More Than Life (Arcane Crossbreeds) (28 page)

“No, please.”

She was stubborn. A ridiculous sense of satisfaction ricocheted through him, and he couldn’t help the thought that surfaced in his mind. The woman was going to make an outstanding mate. Once he reined her in. And as long as he didn’t die in the process. Darkness rippled at the edges of his vision from the relentless pounding in his head, and his balls were practically in his stomach, they were drawn up so tight.

Pulling her up until her back was flush against his chest, he tightened his arm around her and lifted his wrist to her lips. Her breath sawed in and out of her chest, her heart hammering against his restraining forearm.
“Come on, baby.”
He touched the welling blood to her lips, just enough to give her a taste before pulling away.

Holy hell, she clamped down so tight around his cock, his lungs seized with the pleasure of it. Her small hands were shaking when they lifted and wrapped around his forearm. He could feel her focus on the scent and sight of his blood. Her hunger was palpable.

Gritting his teeth, he powered through the clenching of her vaginal muscles until her small nails pressed into the skin on his arm, and she cried out.

“Just a bit further, baby.”

The pressure of her determination to resist was a weight on his chest, so fucking heavy he didn’t know how she bore it. He clamped his fingers on her shoulder as he held her in place for his thrusts, his toes digging into the thick carpet as the electric pleasure crackled over him. He stopped and pressed his wrist against her lips again. She laved her tongue over his skin, and he pulled it away as her body locked down around him again.

“Please, Raife. Please. I need…oh God…the hunger…God….please don’t do this, I don’t want to hurt you.”

She was sobbing, her mind chaotic, her determination starting to crack as she rocked her hips against him. He clenched his jaw and resisted the need to lunge against her. “
You won’t, baby. Just let it go.”

She convulsed in his arms.
“I’m afraid.”

“Your body was meant for mine. Your hunger is mine.”
He slowly nudged into her, absorbing the tremors running through her body as he lifted his wrist to her lips again.

“Mine.”
It was a feminine roar of possession searing heat and light over his mind.

Hunger broke over her with a rush that thundered in his ears, her growl riding the wave through his mind barely discernible over the roaring in his head. She reared up, throwing him back, her movements so fast he hit the ground with enough force to knock the air from his lungs.

Then she was there with a silent scream that had the lights popping and sparking, sending the room into darkness. He grunted at the impact of her body colliding with his when she dropped onto his chest, her eyes lit with an unholy light, those lethal claws pricking his skin.

“You’re mine.” The red ring around her pupils nearly obliterated the blue of her eyes. She reached down and wrapped those fingers around his forearm, pulling his wrist to her lips.

“My blood.” Without breaking eye contact, she ran her tongue over the slice in his wrist. “My body.” She lowered over him and rolled her hips, taking him deeper with a low mewling sound that had him throbbing hard inside her. “Mine.”

“You have me, baby. You have everything.” Raife groaned, tightening beneath the ferocity of her claim.

And then, without warning, she fell down over him and sank her fangs into his neck, pulling his flesh into her mouth, tongue swirling.

“Ah hell, Kat.” Raife’s hands dropped to grip her hips so he could thrust up into her. The relief in his chest was instantaneous, and he blinked the dark spots from his vision, inhaling deeply.

The room disappeared in a swirl of colors, and sensation exploded through him in a blistering flare of heat. He distantly realized he had her hips in a brutal grip and was slamming frantically up into her as everything in him began to spin crazily, funneling down into him and draining out in a relieving rush. He threw his head back and roared as the orgasm ripped through him.

She surged up with a cry as she milked him, drawing out his climax, forcing him to ride its peak. After a long moment, she collapsed down against him with a little sob, still convulsing. Their chests heaving and hearts thundering, he held her. He felt cleansed. The pounding pressure in his head was miraculously gone.

Raife brushed his fingers down her back, his mind reaching out to hers only to realize she was already there, merged with him. Her consciousness was awash with such a gentle ebb of pleasure, he didn’t think she even realized she’d settled so deep. Her mind was still, her body sated.

Comforted by the weight of her draped over him, he wrapped his arms around her and let his mind ease.

Chapter Twenty-One

It was hours later, after a hot shower where he slowly made love to Katya against the cool, slick tile, Raife woke to watch dawn creeping over the Bay from the bedroom window. He was sprawled out on his back with both arms tucked behind his head and her warm soft body relaxed and trusting, curled against him.

Much like her mind. At least for now. He didn’t know if she would attempt to withdraw from him again later, but he luxuriated in the connection between them while he had it. It was how it was supposed to be between a mated Drachon pair.

Katya sighed softly across his chest, and he reached down to brush her hair from her cheek, absently pressing a kiss to the top of her head. Could the same reason she was taken be the reason she was able to mate with him? If so, that could mean that lab imprisoned more females capable of mating with his species.

His mind returned to the files he’d managed to uncover in Defoe’s kitchen before those Guardians showed up. They’d been missing persons files, and Defoe had written some notes in the margins. Were the people in those files the same ones being experimented on at that lab?

If so, the bigger question was why? He needed to take a closer look at those files. Defoe had been on to something. Something important enough that it got him killed. Whatever that was might give Raife a clue as to why they were so eager to recapture Katya, and protecting her was his number one priority right now. If he managed to uncover the salvation of his species in the process, even better.

Pressing another kiss to the crown of her head, he gently eased from bed and silently padded across the room into the main living space. Their clothes were thrown all over the floor, and he chuckled as he bent down to collect the rolled files fanned out next to his half-inside-out jeans.

Pulling the first file off the top, he tossed the rest on the kitchen table and turned to rummage through the refrigerator for some sustenance. Kat had worn him out. The small satisfied smile felt good on his lips as he pulled out the makings for an omelet. Between the two of them, leftovers were nonexistent. It was a good thing Forestor paid him well, or he was liable to take on a second job just to feed their asses. Her metabolism alone had to be through the roof.

Throwing the open file on the counter, he glowered at the picture of a brunette before rummaging through the drawers for a knife. Lining up a green pepper, he moved the knife with practiced speed, glancing back at the file. She was from Nevada. That was a little out of Defoe’s jurisdiction.

Raife swept the green bits off to the side with the edge of his knife and squinted down at a scrawled note in the margin.

Lost Colony Vent.

What the hell was that supposed to mean?

Popping a piece of the crunchy veggie in his mouth, he chewed thoughtfully as he flipped a page to continue reading the report. With a quick flash of the silver blade, he cut the ends off an onion. According to her family, she was just a decent woman who kept to herself most of the time. At least that was what the written report said. The scrawled footnotes, obviously Defoe’s added observations, said something different.

Strange. Claims of being a witch. Psychic?

Well, wasn’t that interesting. A witch. Could the girl have displayed some Elemental abilities that she didn’t understand? It was against the rules in most factions of the Arcane to knock up a human and walk away. It was dangerous to them all as a whole. Especially if the baby grew up to control fire with her hands or needed to drink blood and there was no one around to help her understand.

Raife quietly pulled a pan from a cabinet and eased it to the ceramic stovetop before tossing a glance to the bedroom door. Katya was beat to hell after the last few days, and he didn’t want to wake her up. After turning on the heat and drizzling some oil in the pan, he deftly cooked his omelet and set it on the table with a new file.

This was another female. This time the woman was a troublemaker. She had priors, most of which were for battery. The first incident occurred when she was twelve. The report said she broke her teacher’s arm when he attempted to wake her up at her desk. The charges were dropped.

Ah…yeah, what self-respecting man would want to admit he got his ass kicked by a twelve-year-old girl? And how in the hell would a twelve-year-old be able to break a bone in a full-grown man?

Guardian?

Once again the same words were scrawled in the margin.

Lost Colony Vent.

By the time Raife was scraping the final bite of his omelet off his plate, the files were scattered all over the table, and he was pretty damn sure Defoe was on to something. Unfortunately the ex-detective turned rogue investigator probably didn’t understand exactly what that something was.

But Raife did, and it was time to call in his team.

KATYA WOKE TO the dull cacophony of whispering. Confused, she glanced at the window. The shades were drawn tight, but she could just make out the halo of light around them. It was morning? She rarely ever slept past sunrise, especially without having nightmares. Not only was it obviously past sunrise, but she’d slept like the dead. Sitting up, she glanced around, but there wasn’t a clock to be found. Exactly how late had she slept? She was supposed to help Tag in the lab with that equipment he’d been cursing at for the past several days.

That was if he still wanted her help after last night. That thought brought the past twenty-four hours to painful clarity. She glanced at the space in the bed next to her, although she knew he hadn’t been there for hours. She could feel him. If she let herself, she would be able to tell what he was thinking. Even without trying, she knew he was focusing pretty intensely on something; whatever it was infused him with a sense of dark anticipation.

The whispering hissed from the next room. Concentrating, she heard each individual whisper. The team was in her kitchen. She instinctively pulled the blankets tighter around her. What was the team doing in her suite? They usually met in a conference room downstairs.

She knew the exact moment Raife realized she was awake. She sensed his awareness of her, felt his presence soothe her.

“Calm down, kitten. We’ve got a possible break in this case. Throw some clothes on and come out here. We need your skills.”

Katya frowned at the dark mahogany door, the blankets gripped in her fists. She couldn’t hide out in the bedroom all day, although the idea appealed to her. With a sigh, she threw the blankets off and padded to the sleek modern dresser in the corner of the room.

Blindly pulling on some clothes, Katya disappeared into the connecting master bath to pull a brush through her hair and get rid of her morning breath.

Ten minutes later, standing before the closed bedroom door, she paused, hesitant to leave the dark cool protection of the room. They’d all seen her lose it last night. Except for Tag, and he’d all but accused her of being a danger to everyone just from hearing what happened.

And Raife.

The memory of last night swept hotly through her, and she gasped. It had been intense, his determination and aggression feeding her own hunger to the point where she snapped. Her body tingled when she remembered how they’d come together after he’d pushed her to that breaking point. Although something had definitely taken hold of her when she bled Raife last night, she didn’t think it was solely because of her pregnancy. Taking his blood was incredible and addicting, and the thought that she may crave him so badly left her a little wary.

Katya went still as a realization struck her. The hunger wasn’t clawing its way through her body this morning. She felt more at ease in her skin than she had in months. She felt…good.

“What did you expect, kitten? I’m like the nectar of the gods.”

After exhaling shakily, she pressed her forehead to the cool wood of the door. Raife’s humor soothed her just as it always had as a kid. But the feel of his mind moving in hers now was nothing like the feel of him all those years ago. Now his touch felt incredibly intimate, and she closed her eyes as she let him flow through her.
“Don’t get too cocky, dragon man. Just because I didn’t drain you last night doesn’t mean it’s not still on my to-do list.”

His laugh was low, and it reverberated through her mind to pool heavy and warm low in her body.

“I don’t know, Kat; I think you drained me pretty damn good.”

The voice moving through her mind was a deep suggestive rumble, and she felt a smile tug on her lips as her anxiety eased.
“That’s not what I meant, you pervert.”

“I’m a pro, baby. A provert, not pervert. Now stop dragging your feet and get that sweet ass out here. We’re on to something big. I need you. We all need you.”

She wanted to question that. To ask if all of them felt that way. She wanted his reassurance, to feel him tuck her under his arm and walk her through it, but she refused to be that weak. This was going to be her life now. She couldn’t hide from it. She had to stand on her own two feet. She would be working with these people. Hell, she liked them and felt like she belonged. That’s what made it so difficult. There was this voice in her head that taunted her—what if last night changed the way they saw her? She pressed her clenched fist to the door next to her head.