Bonds of Blood [Lords of the Expanse] (Siren Publishing Classic) (17 page)

She shuddered and felt her mouth go dry. “You, Andries. I want and I
need
you.” She groaned and ran her leg up and down his thighs. “I want to feel you inside of me, making me yours. I want to feel your fangs buried deep into my throat.” She shuddered and moaned this time. “Teach me, Andries, teach me to make you feel these things for me.”

Shifting, he pushed his cock into her hard and fast as he struck with his teeth, sliding them through her flesh. Driving into her pussy over and over again, he growled softly, his hands moving over her body with a need he never let loose. But now, with her as one of his kind, he could finally let out the beast inside, if only a little.

She moved with him, her pussy accepting the brutal thrusts of his cock and giving him leave for more as she wrapped her arms and legs around him. She could still feel his restraint and scraped her nails along his back, demanding that he didn’t hold back and even saying, “I’m as you are now, Andries, harder. Give in to the beast you leash for me.”

Pulling his teeth from her throat, he slid his tongue over her flesh and watched how quickly the twin holes closed. Not nearly as fast as they would once she fed and regained her strength, but much faster than before. Turning his head, he kissed her hard. “If I do, then you won’t be able to feed, wife. That will be for later,” he promised on a breath.

“I don’t need to feed,” she grumbled and arched up from the bed slightly. “I need you.” Her heels dug into his butt, pulling him in deeper and harder with each thrust of his cock. “I need you to let go, and moon and stars, I need to feel the beast in you claiming me as much as you have claimed me.”

Slipping a hand free from her, he used a nail to scrape the skin over his jugular, knowing once she caught the scent her body and instinct would take over. Sliding his hand back under her shoulders, he buried his face in her neck so the faint scent of blood would hit her nostrils. “Are you sure you don’t want to feed, wife?” he whispered softly against her skin.

She could smell the blood, could taste it almost, and felt her own fangs slide down and out even as she moaned loudly. “I don’t know how,” she somehow managed to say around the teeth that were much larger now. “Andries.” She moved and wrapped her legs tightly around him and shuddered at her sudden release even as she cried out his name once more.

“Don’t think, Xandra,” he murmured as he fought his own orgasm, pushing into her harder and faster. “Let your instincts guide you. They are older than time,” he said against her ear. Nipping at her lobe gently, he licked along the shell of her ear. “Feed, Xandra, please,” he whispered softly.

And she did. She moved her lips over his neck and it was as if they found the sweet spot without any real guidance from her. Faster than lightning striking, she buried her fangs deep into his neck and gasped as the power hit her. The emotion. The raw animal desire. Her hands clutched his shoulders as she screamed inside her own mind and greedily drank of him as she spasmed on him.

As soon as she bit, he came hard, his body taut as a bow as he shuddered. The feeling of her feeding was intense. He’d never once felt anything like it before and knew that he’d never feel it again, except with his wife. Panting as he relaxed slightly, he cupped her head to him as he rolled so she was on top and stroked her hair gently.

She finally pulled back from him and licked the wounds even as they sealed. Moving to him, she kissed him as she moved and then clamped onto him as her orgasm finally rolled through her body. She pulled back and threw her head back and screamed as she gave in to her orgasm.

Replete and full, she collapsed onto his chest, gasping for air and closing her eyes. “I love you, Andries, but I think I do need more sleep,” she whispered only moments before her eyes floated closed once more.

Smiling faintly, he held her to him. “I think you do, too,” he murmured with a touch of humor as she breathed slowly in sleep. Stroking her back gently, he lay just holding her as she slept, and then, after a time, he fell asleep with his arms wrapped tightly around her.

“What do you mean that I shouldn’t eat a lot of solid food for a little while, Andries? And just how long is a ‘little while’ in terms that I can understand?” She wasn’t hungry, but craved the taste of food more than needed it.

“About a month,” he told her, which would be the whole of their trip. “Little snacks are all right. Beverages are great, especially water. It will help your body adjust to the foods you do eat. Stay away from sweets and heavy foods, no cheese for about two months,” he told her and knew that would be tough considering that one of her favorites was cheese.

“But my favorite so far is a cheese.” Her complaint sounded in the air. A long sigh escaped her lips followed by a nod. “All right, I will be good,” she grumbled and looked to the time on the wall. “You need to go though, Andries. You have a ship to command.” She leaned in and kissed his cheek. “Go. I will be fine with whoever you assign to watch over me. I want to walk around and get a feel for the life onboard.” There was a pause followed by, “Do they know that I am no longer what I was when we married?”

Nodding, he pulled her to him for a better kiss, his lips sliding over hers slowly, his tongue tasting her for a long, long time. Lifting his head, he licked his lips and looked to where her hands gripped his jacket. “They know you are one of us now,” he told her softly. “Liandun will be your guide. He is the pale-haired one outside the door. Wherever you wish to go he will take you. Just remember, wife, do not ignore your cravings.” He’d told her about the blood craving earlier and the signs to watch for and the results of ignoring them.

“I won’t,” she whispered softly and touched his cheek again, leaning in and kissing him again. “I will never get enough of you, Andries. We can outlive our sun and it will still not be long enough for me to tire of your kisses, your touches.” She did pull back and touched her fingers to his cheek. “I love you, husband. Now go. Your wife needs to get dressed so that she can go to medical and have a once-over.”

“You will let me know how it goes?” he asked, though his words sounded more like a demand. He was concerned about her, had been since the turn had been completed, and likely would for years to come. But having her checked over by a professional would ease his mind a little.

“Yes, my love, I will let you know. I will ask the medical staff to send you a com message so that it comes up the right chain of command, all right?” She smiled. “I’m trying to do the right things here, Andries. Is that right, to ask them to send the message to you?”

Growling softly at her, he sighed. “You could just tell me yourself, wife,” he pointed out. “That is also allowed, but if you would feel better having them tell me you have grown a tail, then I will look forward to their cold and clinical report.”

She laughed and shook her head. “Nope, I get to tell you the fun stuff like tails.” She loved the way that he now teased her, and she saw it as just that, teasing. “Now, off with you. I will call you later and tell you what’s going on. Deal?”

“Deal,” he said and stole one more kiss from her. Heading to the door, he paused just before he set off the sensor and looked to her. With a hint of a smile, he let his eyes move over her. “Xandra,” he said quietly to get her attention and knew she was going to hurt him for doing this and then running. “I love you, wife,” he said and then moved just enough to trigger the door.

When the door slid closed behind him, she simply looked at it and then screamed. “Andries!” She was going to kill him. There were no two ways about it. She heard his laughter outside and shook her head. “Silly man,” she grumbled but went about the room until there was the knock. Opening the door, she saw Liandun there and smiled up at him. “Hello, I’m ready to head to medical, if you don’t mind, Liandun.” She wasn’t inviting him in, not when she was ready to leave anyway. “Forgive me for not inviting you in, but I found that I would rather be out, walking.”

The man was stoically silent as they walked, so Xan stopped trying to engage him and instead asked the doctors endless questions as they ran their tests. When an information pad was pressed into the ranking medical officer’s hand, she frowned at his look. “Is something wrong?” She hadn’t done something right was her fear. “Something showed up on the tests, didn’t it?” She pressed a hand over her throat. “How bad is it?”

“Depends on what the lord colonel will say when you tell him you are with child and were before the attack as well,” the man said simply. At her look, he nodded. “Yes, my lady, you are with child. From what our scans on your blood show, you are likely two weeks gone.” He told her simply and then nodded. “I will transmit the information to the lord colonel if you would like?”

“No.” She stood from the medical bed. “No, I will tell him.” She was stunned. She was pregnant? It had to have happened the first night they came together for her to be that far along. She walked from medical and asked Liandun to take her to her husband. The Vampire guard frowned when he looked at her and assumed something was wrong, so he quickly ushered her through to the command deck.

When she looked up once more, she was on the command deck and looked around as if she didn’t know how she got there, but when she saw him, she sighed and she didn’t care who was watching, what they were noting. She was happy, so blissfully happy that she wouldn’t have stopped herself even if she wanted to.

She moved to him on fast and silent feet and threw her arms around him. Hugging him close, she whispered against his ear very, very quietly. “No tail, but you are going to be a father.”

Wrapping his arms around her automatically, he stood stunned at her words, frozen for a moment of time as his heart tripped. “What?” he whispered softly. When she repeated it, he squeezed her closer to him as he lifted her and closed his eyes. A moment later he set her on her feet and quickly moved off the command deck and into the war room. Sealing the door behind them, he pulled her close and kissed her hard and fast. Every emotion that had opened at her words he poured into the kiss. “I love you, wife,” he murmured when he pulled back. “This is…” He couldn’t even find words. “Are you all right? No concerns? Any problems? How long?” he asked next with a frown.

She had seen the shocked looks of his staff and smiled as he sealed the door closed. She kissed him back with all she had, and when he pressed her against the war room table, she bit her lip to hide her smile. “I love you, too, husband. This is amazing.” She finished for him. “Yes, I am all right. I have no idea about concerns or problems because I was too stunned to stay. I assume none or he would have stopped me.” And here was where the trick was. “Two weeks.” She would let him do the math on that one.

Stunned, he stared at her. “But that would mean…” She’d been pregnant when she’d been shot. His blood boiled at that thought, and he knew he’d have to pass that information along to the Alliance. The would-be assassin now would have a death sentence no matter what. Wrapping his arms around her, he pulled her close and just held her as he fought his emotions down, his hands gentle even as his inner beast roared for absolute vengeance.

She was silent for a long while before she pulled back and grinned up at him. “Are you happy, Andries?” There was a moment before saying, “Because I have to tell you I am happier than I could ever have dreamed I would be.” She cupped his cheeks in her hands as she grinned. “My father sent me off to a monster. He sent me off to be killed so that he could cry vengeance, and instead I was married off to the man of my dreams, the only man that I could ever love, and not only that”—she stroked her fingers over his cheeks—“he sent me the father of my child.”

Grunting at her words, he rolled his eyes. “I’m very pleased, Xandra,” he said, leaning his forehead to hers. “You are my wife. Everything about you pleases me. Except when you mention your father.” That just made him angry enough to kill. “Are you happy about the child?” he asked her quietly, his eyes searching hers.

She nodded happily and leaned in to kiss him once more. “I am beyond happy, Andries,” she admitted and rubbed her nose against his as they pressed their foreheads together. “I feel like dancing on clouds right now, Andries. I want to shout to the world that you have given me the greatest of gifts, but I know that I can’t. I know it’s not acceptable. So I ask you, husband.” She paused and drew him in closer to her and hugged him lightly. “How do we tell your crew that you will be a father?”

“I do not believe I will have to, Xandra.” He smiled faintly at her. “They will likely already either have deduced it from your behavior or they will have called down to medical and discovered the reason for my odd behavior.” Stroking a hand down her arm, he caught her hand and pulled it to his lips to kiss her fingers lightly. “Expect everyone to offer congratulations and little gifts. It’s tradition so, whatever is given thank them and then worry about what it is.”

“As long as they don’t offer me little booties made of blood and gore we will be wonderful.” Wiggling slightly, she smiled. “So why don’t you remind me about this wonderful table? Remind me just what it feels like to have you deep inside of me? Remind me how we made our son or daughter?” Her hands smoothed up and down his impeccable uniform shirt with a smile.

“They would never do that,” Andries said, offended on behalf of his crew. “Sometimes, wife, I really wonder just where you come up with such ideas.” He shook his head at her, moving even closer to her, and lifted her up to sit on the edge of the table. “You do realize, wife, that should I have to leave, I will,” he murmured, lowering his head to the temptation that was her mouth.

She met him halfway, her lips colliding with his hungrily as her legs wrapped around his waist. When he pulled back to trail his lips down her neck, she began to unfasten his uniform shirt. “I know, Andries. If you are needed, they will let you know, but for now this is our moment. It’s stolen and ours.” She pulled back and looked at him. “Celebrate with me, Andries. Celebrate the life we have created together.”