by Honor James
Staring at her damp cheeks, Quincy did the only thing he could and pulled her into his lap, wrapping his arms around her. “I’m not letting you go, Maya. I have no idea what I’m doing pretty much every moment of my life but I know I can’t continue without you. The thought of losing you shreds me inside.” When he’d thought he was giving her up he’d felt broken, his heart screaming, his soul weeping. “You are my bond-mate and I’m never letting you go.”
Wrapping her arms around him, she held him close and nodded. “Then I’m never letting you let me go,” Maya replied softly. “I want forever. I need forever.” She looked up at him and leaned in, her forehead to his. “I have no idea what I’m doing most days. Other than the pseudo image of Bella Donna I truly had nothing else in this life. Even that was a sham. I did all the magic fully, but had to always be certain that the rigging was in place that made it look like I was a con artist of a magician.” She shrugged. “I just want a life with someone that I can love. I just need to feel happy again.” And she did with him. She felt free, lighter, whole.
“I hope I can give you that, Maya,” he murmured, rubbing his hands up and down her back. Pressing a light kiss to her lips, he drew back to gently dry her cheeks. “Come on, let’s get something to eat and then I’ll give you a tour, and I think we could both do with some real calories for a little while, yeah?” Quincy smiled slightly.
“I think so, too.” Maya grinned and took in a deep breath. “If you just walk at my side, Quincy, that’s what I need,” she admitted to him and slipped her hand into his when he pulled her up and off the couch. “We also need to talk about what might happen when we seal our bonding, when we make love.” The nervous tension that Maya gave out was nearly palpable. “I have a feeling that is when…” She paused and stepped into the kitchen with him before continuing. “I have a feeling that’s when the power that my father sent to me upon his death will flow into you.” And when that happened he would be the most powerful Warlock, the one that Gaia herself had handpicked to remove the Griffon family from power and put him in power instead. It is as it should be, she thought to herself. There was no one kinder, stronger than her mate and he would rule with grace and with the knowledge of what happened to those who were hurt because he had lived it.
Making a face, he looked at her. “I have to admit that’s the only part I’m seriously not looking forward to. I am all down with making love to you and claiming you as my bond-mate but that power bit”—he shivered—“gives me the willies.” But it would keep her safe. He’d be the only one that could transfer it. Plus, with him having the power, that instantly made Michael a fraud and interloper in the Council Chambers, should he be there.
“I do look forward to the whole making love bit,” Maya admitted with a grin. “I just really, really hope that we are able to do it without making all kinds of mistakes.” Sure she had read about how to make love, and seen videos, but that had to be far different from the actuality of things. Actually having sex had to be far different from what one could learn from videos and books, right?
“I’m sure we’ll manage just fine,” he told her and again wondered if he should clear up her misconception. While he wasn’t a stud like some of the others on the Teams, he’d had a couple relationships, a couple one-night stands and a few…well, yeah, he wasn’t thinking about the other hour-or-less interludes. “For now, food. Any preferences, allergies, hates, loves?” he asked, moving to his double-wide fridge.
“No allergies but I really, really hate nuts,” she told him. “Don’t know what it is about them but I hate them. I think it all stems from the fact that I watched some DIY show one time and it showed someone using a walnut meat to erase scratches on a table.” She shuddered. “So yeah, ick. No nuts. Everything else though I’m totally game for.”
“Right, nuts.” He made a mental note about that. Digging out some thin-sliced roast beef, he held it up, “You okay with a sandwich and some leftover soup?” he asked. He needed to go shopping again. Great, something else he hated wasting time on. “It’s creamy potato and bacon,” he added in case she cared one way or another.
“That sounds good to me.” She licked her lips. “Now creamy potato and bacon is my favorite soup of all of them,” she admitted to him. “That and broccoli cheddar.” She made another mmm sound and rubbed her belly. “Between those two soups I could totally gorge myself for hours and hours on end.” Sad but very true.
“Well, no broccoli cheddar, sorry,” he told her, digging out the container. “But we can get the fixings the next time I have to do a shopping trip. Which, given the state of my fridge and the fact we’ve been on mission on and off over the last month, will likely be tomorrow.” Setting the bread, meat, condiments, and other fixings on the counter, he looked at her. “This is likely the last of my fresh stuff, the rest…well”—he shrugged—“we may have to donate it to a wildlife place so that it can run free.”
Maya laughed at that and shook her head. “You are a card,” she teased. “One that I like. I enjoy your sense of humor,” she admitted to him happily. “So never change if you wouldn’t mind, please. And I wouldn’t mind shopping. I’m sure that we will need to get a few things, actually.” And add to it that she really and truly did need to get more clothing as well. Yep, shopping it would be.
“Well, we can go tomorrow if that’s all right. I’ll call and let Bulldog know I’m not leaving, but not until we’ve done the shopping.” She likely needed a few things, too. “Do we need to get you clothes and the like?” he asked curiously, knowing she probably didn’t have a hell of a lot accessible.
“Yeah. I have one change of clothes that I always carry along with cash and credit cards,” she told him and toyed with the edges of her shirt. “So I need new clothes. I will need to make a call to ensure that my room in Vegas is cleared out but other than that”—she shrugged—“I don’t really have a home. I stay in suites where I work in Vegas.” Had since her parents died. “So I really have no ties to sever. They have been severed for many years.”
Staring at her, he reached out to cup her cheek, “You have ties now, Maya, ones that matter,” he murmured softly. Drawing her in gently, he brushed a kiss to her lips and hugged her close. “Very important ties.”
She hugged him back and breathed him in. She nodded. “The only ones that matter are the ones that you and I are forming now,” she admitted to him. “They are the only ties that I need in life. You, just you.” She needed him in her life, hadn’t realized how much she needed him until she met him.
Smiling down at her, Quincy pressed a kiss to her lips. It was planned to be a short one, but he ended up drawing it out a little. He couldn’t seem to help it. He just had to taste her, draw her in, and hold onto her as long as he could. Enough to sustain him until he had a chance to do it again.
Kissing him right back, Maya drank him in. He was everything that she had ever hoped for, ever dreamed of. When they parted again, she licked her lips and sighed. “Goodness, I am totally going to find myself addicted to your kisses,” she admitted. “Very, very much so.”
“A good thing, I hope.” He breathed out, trying to get his breathing under control. She had that effect on him though, got him all distracted and off balance and threw everything out of whack. Gods, he loved that about her. She pulled him out of his headspace and made him feel so damned much. “Food, we need to eat food,” he told her suddenly, pulling back slightly and ripping his gaze away from her damp lips that would tempt even a saint.
“Yes, we need to eat food, food that will turn to energy, energy that we will be able to expend doing other things that will hopefully be a great deal of fun.” She teased him right back. “At least I hope that we will be able to share each other more than once tonight. I don’t know though so I guess we will just have to see, now won’t we?”
“I’m sure we can come up with a plan.” He smiled at her and brushed his thumb to her lightly swollen lips. Stepping back a little, he forced himself to make food. “Right
, heating up soup,” he murmured, turning to stick the container into the microwave. Setting the time, he returned to the counter and began to put sandwiches together. “What do you want on yours? We have a couple of cheeses that haven’t become science experiments yet, some fresh vegetables thanks to a farmers market trip the other day out of sheer desperation, and we have all the condiments you could possibly want or need on the planet at our fingertips.”
“No cheese, please. Just mustard and if you have it lettuce would be wonderful as well as a couple slices of tomato.” She liked her sandwiches very nice and plain. She was after all a pretty basic gal. She liked knowing that he wanted her just as much as she wanted him. She enjoyed knowing that they would share something so special that it was a coveted relationship, one that trumped any other relationship out there on the planet. Ah yes, it was good to be her right now because she had him!
“You’re looking very smug,” he commented when he caught the expression on her face. “Want to share why?” His tone conveyed curiosity as he built her sandwich to specs. Slicing it in half, he set it on a plate and then constructed his much larger, more elaborate sandwich. Once completed, he put everything away, collected bowls, and split the soup between the two.
“Because I’m just sitting here thinking that it is very good to be me right now because I’ve got you. You are my mate. I’m going to spend the rest of my life with you. I was sitting here thinking of just how lucky that I am,” she admitted. “And that is why I’m looking so nice and smug, darling, because I know that the rest of forever I get to spend with you.”
“Well, all right then,” he said, taking the dishes to the table. Going back, he collected napkins and silverware. “What would you like to drink? Water, juice, milk, beer, and possibly a couple sips of mildly stale wine.” Does wine go stale?
“I’ve never been an alcohol drinker, at all,” she admitted. “I think that since this is an easy and simple meal I will take water. Maybe later I will have some milk but if your fridge is as barren as you are saying I’m totally checking the expiration date first and smelling it, too, because I totally don’t want to drink cottage cheese.”
“Probably the wise and best choice,” he told her honestly. Getting them both glasses of water with a couple ice cubes, he carried them to the table. “We’ll pick up all fresh tomorrow. I would hate to poison you the first night we’re together.”
“I would hate that as well,” Maya agreed with a grin. Taking a seat at the table with him, she paused and reached out, taking his hand with hers. “We will make this work. We will find a balance and a life together. Right?” Insecurities rose up and bitch slapped her when she wasn’t paying attention and right now she was going for round ten with her insecurities.
“Of course we will,” he said quietly. Lifting her hand, he pressed a kiss to her fingers. “I want this to work, Maya. I want us to work. I know I’m not always the most communicative person on the planet. I kind of tend to live off in my own world. But I want us to be everything we can be to one another and more.”
“Don’t worry,” she promised him with a grin. “I have a feeling that I will be able to pull you to Earth with me from time to time.” She teased. Of that she was sure. “Besides, from time to time I will need for you to pull me out of my head as well, darling.”
Smiling at her words, he kissed her fingers again. “Eat up for now. We have a tour to do so you don’t get lost around here,” he murmured, letting her hand go. He didn’t want to but he also needed her to eat. She looked like she needed a good meal and a good night’s sleep. The least he could do was give her one of the two.
“Right, your home is a great deal larger than it looked outside.” Which was odd. It had to be because of the wooded lot that the home backed out onto. “I honestly hadn’t expected your home to be so clean, so orderly. Not trying to be mean or anything, but you are a bachelor and they are notoriously messy.” Or so she had heard.
“I have my moments,” he assured her with a smile. “But I also have a cleaning lady who comes around every two weeks. Plus I don’t like a mess around me when I’m working so it kind of carries over into my home life. So”—he shrugged—“you happen to have one of the few bachelors in town that’s neat and tidy.”
That had her grinning. “I like it,” she admitted. “I don’t like clutter either. Mostly because I walk in my sleep and, if there is clutter, then I trip and fall and it’s just all kinds of difficult to explain away a black eye or broken arm,” she added with a shrug. “And yeah, I’ve done both. So when I walk, don’t wake me. Just steer me back to bed.”
“Right, steering I can do,” he assured her with a smile. “I know not to wake a sleepwalker. I’ve read all the studies on it,” he commented. At her look he made a face. “I have a lot of time on my hands when I’m doing a hack or digging up information. You’d be amazed at some of the bizarre stuff I’ve read.”
That had her shaking her head and then another idea popping up. “Maybe I can start to help you kill time when you are hacking or digging up information?” She wiggled her eyebrows at him and smiled happily. “Just sayin, I’m more than willing to be something that you study instead of anything dull and boring and all.”
“Now there is an idea,” he said softly with a slow grin. Nodding, he picked up half a sandwich. Taking a bite, Quincy watched her watching him. They were quite the pair. Both had no clue what the hell they were doing and both worried about it at the same time.
“Now see, I told you that I could come up with some good ideas. I just need the proper motivation to come up with them,” she said and took a bite of her soup. She ate for a few minutes and then smiled. “We are like a nervous pair of teens on their first date. Is this awkward or is it just me?”
Chuckling, he nodded. “A little bit, isn’t it? I’ve never been big on dates. I’m nearly useless at talking to people. They just irritate me normally and well, I’ve had a couple doozies where I just wanted to throw myself into oncoming traffic afterward. I pretty much gave up the whole ‘dating’ scene after the second one sucked fifty IQ points out of me in the first three minutes.”
That had her snickering and she shook her head. “Oh lord, I know what you mean. I dress up as Bella Donna because men love to watch the boobs.” She cupped her far less generous than DD ones in her hands and smiled. “Then when they see me after the show they never know it’s me because I just don’t measure up.”
“That’s because they are idiots,” he told her honestly. “The real thing is a thousand times better than your persona, but can I request you stop fondling yourself at the dinner table? I hate to be rude but I’m having serious trouble trying to concentrate on eating when all I can think about is jumping you here and now.”
“And what if I want you to jump me here and now?” Maya’s question had come out of the blue after just a few bites of her food but it was clear on her face that she was more than ready for that, needed that, that she would feel it would all be worth it.
“Fuck it,” he breathed out and stood up, knocking his chair over. Tugging her up from hers, he kissed her hard and fast, holding her to him as he slowly backed her down the long hall toward the bedroom. Cupping her bottom, he kept her close against his rock-hard erection, each step a near agony of pure bliss.
Maya began to work on his shirt, tugging it up and then pulling back from his kiss to tug it off. When she looked up at him with a grin, she added, “Besides, it’s better to tour a home in broad daylight, right?” Maya then began to work at the buckle of his belt.
“True enough,” he whispered, setting her down on her feet gently. Pulling her shirt up, he tugged it off over her head and tossed it blindly over his shoulder. Gently, he undid her bra and drew it off her arms, taking his time to soak in all he was revealing.
“I think that we need to take our shoes and pants off because, I swear, if I can’t touch you shortly I’m going to scream.” Maya’s voice screamed her need, her desperation to touch him, to feel him. Quinc
y knew just by listening to her that she needed him as much as he needed her.
Nodding since he was in total and full agreement, he dropped his pants and waited for her to get rid of hers. Watching her intently, he forced himself to stay a couple steps back or he’d just tackle her and tear her pants off. “Faster is better,” he encouraged as she seemed distracted.
Her distraction was clear because her gaze locked in on him as soon as he dropped his pants and she couldn’t seem to stop herself from licking her lips and watching him. When he spoke, she nodded. Blindly, Maya peeled out of her jeans and panties in one push of fabric. Finally, naked and before him, she walked to him again and touched her hand to his chest. “Will we always feel this much need for each other?” she asked hopefully.
“More from what I’ve heard,” he murmured, bringing his hands up to rub up and down her arms lightly. Dropping his head, he kissed her again, his hands sliding over her back and down to her ass. Cupping the round globes, he squeezed gently as he slowly backed her toward the bed.
She walked along with him to the bed and when she felt it backing up against her knees, she climbed up and onto the bed. Crab walking back to the middle of the bed, she watched him and then lifted her foot to reach out to him. “Faster is better.” She gave him his words right back again.
“In some things, darling, but not all,” he said, capturing her foot, and grinned before pressing a kiss to her ankle. Easing up on the bed, he brushed a kiss up her leg to nuzzle at the back of her knee. “But in some things one needs to go at a slow pace to properly enjoy and savor everything. Especially firsts, little one,” he whispered, moving so he was leaning over her and could press a kiss to her lips.
“Oh.” She felt her body clench at the nuzzle that he gave the back of her knee. Who would have known that would have been a hot button for her? “God, that felt lovely.” She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and her legs around his thigh and waist. “I think that we should do that again. I really liked that feeling.” It was as if his nuzzling the back of her knee was wired straight to her pussy, which clenched and dampened greatly.