Transient Moon

by Kos, Gaja J. ;

  “Couldn’t wait until tomorrow, kāros,” he whispered and traced my lower lip with his thumb.

  Well, that much was evident from the way his arousal pressed against my stomach.

  I grinned and hooked a finger behind the waist of his pants, teasing the smattering of dark hair. “Missed me?”

  I ventured lower.

  The smile that spread across his face was pure heat. “You have no idea.”

  As soon as the last syllable left his mouth, Afanasiy’s lips were on mine.

  I groaned at his exquisite, addictive taste, at the hard press of his body as he backed me up against the royal blue wall of his lair. His hands roamed down my sides, warmth pooling between my legs in tune with the arousal tightening things low in my stomach.

  Gods, he was divine.

  My fingers tangled in his long, silken black hair as I drew him even closer, craving to eliminate even the slightest bit of distance between us. The fabric of his shirt brushed against my hardened nipples, and a low growl uncurled from my chest.

  Afanasiy’s deep, melodic chuckle rose in response.

  “You’re so beautiful when you desire me, kāros,” he purred into our kiss.

  Our gazes locked for a moment that seemed to still the very passing of time, then his lips were devouring mine once more, building up the lust and entrancing my mind until the need to feel him inside me became unbearable. With disobedient fingers, I tugged on his zipper and liberated him from the constraints of his pants.

  Afanasiy thrust into my hand as our kiss deepened, then, with one elegant move, lifted me up and sheathed himself inside me. I cried out, tearing my lips from his. I wrapped my legs around his waist, Afanasiy’s grip on my ass deliciously bruising, then hiked up his shirt and tossed it aside. He stepped out of his pants.

  Driven by desire, the small jostling movements coaxed out a cascade of moans.

  I shifted my hips, and as Afanasiy filled me, right down to the very last inch, we stilled, locked together and gazing into each other’s eyes as that inexplicable, brilliant energy surged between us.

  The whispers of a true bond between mates. And a step I wasn’t yet willing to take.

  As if sensing my thoughts, Afanasiy started to move. He kept his thrusts slow but assertive—a state of hyper-awareness rather than a race through the whirlwind of pleasure. My fingernails dug deeper into his skin.

  With each controlled pump of his hips, his cock grew thicker, grazing against my walls and letting me feel every ripple of his hunger, every delicious response to the clench of my muscles around his hard length. The orgasm that had begun to build up inside me spread, that familiar tightness blooming deep in my core, but not quite there yet.

  Sensing I was close, Afanasiy growled into my neck, then nibbled on the sensitive skin using just the perfect amount of pressure. I arched my back involuntarily, holding on to him as the world around me threatened to shatter.

  And when it did, when Afanasiy pushed inside me with a force that sent me right over the edge, I screamed, succumbing to the maddening rush of pleasure.

  Only the demon was far from done.

  Without loosening his grip on me, he moved back until he toppled us both onto his bed, him beneath me and me on top. We bounced once—Afanasiy still inside me. The shock of sensation wrenched a gasp from my lips.

  Oh, the bastard knew well what he was doing to me—that teasing smile that touched a single corner of his mouth revealed as much. But he wasn’t the only one who could play games.

  I snatched the opportunity this position granted us to take matters into my own hands. I steadied myself on his hips and trailed my fingernails down the honed expanse of his chest, then started to ride him. Slow at first, lifting myself up until I came to the very crown of his cock before moving back down again. Afanasiy planted his hands on my ass, willing me to go faster with a devious slap, but I refused to comply.

  Instead, I took my time, playing with various angles as I continued my slow exploration until I felt him become even harder, even thicker inside me. And as he quivered, as I saw that primal need written in the handsome planes of his face, I ground against him.

  With a snarl, Afanasiy lifted his torso off the mattress.

  I wrapped my legs around him, one hand braced on the bed, the other on his shoulder and continued to ride him, fiercely, wildly, claiming him as my own. Our groans rippled through the air, becoming less controlled with each passing second until we couldn’t hold off the storm any longer.

  Afanasiy came inside me with a cry I echoed, and as our joined release washed over me, transporting me onto a whole other plane, all I could do was hold on to the anchor of his body, his soul, and drift on the waves of slowly ebbing pleasure.

  “I’m so glad you didn’t wait until tomorrow,” I muttered when at least some of my senses returned to me.

  Afanasiy chuckled and captured my lips, his fingers playing down my spine. “I could never get enough of you, Lotte.”

  “Nor I of you.”

  The words were out before I was even aware of saying them. They were the truth, too. But I knew they could do more harm than good, given the situation we were in.

  Only Afanasiy didn’t take notice—or let it show if he had. He simply lifted me off him, then drew me down onto the bed and wrapped his powerful arms around me.

  I fitted myself closer against his body, not giving a damn about the sweat or heat. Not when the secure press of his skin felt so good.

  “I was thinking,” he said softly, fingertips dancing along my collarbone, “I could take you to dinner when you’re released. A proper date. Not immediately, of course, but once you settle in your life again…”

  “That sounds nice, Afanasiy.”

  And it truly did.

  But in all honesty, after all that had happened, I wasn’t sure how long it would take me to actually get at least a semblance of my old life back. Schultz and the Munich Games had been bad enough. But willingly throwing myself in the thick of it to save Voit and Greta, teaming up with ICRA, and, most of all, getting to know the part of me that reveled in a kill…

  It felt like a clash of two realities that could never coexist. Both originating from me. Both, in a way, tainted by the other.

  Nothing seemed straightforward anymore, but I couldn’t let Afanasiy pay for my own uncertainty.

  While he never pressured me into discussing the depths of our relationship, it was clear he was hurting.

  Even I could feel the metaphysical draw to him getting stronger, and I was just a werewolf, not someone who had the actual trait to search for a mate ingrained in their DNA. I could hardly imagine what he was going through.

  Yet at the same time, when—if—I said yes to the bond and accepted Afanasiy as my sole, energy-twined partner until death whisked me away, I wanted to do it with a clear head. Right now, that wasn’t a state I was even remotely close to.

  “I worry sometimes,” I admitted, tackling another, though related, subject.

  Afanasiy tightened his embrace and looped one leg over mine. “About?”

  “Life.” I let out a bitter, choked laugh. “You think I can go back to the way things were? Running the Zentrum? Tennis?”

  For a moment, he didn’t answer. He simply ran his fingertips across my skin as I drank in his calmness—his certainty.

  “I believe you can’t reclaim what you once had. But that does not mean you can’t build something new.” His lips touched the back of my head. “Something better.”

  I shifted around so I was facing him. “You really believe that?”

  “I do.” His violet eyes carried the hint of a smile. “And I’ll be there for you, kāros. For however long you need.”

  “Crap, am I that obvious?” I bit my lip, then buried my head in his chest. “I’m sorry for dragging things out.”

  Afanasiy gently disentangled me from him and lifted my chin up with a finger. “Don’t be. When you’re as old as I am, you learn the best things—or, as is my case, wolves
—are worth waiting for.”

  I blinked to dispel the burning tears. I might not have had a definite answer, but there was something I was certain of.

  “I love you, Afanasiy.”

  “I know.” His mouth curved into a mischievous smile that almost concealed the startling vulnerability in his eyes. Almost. “I love you, too.”

  After Afanasiy took it upon himself to prove just how much he loved me—twice—I was in an immensely better mood. Even the thought of going back to that damned ICRA facility didn’t seem like such a nightmare. After all, it was just one more night.

  We materialized by the very same stream he’d snatched me from. The February chill sent goose bumps down my exposed skin and perked my nipples, but when Afanasiy drew me into a crushing, deliciously possessive embrace and slanted his mouth over mine, it felt like the height of summer.

  “See you tomorrow?” I whispered and licked my lips.

  The hunger in his eyes was all the answer I needed.

  I grinned widely as I watched him take particle form, then hesitated when I noticed a bundle of clothes perched on a dry rock tucked beneath a pine tree. My clothes. I cocked my head to the side and prowled across the hard ground, the thin layer of snow melting beneath my feet. Though I wasn’t entirely sure how or when, Afanasiy must have brought them here. He would have known I wasn’t eager to shift shape so soon after hours of excellent sex. I had stamina, but even I was worn out right now.

  I ran my hands down my arms to chase away the chill, then picked up my shirt from the top of the pile. As the material unfolded, it hit me.

  The scent clinging to it wasn’t Afanasiy’s.

  It was Isa’s.

  Three

  The Ice Queen of Fang was nowhere in sight, but if her scent clung to my clothes…

  I shook my head and dressed quickly, relieved when I zipped up my sweatshirt for more than just the pesky bite of cold against my heated flesh. While contact with the outside world wasn’t strictly prohibited—although I’d bet my ass every single conversation went through ICRA’s scanners—leaving the facility grounds was. Who knew what kind of punishment the Agency would whip out if they knew about my regular rendezvous with Afanasiy…

  Wincing at the thought, I started back towards the building. I made it about three steps when Isa materialized from behind a tree, so close I actually stumbled.

  “Motherfucker.” I pressed a hand to my chest. “You want me to drop down dead before I even have the chance to taste freedom again?”

  My words came out in startled rasps. Although a part of me was intrigued by Isa’s presence here, as unnerving as it might be. It probably wouldn’t amount to to anything good, but since I hadn’t seen her since my admission to the facility, my curiosity was piqued.

  “Hello, Lotte.” She smiled—an odd mixture of heat and ice. “Had a nice run?”

  I stuffed down the impulse to grimace or run my hands down my clothes—clothes that still smelled of her. Even focusing on Afanasiy’s scent blanketing my skin beneath hardly helped. I couldn’t help but think Isa was marking her territory.

  Only I wasn’t hers to mark.

  The ground crunched softly beneath my sneakers as I sidestepped Isa to put some more space between us, then leaned against the rough bark of a tree, arms and legs crossed.

  “What brings you out here?” I dragged my gaze across the woods before focusing on her again. “Haven’t seen you in…three months, wouldn’t you say?”

  “No, I wouldn’t.” Amusement danced in the corners of her startling green eyes. “In fact, I’ve seen you quite a lot, Lotte.”

  What was she going on about? I furrowed my brow—much to her delight. The vampire seemed downright perky, which only worsened my suspicion. I was definitely the last in line of things capable of thawing the Ice Queen of Fang.

  “I’ve been keeping track of you ever since you got here,” she said matter-of-factly. “It’s quite astonishing just what one can achieve by keeping downwind. Especially from a werewolf with her mind on sex.”

  “I— What?”

  Isa had been stalking me? Not just through monitors but in person? And what was she—

  “I know you’ve been seeing your demon, Lotte.” She waved a manicured hand through the frigid air. “Don’t lie.”

  I clamped my mouth shut. No, I supposed lying would be futile since she’d brought my clothes here, knowing precisely where I’d show up once I left Afanasiy’s bed. Lovely.

  A damn mistake on my part, not asking Afanasiy to drop me off somewhere else. With the tracker Isa had so kindly chipped me with after the Albtraum attack now gone, I would have been able to avoid this meeting entirely.

  Or at least got a jump on her.

  My inner wolf reveled in the thought of flipping the power dynamics, but the rational part of me was far more concerned about Isa’s knowledge of Afanasiy than anything else. Something the wolf quickly picked up on.

  I pretended to stretch while I snuffed out the growl edging to spill from my lips. If Isa threatened someone I considered pack—more than pack…

  I hooked my hands around my other leg, just beneath the knee, and stretched.

  “Senior Agent Vogt, you can’t honestly expect me to not see my…”

  Mate? Boyfriend? Partner?

  The words lodged in my throat and refused to move. What was Afanasiy to me, really? I wasn’t big on labels, but in moments like this, it sucked not to have a neat little drawer to stuff him into.

  Mercifully, Isa intervened before my thoughts could end up even more jumbled. “I don’t.”

  “You—you don’t?” I arched an eyebrow and let my leg drop back down. “What about breaking protocol?”

  Isa snorted, spun on her heel, then waved a casual hand at me to follow her as she started moving through the wood—back towards the facility. For a few moments, I only stared at her lithe, yet powerful form, sucking in samples of her scent that revealed no imminent threat. No oncoming temper tantrum either.

  Had someone exorcized the Ice Queen of Fang out of Isa?

  Curious, though cautious, I followed.

  Isa’s hair was longer now, brushing past her shoulders in a cascade of black silk. Despite her heeled boots and long, billowing coat, she seemed to move without difficulty across the terrain, but what shocked me the most was the air of easiness that surrounded her.

  Not only was the IQOF gone, but Senior Agent Isa Vogt was…pleasant.

  I fell in step with her, my gaze wandering across the breadth of enclosed wilderness some part of me would actually miss once I left the facility behind. Isa seemed content to trek in silence, so that was what we did. It wasn’t until we entered the flat leading up to the complex that I had no choice but to break the companionable serenity.

  “What are you doing here, Isa? Really?”

  She stopped beneath one of the few trees scattered haphazardly on the seam between the woods and the training grounds, her piercing green gaze finding mine. “I wanted to notify you of the results. Unofficially, of course.”

  Whatever I’d expected her visit to entail, it certainly wasn’t that.

  “I know you have a meeting scheduled in two days, but I thought you might like to hear the news in advance.” Her tone was casual, and yet there was something careful about it, too. As if she wasn’t certain whether I wanted this or not. Not because of the results—she wouldn’t be so chipper if I were fucked—but because of us and our far-from-pleasant history.

  Any news-sharing we’d had usually led to her threatening to arrest me.

  I should have let her stew, kindness be damned, but I found myself smiling instead. “That would be amazing, thank you.”

  Tension fled from Isa’s shoulders, and she leaned against the bark while I did the same on the tree right across the earth-hewn path. It was then I realized the location wasn’t a coincidence—we were still shielded from the facility, and unless someone started training earlier than usual, the spot was about as private as anything on the gro
unds could be.

  Whatever Isa was doing, it clearly wasn’t something she wished to advertise.

  I wanted to tell her that she didn’t have to pass on the info if going against directive would get her in trouble, but Isa beat me to it.

  “You cleared all the tests, Lotte,” she said, a hint of a smile in her voice. “There is a thread of the demonic entwined with your DNA, but it’s dormant. Chances of it ever surfacing are next to zero.”

  Bittersweet news, though I was happy to take it.

  I glanced down at my visually unaltered body on instinct, and when I looked up, I noticed Isa’s gaze had been following suit. She didn’t attempt to cover it up, merely met my eyes as a gentle heat crept into my cheeks, then offered me a half smile—a resigned smile, as if to say that yes, she still found me attractive but knew nothing would ever come of it. I tugged on one sleeve, then the other, an odd dichotomy pulsing within.

  Relief that I was fine—that we were fine.

  But also a slithering, inky sensation that no matter how good the outcome, someone had still done fucking invasive procedures on my body.

  I shuddered and wrapped my arms around me. “So the Frankensteinian bastards failed?”

  Isa nodded, then cocked her head to the side, studying me. Debating whether to tell me the whole truth.

  To my surprise, I didn’t even have to press her.

  “The levels indicating a demonic essence in your system are far lower than with the bodies we found, but that isn’t the only discrepancy.” She glanced sideways in the direction of the facility before fixing her attention on me once more. “They must have taken a different approach with you, implemented some changes that affected the procedure as a whole.”

  Clearly, since I hadn’t wound up ditched somewhere in Munich, cut open and wrong.

  Isa’s breath curled through the sunlight. “I suspect you remember well how Manfred Weber’s essence felt when you found him?”

  “How could I forget?” I was pretty sure that particular nightmare would stick with me until my last breath. “The foreign essence was forced into him. Like some sort of stain that marred his vampire DNA.”