She pulled back, her gaze startled. “What do you mean?”
He dropped his arms, allowing her freedom. “We secreted ourselves in the monastery for a reason, sívamet. Each of us was at his end and yet we did not believe, after living with honor, that it was honorable to take our own lives. Still, we did not want other hunters to have to attempt to destroy us. We knew we were very powerful and it would be a difficult task. We stayed within the monastery, locked away, so humans and Carpathians were safe. Now we are out and in the world once more. Every battle takes a toll. Killing without emotion becomes . . . easy. It should not be.”
She paced away from him and then turned back to face him. “You’re talking about Ferro. You’re afraid for him.”
She was very intelligent and able to read him very quickly. He nodded. “Ferro is the oldest and the most powerful of all of us. His fighting skills are unbelievable. He struggles. He also does little to protect himself in a battle with the undead. He is the ultimate hunter, Lorraine. He would be very difficult, if not impossible, to defeat in battle. If he turns, there will be hunters lost in trying to destroy him. I fear, as do the others, that it would take all of us and many of us would not survive.”
“I have touched his mind . . .”
“You touched what he allowed. Ferro would never allow you to see into his mind.”
“I thought my soul was bound to his.”
“It is. Both our souls are. Sandu and Gary are in that mix now as well. It makes Ferro vulnerable, but just as we can track him, he can always track us. He can find you, Lorraine, anywhere in the world. He will know where you are. There is great danger in that.”
“That’s why you were upset with me for allowing them to bind us all together.” She stood at the wall of rock surrounding the pool of water. When she dipped her hand in, her eyes went wide. “How is this warm?”
“I warmed it for you,” he admitted. He had tried to think of everything she could want. “And yes, that was why I was upset. Sandu would be dangerous. Gary also. But Ferro . . .”
“It was his idea.”
Few things shocked Andor, but that did. “I thought it was the healer’s idea. Why would Ferro suggest such a thing? It makes him vulnerable.” It was his turn to pace. “No Carpathian male would fail to protect a female, and you are my lifemate. The pull to save you would be very strong. There would be that. He is my brethren. There is that as well.”
His attention was caught when Lorraine lifted her hands above her head, pulling her hair up. The action drew attention to her breasts as they rose beneath her T-shirt. He found that very distracting and lost his train of thought.
She smiled at him. “I need a tie for my hair.”
His stomach did a slow roll at her smile. He gave her the tie immediately. She took it and secured the thick mass of chestnut-colored hair in a messy knot on top of her head. For some reason, he found the knot very sexy.
“I thought, with Ferro tied to all of us, he could feel through me and through you. Isn’t that possible? Even just a little?”
“In theory. I hope he can. He will also feel Gary and Sandu and their darkness. That will compound his own.”
“You’re scaring me, Andor. I don’t want to lose him.”
There was more to it than that, Andor realized. Lorraine’s beloved brother had turned into a monster, killing her family. She thought of Ferro, Sandu and Gary as brothers. If Ferro did the same as Theodore and became the very thing they hunted, he would have the potential of killing her new family. It would be history repeating itself, but on a much larger scale.
He didn’t point out that the risk to the women and children residing in the compound was great. Or that the risk to Lorraine, in particular, with the three ancients tied to her, was even greater. He forced air through his lungs. He didn’t just have to worry about Sergey, and whatever nefarious scheme he had hatched against Lorraine, he had to worry about his own brother—whether or not the ancient could hold out against the ever-encroaching demon.
“None of us want to lose him, csecsemõ,” he assured. He found, now that he could feel again, now that emotions were strong, that the brethren in the monastery were family to him. Brothers. They all knew it, but now, thanks to his lifemate, he felt it. He hoped through his lifemate, at least Sandu and Ferro could as well. Maybe that extended to the healer.
Lorraine pulled her T-shirt over her head, folded it neatly and placed it on a nearby rock. She glanced over her shoulder at him. “I want children. Not right away, but eventually. I want to take care of them myself, Andor, not have an aboveground nanny. I want us to be very clear on that. If I can’t be with my own children, then we aren’t going to have them. I mean that. To me, a family is being part of something together.”
“I understand.”
He understood watching her remove her lacy bra had his lungs burning for air. He willed her to turn around. She did so slowly, bending to undo the laces of her hiking boots. The way her breasts curved into two soft mounds, firm and full, swinging with every movement had his mouth watering.
She pulled off her boots and then her socks. “Good. I just want us to be on the same page about this. I need to know our children will live the way we do before we have any. I can’t imagine what it is like for Charlotte and Tariq, to know the children they’ve chosen to adopt can’t be with them for more than a couple of hours.”
Her hands dropped to the waistband of her jeans. He was mesmerized by that small action. He could have waved his hand so easily and removed her clothing, but watching her peel them off, one garment at a time, was not only fascinating, but sensual. She wasn’t even trying to be. If she ever tried, he might not survive.
“I will gather all the information we need, Lorraine,” he assured, watching the zipper slide down, almost as if it was happening in slow motion. The air was being squeezed out of his lungs, leaving them burning and raw.
“Thank you. What is Tariq going to do about those children?”
He sighed. “The boy presents a problem. The little ones will be easy enough, now that we know all Carpathians can help ease the way into our world the way it was done for Liv. Amelia needs to be brought in as soon as possible. She’s suffering. She does not want to be converted until all of them can be. Danny is male. In order for the ritual binding words to be imprinted on him, the ancient warriors have to judge his worth, give consent and pour into him from the line chosen—obviously Asenguard. They would give him their knowledge and their bloodline. He would be reborn a pure Carpathian from that bloodline with all the same powers and gifts given to them.”
“And this has to be done in the Carpathian Mountains? It can’t be done here?”
He shook his head. “No, the ritual must take place in the sacred caves. Tariq plans to travel with the boy to our home and go with him before the prince.”
He watched as she shimmied out of the jeans, the material sliding over her hips and down her legs. She pulled them off and then hooked her thumbs in the lace panties. He could see the little tiny reddish curls the lace tried to cover.
“I want you bare so you can feel my mouth on you.”
Startled, she glanced up, her gaze colliding with his. At once he saw the dark flush of desire staining her cheeks and darkening the green of her eyes. She licked her lips, the panties halfway down her legs. “Bare?”
He nodded slowly. “Bare.” He was decisive. “I want you to feel every lash of my tongue and scrape of my teeth.”
“I can’t feel that with hair?”
“You will be far more sensitive. Besides, I can see every inch of you. I want that, Lorraine.” He didn’t take it. It would have been so easy, but he liked getting her consent. Her cooperation. He liked that she gave him what he wanted, and she was going to. The idea intrigued her. She found it as sexy as he did.
She tugged the panties down and placed them with the rest of her clothes
, on top of the rock. He was beginning to lose focus for anything but Lorraine. He had woken with the usual hunger, but it was far more acute. He craved her taste. He craved her body. He had fed before going to her, knowing he needed to take the edge off. The idea that tonight would be their first night together, going to ground as Carpathians, had him more than exhilarated.
Andor had brought his lifemate to this beautiful cavern because he wanted to give her a gift. This was his gift to her—a place of natural beauty. He knew she understood. He could see it on her face when she’d first entered the cave and seen the walls encrusted with diamonds. When she’d realized the rock formation was a natural pool and he’d heated it for her. The sound of the water playing over the diamonds in the walls was melodic, and the way the gems looked beneath that cascading water added even more beauty to the cave.
All right. Her voice was soft. Whispery. An intimate velvet brushing through his mind.
He waved his hand and the chestnut curls were gone, leaving her skin sleek and bare to him. A woman’s form was more beautiful than all the diamonds and waterfalls in the cave. He moved to her as if an invisible magnet pulled him forward. Catching her around the nape of her neck, he tugged until she was forced into him, her face tipping up for his kiss.
His mouth claimed hers. He was gentle, because he was inherently gentle with her, but the kiss was demanding. Commanding. A ruthless takeover. Her mouth was hot and sweet. His was all fire and domination. One hand came up to cup her left breast, his thumb sliding over her nipple, brushing insistently back and forth until she arched into him with a little gasp.
He kissed his way down her throat and then over the top curves of both breasts. His teeth left little red marks, his claim on her skin. Then his mouth closed over her right breast while his fingers tugged on her left. Rolled. Kneaded. She gave a broken little cry and cradled his head to her. His tongue flicked and laved while his hand and mouth and teeth continued to drive her up higher.
Andor could see the flush on her body, and it was beautiful. There was need in her eyes. Heat. Desire. He kissed his way down to her belly button, taking the time to swirl his tongue there and nip with his teeth, to leave evidence of his passing with faint little strawberries.
Lorraine’s breath hitched as he dropped lower, crouching, nudging her thighs apart. He guided one foot over his shoulder as he circled her other ankle with one hand and ran it slowly up her calf to her thigh. He followed his hand with his mouth, kissing his way up her leg until he reached the inside of her thigh.
Her fingers dug into his shoulders, and she gave another broken cry when he blew warm breath on her slick sex.
I have waited for this. Carpathians do not dream, yet I dreamt of this. Of the taste of you in my mouth. Of hearing your shattered cries and feeling that place of absolute pleasure I can take you to.
He caught her bottom in his hands and pulled her to his waiting mouth. There in the cave, with no one around, Lorraine had no inhibitions and she screamed. He heard the plea in her voice and reveled in it. Now that he had the taste of her in his mouth, he wanted more. He needed more. He took his time, devouring her.
She tasted like an aphrodisiac. The more he ate at her, his tongue and teeth busy, adding his fingers to bring her pleasure, the more urgent the demands of his body. His cock had never been so hard. His blood had never run so hot. He felt her muscles begin to clamp down, heard her breath come in ragged, labored pants.
“Not yet,” he growled, lifting his head, feeling like a feral animal. His need was worse than hers. He gently put her foot back on the floor, one arm a band around her back while he removed his clothes with a single thought. Then he lifted her. “Put your legs around me.”
She complied immediately, her green eyes on his face. There was anxiety there. Hunger. Desire. Everything he was feeling reflected back at him. That need was just as hot, just as all-consuming. He guided his cock to her entrance and slowly began to invade. Those tight muscles didn’t want to allow him entry. He loved the way they gave ground reluctantly, gripping at his shaft, massaging the crown with hot, terrible friction.
He threw back his head, a guttural sound escaping. It was ecstasy just being inside her. Wrapped in a scorching hot fist of silk. He kept the pressure steady, unrelenting, pushing through her muscles, inching his way deeper and deeper until he was buried in her, fully seated. Her nails bit into his shoulder and her eyes were wide with passion. Her fingers were linked at the nape of his neck, her arms outstretched, so that he could see her breasts and where their bodies were joined together. It was the most sensual-looking image he could imagine, other than when her mouth was on his cock.
He began to move, slowly at first, listening to the way her breath hitched and she moaned. A musical rhythm punctuated each stroke of his cock as he surged into her. He picked up the pace, going from gentle to a little harder thrust, watching her breasts jolt, watching her body swallow his cock. He had enough girth that she was stretched around him, and bare the way she was, he could see that, see her take him. That added to the sensuality.
He felt her body begin to clamp down harder and harder, squeezing his shaft. Gripping him so tightly he thought he might detonate the cave when he blew. His fingers dug into the cheeks of her bottom, urging her to ride, helping her move on him while he thrust faster, deeper and much harder. Her moans had gone to a fever pitch of music, a crescendo. He heard a roaring in his ears. His balls felt on fire. His legs burned. There was a conflagration in his belly. All of it began to come together into a perfect firestorm burning right through his cock.
Her sheath was an inferno—a blazing inferno wrapped tightly around him. “Andor.” A plea. “I can’t hold back.”
“Then come with me now.” He managed to bite out the command through gritted teeth.
The explosion was already sweeping through him, both heaven and hell mixed together so it was impossible to tell which. The storm was brutal, fire lashing at them, consuming them, burning them both alive and leaving them completely spent. He didn’t know if the pleasure was that great or the pain that exquisite, but he knew he wanted to experience it again and again—with her.
Lorraine collapsed in his arms, her head on his shoulder, her body completely spent. She’d given everything to him, just as he’d given to her. He simply floated over the rock wall and sank into the water with her still seated on his cock. He found a low ledge and sat, his arms around her, while both tried to find air for their lungs again.
She didn’t move or speak for a very long time. He held her, enjoying the way her body fit into his and his fit into hers. It felt as if, for a time, they shared the same skin in the way they shared their minds. She stirred first, not moving her body, but moving through his mind.
Just checking to see if we’re both alive.
That first whisper of her voice filling his mind always got to him. His heart clenched. His stomach tightened and his cock jerked. She set off a chain reaction with just that one small murmur. It felt intimate. Like the stroke of her fingers. She was brushing his nape with the pads of her fingers, absently caressing his skin, and he felt something similar, but deep inside his mind.
If not, it was the best way to go.
I agree. I didn’t have any idea it could be like that, did you?
He knew her taste would set him off. He had her in his mouth. He wanted her there forever. He needed to take her blood. Not enough for a true exchange, but to satisfy the hunger that refused to be quenched by any other’s blood. It was not a physical hunger that he needed to feed. It was erotic. Sexual. Primal.
I saw others and felt what they experienced throughout the centuries, but like you, could not possibly know what we would be like together. I suspected.
She pulled back to look up at him, her eyes dancing with mischief. “You are such a pervert. You watched others?”
He shrugged. “How else do we learn? Not Carpathians. If I had tri
ed that, I would not be here today. I told you we study what we need to keep our lifemates happy.” He dipped his head to kiss her chin and then blaze a trail of kisses down to her left breast. His tongue swirled there and his teeth scraped back and forth persistently.
“I don’t know whether to be turned on by that or horrified.”
He nipped at her skin. Felt the jump of her pulse. He closed his eyes, savoring her reaction to him. Lorraine never seemed to shy away from his needs. “Be turned on,” he suggested.
“I’m giving it thought.”
She pulled back farther to give him better access. One hand came up under her left breast, cupping it. His cock swelled, beginning to stretch that hot, delicious sheath all over again. It was just the way she looked, offering herself to him. He couldn’t resist. He sank his teeth deep, hooking into that vein, at the same time, lodging in her mind to feel everything she felt.
She cried out, pain flashing through her. It was erotic, that bite, and a flood of liquid heat surrounded his cock. Then her blood was bursting over his taste buds, filling him with an ecstasy all its own. He shared that with her. The heat. The hunger. The need and terrible craving. The way his body responded. He held nothing back from her.
You taste exquisite. I have taken blood for centuries, and never once has anything come close to what you taste like. The moment I have you in my mouth, my cock craves you the way my hunger does. It mixes together until I cannot separate one need from another.
That was pure honesty. He wanted to devour her blood. Devour her special honey, the one spilling from between her legs. He wanted his cock in her. Along with all of that, he wanted to be in her heart and mind. He needed all of those things. It was difficult, with her taste filling him, to stop. He forced discipline and drew his tongue over the twin holes on the upper curve of her left breast.
He rocked and his cock moved in her. Water rose around him, licking at his skin. At hers. He brushed a kiss on top of her head. “You amaze me, the way you have accepted my people and me so readily.”
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