Keyboards and Kink
Page 26
“Ready for another?” He stood between her legs, his cock pressing upon her pussy.
“I…” Could she have another? All her sexual life she’d been a one-time-only gal.
Godric smiled, kissed her forehead. “You trusted me once, right?”
She nodded.
“Then do so again.” He thrust into her.
The first thought that screamed through her mind was about protection. He wasn’t sheathed, but like she’d mused earlier, they were characters. Protection wasn’t needed since they were technically fictional. The next thoughts careening through were all focused on the intense pleasure his cock stroking within her provided.
Godric held her as he pumped while kissing and nibbling her earlobe. She wrapped her legs around his waist, hooked them at her ankles, wanting to keep him close. Stroke after sensuous stroke had her senses reeling. He dipped down, took the tip of a breast in his mouth. She cradled the breast for him in one hand, placed the other on the back of his head.
His thrusts increased until she was gasping for air. Her body seemed to move in waves as another orgasm consumed her and set her insides to gratifying contractions. He moaned against her breast, jerked a couple of times and stilled. His hands slowly caressed her back.
There’d been no talk of love or a relationship, but he seemed to be treating her with more tenderness and respect than any of her boyfriends had. God, how she wanted him in her life on a more permanent basis and not just in a game. Too bad Godric was just a character and she didn’t know the man behind it.
As if reading her mind, he came off her breast and gazed into her eyes. “Tell me who you are, Bella. Tell me where I can find you.”
“My friends call me Beth, and I live where the game is set.”
“Well, hello, Beth.” He ran the backs of his fingers along her cheek, brushed her hair behind her ear. “My friends call me Rick, and believe it or not, I live in Vegas, too.”
“That’s awesome. I can’t wait to—”
Godric-Rick swayed, pulled out of her and fell back. He dropped to his knees.
She jumped off the counter and knelt beside him. “Rick, you okay? You’re looking a little…off.”
He shook his head and blinked a couple of times. “Yeah, I think I’m all right. Since our mishap Downtown, I’ve been feeling weird.”
“Weird? How so?” The hope fire flared. She sent a silent prayer up that he was going to say what she wanted him to say. Real.
“You probably wouldn’t believe me.”
She chuckled thinking of her own predicament. “Try me.”
“It’s strange, but I feel as if I’ve actually been in the game and not just controlling my character as a player. It’s like I am the character.”
Bella-Beth embraced him. “You’re not alone,” she whispered in his ear. “The same has happened to me.”
“Really?” He repositioned himself to look at her. “You’ve, or rather your spirit’s, been sucked into the game, too?”
She nodded and smiled.
“Interesting. On a scientific basis, it’s going to be fun trying to figure out how this happened, but on a base, human survival level, how the hell are we going to get out of here?”
Thoughts of her quest slipped into her mind. There was no way she wanted to kill Rick’s character now, clan mission or not. If she was seen outside of his property, clan members could confront her, make her fulfill her duty. “I don’t know how we’ll make it home, but until we do, let’s stay here.” Try as she might to disguise the fear she felt, it slipped into her voice anyway.
“You sound distressed. Why do we need to remain in my house?”
She let go of him, scooted back and hugged her legs to her chest. “My latest mission is to find the main Winchapel vampire-warlock, take his shadow magic from him, retrieve his amulet and leave him a withering husk. All the clues I’ve gathered have led to you. I’m supposed to kill you, but I won’t. And if I go outside, there’s a chance my clan members will find me and make me complete my duty.”
Godric-Rick reached over and stroked her leg. “No worries. I’m not who you seek.”
“Well, that’s a relief.” Her words were barely audible to her ears.
“Bella? Beth? What’s going on?”
She watched Godric-Rick’s mouth move, and she could barely hear him. She shook her head and held her hands up.
He scrambled to his feet, hurried to a drawer and came back with a notepad and pen. Pen to paper, he quickly scribbled on it and then held it for her to see.
You’re fading. Becoming transparent. I’ll find you, Beth. You’ll know me when I call you my beautiful warrior.
“Bella!”
Chapter Five
The faint call of Rick’s character’s voice echoed in the darkness. She wanted to cry out to him, but she couldn’t see, couldn’t open her mouth, couldn’t move. There was only a black nothingness as she jolted out of one world and jerked back into her own.
She woke bent over her desk, her cheek plastered to the keyboard. Drool pooled on the desk under her open mouth. Sitting up, she wiped her lips and looked at her clock. Only a half hour had passed. Thirty minutes in reality whereas in the game it seemed she’d been there for much longer.
Tears fell from her eyes. Beth didn’t care and didn’t wipe them away. She’d had one of the best times with a guy in her whole life and now he was gone. Surveying her small apartment, she shook her head. Nothing looked right. It’s too bright and cheery, small, closed in.
And totally empty of the one thing she wanted to occupy her space.
Rick.
He said he’d find her. But how? Rick didn’t know who she really was. She had no idea about him either. Searching for each other in a city of over a million people would be a monumental task. Am I up for it? She didn’t know. For the past several days, she’d been living on take-out and staring at her computer playing the game. Was she ready to face the real world?
Eyeing her couch and the soft, thick afghan laying there, she decided to sleep on what had transpired and see how she felt about it all in the morning. Plans to hunt for Rick could be made then when her mind was clearer. Curled in the fetal position on the couch and hiding under the cover, she fell asleep, tears drying on her face.
Sunlight beamed in through the window. Colors kaleidoscoped on her closed eyelids. It took her several moments to realize it wasn’t the light waking her up. Her doorbell rang again, followed by a few raps.
“I’m coming. Hold on.” Beth tossed the blanket off her body and swung her legs over the side of the couch. She felt on the wrong side of normal, like she was hung over, and knew she probably looked that way, too. As she hurried to the door, she ran her hands through her hair and attempted to smooth down her rumpled t-shirt. When neither would behave, she huffed. Screw it. Whoever’s there will just have to deal with the way I look.
Flinging open the door, she spat out, “What?” Immediately, she regretted the rude outburst.
Mr. Gott, also known as Mr. Hottie and her boss, stood on her front stoop.
Her cheeks seemed to heat with the fires of a hundred suns. She couldn’t believe her luck. Of all the times to look like a hot mess. “Mr. Gott, what brings you by? Is everything all right at the office?”
“Yes, Lizbet, everything’s okay in the department. I’m here because I did some…um…research to track you down.”
Beth leaned against the doorjamb, in no mood for idiotic things. “Research? All you had to do was go to HR and ask them where to find me. But that still doesn’t explain why you’re really here.”
The corner of his perfect lips curled into a flirtatious half smile. Memories of a man within the game with a similar expression assaulted her mind. She couldn’t look at her handsome boss anymore and focused on a kid bouncing a ball across the street.
“True. I could have just requested your employee files, but I had another reason in mind. A more personal reason.”
She glanced at him out of the
corner of her eye. His beautiful white-toothed grin sent a bolt of electricity straight to her pussy.
“A few days ago, I had a feeling about something and needed confirmation that I was on target to finding my beautiful warrior.”
Her gaze shot to his face. There was no sign of mirth in his dark chocolate brown eyes. A cute black curl of hair hung over his forehead. She fought the urge to reach up and tuck it back into place. “Excuse me?”
“I know who you are…Bella. I think I started piecing things together about how you and Bella were one and the same at the pub, but after we made love, I did some digging and verified my assumptions.”
“You’re Rick? Godric?” Her voice squeaked, and her knees buckled. She clutched the side of the doorway to steady herself. No. Can’t be. Mr. Hottie is my game lover? Then his name clicked. “Frederick Gott. Gott is German for God. Jesus. Why didn’t I make the connection before?”
“Don’t worry, sweetie. It’s all good.” He swept some hair behind her ear just as he had in the game. “We’re together now.”
“Are we?” Desire clawed at her. Beth wanted his words to be true, but she was afraid she was still dreaming and would wake any moment.
Rick nodded. “I’ve liked you for a while now, Beth. You’re so smart and funny…beautiful. But it’s hard to approach you at work. You’re always so busy, and when it comes to telling you how I feel, I have to admit I’m a bit shy.”
“You? Shy?”
“Well, yeah. One moment we’re having a great time together, and the next you’re avoiding me like I have the plague. How did you think I’d feel?”
“Sorry. It’s just that after the charity event I was kind of afraid of my affectionate feelings for you, too, so I started avoiding you.”
“Aren’t we a pair?” He chuckled. “Oh, and as I poked around, I found out that others have tapped into different parameters of the game. I haven’t discovered their identities yet, but they’re behind giving you the quest to come find and terminate me.” He shook his head, twirled a lock of her hair around his finger. “But that’s a conversation for another time. Right now, I have more pressing issues to take up with you.”
His nearness, the energy emanating from him, and the woody aromatic scent of his cologne sent her heart racing. “And those issues would be?”
“First this.” Rick cupped the side of her head and bent his down, claiming her mouth with his own. Her heart melted as his lips gently brushed against hers. Slowly, he pulled away. “The other issue concerns working on our relationship and putting us on the path to fall in love with each other. And to start, I’d like to take you out for breakfast. How’s that sound?”
“Sounds great to me. Come on in and make yourself comfortable while I get cleaned up. Can we go down to the Pyramid Café?” She headed toward her bedroom and along the way stopped at her computer. C.O.V.E.N. idled on the screen.
“Sure, darlin’. Whatever you want.”
Beth tapped three letters into the status bar of the game. AFK. She glanced over her shoulder. Rick sat on the couch, smiling, his arms stretched along the top of the cushions. She returned Rick’s smile and closed out the game.
The End
www.caseymossbooks.com
HER DEMON CHARMS
Xandra James
Copyright © 2012
Chapter One
“If you succeed and make this deal, May, you will be mortal—a mere human—and that means that you’ll be exactly like those we’ve been sucking the sexual need out of since life began.” His distaste was evident, apparent to the room of demons. But May stood tall. She knew what she wanted and her chin lifted higher as she nodded towards her supervisor.
“Well, it’s been agreed,” he sighed. The demon’s long blond hair hung loose and around his shoulders as he lounged back in the large throne-like chair in his private chambers and watched her in all his sexy magnificence. May sighed her relief and glanced around at the others. Many of them were shocked and whispered between themselves, while others openly stared their contempt at her. She was beyond caring what they thought. This was what she wanted.
May’s Succubi sisters were gathered too, all in their sultry glory. Each one as gorgeous as the next, each one just as poisonous to a person’s soul. They would go back to their jobs soon enough. Not her. She ignored the frightened feeling edging up from the pits of her stomach and smiled at them.
May Frost couldn’t be like them any longer. She couldn’t be responsible for sucking the sexual soul out of someone to leave just a frigid shell—there were too many humans left with no sexual appetite because of demons like her.
“What are the terms?” This time he smiled his most serene smile, allowing the light to dance across his eyes. If she hadn’t seen it a million times before and been immune to his forms of trickery, she might have succumbed. May knew him much better.
“All you have to do is make a mortal man fall in love with you in thirty days.” May let out the breath she’d been holding and blew her long black hair away from her face. That should be easy. “Using one of those online dating sites we keep hearing so much about.”
What?
He continued. “Oh and you’re not allowed to meet him until that final week—just so he doesn’t feel enamoured by your demon charms. And if you fail, your soul will be forever His and you will be demoted to a mere servant of the Court for all eternity. Do you accept these terms?”
May heard the spatter of laughter as blood rushed to her ears and her breathing escalated out of control, battling to remain focused. Could she still do this? She’d always relied on her looks to get her everything she’d ever wanted.
Her eyes travelled over her higher-ranking demon sisters. There was an air of pity, and she was sure as soon as her back was turned they’d be taking bets on the demon who’d never quite been happy with her lot. May Frost wouldn’t be begging for forgiveness from these people.
May’s breathing began to slow down and she remembered all the wonderful things she wanted from being mortal. Most importantly, she wanted to experience proper emotions for the first time.
“I accept those terms, Lilu.” He nodded at her words and the room was hushed.
“So be it, May. Your deal with the Devil has been made. Good luck.”
****
Alex picked up the half filled glass of whisky and took a good gulp of the fiery liquid, his eyes never leaving the computer screen in front of him.
Shit, he was hot for her.
This wasn’t supposed to happen. He was just supposed to locate her, not want to fuck her brains out too.
Slamming the glass down on his antique desk, he ran his fingers through his blond hair and devoured the newest photo the woman had uploaded of herself.
It wasn’t particularly provocative; her glossy long black hair was pulled back into a tight ponytail and she was wearing a suit that said she was all business. But still, it made him think of naughty times in the office, on the desk and against the door… Alex rolled his neck and clicked away from the damning photo and onto her dating site profile. He shouldn’t be going there either.
Alex read the details for the thousandth time regardless. Hell, he knew them off by heart. The exotic-skinned beauty had well and truly gotten under his skin.
His business revolved around finding people and this girl was one of them. Alex stretched his arms over his head and leaned back into his large, leather chair.
Asking questions was out of bounds from his employers, of course. There were rumours about the “agency”—not that he believed all the otherworldly shit he’d heard. Some things didn’t add up though, but as long as the money kept appearing in his bank account, he didn’t care.
So here he was, looking for people for a mystery “agency.” Money was king in his world—up until now. Alex had found her three weeks ago and he’d done nothing with her details.
No, that wasn’t entirely true.
The monitor of his high-end computer system flashed up a cha
t screen. Maythirty was online and ready to chat. He hesitated. Guilt stuck in the back of his throat, making the expensive alcohol he’d swallowed moments before bitter on his tongue.
What the hell was he doing here? This wasn’t him.
He watched the chat screen cursor blink. May was sitting there urging him to carry on this charade. Alex glanced down at the open file next to his keyboard. He’d easily tracked her to the dating site and now her entire life was neatly printed out.
And he was betraying the trust he’d earned over these past few weeks.
Maythirty was typing he noticed when he glanced back at the screen. His jaw clenched, knowing he had a decision to make. The right thing to do was make the call. Stop whatever the hell relationship they’d developed over these weeks.
Alex picked up his phone, his heart rate accelerating. He knew the number off by heart. He’d contemplated ringing it countless times these past three weeks, but he’d never quite made it as far as hitting the dial button.
This time he knew he had to. However much he looked forward to their chats in the evening about everything and nothing, however much the mere thought of her made him ache.
The number was typed in and his finger hovered over the button as he glanced at the screen again. She’d done typing.
Maythirty: I really want to meet you…
She’d never said anything about meeting before. Shit. Alex slowly put the phone back on the desk, his head following it down as he rested his forehead on his mouse mat.
The money or the girl.
That was a no-brainer. Alex quickly sat up and started typing a response, then hesitated before he hit enter. He’d deceived her. Their meeting was under false circumstances, and this could be the biggest mistake of his professional life.
Alex glanced down at the bulge in between his legs. Just at the prospect of seeing her face-to-face, he was rock hard. There was no way in hell he was giving up this chance, consequences be damned.