by T. F. Walsh
He turned, leaning against the frame. “Seems like that.” The way his eyes studied her set her nerves on edge. “You lied to me this whole time about your fire source. Even after you discovered I was an Ash, you still held the truth from me.”
“What was I going to say? Hi, I’m Fallen, a dazmeu. Now capture me and take me to your queen for death and torture.” She swallowed past the thickness in her throat. “Everyone knows Her Majesty is desperately seeking a dazmeu. You’re a Guardian, and, well…” The rest of the words refused to come. She prodded them, but saying them out loud seemed both terrifying and lame.
Saber cocked an eyebrow. “You think I’ll sell you to Her Majesty so I can get back into the realm? The queen would never harm a drae or a dazmeu for that matter. And considering you’ve never been to the kingdom, you sure are quick to make judgments.”
She bit the inside of her cheek because Saber couldn’t know what he was talking about. He had attempted to kill the queen, and maybe the guilt had him imagining how incredibly great the queen was instead, but Fallen’s mother risked her life by leaving the kingdom. She wouldn’t have done that if the queen didn’t intend to kill a dazmeu, to kill Fallen.
“You’re wrong. My mother was close to Queen Kesra, and I believe everything my mom told me about the monarch, along with her need to sacrifice a dazmeu for her own benefit. Plus, all drae living outside the realm fear the queen because she’ll punish them for breaking her rules. Why would Her Majesty do that if she doesn’t want to harm her citizens?”
“Obviously, we have different opinions on the definition of harm. Sometimes a bit of discipline is required for the safety of everyone’s lives.” He folded his arms across his chest, the muscles along his biceps bulging.
Squaring her shoulders, she stepped closer. “You can sugar coat it all you want, but the hard truth is the queen isn’t as innocent as you seem to think.”
Saber broke into laughter, hearty and filling her apartment. “Come on. The bigger issue here is us finding weapons against Noah, not arguing about something you’re clearly wrong about.”
She snatched a pillow from the couch and tossed it at him.
He caught it with one hand and a small smile played on his lips. “I have no plans of taking you into the kingdom. I need to show the queen that she’s still in danger from someone in her court. The same someone who put this cursed paper inside me. That is my focus.” He paused. “I’m impressed by you being a Dazmeu. We’re both one of a kind.”
She could have sworn Saber would have been ultra-defensive when she questioned him, but instead he liked her being a dazmeu. At the end of the day, he lived with his own demons. Damn, the guy was considered a shadow assassin, a ticking bomb. Yep. His secret sucked a billion times worse than hers.
His gaze lowered. “I have to go back for my stepfather.” His voice strained as if he struggled to hold back his emotions.
“It sucks that we couldn’t take him with us.” The words were inadequate for the situation.
He returned his attention to the streets, staring at the church in the far distance. The building was so huge that surely anyone from space could spot it. “I’m going back for him.” Frostiness coated his response—the kind that tightened his decision and left zero ground for arguing.
“Noah will expect us to return, you know that.”
“I can’t risk him moving his ark again.” His words were distant as if he spoke to himself. There was tension in his muscles. Was it the urgency to save the queen or the reunion with his stepfather that drove him to keep fighting? Not that she’d ask him such a question. Everyone dealt with grief their own way. She’d mourned her mother for years, the agony expelling through every breath, tears painful streaks down her cheeks. Nothingness had emptied her mind. Over time, with support from friends, it became bearable.
She closed the distance between her and Saber, eager to wrap her arms around him. To remind him he wasn’t alone, and that the entire world wasn’t against him.
She touched his arm, but no reaction. Did he blame her? By being stuck to her, he had to abandon his stepfather, leave him with Noah.
“I have an idea,” she suggested.
Saber didn’t turn around or respond. Her gaze drifted to the church in the far distance, peering out from between two buildings. Humans wandered around, oblivious to the monster that resided in the same spot, but in Tapestry.
“We take cushions and food into the Tapestry world and set up a bunker here near the window. We watch the church, day and night. Who comes and goes. If Noah moves his ark, we strike. What do you say? I have a set of binoculars.”
When he didn’t say a word, her mouth kept on going as if she were one of those wind-up toys. The silence between them emphasized their fucked up lives, and she couldn’t handle those reminders. She had zilch idea where to go to from there. Noah would send a search party out for them, so staying low made sense.
“This way we’re out of harm’s way. It’s safe in here with the protection spell. And we can come up with a plan of attack.”
Saber finally turned around to face her, and his eyes glazed, holding rawness in them. “Why are you being so nice to me?”
“Well for one, you haven’t tried to drag me to the queen. And you’re a superb kisser.” That last part was a slip of the tongue, her mouth voicing things it shouldn’t, and her cheeks burned.
With a cocked eyebrow, he said, “Superb kisser.” His voice held a husky drawl.
She huffed a chuckle. It felt amazing to laugh and release the pent up tension that had her muscles overlapping into a labyrinth of knots.
Saber studied her, his eyes lingering over her mouth.
Well, on the bright side, she got him distracted from the window. Except now, a fire burned deep in her stomach and plummeted south.
He reached over and caressed the side of her face, his warmth like a blanket. She leaned into his touch. His fingers combed through her hair and clasped the back of her head.
He stepped close, their bodies brushing. Every molecule inside Fallen buzzed, knowing what was coming, but she shyly looked away. His breath was a feather across her face. His lips sailed along her ear, and a whisper had her squeezing her thighs together with determination.
“If you think my kisses are superb, imagine what else I can do to you.”
14
Saber’s pulse escalated into a tempest, and his jeans tightened to the point of strangulation.
Fallen remained pressed against his chest, her chin tilted upward, staring at him. They stood in the middle of her apartment, their mouths inches apart. She hadn’t pulled away, but he didn’t expect her to after confessing he was a superb kisser. Their sensual moment in the plaza hadn’t left his thoughts. With each passing second, the vixen had lodged herself deeper within his mind, his desire, his everything. He’d never felt this way about anyone, let alone a drae. No, correct that, a dazmeu. The last of her kind. Seemed they had more in common than he originally thought. Now with them both on the target list of Noah, he felt closer to her than ever.
Her fragrance fogged his mind, yet her words spun his head, and the temptation to reach out and taste her was like a drug.
His arms encircled her, and he stared into spellbinding eyes that begged him to sweep her away. In a strange way, the tantalizing appeal of having someone as strong-willed as Fallen at his mercy turned him on so much that he forgot himself.
“Usually I can’t get you to shut up.” Fallen’s words were a faint whisper.
Her cushiony lips called him, and her quick breaths added to the soft expression in her gaze.
He leaned closer and kissed her, his world fading away. The sensation was fast and desperate, along with an eagerness to inhale as much of her into his system as possible. A desire to fill the emptiness that sat like a hollowed log inside his chest.
Fallen arched into his chest, mewling. Her tongue surged forward and tangled with his. Her hands snaked up beneath his shirt and her fingers pressed into
his flesh.
Mouths mashed, bodies crushed, but he needed more. He pulled at Fallen’s halter top. Breaking their kiss, he peeled the fabric over her head and his gaze settled on the black, strapless bra. She unclipped the hook, and once the silky lingerie fell away, rose-tipped breasts popped out.
He reached out and cupped them. A perfect fit in each hand. Warm, perky, and responsive to his touch.
Drawing her closer, he suckled a beaded nipple in his mouth, working it over with his tongue. He adored the way Fallen moaned, her hands in his hair, tugging. His cock was a rock, and damn, he had to get his jeans off before he passed out from a lack of circulation.
When he moved over to the other breast, his hands skipped lower over her stomach. He flicked open the button on her leather pants, then lowered the zipper.
She stepped back, her nipple slipping from his mouth, and now those beauties glistened.
“I could devour them for a week straight.”
Her body was slender with the perfect number of curves to make Saber think about waking up alongside.
“Clothes off.” Her words purred.
He rewarded her with a hot grin and didn’t need to be asked twice. Dropping his jeans, he stood naked, as he always went commando. He stepped out of them, his cock proud and erect. The coolness of the room was a refreshing change from the earlier confinement.
Fallen slinked closer, still half-dressed, but her gaze locked onto his hardness. Damn if her mouth didn’t hang open.
“Your turn,” he said.
She didn’t seem to hear him as her hand reached out and fingers banded around his dick. Euphoria collided into him, his eyes rolled backward as she sailed her hand back and forth. Shaking from the sensation, he nudged her hand aside.
“Not so quick.” He grabbed her wrist and drew her against him, her breasts grazing his chest. His mouth crashed on hers, while his hands pushed her trousers down her hips. Crouching in front of her, he dragged them to her ankles, his gaze fixed on her small mound of golden hair.
She kicked off her trousers, and his hand rose to the apex between her legs. His fingers parted her folds and slid along her silkiness. One wriggled inside, and she gasped. Her heat was an inferno, so deliciously tight, his balls strained. He pressed his nose and mouth into her, inhaling her, his tongue dipping out, lapping at her sex.
She shook at his touch, and he adored the way she stared at him, her eyes smiling. He lifted one of her legs and hooked a knee over his shoulder for better access. He needed full immersion. His hands held onto her hips while he sucked on her inner lips. He licked her length, slow at first, then increasing in pace.
Grabbing his hair, she held on, groaning so loud, the whole city could hear her pleasure, shivering with each stroke of his tongue.
His breaths quickened with urgency, yearning to bury himself deep inside her.
And as if her body responded to his thoughts, she stiffened and screamed the most amazing orgasmic sound he’d ever encountered.
Seconds later, her body slackened, and he pulled back, guiding her leg off his shoulder. Up on his feet, he gripped her waist, hauling her against him, his body covering her naked one. His mouth against hers, parting her lips. The kiss was warm and tender, and her arms molded around his neck.
Her seductive eyes met his, brimming with desire.
“You’re beautiful.”
A muted cry of pleasure escaped her throat. “You packing the big gun for show or use?” Her gaze dipped.
“Babe, I’m yours.” His cock nestled up against her lower belly, and the intensity of her passion quickened his pulse. His hands slid to her armpits, and he lifted her off the carpet. At once, her legs snapped around his waist. In a few strides, he closed the distance to the nearest wall and pressed her back against it.
“I crave you more than anything.” His words had a mind of their own. Under her spell, he kept picturing himself plunging into this minx. He positioned himself at her entrance, well aware that no protection was needed for someone like him.
She smiled as she lifted her pelvis to better meet him.
Her fire engulfed him, spreading across his body. With gentle pressure, he drove himself inside where she was beyond wet and ready.
She lowered herself onto his hardness and gasped, her head tilted backward. “Oh fuck.”
Happy to oblige, he slammed into her.
His hips rocked back and forth, driving into her in haste and deeper. He hardened to the point where the hurt was a blend of pain and pleasure.
Inhales tangled with bellows of utter lust and the sound of his slaps. The tension inside him sped up, their joint moans sharpening. His length reached her back wall with each thrust, giving her the excitement she wanted.
Fallen bopped up and down on his cock, her breasts bouncing. Sweat glistened on her perfect, naked form.
“Yes.” Her voice was a husky whisper.
He hammered away, perspiration rolling over his back. His body tingled from the elation of a surging explosion so close he wasn’t sure how much longer he could hold back.
Fallen’s cries of pleasure set his insides on fire, and he was convinced he’d detonate any second. Nothing in the world mattered but the two of them.
Her body convulsed. A raspy scream filled the apartment, and she gripped Saber’s shoulders. A tremulous exhale gushed from her lips as she floated in her own fantasy. Her muscles clenched around his cock, squeezing him as he pushed in and pulled out. The sensation drove him to the edge, and on his next heightened breath, his body coiled so tight, he swayed. He pulsed, plunging into her as a shudder of rapture engulfed him.
They didn’t move but remained in a lover’s embrace. Him buried inside her with their breaths united.
“That was amazing.” Her skin flushed, giving her an innocence he knew lay deep within.
She laid her head into the crook of his neck and shoulder, arms draped around him.
A dizzy heat encased him.
Who gave a fuck if she was dazmeu? She was still trying to find her way in life. Just like him. And he promised himself he’d do whatever it took to keep her safe. If he could, he’d freeze time forever and bundle her up in cotton so no one would harm her again.
15
Fallen’s body relaxed in Saber’s embrace as her legs remained around his hips, his cock inside her. His arms were safety belts that made her breaths easier, as if the world around them wasn’t crumbling. So warm. He smelt right, felt right. He filled her with a sense of security just as he’d done back in Noah’s church by carrying her away from the magic draining her power. After her mother’s death and Zana vanishing, Fallen had been alone and trusted no one. Now a part of her toyed with the idea of letting someone as strong as Saber into her world.
The memory of his mouth brushing hers flooded her thoughts, and she closed her eyes, lingering in the afterglow. Fire spread through her body at the intoxication of his kiss that was desperate, passionate and promised more to come. Saber was an addiction, yet that small surge of hope of having a future with him terrified her.
Her eyes opened as Saber lifted her off his cock and set her down, both of them still naked, and her legs tingled as if they protested at being apart from him. She already missed the heat of his hardness.
“You’re incredible.” Sexual hunger crammed his dark gray eyes. Behind them lay a tenderness that couldn’t help but make her breathe deeper and fill her with happiness.
Except for the fact he was a Guardian who intended to return to the kingdom, a place off her travel list.
He planted a kiss on her brow, and she leaned into him, not ready to face the reality of her tangled life.
“Wish I could whisk you away from here, just the two of us.” His arms wound across her back, drawing her into an embrace as if suddenly the real world slapped him in the face, too.
Her voice vanished while her cheek pressed against his hard chest, and his exhales danced through her hair.
“We’ll work together,” he continued
. “And defeat Noah.”
She nodded but her gaze sailed to the bookshelf across the room where bird figurines dotted the shelves. On the wall hung an oil painting she’d found at a human market. A crescent moon glowed against the night sky filled with stars, reminding Fallen of the Creators’ dream. Many ancient myths had said the moon was a charm bestowed to Tapestry citizens from the Creators. A reminder that even in the darkest of times, the bright light revealed a path to salvation.
She studied the circular dragon on her inner wrist. Even after the most amazing sex with Saber, the pattern hadn’t reacted. Was she fooling herself by falling for Saber? He was an Ash and the tattoo on her wrist was a dragon. If they eradicated Noah and broke their bond, then what? They’d still have to find their true life mates, and sexing it up wasn’t helping the situation. No matter how much her head screamed otherwise, they weren’t meant to be a couple. Cruel fate threw them together to help one another achieve their missions, nothing else.
Breaking away from Saber, she drew her hair over one shoulder. She ran her fingers through the knots, suddenly feeling the urge to cover herself. “We need a plan.”
Saber’s hands remained on her waist, not letting her leave. “Are you okay?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?” Her words flew out a bit too fast, and Saber’s arched brow confirmed he didn’t buy her lame excuse. She spun and pulled herself free from his hold. They’d had down time, cleared their heads, now they had to focus on the real danger. So why did her chest sting as she walked away from him?
Well, suck it up, princess. He isn’t for you.
She swiped her discarded clothes off the floor and dragged them on. When she looked up, Saber stood there, still naked and staring at her.
“Did I say something wrong?” he asked.
“We just need to get our heads straight. We aren’t a couple. What’s the use of fighting Noah, defeating him, if we then allow the Creators to exterminate magic? That would kill everyone on Tapestry and Earth, and we have less than four weeks left. We need our bond removed so we can find our real soul mates.”