“You didn’t tell me about what?”
That thick lip popped free and her sentence rushed out as a single word. “I’veneveractuallydonethisbefore.”
Confused, Thomas sat back on his heels and stared down at Hope, so gorgeous and inviting, legs spread, body flushed a stunning shade of pink, her coppery hair splayed across the white pillow.
“I don’t understand what you mean.”
Her hands clenched, fingers twisting in the sheets. She closed her eyes a brief moment, then opened them to stare directly at Thomas whilst she got to the point and blurted it out.
“I’m a virgin.”
Huh? Thomas’s mind went blank, no response at the ready. Never in a million years would he ever imagine such a beautiful, seductive, and appealing human female could reach the age of twenty-one without some hormone-fueled, fast-talking douchebag seducing his way into her pants. Not in the 21st century anyway. Sex wasn’t special in the way it used to be, saved for committed, loving couples. Humans adapted and now gave it freely, at times to those they barely knew.
“Shit. The virgin thing turns you off. I knew it would.” Her voice cracked and Hope made an attempt to roll out from under him.
Over Thomas’s dead—or in this case, immortal—body would he allow this amazing female to think he believed her virginity to be something shameful. In truth, in his eyes it made her that much more amazing.
He lowered his body back down and stretched out over Hope, then reached out and clasped her tiny wrists in one hand to stop her balling up the sheets. Their faces were a hairsbreadth apart once more, and again Thomas hovered on the edge of losing control, which didn’t say much as he had nearly shot his load in his pants several times since their very first kiss.
“On the contrary,” Thomas rasped. He lowered his head until their mouths touched. “It’s so fucking sexy I can hardly think.” Hope’s pupils dilated as the words sank in. “To know I’m the only one to touch you, to have the privilege of being your first time?” He shook his head and inhaled a shaky breath against her lips. “Hope… you have no idea how that makes me feel.” Her eyes burned with desire, pent-up and begging for release. “I’m… honored.”
Fates yes, baby. I’ll set you free and give you everything you never knew you wanted and more.
She nodded and her eyes went from uncertain to filled with molten desire, making Thomas’s pulse race. “I want you to be my first. I want this with you.”
Bloody hell, if he had his way, he wouldn’t just be her first, he’d be her only. Lips still brushing together, Thomas stilled.
Where did that come from?
“But, that’s why I don’t have any condoms,” she added. That’s when his brain finally caught up.
Son of a—
“I don’t either,” he admitted. The last time he’d been with a female was ages ago. Longer than he wanted to think about, though the self-imposed celibacy was worth it if it led him to this moment, in bed with this kind and beautiful soul.
“Well…” Hope said. One of her wrists twitched as if she wanted to fist the sheets but forgot Thomas had a hold on them. “I’ve never had sex before so you… um, you don’t have to worry about me. You know. Disease wise,” she quickly added. Her lashes lowered and her face blushed that stunning crimson again. “What about you? Have you, you know, been tested?”
Thomas scrambled to come up with an acceptable response to what was a normal question for humans. “Oh, well, yes. I mean, I’m good, too.” That jumbled mess would have to do since he couldn’t exactly tell Hope that he was immortal, therefore impervious to human disease.
“Then…” She looked at him, no longer hesitant, but determined and filled with hunger, and Thomas willingly fell right into the depths of those blue eyes. “I trust you.”
Fates. His chest compressed and a lump formed in his throat. She had no idea what an honor she bestowed upon him. He came from a time when virginity was cherished, and for Hope to give hers over so trustingly. To place her body and her first experience in his hands… it was a humbling experience.
All he could manage in response was a nod. He knew should he attempt to speak, yet knew his emotions would cause his voice to fail.
Thomas released Hope’s wrists and gently cupped her cheeks, stroking his fingers over the soft skin of her gorgeous face. Unlike their previous kisses, this time when their lips met, it was soft and tender. They started slow, testing one another with hesitant swipes of their tongues. As their desire ramped up, Thomas shifted his hips and they both moaned at the exquisite sensations that arose from the glorious rub and slide. Their mouths became more insistent, non-stop noises coming from both of them, as their need rose until they both were gasping for air and Thomas was rocking his body hard against hers.
“Now, Thomas, please. I need you.”
He stilled and closed his eyes. Fates help me to keep from shooting the second I enter her tight heat. Opening his eyes to stare down the length of their bodies, he lifted his hips, gripped the base of his cock, and lined up with her opening. Holding steady, Thomas glanced up, waiting for her to give permission. Hope lifted a hand and gently caressed his stubbled cheek.
“Do it.”
Those words were the match that set his entire being on fire. The glowing green core of Thomas’s immortality blazed bright. It sizzled and pulsed, the energy becoming almost combustible as his desire, as both flew to unspeakable heights. With a grunt, he pushed forward until the head of his cock breached her sex. Hope let out a tiny cry and her rippling muscles tensed around him, squeezing so hard he thought he’d pass out from ecstasy.
“I’m so sorry.”
She shook her head and bit her lip. “Keep going.”
He did as requested and pressed on. “Fuck, you’re so tight,” Thomas ground out through clenched teeth. Her body felt like a flaming fist clenched around his cock. “Fates, you feel so good.”
He paused when he hit a barrier and knew there was only one way to progress. Nerves jangling and pulse rattled, Thomas held his breath and gave a sharp snap of his hips. He felt the very moment he tore through Hope’s virginity, having figured the faster they got it over with, the better. For her part, Hope clutched at his shoulders, digging her nails into flesh and muscles whilst she whimpered in pain. Thomas froze, cock pulsing as he waited for her injured body to adjust. It felt like a millennium before she relaxed.
“Move.” The raspy command was like a drink of water in the desert.
“Thank the Fates,” Thomas groaned. Slowly, he began the push and pull, the rhythmic drag and slide that made up the foundation of an ancient dance. One that changed little since it first began thousands of years ago.
Hope ran her hands up and down his flanks, resting them on different groups of muscles as he rolled his hips.
“Feels so good,” she whispered, head thrown back. Gaze riveted, Thomas stared at the seductive curve of her throat. He was about to lower his head to lick and suck at the creamy skin, when she spoke two words. Two words that blew his mind and almost made him blow his load in the process. “Harder, Thomas.”
His breath stuttered and his cock throbbed, but he shifted, dug his knees into the mattress, and fulfilled her request. And fuck it was so bloody good. Thomas jackhammered into that slick, tight heat at a relentless pace, sweat dripping from his brow and between his shoulder blades. Much too soon, the telltale tingling gathered, coiled low in his groin whilst green sparks from his core raced up and down his spine. He wasn’t going to be able to hold back.
“Hope…”
“I-I’m close… Just a little bit—” Before she could finish, Hope went taut as a bow, her back arching off the bed. Her already tight channel clenched around his length as she cried out. As wave after wave of ecstasy tore through her, her sex clenched around Thomas’s cock. Moaning and groaning, Thomas continued thrusting as Hope shuddered violently. Watching her get off combined with the way she milked his length, catapulted him right over the edge into his own powerful
climax. Squeezing his eyes shut, Thomas drove in twice more then his release shot deep inside Hope, whilst he plunged into her with each pulse of semen from his cock, roaring loudly until his balls drained empty.
A moment later, Thomas opened his eyes and froze. His already thundering heartbeat quickened, only not from desire.
What the—?
He watched as his life-force flowed from his core to surround Hope’s body, a brilliant green glow hovering just above her skin. The sight of his life-force outside its home made Thomas flinch. Still buried inside her sex, his sudden movement made the loose and lax Hope—who was most certainly sore—jerk and let out a yelp.
“Thomas? Is something wrong?”
Fuck. I must needs learn to control my reactions.
With a post-orgasm haze fogging his brain, he forgot about Hope’s humanity. She couldn’t see his life-force, therefore had no idea what put the dumfounded expression on his face.
Thomas wanted to kick his own ass when he realized his freak out was making Hope insecure. She looked as if she were waiting for the other shoe to drop, for him to stand up and get dressed, thank her for the fuck, and bolt for the door.
No way would that ever happen. Using more concentration than his sex-addled brain should have managed, Thomas relaxed his features. “My apologies. There’s nothing wrong.” He forced a smile and hoped it looked genuine. “You are amazing. That was amazing.”
Mayhap his expression was false, but his words were naught but the truth.
Thomas pulled out of her body and rolled to lie next to her. After pressing a gentle kiss to Hope’s kiss-swollen lips, he threw an arm around her waist and shifted until his body curled around hers, his front to her back. Still not enough contact, he slung a leg over her narrow waist to keep her close. The lavender scent that was pure Hope surrounded him, stopping his racing thoughts whilst relaxing his tense muscles. Tomorrow, he would ask Hope to quit her job. If Lust was indeed being targeted, and in truth, it certainly appeared that way, he didn’t want her anywhere near the half-daemon or his businesses. If anything were to happen to her… Fates, he tamped down a shudder. Thomas couldn’t even think about it.
In retrospect, mayhap he should have been less worried about Hope’s job, and more concerned with the bizarre light show and the way his energy traveled outside his body to envelop Hope. Nothing like that had ever happened before, not even close. It was strange and freaky to witness, but lying next to Hope—green glow and all—with her safe and warm in his arms, her scent in his nose making him stupid, and the complete and utter, bone-deep contentment from making love, made him so damn tired, at the moment he hadn’t a worry in the world.
His eyes grew heavy and Thomas’s last thought before slipping into unconsciousness was, that if in truth, he cared about Hope, he should walk away now. She was a drug, and he was an addict. Yet as he drifted off to sleep, Thomas knew in his heart, in his very soul, he wouldn’t be strong enough to quit. Like a junkie, he’d keep coming back for more. Feeding his addiction until it destroyed one—or both—of them.
“THE DIVERSIONS WORKED, MY PRINCE.”
Joshua wrinkled his nose, not bothering to hide his distaste. The djinn reeked, just like those disgusting rotting-corpse Hounds of his.
“Very good,” he said as he strode toward the door. “We shall speak outside.” Without awaiting a response, Joshua descended a staircase and exited through the back of the safe house. The weather was gloomy, dark clouds hung low in the sky, threatening rain. He inhaled, grateful for a breath of air untainted by the putrid odor of the djinn. “And what of my cousin? Have you tracked his movements?”
“Aye, my Prince. The Son of Lust did exactly as you predicted. He dropped everything and traveled directly to the crime scene.”
With his head down and his hands behind his back, Joshua paced back and forth across the intricate inlaid stone patio. “So if Dante had been with his mate…” He stopped and lifted his head to stare at the djinn. It didn’t escape Joshua’s notice that the stultus had zero fear whilst in his presence. It showed a lack of respect, which was the djinn’s mistake. Should he become too comfortable around Joshua, Thánatos had no one to blame but himself.
No one was safe from Joshua’s daemon when he didn’t get what he desired.
“To my knowledge, the sorceress didn’t go to any of the scenes,” Thánatos said.
“To your knowledge?” Joshua scowled. “Was she or was she not with my cousin?” he shouted. “It is one or the other, black or white, djinn.”
Wisely, Thánatos took a step back. Mayhap he wasn’t as stupid as Joshua believed. In the distance, he heard the Hounds kick up a fuss, barking and howling. Djinns were tied to the pack and the foul mutts likely sensed their alpha’s fear. Thánatos lowered his chin to his chest in deference, yet his back remained straight, his posture rigid. Joshua must needs figure out how to break the djinn’s rebellious spirit, as he did Balor’s. It irritated him the stultus Balor got himself banished. Mayhap the male lacked brains, but he did whatever Joshua said, no questions asked.
“My apologies. The sorceress was not there, my Prince. It is unlikely Lust would abandon his business to transport his mate to and from the courthouse. Your cousin has a certain… weakness for his employees. Even the human ones.” Thánatos pulled a face. Joshua silently agreed with the djinn.
His cousin was a stultus, all soft and pathetic when it came to humans. Not the hardened daemon he recalled back during the time of the Great Battle. The one who led the rebellion against the Daemon Kings. Fates, even a lowly djinn understood humans were beneath all immortals and a complete waste of time unless used for food or pleasure. In truth, Joshua had several in his collection whom he treasured. As the Son of Greed, his prized possessions meant more to him than anything else on this wretched plane. He frowned when he recalled how many of his belongings were lost due to that bastard Archangel, Michael.
“Lust spends too much time with those lesser beings,” Joshua eventually said, disgusted by his cousin’s behavior. “But Dante’s weakness shall work to my advantage.” He grinned in delight.
After all this time, everything was finally falling into place to return his uncle to the Earthly plane. Joshua required the King to complete his plan. Once the portal was open, he would force Dante’s mate to remove the King and banish that asshole, Famine. Joshua gave that prick his protection and the Horseman fucked off and disappeared without delivering the class nine he promised. All Joshua needed was a big enough distraction, at exactly the right time, and Dante’s precious little mate would be left vulnerable. Then he would make his move and she would be his. His pulse raced at the thought of adding such a brilliant gem to his collection.
Done talking, Joshua made a shooing motion at the djinn. “Go, and send Abaddon to my office immediately.”
“Yes, sir.” Thánatos darted toward his quarters and his precious Hounds. He watched Thánatos’s retreat. Whilst proud of the new djinn’s methods, he must needs ensure the beast knew his place. When all was said, despite being a little too calculating for Joshua’s comfort, the new alpha was much better than, Balor. That stubborn bastard wasn’t just stupid, Balor was weak and afraid. Never getting shit done fast enough. At least this one was intelligent, or as intelligent as could be expected from a dog. Thánatos also carried out Joshua’s orders to precision. Smart of him, since Joshua wouldn’t hesitate to torture the djinn until he begged for a death that would never come. He just needs be certain the djinn didn’t get any ideas about double-crossing him and all would be fine.
Joshua returned to his office and sat behind his desk. Less than five minutes later, Abaddon knocked.
“Enter.”
The daemon warrior slipped inside and closed the door. He bowed his head. “My Prince.” Joshua wanted to roll his eyes at the obvious ass-kissing. Fates, so weak and spineless in his presence. It made Joshua sick.
“Have you made any progress as to the spell to control the class nine?” Abaddon’s eyes fla
shed with alarm at the question and Joshua knew the daemon’s answer would only piss him off. Yet he drummed his fingers on the desk, impatiently waiting for the stultus to nut up and admit his failure.
“I have, my Prince.” Abaddon shifted from foot to foot.
It was a testament to Joshua’s ability to deceive to keep his shock from showing. All Joshua must needs do to keep a straight face was remind himself the reward would be worth the price of dealing with Abaddon and Thánatos, the immortal equivalents of insects.
“Fucking spit it out, then. You’re a daemon warrior for fuck’s sake. Supposedly the bravest and strongest in my service. Prove it now, or I shall have you replaced with a daemon who owns an actual backbone.”
“Apologies, my Prince. There’s, um, just one ingredient missing. I can’t find it anywhere. Everyone I spoke with has heard of it, yet not a single one has ever seen it firsthand.”
Joshua stood and slammed both fists down on the desk. “And what is this ingredient that is so bloody mysterious the best practitioners in the world cannot find it?” Sweat beaded on Abaddon’s temple. Joshua circled the desk and stood in front of the daemon. “Speak… now.”
“It’s a rock, sir.”
“A rock?” Joshua scoffed and took a step back. “What rock is so fucking rare none have seen one?
Abaddon swallowed and a drop of sweat trickled down his cheek. “It must needs come from the Underworld, sir.”
Joshua opened his mouth and ended up doing so and closing it several times, unable to come up with a suitable response. Relics from the Underworld weren’t simply rare, to his knowledge, the total of which existed upon the Earthly plane numbered in the single digits.
Anger pulsed through his veins and a tidal wave of fury woke his daemon. The thought of such a unique object became a possession he must needs claim. Not already owning it had his daemon agitated, and Joshua quickly grew desperate to have it in his hands. He clenched his jaw and stormed past Abaddon before he pulled off his limbs with his bare hands. His daemon must needs feed immediately and Joshua knew exactly how to soothe the savage cravings.
Hope For More (Trinity Book 3) Page 21