When a Gargoyle Awakens (21 page)

It wasn’t a harsh barb by any means.  But it did sting a little.  Kylie had been ignoring her friend in favor of Luc, her mate, the gargoyle she was supposed to spend the rest of her life with…  She could feel herself tensing up again and dragged her attention back to Maggie.

“I’m sorry, Maggie.  Do you want to talk about you and…”

“There’s actually nothing to talk about.  We go out; we enjoy each other’s company, but just as friends.  He’s never tried anything, or even hinted that he wanted to.  And I certainly wouldn’t let him get anywhere if he did.  I’m not interested in him.  Not even a teeny bit.”  Maggie studied the ketchup bottle for a few beats.  “But what does he see in her?  She’s a total bitch, right?  She doesn’t deserve him, right?”

“Right,” agreed Kylie, quickly.

“Maybe she has a wonderful personality,” moaned Maggie.

“Well, it’s certainly well hidden,” muttered Kylie making Maggie snigger.

“I’m not thinking about her anymore.  In fact, I’m not thinking about him either.”

“Good plan.”

“Let’s do something spontaneous so I can stop thinking about both of them.”

“Sounds great.”

“Something fun we can both enjoy.”

“Sounds wonderful.”

“Let’s go skydiving!”

“Sounds terrifying.”

Chapter Twenty-Nine

They settled, much to Maggie’s chagrin on getting manicures and pedicures and in a fit of bravery, Kylie decided to have a Brazilian wax.  Well, she wasn’t sure when someone might next be, you know, looking down there.  As much as the thought both terrified and elated her, she wanted to look her best.

Maggie relaxed a little, and so did Kylie, not even reacting when Gary pressed his face up against the glass of the beauty parlor and then ran off when she caught him looking.

When it reached 5pm, they went for a drink at Noose – a little Dutch courage for them both, apparently.

Maggie had settled on telling Andrew that they shouldn’t be friends anymore.  Not because of long-legged Lara, but, and she wouldn’t admit it, it was because she was starting to have feelings for him.  She would not stoop to mooning over any man.  Men mooned over her.  End of story.

When Kylie arrived home, she squealed at realizing how little time she had left and quickly took a bath, making sure to razor every damn hair off her legs and armpits.  She then put on her best party dress – the one she had been wearing the night they met and slipped into her highest heels.  They were an outright pain to walk in, but she doubted they would be going anywhere, and a little height might help.  Although, she considered that even with these heels she was probably only about nipple high.

By the time Luc did wake up, it seemed to Kylie that he was excited.  His movements were even more impatient than usual, and his hug was especially tender.  He lifted her into his arms and buried his head in her shoulder, inhaling her scent.

“You are trembling, little one,” he purred.

“I’m a little nervous,” she murmured as he released her.

His tail wrapped around her leg.  “We don’t have to do anything you don’t want to,” he told her, gently.

“No, I want to, I want to be with you.  Since we met, all we’ve done is worry about the future and about what we need to do.  Why can’t we take a minute to ourselves?”  When she said it, she knew it was true.  She shut off her brain and allowed her heart to do the talking, and she realized how much she wanted him.

Luc stroked her hair.  “Only a minute?  I fear that a lifetime would never be enough.”

“Let’s start with tonight.”  He cupped her head and brought her closer to him.  “But, I have to tell you that you won’t be my first,” she said, quickly as his lips hovered over hers.  “That’s not a problem is it?  I mean you keep going on about my virtue…”  She blushed – a seemingly never-ending habit in front of Luc.  She seriously hoped he wasn’t expecting a virgin.  That was a situation that ended twelve years ago.

“In my time, an unmated human female would not have even met with a male alone.  And certainly not a male of my kind.”

“The world has changed,” she said, awkwardly and fearful that the mood was evaporating.

“Humans have changed.  Female gargoyles were not as coddled as human females, and we had less strict rules about coupling.  I am not inexperienced, but I never formally took a mate.”  A shadow crossed his brow.

“What’s wrong?”  She took his huge hand and pressed kisses over his knuckles, in the same way he had done to her the previous night.  He snarled softly.

“There was a female that I became attached to, but… I never found out if she shared my feelings.”

“You still think of her?”  She wasn’t sure if she wanted the answer to this, but a morbid part of her needed to know.

“No more than I think of any of my lost friends.  I made my peace with the fact that we were not to be a long time ago.  Now I look to the future. You are very beautiful, Kylie.”

His compliment almost knocked her over in surprise.  She paused mid-kiss and felt even more heat reach her cheeks.  “You need your eyes testing,” she muttered.

Luc pursed his lips.  “Why do you not believe me?  It saddens and angers me.”

“I’m not really beautiful; I can point out a ton of flaws.”

He smiled wryly.  “Should I ask you to name mine?”

“It’s not the same.”

“You are the woman who brought me back to life.  You are the woman meant to be with me.  You are mine.  And for those reasons, I wish to be with you.  But you are also kind and funny and patient.  And for those reasons, I love you.”

Her heart stuttered.  The l word; he said the l word!  She looked into his earnest face, and her legs felt like jelly.  Gently, she pushed away from him.  “One minute,” she murmured.

She disappeared into the bathroom and gave herself a mirror pep talk.  With a flash of courage, she stripped out of her clothes and slowly returned to him.  She found him frowning and fidgeting.  He stilled when he saw her, and he stared at her open-mouthed.

Kylie forced herself not to cover her body.  “Do you find me attractive?”

“More than you could ever imagine, little one.  I cannot perceive of a creature more perfect.”

“You must have a very poor imagination.”  She couldn’t help it, the self-deprecating joke just escaped before she could stop it.

He didn’t give her the disapproving glare, nor did he smile.  His expression was hungry.  “No, I have a very beautiful mate.”

“Should we go to bed?” she whispered.  “Do you, I mean, do you… in the bed?”  There was no easy way to ask how gargoyles had sex.

Luc chuckled.  “Yes, little one.”  Slowly, he pulled off his loincloth.  His erection jutted forward, thick and proud.

“Oh my!” she whispered out loud.

“We do not have to rush.”  He leaned down and pressed his mouth to her.  What started as a soft kiss quickly turned into a sensual embrace as his tongue explored her mouth.  Apart from his sharpened teeth, which she ran her tongue along, it wasn’t really different from kissing a human.  Although he did taste better to her than any human man, she had been with, and he kissed a lot better than them.  When he finally pulled away, he looked pleased.  “Yes, let’s go to bed.”

He led her to the bedroom, and she crawled onto the bed.  Fleetingly, she hoped it was big enough for the both of them.  She wondered if he liked to cuddle after.  She wondered how much noise he made when he came.  She wondered if it was possible for them to have a baby!

Such considerations didn’t seem to touch Luc.  He stood at the foot of the bed and smiled at her.  It was a smile unlike she had ever seen before.  Happy but proprietary and almost predatory.  It grew even wider as he looked over her body; Kylie trembled as his eyes burned the brightest amber.

Carefully, he kneeled on the bed.  It dipped, and Kylie giggled, eliciting a chuckle from Luc.  He crawled over her body, not touching her but just hovering over her.  He waited for what seemed to be an eternity, continuing to drink her in with his eyes.

Kylie gasped as his lips finally touched her.  She moved her hands over the hard planes of his chest as he brushed kisses over her neck.  At first the touch of his mouth on her body was soft and hesitant, but as she sighed in pleasure, it became more insistent. The lingering nervousness slowly ebbed as he explored her body.

She could feel his hot breath against her as he ghosted caresses over her check, as he licked the lobe of her ear and as he traveled down to her breasts.

Her hands clutched at him more firmly as she became more and more aroused.  He kissed the skin all around her breasts before finally sucking one of her orbs into his mouth.  His tongue traced her swollen bud, and she shivered in delight as his sharp teeth scraped her skin.  He repeated the ministration with the other and Kylie found her hands moving over his face until she clutched at his horns, pulling him against her.

She found her hips moving of their own volition, arching off the mattress, seeking him out, but he merely pressed her back into the bed and murmured for her to be patient.  She closed her eyes and allowed the feeling of pleasure to wash over her.  It was amazing, but she needed more.  Thankfully, he didn’t keep her waiting long.

Kylie’s eyes snapped open, and she almost jolted off the bed as she felt something press against her sex, unexpectedly.  It was big, but not big enough to be his member.  She looked down between them, and her eyes boggled as she saw and felt his tail pressing between her folds.

“Luc,” she whimpered.

Aided by her flowing juices he pressed his tail inside her and flexed.  She moaned, and Luc captured her mouth for a short kiss. 

“I must stretch you before I take you,” he rumbled, throatily.

As his tail expertly manipulated her, and Luc lavished more attention on her breasts, she could do nothing but lay back and whisper the word ‘yes’.

His movements became more insistent and within seconds she was crying out with her first release.  He held her as her body trembled in exquisite pleasure.  As she lay back, reveling in the soft aftershocks, she was vaguely aware of him retreating from her body.  She mewled in objection, and he chuckled.

“Do not fear, little one, I will not leave you.”

Kylie bit her lip and watched as he carefully dipped a clawed finger into her heat, coating it with her juices and then spreading them over his quivering manhood.  He settled between her legs and she felt the blunt, large tip press against her opening.  He held her breath as he pushed forward.  She gasped as a couple of inches sank inside her.  Even with her previous release she was still tight, and his entrance bordered on painful.  He withdrew, and she breathed out.

“Look at me, little one.”  Her eyes found his and she saw nothing but love.  “I will not hurt you.”

She nodded, and they smiled at one another as her hands clutched his horns.  Slowly, he pressed inside her again, and she moaned loudly, the pleasure far outweighing the pain this time.  He groaned as he slid in and out of her, carefully filling her little by little until finally he was seated as far as she could take him.

He held still, his chest shuddering as he forced himself not to move.  He allowed her time to become accustomed to his size, and she relaxed around him.  She gave herself over to the sensation of being opened and filled completely.  He was so large that he touched every sensitive part of her.  She was already dancing on the edge of an orgasm, all she needed was a small push, and she would fall.

“Are you alright, little one?”

“Yes,” she panted, “please, I’m close.”

Luc kissed her softly before pulling back and thrusting inside her.  She screamed as her climax hurtled through her body.  As her body jerked and delicious white heat coursed through her, he gripped her tightly and began taking her over and over.  He slipped an arm under her, holding her in place as she tried to buck against him.

Every time he filled her he snarled, and his eyes swirled with wild amber.  Her hands clutched at him tightly as warmth pooled within her sex, and her body was swept up into another release.  He was getting close; he was pounding against her body so forcefully the bed crashed against the wall, and she cried out as she came again.  Luc threw back his head and roared before he exploded with his own orgasm.

Kylie closed her eyes as she felt the press of his body against hers, and she gave herself over to the heavenly sensations rushing through her body.

She closed her eyes and sighed as Luc murmured the word ‘mate’.

Chapter Thirty

“Was that okay?” she murmured from her perch on his chest.  She was sprawled over him, and his claws lazily traced patterns over her back.  His wings curled around both of them like a blanket.  They were surprisingly warm and soft.  No wonder he didn’t need to wear much out in the open.

She cursed herself for how needy she sounded.  She had never been this needy with any other man.  But then she hadn’t worried about disappointing any other man.

Going by her last relationship, it was safe to assume that she wasn’t exactly a siren in the bedroom – otherwise her fiancé wouldn’t have gone looking for it with a blonde skank.