Desecrated Beauty (Twisted Fairy Tales #1) (13 page)

His other hand slipped around her belly, dipping lower until his fingers found her clit again and strummed it gently. Sparks erupted behind her eyes as she bit down on her lip and moaned again. She was sure it sounded louder than she was, thanks to the echo of their confined space. Even still the noise that came back to her was feral and animalistic, laced with an edge of pain and desire. She hardly recognised herself.

His hips snapped relentlessly, forgetting for a moment the woman in front of him was human and fragile compared to previous lovers. Like the beat of a drum, he slammed into her, again and again as her tight core milked each draw. Her legs trembled at the combined pleasure of his thumb and cock. When she moaned his name again this time, a whimpered followed, drawing him back to reality. He slowed the frenzied unnatural pace he had set and felt her body sigh with relief.

He would’ve felt sorry if he had the faculty to do so. Even still, his pace was still fast compared to other men. She wanted to say it was too much, but that would be a lie. It was perfect. It edged on the side of excessive but the violent devotion he showered her with remained focused solely on one thing: her completion and not his. So despite the quiver in her legs, threatening to give up their charge, and although something burned inside of her that she had never felt before, it was a welcomed sensation. This is what she had needed and what she had lacked.

Only a man like Nero could give her what she needed. Everyone before him was foreplay. This was genuine lovemaking; no, fucking.

The intensity of his pressure on her sensitised bud was making her legs shake like they were going to give up any minute now as the first stirrings of her orgasm came. He felt her walls tighten more to grip his shaft as he pulled out from her again.

Once more he adjusted their position, mostly lifting her off her feet completely to change the angle from which he would enter her. Quill’s heart fluttered with another wave of panic when she realised he had placed her in a position to be utterly at his mercy. She barely had time to protest when he pressed back into her and his cock slid along a part of her that set off an explosion of feeling in her body.

His thumb rubbed harder against her clit as she began to come. Each time he pulled out it was only far enough to gain momentum to release another ripple of pleasure through her. She was so unbelievably tight as her muscles tried desperately to cling to him pulling him back in with the suction of her wet, aching mound.

He resolved then he had to turn her before she was stretched anymore, he wanted this - her tightness and sex for eternity just as it was. His fangs sunk into her shoulder at the thought, taking another deep gulp as his own release came. Staggered and laboured thrusts followed after that until he finally spent himself deep inside of her.

She shivered again beneath him, this time at the temperature, as her own orgasm began to fall short. He reached out and flicked the shower back on letting the hot flow cascaded over them. The water streaked, washing away the stream of blood running down her back. He eased her slowly onto her feet but kept one arm tight around her until she was steady enough on her own. As their position changed, she finally managed to free her hands, bracing one on the wall. He slid his hand up through the red water along her back before catching the hand on the wall and thread his fingers through hers.

“
Fuck,
”
she whispered softly, shivering slightly with a laugh. She leaned forward and pressed her forehead against the cool tile as she tried to pick herself back up from the pieces he had scattered on the floor. Never had her core throbbed so much but she was sure it wasn’t in exhaustion but an awakened hunger inside of her. Nero sensed the change, smirking to himself before drawing away from her completely. His eyes skimmed the length of her body as she clung to the wall for all the support it could offer. However spent she was, she was still strong and still defiant. And she was almost his.

He backed out of the stall, opening the door with his back and stepped out into the bathroom. Quill remained under the spray for a few more seconds before realising he was leaving. She turned sharply to shut the water off before pushing through the glass door and staring at him in disbelief.

“
That’s it?
”
Irrational anger surged through her suddenly.

“
I thought you were going after your sister.
”

“
Not tonight!
”
She didn’t know why the sting of his rejection hurt so much, but it truly pissed her off. He smirked infuriatingly at her as he reached out and removed a towel from the bar, shaking it open with a snap of his wrist before holding it out to her.

“Go fuck yourself,” she said with a snarl, pushing his hands out of her way as she marched past him looking for a towel of her own. His quiet laughter followed her, the mocking tone making her skin burn. Embarrassingly it was as though all the towels in the room had shrunk and disappeared in the time she desperately looked around for one. With no other options, she snatched the one in his hands away and wrapped it around her body. She felt a little bit more in control now that she had managed to hide her body from his prying eyes once more.

“
Get the hell out of my bathroom,” she said coldly, pointing to the door. There wasn’t an implicit threat in her words, but it was there in her tone, warning him not to piss her off further.

“
Of course, my beautiful mate.
”
He curled the words around her like a taunt, eclipsing her in their dark meaning: she belonged to him. He walked by her so confident and so utterly naked. It took a lot of self-restraint to not watch his ass saunter out of the room before she looked up at the ceiling and exhaled heavily.

She belonged to him. The idea echoed around in her head furthering the fire of anger and lust that crackled in her belly.

Irrational. That was what she was being. He could feel the irrational anger that rippled through her with every step. It was disturbing his sleep. Every time he tried to relax, to allow himself to slip into the state of restfulness that daytime induced, he could feel another bout of anger come from her and transcend between their rooms right to his heart. She hated that he thought he could control her.

But she didn’t understand him well if that’s what she thought he got from this. She was angry with herself for relinquishing all that self-control to him in the shower. Still she didn’t see that he too had relinquished his control to her. She didn’t see that he had given her a power over him that no one else in this world in the last two centuries had ever had.

She knew his weakness.

Growling in frustration as another wave of her own hit him he sat up, concentrating on the pull that now connected them in the dark house. It was the direct line that connected him to those feelings she was going through over and over again in a senseless circle. He called to her, sending out a wave of calm through the line to her heart. At first it didn’t work, she was far too worked up and had been for the last few hours, to accept the calm. He didn’t need to be in the room to know she was still pacing, he could feel the meticulous motion through the bond as well.

With another deep noise of frustration he shot out another strong wave of peace to her and this time he felt it settle a bit more. Instantly his shoulders relaxed, the tension in his fingers gave in and he slipped back into the bed and closed his eyes. Good. Much better.

Daytime called like a siren, his body longing for the sun he hadn’t felt in over 2000 years. This is why he needed sleep. Without inducing the coma-like state, there was very little that would keep him from resisting the lure of the sun. A few more hours of sleeplessness and he would’ve happily rose from the mattress and greeted the sun for the last time ever. It had very nearly happened once before, under the compulsion of his father in a bid to make him stronger.

How he hated that man.

----

She stopped pacing, the sunlight warming her feet as she looked up at the open window. Her heart seemed to have settled momentarily and she let out the breath she was holding. Why was she so worked up over him? She could barely remember, let alone recall the feelings she had felt only moments ago. Sitting on the edge of her bed she looked out over the expanse of grass outside of his manor. She had been replaying everything about the last five minutes of their exchange in the bathroom, her mind conveniently leaving out everything that had happened in the shower stall because she burned from the memory.

Whether it was because she was embarrassed at her lack of self-control or how much she had enjoyed and needed it, she didn’t know. She also didn’t want to scrutinize it. She just wanted to put it behind her and leave it at that. Except - the seed was planted in her core now. The idea was there and it was blossoming. He offered her a world of things. He offered her immortality if she wanted it, and within that: immortality with a man who could only satisfy her in a way no other man could before him.

No.

Her mind sounded stark and stern, she would never allow herself to admit she needed him. Never in a million years. But he said he needed her. The words suddenly echoed in her head, recalling to memory the things he had whispered before he took her as his own. He would turn her because he couldn’t live without her. She rose from the bed and crossed more into the sun, letting its light touch her hand as she twisted it palm up and stared at the brightness. If she stayed with him, truly became his mate in every sense of the word, there were some things she would have to give up. Could she live with those losses?

She reached out, drawing the curtains closed and frowned to herself as darkness descended. She had all but made her choice, it was now just a matter of admitting it out loud. Annoyance blossomed in her chest as she imagined the air of arrogance he would dress himself in when she conceded. It was inevitable and if she was going to say yes she would just have to accept it.

There was no use in trying to sleep now. She would only toss and turn until nighttime came again and she had to face him so she left her room silently and tiptoed through the hallway that led her straight on to his bedroom.

There were no guards this time, a fact she found strange considering he was at his most vulnerable at day. Before she even opened the door, she could feel the peace sleep brought him and she paused, second guessing herself. What use was there in disturbing him now with her answer, he could have it in the morning. Her peace of mind wasn’t worth the wrath of his tiredness.

Shaking her head she turned back and returned to her room almost sheepishly, slinking under the covers and surprisingly feeling the tug of sleep a lot stronger than anticipated as her own peace of mind overcame her.

The next evening when she rose from her bed Quill felt something strange in her chest she had never felt in a material way before - power. It lingered over her like another shirt as she dressed and was made even clearer when she opened the door to find two guards outside of it much like Nero had outside of his. Before yesterday’s events, she would’ve thought he was trying to trap her in her room but something told her they were there for her benefit.

“
Go tell Lord Nero I’m awake.
”
The words left her mouth with command and ease as both men nodded and slipped away. The pressure in her chest increased and she felt high on the effects of commanding men as powerful as she knew those vampires were. Carrying herself down the steps to the dining room she felt like she was a queen walking her castle amongst her subjects.

Surely not everyone within the manor knew what they had done last night and they couldn’t possibly know she had given herself to him as a mate. But then, it was the only explanation for why suddenly doors were being opened for her and people were bowing and she was sure she’d even heard someone say
“
ma’am
”
.

Going into the dining room she took her usual spot at the table, setting the bag she had packed for her trip on the table next to the place setting. Before she had barely let go of the handle someone was already approaching with a steaming hot breakfast, setting it down in front of her. But Nero still wasn’t there.

She was halfway through her plate when he finally entered with the laziness of a king. He didn’t even seem bothered she had summoned him this morning which was evident in the way he had kept her waiting. She should’ve been angry with him for being a jackass - she would’ve been - if not for the burn in her chest that told her to remain calm.

“
Good morning, my beautiful mate.
”

“
Are you going to call me that from now on?
”

“
Would you prefer something else?
”

“
I preferred it more when you called me Isabelle.
”

“
Instead of that crude nickname of yours, what was it?
”

“
Quill.
”

“
Yes, Quill.
”

She shrugged as she stabbed another sausage with her fork, taking a big unladylike bite.

“
I prefer Isabelle too,
”
he said with a grin as he sat down in the chair next to her, pulling it closer than she should’ve been comfortable with. He watched her eat with a morbid curiosity and she finally stopped munching on the pork roll, holding it out to him.

“
Want some?
”
She cocked an eyebrow at him as his face contorted in disgust.

“Most certainly not. Human food is vile.
”

“
Blood is vile,
”
she countered, stuffing the rest of the sausage into her mouth.

“
You didn’t seem to find it vile last night,
”
he said, his words brushing against her ear with his sudden proximity. She turned to look at him slowly. Their faces so close to each other it was hard not to recall how those lips, that tongue and, of course, those fangs had worked her into a frenzy last night.

“
Get over yourself,
”
she scoffed with a roll of her eyes. This was reply enough to make him chuckle and grin more at her.

“Ah, there she is. My feisty warrior.”

“She didn’t go anywhere. She was just eating and revelling in her new position.”

“What position would that be?”

“Your mate.”

“
So you accept it then - our blood connection?
”

“
It’s a little late not to, don’t you think?
”
He made a small noise of agreement before his eyes wandered the length of her body.

“Is that what you’re going in?”

“What’s wrong with this?” She looked down at the t-shirt she had put on before slinging her comfortable, and familiar, leather jacket over top.

“It’s ruined.”

“It still says what I want it to.”

“Which is?” he asked with a laugh.

“Don’t fuck with me I know 27 different ways to kill you in under a minute.”

“So that’s what that god-awful sweater you showed up in said.” He smirked at her as she stabbed another sausage link and brought it to her mouth with an overly dramatic bite. She said something along the lines of a yes, but it was lost in her full mouth. He wondered if she knew exactly what lewd gesture she was making toward him right now.

“So I shouldn’t trust you.” He changed the subject, lazily reaching out for his wine glass.

“No, even when you do trust me I might still kill you. And you might still kill me at any time by accident. That’s just the nature of our relationship.”

“Relationship,” he said with interest, as he reached out and brushed his hand along her neck to sweep her hair away from it.

She stopped eating and turned to look at him, a tiny furrow appearing between her eyebrows as they stared at each other. Quill was the first one to break the stare as she turned to the door where the guards were hanging back and waiting.

“Close the door,” she commanded, they turned to look at Nero first who just barely inclined his head in agreement before turning back to her with a sharp arch of his eyebrow. “You’re going to tell me something truthful that I suppose you don’t want others to hear.”

“Am I?” He grinned slightly. “What is it that I’m supposed to tell you?”

“Why haven’t you taken a woman before?” Her voice dropped an octave, laced with insecurity as she asked the one question that had plagued her mind the entire time she had been getting ready. “You always talk about how you could have anyone, how you’ve had anyone you’ve ever wanted... You talked about how humans are disposable, but here I am: breaking all those rules you seem to have for everyone else but me. So, why haven’t you taken a woman before and what makes me so different? Why am I here Nero?
”
She looked around the expanse of the room before her eyes returned to him, “because I know this isn’t for me.”

“Haven’t we been over this already?”

“No, you only told me what you wanted me to know and now I want to know everything.”

He sighed, a deliberate action that echoed the annoyance she briefly felt inside of her before he spoke.

“Because, none of them in all of these long years has ever been worth trying to spend a few months with, let alone an eternity. Do you know how long that is? Can you grasp that?” He narrowed his eyes at her as though searching her heart. “Thousands and thousands of years stretching out forever before you… How do you choose a person to spend it with? You, of all the women through the ages that I’ve met, are the one my thoughts and interest keep drifting back to you since our first meeting. So yes, you are here for me, but by being selfish and indulgent I hope to give you something in return: freedom from all of your worries and fears. I can heal you and make you stronger and perfect once more. I can lavish you in expensive clothes or humble ones, in jewels and furs and gifts, or nothing if you so desire. All for the price of attention and someone to be honest with, if you just stay here with me.” He hadn’t moved as he spoke, but the intimacy of his words felt like he was right up against her. She struggled to swallow the block in her throat as she stared at him processing the severity of what he had admitted to her.

“No. I have no idea.” She spoke frankly, never letting her eyes stray from his, “but I know what loneliness feels like. My father erased most emotions from me through abuse growing up. I don’t know how to love, feel compassion, empathy... but I know hatred, anger, numbness and most of all, loneliness. I think it was inevitable that you found someone to fill that void for you for a little bit before you have to go back to being empty again. But you can’t free me from my worries or my fears. He ingrained those in me long before I could walk or talk.” She twisted her hand to grip the arm of her chair, resisting the urge to reach out and touch him now. “I don’t want your gifts, I just want your honesty. So you need to promise me something else if I’m going to stay here with you.”

“What if I promise you this... Just me like this: honest, bare and lonely. Can you stand to be around me if I’m not Nero the Great and Terrible? If I’m just myself and not that angry little boy still trying to get back at an absent and neglectful father? Or the young man still trying to prove that he is worth the love he was given by his mother? That’s all that I am Isabelle. I am just trying to survive an existence where I have no one because I eventually push them away if they see too much, or if they get too close. I collected people who I know I cannot love and make them my family just so I could be more alone. I don’t want you to be perfect, not in the way you suspect, but I want to make you whole again. That’s all I have to offer beyond what you see… so, you will stay?”

She shook her head, “don’t promise things you can’t fulfil to me.” Her voice was lower than before as she finally released the arm of the chair and reached for him. “Just work on being honest and bare with me, and I’ll stay. I might even relinquish some control. Not all of it, but some of it... so long as you stay humble about it.”