HerMatesEmbrace (13 page)

His tongue moved over her clit in a long, slow swipe and she
felt his fingers stroke inside her. Her inner muscles clenched on the two large
fingers and she closed her eyes. It should be impossible after that deluge of
sensation, but a spike of desire shot straight to her core.

After a final lick, his head lifted. She wanted to grab his
head and push it back between her thighs, but when she saw his eyes, she froze.
The pupils of his golden eyes had gone focused and the color had intensified.
His gaze was blatantly possessive and his lips pulled back, showing the sharp
points of his fangs.

It was as if she stared into the eyes of a conqueror who
finally had his hands on the treasure he’d fought to possess. She drew in a
startled breath, but she didn’t have time to think or panic. He straightened
and stepped forward.

His cock brushed over the folds of her pussy. She groaned
and grabbed his shoulders. Not to hold him off, but to pull him closer. She
wanted that thick length inside of her. Her legs hooked around his waist,
trying to pull him closer. His lips took hers in a blatant claiming. She got
caught up in the intensity of the kiss. Her tongue matched his stroke for
stroke, dancing and inciting them both.

His teeth nipped at her lips just as he guided his cock into
her pussy. She shivered as her tissues stretched around his shaft. It felt so
good. Her arms slid down his chest and around his waist. Her hands settled over
his buttocks. Her mouth sought his as hunger rushed through her.

His fingers glided over her thighs and back up to her hips.
They tightened, pulling her closer to him as he pulled back. She moaned as he
retreated. She didn’t want to lose the full feeling. Not yet.

His lips and teeth grazed over her jaw. His breath rasped
against her cheek. Her breasts ached and she rubbed them against his chest. As
if he realized what she needed or maybe he just wanted to touch her more, his
hand rose from her hip. When his fingers brushed over the spots of her
trika
at her ribs, she shivered.

His fingers feathered back and forth across the sensitive
spot for a few moments. She clutched at him, panting and aching all over again.
His palm cupped beneath the full weight of her breast and lifted as his thumb
flicked at the hardened peak of her nipple. The tantalizingly light contact
only heightened the burning need clawing through her body.

His hips drove forward in a quickening rhythm. She met each
stroke, her body straining against his. His lips closed over hers as his
fingers plucked at her nipple. Her body arched into his as a fierce bolt
slammed through her, triggering an explosion of pleasure. She moaned into his
mouth as she pulled him tight against her.

His hips punched forward and she felt his entire body shake
as he found his release. His hand swept up her back in slow, rhythmic strokes.
She knew he felt the lines of the scars there, but his lack of response allowed
her to relax and simply enjoy his touch. His head lifted, but lowered again and
brushed a kiss over her lips.

“I didn’t hurt you?” His eyes locked with hers as if he
thought she might try to lie to him about it.

“No.” He hadn’t hurt her, but now that the pleasure was fading,
she was beginning to wonder about her own sanity.

Why had she let herself get so sucked into the passion of
the moment? He’d dared her, but she’d kissed him and apparently lost every bit
of common sense she’d ever possessed. She should have pulled away when he
started kissing her back and definitely before the clothes started to come off.
But she hadn’t, and she really couldn’t blame anyone other than herself for the
entire thing.

Now she had more problems than merely crossing the line from
fantasy to actually having sex with one of them.
How are they going to act
toward me now?
She didn’t know what had happened with his eyes, but she
guessed it wasn’t going to be a good thing for her. Not the way he’d looked at
her and the way he was watching her.

She could still see the possessiveness there. As far as she
knew, the only way to recognize a mate was through scent. Taste shouldn’t come
into it. The brew she drank every night muddled her scent.
Was the potion
failing for some reason?

She was already at the maximum dosage for the potion and she
had to make it last. Making more was possible, but she’d have to find a few
herbs. That wasn’t going to be easy. She couldn’t increase the amount she took
without risking her health. She hoped that look faded with time. If it didn’t,
she’d have to take the chance and strengthen the drink. Not that it would solve
anything if it did, but at least it might keep the recognition and possessive
attitude from intensifying.

“There at the end I wasn’t exactly gentle and I don’t want
to hurt you.” His eyes moved over her face and she could see questions there,
but he didn’t say anything else.

“I’m not small and fragile. You can’t break me by holding me
too close.” She couldn’t help but grin at his worry. He hadn’t held her that tightly.

“Maybe not small, but I am stronger and larger than you.
Come on. I’ll walk with you upstairs and you can clean up.” He helped her down
from the table.

She put her shirt on first. The scars would fade with time,
but she wasn’t confident enough flaunt them yet. She went along with him, but
she didn’t really care where they were going. Time alone was what she wanted
and bathing would give it to her. Her mind was churning with questions. She had
to discover what to do and how to go from this point.

Colm walked at her side, but he could tell that her mind was
already running. She was pulling away mentally even more than physically. He
wished he knew what to say. Linc would know the words to reassure her. He
wouldn’t be standing here wondering if he’d made things so much worse. Colm
shook his head.

That was the worst of his worries. He wondered if she was
going to try to run from them now. He hadn’t expected the kiss to burst out of
out of control the way it had or his own intense desire for her. He’d been just
as out of control as her.

In a way, that didn’t sit well. He didn’t like the thought
that he might have pushed her too far with that dare. She’d been nervous around
them before. This probably made her even more so, but hopefully, it wouldn’t
send her into a full panic. He didn’t regret it happening. Not ever, but
especially after tasting her.

At his first lick, a jolt shot through him and only one
thought filled his head.
Mine.
The taste set off something primitive and
possessive inside of him. It pushed beyond all his doubts about true mates and
he’d only thought of fucking her.

He’d wanted to mark her and claim her as his, but his fangs
hadn’t descended fully. Now that he had time to think about it, the fact that
that hadn’t happened didn’t worry him too much. She was their mate. Scent was a
huge part of finding a mate. Since she didn’t smell right, it was logical that
his body wouldn’t fully react to her until he could smell her.

The depth of the feelings that surged up at that taste
amazed him. He hadn’t thought it would be that immediate or that strong. Even
with his doubts about mating, he knew he couldn’t let her continue to hide and
deny what he now knew for a fact. She was their mate.

He wasn’t walking away from this connection. She’d have to face
her doubts just as he would. He knew he was going to have to work through his
fears of losing a mate. One thing had been clear in an instant. Now that he’d
found his mate, he couldn’t turn away from her.

He left her at her room and went to the room he shared with
Linc. He dropped onto the bed and ran his hands through his hair. He
immediately rose and began pacing. He didn’t want to be in the room. He wanted
to do something. Specifically, move everything of hers into this room.

She wasn’t ready for that. It would send her into a panic.
He was going to have to curb his desire to haul her into their lives even if
part of him did fear her running away while she wasn’t with them. She was too
nervous and cautious around them already.

Gods, he needed to talk to Linc. Colm walked to the door and
went out into the hall. He waited outside the door to the bathing room. Not so
much because he thought that she’d run if he wasn’t there to meet her, but
because now that he had a plan, he wanted to get to it right away. He’d leave
her with the
chatar
and then go find Linc. The wise man was still
hunting for what made her eyes glow. There was so much to tell his bond brother
and he wanted Linc’s opinion.

She finally came out of the room. Her hair was braided, but
he could still see the gleam of moisture on it and she wore a pretty purple
shirt and black pants. He held out his hand and waited. In a way, he half
expected her to refuse, but she slid her palm over his after only a moment’s
hesitation. He tightened his fingers around hers.

Maybe he hadn’t messed things up too badly.

Chapter Thirteen

Cami frowned at Colm as he walked out of the room and left
her with the
chatar
. He could have left her with almost anyone else and
she wouldn’t have had a problem with it, but that man made her nervous. As soon
as the door closed behind Colm, she turned to face the man and the table
stacked with books. She did not look forward to digging through those books for
mention of glowing eyes or glowing anything, for that matter.

“Your secrets are slowly escaping your grasp, I see.” The
chatar’s
voice sounded much too smug.

Cami held back a growl. That was precisely the reason that
she didn’t like to be near him. The
chatar
knew too much and he seemed
to enjoy it when Colm and Linc learned something she’d rather remain hidden.
She didn’t know why he didn’t come right out and tell them if he was so
determined they know her secrets.

“And? I thought it was your job to guide them? If you wanted
to do it, you could have guided them to my secrets long ago.” She folded her
arms across her chest and glared at him. “Did you need me to help you search
through those books or not?”

“What do you know of your ancestors?” The
chatar
sat
down in a chair and seemed prepared to ignore her question.

“I know a bit about the people on my mother’s side. They
were human. As for my father’s ancestors, I wasn’t told much. My mother never
talked about them. If she knew anything about them, and I suspect she and my
brothers did know something, she never said anything. At least they knew
something about why we had to leave so suddenly, but that’s also something that
they never told me.” She shrugged.

“The reason you had to leave would be because of who your
ancestors were and the power they held. The same power runs in your brothers
and you. The magic from the crystal is still in you, but I’m not so sure that
it simply didn’t tap into your latent talent.” The
chatar
gestured to
the chair across from him.

She took a seat. Although she wasn’t really in the mood for
any more of his remarks, she stayed. The lure of finding out what drove her
family so far away from everything they knew kept her in the room. He might say
something that would make her furious, but she’d wanted answers to these
questions for years.

“What do you mean the power runs through my brothers and me?
As far as I know, they weren’t extraordinarily powerful.” She frowned and
folded her arms on the table.

“They hid their power level. It’s probably also the reason
you weren’t trained when you finally settled. They had no one they could trust
to do it. If anyone noticed the level of power, it could lead their enemies
straight to you.” He lifted some of the books and put them into stacks on the
table.

It was weird to be hearing about this from a man who didn’t
know any of her family. He seemed very confident, and somehow, she didn’t doubt
he was right. It explained why she hadn’t learned magic and why her mother had
never talked about her father when she was young. It didn’t explain why her
mother hadn’t said anything when she was older. There had to come a point where
her mother knew she wouldn’t simply blurt out the truth and risk the safety of
everyone involved.

“Why were we hunted? I didn’t see it that way when I was
younger, but I realize that that’s why we moved twice before finally settling
at
Scali Thent
. There was someone after us and they had to be sure that
no one was following. What was so bad about my ancestors and the power they
held? Did they misuse it?” She shook her head and rubbed at her temples.

“They didn’t misuse it. They were merely powerful. Some were
Ardin and some very talented
chatar
. I suspect your family was hunted
because of the prophecy. It has nothing to do with you specifically. It was
your brothers that they most wanted out of the way, but I’m sure they didn’t
want you living either, since your children would be just as powerful.” He
leaned forward and his palms flattened to the table.

“But why? So they would be powerful. There are many powerful
lines among us. Usually they don’t get hunted down.” She narrowed her eyes on
him. They also wouldn’t be the first Santir to be part of some prophecy.

“No, normally high power doesn’t lead to someone being
hunted down. I can’t tell you the why. That’s something that your brothers will
discover. I pieced a lot of what I know together from the texts,” he said and
gave her a regretful look.

“Then how do you know my family is even linked to this line
of people?” She sighed and looked up at the ceiling.

“Because when I found the reference to that family line and
the glowing eyes, I did get a flash of you. I know it’s hard to believe, but
they’re your ancestors. I’m certain of it.” He leaned forward, his hands braced
on the table.

She sighed and ran her fingers through her hair. “How many
other references to glowing eyes did you find?”

“It’s a rare ability,” he said, but didn’t explain any
further.

She waited for him to continue, but he simply looked at her.
“How rare?”

“There are only two other families that have been mentioned
having the ability. One line is presumed lost and the other is well established
and well known. I’m pretty sure you’re not from the last one, and as I said,
when I read about that family I got an image of you.” His raised eyebrow dared
her to challenge him on that.

She’d love to try, but she had her own strange visions of
the future and past. “So I’m related to a powerful family line whose eyes glow
freakishly.”

The
chatar
smiled and shook his head. “The eyes glow
because of the power within you. In your line, the only thing strange about
that is that you’re female. There’s no record of a female possessing the
ability, but that doesn’t mean it’s unheard of. That kind of thing wouldn’t
have been discussed among outsiders and might even have been kept completely
secret.”

“Is this going to be dangerous to other people? Will it be
safe to be around others?” She had to know how much danger she’d be putting the
other people in by being near them. Aside from the danger posed by Laed and
Kynar, that is. No matter what, she wouldn’t stay if she posed a serious
threat. She’d find some other way of stopping those two men.

“I tried to tell you earlier that it was probably benign.
You’re not suddenly going to start shooting flashes of magic out of your eyes.
It’s merely an outward sign that your magic is getting higher, maybe even a
little out of control. Nothing else. Eventually, you’ll be able to control even
that.” He stressed each word as if he knew how much doubt she had about staying
here.

“Sparks shooting out of my eyes wouldn’t surprise me. Nothing
has gone as I’d planned since I picked up that crystal.” She sighed and propped
her chin on her hand.

“Are you going to stop fighting what you know is between the
three of you now?” he asked.

Cami blinked and slowly looked up at him. That question had
come out of nowhere, but considering his penchant for uncomfortable
announcements and questions when it came to her, she should have expected
something such as that.

“I have doubts about what would be best in this situation.
Mainly because of the magic, but also because I’m not sure that staying with
them would be a good decision.” She shook her head. “You know Colm. In spite of
what he might know, it’s not going to be that easy for him.”

Colm might feel possessive now because of what he’d learned.
She still wasn’t sure exactly what that was. He couldn’t smell that she was
their mate, but he’d done more than smell. The way his eyes focused on her and
that possessive look had the intensity she’d heard about in a mate recognition.

She’d never thought about the sense of taste and she’d been
satisfied after kissing Linc that she was safe. Obviously, he’d tasted
something, but she’d never thought of taste as a way that someone could
recognize a mate. Why didn’t Linc taste something? Linc had kissed her.

What had happened with Colm? He hadn’t declared that he was
her mate or bitten her. The possessiveness in his eyes left her in little doubt
that he’d tasted something that gave him more than a clue. She really didn’t
think talking was going to change his mind about what he’d discovered, but
she’d give it a try.

“I know him,” the
chatar
agreed with a nod. “His
doubts aren’t going to pose as big a problem as you think. He won’t let you
leave them. Of course, that wasn’t going to happen anyway. He might always be
on the overprotective side, but they planned to make sure you had a place in a
secure
Thent
from the start.”

She rolled her eyes. They obviously hadn’t taken into
account that she hadn’t planned on staying. She might not be a male with
muscles, but she knew she could slip away if she needed to do it. Although she
still didn’t know what Colm’s issues with mating were, she had to be realistic.
They wouldn’t simply fade away as the
chatar
was implying. He hadn’t
simply avoided finding a mate. He’d gone so far as to look for women to bond
with so that he wouldn’t chance finding her.

“I think you’re wrong about how he’ll handle it, but arguing
about it won’t get us anywhere. We’ll have to wait and see.” She shifted
restlessly in her seat. She didn’t want to be trapped here in a room. All
right, so it didn’t help that the
chatar
had an annoying habit of asking
questions she didn’t want to answer. She still wanted to be moving, preferably
outside, but that wasn’t an option.

“We’ll see. I’m not saying that he won’t have a few
problems. You will fight, but it’s not going to be a huge stumbling block as
you expect. Colm isn’t going to let it stand in his way long. He’s not the type
of man who’ll allow it to hold him back from what he really wants.” The
chatar
took a book from the top of one of the piles near him and pushed it across to
her. “If you want to read about your ancestors and the glowing in your eyes,
it’s all in here. I have a thin piece of string marking where it begins.”

She bit her lip. Her fingers almost itched to pick up that
book and open it. She wanted to know everything, especially since she’d known
nothing up until this point, but she didn’t want to sit and read now.

“Could you keep that separate for me? I’ll be back for it. I
want to explore a little.” She stood and smoothed her hands down her pants.
Taking a deep breath, she looked at the
chatar
. “If they come here
looking for me, tell them I’m just walking around their home. I’m not going
outside. I know that they don’t want me to go out alone, but I do want to see
more of this place, even if it is simply the inside.”

“They’ll look for you.” He smiled and put the book to the
side. “This will be waiting for you when you’re ready to read it.”

She nodded. “Thank you,
chatar
.”

“You can call me Vin.” He laughed. “I don’t stand on
formality.”

“You’re a real
chatar
. I think that should merit some
respect.” She shook her head. She didn’t know if he realized just how many
people faked the abilities he used so easily.

“Respect doesn’t mean you can’t relax around me and call me
by my name.” His smile widened. “I’ll convince you eventually.”

She didn’t know why it was important to him. Surely most
people called him by his title. “Maybe. I’ll be back for the book.”

“It will be waiting here for you.”

She nodded and left the room. At first, she simply walked
down the hall. She had a lot on her mind. It wasn’t so much what she’d learned
from the
chatar
. Even learning that she was probably descended from a
powerful line of Santir magic didn’t hold her attention long. No, what had
happened with Colm was still at the forefront of her thoughts. She didn’t know
what she was going to do.

The sex had been great. She couldn’t deny that. Going back
to the way things were before was impossible. He wouldn’t forget what had
happened or what he’d felt. She had to decide how she was going to handle their
pursuit.

It would happen. They’d circled around her, trying to find a
way to get her to reveal any of her secrets since they’d met her. Now she had.
The predators in both men would take that slip and grab for more. They weren’t
about to let her step back and act as if nothing had happened. She didn’t know
if she could simply shut her eyes and pretend, even if Colm would keep what had
happened secret. Things had changed.