“Do you know what you are doing, innocent little lady?” he asked, his voice hushed. “Do you know what it does to a man when you look at him so?”
Her gaze landed straight on his cock again, which was harder now.
He made a sound that was somewhere between a laugh and a groan. “Say I can come close,” he said from across the fire. “Tell me to come to you.”
There was no other choice in her mind. There couldn't be, when she was confronted with his masculinity and his body so beautiful and so close, not when he asked her with that pleading tone in his voice. If there was a thought in her mind that he would have disobeyed her, she would have pushed him away, but now there was no other answer she could make.
“Yes,” Riona said, her voice full of longing, and he leaped the fire to land at her side.
She started to speak again, but his mouth was on hers. He was gentle at first, his mouth moving slowly and delicately over hers, but when she pressed her body to his, his tongue pressed firmly between her lips. In surprise, she parted them, and the way his tongue slid into her mouth awoke a deep thrum in her belly, making her whimper and press even closer to him.
“Tell me when I must stop,” he said, breaking their kiss. He took her face between his two large hands, making her look at him. She could see the fire reflected in his eyes. “You must tell me if you would stop...”
She only nodded. She couldn't imagine wanting this to stop, ever, not with the pleasure that just his mouth brought her, and now she knew that she needed more. He smiled and pressed her back into the pine bed. Some of the branches pricked her soft skin, but she cared less about it than she did about the way that he stretched out by her side.
Reverently, he slid her shift up over her head and threw it aside before tucking his face into the crook of her neck. She squirmed when he lapped her there, but the trembling sensations that radiated from his mouth made her gasp out loud.
“Beautiful woman,” he crooned. “I'll be so easy with you, so good to you...”
His mouth, surely the warmest thing she had ever had on her skin, made her whimper, and she pressed even closer to him. She could feel the hardness of his cock against her soft flesh, and though she knew that she should have been shocked, even frightened, she only wanted more.
Her hands ran up the corded muscles of his back, touching him with increasing boldness, and when one hand dipped down to squeeze his hard thigh, he laughed a little.
“Wanting little lass, aren't you?” Rordan muttered. “Lovely, too...”
He reached a hand down and ran it over the curve of her belly, and she shivered at how gentle he could be.
“You're beautiful, so beautiful,” he sighed, and he brought his mouth down to nuzzle her breast before taking a dark, thrusting nipple in his mouth. It shocked her that he would do such a thing, but she was taken by a wave of hot pleasure. He pulled at her sensitive flesh gently, and then, when she wondered if she could take any more, he put his teeth to the sensitive nubbin of flesh and nipped down with the gentlest of bites.
Her gasp turned into a groan, and she pushed against him even harder.
“More of that,” she whimpered. “I want more of that.”
By the light of the fire, she could see his eyes light up hot and fierce, and she felt a deep tremor run through his body.
“Like coals to the fire,” he said, and that was all the warning she got before he was pressed on top of her, pushing her body into the rustling pine boughs. For a moment she was afraid, but then she felt his mouth on her neck again. There was the brief comfort of his lips, and then more bites, gentle at first, and then harder, and with each one, she thrashed underneath him. Every bit of pleasure made her want more of him, and soon she couldn't stop herself from spreading her legs to bring him even closer. The length of his hard body between her sensitive thighs felt so right, but when he pressed the length of his cock against her furrow, she knew she wanted more.
For the moment, however, he seemed content to bite her, light nibbles and bites with just enough sharpness to make her gasp. He slowly worked his way from her neck down to her shoulders, and then to the lush curve of her breasts, where he paused to suck on first one and then the other nipple, bringing them to aching hardness.
Riona found her hands in his hair, and she couldn't stop herself from yanking hard. “Are you trying to drive me insane?” she moaned.
He laughed, the sound of it echoing through her body. “It crossed my mind,” he admitted, and then his clever mouth was pressed against the sensitive ticklish skin of her belly, licking a wet path down below.
Riona's breath hissed between her teeth as he spread her soft thighs wide and ran a wide wet tongue along her slit. He was slow at first, taking long, dedicated laps that that made her tremble, but in the space of a few moments, he sped up, making her dig her heels into the boughs beneath and push up against him. His hands were like iron on her hips, holding her still, and it was more pleasure than she thought she could take.
Her cries were echoing against the stones, and she could feel white-hot sparks of pleasure shoot down her spine and her legs. She could never have imagined the sensation, and it filled her up. Just as it was reaching a crescendo, Rordan pulled away.
“Damn you!” she yelped, startled, but he pressed her back down, rising over her body.
“You feel so good,” he murmured, laying wet kisses across her breasts and her neck. “You feel so, so good...”
Taking his cock in his hand, he swept it up and down her slit, and she clutched his shoulders hard, shivering.
“Please,” she whimpered. Even though she knew that she ought to be frightened, there was no fear in her at all, and she spread her legs wider for him.
“I can't wait,” Rordan admitted, and he started to press his cock into her.
There was a moment of pain, there and gone between heartbeats, and then he was seated inside her, touching her more intimately than anyone ever had. Rordan's hand brushed against her chin, caressing her reverently.
“Look at me,” he whispered, and when she did, the connection between them shook her to the core. Then he began to move, long slow strokes that rocked him deep inside her and made her clench hard around him.
He leaned down to kiss her, and she couldn't stop herself. She latched her teeth in his neck and nipped him hard.
It was like a switch had been thrown, and with a deep groan, Rordan's movements grew faster and even more powerful. He was pushing her hard into the pine boughs, and she didn't care. All she could do was wrap her strong legs around his waist to drag him closer, her body winding tighter and tighter.
She thought she would burst or faint, but she did neither. Instead, she shook and shook, wanting more but barely understanding what was happening to her.
“Let go, sweetheart,” Rordan murmured. “Let go, and let me keep you safe.”
That was what she had needed because her body tightened and then it was like everything inside her was lit on fire. Pleasure coursed through every part of her, making her arch her body into a bow. Her ragged scream echoed through the trees, and Rordan responded by pushing into her one last time, shaking with his own release.
They lay still, letting the tremors of their pleasure fade. Gently, Rordan drew out of her. Instead of moving away as she expected, he rolled them to their sides and gathered her against him. He reached over her for his dry cloak and pulled it over both of them.
“Sleep,” he said firmly.
Completely exhausted, she did as he commanded.
***
Riona awoke to the startling realization that she was cuddled up next to a very large, very warm person. Startled, she moved away, rolling over the edge of the pine bough pile that she was sleeping on, and stared at the long and naked length of werewolf beside her.
In the dawn light she could see the dark circles under his eyes, and the slow even rise of his chest. It occurred to her that he was exhausted, and as if in confirmation, he grunted in his sleep, rolling over
and pulling the cloak more firmly around his body.
Riona glanced around and picked up her clothes, still a little damp, but no worse for the wear after her adventure in the river. He stayed still and, dressed and shod, she backed away from their campsite. Her body was a little sore, but the pleasure that he had given her was like the ghost of flames on her skin, warming her and making her crave more. Firmly, she shook them off, and when she came to the edge of the clearing, she knew she could walk free.
She glanced back at him, where he slept as sound as a wolf cub curled up in the pine boughs. A part of her wavered, but a greater part of her was confused, both over her intense reactions to this bandit and the sense of rightness that threatened to overwhelm her.
Riona shook her head hard and started her trek to the river. By the light of the dawn, she could easily avoid the ledges that had been so treacherous the night before. On a sudden impulse, she took her shoes in hand and hiked up her skirt, wading into the shallows. She knew that walking in the river would throw off hounds, so why not wolves?
She walked fast, leaving the river sometime later. The sun was fully risen, and her belly rumbled, reminding her that she had not eaten for quite some time. Still she kept walking, moving against the river's flow as the sun climbed higher. She kept her mind steadfastly on the path ahead of her and did her best not to think about the man she had left sleeping so trustfully.
It was close to midday when she found the bush of withered blueberries, somehow left untouched by birds and beasts. She fell on them with a glad cry, their sweetness easing some of the hunger cramps in her belly.
She was just finishing off the last bite when she heard the howl, and when she stood up to run, she could already see that she was too late. Wolves circled her, their heads lowered and their teeth bared, and Riona felt a chill up her spine.
“You cannot hold me,” she said as defiantly as she could. “You cannot make me your prisoner.”
There was not even a branch for her to use to defend herself, but she squared herself up, ready to fight, as the biggest wolf, ruddy brown and bigger than a mastiff, stalked up to her. Despite her resolve, a part of her trembled at his approach, remembering what had passed between them.
She started to say his name, and then she realized that the eyes that glared from the wolf's face were not amber. Instead, they were a livid, maddened green, and she knew to the bottom of her soul that this was not Rordan.
She faced the wolf with nothing in her hands, and as it stalked closer, she thought of the man she had left sleeping.
Oh, Rordan, I'm sorry...
TO BE CONTINUED IN BOOK TWO: The Black Wolf and the Red - Volume 2
***
The Black Wolf and the Red
***
The ruddy wolf's lip lifted in a warning snarl, and Riona froze like a statue. She had nothing to defend herself with, and from the stories travelers told, she knew anything she could do would not slow the wolf at all.
She could count no less than five wolves behind the one who menaced her directly, all bristling and ready for the signal to attack, and she took as deep and slow a breath as she could. Her panicked mind turned to Rordan, who she had walked away from at dawn, and she had another pang of regret, strange in a situation where she found herself menaced by wild animals.
The ruddy wolf took a stiff-legged step toward her, and even as she braced herself for its killing rush, he stood up as a man. He started the step as a red wolf, but he ended it as a tall man with close-cropped gold hair wearing a cloak of splendid blue velvet.
“You must be the black wolf's prize,” he said, his voice deep as thunder.
She blinked, staring up at him. “You're werewolves,” she blurted out, taking a step back. Whether they were kin to Rordan's people or not, she wasn't sure they were any safer than true wolves would have been.
“We are, but we are far from lawless, madam,” he said earnestly. “We are the King's Dogs, and we serve the Crown. We've been looking for you.”
Each statement was stranger than the last, and she frowned up at him. He looked like a nobleman to her. When he moved, she could see good leather armor with silver chasings, and the sword he wore at his side had a blue star sapphire for the pommel stone. Despite his rich gear, however, there was a thick collar around his neck, a curiosity amidst his martial finery.
“Who or what are the King's Dogs, and why would they be looking for me?” she asked, allowing some of her temper to show on her face. She had had enough of strangers telling her what she needed to do and where she needed to go.
“Allow us to conduct you to safety, and we can talk as we travel.”
Riona looked at him, weighing him with her eyes. He looked honest enough, but there was something he was not telling her. “And where is safe, exactly?”
“Why, Lodz,” he said, as if it should have been obvious.
“Why in the world would I want to go to the capital? I'm just trying to get myself back to the Dunclough nunnery.”
The man sighed. “Will you not go simply because we have your best interests at heart?”
She shook her head, and he must have given some signal because the other wolves transformed into men as well. They were attired similarly to their leader, and they were all fighting men. Unlike the easy camaraderie shared between Rordan and his pack, however, these men seemed far more stiff and angry, staring at her with baleful eyes.
“Have done, Conleth. Pack her up, and let's head back.”” said the skinny man standing to the left. There was something on his face that made Riona instantly wary. He glared at Riona, and she felt herself prickle defensively.
“Do I still rule here, or is it you, MacBrae?” the blond man said without turning around. A sudden tension that hadn't been there before filled the air, and for a split second, Riona thought that the skinny man, MacBrae, would launch himself at his leader. Instead, he spat on the ground and the moment passed, leaving Riona even more uneasy.
“Stand down,” Conleth continued. “Keep your eyes out.”
He took a step closer to Riona, ignoring her wary glance, but instead of saying anything else to her, he opened the pouch at his waist and drew out a sausage.
“Are you hungry?” he asked.
When her stomach grumbled, he smiled.
Before she could say yes or no, he cut off a slice of the hard sausage and handed her a chunk of bread as well. The bread was stale and the salt of the sausage stung her mouth, but she was so hungry she hardly cared.
“Hard to think when you're so hungry, isn't it?” he asked, eating a slice of sausage himself. “I was thinking that perhaps when you'd gotten some food in you that you might see my way of things.”
“Likely not,” Riona said. “It depends on what you have to say.”
He sighed as if he knew that she wasn't going to be easy to convince, and that made her like him a little better.
“You were taken recently by wolves, were you not?” he asked. “Wearing those clothes and wandering around the forest, that's obvious.”
At her cautious nod, Conleth's handsome face twisted up into a bitter smile.
“The wolves of the forest are a savage bunch, and every year, they grow wilder and more ferocious. That's why they need you.”
“He said... he said something about my blood,” Riona said hesitantly. Unbidden, the night she had spent with the wolf king of Dunclough came to mind, and a blush rose to her cheeks. If Conleth noticed, he ignored it, earning her gratitude.
“Yes, your blood. What is your name?”
“Riona,” she said in surprise. “Just that, I was an orphan at the nunnery.”
“The name hints, but the blood, that's what tells the truth.” Conleth nodded. “It's a fine name, Madame, and one that you bear very well. Do you know of the witchfolk of Dunclough?”
Mystified, she shook her head, and Conleth nodded. He sat down on the ground, and when he offered her his hand, she was surprised enough to take it, allowing him to guide her down next to him
. She couldn't deny that there was something pleasant about the gentle way he held her hand.
“The witchfolk and the werewolves have always lived side by side in the mountains. They were both wild and lawlesss folk, but they fought the cold winters together. They resisted the rule of the king, but over time, both tribes became fewer and fewer. Some were killed in battle against the crown, and some came away from the woods to lead civilized lives in the towns and farms below.”
As he spoke, one hand drifted to the heavy collar around his neck, and if his expression was a little bitter, he did not let it show in his voice. “The witchfolk dwindled faster than the werewolves did, and when they went, the wolf tribes were... stuck.”
“Stuck? Stuck how?”
“Their bestial natures,” Conleth said, turning the full force of his green gaze on her. “There is a cost that comes with slipping your skin, and one of the risks that werewolves face is that one can become stuck. You are a man trapped in the body of a beast, and if you give in to the wild side, you may never climb back out.”
Riona shivered. “But what has that to do with me?”
“The witchfolk were great healers, both of the body and the mind. They could look into the eyes of a trapped werewolf and call them back. They called it recognition. The women were especially skilled.”
“My parents were witchfolk?” Riona's mind swam. She had always assumed that poverty was the reason she had been abandoned. The picture Conleth was drawing for her was something entirely different.
“When they came down off the mountains, many of them sought new lives. Perhaps your parents were frightened that hard travel would kill you, or perhaps they were trying to give you a start without the taint of the wild on you.”
Following the Wolf (Trilogy Bundle) (Werewolf BBW Erotic Romance) Page 3