Rise of the Phoenix (Return To Avalore #2) (23 page)

“Hmm... you could be right.” His hand came up to stroke a tender caress on her cheek only to rest on her shoulder again.

Brienne closed her eyes and leaned into his touch. Okay, so he didn’t deny it, but why not act on it if it was what they both wanted?

Evan’s energy slid over her like warm honey, seeping into her every pore. Without trying, hers rose to meet him, slipping and sliding in a sensuous dance before mingling together. The bright colors enveloped them in a cocoon, warm and comforting, one she never wanted to emerge from, but he was holding back. As amazing as the energy meld was, it lacked the spark and fire of passion that was theirs.

“Tell me what you want, Brienne. You’re in charge.” His breath tickled her ear as he whispered the words. Something in his tone had a peculiar knot tightening in her gut, but she pushed it away.

His half-lidded gaze met and held hers. She expected that he would take her mouth, kissing her until she couldn’t think straight. But he waited for her to make the first move. Admirable as it may be, it wasn’t what she wanted right then. Her brows furrowed as a memory bobbed to the surface only to slip away again.

The muscles in Evan’s shoulders tensed, but he remained silent, watchful.

Her stomach knotted again. Did she want to know? Leaning forward, she rested her forehead against his shoulder, hiding her face against his neck for several minutes before lifting it, meeting his gaze head on.

Not knowing would make her crazy. “Tell me what happened. Any casualties? Did we get the scymin?”
She tried to remain calm, but her muscles bunched fast and hard. She had no idea what had happened to any of his men or her pack. A dull ache started in her shoulders, shooting up into the base of her skull.

“The mission was a success. You were the only one to sustain serious injury, and yes, you retrieved the scymin.” Evan hesitated before speaking again. “Do you remember anything at all?” The downward turn of his lips had her heart plummeting.

“I remember being at the Erritrol camp just before the mission. After that, everything is hazy.” Dread built like a bubble ready to burst.

Evan closed his eyes for a moment before starting. “We were near the camp, getting ready to go in, when you spotted something. You thought we were in danger, and so we tried to track it, but it was like tracking the wind. We knew it was there, but we couldn’t catch it.”

When his eyes opened, pain and guilt shone in them. A faint tremor started deep in her core. Maybe she really didn’t want to hear this after all.

“Before we could locate the threat, he attacked you.” Evan’s jaw ticked, and his hands clenched into fists. “Rishiki, the leader of the Radrens…” He took a deep, shaky breath and looked off to a spot over her shoulder.

Flashes of remembered pain sliced through her mind.

Evan’s energy pulsed and pounded, making her dizzy with its erratic movement. “He broke through your shields and forced his presence into your mind. I was powerless to stop him. Once he’d invaded your mind, the bastard locked me out.”

A shudder began in the pit of her stomach until it came trembling out at the surface as memories leached back in. “You rebuilt the shields. I remember you putting them in place for me.” The guilt emanating from Evan was more than she could bear. How could he blame himself for what the Radren had done?

The helplessness she had endured in those moments while the creature used her mind for its own purpose came crashing back. Only this time, there was no battle to distract her, no mission to keep her from dwelling on the violation. Moisture gathered on her lashes, and she blinked to try to keep the tears from flowing. She tried turning her face from Evan, not wanting him to see her shame, but he wouldn’t allow it.

He pulled her closer, tucking her head beneath his chin, stroking her back, soothing her. “I did, but it wasn’t strong enough.” His jaw clenched. “He broke through again. His daughter was missing, and he used you to find her.” Evan was silent, taking deep breaths.
“I’m sorry. It was my duty to keep you safe, and I failed.”
His choked words whispered into her mind.

She wanted to reassure him that she was okay, that it didn’t matter, but she couldn’t stop the sobs from ripping out of her.

Brienne’s warm tears trickled down his chest, searing a path straight to his soul. The invasion of her mind had been a vile and despicable act, one he would make sure the Radren would regret. But right now, she needed him. If she chose to push him away and distance herself, difficult as it would be, damn it, he would give her the space she needed. If she wanted him to hold her close, he would do that too.

All the while he held her, stroking her hair and whispering words of comfort, the beast inside him raged. He should be able to protect her at all times. Yet when it really mattered, all he had been able to do was watch, helpless to ease her pain.

Her small hand came up to stroke his chest. Cool energy seeped into him, allowing him to breathe.
“I’m okay. You did everything you could.”

Evan’s breath caught. She was trying to comfort him?
“I didn’t keep you safe.”

“I didn’t keep
myself
safe, Evan. I should have built better mental shields. I never dreamed anyone would try to break through them, so I didn’t spend the time reinforcing them as I should have. He didn’t go after you. It was you he needed to speak to, yet he came after me. There’s a good reason for that.”
Brienne lifted her head to look at him again.

“You should never have been in the position to be harmed in the first place. I have asked Clayton Matthews to meet with you when you feel up to it. He’ll help raise your psychic shields so it can’t ever happen again.”

Her muscles coiled until she thought they might snap. She did not want anyone else in her mind.
“I appreciate it, but I can do it on my own.”

“Brienne, I need you safe. I can’t handle you being in harm’s way again. Until you can build your shields, then you should stay at the palace-”

“I’m not the kind of woman who’ll be sitting at home waiting while you go out on dangerous missions, Evan. I’m aware of and accept the dangers of what I do.”
She blinked back the moisture still clinging to her lashes.
“I didn’t prepare well enough. That’s my fault, not yours. It’s not even Rishiki’s.”

Tension tightened the muscles in his back and neck. “Don’t you dare defend him.”

Brienne’s eyes grew wide as his voice bounced off the walls. “I’m not saying what he did was right. It wasn’t. But he was desperate to find his daughter. What would you do to keep your loved ones from harm? Would you breach a person’s barriers if it were the only way to keep me safe?”

He would do anything for her. He would kill for her. There wasn’t a doubt in Evan’s mind he would do what Rishiki had done, and more, to protect her if she were being held captive. “I would, damn it. I’d do it.”

Her whole body stiffened, and for the first time real fear crossed her features. Her heart pounded fast and hard beneath the hand he still held at her back. “What happened to the girl? What happened to Resha?”

“She’s fine.” His gaze dropped and the energy sliding around her cooled. “I caught her when you fell.”

Brienne sagged against him again, her breath whooshing out of her lungs. “Thank the Goddess above.”

A lump formed in his throat and all of his muscles seized tight. “You don’t understand, Brienne. I caught her, and
you
fell. Had it not been for Drake, you wouldn’t be here with me.” Unable to face the disgust he was certain he would find in her eyes, he buried his face in her neck.

She brought her hand to his head, fingernails scraping at his scalp as she kissed his temple. “And I should think poorly of you for this?” Gently tugging at his hair, she urged him to look at her. “I would expect nothing less from a man of honor—from you. The true atrocity would have been to let that child die.” She smiled at him, melting his defenses. “You, Evan Mayfield, make me proud to be your mate.”

Unable to hold back any longer, he pressed his lips to hers. He could spend every moment of every day lying there next to her and never want to leave his chamber again.

“Now, how about that energy share?”

Brienne melted into Evan’s kiss. This time, when his lips met hers, there was no doubt what he wanted. His energy caressed every inch of her with a velvet touch, making her arch deeper into him. When his tongue swept across her lips, coaxing and demanding all at once, she let him in, hungry for a taste.

Warmth and love encompassed her, but more than that, the unrestrained passion made her heart race. Every inch of her skin tingled, aching for his touch. Heat pooled low in her core, moist and throbbing until she thought she would lose her mind, yet all he had done was kiss her. She needed more.

“Evan…” Her breathless whisper had him pulling back. When he opened his eyes to look at her, the smouldering heat in the depths of his gaze had her nipples pebbling against the hard planes of his chest and the muscles at her core clenching.

“Hmmm?” His hand drew a lazy circle at the base of her spine, dipping lower with each circle.

“Evan,” she tried again, but before she could finish her thought, he sent a small burst of core energy into her where his hand tantalized her with every stroke. “Oh…”
The dragon purred, waiting for more. Even more than Brienne the woman,
she
wanted all of him.

“Yes?”
The husky tone in his voice had her breath catching in her throat.

When his gaze dropped to her lips again, she couldn’t keep the small moan from slipping out. “You need to remove your clothing now.”

His grin lit his face. “Is that right?”

She caught the challenge in his eyes. “That’s right.” She sent her own energy coursing from deep within to find him. The instant it melded with his, heat rushed through her veins, pulsing and throbbing, flooding her body. His low moan was her only warning before his mouth was on hers, his tongue probing until she opened up to him. His spicy scent filled her lungs, overwhelming her senses.
“Please, Evan.”
She sent the plea into his mind.

Disengaging himself from her body, he rolled to the edge of the bed. He gripped the covers then pulled them down, exposing her to his view. He took his time, drinking his fill while she lay there in the sunlight, basking in the heat of his gaze.

“So beautiful.” He brought his index finger up to the mark on her shoulder before sliding it down her chest and over one tightly peaked nipple.

Brienne held her breath. If he didn’t do something soon, she didn’t know what she would do. Everything faded into nothingness as he brought his lips down to hover over the straining peak. His hot breath fanned against the sensitive flesh, making it ache and her heart race.

His tongue darted from his parted lips to flick against her puckered nipple, drawing a whimper from her. Her back arched as she tried to bring him closer. “Evan, please… don’t tease me.” She knew she had spoken the words, but her voice was so soft and breathy, she hardly recognized it.

His tongue slid over the peak once more, curling around it in a small circle before he pulled away to blow on the tender flesh.
“Let me love you, Brienne. I need to love you.”

Closing her eyes, she whimpered. Denying this man was difficult at the best of times, but when he spoke to her with such yearning and need, she was defenseless.
“But you have to let me love you, too.”

This time, when she brought a hand to his chest and released more of her life energy into her mate, he was ready for her. His energy blended with hers. Their combined heat encompassed them both, tantalizing every cell until all she could think of, all that existed in her world, was Evan. His lips found her hard nipple, teasing her with the lightest kiss before he took it into his mouth.

Her breaths came in small pants as waves of smouldering heat cascaded over every inch of her. Burying her hands in his hair, she pulled him closer, begging for more. His slow, deliberate movements inflamed her and infuriated her at the same time. The need pulsing deep in her core demanded more.

He released her nipple with a pop, intent on moving to the other, but she scooted out of reach, and off the other side of the bed before the haze cleared from his eyes. His labored breathing matched hers. “Where do you think you’re going?” The gravelly tone told her just how close he was to losing all control.

“I’m coming for my mate.” A small thrill zinged through her.

Rounding the end of the bed, she held his gaze, revelling in the heat she found there. If he wanted a slow burn, she was more than happy to play along. Sliding her hand in a light caress from his wrist to his shoulder, Brienne stepped behind him. Three faint scars marred the smooth expanse of his back. Tracing each jagged line with her tongue, she brought her hands around his waist to rest on his tight abdomen.

“I want to touch every part of you.”
She brought her hands lower, smiling against his back when his stomach contracted and he gasped. His body shuddered against her when she stopped her exploration just before reaching her prize.

“So touch me.”

Feminine power rushed through her. He’d set the rules, now he wanted more.