Part 7 (1/2)

Bring your b.r.e.a.s.t.s up to my mouth. Display them to me.

She didn't want to let go of him, but she did, cupping their weight and tilting them upward to increase the sensitivity of the nerves as his mouth closed over one. It took bravery for a woman to put her nipple in a vampire's mouth, but Anwyn had no fear when she surrendered her body to him.

”Oh.” Her moans increased, her body undulating up against his. ”Daegan. Come with me. Go over . . . together. Please.”

Normally, he'd order her to come before him, but he didn't mind letting her have her way. He wanted to go over that cliff together. ”Go, cher cher. I'm with you.”

She renewed her efforts against him, and he drove her harder against the wall, straightening so that he braced one hand on the tile and kept the other cinched low and hard on her waist. Powerful thighs and b.u.t.tocks flexed under her heels as he thrust into her, strong and sure, stroking those tissues, striking her deep inside, bringing her hot, slippery core to the flash point. His c.o.c.k got impossibly harder, his b.a.l.l.s drawing up. If Gideon came in right now, Daegan wouldn't care if the hunter staked him in the center of the back. He wasn't stopping, wasn't pulling back.

She cried out as his c.o.c.k spasmed, jetting the first stream of hot seed into her. He felt the rippling of her c.l.i.t, the clutch of her c.u.n.t, and he pushed harder, wanting to give her some pain amid the delightful pleasure, the flavoring he knew would take her soaring even higher.

”Daegan . . .” I missed you missed you missed you . . . Oh G.o.d . . . Don't leave me don't ever leave me again . . . I missed you missed you missed you . . . Oh G.o.d . . . Don't leave me don't ever leave me again . . . Those shadow creatures didn't just cower back into the shadows. They were sent scuttling, disappearing down the tunnels and holes of her mind as the flash of climax detonated there. It was a fierce warrior's satisfaction to give her that, give her that moment of peace and pleasure, something that could be hers, if she trusted him to be in control. Those shadow creatures didn't just cower back into the shadows. They were sent scuttling, disappearing down the tunnels and holes of her mind as the flash of climax detonated there. It was a fierce warrior's satisfaction to give her that, give her that moment of peace and pleasure, something that could be hers, if she trusted him to be in control.

The emotions such trust elicited made his heart ache. It was good to be home.

There were so many meanings to that handful of words, he was glad their aftermath didn't require speech. They leaned against the wall, Anwyn still held securely in his arms, holding him right back, hearts thundering and bodies still shuddering with those delicious aftershocks, her p.u.s.s.y rippling against his c.o.c.k.

Have you ever had a home before me, Daegan?

He hadn't realized he'd opened his mind to give her that thought, but maybe he hadn't. Maybe she was so deeply in his heart, she knew what he was feeling. She had her head tilted back against the wall, but now she brought her chin down to gaze into his eyes.

”No, cher. cher.” It was the simple truth. He'd never considered anyplace home, not until her, though he realized he'd never thought of it until she asked the question. ”Not since I left my mother's home to go out on my own.”

Her blue-green eyes softened and her hand lifted to cup his face. It was trembling, so he closed his own over her wrist, steadying her, still holding her securely about the waist. ”No woman you've loved has ever given you a home?” she asked softly.

He stared down into her lovely face, wanting to press his lips to every cherished inch. Nuzzle her brow, tug her head back with that silky hair and touch his mouth to her throat, to the life-giving carotid. He knew at some point he'd p.i.s.s her off. She'd do the same to him. He'd hurt her, make her laugh, cry, frustrated, annoyed, happy, content . . . It didn't matter. He wanted to be everything for her, every emotion, good or bad.

”I've never loved another woman, Anwyn. You're the first.” And the last And the last. He wasn't sure why he was so certain of that, but since he was seven hundred years old and she was his first love, he didn't think it was a wrong a.s.sumption.

The stunned amazement that crossed her face was a gift, one that he took with a kiss, another of those that lingered. As they held that way, she at last reached out with her mind. He followed that tendril, felt it touch Gideon, tug him to her. Slowly, Daegan let her down, sliding her off his now-semierect c.o.c.k. He held her against the wall still, though, caged within his arms so he could indulge that desire to taste her neck beneath her ear, work his way to the collarbone.

He sensed when Gideon was standing in the bathroom doorway. Anwyn beckoned him forward. ”Take off your clothes and come join us, Gideon.”

The vampire hunter s.h.i.+fted. ”You look like you're done. I can bring Daegan a towel if he'd like one.”

When she slid her gaze toward him, Daegan noted the slight tightening of her lips at the evasion and felt that warning simmer to her blood, what he'd felt at the airport when Gideon had somehow thwarted her intent. She spoke calmly, but he could tell as well as Gideon that it was deceptive.

”Daegan needs blood. There's a reserve in the refrigerator, but I want to offer him the blood of my servant, hot and fresh from the source. He needs that, for his strength. I want you to allow him to drink from you while I bring you to climax with my hands, my body.”

”No,” Gideon said. While his response was quiet, his tone even, there was a leashed resolve that would detonate if she pushed it. ”You already know I won't feed him, or any other vampire. Not ever. Only you.”

”It doesn't matter, cher cher,” Daegan said, earning a surprised look from both of them. ”I won't drink from your servant.”

Gideon's reaction stirred that impulsive anger in her, and from the hunter's significant glance Daegan realized her demand wasn't unexpected. Gideon apparently had been dealing not only with the seizures and bloodl.u.s.t, but the war between the Mistress, evaluating her slave's limits, and the reaction of the fledgling vampire, which believed everything was hers to take, struggling for the upper hand.

He shouldn't have been away so long. This was one side of the battle where his strength was specifically needed. Do not push him, Do not push him, cher cher. He nearly died for you.

You, who wouldn't let me s.h.i.+rk from being a vampire, wouldn't let me have a moment of panic, would cut him slack? She turned a gimlet eye on him. She turned a gimlet eye on him. Do you have a soft spot for him, Daegan? Do you have a soft spot for him, Daegan?

I am telling you that neither of us is your toy. That has never been the type of Mistress you are. Being a vampire will make you more demanding.

He came back to her then, touched her face to soften his next words. A hand shot out to knock his away, and he easily pinned it to the wall, continuing the cradling motion of her jaw without pause. Power has always been the delicate brush you wield on a willing canvas, because you knew it was about consent. The Mistress in you craves that power enough to take it, if you let the vampire side have too much control. You know that about yourself. Don't let being a vampire take that from you. You will have a harder fight with that than most, but you will do it. Power has always been the delicate brush you wield on a willing canvas, because you knew it was about consent. The Mistress in you craves that power enough to take it, if you let the vampire side have too much control. You know that about yourself. Don't let being a vampire take that from you. You will have a harder fight with that than most, but you will do it.

When that blood s.h.i.+fted, uncertain, he hardened his feelings. If you don't, you're less than I expected you to be. Don't do to him what Barnabus did to you. The Mistress knows the difference between rape and submission. So does the vampire, but the blood is hot and fresh in your veins. It takes time to settle it down. If you don't, you're less than I expected you to be. Don't do to him what Barnabus did to you. The Mistress knows the difference between rape and submission. So does the vampire, but the blood is hot and fresh in your veins. It takes time to settle it down.

She shuddered, but he saw the red tide turn as she pushed it back. Even managed to give him a defiant look, but the one he knew, tinged with s.e.xual challenge. You might be the head alpha in this strange new arrangement, but don't get carried away with yourself. You might be the head alpha in this strange new arrangement, but don't get carried away with yourself.

He suppressed a smile as she turned her gaze to Gideon, her blue-green eyes haunted.

”No apologies, remember?” Gideon said quietly, a towel for her already in hand. ”It's been a stressful day.”

”Yes. But I'll still apologize for that one. I could say I don't know what got into me, but of course, I do.” She gave a half laugh, too close to a sob for Daegan's liking. ”I guess I have a built-in excuse for being a heartless b.i.t.c.h, right?”

”Yeah, but don't take advantage of it too much.” Gideon slid the towel over her shoulders as Daegan guided her out. He shut off the water, then pulled a towel off the rack as well.

”I'd like to go sit on the bed and talk about what happened at the Council,” she said. Taking a deep breath, she glanced at them both. ”There's something else I want to put out on the table. It's close to dawn now, but tomorrow night, I want to go out to dinner. The three of us.”

Daegan looked toward Gideon. Before the man could give him a reading on whether or not it was advisable, Anwyn stomped on his foot, hard. Even though she was barefoot, her aim was enough to catch his attention. Her eyes flashed.

”Don't look toward my servant to decide what I can and can't do.”

Daegan caught her chin, jerking it up, and was satisfied to see he'd caught her her attention when those lovely blue-green eyes widened at the expression on his face. ”Giving you my heart is not the same as snapping a collar on my t.e.s.t.i.c.l.es, attention when those lovely blue-green eyes widened at the expression on his face. ”Giving you my heart is not the same as snapping a collar on my t.e.s.t.i.c.l.es, cher. cher. I've given you a great deal of lat.i.tude, to allow for what you are facing. Watch your tone and att.i.tude, or I will prove to you, quite quickly, who wears the collar in our relations.h.i.+p.” I've given you a great deal of lat.i.tude, to allow for what you are facing. Watch your tone and att.i.tude, or I will prove to you, quite quickly, who wears the collar in our relations.h.i.+p.”

Her eyes sparked, lips firming. He felt the temper simmering, deciding. This time it seemed goaded by Anwyn as well as her unstable mind, an improvement. He expected Gideon had learned to tell minute differences in her temperament from moment to moment, what was the result of her ”gremlins” and what was her. It unfortunately underscored what the man had said in his room; his intimate knowledge of Anwyn's mind would be key to her success before the Council.

However, now the male had s.h.i.+fted forward a step. Daegan turned his gaze toward the hunter and read his body language easily enough. ”Your Mistress will never come to any harm from my hands, Gideon. I swear that to you. But there are lines of etiquette, both in the vampire world she's entered, and the human world she still shares. You know it.”

He glanced back down at the lovely, strong woman he knew hated not having control over the things happening inside of her. Now that he was back, and could help more directly, he'd given her another tool for dealing with it, whether she or Gideon realized it. The limits of Daegan's tolerance for bad behavior. Though she wouldn't appreciate the a.n.a.logy, the gremlins in her mind, those voices that could rise up and take over her reality, as well as her fledgling bloodl.u.s.t, were much like children, needing to learn boundaries from a parent. One day, he hoped that she would be that authority over them, but right now, every external source could help. He didn't mind being a formidable one. If he could, he'd hunt every one of the little demons out of her brain and skin them alive.

”At least for the immediate future,” he noted, ”you know you will be unique in our world. Your servant has far deeper and wider access to your mind than most vampires permit, because he is the one who can tell, better than the rest of us, what is you and what is the bad blood. The only time he gets confused is when it is tangled up with the odd balance of control and surrender developing between you, and the considerable emotional baggage he is carrying.” He gave Gideon another look when the man scowled. ”I will therefore look toward Gideon for that confirmation, not to demean you or relegate you to a lower status than your servant, but out of respect for you, and a desire to safeguard your well-being that overwhelms everything for me, even your pride.”

He allowed his voice to soften, though his hand dropped to her throat, collaring it with a pressure that brought her gaze back to his. ”Your pride is something I cherish as well, when it is a reflection of your deep self-confidence and inner strength. Not when it is a foolish worry that I think less of you for needing to depend on us more than you ever have. Can you not see how much we both cherish your trust? The trust of a Mistress isn't given lightly.”

”What if I never learn control?”

”You've always been extraordinary, Anwyn,” he responded. ”Which makes me believe you will.”

”I agree,” Gideon offered. The vampire hunter met her gaze. ”It's going to be a tough road, but you can't give up on yourself, Anwyn.”

Remember our faith when you can't remember your own, cher cher.

Anwyn pressed her lips together. Perhaps the thing she hated most about the unstable vampire blood that Barnabus had inflicted upon her, as well as her transition, was that she could be turned into a dangerous, petulant child if thwarted. She hated not being able to stop her anger from surging forward into her mind, painting everything red. Though it was no fault of his own, Daegan had made it worse when he stepped back from her, leaving her cold against the tile, the water wet and unpleasant. When they'd both resisted her will, her mood had changed, becoming darker, uglier.

She'd wanted to taunt Gideon, ask him which he preferred; to let Daegan drink from him, or to f.u.c.k him. All she had to do was ask, and the answer would be there in his head. An answer she knew, even though he didn't want anyone to know that answer, even himself. Daegan was wrong. She would have been worse worse than Barnabus if she did that. How often would she have to ask their forgiveness for such things? than Barnabus if she did that. How often would she have to ask their forgiveness for such things?

”I think we both told you a long time ago, until you get a handle on all this, you don't have to say you're sorry.” Gideon came closer again, his jaw firm and resolute.