Shade Read online

  His arm flexed, the length of his forearm pressing in harder from my stomach to my chest. I ran my fingers lightly over his skin, and his fingers splayed in response then slipped over my breast, cupping me gently over my shirt.

  My nipple puckered beneath my bra. I’d never hated clothes so much. I wanted them all to disappear, wanted to feel his skin. Closer.

  I wiggled my body, focusing on my ass. He responded by massaging my breast and flexing his hips forward, pushing his hardness against me.

  “You stayed.” I moved my fingers along his arm, back and forth.

  “I was afraid for your safety. This bed … it’s tasted nothing like you. It could have mauled you to death while you slept.”

  I smiled. “My savior. Is there anything I can do to repay you?”

  “You shouldn’t extend an offer like that. I might take advantage.”

  “And if I want you to?”

  His hips flexed again, and he groaned. “God, Misha. I want to bury myself inside you again. If that’s what you’re offering, I will save you from this bed, over and over and over.”

  I chuckled then unfastened my jeans, scooted them down, and pulled them off beneath the blankets. Then I turned over, meeting his eyes up close.

  “You are so fucking beautiful,” he said, lifting his fingers to my lips, tracing over my scars before leaning in a kissing them. “So delicious too. I can’t get enough.”

  “And you are so sweet and sexy.” I trailed my fingers down his chest, over the ridges of his pecs and farther down to his abs. “I’d love to stay like this, but if you don’t mind, I really think I need to be saved. Hard. Maybe a few times.”

  He laughed, the sound husky and deep, making my body and soul ache for him. Coolness flashed over me, the need calling out.

  His eyes closed and his mouth opened with a moan.

  Fucking hell, that look was everything. My soul’s calling made him feel that way.

  I palmed his scruffy jaw and took his mouth with mine before his sounds stopped, wanting to capture his pleasure. “Mmm.”

  His hand ran down my side, past my shirt, over my ass and thigh, drawing my leg over his hip. He slid his palm back over my ass, gave a quick squeeze then pulled my cheek, spreading them apart.

  Still kissing him, I reached down between us, digging my fingers into the top of his jeans.

  He broke away from me and quickly wrenched his pants down and kicked them off. A moment later, our mouths were back together, our tongues moving, desperate to taste. After drawing my leg up again, his hand moved between us and he pushed my panties aside.

  One finger slid along my pussy, and I exhaled against his lips and gripped his shoulder.

  “Misha,” Shade whispered, and I opened my eyes to his. “Oh, yes, there’s that look.”

  I moved my other hand down, finding his cock hard and ready. With a sigh, I wrapped my hand around him and instantly felt his finger plunge inside me.

  “Ah,” I sighed and worked my hips as he pumped his finger then circled my clit. “Ooh.”

  I couldn’t wait anymore. I needed to feel him under me. In me. I pushed him over then slid out of my panties before throwing off the blankets and climbing on top of his body. His cock lay beautifully, long and hard and waiting.

  His smile gleamed in the dim light. He bit down on his lip as his hands reached for my thighs.

  I positioned myself above him and made contact, pressing myself to his cock. He felt so thick and warm beneath me. So ready. I rocked my hips, sliding along and wetting his shaft, stroking my clit along the length of him.

  His hands moved up my legs, digging his fingers in as he moaned.

  “You want inside me?” I asked, peeling my shirt over my head then removing my bra. I felt sexier than ever, being on top of him.

  “I’ve never wanted anything more.” His eyes roamed my bare body. He reached up with one hand and took hold of my breast, massaging lightly then pinching my nipple.

  I squatted up, hovering over him as I grabbed hold of his cock, then slowly eased onto his head. “Ahh.” My pussy stretched around him as I lowered myself farther, taking him all the way in.

  He released a long, lustful breath, sitting still as I took control, watching himself disappear inside.

  After a moment of adjusting to the euphoric fullness, I rocked up slowly, enjoying the exiting motion just as much. I moved that way a few times, slow and blissful, building the pleasure. Then I dropped onto my knees and began to bounce, bracing my hands on his chest and leaning forward, tipping my pelvis down, my ass cheeks emitting a soft smack each time they slapped against his skin.

  “Ohh yesss,” I said with a moan, craving more and speeding up as I felt his head pressing firmly against my G-spot with every stroke.

  He breathed quickly watching me. “God damn, Misha. Ohh.” Unable to be still any longer, he jolted up to a seated position, taking my breasts into his hands before bathing my nipple with his tongue and sucking it into his mouth, the scruff on his face stimulating the surrounding skin. I adjusted my movement but kept my rhythm, shifting my hips as I grabbed hold of his shoulders and leaned back. His hands gripped my hips and slammed me down, hard.

  “Ah!”

  “That’s right,” he murmured. “Keep moving, baby. Come like this.” One hand grasped a breast while his mouth attacked my other nipple again, swirling his tongue around the tip before nipping it with his teeth.

  I tipped my face back and thrust my hips faster and harder, climbing higher and higher. “Ah. Ah. Ah.”

  “Ohh. Fuck yeah, Misha.”

  I screamed to the ceiling as my body seized up, my pussy pulsing and gripping him as an orgasm tore through me.

  That was it. He tossed me off his lap and instantly had me beneath him, his mouth traveling down my quivering body, licking and kissing me reverently.

  I panted hard, still wrecked, barely able to move.

  His hands spread my thighs, his mouth covered my sensitive flesh, tasting me. “Fucking hell. I can’t get enough of you.” He flattened his tongue over me, licking in long strokes, then moved to the inside of my thigh and bit down on my skin. “How do you want your next one?”

  “Mmm,” I hummed, still having a hard time concentrating on anything but his touch.

  “Tell me …” His tongue returned to my clit, licking in circles before locking his lips around me and sucking.

  “Ooh.” I jerked a little at the intensity.

  “Tell me how you want it,” he murmured, digging his fingers into the undersides of my thighs and holding me firmly.

  “Ah. Give it to me any way you want.”

  His teeth scraped my thigh. “Oh?” I could hear the smile in his voice without looking down to see. He was intrigued and happy at my response.

  I bit my lip and reached my hand down to his head, slipping my fingers into the wave of his hair. “I wanted to be on top. Now, it’s your turn. How do you want me?” I finally looked down, watching his smile grow before he licked his lips. I shivered from the sight, so erotic, so sexy. The coolness hit me again as I thought about how my life had changed in a matter of days, how lucky I had become.

  “Damn,” he said with a grunt. “I love that so fucking much. It’s so powerful. You’re so powerful. And I’m addicted”—he pressed his lips to my shaved patch of hair—“to everything about you.”

  I felt flush—warm and cool—by his words, so adoring, so touching. “I love being with you. I’ve never been happier than I have been here with all of you. But …” Suddenly, I was hit with worry. What did the future hold? “I’m a little scared it won’t last.”

  “You’re staying here,” he said without question. “You are part of us. There’s no other place for you unless you decide there is. But you should know I am strongly against that decision.”

  I let out a breathy chuckle at his humor. “I am too. I don’t want to leave. I just feel like even if I stay, it might not be good enough … it might not last long enough.” I was a Marked Soul
, but I was still human. I aged. I would eventually die. Even if it was years away, I would still die. One or all of them would reap my soul and never see me again.

  “Last long enough?” he asked, crawling up my body, knowing that my thoughts had turned serious. “Oh, I see.” His silver eyes seemed to cut through mine. His hand cupped my face then slid down my neck to my chest between my breasts. “This is where you are. Every part of you is beautiful, even the human parts. With the Mark, it’s hard to tell how long you’ll live. There are some who say that when Death grants an extension, that life will last longer than most others. We have nothing proving those words as facts, only tales from people long ago. But regardless of what happens, you will have us. Me. I promise you that.”

  Tears welled in my eyes, the genuineness behind what he’d said touching me in so many ways. Though I believed him and trusted that they would be there for me for however long I lived, I still couldn’t shake the thought of how short that might be.

  I wiped my eyes before any tears spilled. “Forget I mentioned all that. I’m being crazy.” It was crazy. A human life was short compared to eternity. I wasn’t them, though, so there was no reason to even compare my life to theirs. My time would be long enough.

  Shade’s eyes narrowed. Instead of dragging the topic out more, though, he chose to lighten the mood. “Acting crazy, huh? It’s because of the orgasm, right? They make you do weird stuff. Didn’t you pass out after Shade gave you one? I might need to work harder at this.”

  I rolled my eyes and shook my head. “Ha, ha. That was definitely from soul touching the first time, not from the orgasm.”

  “Right, well, better prepare yourself then anyway because I’m not only planning on giving you at least one more, I’m touching that gorgeous soul of yours, too. And while I’m okay with you going a little crazy or passing out after, I’d rather not have you cry. That just doesn’t work for me.”

  I tipped my head back and laughed. “The only reason for that would be if you’re fucking me so good it brings tears to my eyes.”

  “Oh! In that case … challenge accepted.”

  I giggled as he leaned down closer and captured my lips, sweeping his tongue inside and kissing me hard. His body hovered above mine, strong and massive and still so gentle. His rhythm, his touch—I loved it all. I was getting lost again with him. In him.

  He pulled away, revealing the white swirling wisps of our souls. The emotions rolled through me, taking over my body, my thoughts. Life and death seemed to coexist inside us, entwining and unraveling, over and over. The feelings splintered, spreading, reaching. I could feel Shade’s touch, feel him searching, trying to read more.

  His lips found mine again, closing the connection, and then he pulled away. His Reaper form flashed through him, blurring in the darkened room. After, he looked at me with soft, sedate eyes and a small smile.

  “You really are remarkable. There’s something there inside. Strong. It’s protecting you. The Cloak hid you, but this … this is just so different.”

  “Did you read more?”

  “Likely what Tess felt. More of the night you died, but still not enough. I did feel the other Reaper. How you felt seeing her, how you felt jumping in front of her.” He brushed his lips over mine. “That action was beautiful. I’m almost positive that is why he let you live. I just wish we could see. There’s still so much we don’t know, like if there was another reason he was there.”

  I ran my hands over his back, considering it all. “Do you think what Tess said was real? That is she had help from a powerful witch she might see more?”

  “Possible,” he admitted, leaning down and pressing his lips to my neck then to my collarbone.

  “I would do it if we needed to,” I whispered.

  “I know.” The scruff of his jaw scratched down my breast and his mouth followed. “We’ll talk with the others. Later.” He licked my nipple and blew air over it, making it harden, making it ache.

  I sighed, letting go of all my thoughts and worries again.

  “Now, let’s see if I can bring those thoroughly-fucked tears.”

  11

  The others had left during the time Shade and I had slept … and done other things. And though he didn’t bring tears to my eyes, he had thoroughly fucked me again, bending my body and mind in ways that made me scream two more times. And he would have kept going but the need for food won out.

  After we grabbed snacks from the kitchen, we moved into the living room to wait for the others. I took up residence on the couch and dug into a buttery croissant and a leather-bound book that had been left out on the console table that stretched along the back of the couch.

  “Mmm,” I said, eyeing Shade as he finished positioning the logs and kindling on the fireplace’s grate.

  “Good, huh?” With his body still crouched low, he lit the fire then glanced over his shoulder and winked.

  “Probably the best I’ve ever eaten. Thank you.”

  “Unfortunately, I can’t take credit for making those. They’re from the bakery across town. So if it’s so good it brings tears to your eyes, don’t tell me.”

  “Ha!” I laughed as I chewed, shaking my head as I looked down at the book. The text was old with sloppy writing and scribbled drawings. I had a difficult time reading any words.

  Shade sat at the end of the couch, settling into the corner with his arms propped up. I scooted back and reclined against his body. “That’s one of Ash’s journals—”

  “By all means, help yourself,” Ash said, stopping just shy of entering the living room. Blood and Bone walked up behind him. They’d entered the house so silently I hadn’t heard.

  “Sorry, I—”

  “If you don’t want them read, don’t leave them out,” Shade snapped, cutting off my words.

  I closed the book anyway and slid it back onto the console table then took the last bite of my croissant, embarrassment of having possibly intruded on his privacy too strong to speak.

  “Whatever,” Ash said, tucking a few locks of his dark hair behind an ear and crossing the room to the desk in the corner by the back windows. He lifted a decanter, uncorked it, and poured its amber liquid into a low glass, downing it and refilling in a matter of seconds.

  “Hey,” Bone said, his deep voice bringing a smile to my face. He and Blood both walked closer, but he didn’t stop until he reached me. Leaning down close, he kissed my lips then took a seat beside me and lifted my bare lower legs over his lap.

  “Hey,” I replied as he ran his hands over my skin.

  Blood smiled at me and sat in what I guessed to be his favorite armchair by the fireplace.

  “What’s the word?” Shade asked, sliding my hair across the back of my neck and over a shoulder. “Did you hit Purgatory?”

  “I was there first thing. No sign of Dani.”

  “Which is unusual,” Blood said, running a hand through his own hair. He looked tired. They all did. “She’s always there.”

  Ash grunted over by the window. “And the fucking Wraiths have been all over the place. We’re lucky we could set them straight earlier. Some fought our orders to get on task.”

  “You handled them pretty well on the last trip. We didn’t see as many as on the way to Tess’.”

  “That’s because we stayed on top of them, got most back in order before you all left,” Ash replied. His voice was calmer than usual, too tired to be harsh.

  Bone leaned his head back against the couch and his hands stilled on my legs. “So now that we’re all here. What went down earlier? You said the witch—Ramona—freaked about Tess or got spooked by you changing. Did you read anything in her?”

  Shade’s fingers kept combing through my hair, pulling down and over my shoulder absently then starting again close to my neck. Delightful goosebumps picked on my skin and I shivered. Deep, audible breaths came from all of them and I clenched my eyes tightly. Talk about bad timing. But none seemed to mind except for Ash, who slammed a glass down out of my view. I heard mo
re liquid pouring then a large gulp.

  Bone’s fingers just dug a little deeper into my legs and Shade’s did the same at my scalp and neck. I inhaled deeply, staving off another response to their touches.

  After a moment, Shade said, “Ramona seemed to react to what happened to Tess at first. Protecting her. But she was quick to grab for the potion bottle and knew how to contain one of us in human form as if she’d performed the spell a million times before.”

  “And it makes a little sense given what you said you saw in her soul,” Blood added, prompting Shade to continue.

  “Right. She’s been around other Reapers. Favored. I felt her emotional response to them. But it was mixed. As if she both loved and hated them.”

  “So maybe she was involved with one,” Ash said dully. “Not uncommon.”

  “No, not uncommon,” Bone agreed, stroking my legs again. “Since we have to assume she knows Misha is Marked, do you think she’s a direct threat from what you read of her?”

  “Hard to say,” Shade answered. “Tess said she has a lot of connections. Even if Tess speaks with her, assures her we meant no harm, if she feels threatened … there’s no telling. Tess seemed to trust her, but I’m not sure her soul was as honest as Tess thought.”

  “Plus, she’s dealing with vampires. Possibly the hexed bullets.” Blood stood up and walked back to Ash. A glass clanked.

  “Yo, grab another two … or three?” Bone said, looking over to where Blood had gone. “Shade? Misha?”

  “Yeah, thanks,” Shade said, angling himself more and pulling me back against his chest.

  “Please,” I replied, feeling Shade’s mouth kiss the top of my head. I smiled and opened my eyes to Bone, whose gaze was filled with desire as he licked his lips.

  I breathed in, trying to control myself and how my body reacted to him. To them. Fuck. You’d think I’d been celibate for years, not just been fucked—really well—an hour before.

  Blood walked over to us and handed over the drinks.

  “Thanks,” I said, taking mine and giving a good sniff. Whiskey. Smokey. I took a sip, letting a sweet burn slide down the back of my throat. Then I coughed because I never drank whiskey straight. I was more of a “and Coke” kind of girl.