Darkness Burning (5 page)

Miki let out a low whistle, her curiosity once again piqued. But with men posted on either side of the door, she didn’t think she had a chance in hell of satisfying it by trying a direct route. Remembering the French doors leading into the garden from the library, she headed back to the salon.

She got only a step inside the door when a handsome man approached her. He didn’t speak, just snagged her hand and lifted it to his lips for a lingering kiss. “Thank you for your gift,” he said, his simple words made more extraordinary by a hint of French inflection.

She knew the formal words, had heard them spoken each time a vampire had raised his or her mouth from a blood host. “I haven’t given you a thing.”

“But you will.”

Rather than feeling angry at his arrogance, a surge of heat flooded her—thick, immediate, so strong she knew she wouldn’t resist long. And she didn’t want to. Knowing this one
ranked off the pheromone scale, she tried halfheartedly one last time. “I’m not into the group thing,” she said weakly.

“The library’s empty,
ma petite
,” he said, without missing a beat. “We’ll be alone.”

“I know where it is.” She walked past Erika, who now rode one of her hosts, straddling him, her knees planted on either side of his hips on a pillowy, wine-colored sofa.

By the time she reached the library, her legs quivered. She kept her back to him, listening as he quietly closed the door and then drew near her, to stand just behind her.

Without attempting another halfhearted demur, she turned and raised her face to his.

His hands cupped her cheeks tenderly, and he bent down to kiss her.

Eyes wide open, Miki threaded her fingers through his thick, dark hair, then traced more along the square curve of his strong jaw. Her mouth opened beneath his, welcoming the spear of his tongue. She sucked on it for a moment, then moaned as liquid heat trickled from inside her.

“So eager,” he said, drawing away.

She was. Alex hadn’t been wrong about those pheromones. They intoxicated, completely banishing inhibitions. “I’ve fed one vampire tonight. You can’t take much more of my blood.”

“A pity,” he said, pushing her hair behind her ears and rubbing a thumb across her bottom lip. “Another precious gift then? Or perhaps just one, well-timed bite?”

“Please,” she said, surprising herself with her forwardness.

A grin stretched his perfect mouth. “And I thought you a little shy,” he replied, his voice teasing.

Miki gave him a small frown. “This is new to me. Not my first time, I mean. What I’m saying is I’m experimenting. But I
don’t know if I can handle a casual quickie.”

“You want romance with your sex?”

Romance? Not something she’d considered or desired before, but with his dark good looks and sensual intensity, she knew she wanted something more. “Will you pretend for me?”

“Will it make it easier for you to say yes? I do need to feed…”

“I’ve already done that, I think. Said yes. I just want some ground rules.”

He gave her a slow nod, then took her hand again and drew her to a leather couch with its back facing the garden. As much privacy as they’d be allowed, she guessed.

“You’ll be delightful. Your flavors will please my lady.”

Startled, Miki frowned. “I don’t get it. The way you all are so easy. Your lady won’t mind?”

“I didn’t say she wouldn’t mind. But the jealousy only sparks her fire…and it isn’t as if I haven’t had to stand back and watch her love another.” He drew Miki down to the leather couch, then knelt in front of her, drawing her clothes away slowly, piece by piece.

As each one drifted away, he caressed the skin he bared in slow, even strokes that raised goose bumps in his wake and had her blood heating, pooling between her legs. His lady was lucky indeed….

When Miki sat naked in front of him, his gaze locked with hers, and he placed his hands on her knees. He spread them open, and Miki sank back against the soft, buttery leather with a trembling sigh.

“You will do everything I command.”

Not a question. Miki’s breaths shortened at the firmness of his voice and the quiet, burning sensuality in his expres
sion, knowing her limited knowledge of sex was about to be enhanced. “Tell me what you want,” she whispered.

“Watch me. Don’t close your eyes. Not once, or I will stop.”

That sounded easy enough.

His hands smoothed up the tops of her thighs until they reached the juncture, then his thumbs slid down and spread her lips.

This time she could see what he saw, see the expression of the man as he leaned over her open sex and tongued her. Fierce, hot elation swept through her.

His full, masculine lips mouthed her labia, tugging them, pulling them until they were plump and so sensitive she thought she’d scream.

When he suctioned at the moist, tender flesh between them, her hips rose to press closer, urging him inside.

His tongue stroked out, sinking into her, swirling inside before retreating again. He lifted his head and gave her a sharpened glance. “Alex has been busy.”

How could he know? Then she blurted out the question.

“Our senses of taste and scent are far superior to yours. He must have rolled his face between your legs. I can understand—you’re delicious and so very responsive. I could swim in your pleasure.”

Miki’s whole body shuddered. “Fuck me, please?” God, she’d actually said that?

His small, self-satisfied smile irked while at the same time tugging her arousal higher. “When I’m ready.”

He bent again, this time licking her with the flat of his tongue—long broad strokes, from the bottom of her pussy to the top, lapping like a dog, the strokes evenly timed, almost
soothing, except the longer he plied her with his tongue, the more restless she became. Her hands tightened on the soft leather cushions beneath her. Her breasts hardened, the tips extending as they grew more engorged.

As his tongue stroked lower, she didn’t have the breath to protest. When he glanced over her other entrance, she drew in a hissing breath and began to close her eyes.

His tongue halted. His body stilled.

Miki opened her eyes wide.

Firm hands slid beneath her bottom, raising it. Thumbs pressed apart her buttocks.

Bracing on her forearms, Miki lifted her legs into the air, allowing him to tilt her toward his mouth, and she groaned when his tongue laved her tiny asshole.

Over and over again, he teased and prodded, soothing with broader strokes when she began to keen.

Finally, he lowered her and leaned back. “I want you bent over the arm of the sofa.”

So much for romance, but the tightness of his voice indicated he might be every bit as turned on as she was. The thought intensified the excitement coiling at her core.

Awkwardly, without much room to maneuver between them, she lowered her legs to the ground and rose up, her pussy inches from him. She blushed when she realized she’d have to push against his face to climb past him.

His slow grin told her he knew her dilemma.

Her knees wobbled as she straightened, brushing her open sex against his nose.

His chest rose as he inhaled; she gasped when he burrowed between her lips and swirled his chin and mouth against her. Then he slid his hands behind her thighs and leaned away,
helping her balance.

She stepped sideways to climb past him. He didn’t move from the ground, just stared as she stood at the end of the couch and contemplated the thickly padded leather bolster.

He lifted one eyebrow, giving her a look that said a world about his arrogance and confidence.

She bent slowly over the padded arm of the couch, her face heating at his low chuckle. Still, she liked how vulnerable she felt, her ass raised high in the air, all leverage lost as only her toes touched the floor.

He shoved upward, unbuckled his belt and slid down his zipper, loosening his trousers just enough to reach inside and slowly draw out his cock.

His hand caressed it, sliding up and down its length in one long stroke. Then his gaze rose to meet hers.

Miki’s mouth opened automatically, her breaths already panting. She didn’t know, didn’t care whether the drug had just kicked in or his “special powers” and amazing cock inspired her. Liquid gushed between her legs, trickling down her spread thighs. The way he looked at her, as though he would devour her, as though he meant to take her savagely, had her shaking and her pussy pulsing.

He came to stand beside her, holding his cock in his hand. “Wet it with your tongue.”

She leaned toward it, opening her mouth obediently, and swallowed the thick tip. He stroked into her, gliding along her tongue, pressing deeper until she opened her jaws and let him fill her. He tapped the back of her throat twice, gently, then pulsed in and out, more shallowly, before withdrawing completely.

Reluctant to let him go, she followed with her mouth, kiss
ing his cock and rubbing her lips over the soft tip.

His laughter was a deep, sinful rumble. He disappeared from her sight, but his hands caressed her backside, palms lifting her cheeks, rolling them firmly up and down, then apart, his thumbs sliding between the globes.

Miki’s legs trembled, and he laughed again. When his cock nudged between her legs, she groaned, tried to scoot back to take him, but he pushed her forward. Her toes left the ground.

He nudged again, this time sliding along her seam, then he prodded inside, just the tip, just a tease.

“Please, please fuck me,” she groaned.

“I want you to caress your breasts. My hands are busy elsewhere.”

She quickly brought her hands to her breasts and cupped them, squeezing. Her nipples were tight and scraped her palms.

The man behind her pushed inside again, this time deeper, stroking inward, stretching her inner walls, while his thumbs slid deeper between her buttocks and rubbed her asshole.

Miki couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think. She wriggled, trying to coax him deeper. She needed more.

When a thick thumb pushed inside her ass, her back arched and she pinched her nipples, loving the painful pressure behind her and needing more. She twisted her fingers.

His cock began to move in and out, his hips gliding side to side to stretch her as he crammed into her. He toggled his thumb in her ass, digging deeper. Then holding it still, he hooked it to pull up. He thrust his cock faster.

Miki’s teeth chattered. Her ass burned, her pussy convulsed—welcoming him deeper.

He thrust faster, harder, slapping against her wet juncture as
he crashed deeper inside her. She squeezed her inner muscles, discovering it increased the friction building between them. His low growling moan pleased her, gave her a sense of power, and she squeezed again.

He bent over her, slipped his free hand beneath her body and slid it under her hand to grasp her breast. She arched her back toward him, wanting more contact. His hot skin to hers.

When he nuzzled her neck through her hair, she knew what else he craved, and she shook her head, making her hair fall forward over her face, baring her neck.

His bite stung, his thighs hardened as he pushed and ground his cock deeper, moving them both with his rough, powerful thrusts, forward and back, as he began to draw on the wound he’d made.

Blood rushed from her head. She felt a little dizzy, but elation swept through her at the same time. He pounded her, rocking the sofa so hard that it budged, its legs scraping on the wood floor.

Now, he powered into her, stroking hard, deep, ramming into her channel, churning in the cream he’d drawn from her arousal. Her whole body tightened, arching higher—then she exploded, a long thin wail ripping from her, punctuated noisily by his harsh thrusts. Until at last a stream of hot liquid bathed her womb and hot walls, soothing as he slowed his thrusts.

He disengaged his fangs, licked her neck in tender laps, and slowly pulled away, leaving her slumped over the cushioned arm, unable to move.

A door creaked open. “They’re ready for you, Nic,” came a low, amused drawl, one she recognized from the alley, when he’d interrupted another sexy bite.

Clothing rustled. A zipper scraped. A hand slid up the back
of her thigh and squeezed her bottom. “Now, I thank you for the gift. Be sure to send my greetings to Alex.”

As he walked away, Miki scraped the hair from her sweaty face and watched his tall frame disappear into a bright hallway.

A glance at her watch had her wincing. There were still hours until dawn. How many more temptations would she face before this night was done?

A
lex returned to the salon, avoiding a path that might take him near his grandmother. He needn’t have worried about drawing her attention. Erika was lost in a sensual haze, her gaze unfocused as she bounced on the lap of one of the handsome bucks she’d collected for the evening.

Needing fresh air to clear his head and dampen his disgust, he headed straight for the library, knowing the doors inside that room would lead him to the garden stretching along the side and back of the house.

Behind him a murmur of voices rose, and he looked over his shoulder, his gaze catching on the matriarch of the
Ardeal
coven, Inanna. This was the first time he’d ever seen her in the flesh rather than
through time-clouded glimpses of memories in his vast store. And although he knew doing so was dangerous, he couldn’t help giving in to the urge to draw closer.

She must have cast an allure over the entire room, so attentive was every gaze, including his own, on her slim body as she swept inside. Long midnight hair, shiny as a raven’s wing, brushed past her shoulders to flow down the back of a simple wine-colored sarong. Her slender body was nude beneath it, the silk clinging to the points of her breasts and swirling in the hollow between her thighs. Dark rubies studded the black choker around her neck.

The lids of her almond-shaped eyes were half-closed, like a cat’s, as her gaze slowly landed on each man in the room, before seeking the next. Each time her gaze paused, the man sucked in a deep breath, hoping for a nod, a gesture to draw nearer, which she never gave. Until she reached him. Her full lips curved into a slow smile and
she
sauntered toward him.

His body stilled with alarm, as well as a deepening arousal. How the fuck would he keep her from discovering what he was if she decided to take a bite?

She lifted her hand, a graceful, regal movement.

Without hesitating, he slid his beneath hers, bent his head, and raised her soft, slender hand to his mouth. The kiss he gave her smooth skin lingered.

Not by his will.

“So handsome,” she said in a lilting voice. “Erika does have an eye.”

With her hand still resting on his, Alex swayed imperceptibly on his feet. His face felt hot, then cold.
Shit.
He couldn’t stop the rush of memories that swept through him like a torrent.

Searing
,
suffocating heat. A hot breeze licking over moist skin.
Moonlight silvering the interior of a large
,
sparsely furnished room. A bed draped in gauze curtains.

A furtive glance down the empty hallway assured privacy
,
and she entered the room
,
easing the door closed behind her. She crept closer
,
her body quivering at the low groans emanating from deeper inside the chamber.

She paused to pinch her nipples through her thin
,
linen gown
,
drawing them erect until they scraped deliciously against the fabric.

She approached the bed and swept aside the gauze curtain
,
staring hungrily at the naked man writhing on the bed
,
hand fisted around his straining cock. The aphrodisiacal powder the wizard had sprinkled liberally on his food had worked beyond her imaginings.

He would not resist her
,
however much he respected her father and wished to earn his place at court through his own merits.

“Get out!” he gritted between jaws clenching so hard that his teeth ground loudly.

Inanna’s thighs rubbed together
,
smearing evidence of the desire trickling from her body. She smiled
,
congratulating herself for choosing so well. The warrior’s strong body would pleasure her endlessly and father a ferocious child.

Muscles flexed along his taut abdomen as he rutted into his hand. His thick flanks tensed
,
carved into relief by moonlight gleaming on sweat as he pulsed helplessly.

That he was handsome—curling dark hair
,
a strong
,
masculine jaw, and thin
,
sensual lips—only added to her delight.

Inanna stepped closer
,
reaching out to trail her fingertips slowly from his ankle
,
moving upward.

His powerful leg trembled—but he didn’t command her to stop. When she reached his upper thigh
,
she paused to unfasten the brooch holding her gown at her shoulder. It slithered to the floor.

His ravenous gaze swept her body in an almost physical caress
,
halt
ing to examine her distended nipples and her glistening sex. Although the flush staining his cheeks said he was embarrassed by his lack of self-control
,
his fist ground up and down his cock faster.

“Let me soothe you,” she whispered. “Use my body
,
my woman’s furrow
,
to slake your lust. No one will know.”

His lips lifted in a feral snarl.

She took no offense
,
knowing his show of resistance was false because of the desperation glittering in his eyes.

She smoothed both hands around his fist and knelt on the bed to come over him
,
her eager lips opening to swallow the tip of his cock.

This time she would use just her mouth for seduction. His respite would be short. When the heat rose again
,
he’d be forced to accept the relief she offered.

How delicious he was
,
how glorious would be her satisfaction when her sister cried over the loss of his affections.

With effort, Alex pulled away his hand and opened his eyes.

Inanna gave him a quizzical glance.

“Too much to drink. Forgive me,” he said quickly.

Her light, sultry laughter lifted the hairs on the back of his neck.

A tall dark Cajun sidled up beside her, gave Alex a searing glare, and leaned down to whisper in Inanna’s ear.

Her glance swept over Alex again, and her lips formed a disappointed pout before she turned and slipped her arm inside the curved elbow of her ever loyal paramour—Pasqual.

Alex let out a deep, relieved breath. He gave himself a stern admonition not to let his arrogance lead him into danger in this court of intrigue.

He slowly circled the room, fighting his own impatience. When he reached the library, he noted a rustling coming from
the bathroom, so he headed straight for the French doors and let himself out into the garden, where he breathed in the honeysuckle and rose-scented air, grateful for the respite from the heavy, murky air inside. The scent of sex and blood had become so thick that he thought it would permeate his clothing and his skin. He hated the decadence. Hated the lack of restraint and respect.

Not that he didn’t understand the underlying lusts that ruled all vampires or that he didn’t seek his own liaisons to satisfy them. But he could measure a creature’s strength of character in how he approached assuaging those hungers.

Indiscriminate feeding and sex took no imagination. Taught no lessons.

Perhaps his view had been skewed by spending centuries with a former monk. Lately, however, he’d acted on instincts, on those insidious hungers. Taking Chessa might have been planned, but he’d gloried in the ease with which the act had finally happened.

And then Sarah, whom he’d only meant to protect in that dark alley. What had started as a bite, something to ease her fear and his own hungers, had overwhelmed him. If Malcolm hadn’t interrupted, Alex would have taken her right then and there. When she’d found him at the blood bar, he’d finally given way to his lust.

In any case, he was ready to focus on the true business of the evening. He had to know what happened when the
sabat
met. He wouldn’t be allowed in the room, couldn’t even let anyone know of his interest.

Nicolas was the key. He’d have to approach him afterward. But how would he while away the hours in the meantime?

He wandered through the dark garden, avoiding the pools
of light spilling from the paned windows and French doors, compliments of the generator droning in the distance. Hands clasped behind his back, he pretended boredom in case he was observed, while inside he felt frustrated, impatient, wishing he were anywhere but here.

Here
was a dangerous, incestuous cesspool. Yet Chessa wouldn’t budge from
Ardeal
. She complicated matters. How would he keep her safe from the
sabat
and Inanna? Chessa knew Inanna was crafty and untrustworthy, but she didn’t know the depths to which her
grandmère
would go to get exactly what she wanted.

A door leading from the library creaked quietly open, then closed again. Was someone following him? Alex stepped behind a tall white column to watch.

A woman stepped into a pool of moonlight. She adjusted her clothing, cursing softly under her breath. Disheveled, her long red hair mussed, she raked her fingers through it, wrinkled her nose in disgust, and glanced around.

Dressed in a brown leather bomber jacket and jeans, he recognized her instantly. Malcolm had indeed added her to the last patrol from New Orleans—brought her as food for the straight
Revenants
. By the careful way she walked, he could tell that she’d already indulged in the debauchery. Not that he could blame any man for wanting to take a bite. Her vibrant coloring was like feathers cloaking a luscious little bird. Ripe for plucking.

Alex eased himself closer to her through the shadows, wondering why this woman seemed fated to cross his path again and again.

Her straight back ended in a lush round bottom. Her legs were long and slim. But it was her face that arrested him. Por
celain-pale skin. A short, blunt nose and rounded, stubborn chin. Although he still couldn’t tell their color, her eyes were large and luminous.

She walked deeper into the garden, found a teakwood bench, and settled gingerly down.

Her eyelids fluttered shut for a moment and she inhaled, her shoulders rising, then relaxing visibly. When she opened them again, her expression grew disgruntled. “Damn, I need a bath.”

Perhaps here was a bit of distraction to keep him amused as he waited. He quietly approached her from behind. “Enjoying the party?” he asked, deepening his voice so that she wouldn’t recognize it.

She jumped, her head swiveling to find him in the shadows. Her eyes widened on him. “I thought I was alone,” she said, her tone indicating her preference that he leave. “Besides, I already gave. Twice,” she bit out. “So no tricks—keep those damn pheromones and fangs to yourself.”

“I’m not a
Revenant
,” he said easily, not the least put off by her bristling.

“I don’t care what the hell you call yourself, no more ‘gifts’ are happenin’ here.”

Despite her prickly demeanor, he settled on the bench beside her, leaning back as though he was oblivious to her annoyance and meant to stay a while. “I
meant
, I’m not one of the turned vampires.”

“You’re not a vampire?” Her gaze narrowed. “Every vampire I’ve met has been beyond beautiful. You’re too handsome to be a normal guy.”

He preferred an indirect response to an outright lie. “I came
with a group of guys from New Orleans to attend the party. But thanks for the compliment.”

Her expression was no less suspicious. “Did you know it would be like this?”

“Pretty much.”

“Then I’m surprised you’re out here. Erika seems to have plenty to go around.”

He didn’t have to pretend a shudder. “She’s a slut.”

The woman snorted. “Plenty of those here, that’s for sure,” she said, her voice smaller.

Hearing the soft self-recrimination in her tone, he canted his head and reached over to lift a strand of hair stuck to her sweaty cheek. “Did anyone do something they shouldn’t have?” he asked, tucking the strand behind her ear. “Something…uninvited?”

She glanced away, her lips twisting. “No, but it’s not like they play fair.”

Alex found her confiding in him as though he were just a harmless stranger—a
human
stranger—amusing, as well as refreshing. “Their allure can be overwhelming,” he murmured.

“Exactly,” she said, her agreement emphatic. She turned slightly toward him. “I just can’t believe—”

“You can’t beat yourself up just because a few of them got to you. It’s not your fault.”

“Not a few,” she said hotly, her body stiffening. “What do you take me for?”

He lifted his eyebrows in mock horror. “More, then?”

A scowl drew her dark brows together, and her lips pouted in a bullish moue.

“Sorry. A couple?” He knew even before her curt nod that
Nicolas had fed his hungers; his scent lingered in the air around her body. Made his own tighten with jealousy. Had Nic done it on purpose when he’d scented Alex’s musk on her skin?

“I haven’t gotten even one bite tonight, but I’m finding it harder to resist them. I think they spiked the drinks. They do that sometimes at these gatherings,” he suggested to draw her out even more.

“Not anything I can help you with, buddy. Gonna have to take care of it yourself.”

“Will you watch?” he asked innocently.

Her nose wrinkled in disgust. “Uhhh…
no
!”

He grinned. “Sorry, I was just teasing. You seem a little tense. Thought I might lighten your mood.”

The corners of her lips curved upward, and she ducked her head. When her gaze returned to his, a solemn expression replaced it. “Is it always about sex?”

“Can’t help it. I drank too much.”

“I don’t mean you. Those…creatures…inside.”

Alex waggled his eyebrows. “I hate to break it to you, but when there are men and women in proximity of each other—whatever their species—it’s usually about the sex.”

“I knew that, in a sort of intellectual way,” she said slowly, “but tonight’s been damn confusing.”