Heart of the Warrior (23 page)

Ari's hand felt so good on him. Perfect.

"Maybe, but no…it's you. God, it's you. You know how to
touch me."

"That's because we were made for each other."
Ari's mouth brushed over his, then down his chin and across his jaw.

Stroke-stroke.

"Oh God, babe. You're driving me crazy."

Ari’s hand increased tempo and Sev thought he would lose it.
The night had been an up and down roller coaster ride, but the day looked like
it was shaping up to be anything but.

"Is that iron skin of yours turned off, or whatever you
call it?" Ari's voice was muffled against Sev’s neck.

"Uh-huh. Why?" He thrust his hips into Ari’s hand.

"Just didn’t want to break a tooth." With that,
Ari sank his teeth into his neck and euphoric bliss flooded him again. This
time, Ari didn’t release his neck until Sev’s orgasm pounded through him, the
euphoria of Ari’s venom prolonging and intensifying his release unlike anything
he had ever felt.

He had a feeling the day would be filled with more than one
encore. They were newly-mated males, after all. It would take a crowbar to pry
their hands off each other.

When Gina woke up an hour before sundown, she stretched and
turned into Lakota’s warm, naked body.

Whoa. Wait a second. How had this happened?

Oh yeah, she had slept with him. As in, they hadn’t actually
slept until after she had ridden him like a rodeo cowgirl and he was the
bucking bronco. And buck he could. If all bartenders got this lucky after
listening to a guy or girl pour their heart out as Lakota had last night, she
imagined bars wouldn’t have any trouble filling the position.

She hadn’t intended on sleeping with him. It just sort of
happened. She had kept his water glass full, and her glass full of Vodka and
juice, and had sat for two hours as he spilled his world into her lap. He told
her about his deceased wife, his children, the female dreck who was the mother
of his son, Severin, but he didn’t know much about Severin himself because Sev
refused to see him.

He had seen him last night, though, while visiting Sev’s
mother, Felice. Shit, she knew she should have stayed at that house. But if
Lakota turned into a dead end because of Sev's reluctance to see him, at least
now she knew where Sev's mother lived. She would have to be careful about going
that route, though. The truce between the vampires and drecks wouldn't look
favorably on her if she hurt a dreck to get to a vampire, even if he was a mix.

By keeping her mouth closed and her ears open last night,
Gina also learned that Lakota wanted desperately to reacquaint himself with
Severin. He also knew that Sev worked at AKM as an enforcer and Lakota had told
her he had designs on applying for a job there. A hundred different
possibilities had rattled through her head about how she could use Lakota if he
got hired on at AKM.

At any rate, after all his words had tumbled out, she had
gone to him, climbed onto his lap, and pushed his sweater up over his head
without saying a word. He hadn’t stopped her. Even when she removed her blouse
and lifted his hands to her lace-covered breasts, he had let her continue, even
though it took him a while to relax. He admitted that he hadn’t been with a
female since Mary had passed away.

She wanted to think she had only seduced him because of her
objective to use him to get to Sev. By getting close to Lakota, she could
eventually find a way to get close to Sev and kill him. But deep down, she knew
that wasn’t the reason. His story had touched her. He was hurting and she
wanted to help him forget that hurt if just for a little while. Just as she
needed to forget her hurt over Gabe's death. In that way, they had been there
for each other last night. Besides, he was attractive. And when he told her she
was the first female he had let touch him intimately since Mary, she couldn’t
deny she had been excited. It boosted her ego to know he didn't sleep around
and had chosen to be intimate with her.

She rubbed her eyes and smeared mascara on her finger.
Great. She had gone to bed wearing makeup. After throwing him a cautious glance
to make sure he hadn’t awakened, she eased out of the bed and wrapped a robe
around her naked body and tip-toed to the bathroom where she washed her face
and hopped in the shower.

When she came out, he was still asleep, although he had
rolled over and now sprawled on his stomach. She smiled and settled on the bed
next to him.

Lakota groaned and stretched then scooted toward her.

"Good evening, sunshine," she said.

"Hey, you." He grinned sleepily and wrapped his
arm around her waist.

"Would you like me to order room service?"

He moaned and sat up then tossed the sheet off before
standing. Her gaze fell to the healthy weight of flesh between his legs and she
bit her lip, remembering just how well he had used that incredible tool with
her.

He pulled on his boxers. "No, that’s okay. I need to
get ready to go to my daughter’s house. She’s making me dinner."

"Oh, that’s right. You told me that."

Lakota slipped into his pants and pulled his sweater over
his head. "Thanks for listening to me last night."

"Anytime. It was my pleasure. Really."
Really,
it was.

He seemed to get her meaning and smiled, a hint of darkness
stroking his gaze. "Mine, too."

"Would you like to stop by and talk some more tonight
when you get back from your daughter’s?" The words came out before she
could even stop herself, and she instantly wished she could take them back. She
didn’t need to get emotionally attached to the material.
Any
of the
material. And Severin’s father definitely counted as material.

"I’m not sure I can tonight. I haven’t seen Marie in
ages, so I probably won’t get back until close to sunrise.

She breathed an inward sigh of relief. "Well, that’s
okay. I’ve got things to do, anyway."

"How about tomorrow night? I would like to see you
again."

"Sure. Tomorrow night would be great." She
reminded herself she just needed to use him long enough to get to Sev, or until
she was able to kill Sev some other way. Then she could split and never see him
again.

She could do that. Yes, she could. Uh-huh.

Arion awoke to the soft sounds of piano music, lilting and
warm, like an embrace for the senses. He was lying on his back with his arm
crooked at the elbow and resting on the pillow next to his head. Gentle light
washed over him, and he realized he was alone in the bed.

"Sev?" His voice was froggy with sleep. He lifted
himself on his elbows and squinted against the light then saw Sev peeking out
from behind a canvas on an easel. "What are you doing?"

"Painting you." Sev’s gaze scrutinized him then
returned to the canvas.

"Can I see?" No one had ever painted his portrait
before.

"Not yet. I’m almost done, though."

Ari stretched and turned to look for the source of the piano
music and found the sound system in the corner. "What’s this music?"
He wiped one hand over his eyes, trying to work out the sleep.

Sev peered around the canvas again. "The soundtrack
from a movie called
Unfaithful.
"

Unfaithful? Ari grinned sardonically. "I hope you're
not trying to tell me something."

"What do you mean?"

"The title.
Unfaithful.
" He raised an
eyebrow and his smile widened at the way Sev looked at him.

"Babe, you don't have to worry about whether or not
I'll be faithful to you. I'm there." He winked then returned to his
painting. "I just thought you'd like the soundtrack."

Ari settled back and listened. "It’s lovely."

"I had a feeling you'd like it." Severin flashed
him a smile. "Being my music man and all." Sev worked the brush over
the canvas. "What instrument do you play, anyway? You never told me the
other night."

Ari lay back down and nestled into the pillow. "Piano.
Guitar. Saxophone. Drums. Pretty much anything and everything, really."

"What's your favorite."

Ari thought about it a second. "That's a tough
question." He enjoyed every instrument for different reasons, but he
always seemed to gravitate back to a couple. "Probably the piano and the
guitar."

"Why?" Sev continued to paint as they talked.

Ari watched Sev. He admired his sleek body, long muscles,
and broad shoulders. He didn't look like someone who should be painting. His
blond hair was hanging down over his face and Sev reached up and tucked it
behind his ear, leaving a streak of blue and red across his temple.

"You're damn sexy," he said.

Sev halted in mid-stroke and darted his eyes to Ari's before
a pleased smile popped up on his face. His cheeks colored.

"Look at that. I made you blush." Ari chuckled.
"By the way, you've got a little paint on your face."

Sev screwed his mouth up in mock-contempt and flipped Ari
off then laughed.

The moment was easy and playful, which was something he
wasn't used to feeling after having sex with someone. He loved this intimacy
with Sev. He had never had that with anyone, and he felt calm and
light-hearted.

Sev returned to painting. "So?"

"So, what?"

"Why are the piano and guitar your favorite
instruments?"

Oh, that's right. Sev had asked him that before he'd become
distracted by his sexiness.

"I think I like the feel of the guitar strings against
my fingers," he said. "And the piano keys just beg to be touched.
Don't you agree? I mean, even if someone can't play, they're drawn to peck on
the keys, anyway. You ever notice that?"

Sev considered his words a moment then nodded. "Yeah,
actually. I have."

"Can you imagine the allure a piano has over someone
like me, then? Someone who actually plays? I don't know, but the piano just
draws me to it."

"I can tell I'm going to have to buy a piano, aren't
I?" Sev scrutinized the painting then dabbed his brush into a dollop of
red and blue paint.

"I can bring my own." Ari glanced down nervously.
Were they talking about him moving in? Already? He had to admit, he liked the
idea.

"When are you moving in?" Sev turned and looked at
him dead on, as if he had been reading Ari's mind.

"We should probably discuss that."

"Yes, I think we'll have to." The hint of a smile
touched Sev's lips, and he turned back to his painting. "After you tell
your parents about us."

Sev had a valid point. They both knew how scared he was to
tell his parents about his homosexuality, and he certainly couldn't move in
until he had come out of the closet. Ari nodded to himself then cleared his
throat, thinking this would be a good time for a change of topic before things
got too serious.

"So, are you coming to my parents' party?"

Ari had mentioned his dad’s party to Sev earlier only to
find out that Tristan had already told him about it.

"I don’t know. It might be hard being there with you
when I can’t show you off as my guy."

Ari laid back down and fluffed the pillow under his head.
"Well, I was thinking…." He paused as he considered his words.
"Maybe I should just come out, you know? Maybe I should just tell my
parents at the party that you’re my mate and be done with it." Even as he
said it, he wondered if he would have the courage to follow through, but damn
it, he didn’t want to keep Sev a secret forever…and he wanted to be with him.
He wanted to live with him the way it should be between mates. The six weeks
wasted since that first encounter were bad enough to stomach, but to hide the
greatest thing that had ever happened in his life felt completely wrong. And he
had hated how it felt to hurt Sev last night. Now that it was clear they were
mates, he knew sooner or later he would have to come clean. Might as well make
it sooner.

"Are you serious, Ari?"

He glanced up to find Sev had set his brush down and stepped
out from behind the canvas. He approached the bed, staring at him. Splashes of
paint dotted and streaked his torso and flannel pajama bottoms.

"I think so. I don’t want to keep you a secret, Sev,
but I’m scared to death, to tell you the truth. I don’t know how my father will
react."

Sev crawled into the bed and kissed Ari. "I’ll be there
with you, babe. I’ll help you."

But Sev didn’t know his father. Gregos could be an
intimidating male. "Okay. Good, because I’ll need you." The party was
in two nights. Was that enough time to build the backbone he would need to
stand up to his father?

"Is my painting done, yet?" Ari nodded toward the
abandoned canvas.

Sev chuckled and kissed him again then pushed back and
returned to the canvas then picked it up and turned it around to show him. His
image stared back at him. He sat up and moved closer to look at it.

"Wow. When you told me you painted, I didn’t know you
meant like this?"

"Like how?" Sev turned the easel around and placed
the canvas back on it then joined Ari on the bed and took hold of his hand.

"Like…I don’t know, like an artist." He laughed,
unable to get over how perfect the painting was. "How long have you been
up?"

"A couple of hours."

"You did all that in a couple of hours?"

Sev nodded. "Yep. Not my best work, and it's not quite
finished, yet, but that’s pretty much how I see you."

Ari could feel the love in the portrait and it filled him
with happiness. This was what he had been missing all his life. Love, joy,
warmth, compassion, understanding.

"I love you, Sev." He didn’t think he could say
those words enough. It felt good to finally find someone he could say them to.

"I love you, too, babe."

And to find someone who would say them back.

They sat hand-in-hand for several minutes, listening to the
music and gazing at Sev’s work then finally Sev leaned over and kissed his
cheek. "Come on. We’re going to be late."