Suddenly she was there—she could feel the thunderstorm breaking and the warm, drenching rain of pleasure washing over and through her. Jake was making her come—making her come on his tongue, just as he had said.
“Oh, Jake,” she cried breathlessly. “Glan Agus ‘Ordugh!”
A feeling of power rolled through her—the same feeling she’d had when they had healed Jake’s back together. It intensified every sensation—making the orgasm even stronger—causing her pussy to clench hard as her hand tightened in Jake’s hair. For a moment she felt almost electrocuted by pleasure.
“Jake!” she wailed again, every muscle in her body going tense. “Oh, God yes—yes! Glan Agus ‘Ordugh! Glan Agus ‘Ordugh!”
“Easy, my darling.” He pulled away for a moment as her pleasure peaked and began to ease, his mouth and lower jaw shiny with her juices. “Be careful when you say words of power, you may get more than you asked for.”
“Wh-what?” Cass was still panting and trembling from the after-effects of the intense orgasm which was, she had to admit, hands-down the best she’d ever had. She didn’t know if it was the addition of magic that made it so or maybe just the fact that Jake had worked so hard to give it to her and had so clearly enjoyed making her come. But for whatever reason, it had been almost overwhelming in its intensity.
“I said, you must be careful. Look.” He pointed to the pile of colored sticks which were now neatly arranged in rows by color like orderly soldiers on the coffee table.
“Oh…” Cass made an effort to come back to herself. “I…I did that?”
“You did. And that is not all you did. Come…look.” Jake took her by the hand and helped her off the couch. When Cass’s knees went weak and she nearly stumbled, he lifted her easily into his arms and brought her around to see what he was talking about.
All the tubes of paint and brushes which she’d left lying in a half hazard pile, were now neat and orderly, stacked in rows just like the sticks. All of them were cleared of any smudges of paint too—they looked brand new, as though she’d just bought them.
“Oh…” Cass breathed, looking in wonder at her equipment. “I never meant to do all that.”
Jake chuckled.
“I told you that you had magic inside you. It seems to grow stronger every time you use it.”
“Of course the only time I can use it is when you, uh, help me get started,” Cass pointed out.
“I don’t mind that a bit, my darling.” Jake’s voice was a low, lustful growl and the look in his leaf-green eyes made her feel hot and cold all over again. He kissed her on the mouth and Cass moaned against his lips as she tasted her own secret flavor there.
Jake carried her back to the couch and before she knew it she was straddling his lap, feeling his hard, hot shaft poking her inner thighs as they kissed each other hungrily.
Oh God, moaned a little voice in the back of Cass’s mind, You shouldn’t be doing this, Cass! You know you shouldn’t!
And yet it seemed like she was going to anyway. Despite the intense orgasm Jake had just given her, Cass wanted more—needed more. She wanted him inside her—wanted to feel that thick shaft she felt brushing against her inner thighs, filling her pussy to the hilt. She wanted to take him all the way inside and feel him thrusting deep and hard and long. She wanted—
“Gods, Cassandra—I want you.” Jake’s voice was low and intense as he pulled back to look at her. His eyes were blazing in the firelight and his grip on her hips was firm and possessive.
“I want you too,” Cass admitted breathlessly. “God, Jake, I know we shouldn’t but I want you so much.”
He kissed her again, pulling her tight against him so that the head of his cock was rubbing against the wet, open folds of her pussy.
With a little moan, Cass started to lower herself onto him. But just as the broad head of his shaft was slipping into the mouth of her pussy, Jake gave a frustrated groan and pushed her gently but firmly away.
“What…why…?”
Cass could barely formulate a coherent question. Her brain felt like it was on pause while her body took control. All she wanted was Jake inside her…but for some reason the big elf wasn’t following through.
“Why did you stop?” she asked, finally managing to get a complete sentence out.
“I want you, Cassandra—make no mistake about that.” Jake’s eyes were still blazing as he looked at her. “But I want more than this.” He nodded down between them to where Cass still hovered over his shaft.
“More than sex?” She frowned. “I don’t understand.”
He sighed deeply.
“I am not given to casual encounters,” he explained. “What do you humans call them?”
“One-night stands?” Cass suggested. “Uh—hook-ups?”
“Exactly.” Jake nodded firmly. “I cannot be satisfied with a one-time ‘hook-up’ as you say. I need more.” He looked at her intently. “Cassandra, I need you—all of you.”
“Oh, um…” Cass looked at him wide-eyed, not sure what to make of this. Was he about to offer her some kind of 50 Shades-type contract where they would spell out the exact parameters of their relationship? She wasn’t exactly sure how she felt about that, to be honest. Although she knew she was definitely falling for her court-appointed elf, they were still at the beginning when things were fragile…new. Finding out that he wanted to “own” her in some way might be a deal-breaker.
Jake sighed.
“What I am trying to say is that I want to be the only male in your life. If you still have feelings for your human lover and you wish to be with him, then I will step aside, as much as it pains me to do so. If, however, you would be interested in an exclusive relationship with me…”
He let the words hang in the air and until they finally sank in.
“Oh!” Cass let out a sigh of relief. “Oh—for a minute there I thought you were going to tell me you had a sex dungeon downstairs and you wanted me to call you master and wear a collar or something.”
Jake frowned. “Whatever gave you that idea? I could see the interest in playing games of dominance and submission in an established relationship but you and I are just beginning…or are we?” He raised an eyebrow at her, waiting for her answer.
Cass took a deep breath and opened her mouth though she wasn’t entirely sure what was going to come out.
“Jake,” she said carefully. “I like you—a lot. In fact, I’m pretty sure I’m falling for you, even though we haven’t known each other very long.”
“If by falling you mean in love, then I am falling in love with you too,” he said seriously.
His willingness to put it right out there in the open sort of took Cass’s breath away. She’d been dating Brandon for over a year and it had taken most of that time for one of them to say the “L” word. Brandon still wouldn’t say it if he was around his buddies. Apparently it was embarrassing and emasculating.
But Jake didn’t seem to feel that way—he was ready to dive right in the deep end with her. The question was, was Cass ready to dive in too?
I just don’t know, she thought uncertainly. Aloud, she said,
“I just…I need a little time.”
“Is it because of your human lover? You prefer to be with him?” Jake asked the question quietly but his eyes burned with intensity as he spoke.
“No,” Cass said honestly. “In fact, my time with you has kind of made me reevaluate my relationship with Brandon. I think…” She took a deep breath. “I think it would be better if I broke things off with him. But that doesn’t mean I’m ready to go jumping right back into a different relationship the minute I end the one I’m in,” she added quickly.
Jake nodded.
“I understand,” he said quietly. “But will you at least give me a chance to woo you? A chance to prove that being in a relationship with me would be very different from the one you are currently in?”
“I can tell that already,” Cass murmured, smiling a little. “Yes, you can, uh, �
�woo’ me, I guess. Just let me have a little time to think about things. And I need to talk to Brandon in person,” she added. “I got dumped by text once—that sucks. I owe it to him to break up face-to-face.”
“That is honorable of you,” Jake said seriously.
“Thank you.” Cass smiled at him more fully. “You know, I can’t believe we’re talking about all this. When I first met you, I thought you were irritating, high-handed and arrogant.”
“And I thought you were a little human brat.” One corner of his sensuous mouth quirked upwards. “But at the same time I found you damned attractive. And as I came to know you, I began to see your stubbornness as strength of character.”
“And I think most of your high-handedness is protectiveness,” Cass murmured, smiling at him.
He rumbled a laugh. “But what about my arrogance?”
“I don’t think you are arrogant,” Cass said thoughtfully. “You’re just extremely sure of yourself—which is actually pretty damn sexy.” Daringly, she leaned forward and kissed the corner of his mouth.
Jake turned his head at the last moment and caught her lips with his. Crushing her to him, he gave her a long, passionate kiss that made Cass tingle from the top of her head to the tips of her toes.
“Hey now,” she said breathlessly when he finally broke the kiss. “If you start that again, I can’t be responsible for my actions.”
“I’ll stop then.” Jake sounded regretful but firm. “I want you badly—more than I’ve ever wanted a woman before. But I want you to be exclusively mine before I take you.”
Cass laughed a bit nervously.
“Possessive, aren’t you?
Jake’s eyes flashed. “Extremely.” He searched her face for a moment and then sighed and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “I can see that I may have frightened you. Forgive me—it’s just that I want you all to myself.”
“Just give me a little time to think and let me speak to Brandon,” Cass said. “I need to let him know it’s over and have a little breathing room before I start anything with anyone else.” She cleared her throat. “Although I guess to be honest, we started a while ago. Probably the very first time you healed me of my sore throat.”
“Even before that,” Jake admitted in a low rumble. “I’ve wanted you from the moment I saw you, Cassandra.”
“Thank you.” Cass could feel a blush rising hotly to her cheeks at the intense way he was looking at her. God, he was sexy when he had that stern, intense look on his face! Then another thought occurred to her. “If we did, uh, get together—wouldn’t that be considered a conflict of interest or something?” she asked.
“Hmm…” Jake appeared to consider the matter carefully. “If you lived in the Realm of the Fae, then yes—it might be a problem,” he said at last. “But to be honest, the fact that you’re mostly human and live in the human realm mitigates that quite a bit.”
“Meaning that no one cares what a mere human does,” Cass said flatly. She frowned. “You know, I’m not really sure why you want plus-sized magicless me when you could have someone like skinny, sparkly Glorianna.”
“If by ‘plus-sized’ you are referring to your curves, then I assure you I love and adore them, my darling,” Jake murmured, sweeping his big, warm hands down her sides to cup her hips as though to make his point. “And as for magic—you have just proved you have quite a bit of it stored inside you. It will get stronger as you continue to use it.” He cupped her cheek and looked into her eyes. “But even if you had no magic at all, I would still want you, Cassandra,” he said softly.
“Oh,” Cass whispered. It was the most romantic thing anyone had ever said to her and she felt herself in real danger of getting lost in those leaf-green eyes of his and never finding her way out. All she wanted to do was kiss Jake again but she was afraid that kissing might lead to…other things. Things he had vowed not to do unless she consented to be completely his—body and soul.
For a moment she wondered if she was doing the right thing. She’d been dating Brandon for over a year and she’d barely known Jake a week. (Had it been a whole week? She supposed it depended on whether you counted time in terms of the human realm or the Realm of the Fae. But either way, should she be considering giving up a long-term relationship and possibly getting involved with her court-appointed elf?
Well, would Brandon do all the things that Jake has done for you? she asked herself. Would he go into danger for you, would he take a flogging for you the way Jake did?
The answer came back at once—absolutely not. Brandon couldn’t even be bothered to sit for a portrait when he knew it was extremely important to her. He wouldn’t even allow himself to be inconvenienced, let alone be punished on her behalf.
When she looked back now, Cass thought that her relationship with her current boyfriend was pretty shallow—it was mostly based on her desire to paint him and his enjoyment of having a “cool artist chick” as his girlfriend. They didn’t have much in common other than that. In fact, most of the time she didn’t even really like Brandon very much. There had been a mutual attraction at first but over the year they’d been together it had mostly faded. Also, who was she kidding—it wasn’t like she and Brandon were ever going to get married and settle down.
Well, it’s not like Jake is asking you to settle down either, she told herself firmly. He just wants an exclusive relationship. Very exclusive—and I have to decide if I’m ready for that.
Was she? Cass really didn’t know. But she did know she liked being close to Jake—liked it a hell of a lot.
Leaning forward, she kissed him again and smiled.
“If we’re not going to do what we almost did, do you mind if I paint you some more?”
He rumbled laughter and kissed her back.
“My creative little human. I love how talented you are—my parents would most definitely approve of you.”
Cass bit her lip. “Um, are we already talking about meeting the parents? Because that’s kind of moving a little fast for me, Jake. We haven’t even decided if we’re going to be in a relationship yet.”
He shook his head.
“No, no—I’m just saying you would be welcome in elvish lands. Your talent would be revered and honored as it should be.”
“That would be nice,” Cass admitted. “Most of the time when people find out you’re an artist in the human realm they just assume you’re a lazy good-for-nothing who’s pissing their life away.”
Jake looked shocked.
“I cannot comprehend taking the creative impulse so lightly. Artists and musicians, authors and poets—these are the individuals my people admire the most. Human or not, in my country you would be highly esteemed and respected.”
Cass felt a warm glow inside her and she felt all over again that she was doing the right thing.
“I need to get off your lap and start painting right now or I’m going to do things we promised we wouldn’t do,” she told the big elf. “Are you ready to pose for me again?”
Jake smiled and stroked her cheek.
“Of course, my darling. Just tell me how you want me.”
Thirty-Three
Cass thought later that the days she spent at Jake’s house were some of the best times of her life. She spent the time while he was at work sketching and drawing and working on her magic—which she was learning to use on her own, although it always seemed to work better when Jake “helped” her get it started. Her evenings and nights were spent with her court-appointed elf.
When Jake got home he either cooked dinner or they ordered something in and enjoyed eating out on his back deck in the never-ending twilight. Cass had protested at first that she ought to do some of the cooking but Jake wouldn’t let her. In the first place, he said, he liked to cook. And in the second, he respected her talent too much to expect her to do domestic chores.
After years of never having her passion for art taken seriously, this was wonderful for Cass. She gave in when she saw that the big elf really did seem to enjoy co
oking and was completely serious about giving her more time to work rather than expecting her to do chores. And since most chores could be instantly done with a word of power, she didn’t have to feel guilty about their arrangement—living with the big elf was pure pleasure from start to finish.
Jake was, as he had promised, wooing her as ardently as possible. And though she tried to tell herself to keep a clear head and consider the situation carefully, Cass couldn’t help the feelings that were growing inside her for the big elf.
After dinner, they retired to the living room and Jake would take off his clothes and pose for her some more. Cass finished her first portrait and started another one—a study from behind with him looking over one broad shoulder. She told Jake that she wanted to capture the strong lines of his back but to be honest, she was more interested in getting his amazing ass on canvas. Albert at the I.C.U. was bound to love this but even if he didn’t, Cass didn’t care. She just enjoyed painting such a gorgeous live subject who was willing to pose for her as long as she wanted him to.
At night, she slept in Jake’s big bed, held in the curve of his big, muscular body. They didn’t have sex—well, not completely, anyway. But she couldn’t help snuggling back against him to feel his long shaft harden against her ass. Jake would slip his arms around her and ask if she wanted to “work on her magic”—an offer Cass never refused.
The big elf would conjure a pile of unfolded clothes at the foot of the bed or a similar untidy mess somewhere else in the house. Then he would tug and suck her nipples and finger and lap her pussy as Cass felt the magic build inside her. With his help, she was able to tidy and neaten anything—the clothes would magically fold themselves or the dishes left deliberately in the sink would be washed, cleaned, dried and put away all in a heartbeat.
Jake seemed to love giving her pleasure though he seldom wanted her to return the favor, saying that he preferred to wait until she was completely his. It occurred to Cass more than once that if housework was always this pleasurable, she would have become a neat-freak long ago.
Be Careful What You Wish For (The Swann Sisters Chronicles Book 2) Page 31