elemental 03 - whitecap (8 page)

Aiden, smiling ruefully, nodded. “Anything but Elliott Smith. You don’t need an excuse to cry.” 

Aira selected the Foo Fighters album she liked best and tapped play, putting the phone aside and sitting back against the pillows. Aiden turned to go, but Aira made a noise of protest.

“Could you…” she bit her lip, blushing and glancing down at her hands. “I really don’t want to be alone right now.” She dared a glance at Aiden’s face and saw bewilderment transform into understanding. He kicked off his shoes and climbed into bed next to her, close but not touching her. Aira hesitated a moment before curling up against him, needing the comfort of contact. But the moment her hand brushed against his arm, her lustful tendencies began to rise up. Aiden was hot to the touch; she knew it was his fire energy that caused the sensation, but knowing it intellectually didn’t stop her from responding to it emotionally. 

Aira gasped, feeling his fiery energy sinking into her skin. She pulled back in surprise and instinctive self-protection; she shouldn’t let herself fall into him. Aira took a deep breath attempting to still the lust she felt welling inside of her. Trembling, all pain and grief temporarily gone from her mind, Aira licked her lips, unsure of what she should do. Rationally, she should stop. She should tell Aiden to go. She could go outside and find Dylan to be close to someone without feeling the incredible sense of physical need wearing away at her in Aiden’s presence. Filled with grief and her inhibitions lowered by the painkillers she had been given, her self-control, her sense of good judgment and restraint, was far away. 

She looked up at Aiden; his gaze set intently on her, his bright eyes full of emotions she couldn’t quite read. Aira reached out and ran her fingers along his arm, basking in the tingle of contact. 

Aiden’s gaze flicked down to her hand, and back to her face. “Aira,” he said quietly, shifting slightly next to her. “Are you…” he licked his lips unconsciously. “I’m not sure this is a good idea.” Aira shook her head, bringing her finger up to cover his mouth. She saw the expression in his bright eyes intensify, and a jolt of white-hot electricity ran through her. It was too easy to remember how it had felt to kiss him; too easy to remember how intensely she had wanted him then—how close they had come to having sex. She felt the temperature in the room rise, heat radiating from Aiden’s body, and Aira smiled faintly at him, feeling oddly shy and unwilling to make the first move, although she knew very well what she wanted.

Aiden pushed her hand away from his lips and reached out for her. Aira trembled with barely contained lust as he lowered his lips onto hers, kissing her hungrily, his arms wound around her waist, pressing her body to his. She moaned against his lips, the contact between their bodies sparking something deep inside she hadn’t felt with any of her previous partners—something secretive and intense, a kind of lust that almost startled her in its intensity. She kissed Aiden back, shifting on top of him, letting him slip his tongue past her lips and tasting the curiously sweet and spicy flavor of his mouth. Aiden rolled over, pinning Aira to the bed. Her arousal intensified as his hands began to wander over her body slowly, the heat sinking through the fabric of her nightgown. 

Aiden broke from the kiss, panting slightly as he looked down at her. Aira was shaking, feeling the rush of hormones in her blood, the pulse of energy flowing between them. She fleetingly remembered reading a book about interactions between elementals. Fire-air interactions were volatile, and even dangerous, because the two elements reinforced each other in a continual loop. Instead of being frightened, however, she was intrigued, feeling Aiden’s fiery energy seeping into her, crackling along her body like electricity. She pulled herself up slightly and kissed him again, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and pressing his body to hers. Aiden broke the kiss with a groan, holding himself up and away from Aira. “We have to stop,” he said, his voice harsh with self-restraint. “Aira, you’re not in the right state of mind…” 

She held his gaze, feeling the temptation to do something that she had never done before.

“Lock the door and make love to me right now,” she said, hearing the control in her voice, the push of her mind against his. Aiden looked at her, mystified, and then slipped out of the bed, closing and locking the bedroom door before turning up the volume on the speaker for good measure. Aira felt a stab of guilt for what she had done—but forgot it in the midst of the need that consumed her. Aiden climbed back into bed with her, pinning her against the mattress and bringing his lips down on hers. Aira arched into him, nipping at his bottom lip as their kiss deepened. The feeling of Aiden’s body, even with clothes between them, was intoxicating. Aira ran her hands over Aiden’s back and shoulders, surveying the planes and ridges, her body tensing with rising passion as they began to move against each other, caressing and teasing, exploring. Aira squirmed and writhed as Aiden slowly slid her nightgown up, exposing her body inch by inch. 

Aira forced his shirt over his head, barely breaking away from the kiss long enough to remove it. She threw it, not caring in the slightest where it landed. Music swirled around them. Aira shivered as Aiden brought her nightgown over her head, lifting her slightly to tug it free. It disappeared and Aira whimpered Aiden’s lips moved from her mouth to her neck, his stubble rasping against her sensitive skin, adding a stark contrast to the softer, hot sensation of his mouth. His energy continued to flow into her, a constant rush of heat and electricity—she opened her mind and flowed into his, gasping at his response. The heat intensified, and Aira momentarily thought she smelled smoke, but dismissed the concern. 

Aiden’s hands swept along the curves of her body, cupping her breasts, teasing her and tickling against her waist, brushing her hip, putting Aira in an agony of suspense. Her lips found the column of his throat, kissing and licking, nipping as her hands worked down along his body to find the fly of his jeans. She was moving on automatic, the intensity of her lust blotting out all ability to think, driving out anything but the desire to feel Aiden’s body against her, inside of her. She somehow tugged his pants down over his hips and moments later—bare heartbeats—she felt the unmitigated heat of his skin pressing against hers. Aiden moaned as she nipped sharply at the base of his throat before bringing her lips back to his, her hands testing and touching, her body thrumming and buzzing with the energy flowing through it. 

“God, Aira,” Aiden said, gasping as he rocked his hips up into hers. “God, you feel so good…” he slipped his arms underneath her, holding himself up and balancing as he began to thrust against her, not penetrating—teasing her with his hardness. Aira whimpered, pushing her hips against his, twisting and writhing, needing more contact, her whole body wracked with need. Aiden looked down at her, his bright eyes blazing, full of arousal Aira understood only too well. “Tell me you want me, Aira,” he said, thrusting more firmly against her—so close, but a million miles away from giving her the satisfaction she wanted.

“I want you, Aiden,” Aira replied, pulling his face down to kiss him hungrily. She probed his mouth with her tongue, intent on tasting him as fully as possible, ravenous and needy. Aira exhaled with a moan as Aiden finally thrust into her, pushing past her barriers slowly as she forced her body to relax and take him in. Her legs wrapped instinctively around his waist, breathless from the energy passing between them; she had never felt it this intensely before in her life—not even with Alex, when she had been at the peak of her air-aligned energy. Aira felt as if she might incandesce at any moment—as if she might spontaneously combust from the heat and electricity she felt rushing into her body.

They began to move together, slowly at first, falling into a rhythm with the music and an instinctive tidal motion neither of them had to adjust to. Aira cried out, moaned, gasped, as Aiden penetrated her more and more deeply, his body pressing against hers. Sweat built and mingled between them, their limbs tangled together, their hands and mouths exploring everywhere within reach. The smell of smoke intensified, accompanied by ozone, and Aira found it oddly erotic, the sense of danger making her desire all the more potent. 

“Mmm, Aiden… oh—oh, yes, more, please…” She twisted her hips, quickening the pace, and Aiden obliged, one of his hands trailing down between their bodies, finding her pleasure center and stroking her as their movements became more urgent, hurried, and full of unrestrained need for release.

Aira almost screamed as she reached climax, clutching at Aiden’s body in utter desperation as pleasure rocked her, the sensations as intense as pain. She felt a gnawing ache in her back from the gratuitous activity—but in the next instant, any concept of pain was blotted out as Aiden tensed on top of her, all around her, as he reached his own pleasure, letting out a low groan that was almost shout. They moved together for a few moments longer before they both collapsed, limbs entangled, bodies slick with sweat. 

Aira came back to herself slowly, aware of a dull, throbbing ache in her back. She grimaced at the reminder of her injury, her mind still hazy from the pleasure. Aiden began to stir, lifting himself off of her carefully and falling to the mattress next to her. Still panting, Aira curled up to his naked body, not wanting to lose the comforting intimacy of contact. Aiden threw an arm around her loosely, carelessly proprietary, and Aira let herself hover in the feeling of satisfaction and comfort, closing her eyes as her breath and heart slowed. Aiden’s grip on her tightened, and Aira opened her eyes as he began to pull her on top of him, holding her body against his carefully. She felt his arousal once more, stirring against her, and smiled lazily, pulling herself up enough to look down at him. 

“I don’t know about you,” he murmured, looking up with hazy lust deepening his smile and the brilliant blue of his eyes, “but I’m ready for some more.” 

Aira chuckled lowly, leaning in to kiss him slowly but thoroughly. 

Within moments they were moving together again, Aira on top, carefully straddling Aiden’s hips, rocking and taking him as deep as she could stand. Aiden pushed her up and held her hands to help her balance as she rode him, her head thrown back. He rested her hands on his shoulders and let his wander over her body, caressing and teasing her constantly. Aira felt the heat rising between them, the feedback loop of their passion building once more. Smoke and ozone filled her senses, electricity crackled along her veins, sizzling along every nerve in her body. She wished there could be a way to stay in that moment forever, feeling Aiden inside of her, his hands exploring her body. It was perfection—it was exactly what she wanted and needed—and Aira found herself quickly reaching her peak once more, her body tensing gradually and then all at once, the energy reaching equilibrium between them, flowing back and forth, growing and expanding, until it mingled completely. Aira somehow felt Aiden’s pleasure and knew he was feeling hers as well, their sensations echoing back to each other through the connection of their elements. She cried out as she reached climax, grinding her hips and arching on top of Aiden without any concern for her back, without even a thought for what the activity might do to her. 

Aira collapsed against Aiden when they had both finished, falling almost immediately into a deep and satisfying sleep, feeling the residual heat of their lovemaking, of Aiden’s energy coursing through her. She was barely aware of Aiden’s hands gliding over her body, caressing and stroking her, easing the tremors that remained as her nervous system lit up with aftershocks of her intense pleasure. Darkness swam behind her eyes and she fell into it trustingly, resting her head against Aiden’s chest and savoring the comfort with her final conscious thoughts. 

C
HAPTER
8

AIDEN WALKED INTO THE KITCHEN of Lorene’s house, only to find Dylan seated at the table, meditatively eating a sandwich. Aiden sat down heavily, glancing furtively over his shoulder in the direction of Aira’s bedroom where music still played although the woman herself was in a deep, restful sleep. 

“How was it?” Dylan asked him, wiping his lips with a paper towel. 

Aiden felt blood rushing into his face and tried to somehow stifle it. “How was what?” He asked, struggling to maintain his composure. 

Dylan looked at him levelly. 

“Aiden. Bro. I had to come inside because of a spontaneous lightning storm outside, and gale force winds that nearly knocked me over. Don’t think for a second I don’t know what was happening. The music wasn’t
that
loud, either.” 

Aiden’s face burned, but a smile tugged at his lips in spite of his desire to continue to play dumb. He shrugged, not quite meeting his brother’s gaze. “It was…” he shook his head. “I have never, ever, in my life, ever felt that good. Not even with Dolores, and she was amazing.” 

Dylan nodded slowly. “Well, it was obviously … an experience.” He chuckled. Aiden looked at his brother quizzically. “I told you—there was lightning, there was wind… it was a pretty intense weather experience. I can only imagine what it was like for you and Aira.” 

Aiden smiled to himself, remembering vividly exactly what it had been like. He stood and poured himself a glass of water, using the moment to lingeringly recall what it had felt like to give himself to Aira—to feel her complete and enthusiastic participation, her energy running through his body. He had felt her pleasure as keenly as his own; he had experienced something similar before, with other elementals he had partnered with—but never as intensely as he had felt it with Aira. There had been perfect give and take, their bodies moving, coiling, and twisting as one. It was an experience—a sensation—that he wanted to have over and over again. One taste of it was almost too much. Aiden came back to the table and sat down.

“I think I might be addicted to her,” Aiden said, chuckling at himself, at the words leaving his mouth. “That’s the only way I can describe it. Like if she hadn’t fallen asleep, we’d still be at it.” He whistled lowly, shaking his head slightly. “I could feel her. Not just her body—that’s easy. I felt her mind. We were… completely and totally together.” He shook his head again at the inadequacy of words to describe what had occurred.