Falling into the White (The Ancients Series) (21 page)

“Heading to the lake?” My mom was standing in the doorway between the kitchen and living room watching me.

“Yeah, I need some serious downtime after dealing with Antoine this morning.”

“Is Mikael going to be joining you?”

“Probably, later. He had some things to go take care of first.”

“Jess, before you go, I want to talk to you about…” My mom got quiet and looked away. “Well, your father probably won’t agree with what I’m about to say, but to hell with it. You don’t have to wait and do everything formally. I know that you’re trying to make sure it’s right this time, but with your heat cycle having come and gone, and discovering what that means for you as a white wolf, maybe you should just do whatever feels right for you, and not worry about anyone else.”

“Mom, are you telling me to go get this bonding thing over with?” I was laughing at her, but I stopped when I saw she was completely serious.

“I’m just saying that you don’t have to be on anyone else’s time line anymore. Do what feels right, when you decide to, not because you’re forced into it, or because someone wants to be a part of it. It’s your moment. We can have a ceremony later, celebrating the fact that it’s been done.”

I walked over and hugged my mom then. “Why didn’t you say that to me when it was Evan?”

“I don’t know. We’ve all been through a lot since then, and you’ve definitely proven that you know what’s best for you. I’m just saying, that you’ve been right so far. Trust yourself, and go with it.”

“Thanks, mom. I love you.”

“I love you too, Jessica.”

It didn’t take long for me to get to the lake from my house, and when I got there it was evident that I was not going to find any peace or relaxation there. The pack’s teens were partying it up, and I wasn’t about to crash it. Instead of going home, I kept walking. It would take a lot longer to get to the caves on foot, but I wanted to check out the space I kept seeing in my dreams anyway. I didn’t want to leave my bag anywhere though, and I couldn’t carry it as a wolf. It looked like I was going to get my exhaustion inducing exercise in after all.

It took a full 45 minutes to walk to the caves, and quite a bit of balance when the terrain became rocky and unstable in spots. It was definitely easier going as a wolf. I stretched out my senses again, and felt to see if anyone else was around before I entered the cave with the geo-thermal pool and hot springs. I didn’t sense anyone, so I went right in, and set my stuff down. When I packed the bag earlier I had thrown everything in on top of what was already there, luckily, so I had a couple flashlights, and a battery operated lantern in the bottom.

I took one of the lights out, turned it on, and started walking the perimeter of the cave to see where all the entrances and crevices were located. I was hoping to find the one from my dream, but apparently that wasn’t to be. It didn’t exist in reality, which just kind of creeped me out a little bit. I wondered why there was a difference between the dream world, and this one. Maybe there was a way to get back to that room, but I had to find another way around. So, I searched down the tunnel to the left, because I had never been down there before. It narrowed out to a very tight fit before I was emptied out into a larger room of stone. Another pool of water sat in the middle of this area, making it a nice little private alcove to come to. I filed that information away for use later on.

I retraced my steps and went back to check down the other tunnel to see where it lead, but about ten feet into that one, there had been a rock slide, and it became impassable. I would have to ask Mikael or someone if it was possible to get it cleared out, because I kept getting a tingly sensation the closer down that particular path that I went. I didn’t have a hope in hell of moving some of those boulders and rocks on my own, without hurting myself or further collapsing the tunnel, so it was going to have to wait.

I went back to the main cavern, and sat there, dipping my feet in the heated water, leaning back, and trying to forget all of today’s troubles. Every time I looked back up at the blocked tunnel I got a tingling sensation, and had to shake it off all over again. So, eventually, I stopped looking.

I stripped out of my clothes, all the way down to the blue and white stripped bikini I had on beneath them, and I sat my butt on one of the shallow cliffs inside the pool. I read a few chapters in my book while I sat there soaking. It was the first time I had let myself truly relax in days, and it was definitely what the doctor ordered. Life was way too stressful, coupled with the visions in my sleep, it meant that rest was a thing of the past. As I sat there reading my book I eventually felt the familiar ripple of power that was unique to Mikael.

I saw his wolf step into the cave and sniff. He had something in his mouth, but I couldn’t tell what it was because he was partially obscured in the shadows. Then his form shifted from wolf to human. As he stood from the crouch he shifted into he called out to me, “Jess?”

“I’m over here.” I leaned back to put my book down far enough away from the water so that it wouldn’t get wet.

“No fair, you’re wearing a bathing suit. How’d you get this stuff here?”

“I walked on two feet instead of four. There were kids all over the place at the lake, so I figured I’d come out here instead.”

“Good call, I prefer the atmosphere in this place.” He hopped into the pool, and held up a rose for me. “This is for you, a little worse for the wear because I had to shift when you weren’t at the lake, to track you here.” He slid across the water in a powerful glide, heading for me while holding the rose between his teeth, and all I could do was stare at his bare ass as he slid across the water. “Like what you see?” Of course Mikael would bust me on staring at his ass, but he did it with so much heat in his eyes, I didn’t feel bad. Not one little bit.

“I do, indeed. I have something to show you though before you get comfortable in here. I found it earlier today.”

Mikael looked worried for a minute. “What is it? Has someone been here?”

“People come here once in a while, which is why what I have to show you is important.” I got out of the water before he could touch me, and make me lose my resolve to show him the other cave. When I stood up, I grabbed my bag, pulled the little lantern out, tucked my book in, and held my towel out for Mikael. He glanced at it, but didn’t move to take it. So, I pulled it apart, and walked right over to him, and wrapped it around his waist, and tucked it into place myself. To my credit, my eyes never left his as I did it.

“I was fine without it.” His gruff voice gave birth to gooseflesh across my skin.

“Now, you’re all wrapped up like a gift that I get to open later.”

His brow kicked up in surprise, and then his soft smile spread into a wide grin. “Well, I like the sound of that. So show me whatever it is you needed to, and then let’s get with the present unwrapping!” He was rubbing his hands together in an anticipatory motion.

I smacked his chest with the back of my hand playfully, and then grabbed his hand to pull him along with me. When he realized we were going deeper into the caves he stopped me. “Please, tell me you weren’t exploring deeper in these caves alone, Jess? You don’t know what or who is hiding back in all these little caverns and tunnels.”

“I didn’t go far, just far enough to,” I had been pulling him along again, and now we were at the mouth of the next cavern, “see this. There are no other tunnels leading away from this room, cave, cavern, whatever. But look at that gorgeous pool of water. And I have this lantern to light the area for us. It would be much better with candles, but I didn’t exactly plan to find a private little alcove. I don’t know of anyone who ever comes back here. So, I figure we will have it all to ourselves.”

“And what exactly would we need our own private cave for?” He slipped around in front of me, and put his hands on my hips to pull me close. Before he managed to get us too close, I was tugging at his towel.

“For unwrapping presents, of course.” I teased as I snapped the towel free. Then I ran and jumped into the pool of water before he could catch me, throwing the towel and my bag off to the side as I went. It didn’t take Mikael long to follow me in. This pool was slightly smaller than the one in the first cave, but it seemed deeper towards the center. There was also a slight current to it, which lead me to believe it was fed from an underground stream of some sort.

“Do you always unwrap your presents and run away?” Mikael asked as he moved right up to me. He was only inches away when he leaned in, rubbing his scruffy cheek up against mine. “Just in case you were wondering,” he whispered seductively into my ear, “I enjoy the chase.” And just like that the top strings on my bikini were pulled loose. When I gave him a questioning look he smirked. “It’s only fair, I should get to unwrap something too!” Just like that, I felt like I was burning up from the inside out. My skin flushed, my heart started hammering in my chest, and a lovely dizziness stole through me. I grabbed on to his hip to steady myself as I leaned back against the edge of the pool, only to have him step in even closer. There was nothing between us now, except the bottoms of my bathing suit, which I was suddenly wishing would just disappear. His arms moved possessively around me, eliciting a low moan from somewhere in the back of my throat. That just spurred him on.

Mikael’s mouth trailed down the column of my throat, leaving hot, wet kisses, and nipping playfully as he went. When the nipping started, I was done for. I maneuvered myself into a better position to give him a taste of what he was doing to me. I went to work on his neck with my mouth while running my hands down his chest, and then around and up his back. I let my nails dig in a little as I pulled him closer, and he responded immediately, lifting me out of the water enough to wrap my long legs around his waist. He tugged me as close as he could get me with a quick jerking movement, and then pulled at my hair to tip my head back. Mikael worked his mouth across my collar bone, first one side, then the other, and back up my neck until he was nipping at the lobe of my ear. His hot breaths there were sending waves of heat all through me before he spoke. “Jess, we need to cool it, or…”

I didn’t respond verbally, and I didn’t let him back off when he tried, instead I grabbed his head in my hands, and let my mouth speak for me. Every bit of what I wanted went into that kiss, and apparently that was enough for him, because in the next moment, he was walking us back out of the pool, and managed to kick the towel I’d thrown off to the side into a nice straight line. The whole time, his mouth never left mine, my legs stayed wrapped around him, and everything just managed to get hotter. It seemed like the world was on pause for me. This was my moment, with Mikael, and nothing was interrupting it. I slid my legs down, and stood on my own two feet for a precious few seconds before he swept me up and laid me down gently on the towel. “This isn’t exactly the most comfortable place…” His voice was thick and gruff, and the concern intertwined in it wrapped around me like another embrace.

“I don’t care.” I whispered throatily as I pulled him down to me. “I want this. I want you.” Our lips were joined again then, and his hands were suddenly everywhere. As he leaned over me, his hair falling down along the sides of my face, tickling my cheeks a bit. When I didn’t think I could take the sensation anymore, he moved, dipping his head lower, kissing his way down my body, lips gliding over my skin, and sending shivers through me as he went. Fire bloomed inside me as his hands wrapped around my breasts, squeezing gently, his lips latching onto a nipple, teeth grazing the sensitive flesh there. The moans that escaped my lips then fueled his exploration further. My own body began to ache with wanting so much more as he kissed his way further down the length of me. His thumbs hooked the sides of my bikini bottom and started sliding them off of me. My hips lifted up to make it easier, and when they did his mouth trailed kisses across one, then the other, and finally lingered somewhere in the middle as his hands worked to free the bottoms from my legs. It was an effortless transition, and my mind was definitely not on what his hands were doing, until they were free to help spread my legs further apart.

Mikael surprised me and instead of diving right in between them he started kissing down my thighs, nipping with his teeth as he went. The sensation was otherworldly and had me dripping wet with anticipation. As he slid further down my left leg, he sensed me watching him, and tipped his head up to smile at me, “I can’t even think of truly getting started until I’ve tasted every inch of you.” He emphasized the remark with a few more bites on his way down my calf muscles.

“You missed a spot,” My whispered words were followed by a deep growl.

“Uh uh, I just save the best for last.” I am not ashamed to say that elicited a whimper from me. My nerve endings were on fire, and I was already coming apart at the seams just from the anticipation of what was to come.

By the time Mikael made his way back up my right leg, and to my middle, every little touch was sending me into sensory overload. My eyes were closed, head back, enjoying every sensation. The minute his tongue slid between the folds of my womanhood, I was completely undone. My hips thrust upward to meet him, and then he gripped a hold of me, to keep me right where he wanted as he lapped at my sex, sending shockwaves rippling through my entire body. Time stood still as he expertly worked my body until my muscles began to spasm and clench, and I was calling out his name in breathy pants. Pure pleasure coursed through every limb, and pulsated in the deepest parts of me as Mikael finally moved to position himself over me. It was a slow, torturous process as he slid up, inch by inch, dragging sweet, hot kisses all along my body.

Once our bodies aligned perfectly, and I could feel the head of him pressed against me, begging entry, Mikael dropped a sultry kiss upon my lips before he made sure this was what I really wanted. “Are you sure, Jess?”

“Yes, Mikael, I’m sure.” The words were foggy to my own ears, as if I were dreaming this instead of it happening. A low, base rumble growl came from Mikael then as he rubbed his face against mine, claiming me first with his scent.