussy and along her clit. Talia’s body shuddered with need and she fought the urge to push his mouth onto her. His slow movements were intoxicating and although her need was building beyond her ability to hold back, she craved Hunter more and more. She felt him drag his tongue along the full length of her wet pussy again, lapping the juices that flowed for him, and when he reached her clit, he pulled it into his mouth and suckled it like he had her nipples. A tingling sensation began to flow through Talia’s entire body and as he sucked harder, the sensation grew more intense. She pulled in fistfuls of linens, tightly closed her eyes, and tilted her head back as her back arched. She could feel the release building and as it did her breathing quickened and her throat became dry.
As he continued to suckle her clit, Hunter reached up and pressed a finger deep inside her pussy, then another. Slick with desire, she was still tight around his fingers, and he began to rapidly pump them in and out. Talia cried out his name and begged him to keep going. She could feel her orgasm on the verge and as he pumped his fingers deeper into her pussy, she reached it. Her panting cries echoed throughout her room and her body was consumed by the explosion of her release. She pumped her hips in rhythm to Hunter’s movements and then pushed them up as every muscle in her body flexed. She released another outcry of his name as her juices flowed. Hunter released her clit from between his lips, pulled his fingers free, placed his mouth over the lips of her pussy and drank the fresh, hot liquid that pulsed from her body as she came. He consumed her with the exuberance of a starving man and did so until there was nothing left.
When her body collapsed, Hunter pulled his mouth from between her legs, wiped the remnants from his lips with the back of his hand, and lay down beside her, pulling her into his arms as sleep took her.
* * * *
As Talia opened her eyes, the grogginess of sleep caused her vision to be slightly blurry and she ran her hands over her face to help wake herself up. She was lying on her bed naked and alone and as she looked around her room, she felt a twinge of sadness in her heart. She had expected to wake still wrapped up in Hunter’s arms, but her room was empty other than her. As she sat up, she saw her dress lying on her bed and quickly pulled it on over her head. Shame began to take over her heart and she wondered if he’d left her there because he had regretted their night together.
Images of the desire she saw in his eyes filled her sight and she pulled in a deep breath as she recalled how his hands had felt as they caressed her body. She needed to find him. He didn’t impress upon her that he was one to play and run, but then again she was his first since being at Windsong so perhaps he struggled with acceptance.
As Talia stepped out into the corridor, confusion slammed into her. She was surrounded by the palace of her youth. The lush carpet was soft against her feet and the air smelled of flowers and spices. Many gifted were walking down the corridor and the sounds of their voices as they carried on private conversations echoed off of the walls. None of them seemed to pay her any attention, which was a relief. Embarrassed by her gray smock and her short, unnatural brown hair, she was more than happy to go unseen. She felt a sudden need to hide in her room and wait for Hunter to hopefully return, but when she turned to go back in, there was nothing there. Her door had vanished and the wall behind her was whitewashed with a single painting of an orchard in its place.
Panic filled her and she recalled her mother’s final words from the last time she was here.
“I see you, Talia” echoed through her mind and she frantically tried to think of an escape.
She turned and ran down the corridor, unsure of where she was going, yet knowing that she could not simply stand and wait for the Shadow Witch to find her again. As she turned one of the corners she found herself face-to-face with Josef. He stared at her with sinister eyes as he reached out and grabbed her arms.
“I’ve been looking for you.” His voice was low and laced with anger and hatred and he tightened his hold on her arms, digging his fingers into her flesh.
“I–I was in my room,” she stuttered.
“With him?” Josef’s question seemed to be more of a statement of fact rather than an inquiry so she simply nodded in response. Tears sprang to her eyes as his fingers dug deeper into her arms and she could feel his nails break through her skin, causing the warmth of fresh blood to appear.
“Release her!” A deep voice echoed down the hallway and as Talia looked up, she expected to see Hunter come to her rescue but instead found Xander. He was tall and muscular and beyond intimidating, and as he approached, his long black hair flowed with his movement. The deep lines in his brow heightened the look of anger that had settled on his face and Talia found herself mesmerized by him. He was a beautiful man and his dedication to her safety made her heart soar.
How could she have ever forgotten him? He was the love of her life and they had sacrificed everything to be together. She called out to him as her head filled with memories of their secret life together. Stolen kisses, secret rendezvous in the darkest shadows of the palace, and a night of passion so intense…
Pictures of their last night together flooded Talia’s mind. Their lovemaking interrupted by the angered Shadow Witch, Xander’s sudden death at the hands of her mother, and the large Blood Diamond that had pierced the palm of her hand. Tears filled her eyes as the hurtful memories shattered her heart, and as she tried to blink them away, she found herself once again alone in the corridor. Josef had vanished, as had Xander, and there was not a single gifted anywhere to be found.
Her arms still throbbed from the tight hold that Josef had had on her and her hand was suddenly in intense pain. When she lifted her palm to inspect the damage, she saw the small hole left by the sharp pavilion of the Blood Diamond. The injury was red and angry with infection and blood dripped down her hand and along her wrist. At the sight of it, Talia’s heart began to beat in her head and the corridor started spinning at a speed that caused it to be a blur in her vision. Nausea overtook her and as she leaned over to be ill, she suddenly found herself lying on the cold stone floor of her room, completely naked and shaken to the core.
As she sat up and looked around, Talia rubbed her arms where Josef had dug his fingers as he held her and although there were no tiny incisions from his finger nails, her arms still ached with the pain of it.
“Who’s Xander?”
Hunter’s voice startled her and she looked up to find him staring down at her
from atop the bed, his eyes showing a hint of sadness. She had no words of comfort for him. Her heart had once belonged to someone else and if it had not been for his death, she knew it still would. Her dream had brought forth the raw emotions of their love, of his murder, and of her heartbreak over it all. She did not have the strength or the desire to squash her feelings and spare Hunter the pain, so she simply stared back and offered the only explanation she could.
“He is my past.”
Chapter Ten
Panic coursed through her veins as Faith thumbed through yet another book that had no explanation for her condition. She sat alone in the vast library of the Keep surrounded by mountains of books, each one leading her to yet another with promises of the answers she sought.
As she slammed the large leather-bound book closed, another wave of nausea fell upon her and she leaned over to be ill in the bowl that sat beside her on the floor. When she could no longer produce even a small amount of stomach bile, she sat up, took a long drink of water from the glass in front of her, and ran her hands up across her face and through her hair.
Even during her life before Windsong, she had never been so severely ill. She took a deep breath, pushed away the tanginess that tickled at the back of her throat and flipped open another book. Inside, it talked of spells and curses that she had already read about, and just as her frustration built and she was about to give up, she read the symptoms of this curse are not unlike what a woman with child would experience.
Another wave of nausea came over her and as she fought it off and gulped more water, tears began to fall from her eyes…A woman with child. It was not even possible at the Keep to create life. It was part of the curse that had been bestowed on the Keep during its creation. A protective spell set in place to prevent overcrowding, mixed breeds, and most likely any form of joy from creeping in. It was the only thing that had made any sense though. The timing of her moon cycle had come and gone without event. She could barely hold down water and her breasts were so tender that the pain of touching them made her eyes well with tears.
Waking Beauty [Windsong Keep] (Siren Publishing Allure) Page 8