Soulstone Ch. 03

CHAPTER EIGHT

EIRIENNA

Scathe was back to his flirty self, but she'd seen things he probably didn't mean to show her when the blank expression he tried to maintain had slipped.

Pain. Sadistic female laughter. Blood running down slime-covered brick walls. Rusted cage bars. A clotted pool of gore. Restraint spells inducing fresh agony. Sharp metal manacles clamped too tightly on his wrists. Bright slashes of spiked whips cutting into his flesh. Another's sour breath on his lips. Violation. Humiliation. Over and again and knowing it was forever...

After what he'd been through, no wonder he hated the Empress so much. Eirienna hadn't experienced the trauma and torture he had, but she knew what it was like always bending to another's will, and following someone else's rules.

If this demon could possibly help, could she afford to refuse the offer outright? And if he could kill the higher level demons, maybe she could learn from him.

"Spectacularly powerful, huh?" She laughed. "You really are full of yourself."

He toyed with the end of her braid as it lay on her shoulder. "I'd rather you were full of myself."

She swallowed, body suddenly ripe with lust. How did he do that to her so easily?

Back down, Eirienna. Run. Before you're in over your head... But... once. Just one time. For real. For me. No one need ever know.

"That can be arranged," she whispered, her voice husky.

"Naughty Hunter. I like you." Scathe took her chin in his fingers and pulled her mouth to his.

Fire and blood, so tempting. She deepened the kiss, urging him on.

He crushed her to him, his big body molding to hers like molten stone. His tongue grazed her eager fang tips, and spicy demon blood spilled.

She froze. How could she have been so careless!

Demon blood was like acid. This stupid mistake could kill her.

But... it didn't burn. His blood should have melted her mouth to mush. Instead, her own blood heated. Thirst parched her throat, and she sucked more from his tongue. It sizzled, a hot stab of promise that pooled sweet slickness between her legs.

Her knees weakened. What was that? Some seduction spell?

His groan tantalized her. "Careful what you swallow," he murmured. "I might forget my manners and reciprocate."

She shivered. Sharing blood wasn't something she did. Done correctly, the experience was intense.

Or do she heard.

Another kiss, deeper and more breathless, his tongue seducing every part of her mouth. His shadows teased her collarbone and slipped inside her armor.

"What?" she panted. "Are you planning to steal my blood?"

"I was planning not to need to. Do we have a deal?"

Twin tongues of shadow curled around her nipples, tweaking them to hardness. She gasped into his mouth, every nerve alive.

"So ready," he murmured, appreciatively. "Say yes, Eirienna."

Eirienna barely heard the request. Sweet delirium had dazzled her stupid. She'd forgotten what the word no meant. Ejected it from her vocabulary completely. She wanted him to suck her aching nipples. Tear off her armor, lick her all over, bite her, and swallow her blood until she swooned. Bare her body to the moonlight, spread her legs, shove himself in deep, and fuck her senseless.

Anyone could see the two of them here. Hunters could come looking for her any minute. Augisto could be following her again. She didn't care. The risk only added to the thrill. Here and now was what she'd yearned for, and she wasn't letting it slip away.

If that made her bad? So what? It was just this one indulgence.

"Shut up and get on with it," she snarled.

"Do we have a deal?" His insistent whisper scorched her lips. He tugged her nipples again, too gently, torturing her. "Because I can make you wait. You know I can."

Oh, she remembered her unsatisfying dreams. That wasn't going to happen again. She squirmed, wild. "More. Please."

"Then say it."

"Yes, damn you."

"That's all I needed to hear." Velvety black shadows enveloped her, sweeping her off her feet. She spiraled in nothingness, dizzy, yet utterly safe in his embrace.

Hot wind blew her hair and carried the scent of fire. Her back landed on warm sheets, and her bedroom settled around her.

Shadows unfurled, and Scathe coalesced atop her, massive, and deliciously real. She laughed, breathless. He was threatening and thrilling.

"My place?"

"It's closer, and infinitely more comfortable, than my place." He whispered a spell, and the lights popped on, dim and fiery, illuminating her red velvet cushions, the sweep of silken curtains, his hell-black eyes.

"How do you know where I live, anyway? Have you been stalking me?"

"I'm obsessed with you," Scathe whispered, dusting her throat with fiery kisses. He eased her sword from its sheath and set it aside. "I am a demon, after all. Does it turn you on?"

Fuck, yeah. "A little."

"Win-win, then." He parted her legs with his thigh.

Damnation, it felt good. Feverish, she wrapped one leg around his hip, pulling him onto her, drinking in the dark promises of his kisses, his body's brutal strength, the steely swelling of his cock rubbing against her right where she needed it.

Her magic tingled, sparks dancing over her skin, and his shadows responded, wrapping around her and teasing her to shuddering pleasure.

"Uh." She struggled for reality, rational thought, anything but the animal instinct to screw until she died. "Aren't we supposed to be hunting?"

"The demi-demons won't come back for hours. They need time to gather the courage to risk it again." He ripped at the fastening of her pants.

Eirienna helped him, wriggling the leather over her hips. He yanked them down to her knees and flipped her over.

He traced the ink at the base of her spine. "Dragon. I knew it."

"No one likes a smart-ass." When he tore her panties away, she whimpered with need. She wanted to be naked in his hands. But getting undressed took time. She wanted him now.

He gripped her bare ass with hot, rough hands. "You're gorgeous, my Hunter."

Eirienna tilted her hips in invitation. His zipper rasped, then his smooth flesh slid between her thighs. Big, hard, and so hot she gasped.

She was wet and more than ready, though. He slid in to the hilt. She'd had big men before. But Scathe was... A word slipped into her mind unbidden, and it made her flush with the indignity...but yes. That was it. Indomitable.

And not just magically.

Gods, she was going all damsel-in-distress. The next thing she knew, she'd be begging him to tie her up and have his way with her.

And damn if it wouldn't feel good.

He growled, grazing the back of her neck with his teeth. His breath lit a delicious heat under her skin. "You feel good, baby," he whispered.

Had he heard her thoughts? Was he reading her mind? But she forgot about it when he began to thrust. Hard and slow at first, then faster. Her inner muscles quivered.

He gripped her hips, and the force of his thrusts knocked her breath from her. "Don't... call... me... baby...Oh, fuck. More... Harder... Right... there...yes..."

I'm in bed with an incubus.

She couldnt tell if that was thrilling or terrifying.

But it didn't matter. Nothing mattered but the liquid fire of his shadows licking her skin. The silky sweep of his hair on her shoulders and back. The shiver in her flesh when he pushed in, and the sweet anticipation of his return when he withdrew. The heady scent of roses and male sweat.

He shifted position, pushed closer, trapping her hands above her head in one fist. His other hand slid over her belly, between her legs to play with her clit.

Her feminine muscles clenched hard, gripping his massive cock tighter.

Scathe groaned, and his thrusts quickened. "You're so fucking tight."

She was growing light-headed. "Everything's...relative..." A breathless chuckle.

"Come, then, my sweet Fae. Let's finish this." He eased out long enough to pull her around to face him and tug her trousers fully off.

He kissed her hip bone, nipping her with a little snarl. Kissed between her legs, traced a finger along her sex.

"So pretty, baby." He pushed her thighs apart and delved his tongue inside.

"Don't call me baby." Her words had no heat as her eyes rolled back. Fuck, he was good. Just how she liked it, not too fast, the pressure insistent, and damn, his mouth was hot and smooth, like liquid sunlight.

He spread her thighs wider, exposing her. Ah. So sensitive. She arched into his tongue, and he suckled her so exquisitely.

Maybe she'd let him call her baby, but only when he was making her feel like this. And she'd never tell him.

Eirienna surrendered to the sensations as he skillfully coaxed her to the edge of pleasure and held her there until she thought she'd die.

"Please." The word slipped from her. She hated how pleading made her feel weak, but she didn't want to fight this battle anymore. He was a far more experienced wager of this sort of war. "Now."

He gave her what she needed. With a throaty cry, her back arched and the tight coil of urgent need building inside her released. Waves of bliss, almost too much, swept through her. Strands of her magic twined with his, merged and danced in the air.

A part of her she'd always kept back from everyone broke loose and soared free. For a moment there was panic and vulnerability, then Scathe was there, embracing her in a cocoon of shadowy safety.

Surrounded by him, everything felt right, to the depths of her soul. Perfect. Like she could float in this feeling forever. As the orgasm ebbed, she returned to her body, utterly limp and sated.

Scathe's eyes glowed red as he moved up her body, licking, nipping, and sucking.

She wrapped her legs around his hips, and he was in her again, like the first time all over again but hotter, deeper -- he could go so deep inside her.

Digging her fingers into his hair, she dragged his mouth to hers. Tasted herself on his tongue.

Sleek muscles bunched in his arms as he braced himself and drove into her. Molten delight twisted in her belly, tighter, higher...and she broke, gasping into his mouth, the spiraling sparkles of heat like magic exploding in her blood.

Red light burst from her talisman, mingling her magic with his. So bright. So powerful. Like nothing she'd ever felt.

Scathe's entire body went taut, and his cock jerked within her. He came, hot and ferocious, groaning like it hurt, but he liked it.

Hunger pierced her like a knife, and in the grip of madness, she slammed her fangs into his throat. His smooth skin broke, and blood poured into her mouth. Demon blood, dark and thick, flavored with fire and shadows. It tasted of him.

His teeth pierced her neck, and he sucked on the punctures.

Pure delight spilled her orgasm over again, on and on until her energy was spent. She purred, sated, and her talisman dimmed to a content red glimmer. Dazed, she fell back.

Reality crashed in, and her soul squirmed inside her, trying to escape. She'd lost control. Come with a demon inside her. Swallowed his blood. Let him come inside her, his fluids mingling with hers, hot and sweet inside her body like a part of both of them. And now he'd bitten her. He'd taken her blood.

Eirienna wriggled beneath him, limbs slick with sweat, but she could feel her will weakening.

Scathe kissed her fiercely with desire, mingling their bloods as well as their magics. He rolled off her to lie on his side.

He was still dressed, mostly, as was she, but his body glimmered, his black aura aflame. Coals kindled in his now red eyes. Blood smeared his throat, a stark reminder of what she'd done.

He teased her sensitive thigh with one fingertip, stroking circles that made her shiver all over again, and trailed his lips through her loosened hair. "A good start, wouldn't you say?"

Her breaths rough and ragged. Her heart pounded, swift and hard, her talisman pulsing to match.

Scathe didn't reach for it. Didn't smother her with shadows. Didn't kill her. He just unbuckled her breastplate, gaze smoldered with renewed intent.

She found her voice. "Umm..."

"I told you we had a deal." He eased her armor open. Lifted her shoulders, he tossed the leather chest piece aside, and began to unbutton her vest.

"Yes, but..."

"Don't you trust me?"

No! she wanted to scream. But fresh desire tightened her belly. He unhooked her bra and bared her aching breasts to his mouth. All sensible words fled.

He suckled her nipples to exquisite hardness, his mouth so hot and clever, the sting of his teeth a delicious pleasure-pain sensation.

She arched her back and fumbled for his T-shirt. "How are you still dressed? Not fair."

Black dust shimmered, and he was naked. "Better?" he whispered, lips against her belly.

Her mouth twisted. She'd wanted to strip him herself, but that was faster. And he was a sight. Smooth skin, not a scrap of extra flesh, the kind of lean, tight-packed muscles that were made for a woman's delight...and they probably had been.

Hers. She laughed breathlessly. The idea of a lover who made himself in the image of her desire was creepy and enticing at the same time. "For me? You shouldn't have."

"I aim to please."

"And you still want me to trust you." It surprised her to realize that he did. For a second, there was a desperate pleading on his face.

Then it was gone. He grinned and eased his body against her flank, showing her his hard cock. "You can trust this."

Her mouth watered. "Already? That's some serious demon mojo, after the orgasm you had."

"Baby --"

She smacked his broad chest.

He caught her hand. "Baby," he repeated, with a feral grin, like he'd have this small victory no matter what, "I'm a shadow prince. I can be whatever shape you want. As hard as you want. For as long as you want."

Eirienna batted her eyes at him. "I think I'm in love."

Warm fingers of shadow circled her entrance and slipped inside. Her flesh tightened, and pleasure tingled deeper. She groaned, lost. "Fuck, that feels..."

Twin shadowy mouths found her nipples and kissed them. Sucked them, hot and wet, deep pulls that drove her to squirming. Tension clenched in her belly, her thighs, her sex, ready to explode. It was too much.

He was all over her. On her. Inside her...another hot shadowy caress slipped between her ass cheeks and eased inside.

She gasped, delirious. So full. Her nerves overloaded, and pure sensation erupted, wrenching her tight and letting her explode, a burning starburst that tingled on and on.

Her vision misted red. The world dissolved in giddy sparkles, her magical aura shimmered with pleasure.

Eirienna gasped, finding her breath, her muscles limp.

Scathe pushed inside her once more, his body real and solid on hers, his scent a drunken delight. She arched into him, wrapped him, his back slick under her palms.

Their auras touched. Mingled, shadow and light weaving together, an ethereal shimmer that danced over their skin. Her body shuddered once more, and she came again, gentler this time but no less intense, a sweet clench and release, as if she melted inside.

Her senses overflowed, emotion and tension and sweet sensation, and tears prickled behind her lids. She closed her eyes, overcome.

His lips brushed hers, tasting, pleasuring, never leaving. His body heat swallowed her, his strong male scent, his silky hair in her fingers, the smooth expanse of his skin.

Her mind scrambled, dizzy and dangerous. This was a mistake. He felt too good. Sex with him wasn't going to get old any time soon.

Enjoy it while it lasts.

She moved her body against his, encouraging. "Please," she murmured into his kiss, "finish it. I want to feel you again, before..."

Before we have to say goodbye.

But Scathe swallowed and eased himself from her. His cock slipped from her body. Her aura tingled and moaned, bereft, as his shadows flickered away. He lay on his back, his magnificent body glistening with their mingled sweat and magic.

Not touching her. Not looking at her. Staring at the ceiling. Confusion eddied, swirling like crazy lights in her head. This was a new one. Sure, she was a disaster with men, but she did the leaving, not them. That was how it worked. And certainly not before they'd finished fucking.

"But...you didn't..."

"I'm good."

Her eyes stung. She blinked them clear and caught a deep breath. "What did I do wrong?"

CHAPTER NINE

SCATHE

What had she done wrong?

Nothing.

Everything.

Scathe lay on his back, dazed. He felt like laughing. He felt like screaming. He'd held back from feasting on her. He'd enjoyed sex with Eirienna for its own sake.

Something he never thought he'd experience.

Feeling her orgasm was amazing. Her body undulating. Her aura exploding like stars in his shadows. The spicy flavor of her skin a dizzying temptation.

He'd felt her soul slip from her body as she lost herself in pleasure. Tongued it into his mouth. Tasted it. She was fresh and delicious, like sun-ripened berries.

Everything he needed was freely offered for his taking.

And he'd given it back. Her soul had been his, and he'd let her go.

Scathe still had a hard-on. He could roll over, push himself into her, fill her with shadows and flesh, and make her moan his name, make her his own. Finish what he planned to do so he could be free.

But Eirienna had exposed a deeply and long buried gallant streak he'd forgotten. He wanted to protect his Fae Hunter from her enemies. From the Empress. From her smarmy Hunter sidekick. From The Wild Hunt that used her as fodder for their pointless wars.

Most importantly, from himself.

She excited his curiosity. Because this had started off as just sex. A way to get everything he wanted from her. But now... For the first time in centuries, he felt... peace.

The sharp edges of his soul where he'd torn it out felt less jagged. For the first time, he let himself think about living tomorrow rather than merely surviving today. For the first time in centuries, revenge wasn't the foremost thought in his mind.

Scathe wanted to lie with Eirienna until the sun came up and learn her secrets. Find out what excited, saddened, and interested her. What got her out of bed in the mornings. He wanted to get to know her. As if that wasn't the most ridiculous thing ever.

And she lay beside him -- tousled, ravished, and sexy, with no idea what she did to him.

She swallowed, her long pale throat moving. "Is it because of... her?"

The question jolted him from his reverie. "What? Her?"

"The Empress. The one who tortured you. She made you... Did being with me remind you of that? I didn't think... I'm sorry."

A laugh dried in his throat. Warm, dazzling, like sunlight on his heart. And for a moment, he had no words. She sounded as if she...cared.

Was he finally going insane, after so many centuries of the Empress' torment? Was his mind cracking? Was he losing it?

No, some long-lost voice whispered, in the depths of his demon soul. You're finding it.

"Eirienna --" His throat stung, and he tried again, digging deep for courage he thought he'd lost forever. "Eirienna, you are nothing like the Empress. Trust me."

The words sounded strange in his mouth. Trust me. He'd said it so many times, flavoring sweet lies. Trust me, he'd whisper, the words dark with spelled shadows.

Then, he'd eat their souls. How long since he'd meant those two words? Wanted it?

Needed it.

"Tell me about her." Eirienna's eyes glistened, moonlit pools in the dark. She edged closer, tentative, and lay on her side, her magnificent body inches away, lovely breasts pressing together. The soulstone dangled, glowing bright red.

Damn, her breasts were amazing. Soft, the perfect size and weight in his hands. Her nipples so sensitive in his mouth.