9781631054099GracefulAcceptanceBeck (4 page)

“Davina,
Davina, Oh Goddess,” Grace called out, moaning into the
throw pillow near her head. In a rush of wetness, Grace spiraled towards an
edge she’d never before known.

And just as she
thought she was coming out of the high, Davina pierced the skin of her inner
thigh. Her teeth bit into Grace’s flesh and opened a vein
for Davina to drink her in. The room around them faded away as Grace was
propelled once again into a state of bliss, muscles tensing and then relaxing
in an explosion of new sensations. Grace was as
saulted
by tremors that shook her body and had her calling out once again to her mate.
Goddess, how could anything be better than this?

* * * *

If anyone had told her
that she’d be mating today, Davina would’ve laughed her ass off. Lying beside
her mate,
Davina’s hand stroked Grace as she began to
relax. Davina had known who her mate was for a while now, though she’d confided
in no one. Little sweet Gracie Sinster had been far from ready to accept their
destiny, and Davina had resigned herself to the long
wait ahead.

But then her Mamma had
come to her with an idea to send some of her new concoctions from the café home
with Layla and Paige. What made Davina’s café unique was the water. Mamma’s
special blend added elements of relaxation and well-being to the
brews. Mamma suspected what Davina already knew—Grace was
her mate and Davina was tiring in her wait. Davina’s own sin of gluttony had
nearly spiraled out of control in the past year as she began to eat everything
in sight. Mamma had paid for a personal t
rainer,
afraid her beautiful daughter would become unsightly.

So Mamma had been
right on two accounts. The personal trainer had been crucial to maintaining the
figure she now knew Grace liked so much. Plus, the Mocha Madness that Davina
had sent home worke
d its magic and brought Grace to
her. She was never so glad to say that her Mamma was right.

Davina had claimed her
mate.

Watching Grace’s eyes
roll back into her head as she orgasmed around Davina’s fingers was better than
the thousands of dreams she’d ha
d about the very same
thing. And she could do nothing more than laugh when Grace opened her eyes back
up and said “More” before tugging Davina on top of her. She suspected she’d
just whetted Grace’s appetite, which was fine by her because she wanted more a
s well.

“I want to taste you.”
Grace’s request was all the more sexy by her tentative, soft voice.

Davina wanted to shout
to the heavens, to rain praises down on the Goddess, but there was no time for
any of that. She wasn’t going to give Grace’s insecurit
ies any time to come back. She lay down beside Grace, stretching out on
her side, and smiled at her tiny pixie mate. The smallest of all the Sinster
sisters, Grace couldn’t be more than 5’2”. Davina adored her petite frame and
subtle curves, the gentle fea
tures of her face with
lips so cherry red.

Davina had always
wondered if her nipples would be so boldly colored and now, as she drew her
fingertips across Grace’s stomach and between her breasts, she watched the deep
pink areolas turn even darker. Grace’s
creamy white
skin tinged with her emotions, making it easy for Davina to know what her mate
was feeling.

“Will you show me?”

Dear Goddess, Grace’s
innocence was going to kill her.

“Anything you do will
please me. You, just feeling you against me, touching
you, it all feels good. You can touch any part of me you like. I am all yours.”

Grace nodded and
looked down, always so timid. They’d take their mating in stages. Right now,
Grace could grow used to Davina. Soon enough, she’d tell her the next part, the
p
art that would complete their mating.

“Come here,” Davina
urged her down gently as she took her between her legs.

Grace dragged in a
deep breath and shuddered. The emotion rolling through her passed right into
Davina’s body and caused her flesh to tingle.
Grace’s
fingertips stroked teasingly light along the lengths of Davina’s inner thighs
as she licked her lips. Unaware she was tormenting
Davina,
Grace took her time looking at her core
before she placed a soft kiss on Davina’s mound.

Grace drew downward, k
issing from clit to rosette, and then worked her way back
up again. When Grace snuck her tongue out to lick each spot as she moved along
Davina’s folds, Davina grew more wet and slick with her growing need. Still,
she held motionless, not wanting to fright
en Grace.
Grace needed time to explore, and Davina would be patient.

Grace grew bolder. She
opened her mouth wider, brought her tongue out wider, and begun to probe
deeper. Sweet and soft brushes of her tongue in the most sensitive spots turned
Davina’s fl
esh to a boil. Then the little bites and
nibbles had Davina calling forth all her powers to keep still. Grace moaned,
her inhibitions gone as she burrowed closer into Davina’s core.

Adjusting her body to
rest along Davina’s leg, Grace moved with each strok
e
and each nibble. Davina could feel Grace’s nipples as they strained. She could
feel Grace’s juices coat her thigh. Davina was close to finding her release
when Grace began panting, her body thrusting against Davina’s leg. She knew
Grace was close too.

“M
y Grace, suck on my clit. Please. We’ll come together. Just
please,” Davina called out in desperate need.

Then Grace was there,
her lips sucking on the tiny bundle of nerves that held the key to her release.
Davina was so damn close and then, oh Goddess, a
pinch just above her clit. Grace had pierced through her skin and was drawing
on her blood. Nothing in all her life had felt so deliciously good.

That was Davina’s last
thought before her body burst into pieces and she floated before returning to
her Grac
e. Intense sparks of light bombarded her
vision and her breathing was labored. Grabbing onto Grace, Davina pulled her up
to her so she could hold her, kiss her, and just know that they were together.
Just as they should be.

Chapter Three

Grace felt l
ike she might faint. She knew she wouldn’t because, well,
her race didn’t get sicknesses. Fainting wasn’t a possibility and still, she
thought, it wouldn’t be such a bad thing right now. She and Davina were headed
into the Santucci home where they were mee
ting up
with her sisters and their mothers. Since Sadie’s Pronouncement, knowing the
Prophecy was nearing, the women had been meeting weekly to develop their powers
in a circle. Showing up together wouldn’t be so odd since everyone knew that
they were frie
nds. Showing up holding hands was
certainly going to raise some eyebrows.

Despite everything
Grace tried, Davina clearly had no intention of letting go of Grace’s hand.
Their fingers were entwined and Goddess, it felt so right, but she didn’t know
what her
sisters would say. Grace had gone from crazy
happy to frightening worried during the drive over from Davina’s shop. What if
everyone knew what had happened? How could she stand in front of her sisters?

“Davina, perhaps we
should talk about this again befo
re we go in there.”
Grace tugged on Davina to stop her. They were feet from the door to the library
where they had been meeting.

“It’s just more time
for you to worry.” Davina shook her head and brought her free hand to Grace’s
cheek, cupping it and lightl
y brushing her thumb
along Grace’s cheekbone.

“I can’t help it. I
can’t stop wondering what they’ll think about this, about us.”

“My Grace, look at
me.” Davina waited for Grace to look up into her eyes before continuing. “What
anyone thinks does not matter
, but I believe. No, I
feel it here, inside me.” Davina brought their joined hands to her chest.
“Everything is as it should be. In our hearts as women of the Magdalena Circle,
that is what matters.”

“She’s right,” a
familiar voice came from behind Grace.

Her mother smiled at
her when she turned around, and smiled wider when she noticed Grace’s hand
locked inside Davina’s warm hand. Surprising her, Chiara embraced them both in
her arms, pulling them to her and allowing her excitement to fill the air around
them.

“Mother, I…” Grace
began, but was immediately cut off.

“Gracie, I’ve known.
Well, not known so much as wondered. I’ve been praying that the Goddess had a
plan for you that meant you being completed by your Mating.” Chiara paused to
look at them again
and grinning so widely, she added,
“And I believe this is the answer to my prayers. Thank the Goddess.”

“Thank the Goddess,”
Davina repeated while Grace just watched, awed by the graceful acceptance of
her mother.

“Now, let’s head in.
I’m sure everyone wi
ll have congratulations to give
and we really have to spend time preparing for what is now soon to happen.”
Chiara took Grace’s free hand and led them into the library.

As the door opened and
her mother walked ahead of them, Grace and Davina stood behind a
nd waited. Her mother raised her hands and every voice in
the room silenced. Grace imagined all eyes were now focused on their mother.

“Women of the
Magdalena Circle, our time
is
growing nearer still. Grace and Davina
are preparing for their Mating.” Chiar
a stepped aside
to show the two women standing hand in hand just inside of the doorway.

Her sisters regarded
her with uncertainty, not sure what they were supposed to see. After all,
they’d seen Grace and Davina together for a while now. Grace fidgeted, at
tempting to decide what to say, when Davina pulled their
linked hands up to her lips and kissed Grace’s hand. When Grace turned her eyes
on Davina, they shared a smile. Davina never failed to put Grace at ease.

The collective sigh
floated across the room a
nd warmed Grace. Turning to
look back at her sisters, Grace saw each of them with tears in their eyes and
true smiles on their faces. Her sisters were happy for her. She felt their
excitement build and surround them, colorful lights danced across the room,
and Grace felt bolstered, reassured by their acceptance.

Eloise was the first
to bound across to them and
engulf
them both in hugs, followed closely by
Adelina, Davina’s mother. The others followed, each of her sisters except for
Amelia. Amelia was standi
ng with her mother, and as
the others followed Grace’s gaze, the room again fell to a hush.

“How can this be? The
prophecy clearly states we are each to be mated to a Valendite Breed. It has to
happen for the genetic combinations to have the effect we’ve w
aited for.” Amelia was shaking her head at their mother.

“Amelia.” Chiara put
her hand on her shoulder and gestured to the room.

It was obvious Amelia
hadn’t noticed that everyone’s attention was now drawn to her. “I’m sorry,
Grace, Davina. I don’t mean to
rain down on your
happiness but I can’t make sense of it. This doesn’t work in the prophecy as
it’s been told.”

“Let me try to
explain.” Gemma stepped forward, clearly in her element as a historical
researcher. “There is another prophecy, if I may explain
it.
Davina?”

Davina nodded.

“Come sit, girls. This
explanation may be lengthy.” Adelina motioned to the large sofas.

Gemma, clearing her
throat, seemed to consider where to begin, and then spoke.

“The Prophecy of the
Seven in its most common wording stated simply that
the
first sister shall bear another seven and the seventh shall release the deadly
sins so long as all are mated
. But we all know there was much more recorded on the
prophecy. There w
ere still pieces that were being
interpreted as recently as last year. You all know that’s why I went to Italy
to research before the Winter Solstice last year.

“There’s another
prophecy that we know little about. It’s been hidden for the safety of the fem
ale it refers to, our Davina. She’s the only female born
into a family that already had male offspring. That wasn’t a mistake, not a
fluke of nature. It was very intentional.

“The prophecy is
called the Trifecti Prophecy of a vampire born female, one who i
s equal part Valendite Breed and of the
Magdalena
Circle
.
It is written that this female will begin a new line of vampires with a wife by
her side. Together, they shall inherit the throne and bring great change to our
world.”

Gemma paused to give
everyone
time to absorb the information. She smiled
over at Grace and Davina. “We’ve suspected this might be the case for a few
months now.”

“I did as well,”
Davina admitted as she looked around at the room of shocked faces. “Let me
explain. When the prophecy was b
rought to my family,
we accepted it was likely my fate. I was happy because it explained my
existence, gave me purpose. Then when I met Grace and began spending time with
her, I had this sense. My powers continued to grow but only in the time since I
met h
er.”

“Biologically, that
makes sense. Your chemicals started mixing,” Amelia agreed.

“Right, with all the
magic we’ve performed together in our circle, there was this pull I had to
resist so my power didn’t concentrate to Grace. I knew I had to wait for he
r to be ready, so I waited and I watched until it was
time.” Davina explained it all so well that Grace was happy to sit back and
allow the conversation to happen around her.

“But
what of the children?
The
seven shall have seven
part of the prophecy?” Sadi
e asked.

“Or even in the
Trifecta Prophecy where it mentions starting a new race? You certainly need a
man for this to happen. I mean, I might’ve lived naively for most of my life
but even I know this,” Layla added.

Rolling her eyes and
then looking to Dav
ina before she began, Gemma
explained, “I believe, given the prophecy’s title—
Tri
fecti Prophecy—that there will be a
tri-bond. Gracie and Davina are just two parts of the triad that still needs to
form.”

Nodding, Amelia
agreed. “It explains how they don’t
appear to be in
the Acclimation stage yet. Genetically, they’d need the third’s blood to make
the bond.”

Grace looked from one
sister to the
other,
both nodding at each other like this
was a science experiment they were agreeing on. Did no one understand t
he magnitude of what they’d suggested? Dear Goddess, even
Davina seemed too calm.

Grace looked to her
mate and whispered, “Can you believe this? Do you think it’s true?”

Davina simply nodded.
She wouldn’t meet Grace in the eye and Grace could feel her hear
t rate accelerate. Davina was nervous. Davina was never
nervous. Then Grace realized why.

“You knew.” Grace let
go of Davina’s hand and stood. Raising her voice, she repeated herself. “You
knew. How could you not tell me?”

Grace knew she must
look crazy. S
he felt her hair flying around her face.
She was sweating and pacing around the center of the room. There would be a
third person in their mating. Everyone around her seemed to accept it, but she
couldn’t understand how this would be all right. It was unhe
ard of.

“Sweet Gracie,” Chiara
rested her arm on Grace and a calming sensation rushed through Grace. “It’s all
going to be fine.”

“No, Mother, it’s not.
It’s not fine when your mate lies to you.” Grace turned from her mother and
shot a look of anger toward
s Davina. Her eyes were
large and round, and when she let out a deep breath, tiny puffs of smoke burst
around her head. Never had she been so angry. “You lied to me.” Those words
spoken with such venom, made Davina recoil into her mother’s arms.

Grace marc
hed from the silent room.

* * * *

Grace searched for
peace where she always did. She was already dressed for the outdoors so she
took the quickest route to the edge of the surrounding forest. She knew the
path up to the stream, and with the warm morning
thaw,
the remaining snow wouldn’t deter her from her walk. She needed some peace and
quiet to work through everything that had happened in the last few days.

When she made it up to
the stream and perched herself on the rock overlooking her favorite view of
the valley below, she had exhausted the anger out of
herself. Regretting the yelling, unable to even remember when she’d yelled at
someone in the past, Grace dropped her head into her hands and cried. This day
that had started out so perfect had turned in
to a
disaster. She’d isolated herself from her mate.

Well, one of her mates
apparently! Grace ground her teeth. She supposed the next step was finding the
other piece to their triad, as Gemma had put it so indelicately. And what
exactly would that be like?
She had no idea what she
was facing, but she did know that her safe, quiet life was gone and replaced
with this new reality. She felt as if she were in the middle of a building
storm.

Grace heard the
crunching of branches and guessed Davina had followed h
er, but when she turned toward the noise, Trevor came out of the woods
instead. He looked sheepish, giving Grace a tight-lipped smile and a small
wave. His shoulders were hunched into himself. He didn’t look like he wanted to
be here anymore than she wante
d the company.

“I was sent…”

“To watch me,” Grace
cut him off before he could finish. “I get it. I went too far without a guard.”

Trevor nodded. He
watched her as if she was going to turn demonic on him.

“I’m not crazy, you
know. You don’t have to stand ov
er there like I’m
going to attack you,” Grace snapped.