by Donya Lynne
“Miri. Ssshh, baby. It’s okay. You’re going to be okay.” He released her wrists and slowly slid his knees off her thighs, situating himself beside her. Propped on one arm, he caressed her face. “It’s adrenaline, Miriam. The tonic you drank is forcing you to come down from the withdrawal, but it will take a few minutes to work the adrenaline out of your system.”
She turned away, curling in on herself through another wave of the shakes, hugging her torso as she drew her knees toward her chest. She’d find a way to hide yet.
“I’m s…sorry about wh…what I said to y…you.” She buried her face against the mattress. Would she ever be able to be around Io without making herself look like a fool? He was the one male she wanted to impress and all she did was make an ass out of herself around him.
“Miriam, look at me.”
She burrowed further into the bedding.
Io’s hand smoothed over her shoulder, gently tugging on her as she trembled again. “Miriam, please. Please baby, look at me.”
How could she? She was a disgrace to herself and to her family name. Io was a better male than she deserved.
“Miri?”
Fine. She would get this over with. Let him see her, be disgusted by the awful person she had become, because only a wretch would treat someone like Io the way she just had. She lifted her face and looked over her shoulder.
Before she knew what was happening, his mouth was on hers, his arm winding around her waist from behind, pulling her back against him.
Heat blasted through her body as the adrenaline coursing through her found a new—better—outlet.
“Miriam.” Her name left his lips on a whisper even as they pressed against hers in another mind-blowing collision of flesh and tongues.
What was happening? Was he not disgusted with her? Did he still want her even after her abhorrent behavior?
Fire expanded from her belly, right underneath where his palm flattened and seared her, urging her back, pressing their bodies together. She reached around and gripped the back of his head, holding him in place, devouring his lips.
“God, baby.” He moaned and shifted, spinning her around until she faced him. “I need you.”
“I need you.” Their mouths danced, a fierce tango, locked one to the other, giving and taking in urgent turns.
A waterfall of warmth spilled through her abdomen as he sucked in her bottom lip, licking it before clutching it in his teeth. His gaze connected with hers, their breathing heavy and quickened, and desire gazed back at her.
She was no longer trembling. Was this really happening? She searched Io’s face, her lips still captive in his teeth. God, she wanted him. Needed him. Would die to have him. Moaning, she pressed forward, captured his top lip between her teeth, tasted him, then moaned again as he surged against her, arms securing her as he claimed her mouth completely once more.
Another rumble of thunder shook the house, but it was nothing like the storm brewing inside.
Io’s lips were incredible. Strong and firm, yet soft and smooth. And he knew how to work them against her mouth to tease, cajole, and persuade her to open for him so he could find the tip of her tongue with his, hold for a moment, then dive in to taste her over and over.
With the fluidity of melted chocolate, she undulated beneath him as he rolled her to her back. She needed him in the most basic way, her body a gentle wave that reached toward his so her curves kissed his hard edges as their mouths fused more deeply together. Her nipples hardened as her breasts brushed against his chest. Her abdomen quivered as it rolled along his. And when her pelvis raised off the bed, they both moaned as his hard shaft teased her through their clothes.
Io sank lower, his own body responding to the feel of hers riding up and down against him, their mouths locked into a never-ending, deep, breathless embrace.
He sank fully against her, all of him feeling all of her, his hips nestled snugly between her legs.
Miriam had never known such physical pleasure. Even fully clothed, this was more erotic than she could have imagined, and she couldn’t stop. Not now. Not when she could feel an orgasm building deep within her belly.
Every part of her body seemed to call to every part of his, reaching for him.
Io’s hips pushed forward, and she opened her legs wider.
He moaned approvingly and pushed his pelvis against her again. One long, persistent, thrusting motion.
This time, she moaned. Everything was a blur, a rush of excitement and lusty arousal, and it had all happened so fast, coming out of nowhere, sweeping her up and away. Had Dorothy felt this way riding inside the tornado that took her to Oz? Grounded one instant, flying to a fantastical land the next?
He smiled against her mouth, and she opened her eyes to look into his. He was devilishly sexy, and he watched her closely, enthralled with her.
“You’re going to come, aren’t you?” He rolled his hips against her again, more persistently this time, letting his steely shaft tease her in just the right spot.
Choking back another groan, she nodded briskly and licked her lips. “I think so.”
His eyes flicked to her mouth and he leaned down and teased her lips with his tongue as he thrust against her again. “You think so?”
God, yes. Yes. She nodded again. “Uh-huh.” She could barely breathe, too caught up in what was happening inside her. Muscles bunched, nerve-endings fired, everything seemed to be getting tighter, pulling toward a snapping point.
His movements were measured and paced, persistent. He needed to keep going. Don’t stop. Please, yes, this is good. So good.
“You’re going to come for me?” He pressed his lips to her ear, his devilish smile showing through his voice. “You are, aren’t you? Bad, bad girl.” He chuckled, a quiet, deep sound that sent a delicious chill down her spine.
“Io!” She gasped and dug her fingers into his ass as he rolled against her again.
“That’s it, baby.” He pulsed his hips forward and back, forward and back in tiny movements that kept the pressure squarely on her clit.
“Hurry!” She practically breathed the word out, clawing his buttocks through his sweatpants. But hurry to where? It wasn’t as though Io had a whole lot of control over how quickly she came.
He tucked his face against the side of her neck, kissing her nape, licking, sucking on it.
Miriam wanted him to bite her, but he didn’t. She sensed he wanted to, but for some reason he held back. Why wouldn’t he bite her? No, don’t think about that now. She was about to come. Her entire adrenaline-laden body was about to come unglued, and it was all because of…
“IO!”
Her climax roared, making her feel like a one-woman earthquake as she shuddered violently, crying out as wave after wave pummeled her, ripping her apart.
Io rolled violently against her, his back arching as he pressed his groin between her legs. Ragged breaths burst against her neck where his teeth clenched her skin in a show of self-restraint worthy of an Olympic gold. He could easily sink his fangs into her flesh, but he held back, his entire body paying the price for his withholding as he tensed and shuddered.
She held him tightly as the initial swell broke and crashed through her muscles, pounding her, drawing her in as if sucked into a rip current, until finally, the violent sea of bliss released her and she floated to the surface once more. Miriam opened her eyes and brushed her hands up Io’s back as his face swayed into her field of vision. She was smiling as if she had been starving and had just been served the most heavenly cuisine—no, not cuisine…food—she had ever eaten. Completely satisfied, Miriam stretched and purred under him, reveling in how exquisite her body felt in its post-orgasmic bliss.
Io shivered, breathless. “I’ve never heard a female purr before.” He pressed his nose against her nape and inhaled, his body sliding against hers in a way that reminded her of a cat. A very large cat. Maybe a panther. Mmm, yes, she liked thinking of Io as a panther.
She blinked and her smile widened as
she lazily traced the swirls of ink on his right arm. “Mmm, is that so?”
Miriam felt fine, as if she’d just slipped on her favorite silk robe after a long lavender-scented bubble bath in her Jacuzzi tub. She felt sinfully decadent in the way the woman in the Dove chocolate commercial appeared to feel after biting into one of those delicious, creamy, bite-sized squares of chocolate. Io was her silk. He was her Dove chocolate. Only he had ever made her feel so luxurious and debauched, but in such a wonderful way.
“You’re amazing,” Io’s gaze raked her face and neck as he pushed himself up.
She was beginning to come back from Cloud Nine. It had been a lovely trip, but as much as she was drawn to Io, she couldn’t forget who she was, and especially who her father was. The possibility of her being allowed to stay with Io was about as likely as an asteroid hitting the Earth tomorrow.
What had just happened between them had been incredible. No, it had been more than that. Stellar. Beyond words. The most wonderful thing she had ever experienced. Miriam’s body still sang from what Io had coaxed out of her, but this had to remain a one-time thing.
“We can’t do that again,” she said sadly, knowing full well what would happen if her father found out.
“Why not?” Io bent down and nudged the bottom of her chin with his nose so he could circle his tongue inside the tender hollow of her throat.
He was flirting with disaster.
“My father.” She closed her eyes, enjoying too much how well he worked his tongue. “He’ll never allow us to see each other.”
“I’m seeing you now,” Io said against her throat.
Io did have a point, but was he seeing hers?
“You know what I mean.” She pushed playfully against him, giggling as he nibbled the tendon that stretched from her collarbone up the side of her neck.
He sat back and rolled to the side, grinning and resting his hand on her stomach. “He doesn’t have to know.”
She rolled to face him and propped herself up on one elbow, craving to have him back on top of her even though she knew it was better that they remained apart.
“What are you saying? That I purposely defy my father?” As if she didn’t do that every day.
As if reading her mind, he said. “Aren’t you defying him already? By using cobalt? By being here now.” He brushed his fingers over her cheek. “By letting me touch you even though you know it’s against the law?”
Io’s brow lifted as if challenging her to deny it.
She sighed. “This is different.”
“How?”
Good question. Because really, how was him bringing her to orgasm and touching her sexually any different than all the other acts of rebellion she had exercised against her father’s wishes?
“It just is.”
“Why? Because you think he’ll hurt me?” Io scooted toward her, but she pressed her palm against his chest, pushing him back.
“Yes.”
And then she realized how this was different than any of the stunts she’d pulled before. Because before, she was the only one subject to punishment. And her father couldn’t contain her. His threats of punishment on her were just that. Threats. He never followed through. But Io would feel the full wrath of her father’s idea of justice.
“My father could destroy you, Io.” She searched his face.
For several seconds, they only stared at each other, neither knowing what to say next as the full weight of her words sunk in. Then Io sighed and rolled to his back, flopping his arm out to the side.
“You’re right.” He turned his head back toward her. “But, Miriam, you’re the most beautiful creature I’ve ever seen. I can’t accept that this is all we’ll ever have.”
She knew what he meant. Miriam couldn’t imagine not having Io in her life, especially now that he had given her such incredible pleasure and awakened her to a way of living she had always wanted but feared she would never know.
But it was more than just that. Io was strong-willed, carefree, a rebel like she was. He understood her when not many did. Not only did he understand her need for freedom, but he knew how to treat her addiction, which was something her father refused to see. And he saw through her. He saw the lies she tried to tell herself about how she didn’t let her father control her—because he did. Even down to her cobalt use, her father had a hand in affecting her decisions. Io could see that, and he had forced her to see it, too.
Io filled all the empty spaces she had yearned for her father to fill since she was young. With him, she felt safe in a way she hadn’t felt at home in decades. Her father had abandoned her when she had needed him most, treating her more like just another of his subjects instead of his daughter. There had been a time when she had been able to count on him, but as she grew older and came into her womanly body, her father had distanced himself and had continued treating her like a baby. He didn’t understand that she needed him to let her grow up.
Io got that. Io treated her like an adult. Io would never baby her.
“I wish there was a way,” she said, tucking her hair behind her ear. “I wish things were different. I like how you make me feel.” She blushed and looked down at the sheets.
Io shifted toward her, and this time she didn’t push him away.
“I like how I make you feel, too.”
She could hear the mischievous smile in his voice and looked up to see his eyes twinkling knowingly at her. The look on his face made her laugh.
“Oh, do you now?” She playfully pushed against his shoulder.
“Oh yeah. Feeling you come against me, and knowing I’d given that to you….” He paused and took a deep, satisfied breath. “Well, it gave me pleasure to know I’d made you feel that.”
The tips of his fingers skimmed over the side of her breast and down to her hips.
“Stop that.” She slapped his hand away and gave him a warning look, but her mental fortitude was waning. If he continued to make such advances, she might reconsider her position on whether or not they should perform an encore.
He chuckled and pulled his hand away. “Fine. I’m stopping. I surrender.”
She lay down beside him and listened to him breathe, thinking about all that had happened since she woke up in a fit of itching and violent withdrawal.
“What happened to me, anyway? I’ve never had withdrawal like that.”
Io reached for her hand and she took it, liking how his strong fingers felt tucked between hers.
“The tonic I gave you earlier kick-started a detox. I won’t lie. Cobalt detox is a bitch,” he said, and then added, “More like a bitch with horns, a pitched fork, and who breathes fire. You sort of lose your mind on a cobalt detox.” He sounded like he was reliving old ghosts from his own detox.
“Well, thanks for the warning.” Miriam let out a heavy breath. “Is this what I get to look forward to after I leave here?” She sensed Io’s concern. “Don’t answer that,” she said before he could say anything. “I think I get the idea of what I’m in for.”
“The elixir I gave you helps curb the worst of it.”
“Too bad I don’t have your nasty-ass elixir at home.” She sucked her teeth and rolled her head toward him as he did the same toward her.
“Hey, it’s nasty, but it works.”
“So it does.” She couldn’t deny that. Within minutes of swallowing the vile concoction, she had calmed like a baby drinking from the teat.
They stared at each other, her thoughts filled with worry over how she would get through detoxing without his elixir—or him—to take away the violent withdrawal when it rose up as it had a little while ago.
“You could always stay here with me.” Io spoke softly, squeezing her hand. “I’ll take care of you. I’ll see you through.”
She rolled her eyes and turned away to stare up at the ceiling. “Yeah, right. As if my father would allow that.”
“He might. If we approach it right, your father might allow me to treat you.”
She looked
back at him. Was he serious? Could they really convince her father to release her into Io’s care when he didn’t even want to admit she had a drug problem in the first place?
“I don’t know, but we could try.” She bit her lip, her mind alighting with hope.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
The storm outside raged on, but Io was more concerned with the storm that seemed to be raging behind Miriam’s crystal blue eyes. Was she trying to figure out a way to convince her father to let him treat and care for her during her recovery? Even after all her protests about how they couldn’t see each other and how her father would destroy him if he knew what they had just done, could she now be searching for a way for them to be together just a little longer?
And a little longer was all Io wanted. Longer to see her, feel her, and imprint her on his soul and in his memories. He knew that after she left here the odds would be against them ever seeing each other again.
The thought angered a primal part of him that thrust itself forward in his mind, snarling at the idea of never seeing Miriam again. She was his, damn it. She belonged to him. He had a right to—
Whoa! Had he mated her? Io physically swayed at the thought. Was that what was going on here? Had his vampire instincts fired up to form a bond with Miriam’s already?
This was one area where vampires differed from humans. Whereas males of both species played the field in similar ways, a human marriage had nothing on a vampire mating. A marriage could be dissolved by a judge with a little slip of paper. A marriage could be ended in a blink if the humans got tired of each other or fell out of love. With vampires, there was no dissolving a mating. A mated pair didn’t grow tired of one another, and they certainly didn’t fall out of love. When two vampires mated, a link formed to tether them to one another on a level that transcended the physical plane and fused them into one on a spiritual and emotional level, which was why the loss of a mate left a male in a state of despair if it didn’t kill him outright. A mating was for life and plainly demonstrated the vampire race’s link to the animal kingdom.
How had he connected with her so quickly? It was too soon. Wasn’t it?