Breath of Flame and Shadow

by Ophelia Bell

  Trevor chuckled. “Tied up with her man of the week, I guess. Showing off her digs to him and his cronies. We get the perks of her trust fund here and don’t question where she ends up in the process. How do you know her?”

  “Ah…we met at school.” Rowan knew it was a stretch, but vague enough to not raise suspicion. The man’s energy pulsed energetically to the point she grew distracted by it. He was being way too polite for a guy as horny as he was. It was almost endearing.

  “You went to Dartmouth?” Trevor asked.

  “I did, but didn’t stay. Transferred to Stanford to be closer to my family.” Another lie, but less so, since she had actually graduated from Stanford, but had gone there to get as far away from her upbringing as possible.

  “Hah, Meredith didn’t stay, either. I don’t remember her mentioning a hot redheaded friend though. I’d have remembered you.” His dark brows twitched as though he were making a concerted effort not to let his gaze wander lower.

  “Meredith and I had a few classes together, but lost touch. We just caught back up online this year and she threw out this invitation…I was planning on being here so I figured why not?” She was reaching, but it wasn’t that big a stretch. Trevor’s energy pulsed enough to make her want to strip him bare and devour him right there, she was so hungry. But she held back. He was at least a very lovely man. Attentive, considering his eagerness to get her a drink. Attractive, too, with his wayward brown hair and pleasant, straight-toothed smile. He had a pleasing scruff on his chin that contributed to his relaxed, vacation persona. She let her gaze wander over his tanned, toned chest, dusted with dark hair that tapered to a dark line leading into the top of his shorts. He had potential, but wouldn’t be nearly enough on his own.

  The music pulsed through her, distracting them both. “Hey, you want to get in the hot tub?”

  She eyed the pair she’d seen snorting coke a moment earlier. Trevor must’ve seen her uncertainty. “We don’t have to do that if you don’t want.”

  She gave him her sweetest smile and nodded. “The hot tub sounds nice,” she said. “I just didn’t bring a bathing suit.”

  “So? Go natural. I will if you will.” He grinned widely and waggled his eyebrows suggestively.

  His playful glance back at her as he strode toward the hot tub made her laugh. He dropped his shorts and kept walking. She admired his naked backside and followed him, dropping her own dress by his shorts. She slipped into the hot water a moment later, glancing shyly at the other partiers who relaxed around the large tub, some sitting on the edge and others immersed in the steaming water. There were six others—two couples and a pair of men who seemed unattached but who both gave her appraising looks when she slid into the water

  “Who’s your friend, Trevor?” one of the single men asked. His bright eyes stayed latched onto her face and waves of lust cascaded off him. He was high, she could tell. Most of the partiers were, but the cocaine seemed to be enhancing the pull of the magic to them.

  “This is—” Trevor paused, glancing at her.

  Rowan filled in the gap deftly. “I’m Rowan. Old friend of Meredith’s. And who are you?”

  She eyed the man while sweeping her splayed fingers through the bubbling heat of the water.

  “I’m Charles.”

  He was hungry for sex, as was his quiet friend, a blond man who sat patiently watching the exchange. She wondered how best to begin. The men were all focused on her, even the ones with women. They tried to hide it, but she could feel the subtle pulses of their desire like tiny tendrils seeking her out. The women were curious, if slightly threatened. Nothing unusual there. But if she was going to get the most out of this night, she needed them all to love her.

  “Nice to meet you, Charles. Are you guys all friends?”

  One of the women laughed. Rowan looked at the dark-eyed brunette. The arm of the woman’s lover lay limp across her shoulder while his head rested back on the edge of the tub. His low-lidded eyes still watched Rowan surreptitiously.

  “I think we all know each other a little too well. Charles has already decided he’s going to fuck you tonight. Poor Trevor there will be too nice to stand in his way, even though Trevor’s a better lover. You are, sweetie—you should own it.”

  “I aim to please,” Trevor said, but his discomfort was obvious.

  Rowan’s eyes widened, surprised by the honesty of the woman. “Oh! Well, I see no reason we can’t all be friends… and do what friends do.”

  The brunette grinned and leaned across her man to extend a hand to Rowan. “I’m Paige.”

  “So, Paige…” Rowan began after releasing Paige’s hand. “You seem to have intimate knowledge of most of these guys. Care to share more details?” The man next to Paige let out a derisive grunt of laughter but didn’t comment further.

  “Jesus,” Charles said. “Keep your mouth shut for once, will you, Paige?”

  “Forewarned is forearmed,” Paige said, giving Charles a wicked look. She turned back to Rowan. “Charles is quick on the draw. No finesse—he thinks he’s hot shit because, well, look at him… he’s hot shit. His silent partner there, Justin, secretly wants to fuck Charles but goes along with the asshole’s ploys for seduction.”

  The quiet blond man behind Charles turned an even darker shade of red that couldn’t have been due to the heat of the tub.

  “What the fuck, Paige!” Charles started to surge across the tub. Rowan intervened, rising from her seat to meet him.

  Her naked breasts pressed against his chest and she met his wild blue eyes. He really was an attractive man, but devoid of character. He’d be the perfect start. His anger faltered when he met her eyes, an uncertain smile twisting his lips. Jesus, this was too easy.

  Rowan took a deep breath, drawing on her remnants of power. She was made for this, after all. As she spoke, she let the breath flow out, seeking her target. “I think Justin deserves a little piece of you, just once, for being such a good friend. Don’t you, Charles? Why don’t you be a good boy and show us your pretty ass and tell Justin what you’d like him to do to it.”

  Charles blanched at first, but soon her breath took hold. She could feel it seeping into his blood, making him pliant and willing better than alcohol or even the best drug could. His brows twitched and his mouth spread into a seductive smile. “You want to watch me get fucked?”

  “Oh, yes, Charles. I would love nothing more than to watch Justin slide his cock in your ass and fuck it. Hard.”

  “I brought lube,” Charles blurted.

  The comment threw Rowan for a second but she absorbed it quickly and nodded. “That’s good.” She let her hand slide down his muscular arm, down his warm, wet hip, and reach back to grip his ass. Charles closed his eyes and let out a soft gasp. His cock was rock hard and huge pressed against her belly. “Why don’t you go get it now?” she said.

  Charles nodded and nearly walked on water to get to the edge of the huge tub. He leapt out, splashing water on Paige and the others who watched in fascination.

  Rowan turned her attention to Justin, who sat, mouth agape, staring at her. He was an adorable, pretty-faced blond. His hair perfectly trimmed, his face perfectly shaved, his entire body below the neck seemingly waxed to the roots. He looked every bit as spoiled as the rest of the people in the tub, but somehow a little bit sweeter for his shell-shocked longing.

  Just another breath and the entire group would be eating from the palm of her hand, but she would draw this out just to see how much she really needed to push them. If she was lucky, it would take very little energy on her part to get things moving. She knew Darius had been right, just incite one or two into the right level of misbehavior and the rest would follow, particularly if it felt good. And what Rowan had in mind would feel very good.

  She glanced around at the others. Justin averted his eyes. Paige grinned at her. Trevor made a move to shift closer so she edged her way back to him, the one sane person in the mix.

  “Whatever you did to Charles, can you do i
t to the others?” he asked.

  “Why do you think I did something?”

  Trevor chuckled softly and spoke in a low tone that only she could hear. “You’re not quite human, Rowan. I don’t know what you are, but I’m no fool. My family’s been working for someone like you for as long as I can remember. We don’t talk about it. Ever.”

  “What do you mean ‘like me’?” Rowan asked, cautiously. Her discussions with Rafe had made it clear to her that dragons hid very well among humans, but he’d never mentioned any humans being aware of the presence of dragons without being mated to one.

  “I mean someone with a particular knack for bending wills.”

  “Why are you telling me this?”

  “Because I like you. And I really want to see Charles take it in the ass. Mostly the second thing.” Trevor grinned at her.

  Rowan glanced around at the party. She didn’t have the power left for more breath. She needed one infusion. She slipped between Trevor’s strong thighs where he sat naked on the lip of the tub, and twined her fingers in the dark, wet threads of hair that clung to the base of his neck. She leaned in and whispered in his ear. “Who do you think is the weakest?”

  He stilled to the point that she might have been clinging to a statue. His wide blue eyes met hers, the dark lashes clinging together with wetness. His lips tried to make words, the pink bows of them curling in patterns before her eyes, patterns that should have elicited communication, but didn’t. Had she broken him? The swirls of energy around him were evidence enough of his desire, and his cock twitched and swelled just below Rowan’s field of vision.

  His lips pressed together, then drew apart again. It took her a second to register the barely whispered sound that passed through that changing shape of perfectly sensual flesh.

  “Me.”

  The word and his earlier admission was enough. She reached between them, gripped the shaft of his cock and stroked. Trevor’s eyes fluttered closed and he let out a soft moan.

  She leaned in to rest her lips against his ear. “You have a beautiful cock. And you have beautiful energy, too. You feel so good.”

  He shuddered under her touch. “Oh, God. How can you talk like that and not be fucking me?” he murmured back at her. His entire body trembled against her. She rested her cheek on his shoulder. She needed him to come for her soon.

  She pressed her lips against his ear. “Your cock feels so hot in my hand. I want to feel your hot come all over my skin.” She hated a little that she’d said almost the same thing to Rafe and had to struggle not to imagine that it was his thick shaft she stroked. She closed her eyes stroked Trevor a little harder, leaning into him when his fingers twined through her hair and he murmured words of lusty approval.

  “You need this, don’t you?” Trevor whispered, not even moved by what she’d said.

  “I need you to come, yes.”

  “Why?”

  “Because when you do, it helps me.”

  “How does it help you?”

  “It helps me survive.”

  His hands fell to her hips, clinging in a weird, hesitant way, but a second later his fingertips sunk in. “Oh fuck.” Trevor convulsed, his semen spurting in hot streams over her hand. The warmth of his orgasm seeped deep into her, replenishing the empty well with a refreshing infusion of potent energy.

  She was too tingly with the fresh energy to even feel when he handed her the towel. She finally opened her eyes and inadvertently gazed into his eyes in that moment. The concerned understanding that met her gaze was more disconcerting than any of the alienated looks she’d gotten so far from the others. She was used to people being confused by her. But knowing her? She wanted more of it. First, she needed to finish what she’d started.

  Rowan sensed three pairs of eyes on her. No one had made a sound while she jerked Trevor off, which told her one thing—that they were at least willing observers. The level of magic that had accumulated around the hot tub had reached a steady flow and lingered. It was nowhere near as dense as she needed it to be, but the act of watching her get Trevor off had more than piqued their interest. Trevor’s eyes looked glazed and he smiled at her a little drunkenly. She delicately wiped her hand and cleaned off his drooping cock with the towel, then turned to face the others.

  Meeting their eyes now made her stomach clench with guilt. She was using them, plain and simple. Like she’d used men before Rafe, only her hunger had grown ten-fold since learning what she was and how to use the power that came along with being a dragon. She needed them and there was no sense denying what she was and how she would go about taking advantage of their desire.

  “Well, Charles? Are you ready?” She expelled magic along with her words, letting it mix with the steam coming off the surface of the water.

  “Where do you want me?” Charles asked, slipping back into the steaming tub.

  “Hand the lube to Justin and bend over the edge,” she commanded with a nod of her head.

  Justin looked both excited and terrified when Charles reached out with his offering. Justin’s throat convulsed as he swallowed and his mouth opened as if to speak. He finally managed to force out a strangled “Thank you,” watching as Charles turned his toned backside to the rest of the party. And it wasn’t just the few of them who were taking advantage of the hot tub who could view their activities. The tub itself was at the edge of the deck, and anyone on the deck or just inside the house would have a perfect vantage of Charles’ round, pale ass.

  A light breeze blew off the ocean, carrying the magic-infused steam from the tub across the deck and the energy of the entire party shifted. The couple in the pool nearby who had restrained themselves before, began going at it again. The flow of hungry desire escalated around Rowan, exciting her along with the others. She forced herself to regain focus.

  “He’s already hard, Justin, just look at him. He wants you to fuck him, so what are you waiting for?”

  Justin stood a little shakily and waded over to Charles. He reached out, resting a palm lightly on Charles’ shoulder as though he worried he might get burned and meant to test the heat first. He grew bolder, sliding his hand down, exploring the length of Charles’ torso until his hand reached the round swell of one ass cheek. Charles looked over his shoulder and said, “That’s right, buddy, my ass is yours tonight. What are you planning to do with it?”

  A strangled groan erupted from Justin’s throat and he seemed to snap. He bent over, bared his teeth, and bit down hard into the flesh of Charles’ left cheek, at the same time as he slipped one hand between Charles’ legs and cupped his balls. Charles yelped and flinched, but Justin had a solid grip on Charles’ cock and refused to let him go.

  After that, Justin’s reluctance dissipated quickly and he shifted behind Charles, upending the little bottle of lube and aiming it at the top of Charles’ ass crack. Clear liquid squirted out and trickled down. Justin set the bottle down and with both hands spread Charles’ cheeks wide, sliding fingers back and forth along his cleft. Charles let out a loud curse when Justin sunk one finger into the opening and began fucking into him.

  “You know what I think?” Justin said. “I think he needs something to occupy that smart mouth of his. Like maybe another cock. I’d do it, but I’m a little busy here.” He glanced at the two other men. “You two want to take turns?”

  Rowan marveled at how eagerly the other men responded, both moving to kneel at the edge of the tub. The two women followed, clearly not wanting to feel left out of the game. Paige sat at the edge of the tub and took over stroking Charles’ cock while the other woman settled between Paige’s thighs, spread her pussy and gave it a tentative lick.

  “Well, fuck me,” Trevor murmured beside her. “You really are something else. Are you just going to watch?”

  “Just for a little bit,” Rowan said. “Until they come. You can join them if you want.”

  “If it’s all the same to you, I think I’ll just watch, too. I’m a one woman kind of guy.”

  “No men?”
Rowan asked.

  “Not generally, no.”

  “But watching Charles get fucked turns you on.”

  Trevor couldn’t deny his reaction to the scene. Justin had switched from fingering Charles and was slowly pushing his cock between the cheeks of Charles’ ass. Charles feverishly sucked on the cock in front of him.

  Trevor tore his eyes away from the scene, glanced at his own raging erection and gave her a sheepish smile. “It’s the principle, really, but I don’t mind a little ass play sometimes, from the right person.”

  The scene on the other side of the tub became frenzied. Without responding to Trevor’s comment, Rowan stood and went to the group. She paused by Justin and whispered in his ear. “Wouldn’t you like to see the others take a turn?”

  “Fuck, I’m about to come. One of you guys needs to take my place,” Justin said, shooting a hurried glance at the two other men.

  Charles groaned around the cock that was shoved down his throat. The man who wasn’t being serviced moved down to Justin’s side to wait his turn.

  Justin let out a harsh groan and dug his fingertips into Charles’ ass as he slammed in deep once more and quivered through his release. Rowan kept her hand on his arm, eagerly soaking up the energy that flowed through him.

  They fell like dominoes after that, and she made the rounds, moving close and whispering words laced with potent wisps of her breath at each of them in turn. It was like standing beneath a fountain of endlessly flowing power and just drinking it in until she was full. Trevor only watched from his spot across the tub. He didn’t seem to even notice the thick spike of his hard-on between his thighs.

  Rowan was dizzy from the intensity of the magic filling her, leaving her feeling like she’d just downed a very potent drink a little too fast. The group didn’t stop after the first round, either. The momentum she’d given them had spurred them on. They only switched places, with Justin eagerly moving in front of Charles, the others coming together in a tangle of limbs around them.

  Rowan left the tub, eager to move on now that she was full. She paused, dripping wet a few steps away, shocked to see several other clusters of naked bodies scattered around the deck, tangled in lewd positions, fucking and sucking and generally debauching themselves.