Clarity's Doom (Ancient Origins Book 1) (16 page)

Doom strode forward and grabbed Clarity into his arms. He crushed her against his chest. His eyes were wild as he felt her body checking for hurts.

“I’m fine. No worries. Your little sacrifice will still be able to help you.” She was feeling sarcastic as he continued to feel her—everywhere.

Thrust to arm’s length Doom gave her a hard look. “Do you really still believe I’d hand you over? Has this week meant nothing to you?”

Her eyes widened in stunned surprise. Passion burned from his gaze. “I, I,” she stammered. Doom again wrapped her in his arms. She could feel his heart hammer against her. “I feel your heart pounding,” she said. Before, he never broke a sweat. He was shaking. Looking around, Clarity could tell they battled for their lives.

“That’s because right now it beats for you.”

Her mouth opened wide in dumbfounded disbelief. Except she knew he spoke the truth. Edge scowled and strode off. Doom released her and tossed Heath over a shoulder. A small amount of blood trickled from a head wound. Menace cast a shrewd gaze at Clarity. He moved to stand next to her shoulder.

“Humans have never been allowed out of the village. I knew it would happen sooner or later. Doom has a heart; apparently, he’s given it to you.”

Clarity continued to gape open-mouthed and trailed after the men. Muffin walked with her head over Clarity’s shoulder. She was feeling a little stupid. All week a change had been happening. The more she thought about it, the more realization hit. No man was allowed to say anything negative to her, or Doom bit his head off. The lingering looks, the times she woke with him gazing at her. Each touch was growing bolder.

How could she have been so blind? Doom had grown to care for her. A chill ran down her spine. She had grown to care for him. Had she doomed his people? Her shoulders set; she picked up her pace. The hybrids would die. Determination the likes she never felt before drew her brows together. She never had any intention of dying. Now she had no intention of letting Doom die. Never give anyone hope then snatch it from them.

Chapter Nine

Doom’s fingers trembled when he traced her skin from shoulder to cheek. Clarity could see his inner turmoil. He touched her in a way no man ever had. She wanted to talk to him after they returned to his home. A decision shone from his eyes. There would be no going back.

“Sometimes I watch you sleep.” He surprised her by saying. “I think you’re a dream. Planted in my desire for hope and want. You fill my thoughts and chase away doubts. If I were to die right now without having you, I wouldn’t feel cheated. How could I? When I’ve been able to touch you, see you. Let me taste you and add your lips to my list of growing blessings. The joy of being me is knowing you.”

There was something to be said for primitive man. Doom didn’t care about her employment; he didn’t put his own work before her. He killed dinosaurs and wrestled bulwarks for fun. He looked pained when she sometimes caught his reflection. She was aware he couldn’t stand the sight of himself. There were moments he stood still with a hand pressed against his tattoos, his head bowed, lips moving. At times, she watched him at night as well. Doom would swing his legs over the side of the bed, shoulders slouched, and she would hear him sob. The pain of a tortured man was hard to ignore. She wanted to lay her head over his shoulder those nights and tell him there was hope; she didn’t think him a monster. Years of watching his family and friends die would take a hard road to finding any salvation.

Knowing his feelings of remorse, Clarity determined to save him from pain. The battle would be long and hard. When he pressed against her for a kiss, the bulge of his outline showed her something else was long and hard.

“May I please kiss you?” he asked. “I’ve never kissed a woman before except my mother. A gentle pursing of lips, nothing more. I want your mouth, Clarity. There’s a hunger inside of me needing to be set free. Free, Clarity. You make me want to be
free
. I can say the word without cringing, without crying. The most elusive word I’ve ever spoken isn’t said with sadness. It fills me with power. I feel the old warrior I know is in me surging and struggling to break these awful bonds of despair.”

Doom moved closer, his body shaking. His lips slid across hers, tempting, teasing. Warm breath bathed her face. When his moist mouth met hers in a dance, she melted against him. The strength of the hard-muscled man was phenomenal, but a soft sweet kiss nearly brought her to her knees. Small pants of expelled breath glided down her throat as he strove to keep from devouring her. His commanding arms quivered, his expression of wonder led her to know she was his first; he wasn’t lying.

Tenderness flowed from him. She
was
the most important person in the world, his world. If she let him make love to her, there would be no going back. He would sacrifice himself for her and she knew it.

Passion tingled her skin from his fingertips. So many, too many years of need spilled from the depth of his yearning gaze. They had a long hard year ahead of them. A year to save his life. If he perished, she would be sacrificed as well; she knew it. There could be no baby. There could be no flight—only fight. Their kiss broke.

Clarity smiled. “I’ve still got a lot of fight left in me,” she sang in a whisper.

His bemused expression gazed back. Clarity ran her hand over his chest and dipped lower. Doom groaned when she reached his straining manhood, caressing him through his pants. He dropped lower to rest his forehead against hers while his hands cupped the sides of her face, his thumbs stroking her cheeks.

“I will fight, Clarity. I will kill any dinosaur or hybrid to keep you safe. I will not die and leave you alone.”

“Those are the most romantic words anyone has ever said to me.”

On her tiptoes, she crushed her lips against his. Her hand clung to the back of his neck when he picked her up and cradled her to his chest. The warm furs were piled high, and she sank into them when he set her upon the bed. She sat up as he slipped the revealing hide shirt over her head, tracing his fingertips up over flesh. Spiraling goose bumps to dot her arms. For a moment, he gazed at her breasts. His hand shook when he lifted it to trail his fingers over her curves. The pads of his thumbs grazed her buds as they hardened and strained toward him. Mouth open, he panted then swallowed hard.

“Clarity my insides crave to be a part of you.”

He leaned to nuzzle his nose against her cheek. The warmth of his breath tingled her skin. His lips kissed her ear and tugged against a lobe. It was Clarity’s turn to shake. His hands roamed her back, searing a path of discovery. When he satisfied himself after touching every inch of her, he began again on her front. His assault was no less lethal to her quivering flesh. Her nipples ached for their turn and she wasn’t disappointed when finally his large beautiful hands cupped each breast.

“Your beauty would shame flowers to hide at your approach.”

He was killing her with words alone while she remained tongue-tied. With a gentle ease, he guided her to lie back and again he stared at her. His gaze centered on her face. The loving look he cast was almost her undoing. She didn’t know a man could make love with his eyes. He was already inside of her. At that moment, she was claimed.

“Doom,” she whispered.

For a second his gaze clouded. “I hate that name.”

“Don’t.”

He sighed and attempted a smile. “You’re right. Now isn’t the time to mention the word hate, because that word is far worse than my name.”

Clarity shimmied out of her pants and lay before him. Doom leaned to kiss her belly making a trail downward to stop between her thighs. A gentle nudge was all it took for her to spread her legs and welcome his touch. Coaxing fingers slipped within her folds and he grinned at her when he discovered she was ready for him. She stifled a laugh thinking Niagara Falls would be dry compared to her.

“I didn’t know a woman’s heat would make my cock jealous of my fingers.”

“Make your cock jealous of your tongue.”

He cocked a raised eyebrow at her and grinned. Doom dipped his tongue into her wetness and licked at her until she writhed. His tongue was maddening delight. Round her folds he went as he whispered words such as sweet, delicious, beautiful. Her teeth clacked together as her need built.

“Please,” she whispered.

When he stood, she wanted to scream at him to get his ass back to her. With slow deliberation he removed his belt, letting it fall to the fur beneath his feet. His pants followed suit. The entire length of him was engorged and thrust forward.

Clarity wanted to impale herself until a fast realization struck. “Damn.” Frustrated she jumped from the bed and raced past him. He spun, eyes wide, arms spread wide.

“Am I really that big?”

Clarity was fumbling in the side pocket of her purse. If she didn’t have him inside her soon she knew she’d die of longing but this was important. She fumbled with the condom, ripping it from the package and raced back. She jumped on the bed and knelt before him. Doom gripped her hand when she began to roll the rubber onto his cock.

“You want me to wear a coat on my cock? I just took all my clothes off. This is the last thing that needs to be dressed. Isn’t it?”

Clarity laughed. “It’s a condom. We can’t make a baby. Please let go. If that massive appendage of yours isn’t inside me soon I might rip my hair out.”

Doom frowned but let go of her. Clarity was intrigued by his cock; magnificent was a puny word in comparison. The condom wasn’t large enough but it would serve its purpose. She lay back and tugged his hand.

The look on Doom’s face was priceless. “Earthlings have clothes for everything. I hear they put clothes on animals. I feel a little silly.”

“I’m not looking for style big boy, just action.”

Doom swung his hips back and forth. He widened his eyes at her. Clarity had to make him stop before she was consumed with a bout of hysteria. She grabbed his cock and tried to draw him closer. Doom took each of her ankles and pulled her toward him. She let go and he kissed the instep of her feet then each ankle.

His hands moved lower as he crept closer. She breathed a sigh of relief when finally he lay over her. The head of his cock pushed deep inside and she groaned in desire. Every inch of her was on fire. The broad span of his back rose and fell with every thrust. Clarity lifted her legs to wrap around his waist. Doom tested her depth and once realizing she could take all of him, his actions grew eager.

“You are the beauty of the first snowfall. The aroma of the first spring day. Colors of autumn pale in comparison.”

“I thought you were color blind.”

“I see differently, but I know beauty. I’ve never seen anything as beautiful as you. I’ve never touched anyone the way I need to touch you.”

Every word he spoke was emphasized with passion—his need to make her believe what was said. He fisted a hand into her hair and forced her to expose her throat. He nipped her and using his other hand gripped an ass cheek, curling her body under him.

Clarity didn’t know how to respond. Edward swore a lot when they had sex.
Fuck you’re hot,
hell you feel so damned good.
Rock my world, baby.
Nothing turned her on more than Doom’s words. Beautiful, flowing, sunshine words. If Edward had spouted anything else, she’d consider him sickly sweet. Not Doom. He spoke from his heart not lust.

Heart pounding, Clarity wanted to say something back, gift him with something as she was gifted.
Do me hard baby,
didn’t seem to capture the moment. Had she ever spoken from the heart during sex?
Never.
What a sad thought.
Now who’s the heathen?

“Doom your name is beautiful. As wonderful as any name, because it’s yours. I never knew I had to travel to another world to find you. I’d fall through a dozen sinkholes to get to you.”

When he gazed into her eyes she saw tears. “I’m not worthless when I’m with you.”

Raw emotion as real as any tore at her chest. The power of the emotion built within her until waves of desire made her whimper his name. He wrapped her in his arms and rocked with a gentle motion until they were both spent. For a while neither moved. Doom shifted.

“Clarity?”

“Hmm?”

“My new coat fell off. It’s kinda gross.”

****

“Why not just rope the little bastards and shoot ’em? They’re animals after all, not like they’re human.” Heath was showing off his rope technics in the main hall. A bandage was wrapped around his head.

Children were in another room being entertained by the dog and watched by a few women while a discussion took place. Doom wanted his villagers to know his plans. He knew with Clarity the people had a shot at a real life.

“The sacrifices need to continue. The hybrids will slaughter us all,” Edge argued.

Doom could see the man was furious the humans knew what was going on and he was afraid of change. They all were. They had every right to be. What he was asking of them went against their survival instincts.

“You’ve been between her legs and it’s stunted your thinking. A man who thinks with his cock has a hard head, and a dumb ass,” Edge raged.

Doom smashed him in the face. Edge lay stunned on the ground. No one had ever struck him before. Fists balled Doom jumped up on a table.

“Anyone who thinks I’m weak is welcome to challenge me.”

No one moved. The men of the village were hard and powerful. It wasn’t Doom’s size that gave them pause, it was the burden of the tattoos he wore. His pecs flexed making the tattoos dance to be noticed.

“Doom is right,” Menace said. “It’s time for a change. We are going to die regardless. Don’t you care how or for what you die? I want to spend time in a woman’s arms. I want to hold a child born of my flesh and blood.”

“I don’t think we are capable of giving life,” a woman sadly said.

“Because all we do is take lives. No more. Clarity has shown me inventions that will make you believe in her as I do. Edge, get off your ass. You look ridiculous sitting there,” Doom said.

Grumbling, Edge climbed to his feet and glared at Clarity. She glared back. In her hand was the taser; no one was stupid enough to go near her. Especially when Heath saw it, threw up his hands, and gave her a wide berth. It was apparent he was familiar with the weapon, but had no idea what a gun was. Alice had known what a gun was. Clarity muttered she’d never heard of a cowboy who didn’t know guns. Heath told her tasers and cattle prods were sufficient. Clarity mentioned it might be why the hybrids didn’t have weapons. Another reason to keep her doubly safe from the beasts.