Bound (World of Shadows Book 2)
Page 13
I smiled at him. “I’m ignoring that side of the equation.”
“Clearly.”
“I’m with Gage.” Audrey grabbed plates from the cupboard. “I think she’s dangerous. And you going to the cave is equally dangerous.”
“Too bad.” I sipped more wine. I was relaxed now and warm, and I had something to focus on. Also, Gage was on my side this time and for some reason, that set me more at ease than I’d been since I’d arrived in Knob Creek.
“Someone has to go in there,” I continued. “And sorry to say, it’s off-limits to you two. In fact, it’s off limits to any supernatural being. Grace and Dylan can’t make it through the barrier, and it’s harmful for either of you to do it.”
Gage clasped his hand around mine. “I guess the cave is going to have to be off-limits for now, then, right? We can find another way to stop Savannah.”
“I’m glad you’re so optimistic, but I don’t know any other way.” I stood from my chair and started to pace, taking my wine with me. “I’m not willing to risk anyone else’s life by waiting longer for her to try to influence me.”
Gage folded his arms. “You’re not willing to risk anyone else’s, but you’re willing to risk your own?”
I frowned, glancing at Audrey. She shot me a look of sympathy. “Sorry, can’t help you there, Link. I see where you’re coming from but if something happens to you, we can’t stop the curse.”
“And we can’t help Audrey,” Gage added, standing as well. “And who knows what Savannah will do? Not to mention I’d be severely pissed off.”
It warmed me that he cared. But there was a bigger picture here.
He snagged my arm before I could respond. “Seriously, Link. You wanted me to work with you as a team, so I’m doing it. This is what teams do. They figure out the solution together. And since you’re the only one who thinks this is a good idea, you’re overruled.”
I started to argue, but he put a hand over my mouth.
“Please, Link. Let’s just eat dinner and try to figure out another solution.”
When he released me, I glared at him. “Screw you. You don’t get to tell me what to do—not after all I’ve been through to try to fix this problem. All the problems I walked into because of you and your bullshit note.”
Audrey sucked in her cheeks. “I think I’ll take my dinner to my room.”
“Don’t bother,” I said. “I appreciate you making dinner, Audrey, but I’m going home.”
“Link—”
I whipped around, pointing my finger at Gage. “Don’t you dare say anything.”
I took one last sip of wine before placing the glass on the counter. Then I turned and strolled from the kitchen, heading upstairs to Gage’s room to find my shoes. My heart was beating fast with adrenaline and anger. Couldn’t they see how important this was? If Savannah got into my head again, someone was going to get hurt anyway. Whether it was me or someone else, it didn’t matter. Because then everything was over. Everything I’d worked for was worthless.
I found my shoes next to the lounge chair and started to sit when I saw Gage standing in the doorway.
“I’m leaving,” I told him.
“You’re angry.” He flashed a small smile. “I can tell.”
“This isn’t funny. I’m sick of everyone trying to tell me what to do.”
“Maybe next time we should take a vote, then.” He propped his shoulder against the door frame. “Because it’s going to have the same outcome. But if you need diplomacy to get there, I understand.”
I folded my arms, the shoes still dangling from my fingertips. “It’s what I need to do.”
“I’m willing to bet the shifter isn’t going to like your solution any better than me. And neither is the librarian—so how is this my fault?”
“Are you serious?”
“Is that a trick question?” He grinned. “You know, you’re pretty hot when you’re angry.”
“Shut up.”
“Now you’re trying to tell me what to do? Hypocrite.”
“Go to hell.” I pushed past him, carrying my shoes instead of putting them on. “I don’t want to talk about this.”
He let me get all the way to the bottom of the stairs before he stepped in front of me. “Okay, I’m sorry.” He shoved his hands in his pockets. “I could have asked you not to go to the cave. I get it. You’re independent and strong and you don’t need someone bossing you around. But that’s also what scares me.”
“What are you talking about?”
“You were stuck at the bottom of a well. You were hurt and scared and cold and…” He cleared his throat and stared at the shoes in my hand. “It was hard seeing you like that. I wanted to protect you from Savannah, and the idea of you facing her again, in her territory, doesn’t sit well with me. So you might be independent and strong but that puts you in even more danger. And makes it that much harder for me to take care of you.”
I opened my mouth to argue with him, but he held up his hand.
“Yeah, I get that, too. You don’t need anyone to take care of you. Strong and independent and all that. But that doesn’t stop me from wanting to take care of you. That’s what you do when you care about someone. And Link…” He lifted his gaze, an equal amount of amusement and vulnerability in his eyes. “I care about you.”
I passed the front door and leaned against the wall, blowing out a breath. My anger was fading, but I still didn’t know how to deal with this. A vampire caring about a human—a witch. Imagine that.
“Yeah, it kind of shocks the hell out of me too,” Gage said like he’d just read my mind.
“I want Savannah gone,” I told him. That was what I needed to deal with right now. He walked so he was standing in front of me again. “You don’t know what it’s like having her in my mind. To have her try to convince me to kill you every time we’re in the same room. To have her putting images in my head—of you bleeding, of you hurt—every time I want to kiss you.”
His eyes softened. He took my shoes from my hands and set them on the floor. “Is she here now?”
I felt around for her—reached deep inside for the flames. But I didn’t find anything. “I don’t think so.”
“Do you still want to go home?”
I shook my head.
“Good. Do you still want to kiss me?”
“Yes.”
He moved in so fast, I barely blinked before his mouth was against mine. I gasped, lips parting. He slipped his tongue in, tangling it with mine. My back was flat against the wall and I was grateful for the extra support.
I clung to his shoulders, every part of me on fire. But the flames stayed inside. My whole body was tingling.
“Gage,” I whispered.
“Please don’t tell me to stop,” he said, voice just as soft. His breath tickled my ear.
A laugh caught in my throat. “God, please, no. Don’t stop.”
“Thank you.”
“But what about Audrey?”
He lifted the bottom of my shirt, exposing my stomach. “In her room, like she said.”
“What if she comes out?”
He glanced around, looking torn between going somewhere else and shrugging like it wasn’t a big deal. “One second.”
He vanished in a blur, startling me. I couldn’t be certain, but it looked like he went upstairs, not in the direction of Audrey’s room. I blinked and then looked around, wondering what he was up to. Then I felt the air stir and he was in front of me.
Before I could say anything, his mouth was on mine again.
“Where did you go?”
Gage only hiked me up, and I wrapped my legs around his waist, resting on his hips while he carried me into the library and kicked the door closed. It was dark inside, only a small amount of light coming through the shutters.
I flicked my hand at the fireplace and flames burst from within. Gage glanced over and grinned. “Ambiance. Nice.”
“I want to be able to see you. All of you.”
&
nbsp; He set me on my feet in front of the fireplace while my cock hardened in my jeans. Fuck, this was actually happening. And this time, I couldn’t think of anything else but how much I wanted it.
Gage whipped a throw from the back of a chair. He opened it and let it flutter to the floor. Then he snagged me around the waist and pulled me against him. His mouth was like a fever on mine, fast and hungry.
I matched his pace, my fingers sliding down to his waist to find the button of his jeans. I reveled in the sound of his groan.
“Shirt,” I said, breathless. “Off.”
I grabbed the bottom of it, but he was faster than me, pulling it over his head and tossing it on the floor. His chest and shoulders were a feast of curves and muscle, stomach tight and toned. I ran my hands all the way down, lingering at his abdomen while his lips traced my jaw and then dropped to my shoulder.
Gage pulled my shirt off next, letting it slide to the floor while he concentrated his mouth on my collarbone. My head fell back, and his hand tightened around my waist.
“Link,” he whispered, breath featherlight on my skin. He breathed in deep, as if taking in my scent, taking in the entire moment. “I didn’t get enough of you the last time we were in here.”
He meant when he was holding me hostage. We kissed—we did more than kiss—but I had to get away. So I’d stabbed him with a letter opener and ran from the room half naked.
But now running was the last thing on my mind.
I unzipped my jeans and slid them off, along with my boxers, adding them to the pile. His gaze traveled the length of me, lingering on every inch before he met my eyes again. This time when he pressed me against him, he was slow and gentle. My cock throbbed between us, aching to be touched.
He lowered me to the blanket and then pulled off his pants and boxers. He slid on a condom, and before I could blink, he had something in his hand.
My lips curved. It was a bottle of lube. “Is that what you were doing out there when you vanished?”
He nodded.
“I thought you were checking on Audrey.”
“That, too,” he murmured, scooting closer.
Then he kissed me again, making me forget everything but him and the heat of his skin. His fingers ran down my abdomen, making my belly quiver, before he wrapped his hand around my cock.
It amazed me how gentle he could be when he was so strong. When he was getting faster and more than human every day.
My heartbeat picked up when he stroked my cock. Gage’s lips curved, and I knew he could hear it.
“Lie down,” he suggested, voice low.
I wanted to touch him, but he was so persuasive. And I knew he’d been waiting for this longer than I had. He’d been patient with me because I had to know I could trust him.
And now I did.
He levered over the top of me, his dick brushing my stomach. I moved to touch him, to feel the hardness poised against my skin. His breath hissed out when I stroked him this time, and his eyes closed briefly.
“You don’t know how hard it was to wait for this,” he told me.
He leaned down to kiss me. I did know. I’d been waiting impatiently, too, held back by fear and confusion. And it must have been twice as hard for him.
His free hand nudged my thighs open and I felt his finger, cool and wet, slide down to my crack.
“Gage,” I gasped as he ran it around my hole.
I gripped my fingers in the back of his hair, tightening them when he pushed that finger inside of me.
“Fuck,” I hissed, as pleasure shot through me. “Gage—”
“Almost,” he murmured.
I was lost in sensation. He was a step ahead of me the whole time, making it impossible for me to keep up. It was like he’d planned it out, each movement, so that I was putty in his hands.
“God, I want you,” I told him, voice hoarse. “Gage—”
In a flash, he was between my thighs. He pushed my knees back and poised himself over my entrance.
“Are you sure about this?” he asked, eyes locked on mine.
“Yes.”
No questions, no hesitations. In my gut, I knew Gage was a good person. More, I knew we had a connection I’d never felt with anyone else. And might never feel again.
He pressed into my hole, nice and slow, filling me with his hard, pulsing cock. My heart continued to beat hard against my ribs, a breath away from shooting out of my chest.
He pumped his hips against me, finding a rhythm that kept me breathless. I clung to his arms, fingers tightening with every thrust.
“That feels so good,” I told him.
His eyes crinkled, a smile that would have melted me at any other time. “You feel good,” he said, just a slight strain in his voice. Like he was trying to hold back.
His breath caught, and it thrilled me that I could make him feel as good as he made me feel.
He thrusted again, and my body tightened, verging on exploding. When he reached down, it only took one stroke of his strong fingers against my dick to make the world shatter.
His body shuddered against mine as he bowed over. I wrapped my arms around his neck, holding on for dear life as we were both wracked with spasms of pleasure.
“Fuck, Link,” he choked out.
My heart rate had only started to slow when I felt it inside of me. The flames snuck up and pushed to the surface.
And then I caught on fire.
Chapter 18
“Oh, God. Gage!”
I pushed at his shoulders, but by the time he realized what was happening, he should have been burned. My arms and legs, everything was on fire. He was still inside of me, but he didn’t look panicked. He looked surprised.
“Link, it’s not hurting me.”
“No—no—you have to move—”
When I didn’t stop pushing him, he captured my wrists and pinned them above my head. “Link, stop. Look. It’s not hurting me.”
The flames died out, simmering down so I could barely see them before they vanished completely. He moved so he could straddle me, and I just lay there in shock.
“What happened?” I whispered.
His lips curled into a lazy grin. “You caught on fire. I’m assuming that wasn’t because of Savannah. That was because of…you know…”
I swallowed my surprise. “It wasn’t Savannah.”
But had I really been that consumed? I knew I had. That hadn’t happened with Dylan. No, this was something else entirely, something more.
Keeping my hands locked above my head, he leaned down, flicking his tongue against the flat disk of one of my nipples and making my body come alive again. “Gage, I can’t—”
“You didn’t hurt me when you caught on fire,” he murmured, focusing on his task. “Why do you think that is?”
My body was throbbing again, my dick already hardening once more. “I don’t know,” I managed. “I’m having trouble…focusing.”
He looked up with a smile. “Maybe you’re controlling it better.”
“Maybe it was because we were touching.”
He released my hands and sat up, looking intrigued. “Let’s try it.”
I didn’t move. “What?”
“Let’s try it.”
He pulled me to a sitting position and kept my hands in his. Light from the fire flickered off his face and his chest.
“Do the fire thing again,” he said. “And we’ll see if it hurts me.”
“I’ve done this before, Gage. The last time I was here. And outside my house and—”
“But you weren’t touching me,” he said. “You shot fire from your fingertips, you caught my jeans on fire, and me on fire, but you weren’t touching me. And you were scared then. You’re not now.”
“Yes, I am,” I protested, trying to pull my hands away. “Because I don’t want to set you on fire.”
“You won’t.”
“You don’t know that.”
He squeezed my hands, meeting my eyes. “Try. Please.”
&nb
sp; I settled back on the blanket and shivered, the good feeling I had a few moments ago long gone. Gage broke away for a moment to remove and dispose of the condom and grab another blanket to wrap around my shoulders.
My heart thumped hard in my chest and I lowered my gaze to our linked hands.
“You can do it, Link,” Gage said in a soothing voice.
I tried not to jerk back when the fire sparked in my hands. Gage straightened in surprise but didn’t let go. At first, I was afraid I was hurting him, but then he smiled.
“You’re doing it, Link.”
I studied our hands. His were engulfed in flames just like mine, but he was holding on like nothing was happening.
“It doesn’t hurt?” I asked.
“No.”
My hands flexed. “Are you sure?”
He met my eyes. “I’m sure. It doesn’t hurt. Not even a little.”
“What does it feel like?”
“It’s tingling, like it’s re-energizing me. Probably the feeling you have when the fire heals you.”
My lips parted, but I was afraid to say the words. That maybe this would help Audrey. That maybe we found a way.
Instead, I said, “I don’t think Savannah would like this.”
“Don’t talk about her,” he whispered. “What if it makes her come back?”
“I can still feel her. But it’s like she’s sleeping. Like her power isn’t as strong.”
The flames flickered and went out. Gage stared at his hands. And said what I couldn’t.
“I think you can help Audrey.”
“I don’t want to get her hopes up.” I pulled the blanket tighter around my shoulders. “And I definitely don’t want to hurt her.”
He clasped the front of the blanket closed to help keep me warm. “You won’t.”
“I’d rather practice more, make sure I can do this.”
“You can. And she’s stronger than she looks.”
I smiled. “I believe it.” My stomach grumbled and I laughed. “I guess I’m hungry.”
Gage stood immediately and grabbed his jeans. “You haven’t had anything to eat all day. Sorry you had to wait.”