Elijah (43 page)

accepted the realization that one day my father would have to die, that he must die, if what was right was to ever come to fruition.” She looked up when he tensed beneath her touch. “It is the cycle of life on this Earth that the young shall inherit their place upon it in the wake of their parents’ deaths. Every living creature, animal or humanoid, fulfills this perpetual destiny. You know this,” she insisted intensely, her voice falling to a hoarse whisper.

“I know this,” he agreed quietly. “But for intelligent species, being a part of this cycle in so direct a manner does not come easy.”

“It shouldn’t. I would hope it never does for either of us.”

Siena lifted her head and, breathing deep of the wind, took in all the alien scents of this part of North America that she had never been to.

“I have traveled so little in my lifetime,” she noted, taking another deep breath, scenting everything from flora to fauna. “I am always amazed that the air itself can smell so different just by changing location.”

“Yes. It is a remarkable phenomenon. Somewhat like you and I, and this bonding we are sharing.

Unique, yet simplistic in its makeup.”

“Mmm,” she agreed. Then she stepped back from him with a smile. “The sun is creeping up on us. Don’t you think it is time you showed me your home?”

“The tour,” he said with a low, mischievous chuckle, reaching to sweep her off her feet and into his arms as he kicked open the library doors and crossed the threshold with her, “can wait until later. I have other plans that will require you to become familiar with only one room of this house.”

“The bedroom?”

“The bedroom,” he agreed, making her laugh that sexy, robust laugh that he loved so much. He instantly felt the fire of need for her burning the surfaces of his skin, sparked by that throaty, decadent laugh.

“Did it never occur to you that, after defeating an archenemy and routing out a forest full of necromancers, I might be a little too tired for the kind of plans you have?”

“It had,” he said with a silly grin as he strode across the upper landing and into the master suite,

“but you are too much like me, Siena. After the heat of battle, the heat of passion is the first thing you crave. Besides, I was promised a game of connect the dots, and I intend to collect.”

“I would not be much of a Queen if I began reneging on my promises,” she mused agreeably.

“You don’t have it in you to go back on your word, kitten,” he said with a grin as he dropped her legs and let her slide down his broad body very slowly, allowing himself the well-earned luxury of the feel of her.

Siena responded instantly to the sensation of his rock-hard muscles against her own suppleness as they contacted her sliding body everywhere. Taking a deep breath, she released it in a slow purr of pleasure as she cuddled sexily against him. She burrowed a cheek into his shoulder, absorbing with every last molecule she owned the awareness of his hands rubbing over her back.

“So this is what it is like to be truly alone,” she murmured contentedly.

“You are not alone,” he reminded her softly.

“No, but we are.”

“We were alone at Jinaeri’s.”

“Time we wasted,” she retorted, lifting her head to look into his eyes.

“Black,” he said.

“What?” she asked.

“You are supposed to say ‘white,’” he told her in a conspiratorial whisper. “I could swear you live for the thrill of contradicting me.”

Siena laughed, his humor delighting her so much that she wrapped strong arms around his neck and found his mouth with firm, insistent lips. She wooed him with silky, skillful kisses. The assertive sweep of her tongue teasing his into play captivated him completely. When she finally released him, he was breathless and warm beneath her seeking fingertips. The Queen spread
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eager palms over the expanse of the broad chest that was rising and falling so quickly.

“I love to feel you breathe,” she whispered, closing her eyes and allowing her face to reflect her honest pleasure at the sensation, the sound, and the very essence of his life moving in and out of his body. Her passion for so simple a function stirred him all the deeper.

“Siena,” he exhaled, closing his eyes as her seeking hands swept slowly over him.

“Back at the Ancient’s home, when I saw Gideon and felt that he was dead, all I could think about was that if something could kill such a great being…what chance could you possibly have against it? I was certain I would never feel you breathe again,” she said, her voice vibrating with the gentle rasp of remembered fear, the tightening touch of her hands on his moving chest clearly the only thing keeping that emotion at bay and in the past where it belonged.

“Siena…” he hushed gently, cradling the back of her head with both hands, interlacing his fingers through her hair as he looked into her golden eyes.

“You promised me, Elijah, that when I was well and when our enemies were defeated, I could speak aloud what I feel.”

He watched her blink quickly, trying to discard the dampness in her eyes. He reached out with his thumbs to touch the soft corners of her golden lashes, making ready to catch any tear that dared to escape his vigilance. His heart tightened with her emotion and it flooded through him, radiating like sunlight and moonlight.

“Siena, before you say anything I need to ask you something.”

“Yes. I know. You have been thinking hard about something you have been concerned will disturb me. I felt it the entire time we traveled here.”

“I have to get used to your perception of my thoughts,” he said regretfully. “Forgive me, I was not trying to be deceptive.”

“I know that,” she insisted. “You were doing what any wise person would. You were thinking through your thoughts before voicing them. Although I must tell you that whatever it is, I do not believe it warrants so much of your concern. I am not as unreasonable as you think I am.”

“You promise to hear me out?”

“Always,” she assured him.

“Very well.” He began to speak, his cadence quick and clipped, the efficiency of a distasteful task but one that must be completed. “In light of today’s events and all the danger I believe we are going to be facing, I must ask you to temporarily release me from my promise to resign my post with Noah. This situation is going to become much more volatile before it is resolved. As of now, there is no one I trust to replace me who will garner the respect and the power that I do with Noah’s forces. Noah is a great leader, but he is more of a scholar than he is warrior. As formidable as he is in battle, it is not where his talents or his energies are best spent. He relies on me heavily to manage matters of security and defense, and I believe that if I leave, it will prove to be an advantage to this renegade we seek. I would sooner sleep in an iron coffin than give Ruth such power.”

“Elijah,” Siena whispered softly, reaching to frame his face with warm, long-fingered hands. “If you serve Noah, you still serve me. If you recall, I never asked you to resign your commission.

You made the offer as a gesture, and I was honored by it. Just knowing that you would have made such an astounding commitment to those who don’t even know or accept you yet is enough to impress on me the seriousness of your need to be a part of my life and my people’s lives. That feeling will not change. Besides, you were meant to be who you are, in the position you are in, just as I am. I would no more want you to resign it than I would want you to ask me to resign as Queen.

“We will manage,” she assured him. “We will muddle through with patience and as much refusal of bias and petty behaviors as we possibly can. And you are right; it is no time for extravagant changes. There will be enough adjustments as it is. Live with me, love with me. All else do as you deem necessary. Besides,” she smiled, “I feel that I will be spending great amounts of time between the courts, just as I think Noah will feel compelled to do. As leaders, we must set the
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example for the others who will be watching us for guidance on how to discard the old scars and prejudices of the past.”

“Watching longtime enemies come together in a joined effort will have an interesting impact. I believe your next overture might be best served in Damien’s direction. He has been habitually solitary of other Nightwalkers for as long as I have heard of him, but of late he has come among us of his own design. He showed a singular concern for your life that I, personally, will always be grateful for.”

“Elijah, I do not wish to talk about state matters all day long. Why do I have the sensation that you are avoiding what I wish to discuss with you?”

The warrior released his hold on her face, stepping back with a telling awkwardness. He turned and studied the artistically stained glass windows that were so popular with his people, surrounding the entire bedroom in their many casements. The soft-colored light was a great pleasure to sleep under, allowing just enough lethargy to make Demons sleepy and relaxed without overwhelming them and dragging them down into a state that made it impossible for them to protect themselves in the event of an attack or emergency.

Still, he realized as he looked at Siena over his shoulder, even that soft light would be harmful to her. And if he was using it as a reason to continue to avoid his emotions of the moment, then so be it. Siena was aware of his thoughts but was also aware he was using his concerns over the sunlight like a shield, preventing himself and her from seeing what had suddenly disturbed his peace of mind. She watched him with steady, neutral thoughts, though, as he closed his eyes and stirred up scudding clouds. She smiled as the darkness of them drifted over the house.

“Are you going to maintain cloud cover the entire day?”

“No.” He smiled slightly. “I am not able to continue to focus my power even in my sleep. I think maybe Gideon and Noah would be the only ones who wouldn’t surprise me if they could do that.”

She was about to ask what his plan was, but the cloud cover suddenly split apart, pouring out a sudden rain shower of impressive weight. He turned toward her slightly and grinned, wiggling an egotistical brow of mischief.

“I did this to Jacob once. I told him I could move the Earth just like he could, and he dared me to prove it.”

“Like you knew he would.”

“Yup.” Elijah chuckled. “So I made it rain like hell and caused a mudslide that ran right over him.”

That was when mud began to splatter against the windows, darkening the room first on one side, then the next. The rain stopped so it wouldn’t wash the mud away. The wet soil had been dragged from the muddy ground in a small, wet dust devil of sorts that shook the mud against the building like a wet dog. When it dried, it would form a perfect lightproof mask.

“Very ingenious,” she commended him with half a smile, crossing her arms beneath her breasts, drumming fingers on her forearm as she waited with obvious expectation for him to turn back to her and face his thoughts.

“Yes, yes,” he sighed, finally facing her as her knowing curiosity penetrated his mind.

“It is not like you to avoid speaking your mind,” she prompted.

“My thoughts are no mystery, really. You have been having similar ones.” Elijah moved to seat himself on the bed, reaching to take her hand and guide her to him until she stood between his knees and he could wrap his hands around her waist. “We are married, kitten, and only know the basics about one another. How can we expect to take on the roles of bringing the Montague and Capulet families peacefully to the same table?”

She nodded once, briefly, her hands coming to brush soothingly over his shoulders. Which of them she was trying to soothe, she did not know immediately.

“And we have not even so much as thought about the issue of children,” she added.

“Neither of our species is shy of children, but I disagree with bringing a child into a union where
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the parents are still strangers to one another in so many ways.”

“If indeed we are even biologically compatible enough to have said children,” she pointed out.

“Another consideration,” he agreed gravely. “The heritage of your throne…”

“…is secure in Syreena’s care no matter what,” she interrupted smoothly. “We have time beyond measure to work all of this out. You cannot sit here and try to solve a list of the tasks ahead of us all at once. Pardon me for saying that you are thinking rather like a human. Humans are different, Elijah, because they do not have such compelling conditions as the Imprinting.

This condition has propelled us together, though we are little more than strangers, but that does not make it a disadvantage. I wish to ease your mind and tell you that I am far more interested in us discovering more about one another than I am in rushing to fulfill my duty to produce royal heirs.”

“I feel the same,” he said quietly.

When he looked away from her once more, Siena sighed in exasperation and dropped to her knees between his feet, her hands falling to his thighs and squeezing so as to get his unwavering attention.

“Elijah, can we get to the honest point which you are still skirting?” she asked with earnest.

“Damn,” he muttered, giving her a wry half smile.

“Yes, I know. It sucks having a woman in your mind.”

“That could be the understatement of the century.” Elijah reached out to touch his fingertips beneath her chin. “I need to know if you are willing to keep a household that is joined in the heart and the spirit, but divided in traditions,” he said at last.

“To begin with,” she responded softly, “our house is already joined in the heart and spirit. You would not allow me to say so, but I will tell you now. I love you, Elijah.” Her voice broke, but it was from fullness of emotion rather than any hint of uncertainty. “I do not care if it takes ten years or ten centuries to know all these minor details that so concern you at times. I have seen your spirit. I have felt it mesh with mine. I know now that we are two halves of a single creature.

An honorable warrior, a fierce loyalist, a powerful leader, a tenderhearted lover. All the rest becomes minor details because these basics are all I need to know about you. It is the essence of you. These things sculpt who you are and what you do just like they do me.” She picked up one of his huge hands, drawing it to her face where she pressed a kiss within the palm, her golden eyes flickering with painful intensity. “And I beg you to forgive me for being too much of a coward to tell you so on our wedding night when you needed so much to exchange the words and feelings with me.” Her rich voice was awash with hoarse agony. “When I think that I could have lost you to the next life without you knowing, I am ashamed of myself and doubt I even deserve this precious thing.”