Taken by the Enemy

by Jennifer Bene

  “I don’t know, I kind of always imagined you had baths as big as this pool inside those huge houses people like your family lived in.” Lucian grinned at her when she rolled her eyes.

  “No, we had normal baths.”

  “I’m sure they were very nice baths.” He was still grinning and she splashed him, making him flinch and sputter. Wiping his face, Lucian sighed at her. “Do you ever just say thank you when someone helps you?”

  “It depends on who helps me, and why.” Her breathing was finally settling, her lungs no longer burning, and she caught an odd, sad look on his face before he spoke.

  “I didn’t help you just because I want you.”

  “But it was part of it.”

  “If I didn’t want you, I might have waited a second or two longer to react, yes.” He shrugged, and she gawked at him. “That was a joke.”

  “It was a terrible one.”

  “Listen, I —” Lucian muttered to himself, grabbing at his hair again before pushing the damp strands off his forehead. “I want to —”

  “What?”

  He took a deep breath, and then met her eyes steadily. “I want to show you that things can be different. With us.”

  “There is no us.”

  Lucian flinched. “Will you just let me show you? Without fighting me like a hawk trying to break its leash?”

  “You don’t see a problem with that question?” Emmie stared at him, and he just looked tired. “You have me on a leash, Lucian. This whole village is one big leash, with rules, and —”

  “I know,” he growled. “You don’t like the rules, or the community we’ve built, I know.” He took a slow step towards her in the water, and she had to fight the urge to back up. “But I’m already bending them until they’re threatening to break. I’m doing everything I can to protect you.”

  She started to argue, but he raised his hand to stop her.

  “I can be different. I’m trying, this is me trying, and I want to try with you.” He moved closer, and part of Emmie wanted to dive back into the water, sanity be damned, but the other part wanted to know what he was offering. To know what he meant by different. Lucian slowly moved his hand towards her face, giving her plenty of time to move away. His skin was warm when he finally cupped her cheek gently. He kept it there, holding her gaze for a moment until his hand slid back into her soaked hair – and then he kissed her.

  It was gentle, soft, and nothing like the harried kiss they had shared after her confession in his house. His lips were hot against hers, and she found herself opening to him slowly as he deepened it. They were close, too close with no barriers between them, and she wanted to steady herself against him but kept her hands clenched into fists away from his bare skin. It was mesmerizing, this slow, decadent tasting, and then his teeth trailed over her bottom lip as he pulled back sending a thrill through her.

  Emmie leaned towards his lips again, to renew the kiss, but he steadied her by her shoulder and then ran his hand down to interlace their fingers, walking them wordlessly towards the shore. She followed him in a daze, not sure quite what was happening, but willing to see. As they rose out of the water, it shone on his skin like tiny jewels, highlighting every hard ridge of tanned muscle. In that moment, she gave herself leave to look and every inch of him was perfect. Formed by the efforts of surviving in this wilderness.

  “Come here.” He pulled her down to sit on the soft mud, and she felt like she was trapped in a dream that she couldn’t wake from. Thoughts flitted on the edges of her mind, questioning her sanity, but then he was kissing her again, laying her back while keeping himself off to her side.

  “Lucian —”

  “I just want to show you what this can be like.” He silenced her next protest with another kiss and his fingers trailed over her skin. It seemed impossible to feel both cold and hot at the same time, but Lucian’s touch was doing that to her. His fingertips traced patterns on her skin, across her collarbone, down the side of her breast, and then the curve of her waist. With every breath, Emmie urged herself to get up and walk away, but this was the first time he was acting more like the Lucian she had seen from afar.

  The leader of the village.

  The man who entertained children, and fed his people, and protected them.

  The man who kissed like each touch of his lips to hers was a promise.

  But what exactly was he promising?

  She turned away from his kiss, halting the movement of his hand with hers. Gray eyes focused on hers, concern drawing his brows together, and she forced out a whisper. “Lucian, what are you doing?”

  “Proving to you that I can be different, that I can control myself around you.” The warm press of his hand against her side didn’t move, but she didn’t pull him away either. “This is all about you, I promise.”

  Doubt nagged at her, battling with the tingling heat that his kisses had summoned inside her.

  Who are you, Lucian? Villain or hero?

  “Please.” His thumb traced over her waist, and she wavered, debating, but then she released his hand. A smile flickered over his lips before he leaned down next to her ear. “Thank you.” Those words were a rumble against her skin, and then he was kissing her neck. He slid his hand up her stomach, brushing the undersides of her breasts before diverting to her sides again. Each cycle made her more tense, made the hard points of her nipples even more sensitive to the movement of the cool air over her.

  What is he waiting for?

  When his hand moved back to brush the side of her breast, she reached for it but he grabbed her wrist gently. “Let me do this for you.” The heat in his eyes when he lifted his head to stare down at her, made her mouth go dry. It took a concentrated effort of thought to nod, and then her wrist was free and he was kissing her again. His lips were a perfect distraction as his fingertips started to leave trails of fire in their wake, her skin alive and burning and begging for him to do something more, anything more than these delicate teasing touches.

  Finally, his thumb brushed across one nipple and she moaned against his mouth, arching herself up towards his hand. Lucian nipped her lip, a soft sound rising from him too as he began to tug on the pink nub. When he broke the kiss, Emmie kept her eyes closed, focusing on the gentle pleasure, but then the warm heat of his mouth landed on her other breast and she gasped. He drew her nipple into his mouth, and each pull sent an electric zing through her that pulsed between her thighs. “Lucian…” His name came out on a moan, and she felt him answer with his own.

  Emmie squirmed, digging her fingers into the soft mud at her side to give her hands something to do as he drew out the delicious torment. It was slow, and the more he teased her, his hand gliding over her skin, her belly, stopping well above the apex of her thighs, the more she wished he would really touch her. The more she wished he would just take her again, and echoes of Alice’s pleas bounced around in her head and she understood. Understood why she had begged for Quentin to just do it, because this patient teasing was torture.

  As if he could read her mind, Lucian finally moved his hand low brushing across the top of her mound. Her thighs were clenched tight with the tension in her body, and he ran his hand slowly up her leg. He didn’t even try to spread them, pressing kisses to her skin as he moved back to her lips. When he started to kiss her again, his tongue meeting hers, she relaxed and let her knees fall open. A groan rose out of him, rumbling against her lips as he ran his hand down the inside of her thigh, and with the first brush against her pussy she lifted her hips, moaning a wordless plea for more.

  Lucian had faults, he had a lot of faults, but one thing he absolutely knew how to do was find that rhythm that instantly sent her spiraling into pleasure. He broke their kiss and his mouth returned to her breast, his fingers working magic between her thighs until she was squirming. Warm tingles rushed up her spine, wrapping her in heat and then he slid one finger inside her. Emmie was soaked. She could feel the slippery wetness between her thighs, and when a second finger joined th
e first, it was impossible to stay silent. Her whimpers of pleasure were broken only by quiet pleas, although she still wasn’t sure exactly what she was begging for. Just more.

  “Please, Lucian, please…”

  His eyes met hers and she tilted her head to look right at him. Lucian’s cheeks were flushed and his lips were swollen from their kisses, and her breath caught, waiting for him to speak, but instead he slid his fingers from her and pressed a soft kiss to her lips. Those kisses trailed lower, over her breasts, her ribs, her belly, and then he shifted until he was between her legs. Only then he continued to kiss lower and lower, each hip, the insides of her thighs, and then he gave a single, sinful swipe of her pussy. Emmie hissed air between her teeth, shocked by the warm wet of his tongue and the thrilling tingle that rushed up her spine. When she leaned up on her elbows to look at him, he was grinning devilishly at her, and then he did it again.

  “Oh, fuck.” She moaned as she laid back, unable to watch him as he began to glide his tongue back and forth over her clit. A dangerously focused thrum of pleasure that had her gasping and moaning and teetering on the glorious edge in a matter of moments. He drew hard on that bundle of nerves and she almost came, but the orgasm eluded her. Instead, she was trapped in wave after suffocating wave of pleasure. “Please, please…”

  Lucian let out a soft growl and slid two fingers inside her again, curving them to rub against a place inside her that was suddenly too much. Too much sensation, and she tried to pull back but he held her hip in place, forcing her to bear it until it felt like the world broke apart underneath her, dropping her into a golden haze. Her body was suffused with heat and her skin was humming, and his tongue was continuing to slowly lick her pussy from bottom to top, each flick making her shiver and shake as she came and he teased her.

  Then he stopped and pressed a kiss to her lower belly, his hair tickling her for a moment, before he lifted himself away and dropped onto his back next to her hip. Emmie took a moment to catch her breath, letting the world come back into focus, but when she propped herself up on her elbows, Lucian’s arousal was incredibly evident. His cock was hard and angled up towards his belly, and his fists were clenched tight at his sides as he took deep breaths. “Lucian?”

  “Just… give me a minute.” His voice was rough, and then she understood.

  He’s not planning on fucking me.

  A tingling heat pulsed between her thighs and Emmie squeezed them together. She was still so wet, and although the orgasm had been stellar, it hadn’t been as… fulfilling as the others. What was lingering behind was like an ache, an absence, and she knew exactly what she wanted.

  Needed.

  It took more strength than she thought she had, but Emmie pushed herself to her knees and moved down the slight slope until she was next to Lucian. His eyes were closed, his jaw clenched tight, and she could read the tension in him like a book. With one last deep breath to silence the sane side of her brain, she swung her leg over him and dropped one knee on the other side of him, straddling him. He snapped his eyes open, pushing himself up to his elbows as his eyes devoured her. When that heather gray stare found hers again, there were questions in it, and lust, but she didn’t want to explain herself. She didn’t want to think enough about what she was doing to explain it. Instead of words, she reached between them, running her fingers up the velvet hardness of his cock, and she positioned it so she could ease down. It took more courage than she thought she had to rub his head against her, and then she slid him inside her. Controlling her descent, she moved slowly, but Lucian instantly went rigid beneath her, dropping hard onto his back to shove his hands into his hair. He groaned low, the muscles of his abs tensing as she lowered herself until finally she was flush against him, and he filled her.

  Yes.

  She wanted this, this control of the situation, where his size was more manageable. Moving slowly, she rocked and rode him at a measured pace, and it was clear by the hitches in his breathing and the twitches in his muscles, that she was returning the favor of his torment. Emmie lifted herself, and dropped again, unable to stop the smile when he groaned and suddenly grabbed her hips. “Fuck,” he growled, and she grinned.

  He felt good inside her, stretching her just enough when she slid all the way down, and each upward movement brushed against that spot that sent chills up her back. This was supposed to be about her, and so she focused on what felt best to her. Rocking her hips until she found the right angle, the right speed, to make her shiver. Emmie braced her hands on his chest, and his fingers tightened on her hips. As much as she wanted to increase the pace, she remembered how incredible it had been to drag it out, to build the tension, and she wanted to do it to him.

  So each roll of her hips was patient, a languid seduction that made her enjoy the deep groans he released all the more. The pleasure built slowly inside her, but the random jerks of his hips up against hers and the way his hands slid down her thighs, gripping her skin, spoke of just how much control he was holding over himself.

  I can be different.

  His voice echoed inside her, and she rolled her hips just so she could hear him groan again. Tossing her hair to one side she pressed her hands back into the mud on either side of him and leaned down to kiss him. He jumped when her lips first reached his, but then his hands were in her hair, holding her to him as he moaned against her mouth. Their tongues met and he nipped her lip sharply, but she returned the favor, and a growl rose up inside him as his arm wrapped around her and then the world spun and she was suddenly on her back in the mud.

  Lucian was above her, his eyes blazing as he thrust hard inside her, one of his hands gripping her shoulder to hold her in place – but then he froze, stopping, and his grip relaxed. He growled, his voice rough, “I—”

  “Please, keep going.” Emmie moaned, lifting her hips to meet his, and he stayed still for another moment until she reached up to dig her nails into his back and pull him against her. As she raked her nails down, he hissed and thrust again, filling her sharply, but it felt good. Amazing.

  This.

  This is what had been missing. The raw power of him settled over her, each hard drive of his cock inside her bordered on painful, but she was so wet and so ready that every ache was echoed by pleasure a hundred times more powerful. Emmie wrapped her legs around his hips and he growled his approval, the rumble in his chest sending a shiver through her, even as his hand found her hip and gripped painfully tight. They moved together, hard and fast, and she felt another orgasm rising inside her. The balance of pleasure and pain was a line, and she was dancing on it, and it was incredible. Sending her higher than before, because there was no slow seduction about this, and there was no holding back. It rose up and up, sending vibrant pulses through her until everything went taut and snapped in an explosive golden rush that lit her up from the inside. “Lucian!”

  He moaned above her, his lips pressed to her shoulder as he growled and she felt his body stiffen and his cock keep deep inside her. The warm flood of his seed made her aware of just how hot the both of them were, slick with sweat even in the cooler air. Harsh breaths echoed in her ears, their hearts pounding against the insides of their chests. “Wow…” he breathed, and then he kissed her hard. Devoured her. Their tongues meeting as she sought to hold him tight against her, to hold this moment for as long as she could.

  When he broke the kiss, he trailed a hundred others over her cheeks, her neck, her shoulders and the tops of her breasts as he slid from her.

  “You’re beautiful, breathtaking, perfect…” he spoke softly, landing to her side with a grunt before pulling her tight against him. A soft laugh rose up from him and she lifted her head to look at him. Bright, light heather gray eyes met hers and he smiled. “I was trying to make a point, little bird. You sort of messed up my whole noble self-control thing.”

  “I got the point.” She rolled her eyes and laid her head back on his shoulder. His chest was streaked with the mud from her hands and she laughed, drawing patterns in
it with her finger before smoothing it out again and sketching something else. Flowers, and shapes, a moon and stars. Then she smoothed it again and carefully wrote so that his tan skin showed where she scraped the mud away. “Lucian,” Emmie mumbled and he lifted his head to look at her.

  “What?”

  “Look.” She tapped his chest and he angled his head so he could see his chest. His forehead scrunched for a moment, and then he put an arm behind his head to prop him up.

  “Is that my name?” The innocent question stunned her for a moment, and she blushed furiously. She had meant it as a joke, drawing his name on his own chest as some kind of label, but –

  He can’t read.

  She cursed herself silently but made herself smile. “Yeah, it is. L - U - C - I - A - N.” With each letter she named, she tapped it on his chest. “Sorry, it was stupid, I was just —” Emmie moved to wipe it away like she had the others but he grabbed her wrist gently, stopping her.

  “Show me again.” Slowly, she pointed at each letter and he mouthed the letters after her. “I kind of remember that. The ones in my name at least.”

  “So, you really can’t read at all?” Guilt racked her after the question, but he shrugged casually.

  “Not really a priority in the area of the city I grew up in. Reading and writing doesn’t feed your family as well as a trade, so it’s not exactly a priority.”

  “I’m sorry.” She tried to pull away from him, but he tugged her against him again.

  “I don’t blame you for being born to the family you were born into. Just different circumstances.” His face was open, honest, and that only made her chest ache more.

  “Shit… it’s true, isn’t it?” Emmie pushed off of him, sitting up to wrap her arms around her legs.

  He sat up next to her, leaning forward to try and catch her eyes, confusion clear in his expression. “What? What’s true?”