Soul Avenged (Sons of Wrath, #1) (54 page)

Her hand
slipped against the stone, jerking her body forward. She backed up
a step, desperate for composure. “I’m cold.”

His eyes
narrowed. “An immortal hunter feels nothing.”

Hers softened.
“I do now.”

She raised her
head up to him, pausing only a second when his growl gave way to
snarl. Yellow bored into her, consuming her thoughts, those
further-dilating black slits a warning—yet she placed her
fingertips against his cheek.

His jaw
hardened. A breath forced passed his lips and lids lowered.

The snarl
quieted.

She lightly
caressed his cheek, over his jaw to the long white scar across his
neck.
The wolves.
They’d tried to sever his head.

Kane tipped
his head back as though permitting her touch, but held himself
stiff and guarded.

Light as
silken thread, her parted mouth traced his throat until she finally
pressed her lips to it. She kissed his wound from one end to the
other. The natural instinct for a woman to nurture had never been a
part of her, but she couldn’t deny the need consuming her then.

She
wanted
to soothe him. Heal him. Those wounds—hers as much as
they were his—each mark, a reminder of the pain that crippled her
as she’d watched the wolves tear him to shreds.

His skin,
laden with sweat, left a salty taste on her tongue as she licked
and sucked, urged on by his harsh breaths. The heady scent, akin to
licorice, irresistible.
Mouthwatering
.

Kane gripped
the back of her neck.

She froze in
his grasp.

He drew her to
his lips.

A surge of
victory swam through her veins, as Ayden’s rose to his demand and
dipped her tongue into his mouth.

A shove to her
chest seated her back against the rock, and a coldness bled into
the gap Kane created by pulling away. “No,” he said, his chest
heaving.

She nodded.
“Yes.”

“I was gentle
once.” He gripped her arms. “But I’m no longer that man.”

“A part of you
still is.” She frowned, forcing resolution into her eyes. “And if
it means having even a small piece of him, I’ll take both of
you.”

She pushed
back against him, forcing him to a sitting position on the
dirt-coated bed of the cave, and straddled his body before he could
protest. As she kissed him again, she rocked her pelvis against the
telling stiffness in his jeans.

A blend of
fury and pain swirled in Kane’s eyes. He groaned and grabbed her
hips, grinding her against him.

She tugged his
shirt over his head and tossed it to the side then unzipped the
front of her jacket. Her bare breasts peeked through the thin
t-shirt she wore underneath.

Kane slipped
his hands beneath the gauze fabric and fondled the flesh there, his
touch like a spark of electricity that ran beneath her skin.

She tipped her
head back. Her soft moan reverberated back off the walls of the
small cavern. With haste, her jacket was dragged from her
shoulders.

Kane pulled
the white fabric of the shirt over her head but held her arms
captive, knotted in the cotton behind her back. He kept her there
for a moment, as if testing her.

Her natural
impulse beckoned her to break free—but there was something
exhilarating in the vulnerability of being imprisoned by him, and
she mentally willed him to go tighter.

Will he hurt
me?

Knees vised
against his thighs, she waited.

His gaze
riveted to her breasts.

“Take them,”
she said on a breath. “In your mouth.”

“Yes.” His
gruff voice, intoxicated with lust, echoed in the cave.

Kane traced
his tongue over her flesh and lightly nipped her sensitive buds.
His mouth took them fully, and her eyelids grew heavy, her body
wanton.

When he
released her, she wrapped her arms around his neck and dipped her
head to lick the long cords of muscle in his shoulders and biceps.
She bit down at the base of his neck.

Kane groaned,
his hips jerked forward.

Pressing her
body to his, she pushed him back against the sandy bed of the
cave.

His fingertips
traveled along the curve of her back, over her spine, inciting a
chill that made her ache with need until his big palms gripped her
bottom.

She arched
into him, her breasts rubbing against his body.

He reached for
the clasp of her pants.

“Wait,” she
whispered, and kissed along his chest, down, down to his navel.

Ayden stopped
to admire his perfect, chiseled abs.

As she took a
moment to kiss each of the long white scars left behind from the
attack, before her tongue followed the path to the band of his
jeans, the craving to sate him overwhelmed her.

***

An inviting
medley taunted Kane’s senses—that salacious aroma of feminine
arousal, and Ayden, her own personal fragrance that set him on
fire. Long, silky brown locks of hair fell over his stomach as she
inched lower. He itched to tangle it in his fist.

No.
Gentle.

His jeans slid
down his thighs beneath her hands, and he kicked them off, the
pressure already mounting for her. His boxers followed the same
path as his jeans, and Kane tipped back his head.

Completely
exposed.

Yes.

Her tongue
found the sensitive skin of his inner thighs. His breath hitched,
stomach clenched.

Still, she
didn’t touch him where he needed her most.

The
anticipation hung him from a razor’s edge.

“Ayden,” he
croaked.

His wild
instincts goaded him to knock her to the ground and take her.

Kane squinted
his eyes,
I won’t. Gentle.

“Shhh,” she
said, brushing her fingertip across his lips.

God, mine.

Her hand, soft
and warm in spite of the cold, gripped him and stroked him with a
maddening pace. He writhed beneath her touch and muttered a curse.
“Please, Ayden, I need release.” His voice had roughened.

He sucked in a
sharp breath as wet warmth engulfed him.

Fuck.

His fingers
threaded her hair, as her mouth worked him, transcending him to a
place from which he never wanted to come down.

As his climax
drew near, she slipped away.

His body
bellowed for her return, seething in the flames she’d already
ignited. Kane’s eyes flew open, his muscles smoldered in
frustration.

Ayden stood
before him, half naked, eyes determined.
Glorious and
deadly.
After unfastening her pants, she slipped her finger
inside to yank them down.

“No!” Kane
choked out. “Slow.” He rolled his hips and worked his palm up and
down his length as she pushed her pants to the ground as requested
and stepped out of them. His control hovered on the brink when the
tiny red panties slid down her silky thighs, allowing his gaze to
roam her naked body.

Gentle,
he reminded himself.

Ayden lowered
herself to him, placing her wet passage at his tip.

He grabbed her
tiny waist and slowly slid inside her, biting down on the inside of
his cheek to keep himself from plunging too hard.

Ayden stirred
her hips against him and rocked a steady tempo. She placed her
hands on his chest, tipped her head back, eyes glazed as if she’d
succumbed to some erotic trance.

Her sexy, soft
moans infiltrated his mind, unleashing something primal within
him.

Take.

The undulating
movements of her body, so sensual, forced him up on his elbows. His
eyes focused on her neck and his lip curled back in a snarl.

Mine.

He reached
with one hand, gripping her back, slick with sweat, and pulled her
against his body.

Heat spread
through his groin.

He grabbed her
bottom and urged her faster, bucking his hips as she lay across his
body.

Burying his
face in her neck, he sucked in her scent.

Tingles
pulsated down his spine, in successive waves of pleasure.

His tongue
grazed the tip of his protracted fangs.

Muscles
tightened when her moans turned to cries that seemed swollen with
plea. Panting breaths fell light against his ear.

The sounds
brought forth a need to sate her, and each rapid thrust pushed him
closer to climax.

Mounting,
mounting.

The world
muted.

Nails gouged
his shoulder, and her muscles, taut as a bowstring, quivered in his
grasp. “Kane,” she said, her voice laced with lust. “I’m …”

His fangs sunk
deep into her delicate flesh.

She screamed
his name in abandon, defenseless against his bite as spasms wracked
her body with the powerful orgasm. Each contraction inside of her
steeped his need for release.

Still holding
her neck captive, Kane rolled over her, and, eyes squinted tight,
he allowed his body to relinquish the blinding pressure as he
erupted within her depths.

Goddamn, it’d
never been so good before.

His teeth
dislodged her neck. A deep crackling roar thundered in his chest
and echoed throughout the cave.

Convulsions
depleted him, drained him of every last bit of energy. With his
final shudder, his lids opened to her face.

Her cheeks
still carried a pink glow.
Radiant.

Her eyes
seemed lost though, a tear on the verge of spilling over.

“Ayden?”

Not even the
softness in his voice seemed to break her. He drew her to his side,
cradling her, winding his leg around hers as he licked and kissed
the marks he’d left on her neck, before returning back to her
face.

Oh, God,
did I hurt her?
“Ayden?”

A smile
twitched the corners of her mouth, but it vanished as more tears
fell. “So many,” she whispered. “All at once.”

Frowning, Kane
stroked her cheek, wiping her tears away, feeling as much the dirty
bastard as he’d behaved. “What? What is it?”

“Memories. All
of them. My mother. My dad.” Ayden’s eyes misted with more tears,
her voice affected by the sobbing. “My husband. And … my little
girl. Ella. Like I can …” Ayden glanced down to her hands. “… still
feel her skin. The weight of her in my arms … still so real to
me.”

“Oh, Ayden.”
Kane wrapped her in his arms, and as she buried her face in his
chest and cried out, he kissed the top of her head.

Breaking loose
from his embrace, she shot up to a sitting position. “No. I don’t
want these. I can’t deal with this shit.” She stood, gathering up
her clothes. “I need to go—”

Kane grabbed
her wrist.

He twisted her
arm in his and stroked his thumb over her scars. Without letting go
of her arm, he rose up from the ground, towering over her. “Cut
me.”

***

Ayden frowned,
her eyes focused on his chest. “What?” She ripped her arm free.

“If you want
to cut something, cut me.”

Her gaze shot
to his, where not a bit of humor stared back at her. That old
familiar anger grated inside of her, and her breathing grew
heavy.

The dagger lay
on the ground, still in its holster. She kneeled down, pulled it
out, and stood to meet him, holding it to his bare chest. Her teeth
ground together.

“Do it.
Because with every slice to you, that fucking blade cuts though me
as well, baby. So, go on.”

“Fuck you.”
She pushed into his chest.

Who the hell
do you think you are?

“I will cut
you. And you can have all of this.” She clenched her teeth so hard
her jaw ached. “Every bit of hate that’s inside of me. Hate for you
and for … me.” Tears pooled and distorted the rich clarity of her
eyes. “You’re nothing to me. Nothing. This whole fucking world
means nothing to me.” She slackened her grip on the dagger. “I had
a baby. A little girl. And I will never …
hold
…” She
dropped the knife, and grabbing her temples, she fell to her knees.
“This body … is
ruined
. Destroyed. I will never know what it
feels to be a mother ...” Her sobs heightened to a hysterical
pitch. “She was mine! And … those bastards stole her from me.”

***

Kane’s body
screamed to touch her, to hold her, and he edged carefully toward
her, desperate not to do or say something that might push her
away.

She sniveled
and choked. The arc of her spine taunted him to run his fingers
down it, but he didn’t dare. Not yet.

“I did this
when I bit you.”

“Yes.”

“Ayden, I’m
not sorry for this.” He shook his head in spite of pain raging
through him from watching her cry. “Those memories were yours, they
belonged to you.”

With her head
still buried into her knees, she gripped a handful of her hair and
squeezed. “If they tore me to shreds, I would fight to keep her
safe.” Her body trembled as if confirming the conviction in her
words. “Three of them. They had the back door and the front door
blocked. We were trapped in the kitchen. Ella wouldn’t … stop
crying. I couldn’t keep her quiet. So I … I hid her in the pantry.
God, had I known that would be the last time I was going to see her
…” Ayden rocked as she continued to tell the story. “I kissed her
forehead and told her we’d be all right. I had no idea, then, that
they couldn’t be killed by a human. There was this …
stupid
fucking hope that I could be one of those strong and miraculous
moms who fought off a pack of wolves to save her baby. But I
didn’t. And now she’s dead because I wasn’t strong enough to
protect her.”

“Ayden, you
are the strongest woman I’ve ever known.” Kane knelt to the ground
beside her.

She curled
tighter into herself, twisting her body away from him. “Don’t.
Don’t you dare. I’m strong now because of some fucked up cocktail
that was injected into me.”