Dark Tremor (Mated by Magic #2) (10 page)

“Rise and shine.” Jace opened the heavy curtains with a screech that rivaled chalk across a blackboard.

The scent of bacon and eggs made her stomach churn. He placed a tray on the bed table and showed her the small alarm clock before moving it aside. Four in the afternoon?  How had that happened?

“Go away.” She pulled a pillow over her head and burrowed deeper into the comforter. The humiliation of throwing herself at him the night before flooded through her and she groaned.

“We’ve got a lot to do and you’ve already slept most of the day away. Get up. Shower and get dressed. You’ve got an hour, then we’re heading out.”

“Where?” She peaked out from under the pillow. Damn. His jeans hugged his fine ass, and biceps bulged under the short sleeves of a plain black t-shirt.

“Camping.” Green eyes met hers from across the room, crinkling at the edges.

She sat up and noticed she wore a clean nightshirt. Her cheeks heated as she imagined him undressing her.

“You’re kidding, right?”

“No. We need an open space. I want to see how strong your powers really are.” He stopped at the door and inclined his head, brows raised, and a wide grin spread across his lush lips. “Plus, I made a promise that I fully intend to keep.”

He caught her exasperated sigh and laughed as he left the room. She threw the pillow at the closing door.

Adrenaline rushed through her body at what he was suggesting. Holy hell, was she really going to do this?

Mate.
That was a huge step.

Her body cried out,
yes
,
yes, yes
.

Everything about being with Jace seemed right, but how did she know it wasn’t just solstice heat? They were from two completely different worlds. As different as night and day, or fire and earth. She smiled at that. What would their combined powers produce?

She swallowed hard, then flung herself backwards. That was the only reason he was doing it. For power. To protect the turquoise from falling into the wrong hands. Was that really a reason to mate with someone?

He didn’t care about her. At least she didn’t think he did.

Still…

What if it was more? She shook her head and stood, moving to the shower. The man had gotten under her skin.

Did he want her the same way she wanted him? He sometimes acted like he did, but then...Oh God. He’d rejected her last night when she’d come on strong. Obviously, there was no room in his life for someone like her.

“Face it, Terra,” she said into the full length mirror. “When it comes to men, you’re clueless.”

Her head throbbed from all of the unanswered questions and last night’s drugs.

She closed her eyes and let the warm stream of water wash away her reservations.

Right now, that kind of future wasn’t what she should be thinking about. She had to kill Mic. That was a hell of a lot bigger than whether or not Jace Fialko could ever love her.

“Shit.” She banged her head softly against the shower wall, remembering her admission of love the night before.

What had she been thinking? She hadn’t, that had been the problem. But she knew those words hadn’t come from nowhere. She had feelings for Jace, whether she liked it or not.

“I don’t even know him,” she mumbled to herself, even as her body ached with the need to feel his warm skin against hers, to have him possess her in ways she’d never allowed a man to touch her.

A small moan tore from her lips as she moved a hand over her breast, the other between her legs. Her hunger for him was like a fever burning through her very soul. It was an agony she’d never experienced before.

Her body begged for release, for the pleasure she knew only Jace could provide.

If this was solstice heat, she didn’t know how anyone ever denied it.

Saying goodbye would be hard, but not letting him have his way with her would be even harder.

Jace put the truck in park and took a deep, steadying breath, then glanced over at Terra whose face was a mask of calm.

What was she thinking?

Dark, violet mountains loomed in the distance, surrounding them. They were alone. No one would disturb them this far out in the desert.

“Terra, if you don’t–”

“I want to.” Her lush lips turned up in a small smile, even though her voice was hesitant.

Blonde hair appeared silver, exotic, in the full moonlight. Blue eyes shimmered like dark storm clouds right before lightning hit.

Damn, she was beautiful.

He wanted her so fiercely that his heart ached more than his cock.

Slow. I need to go slow.

How could he, when every inch of his witch DNA screamed fight? Last time...Last time he was a kid, he reminded himself. And drunk. And setup by that bitch, Nicole.

“What’s wrong? Do
you
not want to do this?” she asked quietly.

He was fucking things up, but he couldn’t get that night out of his head.

“More than anything in the world.” Jace rubbed his temples. “It’s not you.”

Her brows furrowed.

“How much do you remember about last night?”

“Not much. Things are fuzzy.”

Closing his eyes, he exhaled heavily. Maybe if he told her everything, she’d understand. Maybe she wouldn’t. But if she was going to be mated to him for life, she deserved to know the truth of his past.

“Jace?” Her palm rested on his arm, sending currents of energy coursing through his body.

“I need to tell you something. About my past. Once I do, I’ll understand if you don’t want to do this. I’ll respect your decision.” He opened his eyes and fell deep into the pools of blue.

Tilting her head, she said, “Okay…”

“This isn’t the first time I’ve gone through the mating ritual.”

“You’re mated already?” Her hand released its tight grip, and he shivered throughout his entire body.

“No.”

“I don’t understand.”

His fingers scrubbed across his face. “I was young. Drunk. I didn’t realize until last night, but Nicole set me up.”

Terra remained quiet, so he continued.

“The girl’s name was Megan. She was…beautiful, and she wanted me. It was the first time I’d ever experienced solstice heat. I’d been drinking.” He clenched his fingers around the steering wheel. “There was no excuse. Even drunk I should have known. She was a half-breed, almost powerless. When I threw the first real blast of energy at her–”

“Oh, Jace.”

With a shake of his head, he continued. “She died in my arms. I killed her. Even knowing now that Nicole was behind it doesn’t change the fact that I’m the one that took that girl’s life. Do you really want to be mated to someone like that?”

Silence hung heavy around them. He was almost afraid to look at her.

Terra shifted in the seat beside him. He didn’t realize what she was doing until she was straddling him, her hands resting on the sides of his face. Her lips brushed against his, once, twice, then pulled back, tears brimming in her eyes.

“I understand why you hold onto the guilt. And I also know nothing I can say will take that away.” She rested her forehead against his. “But what I do know is that you’re a good man, and you didn’t hurt that girl on purpose.”

“Terra, I–”

She kissed him again, harder this time. When she pulled back, the most breathtaking smile lit up her face. “Yes. I want to be mated to you.”

He closed his eyes, inhaling deep as her words washed over him.

The click of the door, and the warm rush of desert air made his eyes open. Terra hopped out of the truck and a wicked grin spread across her face.

“Are we going to do this or not?”

He laughed, feeling lighter than he had in years. “Hell yeah, we’re doing this.”

It took less than fifteen minutes to set up their tent and start a bonfire. Then, he laid a heavy blanket on the ground, sat down, and opened his arms for her to join him.

The night couldn’t be more perfect. The air was warm, the moon large and bright, the only sound was the crackling of the fire, and noises of the wilderness.

His arms wrapped around her when she sat down, pulling her close, to meet his kiss.

“I’m ready,” she whispered against his mouth.

Shaking at her complete trust in him, he conjured a ball of energy, and said, “Put your hands between it.”

When she did, her eyes went black, her lips parted, and she moaned.

“I feel you. As if you live inside me.”

He amplified the energy and smiled when her eyes closed and a small whimper vibrated in her throat.

“I need to know you. In the same way.”

“I’m not sure I know how.”

She was earth and he was fire. He wasn’t sure how her powers worked, but he had an idea.

“Come here.” He leaned back. “Straddle me and put one palm to the ground and one palm to my chest.”

Chewing on her bottom lip, she obeyed. The sides of her inner thighs gripped his waist, and he moaned. Sudden thumping of the earth under him matched his heartbeat, as her essence entered him.

Sweetness. Pure heaven.

She lowered onto her forearms.

Take her now.
His cock screamed at him as thousands of years of evolution kicked into play. He sucked in his breath and tried to keep his talent from frying them both.

She must’ve felt it too, for the earth rumbled, and stones flew into the air.

“Oh God. It’s happening. I don’t know if I can do this. I might hurt you.” Eyes wide, she jumped off him and scooted away on hands and knees.

He stood and raked his fingers across his face, and everything around him buzzed with energy.

“If you don’t want this, sweet thing, run, now. Please. I don’t know if I can stop what’s about to happen.”

His body convulsed as he held back the energy he needed to throw into her. Damned if he wasn’t just as scared.

“I want this.” Her eyes met his, she balled her hand into a fist, and pounded the ground. The dirt under his feet disappeared and he fell flat onto his ass. Between his feet a geyser spurted twenty feet into the air, drenching him with warm water.

When he stood back up, his little witch was grinning. “Did I get you wet?”

“Oh, that’s how it’s going to be?” A fireball flared in his hand, stoking it with all the sexual energy he could muster.

“Go for it.”

“Fight me witch.” He threw his energy at her center.

She fell back and frowned. “That’s all you got?”

Wow. His ego did a deep dive. Damn. He needed to up his game. Never imagined she would be the one demanding more.

“You can’t be afraid of hurting me or this won’t work.” She shook the earth and a two-foot glowing puddle formed in the ground between them.

Holy hell.
Lava pooled from the core of the earth.

Her eyes glowed red, fully absorbed by the mating ritual.

The harder he tried to connect to his mating energy, the more elusive it seemed. His next blast, even
he
sensed, was wimpy.

Her next attack, however, hit the ground under his feet, and he sunk up to his neck in loose warm sand. It swirled around him, making every inch of his body crave her.

“Are you man enough to take what you want, Fialko?”

He recognized the ritual phrases. He knew what to expect. But he couldn’t do it. Fear held him back. He couldn’t risk losing her and yet that was exactly what might happen in the few seconds if he didn’t give her his everything.

“Say it, Jace. Say you belong to me.”

When he couldn’t respond, the blazing in her eyes dulled, and tears welled in the corners.

“Terra. Wait.” At the thought of her leaving him there, energy surged from his core like never before, not even with the black turquoise in his hand. Sand crackled and burned around him.

Her mouth dropped open, eyes wide.

He forced the swirling sand back with his heat-energy, and blue flames shot into the dark. Then thick glass surrounded the inside of a cylindrical hole where he was trapped moments before. He put his hands on the surface and jumped out, energy snapping around him.  His footsteps in the sand turned to solid blue crystal.

She stared, his flaming body reflecting in the dark centers of her eyes.

“You going to fight me or not?” he said in a hoarse whisper.

She grinned and a boulder from a nearby hill hurled at him. He set it on fire to create a meteor that soared across the sky, then exploded over their heads. The sparkles lit like the embers of a firecracker around them. With each drop of her essence that fell upon his head, he went crazy wild, like nothing else mattered, or ever would again.

“Terra.” Shivering uncontrollably, he reached deep within his soul, the part he thought had locked away long ago, and added it to the energy ball that flamed in his palm. Would she run or embrace his pain? He released it like a bucket of water over her head.

She closed her eyes and gasped. Her chest expanded toward the sky with her arms outstretched.

Tears ran down her cheeks. She pulled him to her body, and wrapped her legs around his waist when he lifted her against him.

Surrounded by their mixed energy, he laid her upon the sand. It trembled and turned soft.

He could feel her. Her soul opened to him, and he embraced it with his entire essence.

Pure. Sweet. Tangible. Emotion.

He found her mouth and devoured her. She tasted of honey and
hope
.

“Say it.” She fumbled with his jean’s button, released him, and surrounded his cock with her fingers. She pulsed a tremor into him, and grinned up at him.

Holy hell. 

Unwilling to remove her hand, he used his power to dissolve her clothes into ashes.

“Oh my God.” Wide eyes glanced down at her naked body, then back up at him. “I didn’t know you could do that.”

“Neither did I,” he chuckled. “But it’s convenient.”

The beautiful sound of her laughter filled the desert.

She fell back as he kissed down her body. A soft moan escaped her lips. She started to close her legs when he moved between them.

“Jace?”

“Let me taste you.” He placed his palm over her soft, wet mound, and pulsated a gentle heat into her.

With a little whimper, she opened wide for him and the ground under them rumbled.

His tongue stroked against her swollen, sensitive folds. He slipped one finger inside, and her hips jerked up to meet his touch, begging for more.

He had longed for this moment, but nothing could have prepared him for the torrent of emotions that filled him. 

Lust. Love. Did it matter? She was his.

Her juices gathered, saturating his finger and tongue. Fuck, she tasted like heaven.

A wail tore from her lips, and her body jerked against his mouth as her pleasure ripped through her body.

“Jace.”

“I’m here.”

“I need–”

“I know.” He crawled up, kissed her, and eased into her slowly.

A small barrier tore, and a pained cry left her lips.

Fuck.

He gritted his teeth, not daring to hardly breathe. How the hell had he missed the signs?

Rational brain fought cock and inner cavemen as he searched his memories for some article, something, anything that described what he should do next. He’d never breached a virginal lining before.

“Are you alright?” he asked, holding himself above her.

“I don’t think we fit.” There were tears in her eyes. She tried to scoot from underneath him.

“Just a sec, Honey. Don’t move. I got this.” He reached his hand between them, found her nub, and caressed her until she squirmed and mewed.

“That better?” He nipped at her bottom lip.

“Oh, God, yes.” She rocked against him, allowing him to penetrate even deeper.

“Mine,” he growled into her kiss. “My mate.”

“Yes.” Her gaze locked on him. His own hunger and need reflected in the brilliant blue depth. 

“Say it.”

“Jace.” Her pelvis lifted high, she moaned, creaming and wanting. “My mate.”

He only had to touch her swelling bud and she cried out, her body quivering around his cock.

A geyser shot out of the earth nearby. Sprinkles of warm water washed over them as she pulsed repeatedly against his hand, her breathing rough and irregular. She made love to him as water from the geyser pooled beneath them. His hands slid over her slick, muddy body and cupped her firm ass.

Mine
. His inner caveman grinned as she rode with him into the sweetest agony he’d ever known. Unable to do anything else, he met her each time she arched.