by C. A. Storm
When Rik collapsed on top of her, Sam curled her arms around his thick neck and trembled with the aftershocks of her orgasm. Even her toes tingled! After a quick mental stock, Sam ruefully admitted that every inch of her body tingled.
"Sorry, baby," Rik groaned softly as he rolled to his side, taking his weight off of her chest.
Sam bit her lower lip as she felt his dick slip free of her, leaving her bereft of his heat both above her and within her. Turning, she nuzzled into his chest as one hand lightly stroked over his furry chest. Damn, even sweaty, he smelled so freaking good. Like sandalwood and cedar, a musky masculine scent that curled her toes. She, however, felt sticky and gross. Unacceptable!
Pulling herself away from Rik's embrace, Sam rolled out of bed. She was a little unsteady on her feet, but eyes on what she hoped was the bathroom, she forced herself to walk that direction. A bit bowlegged, perhaps, because she was a bit...tender...betwixt her legs.
"Where are you going, baby?" Rik mumbled, eyeing her suspiciously as she staggered away from the bed.
"I'm going to use the ladies' room and then take a shower," Sam tossed over her shoulder. When she heard the bed rustling behind her, she cast narrow eyes back over her shoulder. "Stay! We are definitely not yet at the point of our relationship where you're allowed in the bathroom when I'm using it!"
Rik rolled over on to his back, idly scratching his chest. Seeing all that nude male flesh stretched out languidly on the bed, Sam felt her mouth go dry. Seeing her staring at him, Rik gave her a slow, lazy grin as he asked, "How about the shower? Can I join you there?" His brows raised as he gave her an innocent look, "I promise, I'll just wash your back."
"Mmm," Sam managed, still a bit tongue-tied at seeing him displayed so beautifully naked, his perfect body golden in the early morning light streaming through the windows.
"Fine, you can join me in the shower," she finally allowed, in as haughty a tone she could manage. His huge grin at that tugged an answering one from her. She waggled a finger at him, "But wait until I start the shower!"
Placing his hand over his heart, Rik nodded solemnly, "Yes, ma'am."
Snorting at that, Sam headed into the bathroom. Like the suite she had woken up in, it was lavishly appointed, all warm woods and cool slate. Closing the door behind her, she was drawn up short at seeing the two toilets sitting side-by-side. Well, one was a toilet, obviously, the other was something else entirely.
"A bidet!" Sam snapped her fingers as the word came to her, then suppressed a delicate shudder at the mental image of ice cold water blasting her privates. She breathed a silent sigh of relief as she spotted the toilet paper. Yeah, she wasn't quite ready to experience all that Europe had to offer quite yet.
Making quick work of her morning absolutions, Sam was thankful to find two fresh toothbrushes on the counter next to a new tube of toothpaste. Lathering the bristles with minty-fresh goodness, Sam looked up into the mirror as she began brushing her teeth.
Holy shit! I look like shit! Her reflection stared back at her in horror. Her hair was a wild tangle, stuck to her body in places, and all knotted and bedraggled. She had a full set of luggage beneath each eye, her lips were red and swollen, and the skin along her neck was red from where Rik's unshaven jaw had rubbed her raw. And, of course, the highlight of it all was the brilliant crimson hickey right where her neck met her shoulder. It was frigging huge!
"Caveman is right," Sam muttered as she spit out the toothpaste and rinsed out her mouth. Yet, she couldn't fight off a small, satisfied thrill as she lifted her hand to touch the mark.
That's when she noticed the tattoo on her arm had grown once again, nearly reaching her wrist. Hunh. The roses, a mixture of glistening amber and deep crimson blooms, had blossomed, with a few vine tendrils wrapping around her wrist. Visually tracing the pattern up her arm, she pushed her hair aside as she caught a glimpse of something on her left breast.
Turning back to the mirror, Sam squinted as she stared at the mark just over her heart. It was still obscured by the vines, but she could make out a brilliant golden something. No matter how she squinted, she just couldn't quite make it out, just that there was a metallic golden blur beneath the vines.
With a huff, Sam turned and walked over to the large shower. Opening the frosted glass door, she stared. Multiple shower heads were set into the slate walls, and there was enough room for at least five people to easily have personal space with some left over. A bench on one corner provided seating, and there were even shelves filled with a wide variety of different bottles of soap, shampoo, and conditioner.
"Posh," Sam chuckled, stepping in and carefully studying the controls. Thankfully, things were clearly labeled, so plastering herself against the wall, out of the way, she started the shower.
The door to the bathroom popped open as soon as the first drops hit the floor, Rik grinning at her as he stood framed in the doorway, every delectable inch of his body on full display.
He gives an all new meaning to the phrase 'Cocky Bastard,' Sam thought with a helpless laugh as he leaned over to kiss her nose.
"Join you in a few seconds, baby," he promised before he strutted over to the toilet and lifted the lid.
Gasping, Sam quickly shut the shower door and turned her back on the cocky male. She focused intently on getting the water to just the right temperature—just shy of flesh-melting, of course—and tried not to blush as she heard his low groan of relief as he 'relieved' himself. Yeah, that was going to take some getting used to.
He has absolutely no shame!
Shaking her head, both bemused and amused, Sam stood beneath the water and let it soak into her tired body, the heat soothing her muscles and chasing away her exhaustion. Turning as she heard the glass door open, she smirked as Rik yelped and ducked back out of the water as soon as he had stepped in.
"Dammit, woman!" Rik shouted, glaring at her through the thick steam. "That's hot!"
"No shit, Sherlock," Sam retorted. "My shower, my temperature! Can't stand the heat, then get the fuck out."
Catching the gleam of wickedness, pure wickedness, entering those glinting amber eyes of his, Sam yelped. Sadly, she was too slow to dodge the large hands that grasped her hips and pushed her back up against the damp slate walls. "Here, baby," he purred down at her, crowding into her personal space, "Let me help you."
Batting away his roaming hands, Sam sputtered, "No! It's cleaning time. I'm scuzzy and sticky and want to be clean. Dammit, Rik!"
Laughing, Rik grabbed a loofa and some soap, lathering up the sponge as he began a slow, leisurely, and very thorough cleansing of her body. She shivered, despite the heat and steam, as the rough texture of the loofa slid over her sensitized skin. Resting her hands on his chest, fingers gripping the hard muscle of his solid pectoral muscles, Sam moaned helplessly, "You're naughty."
Leaning down, he nuzzled at her ear, purring, "Always, baby, always..." His hand, and the loofa, slid down over her stomach, delving between her thighs.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
"Rik! Maman wants us to tell you that you have a visitor!" a young, masculine voice shouted through the thick door of the bathroom.
Rik froze, his hand pressing the loofa against her sex while Sam leaned her head forward, resting it against his chest while helpless giggles escaped her.
"Fuck," Rik muttered. "Maybe he'll go away if we ig..."
BANG! BANG! BANG!
When the knob rattled, Rik roared, "Don't come in if you value your life! We'll be down shortly!"
"Trés bon," the voice shouted. "Left some clothes on the bed for you both. Don't take too long, oui?"
"I've just been cockblocked by a teenage boy," Rik grumbled as he reluctantly peeled himself from against Sam's body.
Seeing the pout on his handsome face, Sam laughed and gently patted his broad chest. "Baby, since you already knocked me up, you better get used to being cockblocked by kids sooner rather than later..."
And as Rik proceeded to bang his forehead against the showe
r wall, Sam hummed to herself as she grabbed the loofa from his slack hand and proceeded to clean herself up.
This is going to be fun.
Chapter 38
Sadly, the shower was more than big enough for two people, and with its multiple showerheads that could each be separately controlled, Sam was forced to banish Rik to the far side of the shower so she could actually get cleaned up. Rik grumbled the entire time. Every time he so much as looked at her, however, she pointed.
"Your side," Sam said, then pointed to the ground beneath her feet. "My side. Now be good!"
So, with the prospect of shower sex completely stricken from this morning's To Do List, Rik quickly scrubbed himself clean. Okay, so he may have come across like a petulant child as he slammed things around a little bit. And the stomping out of the shower and angrily toweling himself off probably didn't help with that image, but dammit, his dick was once again rock hard, demanding Rik give in to temptation.
The giggling that was barely drowned out by the shower spray did make Rik reluctantly grin. He may have stomped just a bit in order to make his dick bounce and slap against his abdomen, but damned if that woman didn't make him feel like a randy teenage boy trying to impress a girl.
Toweling himself dry, securing it around his hips, Rik went back into the bedroom, where two stacks of clothes were laid out at the foot of the bed. Also present, his youngest brother. Cousin? Brousin? Couther? Rik sighed, running a hand through his damp hair as he shrugged the problematic terminology off.
"Took you long enough," the boy said, his English holding only a hint of an accent, more British than French.
Rik glared at the smirking teenager. And the boy was a teenager, barely sixteen if Rik remembered correctly. He had a lean, athletic build, with his dark hair cut short and spikey, and their mother's brilliant blue eyes. Wearing a pair of track pants and a black muscle shirt, he was the picture of teenage indolence as he sprawled in one of the room's chairs.
"What do you want, Hugh?"
Shrugging, Hugh's grin was pure insouciance as he replied, "Just wanted to meet your anam cara, brother dearest."
Suspicious, Rik stalked over to the bed. Grabbing up the clothing, he walked wordlessly back to the bathroom and opened the door. Spotting Sam getting out of the shower, he quickly stepped inside and shut the door behind him, pointedly ignoring the muttered, "Spoilsport," that came from his baby brother.
Gritting his teeth, Rik tried to give Sam a smile as he put her clothes down on the counter. "Here, baby. Get dressed and we'll head downstairs."
At Sam's look of bewilderment, Rik huffed, "My pervy baby brother is out in the room, apparently hoping to catch a glimpse of you in flagrante delicto."
Sam rolled her eyes as she wrapped one towel around herself before grabbing another to begin briskly drying her long hair. "Like brother like brother, it seems," she said with a cheeky grin.
"Hey!" Rik held up defensive hands. "I'm only pervy with you, baby. Doesn't mean I want anyone else perving all over you!"
Walking by him, Sam reached up and patted his chest, "Whatever you say, babe. Go entertain your brother, I'll be out in a few."
And like that, he was dismissed as Sam plugged in a hair dryer and began the tedious process of detangling her hair. With a huff, Rik tossed on the sweatpants and t-shirt that had been left for him before he stalked back out of the bathroom.
Hugh looked up from his phone when Rik emerged, shrugged, and went back to his phone upon sighting it was just his big brother—who he'd technically never met in person. To say that things had been tense since Victoria and Wilhelm were anam cara would be a massive understatement. Only the Irish, it seemed, held grudges quite as long as the Sidhe. Rik and his sisters had sided with their father when Victoria had left Colorado, and had spurned any attempts to repair their relationship, particularly since their father had left for Canada not long afterward.
Not quite sure how to approach his youngest sibling, Rik stood there in uncomfortable silence for a few minutes. He wasn't used to feeling so out of his depth. Quietly, he padded to the bedside and grabbed his own phone, and seeing the sheer number of messages, he groaned aloud and began to flick through them.
Ten from Clay. Three from Gen. Twenty-four from Clara. Five from five different unrecognized numbers. And that was just the voicemails. The text messages...he decided to just ignore them all. Shoving his phone into his pocket, he picked up his discarded clothes and put them away, after grabbing his wallet and keys.
Rik then made the bed. And straightened the room, finally noticing that in many ways, it was a reflection of his old room when he lived with his parents. The décor was the same, the same dark grays and deep, rich blues that he preferred. His mother had even chosen similar furniture and placed them in the same layout he had always preferred.
As he spun around, slowly taking in the room that his mother had meticulously decorated and arranged to suit his tastes, the bathroom door opened and Sam walked out. She wore an ivory cashmere sweater, slightly large on her, revealing one creamy shoulder and hanging down to mid-thigh. A pair of black yoga pants hugged the glorious curves of her legs, and made Rik forget for a moment that they weren't alone in the room.
"Hello," Sam said, looking past Rik toward the young man who was staring at her, eyes wide and mouth agape. Nervously, she shifted beneath his gaze, giving Rik a helpless look that shook him from his own drooling fantasies.
Clearing his throat, Rik glared at his little brother, "Close your mouth, Hugh."
When Hugh clapped his mouth shut with enough force, Rik heard the boy's teeth clatter, he had to turn his head to hide a grin. "Ms. Samantha Kelly, allow me to introduce you to my youngest brother, Hugh Jacques Leon."
Sam walked toward Hugh, her hand out in greeting. Remembering his manners, Hugh leaped to his feet and loomed over her. Like all the Leons, Hugh was tall, already reaching six feet in height, but he hadn't filled out yet, still all long limbs and coltish awkwardness.
Clearing his throat, Hugh said, "Bon jour, Samantha," as he leaned over her hand and pressed a kiss against her knuckles, every inch the courtly young gentleman.
Rik rolled his eyes, causing Sam to grin, but she hid it well when the young man rose up from his bow. "The pleasure's mine, Hugh, and please. Call me Sam."
Meeting Sam's gracious smile with a grin of his own, Hugh pointedly ignored his older brother as he placed Sam's hand in the crook of his own elbow. "Shall we, Sam? Maman has made some tea and biscuits, and there's a gentleman here to see you."
Rik growled threateningly at the upstart, but both Hugh and Sam ignored his ungracious response as she dipped her head and remarked, "Certainly, Hugh. Lead the way."
Left to follow after his brother and his cara, Rik muttered under his breath as they headed downstairs to the parlor. Rik's mother swept up to them, wrapping an arm around Sam's shoulder and—much to Rik's secret glee—pulling her away from Hugh's grasp as she exclaimed, "Samantha! Come, dear, you must meet the family and save us from your guest."
"My guest?" Sam said, as bewildered as Rik felt as he followed after them down the hall toward the main parlor.
"Yes," Victoria said with a chuckle, "It seems your guardian has tracked you down, needing to see you were unharmed himself."
Rik's sudden burst of understanding was punctuated by Bertie's wild-eyed emergence from the parlor. The normally gentle giant looked like a berserker as he bore down on Sam and Victoria, sweeping her up into his massive arms and against his chest as he exclaimed, "Thank fuck, you're okay."
Once again, Rik reminded himself that Bertie was no threat, that the mountainous, monstrous brute of a Gargoyle quite firmly batted for the other team. Still, he wanted to tear her from the other man's arms and secure her in his own embrace, and he bit back a growl when Sam returned Bertie's hug.
"How'd you find us? How'd you get here so quickly?" Sam asked, her voice muffled against the big man's huge chest. Damn, was Bertie always that huge?
Settin
g her back down on her feet, Bertie released her and stepped back, giving Rik a small, knowing grin as he replied, "Our bond. It let me know you were okay. I mean, I knew you'd be okay, but with Rik suddenly discovering the power to Travel, it took me a bit to follow."
"That reminds me? What did you mean when you told me not to worry about the bitch's claws?" Sam asked, looking way up at Bertie.
Bertie shrugged, "You are bound to me, and I may...or may not...have pushed a little magic into you before the fight that made your skin a little bit tougher than normal. When I saw she had poisonous talons, I knew you'd be safe. Little short of a dragon's claws or sacred weapons can cut a Gargoyle's hide, and somehow I doubted she'd have either of those."
This time, it was Bertie's turn to be surprised, as Rik caught the larger man in a fierce embrace. "Thank you," Rik choked out, squeezing the Gargoyle tightly. It was a manly hug. Lots of back-slapping and all that.
Bertie just stood there for a moment before he gingerly patted Rik's back. "You're welcome."
Rik pulled away from the giant, casually wrapping an arm possessively around Sam's shoulder and tucking her protectively against his side. "How'd you get here so fast?"
Bertie shrugged again, "I hopped through a few portals, then flew here once I realized where you had taken her."
Around Bertie's back, Rik caught sight of his other brother, Thomas, and his uncle lurking in the doorway of the parlor. Straightening his shoulders, Rik looked down to find Sam looking up at him. Her hand resting on his chest, she gave him a small, intimate smile that eased the tension of his shoulders.
Smiling back down at her, Rik said softly, "Let's go meet the rest of the family, shall we?"
Chapter 39
Okay, this was a little awkward. With Rik’s arm around her shoulder, and Bertie now lurking over her other shoulder, Sam was face-to-face with more Leons. She could feel Rik’s discomfort in the tightness of his muscles, in the stiffness of his voice as he introduced her.