Under His Wings

by Naima Simone

  Nicolai closed his eyes.

  My choice was taken away and I panicked. I know what it’s like to be caged like an animal, dependent on my jailer. I want life on my terms, not someone else’s.

  Her words came back to haunt him. Whether he’d intended to or not, he’d snatched her choice away just as surely as Kyle had. Mating him would be caging her, cuffing her to him for the length of their existence. To Tamar that would be the worst betrayal. He couldn’t do that to her. Couldn’t look down into her tawny tiger gaze to find bitterness and pain.

  She’d been through hell and back. Had fought to regain the independence, freedom and normalcy that had been denied to her for three years. The only reason she’d agreed to Nicolai’s protection was to regain the life that had almost been lost.

  Choosing him would mean losing her life.

  And walking away from him would mean losing her life.

  * * * * *

  Nicolai climbed the stairs, the fear that had propelled him down the flight an hour ago now carrying the sharper metallic taste of despair. The length of the hallway stretched out before him like the last mile of a dead man. At the end, when he entered his bedroom, he would face the death of his mate or the death of his heart.

  The revelations of this night tumbled and twisted in his head. Every time he tried to grab one and analyze it, it slipped out of his grasp. The truths, the lies—they were too much for him to comprehend.

  Except for one.

  The human woman he loved would die in a matter of hours or days if he didn’t convince her to give up her world and accept him and his existence. An existence of violence, uncertainty and danger. She’d survived a plane crash and abusive ex-boyfriend, endured years of physical therapy to recapture a blessedly boring, normal life.

  He chuckled, the low, bitter rumble echoing in the silent hall.

  Her piece-of-shit ex may have abused her, but Nicolai could very well kill her.

  Reaching the bedroom door, he clutched the knob, turned it and entered the room. Immediately his eyes went to the figure on the bed, huddled under the blankets. The fire had dimmed to glowing embers and he padded across the room and crouched next to the fireplace. He grabbed the poker and kindled the flames before adding a few more pieces of wood. After a couple of minutes, he rose to his feet, satisfied.

  He turned to the bed.

  Tamar’s curls spread over the white pillow like a fantastic pinwheel of gold, copper and brown. He couldn’t help imagining what her hippogryph would look like. Petite with bronze wings? Would banded sandy-and-white feathers cover her breast? He could picture her tawny eyes in a regal, delicately rounded head.

  A roar rolled in his gut, rushed up his chest, but Nicolai trapped it in his throat.

  Time was precious. Bastien didn’t know how long before her transformation from human to hippogryph would begin. But from the increasing frequency of Tamar’s symptoms, he believed it wouldn’t be long. Nicolai tamped down his anger, sorrow and worry and shoved it aside. His first priority was keeping Tamar alive.

  By any means necessary.

  He released the button on his jeans and lowered the zipper. In seconds, he’d stripped the denim down his legs and slid under the covers, gathered Tamar close. He held her within the cradle of his body, his thighs cupping hers, his chest pressed to the slender line of her back. Her sweet scent of hyacinth and sun-baked earth filled his nose, as much a comfort as her soft curves. Tenderly, he placed a kiss to the wild profusion of spirals, slid an arm under her head and tucked the other hand between her plump breasts.

  What he wouldn’t give to have a thousand more nights where he returned to her, receiving the calm and strength her presence provided. And yet he would forsake every last one of them to have her live.

  “Nico.” She stirred in his arms and the low murmur of his name stroked over his skin.

  “I’m here.” He kissed her head again, inhaling her special perfume deep, so if the day came when he had to walk away it would be branded in his olfactory memory.

  With a husky hum, she stretched, arching her spine and pushing her ass against his abdomen. His cock, already hungry for her again, thickened and stretched along with her. It pounded with the blood filling it and Nicolai couldn’t prevent the reflexive jerk of his hips.

  Tamar turned and shifted closer, cushioning her breasts to his chest and gliding her thigh over his. The heat of her open pussy called to him—its warmth an erotic invitation he couldn’t ignore. She twined her arms around his neck, hooked her foot behind his leg and rolled backward, bringing him with her.

  Needing no further encouragement, he came over her and moved between her thighs. His cock nestled against her soft belly, the liquid fire of her pussy dampening the base and his balls. A hungry growl rumbled in the back of her throat and his heart leaped then dropped when her animalistic purr vibrated through him. Her hips undulated beneath him and he surrendered to her siren’s lure.

  He crushed his mouth down on hers, plunging his tongue between her lips and taking the sweetness that lay beyond. If the clash of his lips, teeth and tongue was a bit desperate, he couldn’t help it. A tiny voice whispered this could be the last time they were together like this—he had to take everything she offered and hold it in his heart for the day he could no longer stroke her cheek or sip at her mouth.

  His fingers curled into the pillow on either side of her head as he ravaged her lips. He nipped and soothed then plundered and raided. Tamar lifted her head, meeting him stroke for stroke, giving even as she demanded and took.

  “Nico.” She tore her mouth away from his, her breathless gasps small explosions in the quiet of the room. Her fingers tunneled through his hair, gripped and tugged, telling him without words what she needed, desired from him. Planting one last kiss on the corner of her mouth, he slid lower, his teeth scraping over her chin, down her slender neck to her chest bone. Slowly, he retraced the path he forged, licking the tiny abrasions before returning to her beautiful breasts with their dark, pointed tips.

  Propping his weight on one elbow, he cupped a mound and whisked the pad of his thumb over the nipple. She bowed under him, a keening cry escaping her. He repeated the caress, circling the nub before pinching it lightly. His name exploded from between her lips.

  “I love when you say my name,” he murmured then dipped his head and took the hard tip in his mouth. Her fingers twisted and the small bite of pain on his scalp raced from his head to his cock. He sucked harder, lashing the nipple unmercifully with his tongue, circling then tugging on her flesh. Whispered pleas filled his ears, desperate petitions to suck harder, give her more. He complied, switching breasts. He raked the edge of his teeth over the distended peak, adding a hint of pain to her pleasure.Tamar released a needy moan and Nicolai returned it. Refusing to leave her other breast neglected, he rolled the tip between his thumb and forefinger, mimicking the actions of his tongue.

  He abandoned the soft mounds and traveled lower still, down her taut belly, past the shallow pool of her navel and toward the nest of tight bronze curls. Her cream glistened on the strands, making them gleam like wet gold. His mouth watered for a taste of that intoxicating blend of sweet juice and musky sex.

  He nuzzled her dark-pink clit. Her hips bucked and he murmured before closing his lips over the small bundle of nerves. She cried out, writhed. Grasping her wild hips, he pinned her down to the mattress and laved the sensitive flesh, teasing and tasting. Groaning, he swiped his tongue through the wet slit of her pussy, gathering more of that delicious cream. Damn, there was nothing to compare with the taste of her. Not the most succulent, ripest fruit or the strongest, most potent alcohol. If he could feast on her flesh for the remainder of his existence, he would never starve, never wish for more.

  Taking a plump lip between his teeth, he scored it lightly before sucking it between his lips. Tamar’s thighs tightened around his head but he moved his hands from her hips to her inner thighs and pushed them wider. He wedged his shoulders in the vee and lifte
d her legs over them so her heels pressed into his back.

  Her fingers fell from his head to his shoulders and dug into his skin. With a growl of pleasure at the minute sting, he returned to her pussy and, after one more sweep through her slit and over her swollen lips, bent his head and thrust his tongue into her hot core.

  The hard stroke seemed to shatter something in her. She shuddered beneath him, her wails reaching the ceiling. With a muttered curse, he adjusted his hold on her thighs, spread them even wider and dove deeper into her grasping sex. The tiny muscles spasmed around his tongue, trying to grab at the invader and milk it dry.

  “So sweet,” he growled, lifting his head and placing a kiss to the engorged clit that peeked from between her lips. “So fucking sweet.”

  “God, Nico,” she pleaded and gasped as he circled her clit and tapped it with his tongue. “Make me come. I need to—” She loosed a high piercing scream as he plunged two fingers deep within her sex.

  Shit, she was wild and so damn gorgeous as she raced after her pleasure. She held nothing back, her hips rolling and bucking as he finger-fucked her. He withdrew then thrust forward, twisting his wrist and screwing her deep and hard.

  When she came it was a wonder to watch. She threw her head back against the pillows, her neck and spine arched so tight he almost feared they would snap. Her pussy clamped down on his fingers like a vise and her honey flowed over his skin, bathing him.

  As the shudders that racked her body eased and her harsh breathing slowly quieted, he reluctantly left her pussy. But not before flexing his fingertips over the small pouch of flesh behind her clit. She moaned and trembled.

  Rising to his knees, he stared down at her, awed and humbled. This female was his—was created and born for him.

  Her mouth, swollen from his kisses, her teeth biting down into the sensual bottom curve, lifted in a small, sated smile. Her thick, dark lashes lowered and her hooded gaze stoked the passion and lust that still raged in his gut and cock.

  With her eyes on him, he brought his fingers to his lips and pushed them in his mouth. He sucked her juice clean and groaned, again savoring her taste. Desire flashed bright in her tawny eyes and his cock jerked.

  Her smile widened. “Now that’s just naughty. And damn sexy.”

  He chuckled, amazed he could manage it with lust strangling both his throat and dick. Slowly he drew his fingers free and painted her nipples with the dampness. Tamar moaned, undulated beneath his touch. She was so responsive, so uninhibited, held nothing back from him.

  And still he craved more—more than she’d given anyone else. Even more than she’d given him.

  “Roll over,” he murmured. Without hesitation she complied, rising on her hands and knees. “No.” He leaned over her, his chest grazing her back, and clasped her wrists. Gently, he guided her until her arms were folded in front of her, her forehead pressed to them and her shoulders lowered. The position lifted her ass higher in the air, exposing her vulnerable, plump sex.

  Shifting closer, he clutched her hip with one hand and slid the other between her legs and her creamy, glistening slit. Tamar whimpered then moaned long and low. His fingers circled and lightly pinched her clit before returning to her sex. He dipped into the tight passage of her pussy, drawing forth even more of her moisture, coating his fingers.

  Heart pounding, his chest rising and falling on rapid hoarse breaths, Nicolai released her hip and firmly gripped one rounded cheek, spreading her ass open to expose the tiny, puckered hole hidden there. Tamar stiffened seconds before he placed his lubricated fingers to the entrance and traced it, caressed it.

  “Nico,” she said, hesitant, uncertain. Her ass tightened, flexed.

  “Shhh…” he soothed, needing her to relax, to trust him. Inside, his hippogryph clawed and snarled to possess, to forge this intimate bond that would forever connect them. “Relax for me,” he urged, even as he acclimated her to the forbidden touch by continuing to circle the securely closed hole. “I want your ass, Tamar,” he whispered. “Give it to me, sweetheart.”

  A shudder, whether from desire or anxiety, trembled through her, but she remained still. Love so full, so overwhelming flooded him that he paused for a moment. The power she had over him should have scared him. Instead, it strengthened him.

  Once more he soaked his fingers in her cream before returning to her ass. He stroked the entrance that resembled a tightly furled rosebud once, twice, then pushed forward, watching it bloom around his finger. The ring of muscles resisted then gave and his fingertip entered the smooth channel.

  Beneath him, Tamar’s shivers increased and she cried out.

  “Breathe, sweetheart,” he said, freeing his grip on her ass to stroke a calming caress up her arching spine. “Breathe in and push out. Yeah, that’s it,” he praised as she obeyed his instructions. “Oh fuck, yes.” He groaned as her tight, virgin ass squeezed his finger in a clasp that threatened to cut off his blood flow. His cock throbbed, needing that same touch.

  Slowly, he worked the digit deeper into the slick passage. As much as it killed him, he took his time, stopping and allowing her to adjust to the unfamiliar penetration. It wasn’t long before her hips were backing into his short, shallow thrusts. His gut clenched and a pulse of seed spurted from his cock head as he watched Tamar fucking her ass on his finger.

  “That’s it, sweetheart,” he whispered and, bending forward, snaked his arm around her waist and circled her clit. Her scream delighted his ears and soul more than the most perfect melody. It strummed the strings of his heart, dragged a mating song from his spirit that belonged only to her—to them.

  Pulling back, he ignored her wail of denial and, seizing his cock, arrowed his aching flesh toward her pussy. He thrust forward, burying himself in one stroke. She mewled beneath him and bucked wildly, filled by both his cock and finger.

  A sharp, avian screech was ripped from him. Her pussy, so wet and hot, clutched him. Her ass, glass smooth and snug, gripped his finger. He was consumed by Tamar even as he possessed her. Rational thought gave way to lust and love. The animal overtook the man and his control splintered. He couldn’t hold back the primal roar that originated in his soul and rolled out of his throat.

  Adding another finger, he pumped into her ass, stretching and filling the channel. Her cries melded into one long wail of pleasure. His cock plunged into her pussy, riding her with complete abandon as he lost himself in the lust that tormented them both.

  It hit with the force of a battering ram. The orgasm nailed him, blasting from his balls, sizzling up his cock to explode in thick heart-stopping jets of seed over and over. Her ecstatic cries reached him as electricity licked up his spine, across his shoulder blades and burst free, bringing his wings with it.

  How long they lingered in that place of ecstasy, he didn’t know. It seemed to last forever, but damn, not long enough. When Tamar stirred beneath him, he wanted to reach out, grab her, tell her to wait. Tell her that reality with its ugly truths would invade their haven soon enough.

  But he couldn’t put it off. Her life was literally at stake.

  He levered himself off her prone boneless body, easing his cock out of her pussy and his fingers from her ass. She emitted a tiny whimper but remained still. Her breathing evened, deepened.

  Sucking in an audible breath, Nicolai shifted next to her, his hip brushing her bent elbow.

  “Tamar.” He brushed the tangled, glorious spirals from her cheek and gazed at her lovely face, loose with pleasure. Damn, he hated to take that expression and replace it with fear, anger…hate. “Tamar.”

  “Hmmm…” Slowly, she lifted her lashes and looked up at him, eyes cloudy with sated passion.

  “I have something to tell you.”

  Chapter Ten

  Tamar stood at the bedroom window, peering into a pearly sky dabbed with streaks of pink and orange. The sun crept over the mountains, spilling its light over the land. This range had remained the same for eons, unchanging, constant.

  In contrast,
her world had just flipped on its axis, hit reverse and become a strange wilderness that had left her confused and scared.

  Nicolai’s words flew through her mind on fast forward, speeding by until they became a blur—mate, transformation, changing, death.

  She lifted her hands to her head and gripped it as if she could stabilize this crazy ride her life had turned into.

  If what Nicolai told her was true, her life had just boiled down to two options.

  Option A. Refuse to accept this mating bond and die a horrible, painful death.

  Option B. Accept the mating and die spiritually.

  Both sucked. On the surface, being torn into pieces would seem to suck a wee bit more then turning into a supernatural beast. But one death would be quick—albeit agonizing—while the other would be drawn out and, in the end, just as painful.

  She loved Nicolai…she couldn’t deny her feelings for him. But she was scared. So scared it leached the warmth from her skin. Her fear reached soul deep where the root of her worry and panic huddled in a shivering ball.

  To accept him meant losing herself—her humanity, her independence, her home, her job. Depending on another man again for her comfort, well-being and existence… She shuddered, rubbed her palms over her bare arms. The idea terrified the shit out of her. Where would it leave her? What would it leave her? Not human. Not secure.

  Not Tamar.

  Nicolai had called her brave, but she didn’t know if she was that courageous.

  “I know I’ve hit you with a lot and I’m sorry,” Nicolai murmured from where he sat on the edge of the mattress. She turned and her heart lurched. With his head lowered, his elbows perched on his thighs and his hands hanging between his legs, dejection emanated from him. He blamed himself. She heard it in his explanation, in the number of times he apologized for placing her in danger.