by Sonya Clark
Half their clothes littered the floor before he thought to put the brakes on his frantic need. “I can leave if you want.”
“Don’t you dare.” She sank her teeth into the flesh above his collar bone, her hands trailing a feather light path down his bare chest and up his back. The combination of pleasure and pain sent shivers through him.
“It’s just that.” He stopped as she drew her hands behind her back and unhooked her bra, letting the garment drop to the floor with the rest.
“It’s just what?” She pressed herself against him, tunneling her fingers through his hair.
Pete kissed her, drawing her tongue into a playful battle. He cupped one generous breast, lightly pinching the nipple with his thumb and forefinger. It earned him a husky gasp. He increased the pressure as he trailed his lips down the side of her neck. He left a random pattern of kisses across her skin as he made his way to her other nipple, dropping to his knees so he could reach her better. Taking the hard bud in his mouth, he alternated sucking lightly and flicking his tongue across the peak. A low, tortured moan came out of Eve.
He backed her against the bed, pulling her down and crawling to hold himself above her. For a long moment they stared at each other, the only sound their breathing. She traced her fingers over the scars on his chest that even magic couldn’t heal. When she paused at the jagged line above his heart, he covered her small hand with his.
An unaccustomed shyness overtook him. He looked away, still gripping her hand. “I have a lot of scars,” he whispered.
“I want to kiss every single one of them.” Eve moved their hands, reaching up to place her lips on the rough tissue.
Pete shuddered. Wrapped tightly around the core of himself were chains, layers and layers of chains. Some from childhood, some from the Valley Below. Some he’d placed there, protection against his worst nightmares about himself. Those chains would never break, could never be allowed to break. But Eve reached inside and loosened them with her sweet touch. For the first time in years, he felt like he could breathe deep. Inhale the sweetness she offered so freely, exhale his own pleasure and not be afraid of where it came from.
He took her mouth again, in a kiss that was slow and deliberate and meant to make her purr. She curled her body against his, her welcoming softness a balm. It didn’t take long for his deliberate control to melt under the heat of her response, her hands and lips, tongue and teeth, driving him higher and hotter. He moved his hands between their bodies, struggling with a pair of pants. His, hers, he wasn’t sure. He just knew they were in the way.
Skin. Soft and smooth, pebbling under his touch. And the sounds she made, low, deep in her throat, leaving no doubt about her own pleasure. Kneading one breast while he licked and sucked at the other’s nipple, he reveled in the cries and moans his attention drew from her. She drew one leg up, hooking her ankle at his waist and arching into him. The wet heat between her thighs nearly undid him.
With a strangled grunt Eve slapped the bed, flailing her hand in the direction of the nightstand. “Condoms,” she said, her voice husky with need. “There’s a box in the drawer.”
He laughed. “It’s been too long since I did this. I didn’t even think about condoms.” He leaned over and grabbed at the knob, missing it as Eve trailed her hands below his waist. Breathing in a sharp hiss, he tried again, barely getting the drawer open. Fumbling for the box, he buried his head in the crook of her neck as her soft fingers and tight fist teased his flesh. A darkly sexual urgency burning in his veins, he tore the drawer out of the nightstand and dumped the contents on the floor.
Eve’s joyous laughter cut through the fog in his brain. He leaned over the side of the bed, quickly spotted the box of condoms and grabbed it. Settling on top of her again, he held the box aloft and grinned. “I do remember a few of my old tricks.” He focused his will on the box and its contents, sending a spike of energy into both with a silent incantation.
The cardboard disappeared, packets separated by the spell raining down on Eve. She threw her head back, short blond waves spread on the pillow, laughing. “That is a very cute trick, I like that.”
“Oh, I’ve got more.” He tossed aside all but one foil packet. “Cute’s just for starters.”
She reached up, tracing his mouth with the tip of a finger. “I love seeing a real smile on your face.”
“You put it there.” He kissed her, but this time there was nothing slow or deliberate about it. This time, he used his mouth to stake his claim. Hard and insistent and a little rough and when she moaned his name he didn’t want to wait any longer. Sheathing himself with quick, clumsy movements, he paused, tracing circles on her thigh with his thumb.
“Pete,” she whispered.
“I love that you call me that, instead of.” He stopped, not wanting to bring his past into this moment with her.
Eve stroked his face. “It’s who you are to me.”
Eyes never leaving hers, he entered her slowly, reverently, almost forgetting to breath. She arched underneath him, bringing her legs up to wrap around his waist. Holding him close in the cradle of her body. Power crackled through him, sparking on his skin everywhere they touched. He hadn’t called on the magic on purpose. He didn’t need to. It hovered so close to the surface all the time, even as he’d fought it the past three years. Now he welcomed it, holding on to enough control to direct a wave of pure erotic sensation all over Eve, heightening her pleasure.
She opened herself to him, reaching out tentatively with the same sensual warmth she’d used in the coffee shop in an attempt to flirt with him. He responded in kind, a feedback loop of psychic energy running between them. Pleasure built until it was almost unbearable, until all thought ceased, intention became pointless, and all he could do was fall into the intensity of it. She cried out his name and he splintered into pieces.
The sound of their ragged breathing was the first thing to bring him back into himself. Gently, he moved to his side and pulled her to him. He wanted to hold her as long as she would let him, all night if he could. Tomorrow he had to evaluate the security situation at the institute, he had to start researching how she might abdicate the Bone crown, and he had to figure out what to do about his brother. But for now, tonight, with Eve in his arms, he slept. Free of nightmares, all the night through.
Tomorrow would take care of itself.
Chapter 18
The meeting was set for midnight. Bettine arrived not a minute sooner. She left her car and strode leisurely to the waiting limo. A dark-haired lackey opened the door with a cheeky grin. She spared him a single glance of disdain and entered the limo.
Agnar Drake offered her a drink. She declined. He said, “Right to business, then, I take it?”
“I’d prefer.” She made no move to remove her coat or gloves.
“All right, then. My terms for lifting the curse that forbids you from returning to Sideways are quite simple. I only want one little thing.”
“And that is?” Bored, unimpressed. These human sorcerers thought entirely too much of themselves.
“The Key of Darkness.” He smiled faintly, a hint of challenge in his ice blue eyes.
If he thought she would balk at such a price, try to negotiate or even flat out refuse, he was in for a surprise. “Done. When would you like it delivered?”
Agnar chuckled. “I think you and I are going to work very well together.”
Bettine said nothing. She had expected a high price but this shook her, not that she allowed herself to show it. There would be no turning back. If she delivered the Key to this man she would be declared an enemy of Bradbury and the Board of Directors. She would most certainly lose Chet. But she would finally be able to return home.
Surely that would be worth it, no matter what the cost.
Thank You!
Thank you for reading Long Night Moon, the second story in the Bradbury Institute series. You can learn more about Bradbury and my other works at my website, www.sonyaclark.net. If you’d like to subscribe to
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Copyright
Copyright © 2015 by Sonya Clark.
Cover design by Sonya Clark using images from Dreamstime.com.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the author except in the case of brief quotation embodied in critical articles and reviews.