A Grave Exchange (5 page)

He
smiled
against my breast
,
slid
his hand down
over
my quivering stomach
. He caressed me
ever so gently
,
circl
ing
my stomach with his finger
tip
s
. 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 place
d
tiny, gentle
kisses over my scars,
and
never had I felt so loved
. He ran h
is
hand
down between my thig
h
s
and found my wet core
. G
asping
,
I
arched
up to
meet
his
seeking
fingers
.

“Ivy
,
you are my everything
. Y
ou 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
,
h
e 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
c
ome
.
I want you to make love to me now
. P
lease
,
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
. H
e was truly huge
,
but as much as I feared
,
I knew in my heart I wanted him more
.
I a
rch
ed 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
.

M
y 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
tongue
s
engaged in a frantic
,
lovers
’
duel. M
y 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
thrust
ing 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. H
e
continued his frantic pace,
thrust
ing
into me over and over again, both of us
dancing to our souls
’
desires
. M
y sheath tighten
ed
around
his
cock
.
I could not get enough,
and
I slid my arms down
his
back
, past
the dimples near his ass,
and
quickly gri
p
ped 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
. T
he 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 s
t
roked
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
. W
hat is happening to you is natural for our kind
. P
lease don’t panic
. L
isten to me.”

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

Chapte
r
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 ok
ay. J
ust 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
roll
ing
tight
ly 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
?
I
f 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
i
nto my face and kissed the back of my
neck. H
e 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 fac
e
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
. Y
ou 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
, radiat
ing
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
. N
ow
,
I will tell you about you
rself
and why you mean so very much to me.”

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

“When I worked for
my
kingdom as a
d
ark
k
night, 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 w
e all loved her dearly
. S
oon
,
my brother asked her father
,
Marco
,
for
Maria’s
hand in marriage
. W
e were all so very excited
.
One day
,
I was
commanded to attend
c
ourt
.
I went and could not believe what I was told
.
My
k
ing asked
to
o
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
.
Iv
y
?
”

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
?

“
T
he
k
ing declared that Maria
Adao
and her family where traitors to the
k
ingdom
. H
e suggested that Maria was a witch that had been sent to spy on the
c
ourt
.
”

“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 thing
s
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 lifetime
s
.
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 hand
s
and held on tightly. “
I never questioned the
k
ing
, Ivy
:
I trusted him and his
c
ourt
.
This time
,
however
,
I fell to my knees and asked
him
to consider sharing his proof
.
I
simply c
ould not believe this of Maria and her beloved family
.
The
k
ing stood
,
and the
c
ourt fell silent
.
No
one uttered
a sound
.
I knew my punishment for
questioning
the
k
ing
’
s
c
ourt, but I could not back down
. If I did as my liege asked
, my brother, my
entire
family
,
would be heartbroken.”

I g
ave
Lucius’ hand
a
s
queeze to show my support and encourage him to go on with his tale
.

“Ivy
,
the
k
ing 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 to
o
,
for failing to adhere to the
c
ourt
’
s
summons
.
”

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

“
T
ell 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 ha
n
d
s
, 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.
R
agged
,
painful breaths sawed in and out of my lungs
.
Lucius stopped beside me and knelt down
. S
lowly
,
he tilted
up
my chin
.

“
F
or failing
the
k
ing and
c
ourt,
I was forced to watch
Maria
die. He killed her there, before everyone, my family included. Just before he drained her life’s blood,
Maria shouted
something, but
I could not make out what she said
. I
assumed
she’d said
a prayer to her
g
ods
. Then
…”

I stared at
him
, feeling agonizing torment rolling off
him
in waves
. H
is eyes were black
, the pupils ringed in
red,
and
he trembled in front of me
.
I
reached out
and placed my hands on his shoulders
.

“Lucius
,
tell me
;
I am here for you, please.”

He
covered my
hands
with his
.

“
A
fter the
k
ing had Maria killed, he dragged my brother Zorion to the front of the
c
ourt
.
I screamed
, begged
for mercy
,
asked
that he kill me
and
not my brother
,
as I had failed him
, not Zorion
.
The
k
ing smiled at me and said he had better plans for me than killing me
.
I
continued
plead
ing
,
and
my father lay prostrate on the floor
before
the
k
ing
, also
begging him
,
for the sake of my mother
,
to let Zorion go
. But the king
kicked my father in the head to silence him, the
n
turned to Zorion and smiled
.
Ivy, I will never forget
that smile. It
deadened my heart
. The king
told
me
that when he killed
Zorion
as punishment for my failure
,
that would only be the start.”