Tempting the West Wind (The WindKeepers)

by Anna Hackett

  She sucked in a breath, her hand twisting in the sheets. “You’re saying I’m Aurae?”

  “Si.”

  Had her grandmother known their heritage? Sophia had always wondered why she was drawn to the legends of the WindKeepers. Since she’d been young she’d yearned to learn the truth.

  Now she had an answer.

  Antonio’s lips touched hers again, scattering her thoughts. “There’ll be time to talk more about it, to discover your power.”

  She had power? The thought was mind-boggling. Those lips brushed hers again, insistent.

  “Thank you for saving me.”

  She smiled. “It was my pleasure.”

  “Let me show you my thanks.” His strong thighs nudged her legs apart. He settled in the cradle of her hips and the broad head of his erection nudged at the juncture of her thighs.

  She lifted her hips. “You have all my attention.”

  He slid into her in a slow, easy glide. Her heels pressed into the silk sheets, her back arching.

  “You feel so good, bella.” His green gaze stayed locked on her.

  In those eyes she saw the swirl of so many emotions. He continued his steady, seductive rhythm, his big body surging into hers.

  A rush of wind washed over her and she felt his power. Without conscious thought, she answered and she felt a cool breeze entwine with his.

  Antonio murmured in Italian in her ear, over and over again. His head dropped to her hair, his big body shuddering. She clutched at his strong shoulders, holding him close.

  She couldn’t hold back the radiant feelings inside her. She knew everything she felt for him must be shining in her eyes. She was on that bright verge of falling hard for him.

  He groaned, his hips pressing against her. “Cara, you are everything I thought I could never have.”

  She felt his release and it triggered her own. Where before it had been wild, this pleasure was pure joy, an easing of the ragged edges of their souls.

  Something shifted inside Sophia. She felt changed, different. This man was hers. One she could trust with her mind, her body and her heart.

  ***

  Sophia stirred, silk sliding sensuously against her naked body.

  With her eyes closed, she reached a hand across the bed. Antonio was missing, but the sheets were still warm. She smiled into her pillow and stretched like a cat. She felt a few small aches.

  She was sore. In a good way. She’d taken Antonio and had been taken in return. During the afternoon, he’d proven his dominance, making love to her every way he’d known how.

  And the man knew a lot of ways to love a woman.

  She felt a niggle of doubt, but stomped on it. Antonio wasn’t James. She was focusing on the future, not her past.

  A weight next to her made the mattress dip. She felt the press of warm lips to her hair. They trailed down, nipping at her jaw. A hand slid under the sheet, caressing her body, cupping her breast.

  When hard fingers closed on her nipple, pinching and hurting, her eyes snapped open.

  Corus lay beside her, a small smile on his full lips. She jerked backward, grabbing the sheet and pulling it over her naked body.

  “So, the WindKeeper succumbed to your charms, lovely Sophia?”

  Antonio wouldn’t have gone far. He’d be back. Soon. She had to keep Corus occupied until then.

  Corus reached out and caressed her shoulder. “Did you enjoy his lust? Revel in him rutting on you like a beast in heat?”

  As Corus’s hand drifted lower, Sophia locked her jaw.

  “I’d very much like to sample what he had.” Corus shifted closer. A hot wind curled through the room, dipping and swirling, cunning like its master. It skated over her skin like fingers.

  “Do you want me?” His hand slid over the silk, tracing her body, coming to rest at the top of her thighs. “Do you feel the burn of lust, sweet Sophia? Will you open your body for me?”

  She jerked away from him. “No. And I never will. Your touch disgusts me.”

  Corus dark eyes widened. “You feel nothing? But you lust after the WindKeeper—”

  “What I feel for Antonio is something you will never understand.”

  The Tempest Wind’s face warped. “This cannot be! Everyone wants me. I am lust.”

  “You are nothing,” she whispered.

  His eyes fired. “I will make you want me.”

  In a quick move, he landed on top of her, holding her body down. She kicked her legs, hammered at his back.

  He laughed.

  His hands ripped at the sheet but she kept a death grip on it. The feel of those fingers on her made her sick.

  His hands slid over her belly, paused. “Well, well. Venti’s a fast worker.”

  Her chest heaved, her mind raced for a way to fight him off.

  His hands dug into her skin. “You don’t even realize, do you? Oh, it’s going to be my pleasure to take what Venti considers his.”

  Bile rose in Sophia’s throat. No way. She gave one giant shove, sending Corus tumbling off her.

  She scrambled off the bed, wrapping the sheet around her. “I’ll fight you.”

  “Good.” He lunged after her.

  She raced across the room. He tackled her and they hit the glossy wood floor together. Pain radiated through her but she kicked, screamed, raked her nails down his face. He grabbed her and stood, holding her with ease. She felt a strange sensation. Of dropping away, becoming the wind. “No!”

  “We’re going for a little ride.” The French doors to the balcony slammed open.

  Antonio. She screamed, but the sound broke off as they turned into the wind and swept out the doors.

  ***

  Antonio balanced the tray, careful not to spill the fresh orange juice he’d just squeezed, and climbed the stairs. He’d pulled on some trousers and a shirt he hadn’t bothered to button to go downstairs. Taking care of Sophia was his top priority.

  He felt…good. Light. More like himself than he ever remembered. He smiled. He couldn’t wait to get back to the beautiful woman lying naked in his bed.

  His smiled dimmed. There was still Corus to deal with, but now Antonio knew he could beat his enemy.

  Antonio bumped the door to his bedroom with his hip. “I hope you like scrambled eggs, because that’s about all I can cook—”

  Everything in him went cold.

  He stared at the pillows littered on the floor, then the open French doors. He scented Corus’s stench.

  “Sophia.” The tray hit the floor, glass shattering. Then Antonio was running. He leaped over the railing, dived out into the street. Before he could hit the ground below, his body disintegrated, turning into the wind.

  He rushed through the evening sky, desperate to find her. If Corus hurt her, touched her…Antonio focused on finding the trail of the Tempest Wind.

  Corus wasn’t making it easy. Antonio flew through the twisting back streets.

  Every now and then, Antonio picked up Sophia’s floral scent. It gave him strength.

  Without the lust blinding him, he was in complete control. With her help, he’d eliminate Corus for good. Hold on, bella.

  He flew through the Piazza della Repubblica, through the narrow courtyard of the Uffizi Gallery and out into the Piazza della Signoria.

  Sophia’s scent grew stronger. He materialized in the shadows on the edge of the square. It was getting late and the crowds were thinning. He walked toward the wide arches of the Loggia dei Lanzi, searching for a glimpse of mahogany hair.

  He paused near one of the statues under the arches. The woman immortalized in white marble was being dragged down by a man, one of her slim arms reaching into the air in silent appeal. Antonio’s gut tightened. It was known as the Rape of the Sabine Women. A reminder of the last time the Tempest Winds had escaped and Corus had contaminated the world with lust.

  At the base of the statue he saw why he scented Sophia. Strands of her dark hair lay at the bottom of the woman’s feet like a sacrifice.

&nb
sp; Or a taunt.

  Antonio launched himself into the air. He swept up into the hills. The lights of Florence twinkled below like a blanket of stars. But all his attention was for the trail of his foe and in finding the woman who’d captured his heart.

  As the minutes passed with no sign of them, panic seized Antonio. Every second increased the chance that Corus would hurt her.

  As Antonio swept over the ruins of an old palazzo, he realized the trail ended.

  Just as the fight would end here.

  Chapter Seven

  Wrapping the power of the wind around him, Antonio set down in the middle of the ruined walls of what had once been a grand palace. He held his ancestors’ memories and could see the palazzo as it had been hundreds of years ago.

  He waited. Listened.

  The silence was unnatural. The insects and small animals were all hushed. Without the edgy lust riding him, he stayed still and let his enhanced senses reach out.

  The smallest scrape of a shoe on stone. A hushed intake of breath. A woman’s muffled cry.

  Antonio spun and strode into the growing darkness. He stepped through a broken archway, saw nothing but shadows.

  “Come on, Corus. Quit being the coward.”

  “You may have plowed between the woman’s thighs, but that won’t save you from the lust.” Corus appeared from the blackness. He dragged a stumbling Sophia behind him. Her pale skin stood out in the dark, wrapped only in the silk sheet from Antonio’s bed.

  Antonio saw the bruises smudging her arms and his rage turned ice cold. “Sophia, did he hurt you?”

  One hand clutched her throat. “I’m fine.”

  Corus yanked her closer, his hand tangling in her hair. “But I will have her. Lick her luscious skin and take what you’ve tasted. You can’t stop me.” His dark gaze burned into Antonio. “Do you feel the lust rising? Clawing to get out.”

  “No.” Antonio’s hands curled into fists but he tried not to react further to the stark fear on Sophia’s face. “You can’t toy with me anymore.”

  Corus paused, his gaze raking over Antonio’s body. “It can’t be true.”

  Suddenly Sophia spun, breaking Corus’s hold. “It’s true, you bastard.” She slammed a fist into Corus’s face.

  Antonio was already moving. Sophia met him half way, diving into his arms. Holding her to him, he breathed a deep sigh. She was safe.

  Corus wiped the blood from his mouth. “You’ll regret that.” He shook his head. “There is no way the lust can be gone. You were so close to joining me.”

  Sophia entwined her fingers with Antonio’s. With her by his side, he knew he’d never suffer the torment of lust again.

  With her, it would be pure, honest desire.

  “You know it’s true.” Antonio lifted their linked hands. “She keeps it at bay.”

  Corus’s startled gaze switched to Sophia. “She can’t be. We didn’t escape until we knew they were all gone.”

  “Not all the Aurae died out.” Antonio shot him a humorless smile. “Lucky for me and my brothers. Time for you to go back to your prison.”

  “No!” Corus turned and ran.

  Antonio cursed. Corus sprinted at one of the ruined brick walls. His feet hit the stone and there was a blast of air as he ran up the side of the wall.

  “Stay back,” Antonio told Sophia. He ran as well and then bent his legs and launched himself into the air.

  As the West Wind gathered around him, he flew high and landed atop the ruins. Directly in front of Corus.

  Corus summoned his wind and it whipped at Antonio.

  The West Wind roared, more powerful than ever before. Their winds crashed together, causing the wall beneath them to sway.

  Antonio held his arms out, fighting to keep his balance. He knew any second Corus would change into the wind and try to escape.

  Antonio caught a glimpse of Sophia below. He had to end this. To keep her safe.

  He dived forward, pushing through the wind. He leaped at Corus, tackling him off the side of the wall.

  There was the sensation of falling, then their combined winds buffered their descent.

  They still hit the ground hard.

  Corus’s head struck rock, his hands clutching at Antonio’s shirt. Antonio put his knee in the center of Corus’s chest and his forearm against the Tempest Wind’s throat.

  Corus’s eyes turned crazed. “She won’t keep the lust away. Not for long.”

  “Yes, she will.” The quiet truth glowed inside him. “Because with her, I can have more.”

  “Love?” Corus shook his head wildly. “It isn’t enough, we both know that.”

  “You’re wrong.”

  The Tempest Wind turned to look at Sophia and gave a violent shake of his head. “He has no love in him.” That black gaze swung back to Antonio. “You were created to hold lust, to feel desire, to be driven by passion. You aren’t capable of more.”

  Antonio pressed down with a vicious shove, cutting off Corus’s air. His gut tight, Antonio turned his head, his gaze capturing Sophia’s. “It’s the truth.”

  She didn’t move, just watched him, her big blue eyes shimmering with tears.

  “But you changed that, Sophia. You changed me.”

  She lifted a hand and brushed at the tear sliding down her cheek. “You changed me too. Helped me find myself again.”

  “The moment you stepped into my museum, I knew you were different. I’ve been falling for you since that day. But what you did for me…” he pulled in a deep breath. “You saved me and you made me realize I had more inside me than my vice.”

  “Antonio—”

  He shook his head. “Let me finish. I’m falling in love with you.”

  She smiled. “Me too.”

  His. She belonged to him, he felt it deep inside, where the lust now rested, quiet and in control.

  “You can’t trust him.” Corus bucked under Antonio’s hold. “Especially now that his child rests inside you. Once you’re big and round, he’ll look elsewhere.”

  Everything inside Antonio stilled. It was like all the air around them had been sucked away. He looked at Sophia. She stared back at him, unblinking, her face impossibly pale.

  She shook her head. “He’s lying.”

  Corus smiled, blood smeared on his teeth. “Really?”

  “We only just—”

  Corus tipped his head back and laughed, the nasty sound echoing through the night. “Tell her, Venti. Tell her about the West Wind.”

  Dio. He should have taken better care of her. He was smarter than this. Lust had once ruled his life and he’d vowed never to bring a child into it.

  His gaze slid down Sophia’s body, tracing over her now familiar curves. A subtle call of his power shifted the air, brushing over her before coming back to kiss his cheeks. It carried with it the subtle hint of new life within Sophia.

  “Antonio?”

  He swallowed. “The West Wind is the bringer of spring…”

  Corus laughed again. “It holds the promise of new life. His power implanted his seed in you.”

  She shook her head, her palm sliding down to cover her belly.

  “Sophia—” Antonio didn’t know what to say. He knew about her loss, wasn’t sure how she’d feel about this. Wasn’t sure how he felt.

  She straightened. “It’s okay, Antonio.” She smiled, a wide, blinding smile, her fingers spreading over her stomach. “This is a good thing. An amazing thing.” Her gaze moved to the man sprawled on the ground. “It’s time to end the evil.”

  Antonio nodded. He dragged Corus to his feet and called the West Wind.

  A thin column of wind twirled through the air, growing larger, stronger. Antonio let it grow into a vicious storm. Sophia moved closer and pressed a hand to his arm. Instantly, the column of swirling air grew larger and stronger.

  “No.” Corus’s voice was shaky and low. “I don’t want to go back. To be trapped. Lost.”

  Antonio hefted the man up, his feet dangling off the groun
d. “Until you leave evil behind, Vento Tempesta, you will be imprisoned. The WindKeepers will always fight to keep the vices in check.”

  Antonio heaved Corus upward. The tornado snatched Corus’s body, swallowing him. He dissolved away, his form dispersed by the storm.

  Antonio sliced through the air with his hand and slowly the wind died away. It was over. His torment was gone, his nemesis defeated.

  He turned and faced the reason for his success. She stood there, still and straight, black silk wrapped loosely around her curves. He reached for her and swept her into his arms. She wrapped her arms around him, holding tight. She felt so right against him.

  “He’s really gone?” Her voice was muffled against Antonio’s chest.

  His hand slid into her hair. “Yes.”

  But two more Tempest Winds were out there, spreading their darkness. None of them were safe until all of them were defeated. The battle now belonged to his brothers, Luca and Soren.

  Antonio glanced over the glittering nightscape of Florence. His arms tightened around the woman next to him. He only wished his brothers could be so lucky as to find the women designed for them—made to calm them, soothe them and love them. Perhaps there were more Aurae. Sophia was living proof they hadn’t all been lost.

  “Please get me out of here, Antonio.”

  “Are you okay to travel on the wind? I don’t want to scare you—”

  “It’s fine.” She gave him a small smile. “With you, it’s okay.”

  He scooped her into his arms and as the West Wind pulled them into its embrace, they shed their bodies and became the wind. As they flew high above the city, he heard her delighted gasp on the breeze. When he dipped them low, so low they felt the water of the River Arno splash them, it was her laughter that warmed him.

  Minutes later, they rematerialized in his bedroom.

  “I want to do that every night.” Her hands gripped the lapels of his shirt.

  Her cheeks were flushed, her eyes alight. He skimmed his knuckles down her face. “You are remarkable, bella.” He tugged her closer, pressing his cheek to her hair.

  “It’s true?” A tiny tremor in her voice.

  He knew what she was talking about. Gently he laid a hand over her flat belly, surprised to find his hand wasn’t steady. “Si. Very early, but our child rests inside you.”