Tangled Innocence (9 page)

Her mind was roiling with all the information being thrown
out at her, but she still hadn’t heard how her newfound powers would affect
her—or what they even were.

Jace continued. “Each house carries a different ability, and
each person has a different strength using that ability. I don’t know what
yours is, but we can find it together once you get a good handle on what you
need to survive.”

“What do you mean by that?”

Jace let out a breath. “Not all stories the humans know are
false. Succubi need sex in order to live. They take energy from their partners
during intercourse.”

She blinked and moved to stand. “I took your energy? Is that
the power I felt? Oh God, are you okay?” None of the other women had hurt their
mates, and yet Nadie’s powers were to suck away energy?

Jace pulled her close and cupped her cheek. “Hey, stop it.
It didn’t hurt, Nadie. In fact, to others, it would have felt like one fucking
amazing orgasm. To Dante and me, since we’re your mates, yeah, it was one
fucking amazing orgasm, an orgasm to end all orgasms, but then we got our
energy back. With the bond, we end up like a circuit, constantly sharing our
life energies so that no one ends up weak and your inner succubus is healthy
and sated.”

She swallowed hard. “Oh, thank God.”

“You never would have hurt someone. The succubi who grow up
with their powers learn how to sleep with their partners and never take too
much. If they sleep with another of their kind, the process acts much the same
way it did with us, but on a smaller scale than a mating bond. Because you have
two
mates, you will be one healthy,
sexy succubus, Nadie.”

She grinned at the cat-in-cream look on his face. “And you
get nothing out of that?”

Jace chuckled, his voice deep, rough. “We can talk about all
the…perks when Dante gets home. He wouldn’t want to miss out on any of that.”

She warmed all over at the thought of both her men and
the…perks it all entailed. Oh, she couldn’t wait to figure them all out, and
from the look on Jace’s face, she wouldn’t be waiting for long.

Jace lowered his head, and Nadie cupped his face, the bristles
of his scruff ticking her palms. His lips pressed against hers, and she moaned,
loving the taste of this new man in her life. He wrapped his arms around her,
his hands sliding down her back to cup her ass. She rocked against him, wanting
him closer.

Something inside her heated, almost clawing at her, craving
the man in front of her.

Nadie stepped back, gasping for breath. Jace moved toward
her, and she looked up at him, the concern on his face making her want to hide
under a table. She hated this feeling, the inability to control what she
desired, unable to know if it was truly
her
who wanted this bear, this man, rather than the succubus that lived beneath her
skin.

Jace cupped her face. “Hey, hey, what is it?”

She shook her head.

His thumb brushed along her lip, and she arched, wanting
more. “Tell me.”

She swallowed hard. If she didn’t tell him, he’d just keep
asking. She had a feeling Jace was just like his bear half. Once a bear wanted
something, it pestered—or roared—until it got it.

“I just
really
like kissing you.”

Jace blinked and tilted his head. “And this is a bad thing
because…”

Nadie grimaced. “Because I don’t know if it’s me who wants
it or
her
.”

Jace took her hand and led her to the bar area off the
corner of Dante’s living room. She found it funny the dragon who owned his own
bar had a smaller version in his house, but that thought left her mind as Jace
gripped her hips, lifting her so she sat in front of him on the bar.

“Is there a reason you just picked me up like a doll and set
me where you wanted me?” she asked, teasing.

Jace moved so he crowded her, arms on either side of her
hips, his face close to hers. “You’re a succubus, Nadie. You’re going to want
to feed and be with us. That’s okay. You already said you weren’t ashamed of
it.” She opened her mouth to speak, and he kissed her. She moaned into him then
drew back, blinking. “Let me finish. Now, your succubus might want all of that,
but your human half, the half that you’ve been all your life, wants it too. I’m
not telling you what your body wants. I’m telling you that you don’t have to
question it. You’re part of your succubus too. She’s not some invader
controlling your body every hour of every day. So when you kiss me and wrap
your arms around my neck, go with it. If you don’t want to kiss me and would
rather hang out on the couch and watch movies, then we can do that. Just don’t
second-guess yourself because you think it’s wrong to want what you want.”

Nadie smiled at the man she was just learning about and knew
in her heart she was doing the right thing. Her mind might be a little behind,
but it would catch up eventually. She pulled at his shirt, and he leaned
forward, kissing her softly. Since she was at the right height to make it work,
she wrapped her legs around his waist and pulled him closer. He growled a bit,
pulling back to nip at her lip.

“So tell me, Nadie Morgan, what is one thing that you’ve
never done but truly want to do?” He licked his lips, and she had a feeling she
knew
exactly
what topic his mind was
on.

She thought to all the gifs, books, and other things that
she’d seen and tried to come up with something perfect for just her and Jace
and their first time alone. Her gaze went to the tequila beside her, and she
grinned.

“How about body shots?”

Jace’s eyebrows rose before he grinned at her. Oh no, it
wasn’t just a normal grin. It was one of those grins that made her heat up from
the inside out and want to wiggle against him until they were both panting.

“You’ve never done body shots?” Jace asked.

She shook her head. “Never. There was this one time I almost
went to a new bar with Faith to try it out, but we backed out at the last
second since it was raining or something.”

Jace narrowed his eyes. “Good. I’ll be your first. And
you’ll enjoy our bear shifter body shots. I promise.”

“Bear shifter body shots? Uh, I’m not going to actually have
to lick up your body while you’re shifted, right? Not that I think you’d look
horrible as a bear, because I’m sure you’re adorable, cuddly, and
manly
,” she added when his gaze narrowed,
“manly and fierce, but licking up all that hair doesn’t sound tasty. Or
hygienic.”

Jace threw his head back and laughed. “No, I’ll be in human
form.
Shirtless
human form, my
darling. I’ll make sure you’re just as naked as I am so we can lick up every drop
of tequila. Every. Drop.”

She just about swallowed her tongue at the promise in his
gaze and nodded.

He slowly pulled his shirt over his head. Nadie’s gaze
latched to the thick, corded muscles of his arms and chest, swallowing hard.
She wanted to trace each line with her tongue, learn every nuance of his body
until she could close her eyes and
know
him.

When she lifted her head and saw the smile on his face, she
had a feeling he knew where her thoughts had gone—not a bad thing at all.

“I love it when your eyes are on me…and when other parts are
too,” Jace drawled.

She grinned and went to lift up her own shirt when Jace
stopped her.

“No, let me,” he said before slowly, oh so slowly, stripping
her of her shirt. He threw it over his head, his gaze never breaking from hers.
His thumb brushed over her nipple through her bra, and she shuddered.

His mouth quirked in a grin before he undid the clasp of her
bra and sliding it off her. “Lie back,” he said, his voice low.

She did, the coolness of the wooden bar top shocking against
the heat of her skin. Without speaking, he twisted off the cap of the
tequila—very top shelf knowing Dante—and took a swig.

She raised a brow. “Is that how you’re going to do shots,
then?”

He grinned then kissed her, the liquid burn of the tequila
mixing with his heady taste. She swallowed as he pulled away, the sting going
down her throat, but she didn’t care. She was already heated up from the inside
out and wanted Jace. Now.

Her bear licked her breasts, and she arched for him, pushing
more of herself into his mouth. He bit down gently, and she moaned before he
pulled away.

“Like raspberries, so red and juicy,” Jace whispered before
sprinkling salt on her nipples. She laughed at the sensation, but didn’t move,
loving the way he spoke to her, cared for her. “Now don’t move, darling.”

He poured a small amount of tequila in her belly button and
she gasped at the cool sensation dancing on her skin but forced her back to the
wood of the bar, not wanting to spill. A small drop of liquid trailed down her
side, and Jace moved quickly, lapping it up with his tongue.

“Don’t want to make a mess,” he growled softly.

He put a slice of lime between her teeth after kissing her
softly then grinned. She about came just then at the promise in that grin alone.
Jace moved to her breasts, licking up the salt on each nipple, biting and
sucking along the way. Her body craved him, begged her to move into him, but
she forced herself to stay still so she wouldn’t spill any tequila. His tongue
trailed down her stomach, and her pussy clenched, wanting Jace inside her.

Jace growled and sucked up the tequila, licking and running
his cheek along her skin, the scratchiness of his beard sending shots of heat
down her back and sides. Before she could beg him for more, he moved up and bit
into the lime clenched between her teeth. Juice and some of the meat from the
lime spilled down her chin, and Jace licked that up as well.

That had been the singularly hottest thing that had ever
happened to her.

Considering she’d just had a threesome with Dante and
Jace—that was saying something.

Jace pulled her into his arms, and she sat up, wrapping her
legs against his waist. He pulled back, breathing hard. “I was going to let you
do a shot off me, but I don’t think my dick can handle that. I need to taste
you.”

She swallowed hard and nodded. There would plenty of time
for more body shots. He kissed her again, one hand fisted in her hair, crushing
her to him, the other on her lower back, pulling her closer.

God, she’d never felt so taken, so wanted.

He wrenched his mouth from her then pulled her down so she
was standing in front of him. His fingers shook as he undid her pants and
stripped her down so she was in nothing but skin and so freaking ready for him.

“Gods, baby, you are so fucking hot.” He kissed her stomach
then gripped her ass cheeks, spreading them, forcing her legs to move apart. He
licked her clit with one firm swipe, and her legs gave out.

“Jace!”

He looked up at her, his eyes dark. Without a word, he
picked her up and set her on the bar again. She gripped the edge of the wood,
needing the support. Jace knelt before her, spread her thighs, and then buried
his face in her pussy.

She cried out, his tongue piercing her before he licked up
to her clit, twisting his tongue in such a way that she saw stars. When he
speared her with two of his fingers, touching that bundle of nerves deep within
her, she came against his face, screaming his name as she fought to keep
consciousness.

Jace finally moved so he stood between her legs, his forehead
pressed against hers with one hand on the back of her neck, keeping her steady.
“You okay, baby?”

“I…I…”

She had thoughts and words and everything, yet they didn’t
seem to be working quite yet.

Jace chuckled softly, sounding entirely too pleased with
himself. Well, she’d just have to show him
exactly
what he’d done to her.

She wiggled away from him, dropped to the floor, and pushed
him so his back was to the bar. His eyes widened as she went to her knees and
undid his jeans.

“Nadie, what are you doing?”

“If you have to ask, then I guess I just have to make sure I
do it properly.”

Jace lifted her chin. “I’ll let you put your mouth on any
part of me. I just don’t want to come down that pretty throat before I come in
your pussy.”

She grinned at his words and peeled his jeans down his legs.
He moved one leg then the other, helping her strip him completely. Her bear
went commando—something that, for some reason, was freaking hot. His cock
jutted out, right in front of her face. It took all within her not to grab on
and lick him up like an ice cream cone.

“You can do both, can’t you?” she asked, fluttering her
eyelashes. “Aren’t big bad bears supposed to have an amazing recovery time?”

Jace narrowed his eyes, even as his mouth twitched. He
fisted his hand into her hair, pulling her closer. “I see I’m going to have to
show you just how fast I can recover. And, darling, never tempt a bear by
doubting his prowess.”

She grinned up at him then took his cock in her hand,
pumping his length twice before licking the crown. Jace’s hold tightened in her
hair, and she let out a breath.

“I’ve never done this before, you know.”

Jace’s thumb traced her cheek. “I know, love. Just do what
feels right. You don’t have to swallow it all.”

She rolled her eyes. “I would choke, Jace,” she said dryly.

He grinned again. “I do love it when you compliment me.”

Nadie tightened her grip then took the tip of his cock and
settled it on her tongue. Jace moaned, his hand in her hair pulling her
slightly closer but not pushing. She swallowed him a bit farther then pulled
back, rolling her tongue along his length.

From Jace’s strangled moan, she figured he enjoyed that. She
explored him with her hands and tongue, loving the way she could make him
thrust and groan. When she cupped his balls, rolling them in her hands, he
pulled back on her hair, and she looked up at him.

“I was busy,” she pouted.

“Do you want me to come down your throat or in you,
darling?” he asked, his words coming out between pants.

“Can’t it be both?” she asked as she squirmed.

He pulled her up so she was standing then gripped her ass.
She let out a gasp as he picked her up, crushing his mouth to hers. His cock
lay between her legs, pressed against her clit, and she rubbed up against him,
wanting to come so bad.

Jace set her back on the bar, and she wrapped her arms
around him, needing him inside her. Her bear held one hip while using his other
hand to keep a firm grip on the back of her neck. He pressed his forehead
against hers and let out a breath before he
moved
.

With a gasp, she arched against him, his cock filling her in
one stroke. He pulled out, her body shaking she was so ready. He pumped his
hips, and she moved with him, needing him as close as possible. Their gazes
never left each other’s, their bodies moving in sync as he fucked her on the
bar top.

No, not fucked. This was so much more, but she couldn’t
breathe. He slammed into her once more, and she came with him. They both
screamed out the other’s names as her succubus took over, pulling in Jace’s
life force through their bond. She could feel her body warming, growing strong
with her bear deep within her.

Jace kissed her then, licking and sucking on her lips as
they both came down from their high.

“Again,” she whispered.

Jace growled and pushed inside her, once, twice. “As you
wish, my Nadie.”

Nadie grinned and pulled her bear closer.

Yes. This is what she wanted.
Who
she wanted. For a lifetime.

****

Jace pulled himself off Nadie as she slept in their big bed
for their afternoon nap. He moved to the window, looking out into the distance.
He could have sworn he’d heard, or at least
felt,
something waking him from his sleep. It was as if someone was watching them,
but who?

It didn’t make any sense. No one knew they were there. There
wouldn’t be a reason to watch them.