And then his lips were on hers. His mouth consuming hers in a long, slow, lazy kiss that disengaged her brain and left her floating. Coasting effortlessly into the moment. His fingers traced the outline of her face. Down her neck and along her collarbone. Over her shoulder and back again to cup the back of her neck.
He gently nipped her lower lip and inhaled deep. “Still good?”
Good?
She was great. Ravenous and yet oddly content to let him guide her through the feast he’d promised. She forced her heavy eyelids open. In the shadows, his sharp features seemed softer, but there was no missing the intensity behind his gaze. The acute concentration lasered only on her. “I’m not afraid. Nervous, maybe. Uncertain, but not afraid.”
His hand at the back of her neck circled toward the front, the width of his grip resting lightly just above the hollow of her throat. A possessive touch that would have terrified her had it been anyone else, but strangely centered her with Tate. His thumb skated along her carotid artery, a simple touch that wordlessly conveyed his awareness. As loud as her heart was beating he could probably hear her racing pulse as much as he felt it. “One word from you and I’ll stop. No matter what.”
His fingers slipped lower, skimmed the sensitized skin above her tank’s neckline, then between her breasts and down to slip beneath her shirt’s hem. He hesitated only a second, then lifted it up, guiding it up and over her head, then tossed it to the floor. She’d thought she’d have a moment to assimilate. To breathe and adjust. But he dealt with her jeans just as fast. Stripped them past her hips and discarded them with a welcome efficiency, leaving her only in her bra and panties.
Cool air danced against her exposed skin, but the sensation was nothing compared to the feel of his eyes on her. To the outline of him standing tall on his knees, one on either side of hers, and knowing he openly perused her in the moonlight. “You’re beautiful.”
Soft praise that came a heartbeat before his touch. A rasp of his roughened fingertips just below her belly button. So slow. One caress after another, agonizingly patient and drawn out as he learned her. Explored the curve of her hip. Teased the exposed upper swells of her breasts. The delicate stretch between her belly button and the line of her panties. When he spoke, his low voice was grated and thick with emotion. “It makes me a selfish son of a bitch to say this, but I’m glad you’ve never done this with anyone else. Glad no other man has ever seen you like this.”
Oddly, she was, too. Her whole adult life, she’d felt short-changed by her lack of experience. But with Tate touching her as he was now—watching him watching her and hearing the proprietary edge in his voice—she was grateful for the wait. Thankful it was him who was guiding her into this new world and for every day that had led to it.
Sitting back on his heels, he dragged her bra straps over her shoulders then leaned in and pressed a kiss to the side of her neck. He slid one hand behind her back, his nimble fingers working the clasp even as his words rumbled in her ear. “No other man ever will.”
Her bra loosened with a muted snap and her breath caught.
As he straightened, he pulled the fabric free, slowly exposing her breasts.
Goose bumps fanned in all directions and her already straining nipples hardened further, the tight points painfully distended and greedy for attention. While his covetous gaze soaked them in, his hands drifted lower, his touch more urgent. The contact more strained as he hooked his fingers in the waistband of her panties and tugged them past her hips. He tossed them to the floor along with everything else and sat back, his hands fisted on his thighs and his breath churning as heavy as her own. “Sit up and scoot down just a little.”
The instruction was the last thing she’d expected. So much so, she followed his direction with zero hesitation. Her mind caught up eventually, though, and chimed in just as he shifted and sat behind her, one thigh framing each of her hips. “What are you doing?”
He dragged her back so her ass sat flush against him and guided her so she reclined against his torso.
Oh, dear God.
Of all the ways she’d expected to feel him against her for the first time, this hadn’t even been on the list. But it was strangely comforting. Protective in the way his body cradled hers and yet decadent in the press of his bare flesh against hers. Especially with his cock pressed firmly against the upper swell of her ass.
Rather than answer her question, he wrapped his arms around her waist and tapped her outer thighs. “Open.”
Not a request, but a command. One the dark side of herself she was coming to know thrilled to and eagerly wanted to obey. She inched them open, her legs shaking as though her muscles protested the vulnerable position. Air kissed her exposed and aching flesh, making her all too aware of how wet his touch and the night’s experiences had left her.
“Very nice.” He paired the praise with firm strokes up and down her quads and skimmed his lips from her shoulder to her neck. “I like seeing you spread like that. Ready for me.”
Pleasure speared between her legs, the instinct to pull them back together and squeeze until the tremors subsided making her thighs quiver. She bit her lip instead, scrunched her eyes shut and willed her knees to stay where they were instead.
“Now’s the time, sweetheart.” His lips caressed her ear and his warm breath fanned her cheek. “Show me how you touch yourself. Teach me what you like.”
It was weird at first. Tentative and a little awkward. But with each breath, her body settled into a rhythm. Matched each of his inhalations with one of her own and followed the steady thrum of his heart against her back. She cupped her breasts. Lifted and stroked them. Toyed with her nipples and plucked the tips until she didn’t care that he watched. Only knew that her body had suffered enough and deserved release.
She slid one hand lower, slicking her fingers through her labia and up to circle her clit.
He palmed the breast she’d abandoned, matching the touch she’d given herself only more firmly, the heat of his palm and the strength of his touch wiping her mind blank. “How wet are you, Elise?”
“Soaked.” No hesitation. No shame. Only need. Raw desperation.
He hummed and scraped his teeth along the stretch where her neck and shoulder met. His free hand dipped between her spread legs and teased the inner seam at the top of her thigh, so close to her labia she nearly wept. “Next time, I’ll sit between your knees and watch.”
Yes.
How she could want that—even crave it considering her lack of experience—she didn’t have a clue. Only knew that it appealed at a surprising level and shoved her closer to climax. Not close enough to fall over, but right there, dancing just out of reach.
“What do you need, mihara? Tell me.”
He knew.
Knew, but wanted her to claim it. To ask for it the same way he’d asked her. “I want you. Your touch to make me come. Not mine.”
“You want me to play with your pussy? Stroke you until you come?”
Her sex tightened, release hovering so close. “Please.”
Just a tease at first. A subtle graze of his broad fingertip against her swollen flesh. And then he was there. Slicking through her wetness. Coating her lips and her clit with her arousal and building a demanding patter. Up and down. Skimming her entrance on each pass and driving her higher and higher.
She groaned and arched her back, desperate for air. For more of all he offered. “Tate.”
“So wet,” he said as though he understood. “Swollen and ready for me.” He nipped her earlobe then licked the sting he left behind. “You want to know what I thought of while I brought myself off the last two weeks?”
She tried to answer. Wanted to know as much as she wanted release, but couldn’t form any words save please and more in her mind.
Tate answered anyway, his rumbling voice a wicked temptation at her ear as he pressed one finger at her
entrance. “My mouth right here.” His finger drifted upward. “My tongue lapping up every drop you make for me.” He circled her clit and pressed hard. “Sucking your clit in my mouth and fucking my fingers inside you until you come around them.”
Gone.
Utterly and completely lost in the most astounding orgasm of her life. Bolder and more powerful than anything she’d thought possible. A whole-body experience that left her wrecked and utterly exposed even as she soared. Over and over, her sex clenched and released. Grasped for something it knew was missing, but reveled in all the same. Gloried in the promise of what was to come and the terrain left uncharted.
Through it all, he was there. His voice in her ear. His warmth at her back. His scent in her lungs and his touch guiding her through each sensation. Holding her through the explosion and then guiding her back to reality with each languorous caress. Yes, she’d come before, but never like this. With Tate it was different. Bigger. Bolder. Brighter and more powerful.
She rolled her hips against his slowing fingers and moaned, clenching her thighs together and rolling to one side. “Oh my God. I can’t believe I just did that.”
He chuckled at that, slipped his hand from between her legs and pulled her up so she lay cradled in his lap. His cock stretched hard once more between them, but he guided her head to his shoulder and smoothed his hand along the back of her head as though he wasn’t bothered by it in the slightest. “Well, you did, and the image is burned into my brain, so if you need a detailed recounting of events, I can give it to you.”
Her cheeks tingled and she buried her face in his chest.
“Oh, no you don’t.” He hooked her chin with one finger and guided her face toward his. “You don’t come for me like that and think anything negative about it. It was beautiful. Perfect.”
The burn in her cheeks got hotter, but this time it was the remembered intensity of the moment that cranked up the heat. “It was pretty awesome.”
His smile softened and he ran his thumb along the apple of her cheek. “It was more than awesome, mihara. It was spectacular.” He hesitated a beat and looked her straight in the eye. “It was also the beginning.”
Chapter Twelve
Maybe she should have gone with the plain black leggings instead of her gray tie-dyed ones. Or shorts. Or just stayed home altogether and taken a little more time to build her courage before tackling her first training day with the clan.
Careful not to trip on any stray limbs or loose rocks scattered on the path to Priest’s house, Elise reconsidered her black slip-on Chucks. “You’re sure I’m dressed right?”
Walking beside her on the trail to Priest’s house, her mom chuckled and rubbed one hand between Elise’s shoulder blades. “You look fine. I’ve been there for the last two Saturdays and all the women wear comfortable clothes they can move around in.”
Comfortable like her mom, maybe. In her loose cotton pants with their coral, pink and raspberry print and a solid coral top, she looked like a yogi flower child. Nowhere near the casual outfit Elise had picked. “Even leggings?”
“Even leggings. Though, you make them look more like a fashion statement. You always have. Those mesh inserts on the sides make your legs look miles long, and your top and Chucks make it spunky.”
“Spunky, huh?” It wasn’t exactly the look she’d been going for, but considering it would be her first solid foray into regular clan life, a little extra attitude and spunk wouldn’t hurt. Tate had already clued her into what to expect—a few hours spent with each of the houses and training with specific magics, and then another hour or two with the warriors where they taught self-defense to everyone. She just hoped the loose black top would give her enough mobility to avoid paring down to the strappy black sports bra underneath when the latter half of the agenda kicked in.
“Relax, sweetheart. It’s going to be fine. You’ll see.” Her mom pushed aside an evergreen branch blocking the path, then held it out of the way for Elise. “I have to say, I’m surprised Tate didn’t come to walk you over this morning.”
“He wanted to.”
“But you didn’t?”
“No.”
Jenny stopped mid-stride and held Elise back with a hand at her arm. “Did something happen?”
Oh, something had happened all right. In a span of mere days, she’d gone from plodding through a mostly quiet, routine life, to surfing through experiences so rich and emotionally colorful she wondered if her feet would ever touch the ground. And it wasn’t just Tate’s regular displays of affection either. Wasn’t just his drugging kisses or his soothing touch. It was his presence. His attention and care. The combination was overwhelming. Euphoric and frighteningly addictive.
Realizing the goofy smile she seemed to sport most of the time now had crept back onto her face, she ducked her head and motioned her mom forward. “Nothing’s happened. I just realized how much time I’d spent with him the last few days and wanted a little alone time with you.”
She’d also wanted to leave herself an out in the event her nerves got the better of her and she wanted to chicken out of showing up today. Though, even if she’d tried that approach, Tate likely would have shown up at her front door and carried her to Priest’s house.
“You know, you don’t have to worry about me, Elise. Being alone isn’t a bad thing. I’ve known since the day you were born that someday you’d find your wings and make your own life.”
This time it was Elise who paused in her tracks. “What makes you think I’m leaving?”
Jenny stared at her, a tiny, knowing smile tilting her lips.
“Did you know about Tate? About what he is to me?”
Her mother hesitated a beat, then nodded. “He told me the night of Beltane.” Stepping closer, she cupped Elise’s shoulders and smoothed her hands up and down her arms. “I’m happy for you, sweetheart. Thrilled to know the Keeper blessed you with such a wonderful man. To know that you’ll never have to hide your heritage. That you’ll be with someone who’ll care for you and support you in everything you do.”
Unlike the relationship her mom had had with her father.
She didn’t come right out and say it, but the undercurrent was there in her tone. So many things her mom had given up. Her magic. Her companion. Her clan. All because she’d fallen in love with an outsider before she found her own mate. “I’m not leaving you, Mom.”
“Not yet. But you will. And I want you to know...it’s okay. I want this for you.” Jenny smiled huge and cupped the side of Elise’s face. “Now come on. I’ve seen how some of these Volán men act with their mates. If we don’t show soon, Tate will track us down and you’ll end up making your first training day appearance slung over his shoulder.”
It was a perfect May day. At nearly noon the chill from the night before was almost gone, replaced with a featherlight breeze and temperatures slowly creeping toward seventy. Not a single cloud dotted the brilliant blue sky and new, bold green leaves rustled in the trees around them. With every step toward Priest’s house, the chatter of voices and laughter grew stronger, lifting Elise’s heart rate right along with it.
Up one gentle slope and the gathering came into view. The number of people was similar to those who’d gathered for Beltane, but the energy this time was different. More focused and purposeful. An abundance of food was laid out on three long folding tables and the four red coolers at one end were no doubt stocked to the gills with drinks, but there was an orderliness to the groupings of people that hadn’t been there the last time. Kind of like when she’d done a physical therapy internship rotation with a football team and they had broken up into special teams for training.
She zeroed in on the two groups gathered in loose circles and seated under two different trees. One of them had to be the clan’s healers given Vanessa’s prominent placement near the center. “Where do I go?”
She hadn’t realized she’d
paired her question with a death grip on her mother’s hand until Jenny covered hers with her own and whispered, “I have no idea. The last few weeks, Naomi carted me around to the different groups, but I don’t know if that was the norm, or her just introducing me to everyone.” She squeezed Elise’s hand and drew her attention to the group of men and women on their feet and physically going at each other head-to-head. “I’ve got a feeling he knows, though.”
Tate.
Dressed in lightweight gray warm-up pants and absolutely nothing else, he was fully engaged in a bout with Alek and dodging punches and kicks thrown so fast she could barely track them all. Why just seeing him eased the tightly coiled tension in her gut she couldn’t say, but her lungs rejoiced at the freedom to actually draw a decent breath, and her body perked up in a way no amount of coffee could ever replicate.
Footsteps sounded on the wooden steps from the raised deck behind her a second before Kateri’s smooth voice jolted her out of her dumbstruck ogling. “They’re fun to watch, aren’t they?”
Elise cleared her throat and prayed the heat crawling up her neck wasn’t as noticeable as it felt. “I’m not sure fun is the word I’d use.” Fluid, maybe. Powerful and deadly, for sure. She dared another look, only to find Tate had noted her arrival and left Alek hanging to jog her direction. “It looks dangerous.”
“Maybe,” Katy said. “But the more you watch them, the more you realize that’s what their magic’s about. They’re deeply physical and the movements come naturally.” She chuckled and lowered her voice. “By the way, nice work on the tattoo. I’m so going to make Priest teach me how to do that.”
“Oh my.” This from her mother on an indrawn breath that spoke of shock and wonder. “Did you do that?”
Before she could answer, Tate was there and pulling her flush against him. Not the least bit concerned with her mother’s presence, he cupped the back of her head and pressed an intimate, yet firm and lingering kiss to her lips. “Hey,” he murmured against her mouth too few heartbeats later.
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