Caleb (11 page)

The
curve of her shoulder drew his lips. “If I answer that, are you going to throw
out another cliché?”

“Maybe.
I’ve got a million of them.”

There
was that sass he so admired. “Guess that means I’ll have to work on a
distraction.”

“Better
make it a good one.”

Caleb
brought his chest down over hers, enjoying the sinuous coil of her body against
his, the prodding caress of her hard-tipped nipples as he delicately scraped
his teeth along the line of feminine muscle, the tantalizing graze of her damp
pubic hair across his groin. It only took a slight downward movement of his
hips to bring his cock into play, letting her rub it all around in the moisture
welling from her body, not giving her what she thought she needed, teasing her
with light pressure. “How about I make you a deal?”

Her
“What kind of deal?” was game. Very, very game. “How about you let me play for
a bit like this and then if you want to be untied, I’ll untie you.”

“How
long?”

“Ten
minutes ought to do it.”

“Ten
minutes and you’ll untie me? Just like that?”

He
nodded, forgetting she couldn’t see him before adding, “Just like that.”

“And
then I can touch you all I want?”

His
body tightened at the anticipation loaded into that question. “If you want.”

She
ran her tongue slowly over her lips, and her eyes took on a dreamy cast. “Oh,
I’ll want.”

“Not
if I do this right. If I do this right you’re just going to want to lie there
and let me have at it.”

She
arched her back, pressing her soft breasts firmly into his hard chest. “If you
knew how long I’ve thought about getting my hands on your body, you wouldn’t
say that with such confidence.”

He
slid down, tucking his head to the side so he could whisper in her ear. “If you
knew how long I’ve waited to have you in my mouth, you wouldn’t be wasting time
with words.”

Her
“I wouldn’t?” was a breathy gasp.

He
bit down on her lobe, just hard enough to pluck a squeak from her reservoir of
pleasure. “No. Do we have a deal?”

She
turned her cheek farther into the bed, silently demanding another nip. “Yes.”

“Good.”
He ignored the demand, choosing instead to stretch the syllable down the cord
of her neck in a brush of his lips, controlling her body’s instinctive shift
away from the shivery sensation with a hand on her hip. “Shh, baby. Let it feel
good.”

She
shook her head as he drew his hand up her stomach, over the ladder of her ribs
to the fullness of her breast. He plumped it into the palm of his hand, wrapped
his fingers around the base.

“I
can’t.”

“Sure
you can. Just focus on my hands, what I’m doing to you. Don’t rush it, don’t
fight it, just lie there and let me make you feel good.”

She
raised her head off the mattress, a frown on her face. “Men don’t like women to
just lie there.”

No
way was he letting her think her way through this. “I’m old-fashioned, and I’d
be thrilled if you did that very thing.”

She
blew her bangs off her forehead and dropped back onto the bed. “You’ve got nine
minutes left.”

It
wasn’t exactly the most encouraging statement he’d received while playing
between the sheets, but it made him smile anyway. The woman just had fight in
her bones.

“Thank
you.”

In a
purely conversational tone, she suggested, “You might want to add some mental
touching to turn up the heat.”

Like
hell. This was going to be all her and all him with no mental tricks involved.
“Was that a moan of pleasure?”

She
pressed her lips together but didn’t offer any more input as he brought his
hand back down the slope of her breast, separating his fingers as he went until
he once again circled the base. After several slow caresses he detected a peak
of interest, a catch in her breathing as he grazed her nipple. On the next
pass, he increased the pressure slightly. The stillness in her body told him
she detected the change. He nudged her chin with his, exposing her neck for his
mouth. Her scent was stronger here, very feminine. Enticing. Addictive. He kissed
the hollow of her throat, ignoring her stiffening, just keeping up his rhythm
at her breast while he lapped at the tender nook, tasting her, savoring her.
This was his woman. His mate. He sucked the soft flesh into his mouth. His.

She
shifted beneath him, her request clear. He gave it to her, increasing the
pressure and length of his stroke, squeezing the nipple just tightly enough to
pull it away from her body. Just long enough to halt her breath in her lungs
and center her attention, and then he was moving his hand back down the less
sensitive sides, pausing longer at the bottom this time, letting her wait.
Letting them both anticipate. Her legs shifted on the bed. She swallowed. Hard.
Her throat worked against his lips, her pulse pounded in an enticing lure. He
rubbed his mouth over the temptation and flexed his fingers before whispering,
“This one’s going to feel so good.”

She
didn’t argue, just sucked in a deep breath and held it as his hand climbed the
familiar path, her eyes closed, every thought, every fiber of her being
centered exactly where he wanted it. On the sensation he was giving her. When
he reached the nipple, he stopped and held her there, plumped and compressed
for his touch, his mouth; whatever he wanted. “Watch, Allie.”

Her
lids lifted as if weighted; slowly, languorously. He tapped her nipple with his
chin. “Watch me take your breast this first time.”

“I
can’t see.”

“Imagine
it.”

She
strained upward as he curled his tongue around the needy nub. She was crying
out before he made contact, her body arching in anticipation of the moist heat,
struggling with the restraints and her need. He kept her pinned with his arm
across her torso, kept her presented for his pleasure with his hand on her
breasts, letting her helplessness feed her permission to do nothing but feel.
Her pleasure flowed as he lapped and nudged the hard tip with his tongue. When
she began to twist in frustration, the light touch no longer enough, he took
her into his mouth and sucked.

She
came off the bed, momentum propelling her breast into his mouth, against the
point of his teeth. She moaned and sank back onto the head of his cock,
granting him the sweetest, most intimate of kisses. Torturing them both with
the hot friction, the promise of what was to come. He went with her as she
collapsed onto the mattress, giving her more of the devastating passion that
flowed to her from him, and then back again—harder, stronger, honed in feminine
intensity, charged with her pleasure.

“Oh,
God. Oh, God.” The breathless chant echoed in his ears, catching in the edge of
his desire, dragging it to the limit of his control. His fangs extended
farther, reaching for her. Her nipple pulsed between the sharp points. His jaw
muscles tightened. He wanted, needed to drink from her.

Too
soon.

Though
barely recognizable, the warning from his rational side filtered through his
lust. He pulled his mouth away, moaning under the whip of unsatisfied desire.
Sliding his hand up until he could capture the tight flesh of her nipple
between his thumb and forefinger, he substituted a pinch for a bite, increasing
the pressure until her voice broke on a guttural moan, holding it there for
several seconds as she shook and gasped, her energy no longer spreading
outward, but focusing inward, toward the building orgasm.

“That’s
it baby. Feel it.” He wanted this orgasm for her, screams and all.

He
stretched her nipple away from her breast, nice and easy, watching carefully to
see how the new sensation struck her. She frowned. He shook his hand in rapid
movements using the weight of her breast to deliver the unique sensation. Her
eyes flew wide. Her mouth opened. Before she could voice her opinion, he
pinched sharply. She flinched away with a startled gasp, but then just as
quickly, returned, thrusting the taut peak back into his hand in a silent plea.
He gave it to her slowly this time, increasing the pressure bit by bit,
watching as her lip slipped between her teeth and she bit down, driving the
blood from the soft flesh, leaving it white in the aftermath. A soft cry broke from
her throat as he pinched the tiniest bit more.

“Right
there, Allie girl? Is that where you like it?”

“Yes.
No.” Her head thrashed from side to side. “I don’t know.”

“Lets
find out then.” Caleb shifted to his knees. His cock left its warm nest with a
protest of its own, catching on the side of her hip and bouncing up before
bowing to gravity, the heavy head coming to rest on her pubic bone. He spread
his left hand under her right breast. Using the same motion as before, he
milked the flow of her desire. His reward was the immediate tightening of the
small nipple. “Very good.”

He
didn’t decrease the pressure as he reached the peak. Instead, he caught the
puckered tip to leverage her breast up and out, stretching it away from her
body, watching her expression as she battled conflicting impulses to twist into
the stretch or to stay with the pinch. The scent of her arousal surrounded them
now. A heady enticement to create more. More pleasure. More scent. More. Always
more.

“Caleb!”

“Right
here.” Barely.

He
lowered his left hand and shifted his grip until it matched his right. Caleb
wanted more time, but the change wasn’t willing to wait. It was growing
stronger, taking more of his effort to subdue the symptoms so she could enjoy
their play. If he dragged this out much longer, he would lose her and the
feelings to the hell that was coming. He’d taken everything from her and she’d
only asked for one thing in return. And she was right. Considering how knowing
him had completely messed up her life, the least he owed her was a mind-blowing
orgasm.

Releasing
her nipples, he smoothed his fingers down the outsides of her delicate curves.
Her whimper of disappointment echoed his own. She had the sweetest breasts.

“Soon,
baby.”

He
followed the line of muscle down her stomach, fighting for control, shifting
backward, almost losing it when his cock slipped between her legs and her gasp
whispered past his ear as his groan tore past his control. Cupping her hips in
his hands, he pressed his mouth to her stomach, breathing in her scent. Damn,
he had to slow down. Get her ready. He’d shoot himself if he hurt her. He
needed to prepare her.

He
sucked in a deep breath, feeling almost drugged by the richness of her scent,
the steady flow and rhythm of her desire. He worked his way down until he could
drape her legs over his shoulders. He knew the protest was coming from the
tensing of her thighs as he settled between them.

“Caleb?
I don’t think—”

“You’re
not supposed to be thinking.” Was that guttural rasp his voice?

Her
hips jerked in his hands as she pulled on the restraints.

“Why
are you fighting? I like you like this, Allie. Open and available for whatever
I want.”

“Oh.”

He
hitched her back some. “Grab hold of the bedpost.”

He
liked that she immediately did so with white-knuckled intensity. It soothed
something in his wild, primitive vampire core. “You just grab on to the good
feelings I’m about to give you with the same gusto, and you’ll have that
screaming orgasm faster than you can say Jack Shit.”

“Jack
Sh—”

One
swipe of his tongue wiped out the second part, but not his amusement. She was a
sassy one. Very different from the women of his time. Different from the weres
he’d slept with since turning, and damn, he found those differences to be a big
part of her appeal. The rest of his thoughts died under the wave of lust that
surged over him as that first intimate sampling spread through his being like
wildfire fanned by a hard wind. His back arched and his fangs cut into his lip
as the primitive roar of satisfaction bellowed from his soul.

At
last.

The
thought spun through his mind, picking up strength with every revolution,
digging into his gut. At last, he had his mate. She was here, needing him.
Nothing else mattered as he feasted on the delicately perfumed flesh so open to
his hunger. Every whimper, every cry just encouraged him. There was only Allie
and the drive to mark her, satisfy her, brand her as his. Caleb fought the
primitive lust, fought for coherence, struggled to hold on to his humanity, but
it was a losing battle. The vampire lust was upon him. Darker than bloodlust,
stronger than could be imagined. A scream echoed above his head.

Allie.
Dear God, Allie. He dropped his forehead against her, sucking in air, reaching
for the little bit of coherence he had left that told him he was almost out of
time. Definitely out of control. He pulled back.

In a
move too fast to register, he switched positions, bracing her thighs apart with
his, using his hand to align himself before coming down over her and pressing
in. He rubbed his thumb on her most sensitive spot, kept his mouth at her
breast, working both simultaneously, prolonging her orgasm, easing her through
the power of his claiming because he couldn’t stop. The beast was fully upon him.