by Grosso, Kym
Kisses to her neck jarred her back to reality. Shower. Léopold. She let her hands roam to his chest, trailing her fingers down his firm pecs. Her nipples hardened in arousal, and the ache between her legs grew painful. The temptation was too great for her to resist. She prayed she could do this, have sex with Léopold and walk away unscathed.
“Don’t fight this…us,” he said, unsure whether he was talking to her or himself. Léopold gave in to his desires, pressing his lips to the softest hollow behind her ear. He was breaking a million of his own rules, he knew. But this woman, whatever she was, he had to have her…to be in her, to possess her. He heard her sigh in response and grazed his cheek against hers.
“Léopold,” was all she managed to say before his lips captured hers.
Laryssa gave in to his intoxicating kiss, wrapping her hands around his neck. She could feel her control slip away as his tongue pressed into her mouth. With a demanding fervor, he kissed her, sucking at her lips, tasting her essence. She couldn’t get enough of him, needed him closer. Writhing her belly against his cock, she hoped he’d also lose restraint. In response, Léopold dropped his hands to her ass, lifting her upward until she wrapped her legs around his waist.
“More,” Laryssa demanded into his mouth. As her pussy opened against his slippery skin, she pumped her hips against his pelvis, seeking relief.
Léopold merely laughed, but never released her lips from his own. He pressed her back against the tiles, holding her still, ceasing her movement. Tightening his grip on her hips, he slid her upward, then down again, her wet folds brushing his abs.
“Oh God,” Laryssa moaned, unable to control his actions. All she could do was accept the pleasure he was giving. Every time he pulled her up and then pushed her down, her clit grazed his skin. The sensation was deliciously arousing yet not enough to bring her to orgasm. “Léopold, please.”
“You must trust me.”
“I’m afraid to,” she confessed. He yanked her up hard against him, putting more pressure against her aching nub.
“I’m going to take you every way I want, my sweet. I don’t care what you are. I just need to be so far in you that you never forget this night.”
“I’m…I’m a…” She sucked a breath as he let her slide away, losing the contact she needed. Laryssa never thought she could come from just a kiss but when his lips teased at hers, her body lit on fire. The energy rose within her and she let it go. She wanted this man, wanted him to know everything about her. No one had ever commanded her sexuality the way he’d done in just a few short hours. God help her, she had to have him in her life.
“Open for me,” he told her as his mouth descended on hers.
Thirst rose and Léopold struggled to keep his fangs from descending. Whatever this woman was, he could not resist her. The thought of his cock and teeth buried deep inside of her flashed into his mind, and his stomach clenched in concern. So many years he’d been alone, and for the first time since he’d been turned, the idea of feeding and making love all at once was alluring to him. As she sucked on his bottom lip, the only thing that became important to him was bringing her to climax.
“Ah yes,” she cried again into his mouth as he jerked her body against his.
“Tell me you want this.”
“I need you…now…in me now.” She wasn’t usually so wanton, but damn, he’d refused her once and she wasn’t about to let him back away again.
Losing all control, Léopold bent his knees, sheathing himself inside of her. A primal instinct took over as he waited but a second for her to accommodate his size before pumping out and back into her. Dropping his head to her chest, his lips found her breast. He took her ripe tip into his mouth, then sucked it hard, making her cry with pleasure.
Laryssa’s breath caught at the welcome erotic intrusion. With unbridled frenzy, she thrust her hips into his, urging him to make love to her harder. His teeth tugged at her perky nipple, causing a sensation of blissful pain, something she’d never experienced in all her life. As he pounded up into her, he began to grind into her pelvis, caressing her clitoris in rhythm with her own movements. So close to going over the edge of orgasm, she dragged her fingernails down his back.
As Léopold’s fangs elongated, he was forced to tear his lips away from her shimmering peaks. He could hear her pulse beating and it drove him into an animalistic fervor. Struggling to maintain discipline, he groaned. Just one sweet taste of her blood, and he’d begin a bond with this woman. Focusing on the feel of her tight pussy around his swollen flesh, he thrust up into her with long smooth strokes.
“Please, harder,” she begged, panting for breath. Each slamming surge inside of her stroked the thin line of nerves within her channel. “I’m coming…I need to tell you.”
What is she saying? Need to tell me what? Léopold couldn’t concentrate, lost inside her. He increased the tempo, frantically pounding his cock into her pussy. He pressed his forehead to the cool tile, refusing the temptation to sink his teeth into her inviting skin. No blood. No damn blood. Just fuck her and be done. His fangs pierced his own lip in the process.
“Leo,” Laryssa cried into his chest as her climax claimed her. She could feel herself spasming around him, unable to stop the crushing waves of power and ecstasy that rolled over her again and again.
“Fuck, yes, I’m coming. Ah, Goddess,” Léopold grunted as he jerked fiercely. Stiffening, he came hard, grateful he’d restrained himself.
A few minutes passed before Léopold released her from his grip, gently sliding himself from her warmth. He glanced up to her flushed face, her wide eyes pinned on his. Despite not tasting of her blood, he could feel a connection to this woman. Jesus Christ Almighty, this is what I’ve worked so hard to avoid. He was a fucking asshole for taking her this way, brutally taking her in the shower after she’d been attacked. The shame in his eyes was evident but he doubted she’d know how he felt. Determined not to share his feelings, he wouldn’t tell her. But he owed it to her to make sure she was all right.
“Merde, I’m sorry.” He shook his head and stepped backward out of her reach. “Are you okay?”
“Why are you sorry? I feel great,” she said truthfully. It had been so long since she’d had sex and for the love of all that was holy, she’d reveled in her orgasm.
By the way he was looking at her, she could tell he regretted being with her already. She sighed and turned herself into the spray, washing away the evidence of their love making. Screw him. I’m not about to let some temperamental vampire make me feel guilty or ashamed for what I did. If he was looking for a one-off, then that’s all it would be. But she’d be damned if she’d let him ruin the afterglow for her. At least for her, life was too damn short not to enjoy mind-blowing sex.
“It’s just that I told you,” he began.
“Yeah, I know, I know. You don’t do relationships. Got it, big guy.”
“You were just attacked. You need time to heal…we shouldn’t have done this.”
“Hey.” She turned to face him and poked him in the chest. “Don’t you fucking tell me that bullshit, Leo. You hear me? This…whatever this was…was consensual and felt amazing. God, you have issues.”
Laryssa looked around the open-blocked shower and tried to find the exit through the steam. Refusing to spend one more second with this man, she moved to get away from him, and he grabbed her hand.
“Please, it’s not what you think. I’m sorry. I just wanted to make sure you were okay. I shouldn’t have been so rough when we made love.” Léopold embraced her. “You’re right. It was amazing…you’re amazing.”
With certainty, Léopold knew that he’d been so wrong about her. No, his Laryssa wasn’t a rabbit at all. She was a survivor and a fighter, unafraid to call him out on his atrocious behavior. He closed his eyes, allowing himself to feel every surface of their skin that joined. She and the intimacy she laid at his feet terrified him more than any demon. For the first time in his life, he wondered if he’d be able to continue to
live within his own restrictions.
Chapter Seven
Léopold turned on the heat lamp, guiding Laryssa out of the shower. She took in her surroundings, aware that she’d missed them when he’d relocated them from the lake to the bathroom. Italian architecture echoed throughout the space, with its dark mahogany cabinetry and cream marbled floors. Before she had a chance to walk any further, he wrapped a warm towel around her shoulders.
“Let me,” he said in a dark low tone.
“But I can dry myself,” she protested.
“I insist,” he told her, leaving her no quarter for argument. Placing a bath rug on the floor, he knelt before her, bringing the towel from her shoulders with him so that it trailed down her back.
The act of each soft brush of the Egyptian cotton on her skin was the single most intimate touch she’d ever experienced. Laryssa rested her hands on Léopold’s shoulders, reflecting on how they had just made love in the shower. They’d been unleashed, utterly wild with desire. Then he’d grown distant. Despite his apology, it was as if he’d turned off a part of himself emotionally. Yet his behavior continued to conflict with the killer he’d touted himself to be.
“What were you going to tell me when I was inside you?” he asked, caressing the towel down her legs. Slowly, he dried each foot, and then drew the terrycloth up her left inner thigh. He repeated the process on her right leg.
“Naiad. I’m a naiad,” she confessed. Relief and concern swirled through her mind, but she was soon caught off guard when he glided his fingertips over her mound.
“I love your smooth pussy. Just a little trail of hair here…very pretty,” he commented.
“Um, thanks,” she laughed. No one she’d ever been with had ever commented on her lady garden, let alone been on his knees in front of her inspecting it like he was looking at a rare flower. “Aren’t you going to say anything?”
“I want to lick you until you can’t speak your own name. Shall we give it a try?” He glanced up to her, catching her gaze and gave her a naughty grin.
“Okay. Well that sounds really nice and all, but didn’t you just say that we couldn’t do this?” She pointed to the shower then to her chest and to him. “Not that I’m disagreeing with you. That sounds pretty tempting to me, but you seem to have a problem deciding whether or not you want to be with me.”
“Pas de problème, ma chérie. I want you, don’t ever doubt that. It’s the bond, the emotions that can form. Complications and such. I suppose I am wavering. On my knees before you, the only thing I can think of is how much I want to drag my tongue over your pink lips.”
“If you don’t stop, I’m going to demand it. Seriously, Leo, aren’t you going to say anything? After everything I just told you…about what I am and you haven’t said one word about it.” As much as she wanted to discuss it, the idea of Léopold giving her oral sex was extraordinarily attractive. She grew wet with arousal again and she knew he’d smell it on her.
“Well how am I supposed to concentrate when I’m so close to you like this? You taste sweet, no?” Léopold leaned forward and darted his tongue through her slit, tracing over her beaded treasure until he felt her shiver into his mouth. He licked his lips like a satisfied cat. “Ah, oui. Délicieux.”
“Léopold,” Laryssa cried. What is it with this man? He must be well versed in the fine art of torture. She couldn’t decide whether or not to grab his hair, and encourage him to finish what he’d started or slap him out of frustration. But before she had a chance to make a final decision, he quickly patted her pussy dry and had pushed onto his feet, standing before her.
“A nymph, oui?”
“Kind of…I guess.”
“Here, put this on.” He handed her his bathrobe. “I cannot concentrate on a single word you’re saying when you’re like this.”
“You mean like this?” She smiled and took the black garment from his hands. Refusing to put it on, she draped it over her forearm and put her hand on her hip, giving him a full view of her body.
“Exactly like that. Now, put it on.” He wrapped his towel around his waist and walked out into the bedroom.
“You’re very bossy for someone who was just on his knees,” she commented flippantly.
“You’re a bit mouthy for someone who was just screaming my name,” he countered.
“Should I give you the pleasure of being on your knees again, I’ll try to keep that in mind.” She rolled her eyes and put on the bathrobe. “So what? No questions? No ‘what else can you do’? Or does the wise one already know all there is to know about naiads?”
“Come sit.” He gestured to a double width chaise that curved on both ends. Lined in copper studs, its brown leather appeared well conditioned but comfortably worn.
Wide eyed and incredulous, Laryssa stared at him.
“Please sit,” he drawled.
“See? That wasn’t so difficult, now was it?” She sashayed past Leo, trailing a finger over his bare chest, giving him a flirty smile. Sitting down into the lounge, she curled into it like a kitten and laid her head back on the cushion.
“You are a difficult woman, no?”
“Oui,” she teased.
“We need to talk, Laryssa.” Léopold walked over to a large antique armoire and opened its doors. Pulling out a decanter and two snifters he set them on his desk and began to pour them a drink. “I’ve met a few nymphs, but I’ve never seen one do what you do. While they’re known in mythology to be dangerous, I’ve never met one that was. Aside from needing water, drawing energy from water, I haven’t ever met one who could move objects. Here,” he said, extending the glass to her.
With a small smile, she accepted it. She shook her head, amused, but not surprised that he hadn’t bothered to ask her if she even wanted a drink. He was aggravating yet undeniably thoughtful.
“Thanks.”
“You’re very welcome,” he replied, sensing her internal struggle with his dominance. “Now tell me, were you born naiad? It’s rumored you are created as goddesses of the rivers. Some say the daughters of Zeus. Others? The daughters of Poseidon. I, however, believe mythology to be just that…a myth. The supernatural world, through magic or perhaps evolution has created splinter races.”
“I wasn’t born naiad. I’m human…or I should say, was human. Raised in a small town in Ohio…just like everyone else.”
“How’d it happen?” Léopold sidled up next to Laryssa, wrapping an arm around her.
“I died. Well, I drowned. But I’m pretty sure I died.”
“How?”
“I was thirteen. Mom had told me not to go skating alone, but my friend, Lauren couldn’t go with me that day. And as you may have noticed, I’m determined when I want to be.”
“Stubborn? Really? I don’t believe it,” he said, his words laced in sarcasm.
“I prefer the term ‘strong willed’. It’s an asset, you know?”
“Whatever you say, ma chérie. Go on.”
“Long story short, I lied. I told mom Lauren was going when she wasn’t. It had been at freezing temps for over a week. The ice should’ve been strong, but as I found out, it was thin near where the creek spilled into the lake. It was stupid of me, I know. But I was just a kid. I can still remember the loud sound, the creaking. And then I saw the crack. The ice began shifting. I tried to skate off to get to the other side, but I wasn’t fast enough. It all happened pretty quickly.”
Laryssa took a sip of her brandy. It was such a long time ago, but she’d never forget the helplessness as she slipped into her icy grave. Screaming as she plunged into the abyss, she knew no one would hear her.
“I’m not sure exactly what happened. I just remember panicking, scraping at the sheets of ice, trying to get leverage to pull myself out. I really tried so hard to get out, but the longer I struggled…I got so tired. I couldn’t think straight and my hands,” Laryssa pulled at her fingers, remembering the way the cold had immobilized them, “I remember slipping into the icy pond, unable to hold on and then
gasping for air. And once I was all the way underneath the water, I couldn’t stop from breathing it in. The water, it just suffocated me.”
Léopold put down his drink on the floor and gently took her hands in his, massaging her palms with his thumbs.
“I don’t know…it was dark. But then all of a sudden, it was light. Not like how people describe when they are dying with the light…you know, the one they say you’ll see when you die. This was different. There was no tunnel or anything. Just this bright light and then this woman was there, and she was talking to me like we weren’t underneath the water. She told me she was naiad and that she was giving me her gift.”
“And then you woke up?”
“Well, not exactly. I mean, the woman, she was so calm and beautiful. I can still remember she had this flowing, fiery red hair and it was kind of fanned out in the water, like these magical little tendrils dancing. I don’t remember much after seeing her. Only that just for a second, right before I woke up, I felt this darkness…kinda how it felt tonight. It all was so fast, though.”
“Did they find you?”
“Well, yeah. My friend had called the house while I was out, and I was totally busted. When my parents found out that I wasn’t with Lauren, they went to the lake, saw my gear on the edge of it but not me. I didn’t regain consciousness until I was in the ambulance. I’d been under for nearly an hour and a half. They called it a miracle…at least until I came home.”