Oak, Sophie - Beast [A Faery Story 2] (Siren Publishing Everlasting Classic) (11 page)

Dante stood and showed his full fangs to the little Fae. He enjoyed the gnome’s wide eyes. “Kaja is not married to Beckett. He has no authority over her. I own her, and you will follow my instructions. If I discover you have drugged my consort in any fashion, I’ll drain you. Do you understand me?”

He might not feed from living creatures, but he would make an exception in the gnome’s case if the little bugger didn’t follow instructions.

The gnome quaked and averted his eyes. Dante noticed the gnome’s wife, Cara, enter. She went to the bed and covered Kaja’s forehead with a cool rag. “Yes, sir. We will leave the care of your consort to you, Mr. Dellacourt.”

Dante was satisfied with the gentle way Cara was treating Kaja. But he wasn’t about to treat her husband in the same fashion. There was more than just the silver in Kaja’s system. “Now, explain to me why you fed my consort an aphrodisiac.”

The gnome swallowed several times.

“Answer him,” Beck ordered.

“I wanted the sale to go through,” Rhys replied.

“Bastard,” Cara spat even as she rubbed her small hands across Kaja’s back. Dante was very grateful to the female gnome. It was obvious to him that Cara had been kind to his consort. Kaja wouldn’t allow Rhys near her, but she clung to Cara’s hand.

“How could you?” Cara asked. She seemed to wait for Rhys to explain. When he didn’t, she took over, turning her head to lock eyes with Dante. “If you bedded down with the consort tonight, you wouldn’t be able to revoke the sale in the morning. You have a night to decide, but if penetration occurs, the sale and marriage are final by Fae laws.”

“Get out,” Dante snarled. He longed to wrap a hand around that gnome’s throat and squeeze.

The Fae still looked to his king. Beck stared down at him. “I would go if I were you. We will discuss your methods in the morning, Rhys. You have contracts with the demon clan, but you are still my subject. You are still bound by my laws. Cara, can you take care of the woman?”

The blonde gnome nodded as her husband retreated. “I will aid the vampire. The silver should be out of her system by morning. She was to be given the elixir every morning and every evening. The demon said it would keep the change from happening.”

Dante exchanged a glance with his cousin. He was certain they were both thinking the same thing. They had dealt with a creature that had two faces not six months before. “Is she a hag?”

Cara shot him a dirty look. “Of course not. Have you ever heard of a hag who could serve as a consort?”

“No,” Dante replied. “But then consorts don’t change forms. How do I know this isn’t a trick of Torin’s?”

Torin was dead set on killing Beck and Cian. He’d sent a hag to do the job last time. He might think to try it again. The thought of Kaja being one of Torin’s goons unsettled him.

“I gave her a purgative when she came here,” Cara said. “I give it to all the females to make sure they are free of any spells or hexes. There was not a hint of magic on her.” She looked thoughtfully at the woman in her charge. “I would say she is a shape-shifter of some sort, but she isn’t Fae. The demon said she came from a far-off plane. The females there must be consorts as well.”

Dante accepted that explanation, but worried all the same. He really didn’t know what Kaja was. “So the silver will be gone by morning. What about the aphrodisiac?”

Cara’s mouth turned down. “It will only be in effect for a few hours, but it will be very painful for her. It is a strong mix, if I am correct. She needs to have physical relations, or she will feel like she is burning inside. My husband was trying to make sure she didn’t resist you.” Cara walked over to Dante. “If you are intending to revoke the sale, it would be best if you would allow me to find her a male.”

“I will take care of my consort,” Dante barked. Did he need to tattoo it on his forehead or something? Dante was getting damn tired of having to remind everyone of his rights.

Cara craned her neck to look up at him. “I understand, Mr. Dellacourt. Do you require anything?”

“I think I have the proper equipment.”

“Come along, Cara,” Beck said with a slight smile. “You can stand guard outside. If my cousin needs anything, he will let you know. Dante, I happen to know the drawers in the back are filled with…helpful items. Many a wedding night has occurred here. I will make sure she isn’t given the drugs again. She’s my cousin now, too.”

Dante nodded, happy with Beck’s acceptance. He wondered what Cian had said to turn the warrior king around. The flap to the tent slapped shut, and Dante was left alone with his wife.

He knelt down, placing a hand on her naked back. The towel had been thrown back, and she writhed on the bed. He saw her pain. He also saw her body. His fangs lengthened, and he cursed himself for being a selfish bastard. This was not the way he wanted his first time with Kaja to go.

“Kaja,” he said carefully through his fangs. “I need to take care of you.”

She shook her head. “It hurts.”

She covered her pussy with her hand, showing him where her pain was greatest.

It struck him suddenly that there was an easy solution. Why wasn’t she masturbating? Dante shoved his hand under hers and cupped her pussy. Her eyes flew open.

“No,” she said helplessly. She seemed to know she couldn’t fight him so she played to his sympathy. In this case, he didn’t have any. “No mating.”

He kept his eyes and voice soft as his hand rubbed against the flesh of her pussy. She was soaking wet. He let his hand dip into the crevice and felt his dick get hard as a rock. It was going to be a long night. He couldn’t take her. She hadn’t given him permission. The drug didn’t change that. He would take care of her, but he would be going without. He refused to be one more person who took from Kaja and gave nothing back.

She tried to push his hand away, her legs rubbing restlessly. “No. Leave me alone.”

Dante had to wonder. She was obviously in extreme pain. She wasn’t a virgin by her own admission. Why was she fighting him? Why wasn’t she trying to take care of herself? He tried to remember her words from before. “Kaja, you will mind me. Be still. Tell me something, sweetheart, when the Second held you down for the mating, did he pleasure you?”

Her eyes were feverish, the pupils large. “Women receive children from the mating. Men receive pleasure. Everyone knows this.”

Dante felt a slow smile spread across his face. That door he’d slammed closed with his idiotic admission had just swung open again. He let his thumb drift up. He felt her plump clitoris and sighed. She had all the parts for an orgasm. She just needed someone who knew what he was doing. Dante knew he wasn’t the greatest businessman in the world. He wasn’t CEO material like his sister. He couldn’t recall amazing amounts of data like Cian or wield a sword like Beck. There was one thing he was confident in, though.

“Sweetheart,” he cajoled softly as he circled that little nubbin of flesh he intended to get very acquainted with. “Those men were idiots. They were boys with little dicks who didn’t know how to please a woman. I assure you, I’ll take care of you.”

He grinned and forced her legs apart. The night was looking up.

* * * *

Kaja felt like she was on fire. She hadn’t felt this way before. Her insides were burning.
Poison
. Someone, that mean gnome, had poisoned her. She groaned, and her legs drew up. She tried to slap away Dante’s hands, but he did something, and it felt so good, she moaned. He was slipping his fingers into that secret part of her.

“No,” she whispered. “Don’t.”

He didn’t want her, not really. He might wish to slip his male parts into her, but he would walk away. She wasn’t sure why he was playing with her. Why would he wish to put his fingers inside her woman’s place?

“Stop it, Kaja,” he said in a deep voice.

She looked up and saw his magnificent fangs on heart-stopping display. They were long and so white it made Kaja sigh. He was beautiful. She loved his lean body. It was so different from the bulky bodies of the pack males, but no less strong. The First’s body was elegant. He wouldn’t overwhelm her with his weight. His eyes were the green of the forest. She enjoyed looking at him. At Dante. She knew she would not enjoy the physical process of mating, but he did not seem like a man who would walk away when he was done. He had allowed her to be close to him. Perhaps the mating would not be so bad if he wrapped his arms around her afterward.

She had been overjoyed at the thought of mating with such a creature. Then he’d told her of his plan, and she’d known. She was in the same situation she’d been in with the pack. He didn’t want a family with her. He just wanted his pleasure. He wasn’t any different. She didn’t belong here, either. This place was filled with pain.

She tried to move away from him. He was caressing her in a way that made her uncomfortable. It was too intimate. He shouldn’t do such things.

“Why not, sweetheart?” Dante asked, and she realized she’d said what she was thinking. He was merciless. One hand was on her stomach holding her down while the other did strange things to her. She squirmed, trying to unseat his probing fingers. “Don’t you like it?”

She didn’t. It was disturbing. His hand covered that part of her that was aching. She needed to cool it down, but he blanketed her instead. She didn’t like the way he rubbed her. And then she did. He rubbed the pad of his thumb firmly across her core, and Kaja cried out. A heat poured from her center. She moaned as he continued.

He was smiling down at her, looking ridiculously pleased with himself. “See, you liked that, didn’t you? You are just ridiculously wet. You would feel so good. Your little pussy is tight as a fucking vise. This Second of yours, he was a pansy ass, you know that, right?”

She didn’t understand half of what he was saying. Her body twitched from his magic. “What is this feeling?” She panted as she asked the question. Her body felt pleasantly soft. His motions slowed and became languid.

“It’s called an orgasm,” he replied in that slow, silky way of his. She loved his voice when it got thick like honey. Most of the time he spoke so quickly that she lost track. She liked it when his tone got deep and husky. “You should have one every time a man touches you. If you don’t, punch him in the face.”

“I do that before he holds me down for the mating,” Kaja answered seriously. She had been pleased that she’d managed to break Sven’s nose before he thrust himself into her. It had taken two of his friends to hold her down.

Dante’s green eyes were wide before he filled the room with his laughter. “Well, I’ll count myself lucky then. Are you feeling better?”

He released her. Kaja missed the feel of his hands on her body. What was wrong with her? She forced herself to sit up.

“Yes,” she said quietly. The weakness was there, but the terrible burning between her legs was gone. She felt a fresh rush of arousal as Dante drew his fingers into his mouth. His tongue came out, and he licked his fingers clean. That was her essence on his fingers. It was dirty. She couldn’t take her eyes off the sight.

He leaned forward. She could see her moisture on his lips. “What do you expect, darling? You taste good.”

She bit her lip, chewing nervously. “Do you taste good?”

The question was out before she could recall it. She had seen the fluid men left behind when they reached their pleasure.

“It’s called cum,” Dante said. “I have no idea. I don’t swing that way, though I’ve heard it’s pleasant. I like women, despite what the tabloids will tell you. Lay back.”

She did as he told her, aware that she was submitting. She knew she shouldn’t. It was an act of respect that he hadn’t earned beyond being able to hold her down, but she did it anyway. She found she didn’t want to break the contact they had. His hands felt so good on her skin. Sometimes it felt like she’d gone her whole lifetime without the sweetness of another soul brushing against her body. She sighed, all the while knowing in the morning she would leave. She wouldn’t wait to speak with Dante’s Second. Her senses told her there were forests nearby. She could lose herself there, but this night she would revel in the feel of his hands on her. She would pretend their mating was real.