" Come back to me. Close your eyes…." Grayson's voice pulled her back, and
she allowed her eyes to slip closed.
His handsome face formed before her. "Let's hope I don't get the same
reaction." Without warning, he drove into her, pulling her down hard onto
his lap, burying himself deep inside her aching heat.
Katelyn couldn't contain the shaky gasp that spilled from her throat or the
long moan that followed it.
His mouth slanted over hers, and she was plunged back inside the swirling
vortex of sensations assaulting her.
She was dimly aware of Alyssa crying out—ecstasy plain in her strangled
shout—and then Stone's voice and Ryan's joined the fray.
Grayson drove inside her mercilessly, filling her impossibly with each
rough thrust.
Her pussy pulsed around him, dragging her over the edge and into an
orgasm that contracted her entire body and rolled huge waves of pleasure
through her until she was afraid she wouldn't be able to bear any more.
Grayson thrust hard once more, crying out as his hot seed spilled inside
her—causing the vortex inside her to explode once more.
Colors flashed behind her eyelids, and energy sizzled over her skin,
making every hair on her body stand on end. Finally, she floated back into
her body and made the mistake of opening her eyes in time to see Sela
thrust the curved knife deep into Rita's bare stomach.
"No!" She tried to sit up, but her arms and legs wouldn't obey her
commands. Tears sprang to her eyes and strangled sobs broke from her
lips.
Sela and Aedan shouted with joy, and the other Cunts joined in. "She is
ours!"
Sela stalked forward, the knife still dangled from her hand, dripping with
Rita's blood. Little splatters of crimson marred her pale skin.
Katelyn tasted bile on the back of her tongue and swallowed hard.
"You are ours to control, now, Seer. You can't fight us. You've been infused
with our energy." Aedan stepped behind Sela, a smirk on his face as he laid
a possessive arm around her shoulders.
"Listen to me carefully, Seer." Sela leaned so close to Katelyn's face small
droplets of spittle sprayed forward. "You will return to Tador, and you will
kill the queen. Poison her, stab her, I don't care. Just do it." She bared her
teeth. "Our spy will be watching and will tell us when it's complete."
Then all hell broke loose.
The room exploded around her.
Shards of wood and plaster rained down over everything, and angry
shouts filled the air.
Sizzling beams of blue and pink seared through the room, leaving the smell
of burning ozone in their wake.
A blue beam bore down on her—directly toward her face.
She winced, ready for the painful impact, but just before it reached her, it
bounced off some unseen barrier and hit the wall in front of her, piercing
the crude triangle drawing.
Katelyn clamped her eyes shut. "Grayson!" Her shout echoed through the
room, blending with the riot of noise.
"Katelyn, I'm here. The Klatch are there to retrieve you." "Sleep." She noticed
Grayson's voice was heavy with languor.
She tried to speak, to ask questions or figure out what was happening, but
the suggestion was too strong, and a comfortable blackness sucked her
under.
20
Sela groaned and sat up. She rubbed her shoulder, where she'd been hit by
a Klatch energy beam, and glanced around at the ruin and stench that used
to be her altar room.
Her warriors groaned and slowly stirred around the room, a few lay totally
still, their open eyes unseeing. She hoped they didn't start to stink before
they had a chance to dispose of the bodies.
The Seer, the sacrifice, and even the spare were nowhere to be seen. The
damned Klatch who'd destroyed her house must've taken them.
A laugh slowly built inside her throat, and she let it out, even though every
small movement hurt. "It's too late. She is ours now."
She lay back against the floor and let the warmth of victory flow though
her.
Waiting had seemed like an eternity, but now it was so close she felt as if
she could reach out and touch it. Soon, very soon, she would sit on the
Tador throne where she belonged.
***
Grayson knocked lightly on the door to Alyssandra and Stone's private
rooms.
The door cracked open, and Sasha beckoned him inside. Immediately, the
scent of lavender that always clung to the queen filled his nostrils and
made him smile.
"I came to check on Rita and the detective."
"Grayson." Alyssandra rushed forward to envelop him in a quick hug.
"They're both sleeping. It will take time for them to recover from the energy
blasts, but other than that, they seem fine. Sasha is watching over them."
She gestured toward the lady's maid, who smiled in recognition.
"I'll bring refreshments if you'll watch over my charges for a few minutes,
my queen."
Alyssandra nodded her agreement and returned her attention to Grayson.
"How is Katelyn? I'm assuming you just came from there."
"She hasn't stirred at all since we brought her back." He paced away and
shoved his hand through his hair, pulling much of it from its tie at the back
of his neck. "I'm concerned. She sleeps so deeply I can't even reach her with
a vision. How can we be sure she's all right?"
The queen pulled him down onto an overstuffed chair and sat beside him.
"She's been through a lot. Let her rest. Her energy is strong, and I
remember sleeping a long time after my ceremony." She shook her head.
"Even though she didn't ascend the throne, this was the most bizarre
ceremony I've ever heard of, and it took quite a bit out of all of us, but
especially her."
Grayson swallowed hard, unease roiling his stomach and making him
uncomfortable. He hoped Alyssandra was right. "What of Sela's demand
that Katelyn kill you?"
The queen smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. "Let's just hope our vision
worked."
"I know it did." His voice came out harsher than he'd intended. "Can't you
feel the energy from Tador flowing through Katelyn more freely now?"
Alyssandra laughed and shook her head. "I meant I hope the vision
worked on Sela and her crew. At least this way we have a way to flush out
the spy Sela mentioned." She chewed her bottom lip as she thought. "If the
vision didn't work, we might never find them until they strike."
"How do you plan on flushing them out?"
She grinned up at him. "Keep up, Grayson. I'm going to let Katelyn kill
me."
***
Katelyn's eyes fluttered open, and she stretched like a cat, enjoying the
small aches that always came after an intense bout of very good sex. She
yawned and then relaxed back against the soft pillow with a large sigh. A
low thrum of energy seemed to exist between her and the planet itself,
grounding her and nourishing her.
She frowned in thought and turned toward the window.
What appeared to be midmorning sun spilled through the open patio doors
of her room on Tador. A gentle breeze teased the long white curtains that
hung at the edges of the doors and brought her the scent of gardenias,
roses, and several other flowers she couldn't identify.
For a quick moment, she thought she might have dreamed following Holly
through the between and the vision on the altar with Sela and Aedan.
Choppy memories of being carried back through the between and Grayson
rocking her in his embrace filtered back to her, shattering her quick illusion
that it hadn't happened.
The door banged open, and Grayson rushed in. Joy and relief brightened
his expression, and he sank down on the bed next to her and enveloped her
in a crushing hug.
She sank into his embrace, enjoying the heat and energy radiating between
them as emotions welled up bright and thick, clogging her throat and
making tears prick the backs of her eyes. She tightened her arms around
him, and she buried her face against his chest, inhaling Grayson's scent—
spicy chai and man. The combination made her smile.
She couldn't imagine not having this man in her life. This man, this world,
this race of people felt more a part of her than Earth ever had. There, she
was an outcast. Here, she was accepted for who and what she was.
Grayson kissed her hair. "You scared me, my little Seer."
She laughed and loosened her grip, pulling away so she could see his face.
His amethyst eyes were shiny with unshed moisture he blinked away
when he realized she'd seen. "I'm so sorry, Grayson. I should've confronted
you when Holly told me about the triangle." After she blew out a long
breath, she glanced down at her fingers. "Running is what I seem to do
best, and I not only got myself in trouble, but all of you, and Rita...." Her
voice trailed off as the memory of the large blade plunging into Rita's bare
stomach surfaced inside her mind.
"Rita is fine, as is the detective who drove her to the house." Grayson
brushed her hair back from her face and then with a single finger lifted her
chin and raised her gaze to his.
"Detective?"
In answer, Grayson closed his lips over hers in a gentle but firm possession
of her mouth. All questions about the detective and everything else
scattered at the feel of his lips on hers. She opened for him, and he delved
inside, stroking and sucking her tongue and exploring each crevice of her
mouth.
Her body came alive as if trained to respond only to Grayson's touch. The
energy she had felt earlier, running between her and the planet, growled
like a hungry dragon waking deep inside her. It wanted to be fed, and
Katelyn had no objections.
Her nipples hardened, straining toward Grayson, and slick, liquid heat
dampened her pussy.
Grayson groaned into her mouth as he threaded his fingers through her
hair at her nape. "Dear God, I can smell your arousal."
She nipped his bottom lip, making the energy howl faster in delight.
They tore at each other's clothes until they were bare, their bodies pressed
together as they writhed to close any space between them. In a quick move,
Grayson rolled her beneath him and thrust inside her.
She gasped at the sudden invasion, but then widened her thighs, hooking
them around his waist and raising her hips to take him more fully.
Grayson buried his face against her neck, driving inside her hard and fast,
claiming her. With each thrust, he drove her higher and higher until she
screamed as her orgasm slammed into her.
Grayson never slowed his pace, pounding into her as the walls of her
pussy clenched around him in rhythmic waves and her toes curled with the
force of her pleasure—which only served to prolong her climax.
She bit his shoulder, and he hardened further inside her.
He paused only long enough to push her legs upward to drape them over
his shoulders before he drove inside her again.
She gasped as his thick length filled her, this angle making it feel like he
penetrated all the way to her soul.
He palmed the globes of her ass in his large hands, tilting her and
deepening the angle even further. Two more deep thrusts, and another
climax slammed into her and then another, as if they came in a constant
wave.
"Look at me." Grayson's voice was a demand. Katelyn's eyes fluttered open
and he captured her gaze.
"I love you...." The words spilled from her lips, surprising her. She hadn't
known she'd planned on saying them—especially not in the middle of
sweaty sex with Grayson pistoning inside her.
Her words seemed to trigger his release. He stiffened, a feral and
possessive smile curving his lips before his face contorted with the force of
his orgasm.
His hot come spilled inside her, and she felt every spurt as the energy
roared through both of them in a searing rush and then exploded outward
to shatter the mirror and sizzle along the face of the balda.
When her senses returned, Stone stood just inside the door to her chamber.
He looked embarrassed at finding them. "My apologies. I was passing and
heard the mirrors shatter and smelled the burning...." His mouth snapped
shut, and he backed toward the door. "My apologies."
The door closed behind him, and Grayson and Katelyn giggled like
children caught being naughty.
"Say that again." Grayson's vulnerable gaze seared into hers.
Katelyn didn't pretend to misunderstand him. She took a deep breath and
said, "I love you."
A smile blossomed across his face, and he kissed her hard before pulling
back to look down at her again. "How did I get so lucky to fall in love with
a woman who actually loves me back? That's unheard of in royal
marriages, you know. Other than with Stone and Alyssandra, that is."
She laughed, happiness and sated energy curling inside her. "Is that your
way of trying to get out of saying it?" She punched him in the arm. "It
won't work."
He grabbed her wrists and pressed them down into the pillow on either
side of her head. "I love you, Seer. Now what are you going to do about it?"
She bit her lip and took a deep breath before answering.
"Why don't you tell me about this triangle, and we'll go from there?"