Wicked Waves: Solsti Prophecy #2 (29 page)

Her sweet voice and sultry eyes tore the last shred of his control. He plunged inside her in one hard thrust, groaning as her body welcomed him. She was hot and tight, taking every inch.

Her eyes, which had closed as he entered her, opened to gaze at him. He pulled back and plunged in again, starting a steady rhythm, never breaking eye contact. She gripped the counter as he drove in, her big breasts swaying with each deep plunge. Those full, perfect mounds entranced him, every stroke of his body reverberating her flesh in a tempting cadence.

He reached one hand around and up her side, capturing one lush breast. He caressed and squeezed, then found her nipple and tugged it between his fingertips. She gasped, and her gaze dropped. As she watched his hand play with her, a hot rush drenched him at their connection.

“You like watching me touch you?” he rasped.

She moaned and made a sound of agreement, then to his utter surprise, she lifted one hand from the counter and brought it to her other breast. “Need more,” she panted, as she plied her own nipple with her slender fingers.

Kai’s heart rate tripled and his vision hazed over. Seeing any woman touch herself was hot. Seeing Brooke do it?
 
His body went nuclear. The reflected image of his hips working her from behind, watching both his hand and hers playing with those sweet breasts, brought him to the brink. He clenched his jaw, trying to hold off until she reached her peak.

“Harder,” she breathed, and he was only too happy to comply. He thrust deep and unrelenting, slamming into her soft backside.
 
Her eyes were closed and her head tilted back.

“Look at me,” he said, and her lids opened languidly. Pale gray pierced him through a haze of pleasure. “Just like that, baby.”
 
His body churned like a piston. She cried out and shuddered all over, then bucked wildly against him. He let go of all restraint and his orgasm tore through him like lightning. Bellowing her name, he gripped both hips to keep her in place as he claimed her.

She sagged, leaning her weight on the counter as his cock spent deep in her body. He braced himself on the counter, hands on either side of hers, as he caught his breath.

“Holy shit, Sprite,” he murmured.

“Can’t move.”
 
Her voice filtered up from under her hair.

“You don’t have to.”
 
He withdrew and placed a row of swift kisses along her spine. Then he grabbed a towel, gently cleaned both of them up before scooping her into his arms.

“It’s about time I got you into a bed,” he said as he carried her into the adjoining room.

“Mmm…sounds perfect.”

He settled her onto the crisp white sheets of the king-size bed and slid in next to her.

“Oh my God, this is the softest bed
ever
,” she said, sliding her hand across the sheet. She turned onto her side, facing him, and tucked one hand under her pillow.

“You can stay in it until morning,” he said, leaning down to kiss her nose. He propped his head on his elbow and gazed down at her. She was simply, astonishingly perfect, from her purple toenails to the roots of her chestnut hair.

His mind was reeling. He’d never wanted to claim a woman before. Never wanted to punch another male just for looking at her.
 
No woman affected him the way she did.

“What if I get hungry?” she murmured, as she arched her back and stretched one arm over her head.

“I’ll get you something. You can eat it right here.”

Her lush lips tilted up, a winsome, content smile that curled around his heart. “You’re sweeter than I realized.”

“Yeah, don’t go telling anyone.”
 
He tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. “You should get some sleep.”

“Will you stay with me?”

Always
. The word flashed in his head with startling clarity.
Where the hell had that come from?
 
He blinked down into the gray pools of her eyes, helpless to deny her anything. He smiled at her, stunned at the way she had threaded herself into his soul. “I’m not going anywhere, Sprite.”
 
Ever
.

C
HAPTER
20

S
TANDING
IN
THE
KITCHEN
, R
ANIERO
felt two slender hands wrap around his waist, then the press of Ashina’s softness against his back.
Good morning, my mate
, he said silently.

Good morning, yourself
.

He turned and gripped her upper arms to pull her in for a kiss, but stopped. A smile tugged at his lips and love surged through his heart. Her straight ebony hair now included one wavy dark brown lock that fell from her center part.
The mate lock
. He touched it reverently. Though the color was close to his own, the texture made it stand out. His heart swelled with primal satisfaction at the outward symbol that she belonged to him.

“You have one too,” she said, her hand mirroring his, touching his hair.

With the shared locks of hair, the last stage of the mating bond clicked into place. They were joined forever, able to hear each other’s projected thoughts when nearby, and sensing each other’s emotions at all times.

They’d spent yesterday afternoon talking and making love, taking a break to eat dinner in the early evening. But the morning’s phone call from Cale hung like a dark cloud over Raniero’s head. Killing a fellow Watcher was punishable by death. Now that he’d found Ashina, his soul wouldn’t survive another forced separation. He’d be a mindless killer who didn’t deserve to live.

Her green eyes missed nothing. “What is it, love?”

He rubbed his chest, wondering how to explain the situation. “I have business on—”

A knock at the door kicked his fighting instincts to life. He shoved Ashina behind him and reached for the blade at his thigh. No one would separate them again. Then the thump of a small fist on his back made him blink.

“Raniero!
 
It’s probably a patient. Good grief, you’ll scare the daylight out of them!”

He grunted. “I’ll check first.”
 
He crept silently to the front door and inhaled deeply, scenting a female Lash demon and a young boy. He let out a breath and nodded. “You’re right.”

Ashina tried to glare at him as she brushed past, but couldn’t hide her amusement. “You’re going to be impossible, aren’t you?” she murmured.

Yes
.

She opened the door and smiled at the pair, inviting them inside. The boy darted through the doorway but froze when he saw Raniero with his weapon ready. His jaw dropped and his eyes widened to the size of saucers. Surprise crossed the mother’s face and she looked to Ashina as she wrapped her arms around the child.

Ashina beamed. “This is my mate, Raneiro.”

“I…I didn’t know you had taken a mate,” the woman stammered.

“It happened rather quickly,” Ashina explained.

It was a long time coming
.

Ashina’s lips twitched, but she ignored his thought. “Let’s have a look at that arm, sweetie.” She led the child to the cot and sat down next to him, unwrapping a bandage from his forearm. As she studied it, Raniero sensed the concern in her mind. The wound appeared to be several days old and still looked red and raw.

“I’m going to give you something to put on this, to help it heal faster.” She rewrapped the boy’s arm with a smile and stood. In a few strides she reached one of the cabinets and rummaged inside, procuring a small glass jar for the mother. “Rub this on twice a day and let me know if you don’t see an improvement.”

She turned back to the child, popping her hands on her hips. “And no more playing with arrows.”
 

“Yes, ma’am,” he said, eyes on the floor.

“Arrows?” Raniero asked.

The boy gaped at him with those saucer-eyes. His mouth closed, then opened, but no words came out.

“You’re a little young to play with arrows, boy,” Raniero said.

“We-we were p-playing Watchers versus Vipers,” the boy whispered.

Raniero walked across the room and crouched down by the cot. “Vipers are a dangerous enemy, son. I got this from a Viper.”
 
He pointed to the scar on his face.

The boy stared silently at him, eyes wide and mouth open. Raniero’s acute hearing picked up the boy’s racing heartbeat.

“Learning to use a bow is a good skill. Just practice with sticks for the next few years, until you’re bigger. Now,” Raniero paused and winked. “Want to see a real Watcher weapon?”

The child nodded.

Raniero sensed Ashina assuring the mother that her boy was quite safe. He reached into his boot and pulled out a curved blade. “This is a Neshi knife.”

“Wow!
 
Can I touch it?”

“Yes, right here.” Raniero showed him a smooth area near the hilt. The boy touched the cool metal gingerly. A huge smile lit his face.

“I want to be a Watcher,” he said.

“Maybe someday you will.” Raniero rose and put away his knife.

“Thanks, sir,” the boy said. “I’m gonna go tell my friends!”
 
He sprang up from the cot and bounded toward the door. His mother hastily thanked Ashina and rushed after him.

Raniero walked to his mate and folded her into his arms.
You were so good with the boy.

So were you
. She looked up at him, the same aching thought searing their minds.
I wish I could’ve seen you with our child.
Her eyes shone bright with unshed tears.

He smoothed her hair and tucked her head against his chest. They stood locked together in the middle of the room, their souls communing in a blend of sadness and hope.

In his arms he held his past, present, and future. She defined him, and at the same time filled his hollow existence with her kindness and grace.

“You’re needed here,” he murmured. “Does Evena have other healers?”

“There was one, but he died twenty years ago.”

“Sheena, I…” He felt like an ass for what he was about to say. “I have to go back to Torth and I want you to come with me.”

Her eyes widened. “Permanently?”

“I never want to be separated from you by an entire realm.”

“I can’t just leave my practice…my patients.”
 
Confusion served with a slice of indignation radiated from her mind to his.

“I’m not asking you to leave them forever. Just until I can work something out with Arawn. I worry about what your father will do if he knows I found you.”

She looked up into his face. “I can feel your worry. I’ll go with you, but we can’t be gone long. I need to check on some patients today. And, I know this area isn’t as pretty as Torth, but it’s home. The people have been good to me. I’m not ready to leave it forever.”

Intelligence, integrity, compassion. Raniero fell more in love with her each minute. “I won’t ask you to. I promise we’ll come back soon.” He kissed the wavy new lock in her hair.

Brooke drifted to consciousness, her muscles luxuriating in the soft warmth of the bed and the hard warmth of the man beside her. She’d had another vivid dream during the night, but not about the blond vampire. This dream involved the blond warrior whose arm she used as a pillow, and whose hand was tucked between her legs.

In her dream, they made love on a huge white bed in a hall of mirrors. Every angle of their bodies multiplied over and over. She’d woken, panting and hot, to find him watching her and hard as granite. She reached for him in a frenzy of need. He pinned her beneath him, entering her in one smooth thrust and bringing her to two shuddering orgasms before she’d slipped back into a sound sleep.

“Good morning.”
 
The low timbre of his voice sent shivers along her arms.

She opened her eyes to meet his. “Did you sleep?” she asked.

“Didn’t need to.”

She gazed at him, entranced with his beauty. Maybe it was weird to call a man beautiful, but he was. He lay on his side, his head propped on one elbow, blond hair tousled from the bed and from her fingers running through it. She reached up to run her thumb over his full lower lip, and he sucked it into his mouth before releasing it with a pop.

“God, Sprite, even your thumb tastes good.”
 
The amber of his eyes deepened, twinkling down at her.

She smiled, remembering how thoroughly he had pleasured her with those lips. And with his teeth, tongue, hands and his massive—

Her mouth formed an “O” as she gasped.
Oh no
.

“What?” he asked, brows raised in concern.

“We forgot protection,” she whispered.
It’s
a little late now, don’t you think?
 
She wanted to kick herself.

“Hell, Sprite.”
 
He chuckled and moved his hand from her thighs to her bottom, giving her a light smack. “I can’t make any demon babies right now.”

“You can’t?” she whispered.

“Nope. Creatures from Torth are fertile only twice a year. For some species, it’s at the spring and fall equinox. For the rest, like Lash demons, it’s around the time of the summer and winter solstice.”

“Oh.” Brooke frowned, thinking Nicole must have told her that at some point.

He pulled her close and ran his tongue up the side of her neck, making her shudder. “So we’re good until Christmastime, baby.”

Her initial reaction of
that’s good
got completely hijacked by his last statement. A scratching noise grated in her head, like an old record player needle dragging across vinyl. Thank God his head was down, placing kisses along her throat and collarbone, so he couldn’t see her blink rapidly.

We’re good until Christmastime
. What did
that
mean?
 
Did he think they’d still be doing this at Christmas?
 
And what, exactly, were they doing?
 
Having sex and trying not to get killed, that’s what. Despite the danger of the last several days, she couldn’t suppress the warmth blooming in her chest at the thought of being with him at Christmas.

He nipped her shoulder, making her gasp, reducing her jumbled thoughts to just one.
Kai.