Desires of the Otherworld 2: Darkest Hunger (21 page)

Bridon considered ignoring Micah’s advice, when Willow finished shifting into wolf form and rested on the ground, breathing heavily. Then she did something he didn’t anticipate. She rose, snorted, and bit his leg—ripping his pants and breaking skin—and took off in a dead run. He watched her rush past the circle and bolt through the open gates.

“Well?” Micah asked. “What are you waiting for?”

Glancing down at his leg, he muttered, “Care to explain?”

“She just initiated your mating. She wants you to chase her down and prove you’re worthy.”

“In that case…” Bridon closed his eyes and transported out of the fortress.

He glanced around the outskirts of the forest. It was cheating, but he didn’t care. He used his blood bond to locate her. She wasn’t far, waiting for him just inside the woods. Grinning, he closed the distance between, traveling quickly while taking advantage of his ability to move with minimal sound.

When he saw Willow, he stopped to appreciate the view. She’d traveled to a large pond, changed to her human form, and was standing chest-deep in the water, scrubbing the blood from her skin. He removed his clothes and placed them on a fallen branch before he teleported to the space just behind her. The water was warm against his skin, the surface a brilliant blue. She gasped when he wrapped his arms around her and cupped her breasts in his hands, massaging her nipples with his fingers.

Brushing his lips against her neck, he growled, “I don’t know if I should be angry with you or thankful you’re alive.”

“I’m sorry.” She exhaled, going soft against him. “I should have been honest with you. I was afraid that—”

He lifted one of his hands and caught her chin between his thumb and forefinger, turning her head until their eyes met. “Not another word from you. Tonight, you’re going to give everything to me, Willow Miloradovic.”

“Yes,” she whispered back. “Everything.”

Leaning forward, he kissed her and lowered the hand at her jaw to the apex of her thighs. She moaned into his mouth, reached behind her, and wrapped her fingers around his neck. Their tongues met, danced, and parted. Every sound that came from her made his cock harder, the flesh so strained that he could barely squeeze his length between the globes of her ass.

Pulling away, he stared into his Chosen’s face. “I’m going to do more than make love to you tonight. I’m going to fuck you until there is no question of who you belong to. You will accept me as your Fated, your lover, and the man you’re going to spend the rest of eternity with.”

He wrapped an arm around her waist and took her to the pier at the side of the pond. When they reached it, he forced her onto her stomach, until he could see the curve of her buttocks and the folds of her pussy. Placing an arm in the center of her lower back, he aligned himself and speared his cock into her. She moaned, pushing back as best she could.

“Tell me how that feels, love. Tell me what it feels like when I’m so deep inside you that you can’t tell where I end and you begin.”

“Perfect,” she sighed, arching her back. “Like we are meant for each other.”

“We are meant for each other.” He continued thrusting, keeping a steady pace. “You know that now, don’t you?”

“I’ve known it since the moment we met. I was too afraid to admit it.”

“Is that a fact?” He withdrew slowly from her pussy and watched as his cock appeared, glistening from her cream under the moonlight. “What did you think the first time you saw me?”

“That I had never seen a man who was more gorgeous.”

His heart accelerated, and his breath caught. He’d waited so long for her to reciprocate his feelings, to hear her bestow any kind of endearment.

His voice was husky when he replied, “Good answer.”

He reached between her thighs, got his fingers slick, found her clit, and rubbed gently.

She thrashed against the wood surface of the pier, rearing back. “Don’t torment me.”

“You’ve tormented me for days. I think it’s only fair.”

“Please, Bridon.” She tried to maneuver her hips and apply more pressure to the fingers that kept rubbing in a teasing motion. “Make love to me.”

“I’ll always give you what you want, love.” He pressed his fingers against the bead at the top of her slit. “All you have to do is ask.”

He plunged all the way back inside her, until he bumped the softness of her womb. She shrieked as she came, milking him as her vaginal walls clamped down on his cock. He didn’t still the motion of his fingers as he pumped into her, no longer careful or tender. Making love was something he enjoyed, but right now he wanted to slam into her, fuck her hard, and leave her so shaken, she wouldn’t be able to breathe. Despite that, he would give her what she wanted. His balls began to tingle, and he felt an electric flash at the base of his spine. He held back, slowing down, not willing to lose himself inside her yet.

There was something more he wanted.

She panicked when he pulled out, becoming almost maddened as he flipped her over. Her irises were the beautiful amber he had fallen in love with, sparkling like champagne-colored diamonds in the night. He feathered kisses along her jaw and collarbones, and placed his mouth on the pebbled nipple she brought to his lips. Sucking forcefully, he brought his hand up to her other breast and pinched the nipple before he rolled it between his fingers.

Willow wedged her hand between their bodies and grasped his cock at the base. She stroked him, using her thumb to tease the sensitive crease of the crown. He thrust into her hand, groaned in approval, and raked his fangs over her nipples. The instant she started to squirm, he sank his teeth into the area just above her heart. She squeezed his cock and clasped the back of his head in her free hand as she climaxed for a second time. He didn’t rush, enjoying the taste of her blood and the way it heated his mouth.

“No more,” Willow pleaded, tugging at his hair. “I need you inside me.”

After he swiped his tongue along the small punctures, he looked into her dazed eyes. “I told you I’ll give you anything you ask for.”

She wrapped her arms around his shoulders as he guided himself to her pussy, slid the head up and down the folds, and then slowly inched inside. Willow lifted her legs and placed them on the edge of the pier, allowing him to slide deeper. He didn’t stop until he pressed against her cervix, feeling the slight give of the tender spot against the head of his cock.

“That feels sinful.” Willow bit his shoulder and groaned.

“I’m glad you think so.” He cupped her ass in his palms. “Because we’re just getting started.”

Willow gazed at the moon as Bridon moved inside her, using the same slow strokes. He was holding back for some reason, not giving her what he knew she needed. She had asked him to make love to her, and he did. Now she needed more, a deeper connection to the man who had wound his way into her heart. The heat was overwhelming, making her muscles ache and her pussy clench.

“Harder.” She exhaled the word into his ear.

His breathing hitched, and he increased the tempo. It was a good start, but nowhere near what she wanted. She brought her hands down to his ass, mirroring his hold on her, and dug her nails into his skin. Despite this, he kept going at his pace, keeping her on the brink of another orgasm that would rock her world but wouldn’t do shit to end the molten heat burning in her veins.

“I need you,” she said desperately, drowning in the ripples of fire beneath her skin.

He moved back, meeting her gaze. There was a strange look in his slate gray eyes. “Tell me exactly how you need me. After everything that’s happened, after everything you’ve learned, tell me what I mean to you.” He drove into her, pressed his pelvis against hers, and was rewarded with a throaty moan. “I want to know this is more than the mating heat. I need to know that you’ve finally seen past all the lies and deception to the man I am.”

He wants me to accept his claim.

There it was, as clear as the starless sky above them. She’d never considered that he wanted to hear it, but then again, she was entirely new to this Fated thing. She looked into his face, struck as always by his features. He was a mixture of masculine beauty and brawn, a combination impossible to ignore. Staring at his mouth, she remembered the way it felt as he’d kissed her so gently the first night they’d shared together. It was as if he were giving her a first kiss, something she would never forget.

Something she would always cherish—like him.

Although her abdomen ached with unbearable need, she didn’t protest his steady plunges. Rather she leaned forward to kiss the lips that had been so careful with her. It was soft and sweet, a gentle brush of mouth upon mouth. When she pulled back, he was watching her, and she knew the time had come to tell him what he wanted to hear. He was a worthy mate and had proven himself time and again.

“I see you, Bridon Walkyr.
All of you
. The man, the vampire, my Fated and my Chosen.”

He grinned. “Are you certain you don’t want to add parasite, leech, or bloodsucking bastard to that?”

“Not unless you plan to keep me on edge like this for the rest of the night.”

Moving close, he brought their foreheads together. “Is there something you want, love?”

“You.” She stared into the dark depths of his eyes.

His breath caressed her face. “You have me.”

He moved in just the right way, rotating his hips, rolling them, and settled into a smooth, hard motion. She pushed her sweat-slicked chest against his, encouraging him with the whimpers and cries she knew he loved so much. As he slid into her pussy, she shifted her ass so that they moved together in harmony.

“I’m close,” he warned against her ear.

“Come inside me, Bridon. I want to feel you lose control.”

He waited until she was on the brink of orgasm before he drilled her even faster. They came at the same time, shouting simultaneously into the night. She felt his cock jerk, and her body welcomed the jets of heat that signified their mating. She sighed as the fire beneath her skin faded and the painful twisting in her stomach vanished.

“Hold on.” Bridon wrapped his arms around her, and she clasped her legs around his waist. He lifted her from the pier, waded through the water, and carried her from the pond. The air was brisk, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. She sagged against the grass as he laid her down and quickly occupied the space beside her.

“Rest while you can.” He brought his nose to the hollow of her throat and inhaled, as if putting her scent to memory. “I’m not finished with you yet.”

She smiled. “Is that a threat or a promise?”

He moved from her throat, speaking against her jaw. “That’s a promise.”

When he came over her, looking down, she skimmed her finger along his lip. “It’s unfair that we had to start out as we did.”

His expression changed, becoming serious. “I don’t regret any of it. I would have endured your hatred and contempt for as long as necessary.” His voice softened. “All that matters is that you came back to me.”

Sweet Moirae, it was so hard to ask, but she scrounged up the courage. “Do you ever wish I was more like her?”

“At first, perhaps.”

Pain lanced through her. “I’m sorry.”

He cupped her face in his large palm. “Never apologize for being who you are.”

“Even if I’m not the woman you lost?”

“You’re more than that. Far, far more.”

“I don’t understand.” She tried to avoid his gaze, but he wouldn’t allow it.

“As I got to know you, I knew that there was a reason Aislynn died. For all her beauty, grace, and kindness, she was too reserved and cautious to make me truly happy. Now I realize that the Fates had something better in store for me.” She gave him a questioning look, and he explained with a wry grin. “They took away what I thought I wanted so that I would truly appreciate what I was given when the time came.”

She didn’t think it was possible to want him even more than she already did, but he proved her wrong. “You’re a sweet talker. Has anyone told you that?”

His voice dipped an octave. “I know something that’s even sweeter.”

Clever fingers brushed against her sex, and she quivered. “I don’t know about that. You’d have to convince me.”

He whispered against her skin as he slid down her body, “All you have to do is ask.”

Epilogue

The Otherworld

Arcadia Province

Walkyr Castle

Three Months Later

“Watch out!” Willow screamed as she chased the rambunctious toddler who darted through the servants in his way. “Runaway baby coming through!”

One unfortunate victim didn’t heed the warning in time and toppled from the stool he was standing on to clean one of the paintings. He hit the ground with a
thump
, and Willow cringed. She offered a quick, “Sorry about that,” and continued on, chasing her nephew who was learning about his increased speed and agility.

Deacon didn’t slow when he hit the stairs, taking them two at a time.
Damn
. He’d picked the worst time ever to come into his Wolven abilities. Next time her brother and sister-in-law wanted to take a little vacation, she was going to be firm and just say
no.

“Watch it! Incoming!” she yelled as Deacon started making his way through the dining room. He didn’t bother using the floor. Instead he leaped onto the surface of the table, bumping into and destroying all the expensive dishes and flowers in his path. Someone screamed as he jumped from the table and ran between their legs, making a hasty exit into the next room.

“Deacoooon!” she called out to his fleeing form, trying to reason with him, which was stupid really. Ever since the energetic toddler had woken, learned he could scale his bed, jump from the upstairs banister, and run as fast as she could, he’d been unstoppable.

She made it to the next room just in time to hear dishes crashing to the floor, followed by the cursing of the small brownie creature Bridon had hired as a chef.
Double damn
. Hoping the kitchen might be spared was yet another case of idiotic wishful thinking.