Midnight Enchantment (29 page)

Niall studied the strange text, swallowing his frustration. “How do we know it means noon in this time zone? It could mean noon anywhere in the world.”

Aislinn chewed her lower lip, deep in thought. “I strongly suspect it means noon wherever the book is. Of course, we can’t know for certain.”

“So, we hold our breath until noon tomorrow, then.”

Aislinn gazed out into the black of the night through the picture window opposite them. “Yes, we wait. We hope.”

“Not like we haven’t been doing that for years,” said Gabriel. “We can survive one more day, right?”

Niall met Aislinn’s eyes and knew they were thinking the same thing, and so was Gabriel, judging from the grim tone of his voice.

Twelve more hours just might kill them all.

Aislinn gave him a slow smile. “We wait, we hope…we prepare for battle.”

Sounded good to Niall. Kicking a little butt was just what they needed. Although, thinking of the woman back in his apartment, he knew what he needed even more.

ELIZABETH roused when Niall slid into bed beside her. His arms came around her, and she stiffened when she realized he was completely—lusciously—bare.

She turned over. “Hello.”

He grinned. “Hello.”

“I assume the walls haven’t fallen yet?”

His expression grew serious. “I would warn you before that happened.”

Grief closed her throat for a moment. Right, so she could be with her mother. “So what are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be off with the queen, redirecting the future of the fae?”

“Redirection has been postponed, and there’s nowhere I’d rather be than here.”

She moved her hip, feeling the press of his cock. “Yes.” She smirked. “So I see.”

He reached up and smoothed her hair behind her ear. “Your mother is still asleep, and there’s nothing to do with the book until tomorrow at noon. We have until morning, just you and me…this bed. I want to be with you, Elizabeth. It’s all I can think about.”

He ruled her thoughts as well, and when he was this close to her, his low voice murmuring in her ear, the press of his long, strong form against hers, he ruled her body, too.

She smiled and leaned forward, gently pressing her lips to his. “Sounds nice. Sounds distracting.”

“Oh,” he murmured against her lips. “I distract really well. Here, let me show you.”

He rolled her beneath him, covering her body with his. His knee slipped between her thighs, and she was suddenly really, really sorry that she’d fallen asleep in her clothes. Yes, Niall could be exceedingly distracting.

Hooking her leg over his hip, she pressed against him, forcing his rigid cock against her. He shuddered in anticipation and pleasure and she smiled, loving the power she had over him.

“There’s only one problem,” he whispered against her mouth.

“What’s that?”

“You have way too many clothes on.”

Her smile widened. “Well, let’s take care of that, then, shall we?”

Together they slipped her sweater over her head and he snaked his hands behind her back to undo her bra, leaving her breasts warm and bare against his chest. Then he unbuttoned her jeans, unzipped the zipper, and she wiggled them past her hips. Soon their bodies slid together, skin-on-skin, smooth and sweet.

Outside the wind picked up, blowing snow against the windows, but between the sheets with Niall against her, she had never felt so warm and protected. He pulled her beneath his body, his mouth coming down on hers. She kissed him back ferociously, as though she could consume him—make him a part of her body and soul forever. His tongue slipped inside her mouth and brushed against her tongue, sending delicious shivers through her body.

He worked his way downward, pulling first one rosy, erect nipple into his mouth and laving it until she moaned, then doing the same to the other.

Pressing up against him, she flipped the blankets away and pushed him over onto his back, then straddled his hips, bending over to kiss him. He tried to roll her over, gain control again—he was that kind of a lover—but she pressed the issue and he relented.

Kissing her way down his throat, she ran the tip of her tongue over the powerful hills and valleys of his muscular chest, inhaling the scent of his skin and savoring the taste of him. When her tongue made it into the lightly tangled trail of coarse hair that led down to his cock, his fingers found her hair and fisted.

Ah, yes, now he understood what she meant to do.

Her tongue touched the head of his rock-hard cock and he jerked, his grip tightening a small degree in her hair. She closed her mouth around his shaft and sucked him within. He let out a low growl of arousal that made the hair on the nape of her neck stand on end. Settling in, she took her time with him, sliding her tongue up and down his length, finding the places that seemed the most sensitive, learning his body.

She had every intention of driving him as insane as she possibly could and, judging from the groans and jerks of his body, she was doing a pretty good job. She loved that she could render this man, so powerful and strong, helplessly aroused only by the power of her mouth.

A millisecond later, without warning, he had her on her back. She let out a surprised yelp and found herself pinned beneath him. She squirmed, surprised by the sudden turn of events, and he pressed her down, parting her thighs and burying his mouth between her legs.

Her bones seemed to melt as his mouth closed over her clit, licking and sucking it until pleasure permeated her body and made her moan his name. Her fingers found the blankets on either side of her and fisted as he slid two fingers inside her and stroked them in and out, all the while toying with her clit with his tongue.

And as fast as that, Niall was back in control. She had to admit, she really didn’t mind.

One of his big hands held her down as he forced her, hard and fast, toward a climax. Her mind entered that hazy place of total abandon, the needs of her body completely taking over. His tongue slid solidly against her clit over and over, her pleasure building, cresting, until she could brook no more of it. It spilled over the threshold and washed through her in wave after wave of ecstasy, stealing her breath and her ability to think. Her orgasm ruled her for several long moments and he rode her through it, lengthening it and making it more powerful.

When it was over, he flipped her to her stomach and pulled her hips up, positioning his cock at her entrance. One long, slow thrust had him root-deep inside her. Her back arched and she let out a guttural cry of pleasure.

Niall was not feeling particularly gentle and she loved every second of it. He grabbed her hips and began to stroke deeply inside her. Every inward thrust brushed the head of his cock against that spot deep within where she was extra sensitive. Her fingers sought purchase in the blankets as he took her harder and faster. He dipped his hand down to splay on her stomach, then moved between her thighs to stroke her clit.

The combination of the pressure of his fingers on her and the steady, unrelenting thrust of his cock deep within her body forced her into another climax. Her head whipped back as it hit her and she cried out, her sex pulsing and spasming in pleasure around the pistoning length of his shaft.

Her orgasm seemed to trigger his and his cock jumped deep inside her while her name fell from his lips on a deep groan.

They collapsed in a satisfied tangle on the bed. He pulled her toward him and wrapped his body tightly around hers, laying tiny kisses to her temple. “Forgive me. I was rough. I really wanted you.”

She let out a short laugh. “Sorry? Please. That was incredible.”

They lay together in the darkness, the sheets and blankets tangled around their legs, and watched the snow come down. His hands traveled restlessly over her body, as if he could draw needed sustenance from the surface of her skin. “I’m really happy that you’re here with me tonight,” he whispered.

She sighed as he slipped his wandering, magical hand between her thighs and gently stroked. “I’ve been thinking so much about you since the cabin.”

She almost told him about how she wanted only to be with him, how much she’d missed the sound of his voice and his touch—his presence—but it was too close to admitting how deep her feelings went. She wasn’t ready for that yet. What if he didn’t feel the same way?

Anyway, her emotions for him were fanciful at best. It’s not as if there was a happily-ever-after waiting for them.

“Have you?”

She nodded. “And now we don’t have the pieces lodged between us.”

He kissed her forehead and lay a hand over one of her breasts, playing with the nipple until it grew hard and aroused, making her softly moan as her sex flooded with warmth for him once again. “I’ve been thinking about that, too.”

“Yes?” her voice came out breathless since he chose that moment to slide between her thighs. The head of his cock pressed against her entrance. She moved her hips a degree, and he slipped inside her, pushing deep. Her teeth sank into her lower lip, and she closed her eyes for a moment, savoring it.

“Yes.” His voice rumbled out of him, and he stared deeply into her eyes as he rocked back and forth, driving his cock very slowly in and out of her. “I’ve been thinking about all I did to keep you safe and why I did it. I betrayed my queen to protect you, Elizabeth. I’ve never done anything like that before.”

She held his gaze, pushing her hips up to meet him, slow, easy, thrust for thrust. “And why did you do it?”

“Because I love you.” His voice came out warm and sweet as honey.

She stared wide-eyed into his face. “What did you just say?” Maybe she hadn’t heard him right.

He pushed a loose tendril of hair away from her cheek, then searched her eyes. “I’ve never met anyone like you, and I’ve fallen totally and completely in love with you.”

His words coated her in tenderness, made something respond deep in her chest, thrum like a huge bell. The sensation was like an answering note of clear brilliance, a moment of perfect harmony and happiness in the middle of a storm.

She pushed up, kissing him hard and slipping her tongue into his mouth to twine with his. The pace of his thrusts increased. He took her harder and faster. She sighed and moaned, enjoying the sensation of Niall becoming one with her.

Their gazes met and held, his hips rocking against her hips. Pleasure rose, blossoming through her body until it burst over her. She cried out from the racking ecstasy that shuddered in waves through her body. Niall came a moment after, murmuring her name. Then they fell to the bed, panting from the exertion.

She rolled over and lay her head on his chest. Rubbing her palm over his stomach, she closed her eyes, enjoying this perfect moment. Never had she expected that when she’d taken the pieces of the
bosca fadbh
for the Summer Queen that her journey would end this way. If there was one good thing about this situation, this was it.

Elizabeth raised her head and looked into his eyes. She felt brave enough to tell him now. “I love you, too, Niall. Somewhere in the middle of all this, I fell for you.”

He hooked her hair behind her ear. “Stay with me.”

She smiled. “I don’t want to be anywhere you’re not.”

She snuggled against his chest and eventually they fell asleep. Not even the power of the night could keep her awake, so immense was her exhaustion from the life-changing events that had befallen her during the last twenty-four hours.

When she woke it was morning. The bed was empty, but she could hear Niall in the kitchen. Her stomach growled at the smell of the food he was cooking and she realized she hadn’t eaten for over twelve hours. She stretched, then slid from the bed, grabbing a bathrobe that Niall had left hanging over a chair.

First she headed into the bathroom and took a shower,
enjoying the hard, hot spray of the water on her aching muscles. She and Niall had performed sexual gymnastics the night before—something she was really not used to yet—and it had left a sweet ache throughout her body.

Her hair combed, but still damp, she pulled the robe on and headed to the kitchen. “Yum,” she said, entering the room. “I’m starving.”

His kitchen was large, with a center island hung with wineglasses and pots and pans dangling from the ceiling. He was dressed only in a pair of jeans—a most luscious sight—and stood at the stove, cooking up a pan full of French toast.

She wilted in the doorway. “
Danu
, that smells amazing.”

He scooped them onto a plate and set it on the table along with a bottle of syrup. “Want some coffee?”

She sat down and picked up a fork. “Are you kidding me?”

“I’ll take that as a yes.” He poured her a cup and then sat across from her.

After smothering the French toast with syrup, she forked some of the sugary yumminess into her mouth and almost passed out as the flavor hit her tongue. “Sweet Lady, these are good. You are an incredible cook.”

“When you’re as old as I am, you learn.”

“Well,” she said, after she’d sipped some of the delicious hot, black coffee, “maybe you can teach me.”

He caught her gaze and held it steady. “I hope to have many years to do just that.”

A little thrill of pleasure curled through her stomach. She’d been alone for so long, now she had someone to spend her life with. It was almost too good to be true. She finished up her meal and sighed with happy fullness, settling back in her chair with her coffee. “So, do you do this often? Seduce a woman, then make breakfast for her in the morning?”

He looked surprised. “No.” Then he smirked. “Ah, that’s right, you’re a wildling. You don’t know my reputation here in the Black Tower.”

She raised an eyebrow. “And what’s that?”

He leaned forward a little. “Let’s just say I haven’t had many long-term relationships in my life. Very few women have tasted my”—he glanced down at her nearly empty plate—“French toast.”

She stifled a laugh. Niall had a streak of arrogance that never quite disappeared, even when he was being sweet and vulnerable. Of course, judging from the power he seemed to have over her body, perhaps that arrogance wasn’t completely unjustified. “Gee. I guess I should feel special.”