Darlings of Paranormal Romance (Anthology) (67 page)

My heartbeat hiccupped in my chest,
and I felt as if a thousand fluttering butterflies swarmed around
my stomach. This man truly wanted me. But why? Why would a man who
looks like an angel sent from heaven want plain old, boring me? I
forced my mind back to what he had just asked of me.

“
Lucius, please make love
to me now. I want you as I have never wanted another
man.”

No sooner had the words passed my
lips, than Lucius knelt before me and gently kissed me. He stroked
his way down my body to my skirt zipper, and within moments, he’d
removed the last of my clothing, sliding the material down past my
hips over my quivering thighs and off over my feet.

The dawning realization I lay naked in
front of Lucius made me conscious of my scars. Not since the
assault had I allowed a man near me, to see me without clothing to
cover my ravaged flesh. And as much as I wanted Lucius, shame
overwhelmed me.

“
Ivy, look at me, look at
me now.”

I found myself starring up at him,
obeying his command.

“
I love you, all of you.
Every inch of your body is a beautiful miracle for me to savor and
cherish, for me to explore and devour. You are beautiful. I waited
lifetimes for you; you are mine.”

His words shattered the wall behind
which I had hid my pain, and the tears I’d held back for way too
long fell openly in front of a man I barely knew, but with whom I
was falling madly in love. Lucius stroked each and every tear off
my face, then replaced his finger with his mouth and kissed away my
pain. My eyes slid shut, and I savored the sensation of his tender
administrations. He continued raining kisses on my face, while
gently stroking my neck, and I arched into his touch.

“
Relax, my sweet, and let
me show you real love.”

I lay back and opened my eyes. His
beautiful gaze, warm and molten grey, shone down on me like a light
welcoming me back home. His mouth found my neck and he suckled me,
his hand having traveled down to my swollen, erect nipples. Ever so
gently, he teased the hardened nubs. Again, I arched against him,
gasped as he replaced his teasing fingers with his hot mouth,
drawing a tender nipple between his lips. Back and forth between
them, he moved his head from side to side, lathing my breasts with
his hot tongue. Desperate moans sounded from somewhere deep within
me, and I writhed beneath him, longing for release.

“
Please, Lucius, I need you
now.”

He smiled against my breast, slid his
hand down over my quivering stomach. He caressed me ever so gently,
circling my stomach with his fingertips. His light touch caused
goose bumps to form all over me. His hand drifted farther, until he
found my scarred pelvis, and tenderly he slid his face down and
started to kiss me there. He placed tiny, gentle kisses over my
scars, and never had I felt so loved. He ran his hand down between
my thighs and found my wet core. Gasping, I arched up to meet his
seeking fingers.

“
Ivy, you are my
everything. You have no idea how much I have longed for you, for
this moment.”

I tried to pull his face up to mine,
to kiss him, but he continued lavishing his love upon my body.
Suddenly, he slid a finger inside my aching vagina, and I cried
out. I reached down to grasp his cock, which lay hard against my
thigh, but Lucius gently pushed my hand away.

“
Put your arms over your
head,” he said.

Mindless with passion, I obeyed him at
once, and the moment I had them in the appropriate position, Lucius
grasped my wrists with his free hand and held them there. With his
other hand, he continued teasing my aching pussy, adding a second
finger, working me into a heated frenzy. He stretched my tight
sheath, and I lifted my pelvis, rising to meet his thrusts in a
sexy duel. All too soon, I felt myself tightening around Lucius’
fingers.

“
Please, Lucius, hurry; I’m
about to come. I want you to make love to me now. Please, I’m
begging you.” Frantically, I writhed beneath his hands.

He shifted, slid over until he lay on
top of me on the sofa, and then, still holding my wrists, he nudged
one of my legs to the side and lifted the other, placing it over
his shoulder. In this position, he inched his hips forward, until
the head of his hard cock found my entrance. With light, teasing
strokes, he ran the head up and down along my swollen slit,
gathering moisture. I wondered as I lay there in a daze if his cock
would actually fit inside me. He was truly huge, but as much as I
feared, I knew in my heart I wanted him more. I arched my body,
hoping to entice him to enter me. Lucius dipped his head and
devoured my lips, scorching me with a kiss that sent my heart
soaring to the heavens.

My mind had all but left my body. I
pulled my wrists from his easy grip and blindly reached for him.
Wrapping my hands around his neck, I moaned softly as our tongues
engaged in a frantic, lovers’ duel. My other leg found its way up
onto his shoulder, and I opened myself wider. And then, before I
could draw in a bracing breath, he slammed forward, sank deep
inside me, until his balls brushed against me. Lucius gripped my
ass, pulled me to him, and began a thrusting rhythm that took me to
heaven and back. He let out a primal roar that started the mating
of our souls, and I clung to him desperately, afraid, somehow, he
might disappear—that this exquisite experience might all be a
dream. He continued his frantic pace, thrusting into me over and
over again, both of us dancing to our souls’ desires. My sheath
tightened around his cock. I could not get enough, and I slid my
arms down his back, past the dimples near his ass, and quickly
gripped his cheeks. Screaming until my voice grew hoarse, I clung
to him, until he suddenly stilled, dropped his head, and bit down
on my neck. His hard sucking brought on the most violent orgasm I’d
ever had, and he joined me, coating my womb with his white-hot
seed.

Overwhelmed with emotion, I sobbed,
unable to keep the scalding tears from falling. Lucius stopped
sucking my neck and slid his tongue over the bite marks, then
slowly slid up my body and kissed my mouth. The taste of my blood
on his lips should have frightened me, but instead, I found myself
smiling, savoring the metallic taste, the taste of me, of my vital
life force, on Lucius’ lips. I ran my hands up his back and idly
stroked his shoulders. Suddenly, pain like none I had ever
experienced gripped my wrist. I screamed and tried to push Lucius
off.

“
Ivy, I have to explain.
What is happening to you is natural for our kind. Please don’t
panic. Listen to me.”

But I could hardly hear him over the
pain. Beyond crazed, I pushed him off, slid to the floor, and let
loose a deep, guttural—howl.

Chapter Four

My naked body cooled rapidly while I
lay curled up on the floor. I heard Lucius move to sit behind me,
and he draped a soft blanket over my shoulders.

“
Ivy, I promise you will be
okay. Just try to breathe through the pain.”

“
What is wrong with me? I
feel as if I’m dying.” My voice cracked. The burning sensation
returned, only this time, throughout my entire body. A sudden
onslaught of nausea had me clutching my stomach and rolling tightly
into a ball.

Lucius
laid behind me and wrapped himself around me. His cool skin helped
ease the fire burning inside me. Was I going to hell for what I had
just done? If so, then I’d sacrifice my soul. I did not regret a
single moment of our lovemaking—and we
had
made
love
. Lucius pulled back the hair
that had fallen into my face and kissed the back of my neck. He
gently rocked me, quieting my body with his. Soon, and much to my
relief, my body calmed and grew cooler, and I felt like I might be
able to breathe again.

I turned to face Lucius and wrapped my
legs around his waist. He pulled me into his arms, tightly against
him, and placed a light kiss on the tip of my nose.

“
I’m so sorry you had to
experience that, Ivy. I should have talked you through the whole
process first before I lost complete control like I
did.”

I shook my head and placed my finger
over his beautiful full lips. “It was not your fault, Lucius. You
tried to talk to me, remember? I had to have you, and I wouldn’t
wait long enough to listen to you.”

He smiled at me, his eyes shining like
diamonds, radiating the warmth from his very soul. He slowly rolled
onto his back, pulling me to lie on top of him. He ran his hands up
and down my back, caressing my tortured skin. “You are so very
beautiful. Now, I will tell you about yourself and why you mean so
very much to me.”

I lay there quietly, listening to his
deep, resonating voice. His accent lulled my frayed nerves; my body
seemed to recognize him, respond to him as it never had to
another.

“
When I worked for my
kingdom as a dark knight, my dear brother Zorion found the love of
his life. The woman was beautiful in every way, had charm and a
fun, easy manner. Her name was Maria, and we all loved her dearly.
Soon, my brother asked her father, Marco, for Maria’s hand in
marriage. We were all so very excited. One day, I was commanded to
attend court. I went and could not believe what I was told. My king
asked too much of me this time, Ivy. But I was sworn to allegiance.
If I disobeyed, not only would I die, but my whole family would
perish too. We’d suffer a form of communal punishment, be made an
example of, so our village would adhere to the King at all costs.
Ivy?”

I looked up into Lucius’ eyes; they
were so full of pain. The illuminating light that shone so bright
when we’d made love had disappeared, leaving his gaze a dark, dull
pewter. I raised my hand to caress his cheek, but he pulled it down
and held it tightly in his lap. He stared at me for a moment; I
could see his struggle in deciding whether to continue with his
story. What could be so terrible that could affect this man so
profoundly?

“
The king declared that
Maria Adao and her family where traitors to the kingdom. He
suggested that Maria was a witch that had been sent to spy on the
court.”

“
Wait a minute. Wait just
one minute.” I interrupted him and sat up. “A witch? Lucius,
I—“

“
Ivy, I know. I realize all
of this is far beyond your understanding, that it must sound like
something from a novel or a fairy tale, but I swear to you, what
I’m telling you is the truth. There are many things mankind does
not know, and many things they once knew, but have now forgotten.
What I’m telling you occurred many lifetimes ago, during a time
when men recognized that creatures such as witches and vampires and
werewolves—and many other dark and sinister beings—roamed the land.
Remember, I said you’d need to trust me? To have faith? This is
what I meant, Ivy. You must believe. Our love—our very
lives—depends upon it.”

My mind fought to make sense of his
words. Believe. Was I capable of accepting something that sounded
so crazy? A witch. And once again, he’d made reference to living
many lifetimes. Could I sit here and accept his story at face
value? Could I believe the man I’d made love to moments ago was
really an ancient being, some supernatural creature who had once
served as a dark knight in some long-ago kingdom? I looked into his
eyes, and the answer came to me with a surety I’d never known. My
soul recognized his; our hearts beat as one. Yes, I could believe
him. I could trust him and have faith. What choice did I have,
really? I loved him.

“
Go on,” I said. “I’m
listening.”

Lucius smiled his beautiful smile, but
then he quickly sobered. He grabbed my hands and held on tightly.
“I never questioned the king, Ivy: I trusted him and his court.
This time, however, I fell to my knees and asked him to consider
sharing his proof. I simply could not believe this of Maria and her
beloved family. The king stood, and the court fell silent. No one
uttered a sound. I knew my punishment for questioning the king’s
court, but I could not back down. If I did as my liege asked, my
brother, my entire family, would be heartbroken.”

I gave Lucius’ hand a squeeze to show
my support and encourage him to go on with his tale.

“
Ivy, the king stormed over
to where I kneeled and pulled my chin up so I would stare into his
face. He then commanded I kill not only Maria but my brother Zorion
too, for failing to adhere to the court’s summons.”

My stomach heaved, and I struggled to
breathe. Horrified, I stared into Lucius’ eyes, and he stared
blankly back at me.

“
Tell me you didn’t, tell
me you couldn’t…” I swallowed hard, unable to finish my
statement.

He continued to stare at me quietly,
unmoving. I pulled away from him, releasing his hands, but I could
not take my eyes off him.

“
Lucius, please, tell me,
talk to me.”

Gently, he moved me aside to sit on
the floor. Then, he rose to his feet and began pacing the living
room, his hard-soled shoes composing a somber rhythm on the worn,
wooden floor. “I could not kill either of them.”

I didn’t realize I had been holding my
breath until that moment, and air shot out of my lungs with a
whoosh. Ragged, painful breaths sawed in and out of my lungs.
Lucius stopped beside me and knelt down. Slowly, he tilted up my
chin.