A groan escaped me, and I held her face in my hands, afraid to let go. The nipping turned into a kiss, which I deepened immediately. I was tired of not having her. She would be mine as I had desired since her arrival.
"Zeke," she whimpered as I moved my mouth along her neck and jawline. The sound was sweet to my ears, a noise I wasn't likely to forget anytime soon. Elyssa was whining, craving my touch. It was heaven.
I brought my lips to hers once more with a new feeling inside me. I didn't ravish her mouth, but I wasn't kissing her like a scared teenager. It wasn't something I could easily describe. Her response matched mine; deliberate, but not slow or boring. My hands wandered up her torso, cupping her breasts outside the cups of her bra that had fallen back into place. She probably couldn't feel much of my touch through the padded bra, so I slipped my hands inside the cups. Elyssa gasped as I teased her hardened nipples with my fingertips.
She arched her back, feeding her breasts into my hands even more, and I reached around her to unhook the bra. Slowly, I slipped the garment from her body. Pulling away from our kiss, I watched the blush creep into the skin of her chest. Using my fingertips, I traced her collarbone before bringing my hands back down to her exposed beauties. "Perfect," I said, letting a groan escape from my lips as my hands covered her breasts. Each mound fit perfectly into the palms of my hands.
"Please."
It was one word, yet it held so much in it. Her voice was throaty, scratchy in such a sexy way; my member struggled against the fabric of my jeans just from the sound of it. She needed me. Elyssa was giving herself to me willingly, begging for my touch and my caress.
"Anything for you, love," I breathed into her ear. I used my tongue to trace the shell of her ear teasingly, making her gasp once more. Teasing her was fun. It was something I'd always known, but this kind of teasing was different; it was something we both enjoyed.
But I wanted to get down to business. I knew Elyssa was ready for it as well.
Slowly I removed myself from her grasp, pressing kisses to her body as I moved down it. First her neck, that most delectable area of her flesh. Next my mouth traveled over her breasts, lingering on each of them for just a moment each before I moved downward to kiss the smooth skin of her belly.
I sat back so I could unfasten her jeans – the fabric covering her upper thighs torn from the beating earlier – and gently tugged them down over her hips. Slowly I pulled them down her slender legs, running my hands along her skin as I uncovered it. She was amazing.
I tossed the jeans off to the side and crawled back on top of her, supporting myself with my elbows as I pressed my mouth to hers again. "You're perfect," I said in between kisses. Impossibly, I felt her face heat even more, and she tangled her fingers in my hair, kissing me hungrily. Compliments worked; who knew?
Elyssa removed one of her hands from my hair and trailed it down my torso, over my blood-stained shirt. She pulled away from me momentarily to shoot a disparaging look at me before firmly ripping my shirt all the way down the front. "You ruined this with my blood; you don't deserve to keep it anymore," she muttered, a smirk tugging at the corners of her mouth as she removed the shirt from my body and threw it aside carelessly. I growled and captured her mouth once more.
Her small hands caressed my chest, alternately massaging it with her fingertips and raking her fingernails across my skin. She teased her hands along the trail of fine blond hair that disappeared beneath the band of my jeans.
"Zeke," Elyssa said. I'd lost track of how many times she'd murmured my name, breathed it out as we performed this act meant for lovers, but it still made it hard to breathe. Gently she pushed against my torso, making me rise so that I knelt before her once more. She brought herself up as well, kneeling in front of me. Her face and chest were still colored by her delicious blush, and she wouldn't meet my eyes. Instead, her gaze fell on my body, and she ran her hands along the bare skin of my chest slowly, seeming to savor each movement.
Her touch was like magic; my eyes rolled back in my head and I sighed, bringing my hands up to grab her wrists carefully. "Stop," she said suddenly. My eyes snapped open and I looked down at her, surprised. She smiled tentatively and raised just enough to press a soft kiss to my mouth. I was frozen, unable to even return the token of affection, I was that surprised. "Let me explore you," she whispered in explanation, wrapping her arms around my torso. Her chest pressed against mine, and I automatically brought my hands to her back, crushing her against me; she felt too good.
A chuckle met my ears, and she began to run her hands along my back. She tried to move away from me, but my hold wouldn't let her move more than an inch or two, and she sighed. "Zeke!" she complained, giggling huskily. I sighed and loosened my hold on her just enough to where she could lean back. Elyssa met my gaze and smiled at me. I wasn't strong enough to resist that smile; I bowed my head to crush my mouth against hers.
I snaked one hand up her spine, fisting her hair as we kissed; a deep growl released itself from my chest. Elyssa whined into the kiss and I fought a chuckle. Instead, I grabbed one of her thighs with my free hand and pulled her into my lap so she straddled me. She got the hint and hooked her other leg around my hip, pressing herself against me as close as possible. Her center ground against my breaking point and I had to pull away from the kiss as a moan tore from my throat.
I buried my face in the crook of Elyssa's neck as a shudder ran up my spine.
Her throaty chuckle in my ear made me bite her. I didn’t break the skin; this bite was far different than one where I sought blood. My teeth grazed over her flesh and her laughter turned into her gasping for breath. It was my turn to laugh.
Her hands began to roam across my back once more, and my heart skipped a beat. God, I hate what this woman does to me, I thought, lifting my head to stare into Elyssa’s eyes again. I brought my hand up to push her hair out of her face tenderly. She met my gaze shyly; the blush on her face brought a smile to my lips.
Elyssa gently grabbed my face, cradling it in both her tiny hands as she tilted her head upward. I followed her silent request instantly, touching my mouth to hers.
While I poured myself into the kiss, I gently set her back down on the floor, carefully lying on top of her. She reached down in between us to slowly work on removing my belt. There was no rush for either of us. We enjoyed the time it took for her to undo the belt before unfastening my jeans and pushing them down over my hips.
Before I knew what she was doing, she palmed my erection, and I hissed in surprise, breaking our kiss. I pressed my forehead to hers. Opening my eyes, I saw the amused look in Elyssa’s eyes and grinned back at her.
“If you think this is anything compared to how you’ll be feeling in a few moments, my darling,” I whispered, my lips brushing against hers as I spoke, “you’re kidding yourself.” Her eyes widened, and I smiled, kissing her again. She removed her hand from my member and resumed tugging my jeans off.
I moved off her just long enough to get my jeans off over my bare feet. Then, I pushed aside the opening of my boxers and pressed inside her. A shudder tore through me and I buried my face in the crook of her neck. “God,” I rasped out.
Nothing was perfect, but I’ll be damned if being inside Elyssa didn’t come close. She wouldn’t meet my eyes, so I dipped my head down to bite into her neck again, this time drawing blood. Her moan made me even more aroused, and I thrust into her, encasing my entire member in her moist warm sheath.
In the next hours, we moved from the floor to the table, to the spare bed I kept in my dungeons, our sounds of pleasure bouncing back to us off the stone walls. Finally we were worn out, lying beside each other underneath the covers on the bed. I could feel the grin on my face as I looked over at Elyssa.
Her face was flushed; sweat and blood mingled together on her skin. As I rolled toward her, she turned onto her side, facing away from me; I wound one arm around her waist from behind, pressing up against her completely.
Elyssa stiffened and I frowned; d
id she not enjoy our time together? Her moans and whimpers had told me another story…
Pressing a kiss to her neck, I whispered, “What’s the matter, sweet Elyssa?” Her pulse sped up and I grinned again, until she shoved out of my arms, dodging out of the bed like it was on fire. I admired the view until she darted over to my office; sounds of her rummaging through cabinets and drawers met my ears. Curious, I got out of bed and followed her, laughing at her expression when her eyes landed on me in all of my naked glory. She quickly turned her gaze away and resumed her search, face flaming.
A squeal of triumph came from her mouth as she opened the bottom drawer of my desk and brought out a spare button-down shirt that I’d left there. Oh. She was leaving.
I crossed my arms over my chest, planting myself firmly in front of the exit as she put the large shirt on. She refused to look at me, so when she moved to leave, her surprise was evident: she hadn’t expected me to be in her way.
“Please move,” she whispered, eyes trained elsewhere. I clenched my jaw and grabbed her face with both hands to force her to look at me. She struggled, but gave in after a moment; she knew she wasn’t strong enough to fight me. “What?” she asked, her voice desperate.
My eyes wandered down to the multiple bite marks on her neck, and I sighed. Apparently I’d done something wrong again. “Why won’t you stay?”
Elyssa’s response was muttered, so I couldn’t understand her. I tightened my grip and she winced. “I’m a whore,” she breathed, eyes glazed over with tears. Instantly, I felt. Not for what we did – Lord knew I could never regret that – but that she regretted it.
“You’re not,” I said simply, releasing her. I left the office, following the trail of clothing numbly until I came across my jeans; I put them on. I was a monster. Who else would take advantage of their dead brother’s Mate while she was emotionally defenseless? “Only me,” I whispered.
I barely heard Elyssa’s soft request that I repeat myself before I slipped into the cell to clean up the dead human’s body. Elyssa left soon after, leaving nothing behind but a pair of panties that she clearly couldn’t find.
Dmitri
“What is your problem?!” Ollie yelled at me. I held my face in my hands, sighing deeply. She was shouting at me again, something that had become very common since Reid’s death. She wanted sex. I wasn’t in the mood for it. It was like she was the man of the relationship, bitching to his wife about not getting enough nookie.
“Olivia,” I said. The tone I used told her I wasn’t playing games. “You can’t force me to have sex when I don’t want to. Don’t you know that’s called rape?” My tone morphed into one which I would use with a child, and when I looked up to meet Ollie’s gaze, anger flashed through her electric-green eyes.
"You shouldn't speak to your Mate that way, Dmitri," she told me with a huff. She didn't pout, which surprised me, but she looked moments away from breaking into tears. Over me not wanting sex. That was absurd. "Olivia, grow up a little," I told her. My tone showed that I wasn't playing around, but she still thought it wise to bare her fangs at me and hiss. I mimicked the action back to her and she flinched.
"I will not be bullied into doing something I don't feel like doing right now," I said. My voice was thick because of the fangs, but the message came across clear to her.
"Dmitri," Ollie began, whining. "I just want to spend time with my beloved Mate." She moved forward, hands outstretched toward me. I stepped out of her reach, glaring down at her.
"Having sex isn't the only way for couples to spend time together, Olivia," I told her coolly, rendering myself invisible and leaving the room.
It was less of a shouting match then it had been as of late, and I was thankful for that; I wasn't entirely sure I could handle too many more of those without either killing her or making her decide that she didn't want to be my Mate anymore.
Neither of those options seemed too bad at that moment in time.
Wandering the castle. It seemed that was all anyone ever did nowadays. Even Zeke had been wandering, the day that Elyssa had come to me with her fists. That attack had wound up with me training her on how to defend herself, as well as to inflict a little damage on her opponent.
Still, roaming the castle became less and less appealing as time passed, and I sighed. Here I was once more, though, wandering aimlessly, hiding from my Mate.
A curious aroma met my nose as I hit the main hall. The smell was coming from the hallway leading to Zeke’s dungeons. Following my nose, I entered the hall. A few turns later and I was at Elyssa’s door.
I knocked once before entering, the scent burning my nose was alarming now: blood. The room was empty, but noises came from the bathroom, so I knocked a few times on the door. A startled gasp sounded from the other side, and then the door opened to reveal Elyssa in nothing but a towel, her hair smoothed down over her shoulders.
Thankfully, my mind couldn’t focus on the almost-naked woman before me. Instead, my eyes picked up on the many bruises and cuts that weren’t healing properly. “That bastard,” I growled, reaching out to slam my fist into the wall; Elyssa jumped.
“Dmitri?” she stammered. I lifted my eyes to her face, clenching my jaw. “I’m fine,” she whispered. “He just used some potion of his to make my healing slow down a lot.” I reached out to trace a particularly nasty-looking bruise on her collarbone and she flinched; I watched color rise to her face.
I glanced back down to her bruise and noticed blood on my knuckles. I should stop punching walls, I thought grimly, swiping the blood off my hand onto my dark jeans.
“Get dressed,” I told Elyssa softly, dropping onto the chair of her desk. Bringing my hands up to my face with a sigh, I kept my eyes off Elyssa’s form as she crept around the room, gathering clean clothes. “I’m going to take you somewhere private; someplace only we brothers know about,” I muttered from behind my hands. She murmured her consent before vanishing into the bathroom. The shower turned on and fifteen minutes later Elyssa emerged, steam billowing out around her clothed form.
“Ready,” she breathed, twisting the end of the towel she had draped around her neck. She seemed nervous, I noticed, which was unusual for her; like she was hiding something.
She motioned for me to lead the way, so I shrugged and stood, leaving her room; her quiet footfalls told me she was following me. I glanced over my shoulder to see Elyssa rubbing at her neck beneath her hair. Odd… I thought.
“So,” I began awkwardly, “how have you been lately? I haven’t seen too much of you since our sparring match.” It wasn’t as though I expected a sunny answer, with all that happened with Reid, but I didn’t have much else to talk to her about. We used to discuss our Mates, but that wasn’t an option today. Mine was pissing me off, and hers was… Well, dead.
Elyssa sighed, heaving one shoulder upward in a half-shrug. “I got a lot of my anger out that first day or so, thanks to the sparring. Thank you for that, by the way,” she said, meeting my eyes tentatively. I nodded. “Aside from that,” she continued slowly, “things could be better. You know the circumstances, what do you think?”
Any other time, and her voice would have been hostile or sarcastic, but she seemed distracted and drained, devoid of emotion altogether at the moment. I sighed.
“You’re right. Well, come on; we need to hike up these stairs,” I said, motioning with one hand to the set of steps we’d reached. They were the only set of stairs that didn’t lead to residential quarters. In fact, they led to a place that was rarely visited, period.
None of us had ever had the heart to go there.
I led Elyssa up the stairs, and even with our stamina, it was becoming difficult about two-thirds of the way up the staircase. This particular stairway led up to the third, highest tower of the castle, one that didn't belong to any of the brothers.
"What is this place?" Elyssa asked, her voice quiet but still echoing off of the walls around us. The staircase grew dark; being enclosed in a tower with no windows would do th
at. I should have brought a light…
A shuffling sound met my ears and I grabbed her before she could fall. I couldn't help but grin as I held Elyssa in a loose embrace; she looked flustered at our closeness, and her face flamed with a blush. "Sorry," I said, still grinning. She glared a little, scowling. "I would have thought that, as a vampire, you would have a little more balance and better sight in the dark as well. Can we try to not trip for the rest of the way since I forgot to bring a light up?" I asked, chuckling.
I released the huffing girl and took her hand. "Come on. I'll explain when we're up there." When we emerged from the stairway onto a platform with a single door, I released Elyssa's hand. Gently gripping the doorknob, I twisted and gave a sharp push on the old door to get it open all the way.
We stepped into the dusty attic, no words shared between us, and began to look around. There was a lot of stuff there, from weapons to paintings, to trunks and boxes filled with who-knew-what. But the best thing about the attic was the portrait that hung from the wall opposite the only window.
Light streamed onto the beautiful image of my mother, and I smiled. "Elyssa," I whispered, turning to face her. Her eyes were still roaming the attic excitedly, taking in everything that lay dormant in this place. When she realized I'd called out to her, her face reddened slightly and she looked at me, the barest hint of a smile touching her mouth. I held my hand out and she placed her palm against mine, barely touching my skin with hers. "Come meet our mother."
At my words, her emerald eyes widened and she began to look around, more urgent than before. I knew her gaze landed on the portrait when her expression softened and tears made her eyes glisten. "Oh," she whispered. "She's beautiful, Dmitri." As she said the words, she squeezed my hand and then released it, taking one step at a time as she made her way over to the image.
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