Dragan's Redemption Book One of the Manor at Echo Lake Trilogy (26 page)

“And you have figured it out.”

“No
,
a
ctually,
I
have not
.  What I have been able to determine
today
is that it is not contagious
,
and
strangely
my venom kills it.”

Aaron, who was spinning in his chair, stopped abruptly.  “Oh my God
,
Dragan, that is fantastic.  When are you going to tell her?”

Dragan looked down at his hands.  “As hopeful as all of this seems at this very moment, I still have to do research to figure it all out.  How much venom will kill every one of her bad cells, how to administer the venom
,
etc.  As you know, too much venom will kill her.  Not enough venom will allow the
mutant
cell to regenerate
,
and from what I can tell, when it
does
,
it is stronger.  There are many variables.”

“But there is hope.” 
Incredulous
,
Aaron
stared at his brother.  “You are amazing.”

“Gee, thanks
b
rother.  Never heard you say that before.”

“Well, I mean it
,
and I hope
you stay
in here for a long time
, because
if you ignore your little girlfriend
enough
, then maybe she will stray over to me.”

“Not funny.”

“Do you see
me laughing?  She looked sexy as all hell today when she came looking for you.”

“Amira came back?”

“Yes, but James, the ever
faithful
, shooed her back home.”

Dragan looked over at the microscopes thoughtfully. 
“Maybe I do need to take a break for a
while.”

Aaron laughed as he started to spin in the chair again.  “Yes
,
brother, maybe you should.”

Dragan stood on the edge of the bed staring down at Amira as she slept.
It overwhelmed him at moments like this just how much he cared for her.  Her softness and beauty were forever imprinted on his heart, and he could no longer live a life without her.

The sheet covered her only partially and seeing her bare shoulder and the swell of her breasts peeking over the cover, he wondered if she was completely naked under the blankets.  Feeling him
self
harden at the thought, he stripped
quickly
sliding under the cool sheets up behind her.  He could feel the immediate reaction as his lower body touched her bare cheeks under the cover.  Sliding a hand around her waist
,
he
flatte
ned his
hand on her toned
stomach
push
ing gently
so that she
would slide more against his own body.
  Amira shifted
in
her sleep but did not waken.

Agonizingly slow, he gently moved his hand up her rib cage to gently cup her breast
loving the silky feel of her skin under his touch
.  Kissing
the nape of her neck
,
he slid his fingers
over the curve of her hip to her legs as far as he could reach before sliding his
hand
back up,
repeating
until he could sense her slowly waking.

“Hey
,
you.”

“
Hey
,
yourself.”

Amira tried to turn and face him, but he gripped her hip not allowing her to do so.

“What….?”

“
Don’t move. 
I want to love you just like this.  I have been waiting
for
you to wake up.  You sleep very deeply
,
my love.”

Confused
,
her inexperience showing,
she was not sure what he wanted.

Feeling him lift her leg up slightly, Amira gasped in surprise when he
slid
inside of her from behind
,
catching her unawares.

“Oh my God!”

“Hmmm, my sentiments exactly. 
Y
ou feel
good.”  Dragan nipped at her neck with his
teeth
, careful not to break the skin, as his hips moved slowly,
rhythmically
against
her.
 
Amira placed
her hand over his that was still cupping her breast
,
squeez
ing
as she felt the now familiar warmth spread throughout her body.

“Please
,
Dragan
!” 

He liked the way her voice
thickened
,
getting
husky when she was
excited
.  Sliding his hand out from under hers, he set his on top of hers.  Gripping it gently, he moved both of their hands
in tandem
so that her fingers rubbed against her own body
,
s
queezing
her
fingers
so that she was squeezing her own breast, before moving it down her stomach to the apex between her legs.

Amira was glad that her back was to him as h
er face flushed
embarrassed
. 

“
Have you never touched
yourself
,
Amira?”  Her silence was all the answer he need.  “
Close your eyes and
use your senses
,
Amira
.  Feel what I feel when I touch you
.”

Moaning, she did as he asked, feeling her own skin underneath her finger tips
come alive
.  Directing her, he pushed against her own, and she groaned when
he moved out of her so that
her own finger
could slide
up inside of herself with his as if they were one.

“Do you feel how wet you are
?
”

Still gripping her hand, he pulled them both out of her as he
pushed
his hips against her again, sliding back into her.  Moving his hand in a circular motion
on top of her hand
she felt herself tighten against her
finger as it moved quicker
, she panted as she felt the nub swell and grow, before she broke into a million pieces.

Dragan stille
d as she tightened around him.
He loved this moment
with her
. 
Without
wa
i
ting
for her shuddering to
subside, he
gripped
her hips, hearing her gasp as he rolled her over onto her stomach
with himself still inside of
her
. 
Lying
on top of
her,
he
breathed
deeply attempting to gain control
of himself
before easing
up onto his hands
.

Sweat broke out over his skin. 
“
Amira, go onto your hands and knees
,
baby.
”
 

Doing as he asked she gasped as he did the same, clutching her hips tightly. 
He could move deeply within her this way
,
and
he watched as
she grabbed at the
mattress
feeling anot
her wave come over her
,
and
he
lost himself within her.

∞

Amira woke to the smell of bacon and coffee.  Salivating
,
she jumped out of bed
,
dropping immediately to her knees as a wave of dizziness washed over her.

No, no
,
no.  Chanting to herself, she inhaled deeply fighting the
nausea that was trying to take he
r over
. “
Not today.  You will
not
be sick today
Amira Coulter
.”

Clutching
the edge of the bed, she shakily stood to her feet before taking unsteady steps
to
t
he bathroom
,
closing the door behind her
.  Walking to the mirror, she took
in the dark circles under her eyes
and frowned.
  She looked bad.  Turning on the shower, she stepped in as the cool water
ran
over her
warm skin
.  Several minutes
later,
she had regained enough composure to put on some light makeup masking
her pallor
. 
Sighing deeply
,
she knew that s
he would need to call Dr. Kingsley today and go back in for some more blood
work
.

Hating being sick, she watched in the mirror as her eyes filled with tears.  Why
,
when her life was just coming together
,
did
she
have to get sicker? 
Feeling sorry for herself, she wondered why she
couldn’t have met
Dragan
sooner?

Overcome with sadness
,
Amira
sobbed aloud
as she sank to the
floor,
as years of pent up frustration
could
no longer be held back.  A
knock came on the door.  “Hey
,
Amira, breakfast is ready.”  Pressing her hand against her
lips,
she tried to stop the flow of tears.

“Amira?  Amira!  Let me in.”
  He had heard her stifling back the sounds.  Was she crying?  Worried
,
he knocked again
.

“Amira, you either open this door
or
I am going to do it for you.”  Counting to ten, he opened the door.  His heart broke
seeing
her
crumpled and broken
on the floor.  Rushing over
,
he pulled her up into his arms
,
pressing her head to his chest.  Her arms wrapped
themselves
around his waist as she sobbed leaning against him for support.  He did not need to ask her what was wrong, he knew.  They
had
waited long enough.  It was time to talk.  Reaching to
the
shelf,
he took a
washcloth
placing it under the faucet, then lifting her face, gently rubbed it over her skin.  Her emerald
eyes
swam in liquid
,
and he so wished he could take away her pain.

“I am dying
,
Dragan.”

H
is hand still
ed
for a moment, before it continued it
’
s ministering on her face
remaining silent.

“Dragan!  Did you hear me?  I said I was dying.  I am sick
,
and they don’t know how to fix me.”

“You have know
n
this for awhile?”

Nodding her head, she broke eye contact and stared at his chest.  “Yes.  For a little over a year now.”

Cupping her face with his hands pushing his fingers through her hair, he kissed her softly
on the
forehead
then
stepped away from her
.

“I know.”

“What?  How?”

The other day
when
you went in for a blood
test, I went to my office.
  Your folder
had been
left on my desk by Dr. Kingsley
,
because h
e is looking for my help with
finding a cure for you
.”

“And you didn’t say anything?”

“You didn’t.”

“That’s not the same.”

“Are you kidding me?”

Pushing past
him,
she hurried to the kitchen
,
pacing back and forth.  Leaning against the
doorjamb,
he watched her agitation
grow
.