Chapter 27 – Shade
SHADE
It’s sunny when I awaken. That’s the first thing I’m aware of. I look to my side and see a white curtain blowing in a slight breeze. A curtain in a room that’s unfamiliar to me. Certainly not a room in Lord Drac’s castle.
Frowning, I look around, stretching my senses out. The bed I’m lying on is large and comfortable. The house itself is made like a log cabin, with minimal decorations. And the air carries the scents of nature and wood. Where am I?
I start to sit up and hiss at the pain in my belly.
“Slowly!”
I look to see Cody springing from a rocking chair. He looks as bad as I feel, except his blond hair is damp, as if it has been recently washed. And he looks healthier and happier than the last time I saw him.
He doesn’t wear a shirt, which reminds me just how well built he is and just how sexy the tattoo that spreads over one of his shoulders is.
Even if at the same time I can see evidence of the beating the vampires gave him.
His body has been bound with bandages in various places, and dark bruises decorate his flesh just as much as the tattoo does.
“Where…am I?” I ask, but the words come out choked.
He pours a cup of water for me from a table beside the bed, and I drink two cups before I finally wave it away. I’m surprised when he remains sitting on the edge of my bed, looking at me with something close to affection.
“Cody?” Did he hear me or does he not want to tell me?
He shakes himself, as if remembering that I’d asked him a question. “You’re at the gargoyle sanctuary. We took you to our healer.”
I’m surprised. “One of your kind was willing to help me?”
He smiles, drawing attention to the dimples in his cheeks. “She’s come around to the idea that not all monsters are bad.”
Oh, so some of their kind are more flexible in the ways they think.
“Thank you,” I say, then lean closer to him and brush a kiss along his cheek.
He blushes, looking down at his hands. “How are you feeling?”
“My stomach is sore, but it isn’t too bad.”
“Good,” he tells me, not meeting my gaze.
“What happened?”
He hesitates.
“Tell me,” I say.
“Well.” He visibly swallows. “We killed the vampires, helped free the humans, and got you out of there.”
Anxiety I didn’t even know I was feeling bleeds away, and I fall back onto the pillows. “Good.”
“Good?”
“I took care of Lord Drac, but I wasn’t able to take out the others.”
“You’re really okay with us killing them?” he asks, clearly surprised.
I shrug. “They weren’t as innocent as I thought.”
“That’s a…a relief,” he tells me. “We were afraid you might still be angry.”
I turn on my pillows to face him. “So you all must be happy now. You guys killed the vampires and caught me.”
He stiffens. “We didn’t catch you.”
“Then what did you do?”
“We…we…”
“It’s okay,” I tell him, closing my eyes. “I know how I see myself, but I also know how you guys see me.”
I’m surprised when Cody lies down next to me on the bed. A second later, I’m snuggled into the crook of his arm. He holds me gently, with an awkwardness I find strangely appealing.
A shiver moves through my body. This feels…nice. Right. Like it felt when Elliot held me.
A deep sense of…contentment fills me.
Looking up at him, our eyes meet. I want to see the truth in his face. To understand how he feels about me or how he sees me. But I’m uncertain.
“You saved my life. You saved all our lives. We all see you as a brave woman. That’s how we see you.”
I smile hesitantly. “Are you sure?”
He nods.
“Have you had sex before, Cody?”
His entire body stiffens beside me. “No.”
“Do you want to have it now? With me?”
I feel a shudder move through his body, and watch in fascination as his erection becomes visible through his pants. I’ll take that as a yes.
Pushing his pants down, I curl my hand around his length, and he curses.
“We’re both injured,” he says, as if I don’t already know.
“We’ll be gentle,” I tell him.
“Oh, fuck,” he mutters, then his hand trails lightly down my arm. “Where do you want to be touched?”
I would’ve thought it was obvious. “Everywhere.”
His hand slides closer to my breasts, and then away.
A laugh slips from my lips, and I use my free hand to guide him to my breasts. When his hand curls around me, I sigh in contentment, and he touches me gently. Cupping me, testing the weight of me in his hands. I don’t expect it when his thumb rubs against my nipple.
Gasping, I stroke him harder.
He swears again. “Do you like that?”
“A lot,” I tell him. “Now, help me undress.”
He lifts my shirt off, and his gaze moves to the bandages around my belly.
“Are you sure?” he asks.
As if that scratch will make me stop. “I’m sure.”
He rolls gently on top of me, and his light blue eyes hold mine. “I never want to hurt you.”
I curl my legs around his back. “Then don’t.”
He leans down and kisses me, and I dig my hands into the back of his hair, tilting him, guiding him. When his lips open, my tongue darts inside, and he groans. His cock leaves a wet trail on my belly, and I shift, adjusting so his tip presses lightly against my slit.
I expect him to plunge inside. To bring me the pleasure I know these men are capable of, but he doesn’t. Instead, he explores my mouth. He touches my breasts lightly, and he holds himself carefully over my belly.
Is he worried he might break me? The thought makes me smile against his lips.
Reaching between us, I grasp his shaft, and Cody freezes above me. Guiding him to my opening, I slowly ease him inside as his breathing quickens against my lips, and I pull him deeper as he groans. When I come to his hilt, we’re both panting.
“Does that feel good?”
“You have no idea,” he tells me, his tone amazed.
I teach him how to thrust in and out of me, how to quicken and slow the pace to bring us both pleasure, and I’m amazed that I can.
Only just a short time ago I knew as little about pleasure as he does.
As I draw closer and closer to my orgasm, he begins to chant my name, and I like the way it sounds on his lips.
He shifts on top of me, moving to my neck, and sucks…hard.
I thought I knew everything of pleasure now, but I had no idea how my sensitive nerves would react to his glorious mouth.
The friction of our bodies working together and the feel of his hot mouth on my neck pushes me over the edge.
I claw at his back, screaming his name, as we come over the edge together, his hot cum filling me as I ride the waves of my orgasm.
After several long, glorious minutes, we collapse together.
“I think I love you,” he mumbles above me.
I smile and stroke his neck. I think I do too.
The sound of the door opening makes us both turn and look. Damon, Jordon, and Elliot stand in the doorway. Their expressions of fear melt away to looks of amusement.
“So you’re both feeling better?”
Cody is beat red above me. “Uh, yeah.”
I smile at all of them. “All of you have been excellent at sex, but maybe next time I can try all of you?”
“Holy hell,” Damon mutters.
“What?” I say, looking from one to the next of them. “Is it a bad idea?”
“The problem is that it’s the best damn idea I’ve ever heard,” Damon says. “But first…we have to meet with the Elites.”
“Meet with the Elites and then sex,” I repeat. “I can do that.”
Cody laughs above me and strokes my cheek. I don’t know what I said that was funny, but I do know I love the way he looks at me.
When all this is over, I hope we’ll have many more moments like this one.