11. ~Vorzyr~ #4
As I landed, the ground reverberating beneath me, despite the graceful and tampered down way I touched down, those golden wings caught my eye.
Before I could shift back, she was there, landing right beside me and strolling up to me, wonder filling her stunning eyes, a wide smile spread across her gorgeous face.
She came right up to me and then surprised me as she reached out carefully for the side of my head.
I turned slightly and we connected, her soft skin gliding over my scales and sending a shiver of need through me. A low rumble of satisfaction emanated from me, making her eyes sparkle in awe, and then she was full-on stroking my hard skin.
“Incredible,” she breathed. “So warm. It’s like armor but also so far beyond that.”
A thrill went through me at her supremely positive reaction to the beastly version of me.
I couldn’t stop a groan of contentment from escaping me as she continued stroking me, her hands moving to my head, stretching to the thorny crown atop.
She moved around and even reached out and touched one of my wings.
It fluttered under her attentions before I could reel it in, startling her and making her jump back out of range with one of her cute little giggles.
I shifted back with a burst of red, fiery magic, returning to my human state in just my leather pants.
Usually I reverted back completely naked, the transition was easier and felt better that way. But I didn’t want to bare myself to her without her agreement. That was fucked-up and I didn’t want anything messing with the great time we’d had together tonight.
Her eyes were all over my bare torso, tracing my dragon markings.
And then she was there reaching out again.
This time, as she pressed her hand to my skin, I reacted, snagging her hand and covering it over my chest.
Our eyes locked.
And then she was leaning in.
Her lips brushed mine.
Softly.
Tentatively.
So fucking intensely.
This was her open and honest, her usual repression thrown to the wayside.
I didn’t want the moment to slip away.
I wrapped an arm around her back, pulling her to me, crushing her softness against all my hard muscle, my other hand fisting in her golden waves as I deepened the kiss and tasted her on my tongue, my lips, savoring every part of it.
She moaned into my mouth and sank into me, meeting the soft but determined strokes of my tongue.
She had my cock hard as fucking steel in moments and it took everything I had not to roll my hips and grind against her, and that only ramped up when she grasped my biceps, stroking fervently and exerting some sexy strength in the process.
I feared it would be a step too far.
And I wouldn’t let anything ruin what we’d shared tonight.
It had me needing to ease back sooner than I would have liked, and breaking the kiss and physical contact altogether.
She smiled up at me, her gaze hazy with heavy lust that was most definitely reciprocated. “I didn’t see tonight panning out this way.” Her eyes sparkled. “But I’m glad that it did.”
“Me too, gorgeous.” I went to tuck some loose strands of golden hair behind her ears, but stopped myself.
My body was still buzzing, so any additional touch between us right now threatened to push me to make more of it, to take more, and risk tainting what we’d shared tonight.
So, I stepped back and folded my arms across my chest, asking her instead, “How did it feel? Letting everything go like that while in flight?”
“Incredible,” she breathed. “Just like you described.”
“Good. Hopefully, you’ll consider doing it more often.”
Her smile fell. “It’s more complicated for me.”
“ They make you feel that way about your power.”
She flinched as my words came out with so much vehemence.
“Vorzyr—”
“It’s true,” I said, stepping up to her again, just shy of brushing against her.
As ill-advised as it currently was, I couldn’t stop myself with the subject matter taking me hostage, the need for her to actually hear me and fucking feel it, too.
“You’re a rarity, a miraculous being, and it’s time you recognized that.
Let them fear you, let them judge what they can’t hope to comprehend, let them fucking well kneel to all that you are.
You’re miles beyond them. You’re not a freak on a pedestal, Ariana.
You are astonishing. I felt your power tonight, a portion of it, at least. And I felt how free and exalted letting it out made you.
This is who you are. It’s what you are. Stop allowing anyone to make you feel ashamed of that.
You deserve better all around. And that needs to start with you.
They won’t change on their own. You need to make them.
” As she stared out at me, taken with my heavy words, I went on, “Own who you are. Live your truth.” I leaned in and breathed at her ear, “Embrace it, goddess .”
When I pulled back, I saw her fighting herself. Struggling.
I didn’t like it. I didn’t like any of it one little bit.
How could I connect with her power if she was tampering it down so much?
How could I connect with her when she wasn’t even being her true self most of the time?
She was the one I’d been searching for, I knew that much. I was certain.
But encountering her in reality… it had been a sucker punch in a way.
Because she was beyond repressed.
She was a shadow of her true self.
Tonight had been different. She’d let go quite a bit and she’d been honest.
But now that was over, I felt that odd emptiness and defensiveness from her again.
That wall.
And, as much as I hated to admit it, Kai’s approach made a lot of sense to me in light of that.
“Tonight was a lot of fun, a great experience. Let’s not sully it,” she said. “I need to prepare for classes tomorrow. I’ll see you.”
Before I could get a word out, she dematerialized in a silver cloud of teleportation.
“Motherfucker,” I ground out into the night.
“See what I mean?”
I spun at the sound of that familiar voice to see Kai suddenly behind me.
“What the—”
“I masked my scent—and other things.”
“How long have you been here?”
“Long enough to see that the seeds of obsession have been planted, that you’ve moved from being intrigued by her to being pulled in by her.”
I reacted without thinking, like an animal, slamming my hands into his chest and driving him into a nearby tree.
The psychopath laughed. “There it is. Now we’re seeing beyond the charming exterior. The diplomatic and easygoing facade you put on to those around you. Here’s the animal behind it all.”
“Shut the fuck up.”
“Strange that you’re not taking that as a compliment.”
I snarled in his face.
He showed no fear. That was how demented he was. And how much arrogance he held for his own abilities. He clearly thought himself untouchable.
He even pushed things further, ramping up the anger and frustration spilling from me when any sane being would be doing anything they could to diffuse it.
“Could it be because you don’t want it outed to her that you have this not-so-nice side that goes right along with not-so-nice urges?
Something you’re trying to conceal from her and tamper down by thrusting this whole gentlemanly facade out there instead?
You’re trying to present yourself as the antithesis to me. And not just to her. To Nyx as well.”
“That’s why you’re coming at me, despite us making peace? Nyx told you I showed him those memories, showed him what you were doing to Ariana?”
“The way you framed it was beyond manipulative.”
“And that’s your thing, yes?”
“It’s not the whole truth. I want you to make that clear to him.”
“Had a falling out over it, did you?”
“That was your intention.”
“When we were fighting, yes. Not now. Coming between you doesn’t serve me now. In fact, as you can see from this little dust up, it’s actually the opposite. And it even concerns me that it could impact Nyx negatively, because, as I’ve said, I’ve taken a liking to him. I don’t want him hurt.”
“Then explain the truth to him.”
“Why do you need me to?”
“Why do you think? He won’t hear a word I speak at the moment. He’s that hurt by it.”
“Does he think you’d do it to him then, use his repression against him?”
“I don’t fucking know. I hope not, because I wouldn’t. It will always be off the table. But even where Ariana’s concerned, it wasn’t to hurt her—the direct opposite.”
“I don’t need to explain it to him, Kai.”
He glared up at me. “What?” he demanded, fiercely.
I smiled and gestured where I’d felt a presence several moments ago, but I’d let it slide, needing to push the conversation in a direction that would actually assist with this mess.
“Because he’s just heard it for himself,” I said, just as Nyx materialized from a burst of smoke.
He was leaning against a tree adjacent to us, looking between us.
“The two of you are really intense,” he said, gesturing at me still pinning Kai to the tree, as Kai grasped my biceps fiercely.
“I guess I shouldn’t have expected anything else from two Type A personalities.
Throw in Kai’s obsessive need to be in control and your animalistic side with the dragon, and it’s beyond. ”
Kai relaxed a little, his grip on me loosening. “Does that mean we’re—”
“We’re good again, yes. Just watch yourself with these games of yours going forward.”
“I will.”
“And be fucking careful.”
“I always am, aren’t I?”
“Until recently, yes. That’s what worries me. This shift in you.”
“All is well,” Kai assured him.
I stepped back as Nyx went to him and wrapped his arms around him, as the two of them reconciled.
It was interesting to see just how impacted Kai had been by them being in a bad place. It had caused him great upset, and it hadn’t even been going on that long. Nyx was clearly an Achilles Heel of his.