Space Invaders (23 page)

But I felt something watching us through the swirling fog. And I knew it wasn’t over.

Frey ran a hand over a cedar pillar as I unlocked the door to my house. “Hey, if you got stranded here, maybe you could build stuff,” I said. “Log cabins, boats.”

He gave me a startled look. “I like to build.”

“Yeah, I had that sense. You remind me a bit of my Dad. He had an appreciation for natural materials, wood, stone. You really lit up when you saw my house. Even the carpet is woven sisal.”

Frey nodded.

“I’ve missed that about him.” I switched on more lights, not liking the look of the fog that was creeping up from the rocky beach below. “It would be nice seeing you using a hammer instead of that sword.”

“You would wish me to be other than what I am,” Frey said. “A guardian.”

Bull’s eye. “Well, it’s kind of a depressing gig.”

“It is you who is depressed.”

I headed to the top floor and Frey followed me. He kept glancing out the windows at the fog. It seemed almost to scratch against the glass. “You have many totems here. It will serve as protection.”

“Totems?” We were in the bathroom, which was about the size of my dorm room. Damn, I missed the place. Usually I was a shower man, but when I had a cold or felt like shit, there was nothing like hot jets.

“The…” Frey gestured to a framed watercolour of the bay I’d done when I was twelve. “The things made by you and others. They emanate strong protective energy.”

“Whoa, that’s a really interesting take on art and craft, that it originated like fire, to protect people, to make a circle,” I mused. I loved that idea. I’d have to do a paper on it for Professor Dunbar. She’d be—

But she wouldn’t be impressed. She was now a monster with a single consonant vocabulary.

I turned on the hot water and watched it flow out of the fancy waterfall copper tap. “You have to take your clothes off—” But when I turned to look at Frey, he’d already done it. “You know, the stripper thing is an excellent qualification in a boyfriend.”

He raised his brows and then looked down at his body. “You like to look at my muscles.”

I laughed. “Oh, yeah. And a lot of other things. Feel free not to wear clothing when we’re alone together.”

He looked smug but then wary as I led him to the bathtub. “It is a large pond.”

“Can’t swim?”

“I can. Why would I do so?”

“Hey, you were pretty clean when we first, you know, met. So you must bathe.”

“Of course I bathe.” He looked offended. “I do not overcome other warriors in battle with my smell.”

“You smelt of campfire and earth.” I tried to loop my arms around him, drag him closer to the tub, but he was as undraggable as a tree stump. I tried another method, nibbling on his earlobe. He sucked in a breath and his big hands tightened on my body.

“Bailey.” He pushed me back so he could yank at my T-shirt. “When I am unclothed, I want…”

“Yes?” I kissed his neck.

“I want you unclothed also.” It wasn’t long before I was naked. I stepped into the water, settled near the jets and let out a long, luxurious sound. Frey’s eyes widened and then he looked put out, probably because the sound I made was like one he could draw from me. He was jealous of the hot swirling water.

I grinned at him and he plunked in, hissing in a breath. “This!”

“Yeah, it’s pretty cool.”

He shook his head. “No, Bailey, it is hot.”

His eyelashes fell and I knew I was in for it. My heartbeat thundered as he climbed over me, took my erection in his grasp.

I wrapped one leg around his hip while I kissed him. He took both our hard-ons, rubbing them together, killing me slowly.

“You are so hot,” I muttered against his damp skin. “The way you tower over me, the sword, the calluses on your hands, the way your hair falls around your face. And Jesus, your eyes.”

They looked at me now, into me, as he kissed me back, rutting with me. God, was there anything more perfect then my prick in his hand, rubbing velvety against his cock?

“I know we have this thing going on, creatures, darkness, but when you look at me like that, I just want you to fuck me.” I shook my head. “No, that’s not entirely honest. I want you to fuck me all the time.”

“You are very eager to be a woman for me.”

I frowned, still thrown by his archaic phrasing. “Um, yeah.”

“I have never had a boy of my very own.”

“No?”

“If I had met you in my time, I would have taken you.”

“I would have been English, maybe a Celt,” I said, spinning out the fantasy. Hell, I’d read tons of historical romances featuring hot, conquering Vikings. “You take me as your captive. Um…there’d have to be conflict. Oh, I know, your father was betrayed by my father. Well, he wasn’t really, but you don’t know that and they’re both dead. So you capture me to ‘punish’ me by making me your kitchen slave. It’s usually something humiliating so we fight a lot.”

He stared at me, obviously enraptured as much by my storytelling ability as my hot little body. I grinned, loving being with him. The soothing water, the vivid blue eyes, his complete earnestness.

“We fight a lot?” he prompted when I lost myself in the feel of him gently thrusting against me, his hand gloving us both so perfectly.

“Yeah, I drive you crazy. I’m defiant and I keep trying to escape and…you want me. You’re crazy for me, but I’m a virgin and you don’t want to frighten me with your unnatural passions.”

“I would not care if you were a virgin if you looked at me the way you do, Bailey,” Frey grumbled. “I would tumble you hard.”

“Ohhhhh.” I bit my lip and arched into him, both the thought of being tumbled hard by my Viking and the feel of what he was doing pushing me to the edge. “Frey!”

“I will attend you,” he whispered.

And did he. He moved his hips, rocking with the water, heating me almost lazily but with the intensity of a blowtorch. He was not playful. His hands caged my face and he stared into my eyes, trapping me.

“Don’t!” I choked.

He did not relent. He did not let me go.

“I don’t do it this way. I don’t look in someone’s eyes when I—”

“Come for me,” he growled. “Burn for me.”

I couldn’t hold back. I thrust against him, the water churning over the lip of the tub, my eyes wide and naked as I came for him, as he found another way to conquer me.

Chapter Nine

This time I had no choice but to let him hold me since I’d basically collapsed against the side of the tub. He was all that was keeping my head above water, though I wasn’t too sure about that in the metaphorical sense.

I was going under.

“Nice Viking,” I mumbled. “Sexy Viking.”

“I will tend you now.”

“Oh yeah. Except any more tending and you might kill me.” But I’d die with an X-rated smile on my face.

He manoeuvred me around and picked up some soap, sniffed it and then used it on my back. I let out a long sigh as water continued to pour from the recycling tub Mom had installed after I moved out. It was pretty cool, spilling over the copper edges and down the drain.

“This is not a very earth-friendly pool,” he said and I laughed at the unexpectedness of his comment. I looked over my shoulder at him. He was smiling at me so I knew he was teasing.

“You heard that one from Candy.”

“She said you were earth-friendly.” His brow furrowed. “I’m still not sure I completely understand that. Why do you have to be friendly with dirt?”

“Well, um, not to be all literal and boring, but the water in the tub gets recycled into our garden hose so we can use it in the green house and gardens,” I said. “And I’d get real friendly with dirt if you and I ever entered a mud wrestling contest.” I grinned as that fantasy popped into my head. I’d lose of course, but Frey all slick and muddy and naked…

“Bailey.” He smacked my hip. I guess he’d noticed I was perking up.

“Hey, young college man here,” I said. “And what’s your excuse?” I could feel his freshly interested cock poking against one ass cheek.

His eyes were half closed as he thrust against me. “I am a virile warrior.”

“You’re adorable.”

He didn’t look as if he cared for that description. He frowned at me thunderously and I laughed. “Sorry, it’s just you’re a bit geeky sometimes. I bet you’d be a hit with a medieval fantasy group.”

“You have too much energy,” Frey said in a silky voice, so I knew I was in trouble.

He hefted me from the water and threw me over his shoulder.

“Uh!” I gripped him, both of us dripping. “Frey, for fuck’s sake…” Another swat on my abused backside. “Hey, ease up, that hurt!”

“I will tame you in your furs,” Frey said and suddenly I was all for being tamed.

“First door on the left.” My bedroom looked funny upside down since my Mom had taken to using it as an extra storage room for her crafts. I glimpsed the stacked tins of natural dyes on my old desk and some of the ochres she mixed with fresh soy bean milk, the colours vivid as eye shadow, blues, violets, fern greens.

And on my bed lay curls of washed wool, sorted and waiting to be spun.

Frey smirked at me. “You have furs.”

“I’ll never live it down.” I hit the bed and shoved the clouds of wool off my bedspread with my heels and then Frey was on me, kissing me ardently. I’d never had a lover who was so intent on me. Usually one trip to a bathroom stall or a closet was enough and I’d got too jaded to follow a guy around afterwards, all dopey.

I knew the score.

But maybe Frey didn’t because when my legs wound around his like hungry ivy he just grunted approval, kissing and nipping my neck while my head fell back. He tugged my hair, forcing me to look into his eyes again, but this time, though my throat tightened, I didn’t try to fight.

“There’s something in the drawer we need.”

He opened it cautiously, as if something monstrous might spring free. After the day we’d had, I couldn’t blame him. I took out the lube, closed my eyes and consciously worked to loosen my body as I readied myself to take him.

Frey helped me, his hand sweeping down, taking hold of my stiff penis, working me up and down so my body bowed off the bed. “
Fuck
!”

His lips burnt my skin, his white teeth nipped, his firm hands held me as he moved down my body and he swallowed my cock, sucking strongly while I bucked.

Then his mouth was on my opening, his tongue pushing inside.

I yelped and even he couldn’t hold me down.

I fell off my bed and lay on the drifts of wool, staring up at him through my hair.

“You desired that,” he said. “I felt the heat of your body, I heard your gasps. I did not misjudge, Bailey.”

I swallowed, looked away. My body was still throbbing like a wild drum beat. Fuck yeah, I’d wanted that. “It freaked me out, okay?”

“Freaked you out?” he repeated and now the storm clouds were in his eyes, turning them to slate grey. He put his hands on his hips, assuming a warrior stance. “You will explain yourself.”

A reluctant smile sprang to my lips. I could hear the word he hadn’t tagged on,
You will explain yourself, boy.
He was trying to be civilised.

“It felt too good.”

His brows rose.

I ducked my head. “No one ever bothered to do that for me before,” I muttered, hitting closer to the truth this time.

“Bothered?” Frey looked perplexed. “To pleasure you?”

“I got off fine,” I said. “Don’t go feeling sorry for me.”

“I do not.” He laughed. “Now you are angry. That is good. I do not want a boy for my own who does not value himself.”

“I’m not your boy. Reality check, Conan, this is temporary.”

His eyes narrowed. “Do not call me by another’s name. I do not like it. When you look at me, when you love me, you should only see me, feel
me.
”

I was surprised the big lug didn’t thump his chest.

“Christ, can’t you see that’s the problem?”

“Look at me, Bailey!” he thundered.

“All right, all right, don’t yell! You’ll bring the roof down.”

“I do not care. If your house is splinters around us, I see only you.” He dragged me close. “And you will see me.”

I was seared by his hot blue gaze. Naked again.

I curled my arms around him, hid my face against his neck.

This he allowed and I squeezed my eyes shut until they didn’t sting. Jesus, he really was turning me into a girl, though that was pretty sexist since my girl friends were all ass-kickers.

Listening to the steady thump-thump of his heartbeat soothed me. I couldn’t resist licking him, savouring his salty flavour. His silken hair, damp on the ends, brushed my skin.

“Tell me why you pulled away from me. Do it now, Bailey.”

“You’re incredibly bossy, you know that?”

“I know what is good for my boy.”

“Oh really? Let’s add on arrogant.”

“Bailey.” He shook me. “I will know you.”

“Damn it… You’re leaving. All right? Enough said.” I shoved my hair out of my eyes. “I want you safe and I want you with me.”
Always.
Shit. I sucked in a deep breath. I couldn’t think that way.

His swordsman’s roughened palm cupped my cheek. Then he nuzzled me, his cheek to mine. Geez, it was dopey, but I liked it.

His gesture told me he didn’t want to leave
me either.

He cleared his throat. It sounded vaguely like the blast of a fog horn. “You liked my mouth upon you?”

Colour burnt my cheeks. Oh, hell, now I was blushing?

“I liked it. Too much,” I said.

He studied me. “I would have your honesty and your honour.”

He wanted me to bare my feelings. He could have made me do that by taking me in his mouth again, but he wanted me to talk to him.

“It was the hottest thing I’ve ever felt,” I confessed.

He lifted me back onto my bed easily. Holding my gaze, he spread my thighs. My balls hung heavy, my cock hard and needy. I felt his breath on my opening. He drew out the moment, stroking my legs, kissing the mole above my knee.

“Please,” I whimpered. “Frey, I need it.”

“Tell me,” he commanded. “I want to hear you.”

He stabbed into me with his tongue, hot, wet, ravenous.

“Oh, fuck!” If he’d wanted to hear me, he’d got his wish. I think they could hear me in Tibet. “Frey!”