The Fallen King: The Bellum Sisters 4 (paranormal erotic romance) (12 page)

After he took her in his arms, she’d
stilled for a moment before falling into a deep sleep while he’d slept on and
off all night. She fit him well. Small and delicate, curvy and soft where he
wasn’t. It didn’t help that the image of her naked body haunted him. Hardly a
moment passed that he didn’t remember her heart-shaped bottom, firm thighs, and
rounded hips.

Morning light spilled over her
now casting her hair into something much prettier than he’d originally thought.
Shafts of gold and copper colored her hair. He shouldn’t have slept with her.
What if she had woken during the night to see that he’d taken her into his
arms?

Her bottom moved against him
again making his body stir and his blood heat. His cock filled with blood,
turning hard and demanding against her. He stifled a groan at the erotic
sensation. He’d lingered too long already.

Moving slowly, he placed her back
against the wall where she’d fallen asleep. He cast one last look at her, then
shook his head and left her to find more food.

He hunted for nearly an hour and
slew two
futhorcs
. Good, they’d need the meat to give them enough energy
for the traveling they’d be doing today. He couldn’t be sure how far south they
needed to go, but he recognized the rolling hills in the distance. They were on
the right path.

By the time he came back, she was
up and moving about. Her eyes were bright and the circles under her eyes gone.
She hadn’t slept well since he’d taken her. After just one night of good sleep,
she looked refreshed and, his chest tightened painfully, more beautiful. She
looked over at him as he approached and a small smile teased her lips.

“About time you woke up,” he
scowled.

The light in her eyes dimmed
instantly. He wished he could take back his words, but this was for the best.
He didn’t need to make his job of sacrificing her any harder. Distance would be
good.

“If it’s a problem then you could
always wake me up early.”

He ignored her valid point, lit
the fire, and started skinning the small animals. From the corner of his eye,
he watched her mouth flatten and anger flash in her eyes. She didn’t argue, for
which he thanked the lucky stars. Her anger only fueled him in a way he craved
entirely too much.

She took a seat across from him.
“Well is there anything I can do?”

He eyed her pensively. Warily he
grabbed a small knife from his ankle holster and tossed it into the dirt next
to her. Her legs jumped to the side and she gave him a wide-eyed look.

“Make some skewers.” She picked
up the knife and handled it in a tight, awkward grip and not like a warrior
would. Still he had to make his point clear. “Make any move at me with that and
you’ll regret it.”

Her jaw clenched, but then she
gave a mock bow. “Yes, my Lord.”

His mouth quirked with a smile
and he saw surprise light her features. Quickly, he killed it. He had to remember
his purpose. He couldn’t let her get under his skin. He needed her for one
purpose only.

After she finished making skewers
from thin sticks, they ate and he packed up the rest of their belongings. They
didn’t have much and he needed some blankets for them and maybe some soap for
her. He stilled in mid-motion of putting his swords back on the holster on his
back. Was he making plans for her to be more comfortable? He jerked his mind
off the thought. He wasn’t going there because that’s not what this was about.
They’d both enjoy the added comforts.

They headed south by mid-morning
and it didn’t take long for her to grow restless. He saw it first in the way
she sighed, then when she started to open her mouth to speak but stopped
herself. He didn’t encourage her even though a part of him was curious. Just
what had her fumbling so?

They stopped around mid-day to
eat more and rest. He found himself wishing she would speak. It was while he surveyed
the hill that sloped down gently before them that she finally let it out.

“Oh my god, I can’t stand this.
You have to talk to me. I feel like I’m losing my mind here.”

Alrik barely contained his
stunned expression. She wanted him to talk to her. What about?

“Come on, we’re heading back out.
I want to reach the
Drego
river before nightfall. We’ll sleep there.”

She sighed and came up beside
him. She was much shorter than Arianna. She didn’t even reach his shoulders.
Damn. Why was he even thinking these crazy ideas?

“What? I don’t even see any
water.”

He pointed south. “It’s there.”

Her gaze narrowed on the distant
landscape and then she shrugged. “I don’t see it.” She sighed even louder. “We
have to walk all that way. That has to be, like, ten miles.”

“At least.”

She groaned and his lips
twitched. He quickly schooled the emotion before she saw it. This was new for
him—finding humor in something. He hadn’t felt that in...a long time. He
couldn’t even remember the last time because not even Arianna had made him laugh.

“Fine, let’s go before I lose my
motivation.”

She started down the hill without
him. He followed behind; his gaze locked on a part of her he really shouldn’t
be looking at, but couldn’t help himself. The way her pants fit her was almost
indecent.
Shahoulin
women wore long, beautiful dresses that complimented
their beauty. Abbigail, a mere human, managed to stir desire wearing nothing
but tight pants that cupped her in ways that made his palms itch to feel for
himself.

So wrapped up in his baser thoughts
was he that he didn’t react for a long second when her foot slipped on a rock. Alrik
snapped out of it as her scream ripped through the air and she started tumbling
down the hill.

“Abbigail!”

He charged down the hill, his
heart pounding in his throat. Something intense and terrifying filled him. He
reached her just as she rolled to a stop at the bottom of the hill. She lay on
her stomach facing away from him, her arms bent under her, and her legs
squeezed together.

He turned her over and her eyes
squinted up at him in pain.

“Ow, that one hurt.” Her lips
pinched together as her brow furrowed.

He knelt beside her, his hands
touching her everywhere. “Where are you hurt?” She stiffened, but he didn’t
realize it. That intense feeling still held him in its tight grip.

Her voice came out breathless.
“Didn’t hurt anything new except maybe my ego. A few rocks just jabbed into my
bruises.”

He lifted her shirt up ignoring
her squeal of protest to inspect her bruise. A part of him expected to find
blood there, but her skin was intact just colored in an ugly way. Relief filled
him and he collapsed over her, burying his head in her hair. A wild staccato
beat pounded in his chest. He’d only ever felt that feeling once before he
realized, when Arianna stepped in front of him to take the blow that would have
ended his life.

“Alrik?” she asked hesitantly.

He pulled back and found her face
a mask of confusion. Something changed inside of him then. Now with the panic
passing, he realized he had her practically in his arms. His gaze dropped to
her mouth; soft pink lips that were pouty and full. His gut clenched and what
happened next he was lost to.

He slanted his lips across hers
and gave in to the need inside him. The first touch was like being zapped with
an electrical charge. Every ounce of his body burned, roaring at him to take
more, take all that she’d give, and then take even more. She was soft and warm,
her lips delicate in a way that brought out the animal inside him.

He held back the beast and
savored the press of her lips but his body strained to keep it caged.

Soft, pliable lips pressed gently
against his as his mouth fluttered across hers. His cock was a mighty weight
between his legs, roaring at him to have her hand curl around the shaft.

Then she pressed back against him
and he snapped. A shiver tore down his spine.

A feral growl sounded, surprising
him. The sound came from him, from the need he’d buried deep inside of himself.
As her soft lips kissed him back he did something wild and utterly stupid. He did
something he’d wanted to do since he met her and thrust his tongue deep.

The sweet taste of her flooded
his senses, firing his already yearning body. Then she surprised him. Her hands
swept into his hair, clenching his head to her as if she didn’t want him to
move.

Oh god. The way she touched him.
She made sexy little noises in the back of her throat and the way her tongue
met his in a wet sweep brought the need in him shooting down his spine to his
cock.

He never thought...

He never knew...

She touched him as if she never
wanted him to stop.

His cock throbbed, feeling ready
to explode. One of his fists curled into the grass beside her head before he
did something he’d really regret--like touching her. Touching her in ways they
both craved.

Her tongue stroked his, wet,
soft, and eager. She made a soft, needy noise in the back of her throat and her
body pressed up into his like an undulating wave. Her breasts crushed against
his chest, the pebbles of her nipples scraping him through their shirts. His hips
jerked with a needy thrust.

He broke away, stumbled back away
from her as his chest pumped hard. Her eyes were fogged with passion as she
looked at him. Her cheeks were flushed, lips wet and swollen. Her chest rose
and fell in fast waves, straining her breasts against her shirt.

His emotions teetered all over
the place. He had to find some semblance of control before he went right back
over to her and finished what had started. Just the thought sent his gaze between
her thighs. Her hips jerked in response as if she felt his touch there and he
nearly groaned. So badly did he want to feel her soft femininity. He clenched
his hands as if to keep his fingers from wanting to dip into her jeans and feel
her soft sex. How wet was she? How hot? Would she burn against him? Another
shudder wracked through him.

 He couldn’t touch her though, he
wouldn’t.

So he said the one thing he knew
would work. “Don’t ever touch me again.”

Hurt flashed across her face and
he hated himself for putting it there. Then, just as quickly, anger surged and
she jerked to a stand. “
You
kissed me.”

His jaw popped he held it so
tightly. “Come on.” He strode past her. He had no other choice. He had to
ignore her or else he might do something irrevocably stupid. He hid the tremble
in his hands by curling them into fists.

He had about two seconds of peace
before she stormed beside him marching like she was taking her anger out on the
grass. “You are
un-fucking-believable.
I mean really. You are such an
ass.”

“Watch your tongue, Abbigail,” he
warned. He’d only take so much of her insults.

“Watch your tongue, Abbigail,”
she mimicked in a high voice. She darted a lethal gaze at him. “You watch it,
demon. With how I feel right now you don’t want to piss me off.”

He almost laughed, actually. “And
just what do you think you could possibly do to me.”

No sooner had she sucked in a
deep breath did he feel the warmth of her magic surrounding him. He realized
he’d made a mistake just as he went flying through the air. Air rushed past
him, blowing hair in his face. His stomach felt like it was kissing his spine.
Surprise kept him from responding, or at least that’s what he told himself. He
landed on the grass some fifteen feet away feeling as though he’d just been run
over by a horse.

He jumped to a stand ready to
exact retribution, but she squared her shoulders and spread her feet looking
ready to fight. Her eyes glowed dimly from the magic running through her veins.
She looked so small yet stood as a warrior ready to battle at the front lines.
She looked more beautiful than ever.

His anger fled as swiftly as it
came. His lips twitched again and he stifled a laugh. The emotion felt so odd
he didn’t know how to hide it.

“Glad to see you’re improving on
your skills.”

With that, he turned and
continued south.

Her soft growl brought a full
smile to his mouth.

Chapter Ten

Abby didn’t know how she managed
not to freeze her butt off during the night, but she slept surprisingly well.
She’d asked Alrik to build a fire and he’d refused, said it’d leave them vulnerable.
She didn’t get that and when she pressed him, he shook his head in a
condescending way then explained that: “If we leave a fire lit it only brings
dangerous eyes to our position while we rest unaware.”

Well he may have a point but she
didn’t like the idea of another freezing cold night without a blanket. However,
now that she thought about it, she woke up warm and comfortable each morning. Strange.

Not to mention she needed new
clothes badly. She’d give almost anything to have a pair of fresh jeans, a
shirt, and a warm jacket. Scrubbing her clothes in streams and lakes worked
only so much.