Priestess Dreaming (An Otherworld Novel) (13 page)

“Back to Violet,” I said, clearing my throat. “Regardless of whether or not they tortured her, they still kidnapped her, imprisoned her, and were going to sell her off. She has every right to feel what she’s feeling. She was in quite a state of shock when we found her.” I gathered my purse and finished my drink. “Well, the portal’s not going to walk up and say, ‘Here I am.’ I guess we’d better get a move on.”

“So head out now?” Delilah asked, finishing off her peanut butter cookie.

I sighed. “Right. The problem is: Where the hell
should
we look for it? We can drive up and down the streets keeping an eye out for a yeti, but none of us is all that skilled at tracking down magical signatures, especially when there isn’t a person involved. Morio and I can sense them, but picking one up without a place to start looking? Not so easy.”

“I think we just should go home and ask Chase to call us when the next mess happens. Because you know it’s going to happen. And you can say good-bye to Trillian.” Shade reached over to rub Delilah’s hand with his own. “If I were him, I’d want Delilah there to kiss me good-bye.” The look on his face said too much. Even Shade was dubious about Trillian making it out of the Shadow Lands alive.

“Yeah,” I whispered. “I suppose that’s our best bet.” I stared at my shoes, not wanting to discuss Trillian’s chances. I didn’t want to talk about the odds because they weren’t good—they weren’t in our favor at all. The Shadow Lands were fucked up and deadly, and if Darynal had gone missing there, chances were good he’d never see the light of day again.

The mood dampened, we silently returned to the car. I turned the ignition, and we headed home, the only sound that of the frogs croaking in their plastic prison.

*   *   *

By 4
P.M.
, Trillian and Roz were ready. They were outfitted for the road—the OW road, that is. Trousers, tunics, heavy cloaks, backpacks, and bedrolls. Weapons, of course. Roz wore his duster-cum-armory. As I watched the two of them standing there, once again a feeling of foreboding swept over me. Whether it was premonition or just nerves, I didn’t know, but a chill raced down my spine.

Even though I wanted to cry, I didn’t. I was raised to be a soldier’s daughter. I understood duty, and I had learned early to keep my tears inside every time Father left for a mission. My mother had had a harder time—but she had respected Sephreh’s wishes and taught us girls to respect the solemnity that went with the departure of a loved one, whether to war or to a rescue mission.

We all gathered in the living room—everyone was there, except Menolly. Trillian walked over to me. He reached out to stroke my cheek gently.

“I will miss you. Keep it together. Keep up the good fight. Be cautious in the realm of the Elder Fae and don’t you dare get hurt. You are my wife, and we are bound by two rituals. Know that I love you, and whatever you choose to do, I stand behind your choices.” He leaned in, kissing me so lightly I barely felt it. Yet the kiss buried deep in my core, raced pounding to my center, like a wild stallion at full speed.

“Come back to me. Find Darynal, and return.” I pressed my fingers to his heart. “I am here, in your heart, and I will never leave.”

Trillian turned to Smoky and Morio. “Take care of our woman. See to her needs. Keep my space on the bed warm and waiting.”

For once, there was no snarking, no snide comments or joking. Smoky held out his hand, then pulled Trillian into a man-brace—the kind where they clap each other on the back and then pretend they didn’t actually hug. Morio did the same.

“We’ll keep her safe. And she’ll keep us in line.” Morio winked at Trillian, breaking the tension that was building.

“Roz, you be safe. Watch over each other. You can travel through the Ionyc Seas. If things get bad, you guys hop into the currents and get the fuck out of there.” Even though I knew they could do this, I also knew how quickly things could escalate. One mistake was all it took to find yourself six feet under.

Roz nodded. “I promise.”

I could barely stand it and just wanted it over by now, like ripping off a bandage. And then, it was too soon, because Roz put his arm around Trillian’s waist, and they were gone. In the blink of an eye, Roz and Trillian vanished into the Ionyc Seas. Roz knew how to get to the portal in the Wayfarer that way, and it would save us the trouble of driving them to the bar. It also meant that my alpha husband and first great love was gone, and who knew when he’d be coming back?

I stared at the empty spot on the floor. Trillian and I had been parted too many times. It never got easier, and I never got used to it. But I had promised him no tears. And I knew that promise would last as long as it took me to get upstairs and into a hot shower. There, I would break my vow and cry as hard as I wanted to, until the worry and pain eased up enough to let me breathe again.

*   *   *

As I finished drying my hair and putting on my makeup for the evening, I heard noise coming from the bedroom. I slipped on my robe and padded across the hallway. It was 5
P.M.
by now and dark as sin outside but the room was lit with the glow of Christmas lights. They sparkled through the room and, with the glittering green garland we had strung, turned my bedroom into a faerie land.

The music was on—In Strict Confidence was throbbing out of the stereo, a Germanic band heavily influenced by darkwave and goth industrial. I loved the reverberating thunder of their music, and it always turned me on as the beat pulsed its way through my body.

I glanced over at the bed. There, Morio and Smoky were waiting for me, both naked and both obviously ready and able to make me forget my cares.

“Trillian told us to keep you happy.” Smoky laughed. “He made us promise to keep you satisfied till he came home, so we’re just doing our duty.” He reached out and I let my robe slide away. “Bring those beautiful boobs over here, lovely.”

Morio arched his eyebrows. “What he said.”

I slowly moved to them, my hips swaying lightly in the glow of the lights. Trillian’s leave-taking was still painful in my heart, and their open arms looked comforting. As I knelt on the bed, crawling slowly up the mattress to them, Smoky’s hair reached out, coiling around my wrists and ankles.

“You’re hurting, and you’re afraid for him,” he whispered.

“Take away my fear. Take me out of my head.” I closed my eyes as they pulled me between them and then, somehow, I was beneath the covers with their musky bodies flanking each side. Their skin was warm against mine.

Morio reached out to brush his fingers over my shoulder as I leaned back against him. I closed my eyes, sinking into the feel of his touch, the smell of my dragon and fox, the feel of Smoky’s hair binding my wrists.

I liked to be restrained. The ties helped me quiet the rush of thoughts in my mind. Some days it was the only thing that would silence my mind—being tied up and blindfolded, letting them play my body like a harp. Letting them do what they would to me while trusting them never, ever to take me places I could not go. There was a freedom in sexual submission that allowed me to surrender my control, surrender all the responsibilities placed on my shoulders. I could give myself over to sensation, knowing my men were there to catch me if I fell too far.

I regulated my breath. Doing so deepened the sensations, helped me slide into that twilight trance between waking and sleeping where everything was cast in shades of purple and indigo and sparkling silver. I closed my eyes as Smoky stroked his fingers along my arms. Morio leaned down and began kissing below my breasts, following the center of my torso down, slowly working his lips along the gentle curve of my belly.

A low fire began to burn between my thighs, catching hold to sizzle its way to my clit, where the sudden ache of need flared up, roaring to life. I moaned gently, catching my breath as the flames worked their way up to meet Morio’s lips, and then past, into my nipples as they stiffened, hard and firm, erect against the globes of my breasts.

Smoky’s hair drew my arms taut, out to the side. His fingers caught my right nipple between thumb and forefinger, squeezing hard enough to make me jump, hard enough to hurt, but the pain lasted only a few seconds, fading into desire and hunger. He squeezed again and then leaned down, his lips catching hold as he worried me with his tongue, coiling around the nipple like the draco serpent he was. He licked it, then roughly mouthed my breast, sucking hard.

I forced my attention to my breath.
Breathe in, breathe out. In . . . out . . . space the breaths evenly. Don’t pant, don’t let yourself slide out of control just yet. Let them build the fire within.

Morio reached my pubic hair—what there was of it that I didn’t shave—and he slid along over it, nestling his face against my mound. The next moment, I felt him spread me with his fingers, and then—a pause as he watched me, murmuring softly.

“I want to eat you out, to taste your dark honey.” He pressed his lips against my clit, his tongue darting out in long strokes against me. It was almost sandpaper-like, at first rough and startling, then he circled the nub and began to alternate between sucking and licking. As I began to rise on the sensation, he edged his teeth along me, nipping ever so slightly—just enough to make me cry out. I whimpered, wanting to come, but I wasn’t there yet.

Smoky’s hair held my arms tight against the bed and now he loomed over me, his lips meeting mine, his tongue probing my mouth, as the kiss went on and on. The tendril holding my right hand suddenly yanked it forward, plastering my fingers against his rigid cock, forcing me to take hold of him. He was big—wide and round, long and rock hard in my hand, and I squeezed, forcing enough pre-cum out of the tip to lubricate my fingers. Working them up and down his shaft, I focused on seeing how hard I could make him.

But Morio’s tongue recaptured my attention and I lost track of everything except the spiraling in my stomach, my breasts, as he licked harder and faster. He swirled my clit, not letting me rest.

I began to pant in earnest, letting out cries as a series of jolts began to race through my body, ripples forcing me along with the current, and there was no stopping it. If anyone had opened the door, if the world would have come tumbling down, I couldn’t have shaken out of the orgasm. The intensity of his strokes increased and I suddenly screamed, sharp and harsh as my pussy contracted and I came, hard and fast and without mercy.

I wanted to rest, to float for a moment, but Smoky yanked me up, turned me over on my hands and knees. He slid behind me, his cock forcing deep into my cunt as he grabbed my hips and drove himself into me, pounding against my ass. Morio swung around in front, on his knees, so that he hovered in front of my face, thick and pulsing. I opened my mouth as he took hold of my head, fisting my hair, and thrust into me. His cock slid back in my throat and he laughed, low and lusty.

“Blow me, suck me dry.”

I murmured around his shaft, sucking hard, bobbing my head as I licked and nibbled. Smoky rammed into me from behind, laughing as his hair reached around to play with my breasts, squeezing them together.

“You want to tit-fuck her?” he asked Morio. “I’ll hold her for you.”

I felt my cheeks burning as they talked about me over my head, but it wasn’t unpleasant. We were each others’ playtoys and I felt dirty, raunchy, and I wanted more.

Morio growled. “Thanks, and yes.” He pulled out of my mouth, then slid beneath me, his face near my clit as his cock nestled between my breasts. Smoky’s hair squeezed them tight, forming a channel in which Morio could thrust. As he began to rub his cock between my breasts, his lips found my clit again and I was back on fire, burning so bright it felt like I might go up in a flash of light, leaving only ash and dust behind.

Behind me, Smoky had hold of my waist as he drove deep into my core, unrelenting. He twisted to the right, changing his aim, and I let out a sharp cry as his balls pressed against my ass and he ground against me. My cunt was so full, my pussy so engorged as he possessed me with his cock, making me his.

Morio reached up and pinched my nipples as Smoky’s hair squeezed my boobs tighter. Morio’s cock was slick from being in my mouth, and he rubbed against the space between my breasts as his tongue roughly stroked my clit. The pace became frenzied, and I lost track of what was going on—there was only sensation, only the feel of their bodies against mine, their bodies inside mine. We were color, we were movement, we were song in motion.

As the momentum built, my stomach flipped again and all thought fled from mind. Smoky let out a loud cry as he came, pumping his hot cum into my pussy. Morio was next, soaking my breasts as he arched, his cock rigid against me, and then—with one last tongue stroke, I came again, long, and hard, and crying, my last thought before release that of Trillian and how I wished he could be here with us.

*   *   *

Shower number two and I was once again clean of sweat and cum and smelling like sweet vanilla. I leisurely dressed. Smoky and Morio had gone downstairs to help with dinner, after a quick rinse off, and I lingered by the bed, smelling the sex that wafted off our sheets. I felt thoroughly wrung out, satiated, and my tears for Trillian had dried in the release of orgasm.

As I stripped the sheet off the bed and deftly replaced it with a clean one—we didn’t change them every time but it had been four days, and with our sex play, we definitely changed the sheets frequently—I glanced out the window. Six
P.M.
and the clouds were thick. It was snowing just lightly enough to skiff against the ground. We only had a few inches, and chances are it would change to rain over the next week and melt away, but right now the yard looked calm and peaceful in its blanket of white.