And To Hold: Vampire Assassin League #20 (4 page)

“You had another reason for bringing them?” she asked when their gazes met again.

“Oh. Um. Bondage works,” Zach replied.

Her eyes flashed strangely and his knees wobbled again. His thighs were right behind with the reaction. And this time he stumbled.

She was smiling as she tugged at the tie at her waist, pulling until it became a ribbon, and then two of them. Zach’s gaze was glued to the sight. The more ribbon she pulled, the more her dress opened, until she had the ties free, and the dress gapped open down the front.
And damn!
She wore the sweetest corset-thing he’d ever seen. He was having trouble keeping his balance. She was smiling even wider as she wound her ribbon about a hand, but she was watching him.

“Come here, Zachariah.”

“What do you have in mind?”

“I am going to tie you,” she informed him.

“Me?”

She nodded.

Wow. That hadn’t been part of his synopsis at all. He was going to be the dominated one? Well. That sounded interesting...and a bit intriguing. Besides, what could happen? He’d been escaping shit like this since he was little. And she was a woman. How tight could she tie anything? How difficult would her knots be to unfasten?

“With that?’ he asked finally.

She nodded.

She wanted him in her power? Fair enough. So did he.

Zach lost sight of everything. His agenda. Leroy. All those Euros. His feet moved, taking him right up to the pedestal. He was below her in this position, looking up, affixed to her gaze. And enjoying every second of it.

Oh! This was beyond exciting! And she’d forgotten how that felt. Her entire body trembled with anticipation. Thrill. And something she’d been warned about. Something called mating lust. She had to tamp it. Force it down. Act aloof. Calm. Unemotional. Royal.

As was her birthright.

Ruxanna had been a Romanian princess. She’d been taken by another prince in a power struggle. Victimized. Forgotten. Locked away. Every moment she’d been held in her prison, she’d sworn revenge. And when she’d been approached in the cell by Akron, the leader of the Vampire Assassin League, she hadn’t hesitated. Immortality set her free and gave her vengeance. Any man could be humiliated. They were especially vulnerable right after the act of sex. Weak. Easy to torment. And very easy to feed from.

It hadn’t taken long to regain her family’s lands and the castle. No one wanted anything to do with Castle Kraven. The place was already a ruin. A shell. Very little left of its former glory. It took a half century to construct the floors beneath ground into luxury that escaped detection. Tales were launched and then grew. The castle was reputedly haunted. Ghostly apparitions were whispered of. The forest about the castle grew back to its natural state. Wars continued as men fought over land and power and assets. Few noted or cared about Castle Kraven. And if any man did investigate, well. He...disappeared.

She’d almost forgotten what else Akron had promised her. He hadn’t mentioned it again. None of them did. He’d told her she had a soul-mate. They all did. There was a being destined just for her. One that would someday come into her sphere, changing everything. Bringing her back to life. Making her whole again.

Even her heart.

A tremor hit her again, sending chills in its wake. Her hands were not just shaking. They were frigid. She felt it. She rubbed them together for warmth as she considered what had happened, and was still happening. Because of
him
.

Zachariah.

The fairytale had come true. She had her mate...but he liked bondage? Ruxanna wondered how to go about it. She’d been around it many times. Sometimes, the participants used it with a turn toward fantasy. Sometimes violence and domination. She hadn’t cared or watched. She left any voyeurism to her current partner, should he so desire. Physical control hadn’t much interest for her. Who needed bonds when they excelled at mesmerizing?

Ruxanna had put many mortals in her thrall. It made feeding easier. Quick. Clean. Efficient. Nobody was the wiser. That was the prime reason she’d opened this business. She didn’t hunt for her sustenance. A fresh supply arrived every weekend, and they paid heavily for the privilege.

She ran an exclusive house of ill repute but she wasn’t interested in anything in it.

Until right now.

Zachariah wasn’t entirely in her power. She’d held back. She didn’t want a puppet when she joined with him. She wanted strength. Maleness. Power. It looked like she had exactly what she’d wanted, too.
Maybe
. There was the homosexual issue to deal with first. He’d said he was here for other men. That couldn’t be true. His physical reaction was impressive and impossible to overlook. So...even if he liked men, he wasn’t immune to women.

That was a point in her favor.

He was also a Hunter. He must be a decent one, if Malcolm spoke true. That information should have frightened her, made her leery. It failed. She was even more intrigued. Excessively tantalized. But cautious. That’s why she controlled him, exercising just enough of the enthralling power that he’d follow her requests without hesitation.

She’d had him remove his clothing. That had been revealing and engrossing, and absolutely fascinating. His jacket had been shed first. He’d folded it carefully before draping it across the footboard. Every move put massive shoulders and arms on display. Ruxanna’s canines had tingled. Her senses had elevated. Her heartbeat increased in cadence and power. And that was before he’d pulled his shirt over his head!

Oh. My
.

That movement ruffled his dark hair and put all kinds of muscle on display. And he’d preened somehow, as if sensing her reaction. His shirt hadn’t received the same care as his jacket. He’d tossed that garment onto the floor somewhere behind him.

Ruxanna was unable to tear her gaze away as he’d leaned against a foot post to unlace and pull off his shoes. First the right. The left. Then, both socks. He pitched everything one-by-one onto the floor. His trousers got even less attention. Ruxanna had gasped as he’d yanked the fly open, shoved the pants to his ankles, and stepped out of them.

The world had shifted. Rocked. Heated. Grown heavy with some strange power she’d love to conjure and package. The rose-colored haze covering the floor had swelled in response. Then it had started swirling, moving not only smoke, but the array of gauze panels hanging all about the room. He wouldn’t know the haze came from a plethora of candles, and the motion from hidden fans, timed to respond to temperature. She wasn’t going to tell him, either. Wizardry couldn’t be relied on. She’d learned that much over the past five centuries, if nothing else.

The air was still moving about, in a slow whirlpool fashion, stirring her hair, dampening her dress. It did the same to his skin, making it glisten, as if beckoning a touch. A taste.

Oh. My. My.

Her mate was a complete pleasure to view. Especially in thigh-length briefs that stretched to accommodate and define. Zachariah had looked very well-endowed, and extremely interested in what was happening.

He still did.

She had him on his back, arms spread, so his hands could be tied to slats in the headboard. That position put every inch of him on display. He wasn’t blindfolded. She needed eye connection. Besides, the way his eyes followed her was addictive. Exhilarating. Exciting. Fascinating. He had such gorgeous eyes. Surrounded with lush lashes that matched his hair. He didn’t move his gaze as she lowered the shoulders of her gown and let it fall to her ankles. He didn’t even blink, although his jaw hardened. Everything else on him lurched upwards. The mattress swayed. The bed frame creaked. And those briefs of his looked constrictive and uncomfortable with how that portion of him responded, as well.

Ruxanna watched, with wide eyes and canines that fought her control. She approached the bed slowly, enjoying every bit of how the garters flexed against her thighs, the corset strained with each breath, the silk of her chemise slid along her nipples, raising them to sensitive darts of irritation.

Then she was atop the mattress, right beside him; knees a hairsbreadth of space from his side; her hands hovering atop his chest. She didn’t even know how she’d gotten there. Being near him was risky. Volatile. And tremendously exciting. He was perfection. Ridges of muscle and skin. Taut muscle. Lightly tanned skin.

And his veins were thick with blood...

Oh dear. Oh my
.

Zachariah was large. Well-defined. Perfect. She didn’t know where to start. He was breathing hard, and each breath dragged hers with it. Every inch of him called to her. Her hands shook. Her entire body pulled taut. His matched. She watched ridges of muscle harden throughout his chest. Belly. Abdomen. The skin silently begged a touch. A caress.
Oh.
This was dangerous. Just looking him over sparked a bonfire into existence. It sent heat licking through her veins, awakened any errant undead cells, strained against any restraint. Need mounted. Pressured. It was massive. Nearly uncontrollable.

Not yet...

She’d start with a finger. Just one. Perhaps an index finger. Left hand, since it was closest. She’d run it along his arm, following the vascularity on display. She envisioned skimming her touch down his arm, along a bicep, over the ribbon knotted at his wrist...lacing her fingers through his.

Clasping hands.

Her entire form pulsated at the visual. She almost made it reality. But to do that would lower her near him. She wouldn’t be able to keep from touching. Her skin against his...her breasts crushed...

No! Not yet.
The hunger within flexed against its cage, making the bed lurch violently. His eyes narrowed, his lips parted, sending harsh breaths onto both of them. And hers were a perfect match.

Perhaps, she should straddle him. Press her moistness against the ropes beneath the skin of his belly. Feel his heat. She envisioned her thighs spread apart on his belly. Her knees clenched to his sides. Her cavern closing in on him. Her tongue slid onto her lower lip, wetting it, and slicing along a canine. Damn it. She was trying to control this!

“Uh...lady?”

Ruxanna’s gaze flew to his face. He looked pained. His expression matched the rigidity evident throughout his form.

“You need to do something. Like...soon. Before...uh...well. Before we have a premature scenario that’s going to embarrass the shit out of someone. Like me.”

“We are?”

He licked his lips, drawing her attention there. He had perfectly-formed lips. Perfect for a kiss.

“Yeah.”

She touched him.

And the world went insane.

Ruxanna spread her hands about his chest for support as the entire area rocked and swayed. Lights flared. Sound swelled. The draperies became living entities that fluttered about, lashing at all sides of the bed. The connection of her hands to his skin sparked. Zachariah arched up from the mattress, straining against his bonds, sending a massive groan into the air, while his heartbeat thudded against her palms, emboldening her. As if calling to her.

She pushed him back down to the bed. A moment later she’d straddled him. An instant after that, she was latched to his mouth. Moaning, and licking, and despite every effort against it, she was biting.

Time altered. The room went even crazier, becoming an aura of rainbow hues, thick enough to support weight. Sound swelled, becoming a throbbing beat. Hard. Quick. Strong. Ruxanna latched to his lower lip and sucked, vibrating with bliss, while he groaned and shuddered beneath her.

Ruxanna slid her mouth toward his neck, jockeying with him for position, pushing his head to one side as he did the same with her. All to bring his artery into range.
Ah. There it was
. Thick, pulsating with blood. Bluish-toned beneath the skin. She stabbed into it, at the exact same instant that he did something to her neck, and the resulting chaos had laughter and ecstasy at its core. Oh. He was perfect. He tasted divine. She couldn’t get enough. Quickly enough.

Zachariah lunged beneath her, over and over, making the bed crest and fall as if adrift on waves. He was very adept with his legs. Physical. Strong. Agile. He had her legs gripped between his next and was trying to drill his rod into her thighs, creating a fervor of want. A chasm of need. A blizzard of shivers. A conflagration of desire.

His groans weakened. His body shook. She mustn’t drain too much. But everything on her wanted more. She wanted all of him. She wanted to consume and share, and meld and join. Ruxanna eased her fangs from him, licking the puncture wounds closed, too.

“Lady. Please? Lady.”

“Ruxanna.” She scraped a fang along her inner lip, opening a cut.

“Ruxanna...got it. Damn these ties!”

She stopped his cry with a kiss, giving him a taste. And then a feeding. It matched the increased writhing of his hips, pounding his erection against her. Strong. Fast. The bonfire within her roared as each movement grazed her most sensitive place. Solid wonder burst through her. Bright. Massive. Enveloping everything. Ruxanna broke the suction of their kiss to send a cry of satiation and bliss out into the room. Zachariah started shaking, rattling the bed beneath them. He pulled against his bonds. And then he was speaking. Beseeching.

“Oh, lady, please. Please? Roxie? Do it. Please, lady? Please...”

Roxie?

Ruxanna yanked her corset open, freeing her breasts so she could shove them against his chest. Ah...the wonder! The feel of his naked skin astonished. The hard strength just beneath dazed. The rumble of his groan as it vibrated through her, almost overwhelmed.

“Roxie. Please? Come on! Do it. Now, lady! Now!”

Her hands slid down his sides, grazing skin, then cotton. His waistband gave her trouble. The elastic wouldn’t expand enough. A moment later, it didn’t need to. She ripped him free. And then she held him with both hands. Upright. Thick. Powerful. Hard. She lifted to crouch above him, positioning. Preparing. And then she slammed down onto him, sucking back shock as absolute fire shot through her belly and down her legs. She hadn’t known it would pain.

“Oh...my—! Son of a bitch! Don’t move! Don’t move! Oh, lady. Don’t move.”

He ground the words between little pants of breath, while every inch of his chest turned a purplish shade. And he was shuddering. She was fixated in place, awed at the view. Any pain muted and disappeared. It was changing. To something exceptional. Something that demanded. Required. And needed. It was incredibly difficult to do as he asked. She tossed her head back, brushing strands of her hair against her lower back and buttocks. Even that felt like it was angered. Her eyes narrowed as they breathed in tandem. Little gusts of air. But nothing stopped the tremor as she absorbed how he felt. Deep. Full.

“Whoa. Lady. Wow. Roxie. That was...oh, shit. Shit. Shit. Lady. You need to untie me.”

He was making little pulsing motions within her, sending signals she didn’t understand. Her body didn’t have any trouble interpreting it, however. She started swaying atop him. She couldn’t help it.

“Wait. Roxie. Wait. Not yet, babe. Not...yet.”

He had his eyes scrunched shut, every muscle pulled taut. And he was vibrating.

“Oh, Roxie. Babe. You feel incredible. Better than—oh, lady. You need to untie me. Okay?”

“I...don’t know,” she replied.

“Please? Come on. Enough’s enough. Okay?”

The last word was choked. He was rocking his hips in small lunges, each time sending all kinds of stimuli through every nerve ending. Ruxanna responded instinctively, clenching, and squirming. He was right. It did feel incredible.