Shadow magic, p.28
Shadow Magic, page 28
Just about every man had his arms folded across his chest, a fierce expression on his face. Hannah’s body heated. Who were they to judge her choices? The witches’ expressions varied from concerned to unhappy to angry.
Well, she knew just where they could put their thoughts. She wasn’t an idiot. She did and she would continue to do whatever she had to in order to fight this war against Ceithlenn and keep everyone safe.
Including that bastard Garran, who had virtually traded his life for his people and hers.
When Hannah finished telling everyone in the kitchen about the visions, Keir clenched the hilt of his sword. “Drow lies. They tricked you with their dark magic.”
Rhiannon got in her husband’s face. “You listen, and you listen good. When I have one, my visions don’t fail me and that was as clear a vision as I’ve ever had.”
She turned and swept her gaze from one person to the next. Her anger was apparent from the stiffness of her body, and the redness of her face that caused her Fomorii scars to stand out. “The Great Guardian is responsible for Garran’s power, and he has used it to help us with this war.”
Hannah tried to speak without lashing out at the prejudiced people in the room. “He has endangered his life.” Her next words were harder to say, as if a great weight pressed on her chest. “If he uses that power one more time, he’ll probably die. We can’t let him do that.”
“What about the Drow who attacked and killed so many of our people last night?” Hawk asked, his arms still crossed over his chest.
“Hannah already told you.” Rhiannon’s scars seemed even whiter and her eyes flashed a deeper emerald color. “They acted on their own. Their leader is some guy named Vidar and he went against Garran’s decision and his promise to us. Their other leaders didn’t even know anything about what Vidar had done.”
“Then where are the leaders, this Directorate?” Hawk braced one arm on the refrigerator. “Why have they not come?”
Rhiannon rolled her eyes and pointed to the windows where light streamed in through the fog. “Duh? The sunlight? They don’t have a special gift from the Great Guardian to let them walk in daytime.”
The room was silent for a moment before Silver rubbed the small pooch of her pregnant belly and said, “We have to give him the benefit of the doubt. He’s been out cold, so there’s no way he could have ordered that attack.”
“Unless he did it ahead of time.” Jake grimaced as he moved his arm and shifted in his chair, probably from the pain that magic couldn’t completely take away. “He might have given his men a date and time and didn’t know he’d be flat on his back.” Jake brought his hand up to his bandaged arm. “He probably didn’t know ahead of time about the attack on Hannah at Coit Tower, I’ll give him that.” With a frown, Jake added, “But he could have worked out this Drow attack with Darkwolf. After all, the Dark Elves did help Darkwolf open the door to Underworld.”
Hannah’s composure hung by a thread. She wanted to scream, to yell, to stomp her foot and tell the group they were a bunch of idiots not to trust Garran after he’d risked his life for all of them.
Banshee gripped her shoulder a little tighter.
She raised her chin and said, “Under no circumstances will Garran be harmed. Rhiannon and I will question him and we can go from there.” She hadn’t realized she was clenching her fists until she felt the ache in her knuckles. She forced herself to relax them. “I’m going to check on Garran and all of you can wait until I’m finished talking with him. Once he’s awake.”
With her chin raised and her back straight, she pushed the kitchen door open, walked out. She held out her arm and Banshee eased down on it before flapping his wings and taking flight.
With grim resolve, Hannah headed to the room she and Garran had been sharing.
She couldn’t believe he would break his word. He wouldn’t. No matter what anyone thought, Garran wasn’t responsible for that attack.
GARRAN WOKE WITH THE mother goddess of all headaches. He opened his eyes and shut them again as late afternoon sunlight attacked them. It took him a few moments of blinking, but he finally accustomed himself to the light.
He frowned, trying to remember what had happened and why he was flat on his back. Smells of cedar and safflower met wood and sawdust as he took a deep breath. He flexed his hands and shifted even though every muscle in his body ached.
A light blanket covered him. He realized he was naked beneath it and he frowned again.
Memories slowly came back to him. Being in his realm and realizing in his gut that Hannah needed him. Finding her being tortured in a fiery sphere. Joining her and protecting them both from the heat before he used the power the Great Guardian had given him.
He had sent the few Fomorii back to Underworld.
But Ceithlenn had vanished.
Garran’s entire being shook with his fury. The bitch had escaped.
The magnitude of what he’d done slammed into his chest as if the stone door to his realm had fallen upon him. He had used the power from the Great Guardian a second time, eliminating few of the Fomorii and not the goddess.
His people. By the gods, he had already failed them by using the power in a way that did not directly benefit them.
Yet, could even a king be expected to put his people before his family and those he loved … Rhiannon …
And Hannah?
His heart squeezed. Did he love her? Was that what the feeling was that wrapped itself around his heart so tightly he could barely take a breath without his chest hurting?
Saving Hannah had been more important to him than anything at that moment when he had used his powers.
Was it possible that he could have battled Ceithlenn in a different way? Have saved Hannah using his sword and his dark powers? He did not believe he was protected against Ceithlenn’s abilities to draw the soul from a body. She could have had the opportunity to kill him.
But now …
He would need to use the power a third and final time. He would have to make sure he sent the rest of the Fomorii to Underworld. And Ceithlenn with them.
Then he would likely die.
Garran brought his hand to his forehead and rubbed his eyes. His hand felt heavy as he moved it and he ground his teeth in frustration at the weakness pinning his body to the sleeping bags on the floor of the room he and Hannah had shared.
Was Hannah well? He’d assumed she was, but what if Ceithlenn had come back?
Ice coated his soul.
The click of the door had him turning his head in that direction. Relief flooded through him and a smile curved the corner of his mouth as Hannah slipped in and shut the door behind her.
Thank the gods she was all right. With the connection they had he believed he would have known if anything had happened to her—but seeing her well and alive made his heart soar.
A troubled expression was on her beautiful features, but she composed herself and walked toward him, where he lay naked beneath the blanket.
“About time you woke up, Sleeping Beauty.” With grace she eased down and sat next to him, her legs curled to the side of her. “You’ve been out so long I was beginning to wonder if you were going to make it back.” She gave him a look that said she hadn’t been concerned, but he saw beneath that façade.
She wore a shirt and jeans and looked beautiful despite the dark smudges under her eyes. He wanted to know what had put them there. Her dark hair fell in glossy waves around her face and the one lock of blond hair was tucked behind her ear.
The heaviness in his body began to ease away and he turned on his side so that he faced her. He settled one elbow on the sleeping bag and rested his head on his palm. The blanket slid down to his hips, barely covering his cock, and his lips quirked when her gaze followed the glide of the blanket and her eyes rested on his growing erection now tenting the blanket.
“I see that at least one part of you has recovered.” Her gaze met his again.
“Kiss me,” he said.
Hannah blinked and just looked at him, but her nipples pushed against her T-shirt, telling him more than she wanted him to know.
He gave her a lazy smile. “Kiss me.”
“Just one.” Hannah lowered her eyelids and brought her face to his at the same time she braced her hand on his biceps. Her breath was warm against his lips as she brushed her mouth over his.
Garran caught her lower lip between his teeth, holding her to him, and she gave a soft sound of surprise. As she opened her mouth, he thrust his tongue inside, tasting her sweet flavor and wanting more than a kiss.
And he would have what he wanted.
In a fast movement, he turned onto his back, grasping her around the waist, lifting her, and setting her down so that she was straddling his waist.
“Garran!” Something between a laugh and concern was in her voice. “You’ve been ill. What in the world are you doing?”
He took one of her hands and placed it on his erection. “Does this feel like the cock of a man who is ill?”
With her eyelids lowered, she rubbed the length of it, from his balls to the head of his erection through the light fabric of the blanket. “No.” She squeezed him. “It sure doesn’t.” Her dark gaze met his. “But you likely need more time to heal.”
Garran reached up and palmed her breasts before squeezing her nipples. “I cannot think of a better way to heal than to make love to you, Hannah.”
She groaned as he pinched and pulled her nipples through her T-shirt, and she rubbed his cock harder.
Garran sucked in his breath as she brought her mouth to his again and their kiss was slow and leisurely. Right now he didn’t want slow. He wanted hard and fast.
He grasped Hannah’s T-shirt and pulled it out of her jeans and she rose and helped him to remove it. He loved the satiny material of what she called a bra, and he ran his rough hands over both breasts, squeezing and fondling them through the soft fabric.
Hannah reached behind her and unfastened the bra, slid it off and tossed it aside. At the sight of her beautiful breasts and her rosy nipples, his erection throbbed beneath the blanket separating them. He pulled her down, latching on to one of her nipples with his mouth, sucking and licking the taut nub as Hannah gave soft little moans. He moved his mouth to her other nipple, paying the same close attention to it and making her writhe on top of him.
He didn’t like the fact that she had jeans on. He wanted their naked bodies intertwined and he wanted to be pounding in and out of her as hard as he possibly could. The urge was almost overwhelming.
Before he could flip her on her back, she scooted down his body, easing the blanket away from his erection at the same time. He hissed as she looked up at him and ran her tongue along the length of his cock and fondled his balls. A deep groan rose from his throat as he watched her slip his erection into her mouth and felt her wet heat surround him.
Her tongue swirled around the head of his shaft and he almost couldn’t think clearly with all the sensation concentrating in his groin. She was so good at sucking his cock that the only thing that could possibly feel better was being inside her.
As her head bobbed up and down as much as she could take of his length, she used one hand to work his cock while her other stroked, fondled, and squeezed his balls. She was so damn good he could already feel the power of his oncoming climax. It roared through his head like thunder and through his groin like a storm. She made soft purring sounds that nearly sent him over the edge as he watched his cock going in and out of her mouth while she kept her gaze focused on him at the same time.
She purred again and black spots danced before his eyes and the thunderstorm roared through him. His hips bucked against her face and his come filled her mouth. She swallowed, using deep suction, drawing everything out until he could no longer take it and reached down to grasp her by her shoulders and draw her up his body.
Her jeans scraped his belly and her self-satisfied grin made him hard all over again.
She laughed when he flipped her onto her back and straddled her. He stared into her brown eyes and she surprised him by taking his cock in her hand again and stroking it alive and harder than ever.
“I’d say you’re better.” She gave him a teasing smile. “But let’s see just how well you really are.”
“You will find this king is more than hale and hearty.” Garran bent one of her knees and pushed her leg up high enough that he could reach her shoe. He flipped it to the side then peeled off her sock before releasing her leg and grasping her other foot and ridding her of her shoe and sock.
She watched him with the hint of a smile, as if amused by his aggression and how badly he wanted her naked. He quickly unbuttoned her jeans and yanked them down with her underwear, stripping her naked within moments.
“Come on, you big, sexy king.” She reached for him as he knelt between her thighs. “Fuck me.”
By the gods, Garran wanted to drive his cock into her slick core, but first he wanted to taste her. A sound of surprise came from her as he hooked her legs over his shoulders, slid his hands beneath her ass, and brought her folds closer to his face.
Hannah gasped as he buried his mouth against her mound, licking her folds and sucking her clit with such intensity he could feel her orgasm close to the edge already.
No, he wanted to draw out her pleasure, fill her with even more lust and desire to have his cock inside her. He raised his head from her folds and his gaze met hers as he plunged three fingers into her core.
With a cry she bucked her hips, straining to feel him deeper inside her and also bringing her mound closer to his mouth. “Make me come, Garran.” She groaned as he pounded his fingers in and out of her. “Lick my clit. Suck it.”
He flashed an amused grin, loving teasing her and making her desire him even more.
Hannah moved her thighs on his shoulders as she squirmed. “King or not, I’m going to kill you if you don’t finish the job.”
With another grin he licked her folds, tasting her juices, smelling her feminine musk. She thrashed as he brought his mouth closer to her clit. He watched her as he ran his tongue along her folds, enjoying the flush in her cheeks as she gripped the sleeping bag in both of her fists.
When he could tell she was so close to the edge she was about to fall over, he sucked her clit.
Hannah cried out, her body trembling and shaking in his hands, her legs and thighs tightening around his shoulders. He watched her, felt her as her core spasmed around his fingers and she twisted as if seeking a reprieve, or more from him.
He could give her more.
Garran rose and moved his hands from her ass to grasp her behind her knees. He pushed her legs up so that her thighs touched her chest, her legs still over his shoulders.
Without waiting for her to catch her breath, he drove his erection inside her core and took her hard and fast. Gods, he could reach so deep inside her that he felt his cock touch her womb. She was so tight and slick and her core continued to spasm as if her first orgasm had never ended.
“Garran.” She grasped his thighs as he pounded in and out of her. “Oh, goddess.” Her voice was hoarse and tight. “What are you doing to me?”
“Fucking you.” He reached down and pinched her nipples, causing her to cry out and tip her head back. “One of many times, many ways I will take you.”
She didn’t argue as her breathing came in harsh pants. Sweat coated them both, their skin slick with it.
Her whole body started to shake, her eyes wide, and her lips parted as if facing an oncoming storm. He thrust harder, pinched her nipples tighter and she screamed. Loud enough that she could probably be heard through the entire warehouse. It pleased him to know that others would hear her and realize that he was staking his claim on her, making her his.
Her core clamped down on his cock and he could barely hold back his own orgasm. He wanted to draw hers out, make her pleasure so intense that it would border on pain.
“I can’t—I can’t—” Hannah said as she twisted and writhed in his arms. “Take much more. It’s too much.”
“You will take more.” He would give her more than she thought she could handle and she would enjoy it. As his queen she would take everything he gave to her.
My queen?
He almost stopped his powerful strokes.
“Garran.” Hannah’s face flushed even rosier, sweat dripping down the side of her face. “I—oh, goddess.”
He felt another orgasm building up in her with more intensity, more speed than the last. She brought her hands up and clenched his biceps, digging her nails into his flesh. She turned her head from side to side and her body shook in his arms. He thrust harder, pounded in and out of her deeper and faster.
Hannah seemed to fall apart. She cried out again, this time struggling against his hold as he took her. Her body jerked and thrashed beneath his and she made loud crying sounds that were pleasurable to his ears.
His restraint began to falter as her core clamped down on his cock, pulsing around him and pulling him closer toward his own climax.
For the first time while having sex with a woman, he grew lightheaded. The scents of sex, sweat, perfume, the feel of his flesh slapping against her, their sweaty skin rubbing together, her nails digging into his arms—it was too much for him to take any longer.
Garran gave a shout of intense pleasure and ownership of this woman. All pleasure that had been centered in his groin burst out of him and spilled into Hannah. His cock pulsed, his come filling her with every stroke he made.
When it was more than even he could take, he released her legs and pulled his cock out of her core. He drew her into his arms as he lay down beside her and intertwined her legs with his.
Her breath came in harsh pants and she looked dizzy and exhausted. “You’re definitely not ill anymore,” she said as she snuggled closer. “Considering you’ve been out for two days, I figured you’d be too weak to do much of anything.”
He braced himself on one elbow, shock coursing him, sending prickles under his skin. “Two days? I have lost two days?”
