Chapter 14 A Little More
A LITTLE MORE
AZ
The hammock swayed slightly under Az as he stared up at the ceiling.
He had woken up alone, chest still warm from Lu’s body.
Her feelings drifted to him down their bond. And the weight of them made his jaw clench. He wished he could take those feelings from her, but he did not have that power. Only she did.
She was warring with herself, just as the sea warred with the ship. He knew every hitch in her breath, every tremulous gasp she surely let out as she cried, made the wind beat upon them more fervently and drove the clouds more swiftly through the dark skies.
He felt her need to be alone, and he would not press her. He knew she was as safe as she could possibly be. They were on a ship, after all. So long as Lu did not venture above deck, where Tharen and Vale led them from the grip of her storm, then she would be… fine.
Bastian was dealt with. Az knew that Graves would ensure the vampire was tucked away far from Luella.
That would be a problem, however. They were stuck on a ship with no blood stores, a lustful vampire, and an innocent, giving heirus.
Open sea before them. They wouldn’t reach land until they hit the Fallen Isles.
Az had to do something, anything. If it meant keeping Lu safe, he would gladly give up his blood. He’d let the vampire have his very throat if that was what it took.
At the mere thought of the vampire, his mind drifted to Lu.
How she had looked, pinned against the wall by Bastian.
Her lids had fluttered so enticingly, the tiniest of furrows between her brow as Bastian had drunk from her, pleased noises drifting from her lips like a song crafted just for him, made to shake control until it shattered into nothing, replaced by thoughts of sin and giving in. Completely.
His breaths came faster. The wind howled at a greater intensity. All the blood inside him rushed to his cock, leaving him nearly lightheaded.
Luella’s intense sadness speared him, and he wondered if she could feel the direction his thoughts had taken.
His hand traveled down, the back of it grazing his chest, trailing under his navel, feeling the dusting of hair there as it slipped below his loose trousers.
He fisted his cock in a hand, a low, sinful, deep groan ripping through him.
The sound of his barely contained desire was swallowed up by the darkness of the small cabin.
The wooden floor creaked from the wind, a soft howling sound that beat against the sides, shivering through the cracks and making his gut clench.
That was Luella’s storm that wrapped around him, threatening to drown them all.
The hammock rocked from the force of her storm, and it should’ve done anything but make Az’s blood boil hotter, but it didn’t.
The gentle rocking movements forced his palm to twitch against the pulsing source of his desire, and he closed his eyes, imagining it was Lu’s tiny fist wrapped around him instead.
And it was so wrong, but it made him wish she were here.
Truly. Wished that she felt what he did.
Wished he could replace her grief with desire.
Gods, he could envision it so clearly. Her hand was small, wouldn’t be able to wrap around him fully, flesh pale against his dusky skin.
Her movements would be hesitant, and her eyes would be wide, peering up at him from behind a fan of thick, dark lashes, shyness creeping into their depths and softening her strokes.
Az’s hand moved, gripping himself hard just the way he liked. His heart beat swiftly inside his chest, pounding like the desire coursing through him as he stroked himself tighter, twisting his hand.
The demon thought of her as he pleasured himself. How sweet she was—how gentle and achingly pure. How her whole body had spasmed as Bastian had drunk her blood. The way her head had thumped back against the wall. Her scent had been so sweet. Too sweet. Far too sweet for any of them to deserve.
Strawberries so ripe he imagined juice dripping from the red flesh, running between his fingers, and soaking his wrist. Cream-tipped roses, something that should’ve been strange, but on her, fit perfectly.
His movements grew jerky and hurried, desperate for release. Sweat glistened on his bare chest.
"Fuck," Az groaned low. He needed a little more.
His other hand rose, fingertips gripping the base of his horn. His whole body shuddered, making the hammock groan and creak where it was fixed to the walls.
His hand dipped to the head of his cock, gathering drops of his seed that pooled at the tip, spreading it up his shaft, using the slick slide to take him over the edge.
He felt the familiar tightening of his stomach.
One more firm stroke, the memory of Lu’s breathy little sounds as Bastian fed from her, and his release barreled into him, body tightening as seed shot forth from the head of his cock.
Her name fell from his lips just as a loud strike of lightning ripped through the sky, a flash briefly lighting the room up, filtering in through the wood as if even that was no match for her storm.
His trousers had been tugged below his cock, pearly white ropes of his seed spilling out between his fingers and coating his lower stomach.
Az’s chest heaved as he lay there, forcing his body to calm. His hand was still wrapped tightly around his cock to ward off the simmering arousal he felt. Godsdammit, he couldn’t go down. She made him ache more desperately than he ever had before.
A soft knock on the cabin door made his hand loosen.
His breaths were ragged as he called, "What is it?"
The door creaked open, revealing soft, flickering light and a vision that haunted him.
Az clenched his teeth, tugging his trousers up. He hoped he was able to cover himself in time, before Luella saw, but the stolen sconce in her hand allowed him to see the soft pink on her cheeks and the way her teeth dug into her lower lip.
Shyly, she glanced down, standing at the door with ruffled white curls that he only wanted to force into further disarray. Her cloak slipped off her slim shoulders, revealing her pale, creamy neck, and the twin points on the side of it, purple bruises blooming around it.
Luella leaned heavily against the door, her wings folded closely to her back, unmoving for the most part, besides the softest of shivers on occasion.
Each tremble of the feathers made her body quiver, like she was wholly yielding to the whims of her new wings, unable to control them, to be led by them.
"I didn’t know you were busy, I can—I’ll go." Her voice was so sweet; it was just what he needed.
Az sat up, ensuring his pants were in place. His seed stuck uncomfortably to his skin, but she was more important. "Stay."