The Dark

by Cheyenne McCray

  Not to mention the niggling at the back of his mind that she could be the traitor.

  He’d made bad decisions, trusting the wrong instincts, and that had led to the loss of lives. He couldn’t let it happen again.

  Jake’s gut lurched and he drew his emotions in tight. He hadn’t let anyone in for years and he wasn’t about to start now.

  His entire body and mind felt suddenly numb. And tired.

  Thoughts of Cassia kept trying to prod him but he forced them away.

  The one potential bright spot was the possibility of the Mystwalkers Garran talked about. If they had the metal Jake needed to make the god-containing weapon, that would be good news.

  Everything else, though, not good.

  Jake toweled himself off in quick, angry strokes, but the steam in the room kept his skin dampened. The bathroom smelled of some kind of honey-oatmeal soap the witches had made, along with the scent of eucalyptus and bay leaves from the shampoo they’d made for the guys.

  When he was pretty much dry, Jake wrapped the towel around his hips, grabbed his dirty clothing and boots, and headed for his room.

  Being PSF Captain had some perks. He had his own space.

  Small, but he didn’t give a crap about that. He was just glad he had a place to sit back alone and think.

  God, he had so much to think about.

  As he held the towel tight around his waist, he nodded to a couple of members of the Alliance that he passed.

  Cassia rounded a corner from one of the other bathrooms.

  She held her palm to her chest, stopping several feet away from him.

  Jake’s heart jumped. The numbness that had gripped him, from mind to body, suddenly melted away at the sight of her.

  Make that one definite bright spot in all this mess.

  Cassia.

  Whatever other possible light there might be in the tunnel of darkness was something he couldn’t quite place anymore.

  Not while he was standing there, looking at Cassia, a hard lump rising in his throat.

  Even though her hair was dry, likely from her magic, it was obvious she’d just taken a shower. She had wrapped herself in a robe that matched her turquoise eyes, and she held a bundle of her own clothing close to her waist.

  Her long blonde hair fell in a sheet of smooth silk. Her gaze drifted from his eyes, down his bare chest, to the towel slung around his hips.

  He gritted his teeth as he hardened and pushed against the towel when she looked down. When she returned her gaze to his, color rose in her cheeks.

  “I need to talk to you.” Jake’s voice sounded rough, like the rumble of thunder.

  Cassia seemed like she’d been holding her breath before she exhaled. “In the morning.”

  This couldn’t wait. He shook his head. “Now.” Another PSF officer and then one of the D’Danann shouldered past them in the hallway. “Somewhere private.”

  Cassia glanced around as if searching for a place to talk. He shifted his dirty clothing to one arm and took her by the elbow with his free hand. She looked up at him in surprise as he guided her down the hallway to his room.

  “I don’t think—” she started before he pushed her into the room and shut the door behind them.

  The moment they were alone, Jake threw his shoes and clothing on the warehouse’s concrete floor. The shoes made clomping noises as they hit. He grabbed Cassia’s clothing from her arms and ditched that pile, too.

  Jake didn’t give her time to react. He crowded Cassia up against the wall and put his arms over her head, bracing his palms against the wood. She gasped when he pressed his rigid length against her belly and he went in for the kiss.

  God, she smelled good. Sunshine and vanilla. She tasted even better, a gut-tightening feminine flavor.

  He kept it slow, nipping at her lower lip before running his tongue along the place he’d just bitten.

  Cassia moaned and slid her fingers up his abs to his chest, over the thick, pink scars from his Stormcutter wounds. She wrapped her arms around his neck, drawing his head down and kissing him in her sweet, hesitant way. Just like the virgin she was.

  A four-hundred-year-old virgin. Now if that wasn’t a head trip, he didn’t know what was.

  Jake was afraid to move his hands from the wall because the urges rising in him made him feel like a predator, ready to push off her robe and take her down to the mats he slept on.

  Cassia made soft little moans that vibrated through him and made him so hard he thought it was going to knock his towel right off.

  With a gasp she placed her palms on his bare chest and pushed him just enough that he raised his head. He still held his mouth a fraction from hers, prepared to not give an inch—he wasn’t about to let her out of his room until they’d talked about things.

  “Jake. We’ve got to stop,” she whispered as he moved his lips along her cheek to her earlobe and dipped his tongue into her ear. She gasped again and moved her palms over the expanse of his chest like she couldn’t stop herself. “We’ve been through this before.”

  “And we’re going to go through it again,” he murmured close to her ear, “until we find some kind of solution.”

  Cassia shuddered with obvious desire as he moved his mouth to her neck and she clenched his shoulders.

  Jake moved his hands from the wall and grasped her waist, nearly mindless with more than lust. More than desire. More than need. “I want you so bad, Cassia, it hurts.”

  Her breasts rose and fell with her rapid breaths as he eased his lips down to the V of the robe she wore. “C—can’t.”

  “Can.” Jake brought one hand from her waist to push aside her satin robe, revealing one of her breasts. Before she could protest, he sucked her nipple into his mouth.

  Cassia let her head fall back against the wall and closed her eyes while still gripping his shoulders. Sparks of magic flickered from her body, driving him on.

  Something fell to the floor nearby with a loud thump, followed by a clatter. Sounded like his heavy-duty flashlight had fallen off one of the crates and rolled across the floor.

  Barely conscious of what he was doing, he shoved the material away from her other breast and moved his mouth to that nipple. He pinched and pulled the nipple he’d just suckled while licking and drawing the other one into his mouth.

  More thumps.

  “So goddamned good.” A primitive growl rose up in his throat as he raised his head and looked down at her face, which was still tipped back, her eyes closed. “Cassia,” he said, and her eyes fluttered open.

  Damn, he loved the look of desire in her eyes, the way he had reddened her mouth with his lips and his stubble, as well as the high flush on her cheeks.

  “Let me taste you.” He brought his hand up to her mouth and ran his thumb over her moist lips. “Please.”

  Cassia look disoriented, like she was on another plane. “Taste me?”

  “Yeah.” Jake trailed his finger between her breasts, down to the tie keeping the rest of her robe closed. “Your p—” He barely caught himself. Cassia was not the kind of woman you talked dirty with, even if she’d been around a while.

  She was so beautiful, so pure. “I want to taste you between your thighs.”

  A flush rose up in Cassia that made her head spin. She had always stayed away from males because she wasn’t allowed to develop a relationship with one. And she certainly had never talked with other women about sexual acts. She had been on Earth since the seventeenth century, and ladies just didn’t go there.

  But Jake.

  He had his fingers at her robe’s tie, prepared to pull it apart. “I promise you’ll love it. And I’ll love tasting your juices.”

  Cassia’s star birthmark tingled like mad as she grew wet between her thighs at his erotic suggestion. She barely kept herself from crossing her legs to hold back the rush of need.

  “Bless it.” She shook her head to clear it. “How many times am I going to have to tell you we can’t do this?”

  “As many
as it takes to change the rules.” Jake cupped her cheeks in his palms and she shivered at his touch. “I’m not giving up on you.”

  “But—”

  “I’m not going to push you now.” He kissed her forehead. “But I am going to talk with your mom.”

  “Mom?” Cassia couldn’t help the laugh that escaped her. “I don’t think anyone has called the Great Guardian Mom since the dawn of time. My brothers and I call her Mother.”

  He smiled, then nuzzled her hair. “She needs to be told to lighten up.”

  “Jake!” Horrified, her eyes wide, Cassia drew away. “We never speak of the Great Guardian in that manner.”

  He winked. “Maybe somebody should.”

  His teasing and smiles were contagious, and Cassia actually found herself grinning. “It’s not going to be me.”

  “I’m up for the job.”

  “Uh-huh.” Cassia shook her head as she smiled. “Wait till you meet her.”

  Jake slipped his fingers into her hair and ran his fingers through the strands. “I knew you’d agree to take me to meet your mom.”

  Cassia opened her mouth. Shut it. Then she said, “Jake Macgregor, you just tricked me.”

  “Whatever it takes.” He brushed his lips over hers. “I want you.”

  She sighed, a blissful feeling settling over her as she leaned into him. She wished he could hold her in his arms forever.

  He raised his head. “So what’s this about your brothers? Are you close to them?”

  “Not really.” Cassia shrugged. “The Guardian bears a child once a millennium.” Cassia paused, and he knew what she had to say next was important. “I’m the only female child the Great Guardian has birthed.”

  “I bet that’s got a lot to do with why so much is placed on your shoulders,” he muttered.

  “When we’re twenty-five,” Cassia continued, “we’re sent away to an Otherworld for four hundred years. With the age difference, lack of time around one another, everyone busy with their mates and occupations—you can image there’s not a lot of bonding time.”

  “Yet you do spend time with certain people of your race, like Kellyn.” His expression darkened. “And Daire.”

  Cassia felt a strange thrill in her belly, knowing Jake cared about her enough to be jealous. “Daire was always just a friend to me.”

  She couldn’t stop herself from reaching up and rubbing her fingers along Jake’s stubbled jaw. “He’s been a teacher, a mentor.” A now-becoming-familiar wave of heat flooded her. “It never occurred to me Daire would be chosen for my transition.”

  Jake’s throat worked, his expression still dark. “What exactly does Daire mentor you in?”

  “Fighting skills.” She linked her fingers behind Jake’s neck. “I’ve been training for centuries. I could take you down before you knew what was happening to you.”

  An amused expression crossed Jake’s features. “Could you now?” he drawled.

  In a split second Cassia hooked her leg around one of Jake’s ankles, jerked hard, and pulled his feet out from under him. She knocked him flat on his back on his bed mats. With a triumphant grin, she straddled him.

  Jake laughed and gripped her hips with both hands. “Princess, you can show me your fighting skills anytime.”

  This time she kissed him. She moaned as she took his lips with hers, and she squirmed at the feel of his bare chest, now between her bare thighs. Her naked sex pressed against his skin and she writhed at the heady feeling it gave her to have contact with a male in a way she never had before.

  Her skin prickled and flecks like stardust flickered and expanded from her body. Several more thumps echoed throughout the room.

  Jake rubbed her bottom through the satin as they kissed. He slowly inched the fabric up until his big palms kneaded her bare flesh.

  The sensations were enough to make her shake inside.

  She felt something coming. Something new. Major. Wonderful.

  But—

  Cassia jerked her head up. A bolt of magic shot from her body, sailed across the small room, and struck a pair of Jake’s work boots.

  As the boots smoldered and the smell of burning leather reached her, Jake snorted like he was holding back laughter. “I can see sex with you will definitely be dangerous.”

  He trailed his fingers down her chest from between her breasts to her belly button, to trace the star below. “A birthmark?” he murmured.

  Cassia nodded. She found it too hard to breathe and answer him. Her magic sparked like small fireworks being set off around the room.

  They kissed again, and he kept rubbing and massaging her buttocks in a way that made her feel like she was going to burst into flame. The tingling between her thighs grew intense and she was afraid she was going to melt something again.

  Maybe Jake.

  Before she had a chance to, Jake broke the kiss by moving his hands to either side of her face and stilling her. “I don’t intend for another man to have you, Cassia. You know that, don’t you.” A statement, not a question.

  “Jake—”

  “Mom and I are going to have a little talk.”

  Cassia wanted to burst out laughing at the way he was referring to the Great Guardian, but the moment was a little too serious. “It’s not going to do any—”

  Jake brought her to him in a hard kiss before drawing away again. “I know you can’t have a man inside you who doesn’t know how to take you through your transition.” Cassia’s whole body heated so much she felt like her Otherworld’s sun had swallowed her.

  “But,” he continued, his expression serious yet sexy all at once, “can you have an orgasm without going supernova?”

  Cassia felt like she’d already become a billion times brighter with embarrassment. “I—I guess so. I’ve never had one, though.”

  “Princess.” He moved his lips to her ear. “I’m going to show you what you’ve been missing.”

  A shiver trailed down Cassia’s spine and twined with desire. A strange kind of fear wove itself through her, much like the sparks chasing one another around her and Jake. It was almost like they were waiting to—to attack.

  She eased off Jake onto the mat, while grasping her robe so that she was completely covered. Her gaze slipped downward to the towel barely hanging onto his hips before she looked at him again.

  “You’re not ready yet.” Jake rolled onto his side facing her, his head propped in his palm, his elbow on the mat. “I shouldn’t have pushed you.”

  Cassia wrapped her arms around herself as she fought to reel in the magic that wanted to burst from her and melt something. Sparks still whirled around them. She saw her magic had already scattered his clothes, body armor, a flashlight, and his duty belt across the floor.

  Not to mention she’d toppled a couple of wooden crates in one corner, too. She had not only heard thumps and rattles, but the mess hadn’t been there when Jake had dragged her into the room.

  “I’m scared.” Cassia turned her gaze back to him. “I don’t know what to do. I don’t know what could happen.”

  He reached up with his free hand and tugged one of her arms away from her chest so that he could clasp her fingers. “I should be moving a lot slower with you.”

  “This shouldn’t be happening, knowing I may have to be with another man.” The sparkles whirling around them began to settle on Cassia’s shoulders and arms.

  “There’s no guarantee that the Great Guardian will teach you how to take me through my transition.” She squeezed his fingers back, sadness and longing flowing through her. “She emphasized that the male must be of pure Elvin blood.”

  Jake growled as he released her fingers and pushed himself to his feet. He barely caught the towel, keeping it from falling. She half wished it would slip off.

  “Doesn’t matter where a person goes,” he said with a bite to his tone as he snatched up a pair of boxer shorts. “Discrimination, prejudice—it’s always there.”

  Jake had his back to her as he whipped off the towel and
tossed it aside. Her mouth watered. He had the nicest ass she’d ever seen. Not that she’d seen a lot, but still.

  She tried to turn her focus back to what Jake was saying. “You’re right,” she said quietly. “Elves and Fae have long held animosity toward each other. Of course, Light Elves against Dark Elves as well.” She sighed. “I never realized just how snobby my people are.”

  “It’s more than snobbery.” Jake had pulled on his boxers and turned back to look at her. “It’s pure discrimination. There’s enough of that sh—crap out there.”

  “Something more is bothering you.” Cassia sat on the mat with her arms wrapped around her bent knees as she looked up at Jake. “Do you want to talk about it?”

  His muscles flexed as rubbed his temples with his fingers. “Hell, no.”

  “Why not?” A kindling of anger flickered in her. “I’ve bared my soul. The most intimate things about me.” Her voice rose and she lapsed into the more formal speech of the Elves. “I refuse to accept you standing before me and telling me you cannot share your past.”

  Jake opened his mouth, then clamped his teeth shut, holding back whatever it was he had been planning to say. “It’s not important,” he finally said.

  She patted the mat beside her. “I’ll determine whether or not it is.”

  Jake made a noise between frustration and anger. The mat made a squishing noise as he plopped on the mat beside her. He braced one hand on the mat while he propped his other arm on one bent knee. “What do you want to know?”

  “Why are you so bitter?” She spoke low and even. “This affects you beyond what you witnessed and experienced in the city of the Light Elves.”

  He ground his teeth. “I grew up being discriminated against. But it’s nothing compared to what one hell of a lot of people go through. So I’m not whining about my past. Any kind of bigotry against any race, creed, color, nationality, religion—it just plain pisses me off.”

  “There’s something more than that,” Cassia said. “Tell me what you went through as a child.” She leaned forward, her arms still wrapped around her knees. “I want to know about the young Jake Macgregor.”

  He snorted, a sound of derision. “I doubt if you have anyone who lives ‘on the wrong side of the tracks’ in your precious city.”