His mouth skimmed over the edge of my butt. His firm hold pulled me backward so that he was right under me. Then he lowered my hips. “I want to taste you, Elena, but you can’t touch me yet. I have to get you caught up.” I felt his mouth outside my folds, and my core clenched. “You’re so wet, and I still haven’t touched you yet.”
His words set my skin on fire, and an ache filled me, which needed relief. “Do you plan to torture me all night, Tobias, or will you give me what I’m willing to beg for?”
His tongue swept the length of my folds, from back to front, then settled on the nub, making me cry out. His torture of pleasure progressed as he continued to lick and suck, bringing me higher and higher until I was begging for more.
“Suck me, Elena,” he said in a rough voice. And as I grabbed him and covered the head of him with my mouth, he prodded my entrance with a finger, delving in a mere inch.
My core clenched and I climbed dangerously high, unaware of anything around me but what was happening to me right now. My magic was ecstatic, begging for release with me, the tendrils reaching out to him at every place our bodies touched.
I took him further into my mouth and swirled my tongue around him. When I pulled back, I let my teeth scrape the length of him and over his head, then plunged back down, trying to take him deeper this time while I held his balls in my hand.
I wasn’t sure how it was possible, but Tobias’s tongue found new ways to push me higher and his finger entered me even farther, curving around until he touched a place that shot new sensations throughout my body.
Aroused to the point of near breaking, I started to take him in and out of my mouth in earnest, but it was hard to concentrate as he brought me even higher.
He grabbed my shoulder and pulled me slightly upright, so I couldn’t reach him. “Your hand,” he grunted, still between my legs. “Use your hand.” Then he grabbed my left hand and placed it on his chest over his heart. The magic in me leapt for joy as the tendrils found his just below the surface, his energy begging for release.
Then Tobias resumed his task until I was lost in the sensations, forgetting I had a task of my own.
I took him in my right hand, my left hand on his chest. Leaning forward to reach him while keeping my hand on his chest, I felt close to losing my balance, but he wrapped his free arm around my waist, holding me in place.
I was so close the magic in me strained to touch his. And then he inserted another finger, pressing on the spot inside me as he pressed against me with his tongue, and I lost all sense of time and place as our magic connected. I was vaguely aware that he was coming too, as wave after wave wrapped around me. His magic burst to life, and the energy in me rushed around his, mingling and dancing, overjoyed to be together.
As I fell from my great height, I realized my fall was cushioned by puffs of air, lowering me gently next to Tobias.
14
The journey the next day was rougher than the two before. A new storm had blown in, and while the snowfall was lighter, the wind was bitterly cold. My guards wore two layers of clothes, and they offered a small gold coin to the owners of the house to get a heavier wool dress for me, as well as heavier underclothes. The family was so grateful they threw in a fur-lined hat and mittens.
The previous owner of the clothes—I was guessing her to be a daughter or daughter-in-law—had been slightly larger than me. While the belt holding my sword helped cinch the waist, there was nothing to help keep the sleeves from drooping down, and I was thankful for the heavy wool cape and fur throw over my lap. The one good thing about the dress was that it was made for more practical things like riding astride, even if the concession had been a wider skirt. I’d started to cut through it anyway, but Liam stopped me, saying my legs would be warmer with all the layers, and he had been right.
By noon we’d made little progress trekking into the wind, and Liam stopped to check his map.
I stayed on my horse, but he walked over to check on me, putting his hand on my leg.
My magic had awoken as he approached, then sprang to life the moment he touched me.
“How are you doing?” he asked, worry in his eyes.
“I’m fine,” I said through chattering teeth.
His eyes became troubled. “Would you tell me if you weren’t?”
I didn’t answer.
His mouth tipped into a frown. “That’s what I thought.” He glanced over his shoulder. “Matthew. Elena rides with you.”
He stood next to his horse and tipped his head while Liam reached for me.
“Liam, I’m fine.”
He tugged off my mitten and grabbed my hand, placing it on his neck, presumably to see how cold it was, but the thing in me became excited, and to my embarrassment, I moaned.
Since he didn’t react, I had hoped he hadn’t heard me, but he reached for me and effortlessly pulled me down and stood me in front of him. He cupped my cheek with his bare hand and leaned closer, kissing me lightly. “Soon, Elena.”
His words sent a shiver down my back. He tenderly replaced the mitten back on my hand and swooped me up in his arms, then carried me to Matthew who had already climbed onto his horse.
“You don’t have to do this, Matthew,” I said as Liam handed me up.
He placed me sideways on his lap. The magic in me danced, but in a different way than with Liam, as though she was happy to be back with her lover, Earth. But I could tell that Earth was smaller than the others, Fire and Air, and my connection to Matthew suffered.
“Matthew,” I whispered, “I’m sorry.”
He looked down at me in surprise. “Why, little flower?”
“I didn’t . . . You didn’t . . .”
He kissed my forehead and smiled down at me. “There will be time.”
But would there? There was no way Leonardo would let me go now that Trevor had proof I possessed magic. We were in more danger than ever before, and only Dax’s and Tobias’s magic had been fully awakened. And they hadn’t even tried to use it yet. Matthew was only half awoken, and Finn and Liam were powerless.
Liam tucked my fur blanket plus two more around me, and I grabbed his hand, grateful for the fur-lined mitten between us. “Liam, I think Dax and Tobias should practice using their magic. We might need it.”
He looked up into my face. “I’ve considered that myself, but I think it’s safer to use as little magic as possible until we see the priestess.”
“But what if we come across another corsair? Or Trevor and his men?”
Tobias laughed. “Trevor has no men.”
I frowned. “Leonardo has plenty of men.”
“It will take him days to get them,” Liam said, patting my knee. “I still hope to reach the temple tomorrow.”
“It will be late tomorrow at this rate,” Matthew said.
“We’ll push for it anyway,” Liam said, then headed back to his horse.
By the time Liam had remounted and continued our journey, Matthew had me wrapped up tight in his cape.
“This isn’t fair to you,” I said after a few minutes. “This can’t be comfortable. I’m smashing your legs, not to mention I’m buried under a mountain of fur and wool while the rest of you are exposed to the elements.”
He chuckled. “I’m burning up with you on my lap, and don’t forget I carried you before. I’m thankful you’re in better shape this time.”
“But what about the others?” I asked. “They’re in the cold.”
“We’re fine, Elena,” Dax said. “We have more muscle to keep us warm.”
“I thought it was fat that kept people warm,” I said.
“Have you found any of us to be fat so far?” Tobias asked.
Finn looked pissed, but the others ignored him.
Wrapped up and cuddled next to Matthew, I soon found myself asleep.
I stood on the steps of a temple of snow-white stone that faced a raging ocean, wearing a white gauzy dress that fluttered in a warm breeze. Thirty-foot-tall fluted columns soared over my head, an
d a pair of dracnas stood on top of the temple peak, their wings tucked to their sides.
I was alone, without my guards, but I knew they were in mortal danger.
“Elena of Garius, Heiress of the Kingdom of Light, do you willingly give yourself to join with the Kingdom of Darkness?” a woman’s voice asked.
I held out my hands, lifted my gaze to the blanket of stars overhead, and whispered, “I am ready.”
I woke with a start, and Matthew’s arms tightened around me.
“You’re okay, Elena. I’ve got you.”
I snuggled deeper into him. Was that a dream bringing my fears to light, or was it a premonition?
“Just a dream,” I said.
He leaned down and kissed my forehead. “We will protect you, little flower. You are ours from now until eternity.”
I stared up at him in shock.
A soft smile spread across his face.
I wasn’t stupid or naïve enough to think I could fight off Leonardo. I’d been lucky before, and while my men could easily fight off twice as many men, they couldn’t fight off an army.
The magic in Matthew called out to mine. It was a mournful song lovers sing when their betrothed marches off to war, begging their love to return to them, only it was sung in magic, not words. I didn’t know how I recognized it, but I did. Maybe the bit of Matthew that I had put me in tune with him, or perhaps it was the sorrow seeping from my magic that clued me in. My magic cried out too, but not in the desperate way it had reached out to him before. Was it too late?
I shifted and my hand brushed against Matthew’s crotch, and I realized he was hard. I rubbed the heel of my palm against him, and he sucked in his breath.
I grinned to myself, still snuggled against him, and continued to rub him until he reached under the blankets and grabbed my wrist.
I looked up at him and pressed a kiss to his neck. “Doesn’t it feel good?” I whispered.
His hand loosened its grip but didn’t let go.
“I didn’t know before,” I whispered. “I didn’t know you had to come too. I’m sorry.”
“You had no way of knowing, Elena. I told you we thought it only had to be you.” He kissed my forehead again, but this time his lips lingered and then kissed me again, and I took it as permission.
I blindly reached for the fastenings on his pants, lowering them enough to expose the garment underneath. I quickly dispatched with that as well, and his erection sprang free. I wrapped my hand around it, surprised at how big it was, but then I thought about how big the rest of him was.
He was at the back of the group as usual, and he allowed the others to gain a little distance from us. His hand tightened on the reins, and he grunted, “You don’t have to do this, Elena.”
I looked up at him and pulled his face down to mine, then kissed him, full of passion and more confidence than I’d had with him the first time. My hand moved up his shaft, and I squeezed the tip.
His face rose and he grinned down at me. “You are full of surprises.”
“Good, I hope.” Then I realized we weren’t whispering, and I jerked my head to see if the others could hear.
As though reading my mind, Matthew said, “Between the wind and the distance between us, they can’t hear us.”
“Will Liam make us move up closer?”
He paused for a moment, then said, “Not unless there’s danger.”
I gave him one last kiss, then tucked my head under his chin, and I added my other hand to his shaft. “I’d hate for you to get cold.”
He laughed and I loved the sound, so rich and deep, so full of life. But that was partly why I was doing this—to make him whole, and while I didn’t know for certain, I suspected I needed to have my hand over his heart to make this happen. I tested my ability to get my arm up his chest so I could reach his heart and found that it was easy enough with his uncinched shirt.
As I was finding my way up his shirt, he was tugging up my dress and shift. “I like your other dresses better,” he said with a hint of teasing.
“For what it’s worth, so do I,” I said, returning my hand to his erection. “Liam insisted.”
“He was right to insist,” he said. “I’ll make do.” A bunch of fabric piled up in my lap. He untied the string on my new breeches, a pair that Tobias had loved informing me belonged to a twelve-year-old boy. Though I was sure he had a mock insult in there somewhere, I’d just been grateful for a warmer pair, but now it was impeding Matthew’s progress.
“Do you need help?” I asked with a grin.
“I’ve been unfastening breeches for most of my life,” he grunted as he finally got it free. “If I can’t unfasten yours, then I have no right to what’s underneath.” His hand slipped under the fabric, then between my legs.
“You have every right,” I said with a hitch in my voice.
His finger dipped inside me, and I moaned louder than I’d intended, but the others were even farther away.
“Won’t they wonder why we’re so far back?” I asked.
“No.” His mouth lowered to mine and he kissed me, his tongue mimicking his finger, while his thumb began to rub me. I might have bolted off his lap if I hadn’t been holding on to him.
“I’m close, Matthew.” The magic in me had come alive and raced across my skin, the tendrils aching for him. It had waited for hundreds of years, and I had teased it with Mathew three nights ago. It was ready to be whole. It wasn’t waiting any longer.
His hand stilled and I caught him up, although it didn’t take long before his fingers began to move inside me, and the connection in my hand ached to touch his. I increased the speed of my right hand, concentrating on the tip for several strokes, then taking the length of him as I reached with my left hand for his chest. As soon as my palm touched him, my magic latched on with a strength that told me she wasn’t letting go until we made Matthew whole.
I was so close . . . so close . . . but I knew I needed to wait for Matthew.
“Come for me, Matthew,” I forced past the tightness in my chest.
My words released him, and he grunted as he spasmed. I let go, my magic breaking the barrier to her lover, and she met his tendril like a kiss, then raced up the length of it to his chest, his magic exploding with a force I hadn’t felt with the others.
As I became aware of my surroundings, I realized the horse had stopped, my hand was still plastered to Matthew’s chest, and my other hand was still wrapped around his slightly smaller erection.
“Elena?” he asked sounding worried.
“I’m fine.” I reached up and gave him a kiss. “Our magics were crying out for each other. I didn’t make you whole before, and I needed to fix it.”
He paused. “So that’s why you did this?” he asked, sounding disappointed.
“It was a good excuse. Besides, it’s difficult bouncing against your hardness and not being allowed to touch.”
He smiled at that and kissed me again. Then he grabbed the strings of my breeches. I leaned back and smiled up at him. “While I hate that I’m in this position, if I have to be here, I’m grateful you’re with me.”
“Me too.”
I heard Liam shouting Matthew’s name from up ahead, but it had an edge of worry.
“Fasten my pants,” Matthew said.
I did as he said, and he kicked the horse into a trot. Then I tossed my skirts down and adjusted my blanket just as we reached them.
Liam and Dax were standing, looking at something on the road. Tobias watched them with a worried expression, but Finn gave me a scowl.
Somehow he knew what we’d just done.
Heat washed through me, and I considered hiding my face, but we all knew what had happened. There was no need to hide it. In fact, I wouldn’t have been surprised for that to have been Liam’s plan. I knew they were comparing notes. He had to have known that Matthew hadn’t had an orgasm, and he saw an opportunity and took it without having to forfeit a night with whom? Finn? Finn was disgusted by me now. Would it be Lia
m? Back at the barn, he’d told me he would be last. Could he skip Finn? I suspected not. There were five elements of magic. Matthew was earth. Dax was fire. Tobias was air. That meant that Finn was water and Liam was the top element—spirit.
What happened if Finn refused? I was certain it meant death for me, although probably slower than it had been progressing before Matthew, but dying all the same. Would my guards die too?
“What is it?” Matthew asked with a tone that was startlingly different than the one he’d used with me moments before.
“Corsair tracks,” Liam said, keeping his eyes on the road.
Matthew paused, then asked, “How many?”
“Three.”
Matthew grunted. “Shit.”
Liam finally glanced up at me. “Are you warmed up, Elena?”
But the way he looked at me was almost as if he were asking me if I’d completed my task, and I suddenly felt dirty.
“Yes,” I choked out, pissed that I sounded weak.
“The incline isn’t as steep here. I’d like to set a faster pace if possible. We can ride faster if you’re on your own horse. We should reach the bottom of the mountain in a few hours and will be safe once we reach the valley. Corsairs prefer mountainous terrain. They won’t go into the open meadows.”
“Corsairs attacked villages to the east of the kingdom,” I said. “They made a den close to a family’s dwelling. We can’t count on typical behavior, Captain.”
He flinched at the use of his title. “You are right, Your Royal Highness. I stand corrected,” he said as he marched over to me and jerked me off the horse.
My magic flared up, the traitorous witch, eager to touch him.
I felt even dirtier.
I hadn’t had a chance to retie my breeches, and they fell to my feet, proof of what I’d just done. He barely gave them a glance and asked in a short tone, “Do you need help mounting your horse?”
Heiress of Light: Magic Reborn (Reverse Harem) Page 18