Embrace the Wild (The Blood Rose Series Book 6) (12 page)

And she loved it.

With her legs, she tightened her hold on his waist and kept him anchored as he drove his cock into her. He was a solid, hard missile, working her just right.

Then he struck, sinking his fangs to just the right depth so that her blood flowed into his mouth. Her whole body trembled with need and desire.

Malik smelled like battle as well, as though his rich forest scent had been lit on fire. The vines around her moved wildly, slapping erotically at her arms and legs and at him, then surrounding them both as they had earlier, binding them together.

Malik sucked heavily on her neck and with each pull, her inner well tugged on him. The earlier lovemaking had been almost tender, but this spoke to another side of her nature – blood rose or not – that loved being connected to the wilderness, the forest, all that was wild.

“Malik, you’re fucking me.” Had such words really left her mouth? Where was this boldness coming from?

He continued to grunt as he suckled, his hips moving faster now. She felt a vibration from him first at her throat where he drank from her, then between her legs as he revved up the frequency he could release through his cock.

She cried out at the dual sensations, grinding her hips against him, her body arching.

I’m so close.

Come for me, Willow. Come hard. And come now.

His deep resonant voice in her head, the vibrations of his stiff cock thrusting in and out, and the feel of his mouth holding her neck captive, pushed her straight over the cliff.

The orgasm ripped through her, opening her vocal chords wide. She screamed. The pleasure was so intense, more than she’d ever experienced before.

He let go of her neck, holding her gaze, his eyes boring into her as he continued to thrust heavily inside her. And just as she was easing back from the orgasm, he commanded, “Come for me again, Willow. Now.”

His words were like magic, taking her over the precipice once more. Her neck arched, and pleasure stroked her deep as his cock hit her in just the right place. She screamed as an intense sensation rose into her abdomen, pleasure on pleasure, flowing through her chest, her heart, and straight up into her mind.

He moved faster now and lights exploded in her brain. She knew that she hadn’t stopped screaming but she was also pretty sure she’d left the planet.

She heard him shouting and the feel of his release added to her own thrill. Her mind whirled and eddied, streaking through a vast sea of stars.

When she finally returned to herself, she had her arms draped over Malik’s shoulders and he was breathing hard, petting her hair all the way down her back. The vines clung to her and to him, another layer of perfect sensation.

“I think you should get Axton back here, because that was incredible.”

She’d meant it as a joke, but Malik drew back and pierced her gaze with his own. “Don’t even speak that bastard’s name.” He then kissed her, forcing her against the wall of vines once more, penetrating her mouth in a way that had her panting all over again.

This time, when he pulled away, he asked in a harsh voice, “Have you got it, Willow? You’re mine.”

She put her hand on his face. “Then I suggest you stick close, Mastyr, because this is an unbonded blood rose thing, and I don’t exactly have control over my response to other mastyrs. Have
you
got that?” Boldness again.

He growled, though more softly than before, and slid his arms all the way around her. “Sweet Goddess, I want to take you again. And again.”

Shivers chased down her shoulders and back. “Oh, Malik. This was incredible and the moment I saw your fangs, even before you battled Axton, I needed you, had to have you.”

He blinked and shook his head and she could tell he was coming back to himself. “Damn, I was so out of control.” He narrowed his gaze at her. “I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

“Not even a little.

He drew a deep breath and pushed her hair behind her shoulder, then kissed her throat. “Thank you for sharing with me again. I still can’t believe how much better I feel. Thank you.”

She held his gaze for a long moment. He was still inside her, still connected and it felt wonderful. She really didn’t want the moment to end, so she made no effort to encourage him to disengage. “I guess we’re going to have to work together, aren’t we?”

He rubbed her arms and her lower back as though he, too, wanted to stay right where they were. “I think so, because I’ll be damned before I ever let Axton get close to you again.”

She slid her hand beneath his shirt and fondled his neck. “And I don’t want him near me. I loathed the blood rose part of me that responded to him.”

“If it’s any consolation, I knew exactly what had happened, and that you would never willingly choose that man.”

“This part is really upsetting to me.”

“I know. Me, too. I can’t remember the last time I brawled with another vampire.” He glanced at the cuts on his arms and his torn shirt. He then sighed heavily and met her gaze once more. “I know I should move things along, but I hate the thought of separating from you right now.”

“I feel the same way.”

He kissed her, a long lingering kiss, sliding his arms around her again and pulling her close. She’d been so long without a man in her life that she’d forgotten how wonderful these moments could be.

After he slowly withdrew from her body, he reached down and tore a fairly clean portion of his shirt apart, handing her the remnant. “Thought this might help.”

Her cheeks grew warm again as she tucked the cloth between her legs. She’d forgotten this part as well, that when a man left his seed behind, it wasn’t always a simple matter to get on with things.

She quickly donned her thong and her jeans, socks and shoes.

He was looking around at the vines, when she was finally ready to face him. “So, we’re in the middle of the entrance to the protected part of your property.”

“Yes,” she said. “This is a very short tunnel through the granite monolith.” Once more, she debated how much she should tell him about the wraith colony, but decided he should just see everything for himself. “Malik, I think it might be best if you got to know these families before you made a final decision about relocation.”

“I’d like that, but you should know that I’m set on this course.”

“I understand, which is why I really want you to meet all of them. But first, I need you to take me back to my treehouse because we both need to get cleaned up. You have blood on your arms and on your uniform, for one thing. And I’ll want to wear something very different from my jeans.”

~ ~ ~

As Malik flew Willow back to her treehouse, his mind began to clear. The powerful, animal-like drive he’d experienced that had caused him to battle Axton, had also sent a strange, sludge-like hormone through his veins.

When he’d left the vine-laden entrance with her, he’d half-expected to be dragging his fists on the ground. Fortunately, he seemed to have come back to himself.

Once he arrived at her bedroom treehouse, he took stock of his Guardsman coat and shirt, as well as the blood on his skin and a few painful lacerations that he needed to heal. Just scrubbing up in the bathroom was not going to make him very presentable.

As he watched her pull a long, light green silk dress from the cupboard, his eyes widened. “You’re going to wear that?”

Willow laid the gown out on the bed. “One of the couples will receive us formally.”

Though it wasn’t a full-out ball gown, it was the type of dress the fae often wore during ceremonies. He hardly knew what to make of this except that he now had a strong suspicion that the families Willow protected weren’t your average wraiths. “We aren’t talking about a couple of farmers and their families, are we?”

She shrugged. “Two or three of them work the land, but otherwise, no.”

He moved closer. “Willow, what the fuck is going on here?”

She glanced up at him. “I’m breaking a big rule by taking you to see these people, but I swear I don’t want to say more than that. I just need you to see and to judge this for yourself.”

He stared at her for a long moment. He could have demanded more information, but something in her serious demeanor told him to go with the flow. “All right, that’s fine. I get it; your restraint comes from your commitment to protect these families.”

“That’s exactly right.”

“There’s only one problem.”

“What’s that?” She actually looked confused.

He held up the torn sleeve of his shirt, then displayed the rip down the side of his Guardsman coat as well as the deep lacerations on his arm only partially healed.

She frowned slightly and he swore she’d never looked prettier, even though she, too, was smudged with battle stains because of what they’d done in the vines. “That is a problem.”

“I’m going to head home, get cleaned up, healed up and I’ll be back within the hour. How does that sound?”

Her shoulders relaxed. “I think that’s the best idea yet.”

Once the decision was made, he kissed Willow then took off out the door of the bedroom treehouse, launching high into the air above the forest canopy.

He flew slowly at first, until he realized that the more time he spent apart from Willow the greater the chance another mastyr could swoop in.

He put on some speed.

He’d never showered so fast in his life and didn’t give a damn that some of his cuts weren’t healed or that the soap hurt like a bitch.

As he dried off, he worked at his healing and fell over once just trying to get into a fresh pair of leathers. He felt desperate to return to Willow and make sure she was safe.

By the time he was back in the air, he contacted her.
Everything okay?

Yes, fine. But are you okay? You sound out of breath.

He could tell by her tone that she was a little bewildered by his concern, which meant everything at her treehouse was just fine.
I’m good. I’ll be there right away.

He ate up the miles, flying faster than he ever had, so that in less than two minutes he touched down on her porch and knocked on her door.

“Come in. I’m almost ready.”

But when he opened the door, he almost fell over again. Willow had no doubt showered and now looked dressed for a party. She’d pulled part of her hair up on top of her head, the rest dangling down her back. She wore the dress he’d seen laid out on the bed, the front cut low so that he had an excellent view of a perfect line of cleavage. She’d donned a necklace made up of a string of quarter-inch amethyst crystals which set off her creamy skin and auburn hair. The gown touched the tops of flat gold sandals with a string of small amethysts on the front cross-straps.

“You look … amazing.”

She touched the sides of the gown. “Thank you.”

“And very much on the formal side. I’m feeling underdressed.”

At that, she came to him and placed her hand on the padded shoulder of his coat. “You look perfect. Your Guard uniform is revered among these … families.”

And there it was again. He was sure she was holding back, telling him just enough so that she wasn’t quite lying to him. “If you’re ready, then let’s go.”

She nodded. “I’m ready.”

He returned to the porch and the next moment she stood on his boot and he was holding her tight around her waist.

Before he took off, however, he kissed her, which made her sigh in response.

When he drew back, he looked at her for a long moment. “Willow, I don’t know what all this means, but you’re important to me. I want you to know that.”

She nodded. “I know. And you’re important to me.”

She then tucked in her gown and leaned her head against his shoulder, holding him tighter still.

He levitated above the canopy again and headed back to the granite monolith, the fall of vines, and the secret entrance to the place where the wraiths lived.

“I take it we’re expected,” he said, as he touched down and she stepped off his boot.

“Yes, of course. I contacted one of the leaders, so we’ll be welcomed formally as I thought we would be. But I should warn you that there will be a small ceremony of greeting, then we’ll be given a tour. But first I want to assure you that what you’re about to see was never meant as a reflection of your rule as Mastyr of Ashleaf, but of the need for these pure blood wraiths to protect themselves. Please remember that.”

“Now you have me shaking in my boots.”

But that made her laugh. She then waved her arm and at least half the vines simply vanished. She led him inside and once the vines behind them returned, she again waved her arm and the rest disappeared.

He blinked and, for a moment, had to shield his eyes because all he saw was a strong white light. The vampire in him interpreted the glow as something dangerous and he kept his boots planted to the ground inside what proved to be a short tunnel cut through the monolith.

She turned back to him and extended her hand. “The light is created by the people. You’ll see. It’s very safe for both fae and vampires.”

He took her hand and by now he’d gotten used to the glow and knew that it wasn’t at all like the damaging rays of the sun. But how the hell was it possible for wraiths to create this kind of illumination?

As the remaining vines moved out of Willow’s way, and together they stepped into the light, what greeted his eyes caused him to stop dead in his tracks.

“What the hell?” he murmured beneath his breath.
What is this, Willow? What am I looking at and how could I not have known this existed in my realm?

She turned to him. “I never wanted to lie to you, Malik, but I withheld the knowledge of this very ancient wraith colony because I’m their Protector.”

He stood beside her and let his gaze travel slowly around what was a large town square, the street laid with granite pavers, shops on both sides over which families lived. Every window and doorway was jammed with wraiths watching them, and the square was full of curious citizens as well. But what also surprised him was that most of these wraiths were in what he believed was a fae form.

He turned to Willow. “Fae, yet not fae?”

“It’s the form these wraiths can take to move more easily about in the world. The shifting from fae to wraith is a skill that is learned from childhood.”