by Christi Snow
“So, I know about the Predators,” she said. “Maybe you should tell me what else is out here that might eat me.”
He chuckled low and even with the pervasive fear of the night, that sound sent a spiral of arousal across her spine.
“Are you sure you want to know?”
She thought about that for a moment. “No, probably not. So maybe you could tell me about the Predators, though. When did they first appear?”
“It happened about six months after the Veil fell. They weren’t so violent back then. They seemed just as confused by the change as everyone. We were just kids then though, and they were straight out of our nightmares about the boogieman and things that go bump in the night. We’re probably as much to blame for their violent demeanor as they are, because they certainly didn’t start out that way. But they were starving and they started attacking us for our food. We reacted accordingly, and that’s how we’ve gotten to where we are today. We never kill them unless they’re threatening, but they tend to attack…” his voice dwindled off.
She thought for a moment about the group of them standing outside the gates today, shivering. They hadn’t seemed nearly as fearsome as they had before. In fact, they’d seemed somehow vulnerable, not knowing how to adapt to their changing environment. Again, the question arose, where did they come from?
They’d been riding for about an hour when the first snowflakes started to fall. The cold had permeated all of Lori’s layers and she’d begun shivering non-stop about thirty minutes before.
After another hour and several inches of snowfall, Marcus rode up beside her. “I think I know where we are. We can’t continue on like this. We’re risking hypothermia for both us and the horses and that’s only going to become worse with the wet snow.”
She nodded mutely, unable to unclench her jaw and stop her chattering teeth to speak. She trusted him to keep her safe. A violent shiver shuddered over her. He cursed and pulled her across his lap onto his horse and immediately wrapped her within the heat of his wings and blankets. She snuggled into his strong, warm chest and tried to control the spasms wracking her body.
“Shhh,” he soothed. “We’re close to one of the old towns. I’ll find us some shelter for the night.”
She nodded into his chest and stuttered out, “Th—thank you.” The heat rising off his body felt so amazing.
They rode for another fifteen minutes before she saw the mammoth shapes of buildings coming up out of the dark. With the overgrown foliage, they looked like huge bushes looming over them in the night, but Lori knew there were buildings underneath all those green leaves. They’d seen other creepy ghost towns like this during the daytime, but in the middle of the night that creep-factor softened.
As the snow fell heavier, the forest became hushed. Lori could hear the clopping of the horses’ hooves, their heavy breathing, and the snowflakes falling across the leaves. She’d finally started warming up again, thanks to Marcus sharing his heat.
They rode through the middle of the small town. It actually looked like it had been one of the little North Carolina mountain tourist communities like Lori and her family had visited every summer growing up. As they slowly moved through it, they didn’t see any signs of another living creature. They stopped in front of a larger building and stood there for a moment before Marcus seemed to make a decision.
He leaned down, his warm breath on her cold ear and face sending tendrils of desire and goose bumps down her body. “Stay here while I go check it out. If you see anything, especially a Predator, I want you to take off. Okay?”
She nodded, because it was simply easier than arguing with him. Was the man crazy? She would never just leave him here alone. He gave her a quick kiss and then lowered himself off the horse. She watched him draw his sword and approach the building. His hair glistened with ice at the tips where the heavy snow clung to it. He looked like an ice god, striding across the snow with his sword drawn like that. As he cleared the foliage from the door front, she glanced around the empty street nervously. They appeared to be all alone here. She hoped that wasn’t just an illusion.
Ten minutes later, he reappeared, just as she’d begun to get really worried. He reached up and pulled her down from the saddle. “This will work for tonight. We’ll take the horses in too so they’re protected from the weather.”
They worked together to cut away the foliage at the door so the opening spread large enough to allow the horses in. When Marcus leapt away in fright, Lori panicked and jumped back with him.
“What’s wrong?” she whispered, looking around trying to find the danger.
“Um…” He rubbed at the back of his neck and a full-body shudder went through him.
She squinted at the door, but didn’t see anything, but a big spider and spider web which had been hidden behind the ivy. And then it dawned on her…his spider phobia. After the stress of the last few hours, she couldn’t hide the giggle that erupted.
He glared at her. “It’s not funny,” he mumbled. “Phobias help protect you from real dangers.”
“It’s okay, baby.” She patted his arm. “I’ll protect you from this one.” Biting her quivering lips to keep another grin from further humiliating him, she reached forward with the tip of her sword, picked up the spider, and moved it to the side of the building.
“That’s it? You’re not going to kill it?” he asked, disgruntled and casting worried glances to the side like the spider would come back and launch its body at Marcus as soon as he turned his back to it.
“It will be okay,” she placated him. “You should be safe now.”
He just grunted and cast one more sidelong glance to the edge of the building before pushing the door open.
Once inside, Lori shivered at the utter darkness, but then a light flared as Marcus lit up a torch and Lori couldn’t help her gasp of surprise. They were inside an old hotel, which had probably been built two hundred years before. Even in its derelict condition, the beauty of the building couldn’t be disguised.
They stood in a large lobby open to the second story of the building. Above them, the remains of massive jeweled chandeliers, now covered by hanging moss, glimmered in the shadowy light. Ornate columns surrounded the perimeter of the large room with live ivy spiraling up them to get to the second floor. The flecked remains of bright, decorative paint on the columns and moldings teased with the beauty they once had.
At one end of the lobby stood a huge stone fireplace. Marcus started to take the saddle off his horse, so she went to the side of hers to do the same. “Do you think it’s safe to use the fireplace?”
He glanced over at it. “I think it’s worth the risk to try it. We’re going to need the heat tonight.”
In short order, they had the horses unsaddled and settled for the night and then they began to search the hotel for resources. Marcus located some papers and furniture suitable for burning in the fireplace. They discovered a large suite located behind the fireplace wall with a huge bed sitting front and center of another smaller fireplace. Years of dirt and grime covered every room in the place, but that didn’t keep it from feeling like pure luxury compared to the brutal conditions outdoors. Lori discovered some oil lamps that they lit throughout to help illuminate the rooms.
Soon, the horses stood in the main lobby with the fire blazing in the big fireplace. Once it became clear the fireplaces weren’t going to set the whole place on fire, Lori and Marcus settled into the suite behind the lobby. Lori found a closet full of linens which had been wrapped for long-term storage so they were actually clean. After remaking the bed, it transformed the room. With the heat coming from the fireplace, it suddenly felt extremely cozy and romantic.
Butterflies settled into Lori’s stomach. This might be one of the last nights she’d be able to spend with Marcus. She wanted to do everything she could to make it memorable.
He was out doing a final check of the perimeter so she set out some food for him to eat, nibbling on her own to help calm her nerves.
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nbsp; She’d stripped to her panties and wrapped one of the large blankets around her. Hoping to entice him, she stood in front of the fireplace, holding it at her breasts loose enough so he could see the tease of her cleavage.
He stuttered to a halt at the sight of her and those beautiful green eyes of his darkened with wicked promise. Just that heated glance and moisture pooled at the juncture of her thighs.
“I have some food if you’re hungry.” She waved a hand to the meal she’d thrown together and set on the table beside the bed.
The corner of his mouth quirked in humor. “Do you honestly expect me to care about food when you’re standing there looking like that?”
“Aw, but that’s part of the allure. I plan to feed you,” she dropped the blanket and his breathing grew immediately heavier, “looking like this.” Her nipples hardened to peaks, but it was hard to say if that came from the chill in the air or his scalding gaze on her.
Within three strides he stood in front of her. His large, callused hands encircled her waist and pulled her into his arms. She stretched her legs around him and circled his hips, crossing her ankles to hold on at his back. The heat of his cock against her core, even through his jeans, had her pushing against him in need. He moaned.
For a moment, he just looked at her with so much emotion and desire in his eyes. What had she done to deserve this wonderful man? Even if she only had him for a few days, these were the memories she’d always carry with her for the rest of her life.
Reaching up, she brushed her fingertips across his eyebrow and down his cheek, marveling at the contrast in textures. His cheeks held a couple days’ worth of whiskers, the golden hairs reflecting the firelight like spun gold. His lips parted with his breathing and her fingertips feathered across those lush, full lips that brought her such incredible pleasure. He used his tongue to snag hold of her finger to draw it into his mouth.
Her heartbeat, which had already been pounding through her chest, picked up even further. As he sucked her finger, she met his eyes that were filled with passion and emotion. She froze and her breath caught in her throat. She didn’t want this moment to end.
With her other hand, she grasped the back of his head, scraping against his scalp with her nails. She began to kiss a trail from his ear to the collar of his shirt. His hips thrust against her and he loosened the suction on her fingers and began his own ministrations across her chest just above her breasts.
Before she knew what he planned, they were flying through the air with a few flicks of his wings. The air brushed at her bare back, in stark contrast to where her front pressed against his hot chest. Slowly he lowered them onto the bed, his purple wings spread out over top of them.
“God, those are so sexy,” she said as she ran a hand over the top of his downy soft wing.
He shuddered and dropped his head to her chest, his breath sawing in and out.
“You like that?” she asked. Even through his jeans, she felt the flex of his hard erection.
“You have no idea.” His voice was low and sensual, and his back arched into her touch.
“I know of something else I could stroke that might feel equally good, if you’d get rid of some of these clothes.” She ran her other hand over the bulge at his groin and tugged at the buttons, freeing them.
He pressed his hands to hers, stilling her movements. “Not yet. First, you promised me some food.”
Raising an eyebrow in question at his teasing smirk, she became even further confused when he rose and nonchalantly grabbed the plate off the side table. She began to rise, but he gently pushed her back with a shake of his head. “No, you stay right there.”
She began to sputter, “What…”
But he pressed a finger to her lips and gave her a disapproving shake of his head. “No, be quiet. That’s perfect, but I need you to be very still, or this will never work, and I’ll starve. No one wants that, because I really think I’m going to need to keep my energy levels up tonight.”
He stood there, looking at the plate of food in his hand and then examining her like he would a sculpture or a piece of art. He wasn’t even touching her and the lust in his eyes sent tendrils of heat spreading throughout her core.
He’d taken off his shirt and the glow from the fireplace highlighted the ridges of his abdominal muscles. He hadn’t taken the time to button his jeans back up, so they hung low on his hips, held there by a very obvious erection peeking out the top edge of the placket. That little teasing glimpse made her want to taste him, lick him, and tease him from root to tip. Some of what she considered must have shown on her face because that same erection twitched and a small bead of pre-cum appeared on the swollen, darkened head. She bit her lip and fisted her hands in the blankets, trying to resist the urge to tackle him.
A drizzle of something cold and wet along her nipple drew her attention back to his actions. He stood above her with a wicked glint in his eye, squeezing the juice from a piece of fruit. The juice drizzled along her skin, chilling her, but as the heat from his mouth enveloped her nipple, she gasped. So many incredible sensations. As he sucked one nipple, he rubbed the piece of cold fruit over the other one. He spent several minutes moving between one breast and then to the other until Lori felt positive she could come from this alone.
Then he reached over to the plate and grabbed the chunk of meat. He shredded it slowly, dropping little pieces of it across her breasts, down her stomach, and onto the tops of her thighs. The knowledge that he planned to follow that trail of food made her want to squirm, but she didn’t want to dislodge a single morsel. She held very still, barely breathing as he ate and nibbled his way down her body, leaving her nerves pulsing in his wake.
The torturous descent made her crazy. She wanted him to move faster, but didn’t want this to ever end. A single piece of meat sat on the crease where her thigh met her groin. He teased the area around it, his breath brushing against the damp spot on her panties. Her wet heat clenched in need. All it would take would be a single touch of his fingers, his teeth, or his tongue, and she would blast into orgasm. She hovered so close, but he must have sensed that and took great delight in drawing her torture out.
A wisp of a touch against the fabric of her panties had her panting in frustration. “Please, Marcus,” she begged.
“Hmm,” he said as he licked again at the top of her thigh.
So close, but he still tormented her. Finally, when she hovered at the absolute breaking point, he lowered his mouth over her heat. Tonguing her through her panties, it only took two flicks of his tongue before her orgasm rolled over her and she screamed his name, undulating waves crashing over her before she blacked out from the utter euphoria.
By the time she came back to earth, he’d divulged the rest of his clothing, removed her panties, and settled his body over her. The hard, full length of his erection throbbed against her thigh, leaving a wet trail where it pulsed. Her man sat on the very edge.
He gave her a gentle, loving smile. “Are you okay?”
“Oh, hell yeah. That was amazing.”
He chuckled low and slowly moved his hips, rubbing the tip of his erection within the outer edge of her folds. Immediately, her arousal shot right back to the heights it had been before. She groaned low as her eyes closed. Wrapping her legs around him, she urged him to move into her, but still he resisted.
His wings spread behind his back and he instructed, “Hang on.” A moment of weightlessness overtook her as he lifted them off the bed, hovering just above the mattress. His cock poised just barely wedged inside of her.
He stilled and met her gaze. “I’m so lucky to have found you. With you, this is different. It’s more.” He closed his eyes and she could feel the will power that it took not to follow the demands of his body. He kissed her forehead gently, groaning low as she involuntarily clenched around the tip of him. “Thank you,” he gasped, “for collapsing at my feet. For escaping. For sharing your life with me. For trusting me. Now hang on.”
Burying one hand
in her hair while the other grabbed her ass for leverage, he surged into her in a single thrust. The emotions within him pummeled at her mentally in conjunction with his body doing the same thing physically.
So fucking good.
This.
Him inside her.
This was right.
Perfection.
Something she never thought she’d ever find, but loving him changed things.
As if sensing her thoughts, his rhythm faltered. He shifted, and as impossible as it seemed, his erection grew even more inside her. The weightlessness, combined with his hard thrusts, pushed her over the edge of orgasm before she even knew it arrived. She shattered again and the clenching of her core took him with her. Hot bursts of cum coated the inside of her vagina as every muscle in his body tightened.
He buried his face in her neck, groaning with pleasure, his breath hitched. His climax went on forever and brought on another round of spasms by her internal muscles. The ecstasy seemed to be never-ending and left her boneless.
Slowly, he lowered the two of them back to the bed but stayed within her as they both continued to experience aftershocks.
Minutes or hours later—she had no idea as she’d lost all sense of time or space—he finally mumbled, “That’s the only way I’m ever eating again.”
She grinned and drifted off to sleep.
Lori awakened when Marcus tensed behind her. It was still dark and the coals in the fireplace provided very little light or heat any longer. “What’s wrong?” she whispered.
He sat halfway up in bed, his bare skin glistening in the faint light. “I thought I heard something.” He cocked his head to listen.
She shifted next to him. “I don’t hear anything.” She ran a hand up his back between his wings in a soothing motion. “Could it have been the horses?”
“Probably, but I should go check just in case.”
He crawled out of the bed and a chill worked its way down her arms from losing the warmth from his body. He slipped on his jeans and she scrambled to locate her own discarded clothing.