“Ah.” She threw her hands in the air. “You think I’m embarrassed because I took a spill?” She shook her head.
“So explain it to me.” He pushed open the door. Damned if he’d be shut out of her room before he ever technically got into it. Whatever this was, they’d either work it out or she’d get over it.
She picked up a pillow and smacked him with it. Stunned, he put up an arm to block her next assault. As she pounded on his body with the duck-feather pillow, he had to give her credit for technique. Once she started an assault, she didn’t hesitate or back down.
“I am embarrassed because your mother told everyone, but most especially you, that I don’t think I’m attractive enough to be with you.”
“What?” He grabbed the pillow and pulled it out of her hand. She rushed back to the bed and grabbed another one, holding it up against herself like a shield. “I thought that was some kind of joke.”
“A joke?” Her eyes shot daggers at him. “My feelings of insecurity and unwantedness are a laughing matter to you?”
“Did you make up that word?”
“What?” Her voice had raised two tones—he wasn’t sure what that meant.
“Unwantedness. I think you’ve invented that word.”
“This isn’t a joke. I’m humiliated.”
“It was the most ridiculous thing I’d ever heard. You’re a beautiful, smart, accomplished woman, and as the first Warrior to fail in his mission in…well, ever, I am not exactly a catch and it’s not as though you’re from here and therefore so impressed with my family name that you’re desperate to marry into this mess we call a family.”
“I’m completely confused, Hadrian. You aren’t making any sense to me.”
“Tell me which part of ‘I think you are beautiful and I want you to stop thinking you aren’t’ you don’t understand?”
“Do you mean that?”
He nodded. “I do.” His heart pounded hard against his ribs.
“I’m disgusting.”
“All right, now I’m getting really mad at you.” If it were a man who’d said that about her, he’d kill him. As it was, he couldn’t kill her but he still wanted to strangle her.
“No, I mean I’m gross.” She pulled on the old T-shirt she wore. “I haven’t showered since I’ve been here and I’ve been sick twice.”
He pointed at the bathroom. “Shower is there.”
“Does it work like the ones back home?”
“Here.” He placed his hand under her arm and walked with her to the bathroom. The showers on earth involved knobs, the ones here were buttons. Since she was beyond bright, he was sure she could have figured it out, but it was an excuse to touch her, to walk with her, to look at her legs one more time under his T-shirt. At that thought his cock hardened and he wished he could adjust his pants. But she’d already said no, and that meant the same thing no matter what dimension they were in.
He opened the door to the shower. “This much is the same.” He motioned toward the stall. “This button does hot, this one cold, and these two make it hotter or colder.”
To show her what he meant, he turned on the water and a warm spray came down.
When she launched herself at him, he nearly stumbled backward. Her mouth met his desperately, begging him to kiss her. He complied. All thoughts of why were unimportant to him.
He’d wanted Hadley from the moment he’d laid eyes on her and if she had finally come around to his way of thinking, he would gladly comply. Mouth to mouth, tongue to tongue, he couldn’t get enough of her. He lovingly touched her neck, stroking her skin with the pads of his fingers. Could he somehow show her his feelings just by the way he stroked her?
A river of fire surged through his veins. He wanted to push her against the wall and jam himself inside her, but there had to be patience. If he screwed this up, a woman as amazing as Hadley would never let him have a second chance.
Replacing his fingers with his tongue, he licked up her neck to her chin. Her skin tasted sweet and he groaned. His balls ached and his cock throbbed. Where was his famous patience now?
More—he needed more from Hadley. He pushed her into the stall and against the shower wall. He could make at least half his fantasy come true, even if he would never just shove himself inside her. The spray came down on them and he laughed as he realized they’d both soaked their clothes. She smiled up at him before pulling at his shirt. Gods, she was aggressive and he never would have guessed it. He loved it. Hadley managed to get one of his arms out of his shirt before he had to help her.
Her own clothing stuck to her breasts, showing him how round and ample they were. Hadrian had briefly looked when he’d tended to her, and admired her attributes then, but this was different. Now she radiated heat, lust, and brought into him a need he’d never known before.
Pushing her more firmly against the wall, he braced her with one knee while he pulled his shirt all the way over his head. Her hands grasped his chest, finding his hair, weaving her hands through it, and he shuddered.
“I want your hands all over me, Hadley.” Hadrian needed her contact, needed to feel her against him everywhere.
He wanted her shirt off right now. “Raise your arms.”
Gods, with her body pressed to his, he knew there had to be a divine being. It was as if she’d been made to fit against him. Her arms were over her head and he nearly ripped her clothing in his intent to get to her. Next he pulled off what little underwear she wore and threw it over his shoulder. As far as he was concerned, Hadley couldn’t get naked fast enough.
“I dreamed of this.” Her voice sounded husky. “Only in my dream you tore everything I wore right off me.”
“Funny.” He kissed her lips, biting down on the bottom one just to hear her suck in her breath. “I considered doing just that.” And it was nice to know she wouldn’t be opposed to it if he decided to try that in the future.
She stood before him, completely nude against the wall, an exquisite sight. There was only one thing he needed to perfect the moment. Pulling off his pants so he was as naked as she was, he pushed the button to turn the water hotter and pulled her in under the spray more completely. She closed her eyes and threw her head back to wet her hair.
He watched, anxious to be inside her but also content just to stand there for a moment and enjoy the sight of her naked body dripping with hot water. She smiled and then opened her eyes.
“Oh god, Hadrian, yes…this is exactly what I needed.”
He nodded. “Sex, hot water and Hadley—it’ll be like heaven for me too.”
“I want you, Hadrian—I want this completely. I want you to fuck me.”
Under the gentle pounding of the hot spray, he smiled. The coarse language seemed so out of character for her that he couldn’t help but be pleased she wanted him as much as he desired her.
“Me too, darling, me too. I can promise you, I’m going to fuck you many times.”
He leaned down to kiss her neck, sucking gently and resisting the urge to bite, to mark her as his for the world to see.
Hadley grabbed his face in her hands. So many emotions played in her eyes and he wished he had a mind-reading device so he could know what she was thinking, what she needed.
“Don’t seduce me, not now, Hadrian. That’s why I said fuck me. I don’t need anything but you inside my pussy. I might be dead in six months, or maybe sooner— just let me feel alive now. Let’s not waste time, let’s not give the universe any chance to make this moment end before it ever got started.”
He needed to feel that way too, and there was nothing that would be more heavenly than the feeling of being deep inside Hadley as she shattered around him. Pushing her lithe body up against the wall of the shower, he pulled her leg up and around his hip, opening her up to him.
Hadrian inserted one finger into her warmth. She was wet, and not just from the shower but where it counted, deep inside her pussy.
“You’re going to come for me before you come with me. Understand?”
He gave orders and people listened. Hadley would be no different.
“Let’s hope you can make good on your promise, Prince Hadrian.”
He laughed at her use of his name. Leave it to Hadley to defuse his commanding personality with just one snide remark. He’d meant to kidnap her sister. Thank the gods he’d gotten her instead.
Hadrian pulled her down so she straddled the shower bench, her back still to the wall. “Open up for me, Hadley.”
She did as he asked and he got down on his knees so he’d have better access to her. Leaning over, he pressed two fingers inside her until he found her clit. The hard bundle of nerves spread out before him and he grinned. This was going to be fun. He was going to give Hadley wave after wave of passion until she had to be carried out of his shower because her legs wouldn’t work.
“That’s your spot, darling?” He loved calling her that, loved how it made pink appear on her cheeks even as she pretended to be unaffected by it.
Hadley bit down on her lip. “That’s it. You found that fast.”
“What can I say? I really want to make this good for you.”
She moaned and he increased the pressure, swirling his fingers around her clit until he found the right rhythm for her. He knew he’d succeeded when she closed her eyes and leaned her head against the wall. A moan escaped from her mouth.
He pressed his fingers tighter against her clit and she exploded. Juices flowed over his fingers as her muscles clenched rhythmically against him. His cock jerked, desperate to be inside her.
Hadrian pulled Hadley up against him, pressing kisses to her face, her belly, her neck—anywhere he could reach—to show her how special she was to him. He’d never seen anything as beautiful as Hadley Pettigrew shattering from pleasure.
She opened her blue eyes and looked at him with heat in her gaze. “Wow.”
Hadrian grinned. “You’re good for my ego, darling.”
She kissed his chest. “Can I return the favor? I’d really love to get you in my mouth now.”
“Not if I’m going to end this inside your tight pussy. You put one inch of your sultry lips on me and I’m not going to make it inside you.”
He reached out as he spoke to her to squeeze her nipple. He’d admired her breasts but not spent nearly enough time playing with her boobs for his liking. Hadley had been gifted with amazing cleavage. He wanted to worship at the temple of them for a while.
Rising, he took one of her nipples in his mouth. She shuddered. “How can you get me so hot so fast after I came just seconds ago?”
After he ended ministrations, he looked up at her. “I’m just lucky?”
She pinched his shoulder and he grinned. They sat there for a second, staring at each other, and all levity fled. The moment felt charged, enigmatic, as if it mattered more than anything ever had or would again.
Hadrian reached out and stroked the side of her face. She kissed his palm and it sent a charge through his body as if she’d lit him on fire. He had to be inside her right then and there. No more waiting.
He laid her down on the bench and she must have understood what he wanted even though he hadn’t told her as he positioned himself right outside her pussy.
Plunging inside her felt like coming home, as if he’d looked for it his entire life and now he’d found it. He closed his eyes, hoping they could go on this way forever. In and out… She moaned, her muscles milking, him, driving him forward.
He moved his body so he could better rub against her clit. She cried out. Yes, he’d found the spot and that was what he wanted. Hadley made delicious mewling noises. He wished he could reach out and swallow them down but he rapidly lost all sense and thought. Just Hadley, her scent, her body, existed for him now. A surge of energy filled him and he drove farther, harder, faster, until he felt her explode beneath him. Her pussy wept onto his cock and he reveled in the feeling of their joining.
She shouted his name and it sounded like a prayer. He closed his eyes to hold back for one more second but his balls tightened to the point of pain. Hadrian had to let go. There was no more waiting. At last he gave in to what he needed more than anything— to be lost inside Hadley.
Some time later, he opened his eyes. With her head thrown back and the hot water surrounding her, she was the most sensuous sight he’d ever witnessed.
* * * * *
“Thank you for getting the shampoo out of my hair.”
He smiled, snuggling in closer behind her. “It was the least I could do considering I stopped you from doing it yourself.” They’d stumbled through an actual shower, stopping several times just to explore each other’s bodies. At that moment, he was getting to know the back of her neck. If he kissed her just right she squirmed, which sent jolts of pleasure through his already sensation-heightened cock.
“If I recall correctly, I jumped you.”
Yes, she had, and he wished he could play the image of her doing so over and over in his mind on an endless loop. “Well, I did bring you into the bathroom. Don’t think there is a man in any dimension who would do that without the intention of having you in the shower.”
Hadley giggled. He loved the sound. It told him she had completely relaxed. “So romantic.”
“If we had more time, if there weren’t all these things pressing on us tomorrow, I could show you romance the likes of which you’ve never imagined. We would walk on the cliffs not far from here and I would feed you from the tree that never stops growing fruit. All year, even in the winter, it produces fruit.”
“Sounds very fertile. Where I’m from, and you probably know this, women would flock there to try to get pregnant, thinking its endless production would somehow transfer to them.”
Hadrian shrugged. “Maybe it would. I think a lot of things are possible there.”
“I think this has to be the strangest pillow talk I’ve ever had.”
Wrapping himself closer, he picked up her hand and kissed it. “Why?”
“I don’t know. We’re talking about fruit trees and fertility problems. Kind of random.”
She smelled like peaches and he knew the shampoo and soap they’d just coated themselves in did not contain such an aroma. It was just Hadley’s natural scent. He closed his eyes. “What would you like to talk about?”
“I don’t know. I don’t think there is anything we can talk about that isn’t going to make us stressed, worried or upset.”
“We can talk about your shoulder blades and the curve of your neck. That won’t make us worry.” In fact, the thought of them made him hard. He smiled and opened his eyes.
“Hadrian.”
“Feel that, did you?” He wanted to be inside her again more than he wanted to breathe.
“They’re here, Hadrian.” Her voice shook. “Why won’t they leave me alone?”
All sexual excitement fled immediately. “The shadows? You can see them?”
“See them, hear them and feel them.”
Hadrian scanned the room. Once again he couldn’t experience any of what she did. Being ineffectual made him grit his teeth. How the hell was he supposed to protect her from something he couldn’t sense on any level?
“What do they want, Hadley?”
“Me.” Her voice was barely a whisper.
“They can’t have you.” He spoke as loudly as he could, hoping they could hear him. He needed his weapons.
As if reading his mind, she grabbed his arm. Her eyes were far away, distant. “You can’t fight them with any weapons you possess. They want you to know that. But they can hurt you. If you provoke them, they will hurt you.”
“That doesn’t make any sense. How can I provoke them if I can’t even see them?
What do they think—my voice is offensive?”
She didn’t answer him. He shook her gently and she didn’t acknowledge him at all.
Damn it, he was losing her. They would take her and then there would be nothing left but her body, which would wither and die. No, he couldn’t let it happen.
�
�Hadrian!” Her shout was pained. “They’re taking me now. I don’t want to go but they say my father gave me to them at birth. They’ve waited and now it’s my turn to repay the debt owed.”
He pulled her to him. “Do you feel me, Hadley? This is real. I’m real, you’re real and this is where you need to stay. Keep yourself here with me.”
“That’s not possible anymore.” Her voice had taken on a monotone quality that tore into his heart.
In his arms, she collapsed, her eyes rolling to the back of her head. He grabbed her chin and shook it. “Hadley.”
Nothing. He pressed his ear against her chest. Her heart still beat. That meant there was still a little bit of time. But he knew from experience that it wouldn’t last. On Earth he’d thought it was the poison ending the Pettigrew women’s lives, but now he knew better.
Twenty-four hours until the shadows took her and there was nothing left here of Hadley but an empty, dead shell.
He laid her gently down on the bed, kissing her on her forehead. What they’d started tonight—hell, what had been brewing between them since the day he’d first laid eyes on her—would not end this way.
Shoving on his shorts, he ran into the hall.
“Dragon.” He ran toward his brother’s room and pounded on the door.
Hadrian heard Dragon charge at the door. “What is with you and not letting me ever get any damn sleep?”
“I need you to send me to the shadow world. They’ve just taken Hadley.”
Dragon raised an eyebrow. “Well, today may turn out to be interesting after all.”
Chapter Fifteen
Hadley couldn’t believe her eyes. What had seemed spooky dressed in only the darkest black was actually a world filled with brightness. She looked up at the sky and sucked in her breath. The heavens above her were white, not black. Closing her eyes, she wished for the impossible and asked the universe to bring Hadrian to her.
The landscape was sparse. In the distance, she could see bent-over trees and even farther away there was some sort of structure. A castle, maybe, or a very large house. She had no frame of reference to judge by. But where she stood it was completely barren, like a cleared field that had been long devoid of vegetation.
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