Dimitri (Immortals of New Orleans, Book 6) (37 page)

“I know, just let me go slowly.” Dimitri gently slid out and back into her, getting her used to the sensation. “You’re so goddamned tight. I’m not going to…”

“It feels so good…please don’t stop,” she pleaded.

“Now Jake’s going to join us, you ready, Gil?”

Gillian nodded, her eyes on Jake’s. He brushed his cock over her clitoris a few times and she groaned in ecstasy. Within seconds, she felt him separate her folds, pressing himself into her.

“Oh yeah,” Jake grunted.

“You okay, darlin’?” Dimitri asked, wrapping a strong arm around her waist.

Gillian, so desperately full and aroused, nodded. Dimitri pushed her limits, bringing her to levels of ecstasy she’d thought she’d never understand. It was as if they were no longer individual people, their souls and bodies united as one. She loved him even more for allowing her to explore her fantasy, expanding her world.

She closed her eyes, utterly engrossed in the sensation of being pleasured by two men. As they began to plunge in and out of her, she gave herself over to her dark fantasy. Her mate commanded their experience, his love for her evident in each stroke. Dimitri’s hand glided upward to support her chest, claiming her as his as he bit down into her shoulder.

She cried out, allowing him to bring her torso upward slightly so that she was seated on Jake. With each strong thrust, she ached with a pulsing need. As if Dimitri had read her mind, he found her clit, squeezing it between his fingers, driving her over the edge.

Gillian’s orgasm slammed into her, rocking her entire being. Screaming Dimitri’s name over and over again, she panted for breath, her release rolling from her belly to her limbs. Jake’s muscles tightened underneath her as he pounded up into her, coming hard. She heard Dimitri grunt, his cock thrusting into her.

“Oh Goddess, I can’t hold it.” Dimitri lost control as her contractions rippled through her core, stimulating his cock through the thin membrane. Spilling his seed deep inside her, he stiffened against her. “Fuck, yes.”

As the last waves of her release ceased, tears of pleasure came to her eyes. She closed them, immersing herself in the surreal afterglow. Her skin continued to tingle as exhaustion claimed her. Dimitri’s lips pressed to her shoulder as he carefully removed himself. She felt Jake gently slide out from underneath her and she cuddled into the comforter, barely aware of the warm washcloth between her legs. As her mate cleaned her, she moaned, satisfied and relaxed. She felt Dimitri pull the covers over her, his abdomen warming her back as he spooned her, encircling her within his strong arms. His soft lips met her hair. Within the safety of his embrace, she fell asleep.

Dimitri took another draw of her ambrosial scent into his nostrils, amazed that the Goddess had given him such a brave and sensual mate. From her reaction to watching Jake in the shower, he’d known that their time with him would be special. But now that they’d experimented, the possessiveness of his wolf growled, warning him not to share her again.

He glanced at Jake, who’d wrapped a towel around his waist and had lain back onto the bed on his side, watching them. Dimitri’s heart had nearly broken, seeing his friend near death. Guilt for what had happened to Jake racked his thoughts. Like the Alpha, as beta, he was responsible for protecting those in his pack.

“You almost died tonight,” Dimitri murmured over Gillian’s head, catching Jake’s attention. He played with her hair as she slept soundly.

“Yeah, I guess I did. This immortality talk is crap. Oh we can live a long time, but every one of us has a weakness, including those vamps,” Jake mused.

“True. You headed back home?”

“Yep. Chaz is dead, I assume?”

“As a doornail.” Dimitri’s expression flattened, growing solemn. “So is Nick.”

“Nick is dead? Goddammit.” Jake shook his head and blew out a breath. “I didn’t know him that well but he seemed like a good guy. Is Jax okay?”

“Don’t know. Léopold went with him. Losing a beta…you know it’s gonna affect his whole pack. Let’s just hope Jax is strong enough to survive this, because Gilly just found her brother, and she seemed like she was growin’ kind of attached to him.”

Only once in his lifetime had Dimitri watched an Alpha lose his beta. He’d been a boy at the time. When the Alpha had gone missing, his mama had told him that he’d gone to find himself. But he’d known, even at that young age, that their Alpha had killed himself. Like the connection between him and Logan, the Alpha and his beta were as bonded to each other as he was to Gillian.

“You think he’ll make it?”

“Don’t know. I’ll ask Leo tomorrow. Right now, all I wanna do is go to sleep.”

“I’m goin’ to go, give you guys some privacy.” Jake pushed up to sit on the bed. He paused, glancing to Gillian and then to Dimitri. “Tonight…I needed this more than you did. You and Gilly, you know I love you, right? I don’t mean to get mushy and shit, but I’ve never been so close to the other side…never in my whole life.”

“We all needed this tonight. Seeing you like that…”

“Hey, I’m good now.” Jake smiled. “Gilly’s really special. I’m glad you found your mate.”

“Someday you will too.”

“Maybe. But for the record, I’m not lookin’. I guess it’s in destiny’s hands.”

“Yeah, well, destiny handed you your ass tonight.”

“Yes, she did, my friend.”

“Speaking of destiny, I see food in your future.” Dimitri’s tone changed, reflecting his usual jovial attitude. “That’s right, bro. Tomorrow, you’d better get over here and make us breakfast. I’m getting tired of cooking and I have a feeling my mate’s going to be keeping me mighty busy for a while.”

“Ya’ll know I don’t cook. Take out, okay? Beignets?”

“You bet,” Dimitri replied, pulling the covers up further onto his chest. “Hey, can you do me a favor before you go?

“Sure, what do you need?”

“Can you text Leo and Logan? Make sure they know you’re okay. And lock the house on your way out, ‘K?”

“Done and done.” Jake gave a wave on the way out the door.

Dimitri heard the sound of his footsteps patter up the stairs to his bedroom, presumably so he could borrow clothes and get dressed. Within minutes, he heard his boots pounding downstairs, ending with the creak of the door opening and shutting.

He lifted his head, elated to see the small smile on Gillian’s lips. His heart crushed with an emotion that he hadn’t experienced in his whole life. Not only had Gillian courageously fought with the pack, she’d given her cat to him, saving his wolf. Their sexual compatibility was icing on the cake as far as he was concerned, but the fresh memory of being inside her caused his cock to twitch. He silently laughed to himself, thinking that he might be spending the next couple of years locked in a bedroom.

As he lay his head back down, he pressed his lips into her hair, softly whispering the words that were true to his heart. “I love you, Gilly.”

Gillian stirred, smiling as her eyes fluttered open. She glanced back to Dimitri, who, although lost in sleep, kept his arms firmly secured about her waist. Pressure in her lower belly had caused her to wake. As much as she loathed leaving the warmth and safety of her mate, the call of nature was greater. Carefully, she peeled Dimitri’s fingers away, gently kissing his cheek before she got out of bed.

After using the bathroom, she plunged her arms into the sleeves of a spare robe that hung on the back of the door. She tied the sash, and brought the lapels to her nose, deeply inhaling Dimitri’s masculine scent. With a satisfied smile, she quietly padded out of the guest room and into the kitchen.

She reached for the refrigerator door, opening it. Rummaging around, she found a pitcher of filtered water and grabbed a clean coffee mug out of the dish rack. As she went to pour, she heard a high-pitched cry. The recognizable sound of a kitten in distress pierced her chest.

Setting down the cup, she approached the sliding glass doors. She called Dimitri’s name, hoping he’d hear her. Her fingertips curled over the metal pull, her thumb flicking the lock open. She called to Dimitri once again, concerned that a stray animal had been hurt. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up, her intuition warning her of danger. Whatever had attacked the young cat was still out in the yard. A loud cry sounded again, sending her into action. As she flung the glass open with the force of ten men, her protective instinct overrode self-preservation. It was as if the remaining tendrils of her cat called on her to save the young feline.

She tore out onto the deck and the screeching continued. Letting her nocturnal vision come into focus, she scanned the yard. She quietly advanced but saw nothing. Dimitri’s footsteps sounded in the house, when the sharp slicing pain of claws stabbed into her neck, causing her to freeze in place. A bony hand dangled a kitten, barely twelve weeks old, in front of her face. Gillian’s heart caught as it dropped to the ground, safely landing on its feet and scurrying underneath the crawlspace.

Gillian went to scream but as the talon pierced her skin, it restricted air flow to her windpipe. She gasped for breath. Her eyes widened in panic. Unable to see her attacker, her gaze darted from side to side. Heart racing, she lost her concentration; her ability to shift failed her. Terror seized her body, blood flowing from her neck. Gillian swiveled her head, which drove the slicing barbs further into her flesh. She caught sight of Lady Charlotte behind her, her fangs dripping with saliva.

“Get the hell off of my mate,” Dimitri growled, barreling through the exit.

“Dimitri.” Gillian’s lips moved but only a gurgle of his name escaped her lips.

“Don’t move, wolf,” the vampiress hissed.

“You’re going to die tonight,” he calmly stated.

Dimitri calculated his next move, observing that the vampire had gone stark raving mad. Her usually coiffed upswept hair had mushroomed, tendrils sprouting all over like overgrown weeds. Her lips were cracked and reddened, making Dimitri wonder if she’d already killed someone. Her blood-stained shirt and pants hung loose on her scrawny frame.

“This is all your fault. You needed vampire blood…came to me for help. He killed her,” she spat.

Gillian’s arms gripped at Charlotte’s wrists, attempting to dislodge her hold. But her iron-clad grip wouldn’t budge. The more Gillian struggled, the deeper the vampire’s nails curled into her throat.

“Killed who?” Dimitri asked. Deliberately, he stalked toward her.

“Lacey. Léopold did it. He killed her. And for what? Because she’d taken money from a wolf?”

“No, because she signed Gilly’s death warrant. Rules are rules, vamp. You’ve got to either have a death wish or be fucking stupid to mess with Leo. You know it. I know it. And Lacey knew it. She gambled and lost.”

“Shut up! You don’t know what you’re talking about!” Lady Charlotte screamed.

“Nope, I think Leo got this one right,” Dimitri mused, giving her a cool smile. “I wonder how long it took for him to kill her. A minute? No, no, no. Not my boy. He strikes as fast as a cottonmouth on a hot summer day. Those fangs probably sucked her dry in seconds.”

“I said, shut it, wolf.” Lady Charlotte extracted a silver dagger from her back pocket and tore open Gillian’s robe. “I’ll gut her right now, I swear it.”

“Or maybe he just cut off her head. Nah, Leo’s not much for weapons, I suppose,” Dimitri pondered, edging closer to her. “Ya know he told me he can make it hurt, real bad. I bet that’s what he did.”

Gillian tried to shift, extending her claws. Lady Charlotte swiftly responded by jabbing the knife into Gillian’s abdomen.

“Nice try,” she jeered. “No shifting for you.”

The razor-sharp weapon lacerated Gillian’s creamy skin, crimson droplets spilling down her torso. Her throat constricted; she coughed, her breathing growing ragged. As a fingernail pressed through to her trachea, a drowning sensation commenced, Gillian’s lungs filling with blood. Eyes bulging, she hoped the bond she shared with Dimitri would somehow allow her to silently communicate with him. But he wasn’t looking at her. She couldn’t understand why his gaze was firmly pinned on the vampire.

“You know, I thought you were kind of smart when I first met ya, bein’ that Leo went to you for help and all. But all I see now is a pathetic excuse of a corpse, refusing to take responsibility for her own mess.” Dimitri’s eyes flared at the sight of his mate’s injury. He carefully strategized his attack. If he moved too quickly, he knew Lady Charlotte would flay her open like a fish. Gillian’s ability to shift had faltered, she couldn’t fight back.

“Lacey was my lover. Before you say anything, always know that it was me who let her fuck you. Me! I did that. I gave to her, cared for her. She was mine. And now because of this piece of shit cat here,” Charlotte shook Gillian until her body went listless, her legs barely holding her upright. Acidic tears rained down Charlotte’s cheeks, hate spewing from her mouth. “She’s gone. Léopold showed no mercy that night in the club. He killed her, and now I’m going to kill your mate. If you’d never set foot in my club, none of this would have ever happened. An eye for an eye. I want justice.”

“This isn’t Gillian’s fault. Ilsbeth is the one who…”