Chapter 26
Chapter
Twenty-Six
Iwoke up drooling, splayed on a powerful golden chest. Muscled arms dusted with golden hair wrapped around me, and the steady rise of Cernunnos’s chest made me realize this was real.
I was in bed with Evie’s dad.
But even more weird?
All we did was snuggle last night.
I blinked a few times to get the sleep out of my eyes, my mind whirring as I tried to figure out exactly how we’d gotten into this situation. When he woke up, he was going to make me bite him. Or at least heavily encourage me to do so.
The thought of it was not unpleasant. I was in too much of a hurry to revel in his taste the first time, but Cernunnos was delicious.
Was he right about my energy levels being linked to my consumption of human blood? I’d grown much thinner than normal over the last few years, so his theory held weight. I consumed a lot more blood before I met Evie, but I still had the fatigue.
Cernunnos was right. I’d compensated for it.
“I can almost hear your spiraling thoughts,” Cernunnos’s deep voice rumbled.
His arms tightened around me when I made to roll away. “Nope. We’re not getting out of bed until we seal our agreement.”
“What’s the experiment?”
“I want to feed you every few days.”
I froze. “What.”
He chuckled. “Every few days, Moira. I want to see the effects of my blood on your energy levels and your weight.”
“You calling me skinny?” I couldn’t even be mad. I was.
His lips thinned in disapproval at my flippant attitude. “I’m saying you’re underweight and undernourished.”
He flipped me over in an expert move I never saw coming. All I got out was a squeak of alarm before I was underneath him, trapped by his powerful lithe frame. His stunning eyes swirled with power. “Now. Bite me.”
I let out a scared little laugh. “I don’t think you’ve thought this through.”
“What is there to think through? I feed you. We see if it helps. If it does, then you know to switch your food sources and the frequency of how much blood you consume.”
I stared at him. “And what if it’s not any of that but the source I’m feeding from?”
It took him a second to realize what I was saying. “Ah.” A contemplative look stole over his face. “You believe my blood is different from any others you could consume.”
“I don’t believe it. I know it. You’re a god. I didn’t have your blood long enough to experience any real effects other than some lingering powers. If I feed from you frequently, who’s to say I won’t get addicted?”
“Has a vampire ever been addicted to blood?”
“I don’t know much about vampires. I’m not exactly a typical one, and showing my face around their kind seems foolish.
” My kind wasn’t exactly plentiful in the areas I’d lived in, though I suspected Emberwood Falls had its fair share.
Vamps tended to keep to themselves, and everyone else liked it that way considering their nutritional requirements.
I was known around the area. It helped that I hadn’t dragged anyone into an alleyway to bite them.
“My theory stands. If you show any tendency toward addiction, we’ll stop, and I’ll purge every bit of my blood from your body.”
“What if your blood is the only thing that helps my weight or my energy?”
His lips twitched. “Will you come up with something else once I refute this question? Over and over again for eternity?”
He still loomed above me. “Do you perhaps need some proper motivation?”
I sighed. “This seems like a bad idea.”
“Because you feel bad, Moira. Not because you don’t want to.”
“Dammit, Cernunnos.” I did not want him to be right.
He dipped his head and brushed his lips across mine. I went still.
“That seems like a bad idea, too.”
He coaxed my lips open. “I can satisfy your other hunger, too. The one you’ve waited so long to quench.”
When he kissed me the second time, there was nothing gentle in his touch. Sparks burst behind my eyes when his tongue swept over mine. Magic bloomed in the air, soft and sultry against my skin. He smelled of wild and ancient things.
My hands roamed over the smooth skin of his back as I met his demand, pleasure searing my soul.
I had the sense to break away. “This isn’t wise.”
“Do you need to be wise?” Power swirled in his heavy-lidded eyes.
“I—um.”
He kissed me again, this time nudging my legs open so he could settle between them. The evidence of how he felt about our current situation rested against the inside of my thigh.
My goodness. I cleared my throat and tried to unscramble my brain at the same time.
I can’t remember the last time I had a man—a real one—in the spot this one was.
“I guess we don’t need to be, but I don’t do casual.
Not really. I thought I could, but there’s an entire Keep of willing shifters here, and I still haven’t done a thing. ”
I almost did a thing and got caveman carried over Ethan’s shoulder when he found me, and that, unfortunately, put most shifters on the Moira is off limits bandwagon. Even if it hadn’t, I don’t think I would have pulled the trigger on anyone.
Except for Ethan, who wanted me but didn’t want the guilt that came with pursuing me. And who I had to let go of. When people told you who they were, you had to believe them.
Even when you didn’t want to.
He dropped a kiss on the side of my mouth. “Have you ever done casual?”
I slowly shook my head. There’d never been anyone extremely serious, but I also never ran around throwing my goodies all over the place.
Nothing wrong with anyone who did, but I liked commitment.
I wanted to come home to someone and snuggle on the couch and know that person wasn’t waiting for the next hookup to text before he left me.
“Do you do casual?”
Cernunnos smiled. “Most people are too afraid of me. The power dynamic is always off. I would never be with a lover too frightened to enjoy herself.”
His hand slid under my tank top.
“There’s a power dynamic here,” I breathed, my eyes rolling in the back of my head at his curious fingers.
“Is there?” He slid my shirt up and over my head.
And gods help me, I let him. “You know there is.”
“Hmm. If you say so.” He toyed with one of my nipples.
“Can you please—I am having trouble concen—”
He replaced his fingers with his mouth. A strangled scream tore from my throat. “Gods.”
“Beautiful, Moira.” His other hand undid the tie in my joggers.
Would it be so terrible if I enjoyed myself? It had been so long.
He slid up my body, his throat right by my lips just as he slid my pants down. “Let me ease your hunger, both physical and emotional. It doesn’t have to be anything you don’t want it to be. I am not a jealous man. Take other lovers if you wish. Do whatever you wish. Just let me please you.”
I stilled. He said the wrong thing. “I’m a jealous lover. I don’t want you to have other lovers. I would never have another. Not while I’m with someone. I’m not…wired that way.”
His fingers slid between my folds, teasing the slick, swollen flesh.
All my thoughts scrambled into one giant mess. “Gods.” My teeth gritted. “I’m trying to have a conversation with you.” The words came out stilted and breathy.
“I’m listening.”
I let out a strangled laugh.
“Say yes, Moira. Sink your teeth into me, and I will sink into you. I haven’t had a lover in centuries. If you don’t want to be with anyone else, then don’t be.”
“And will you promise the same?”
He lifted his head. “I know you care for another.”
His fingers were still doing insane things, and it was difficult to keep up with what he was saying because I was getting close…
“I need you to stop,” I breathed.
He slowed, just barely. Which might have been worse.
“You care for another,” he repeated. “And this is new and beneficial to us both. I cannot promise you forever, not with the way things stand. But I can promise you here and now and the near future. This will end when you love someone else. I will not stand between you if you decide to be with him or anyone else for that matter. But know I will never hurt you intentionally. I will come when you call. I will cherish you during our time together, and I will love you if you let me. You will never wonder where you stand with me. Ever, Moira.”
Tears sprang to my eyes. He knew the deepest secrets of my heart and didn’t seem to care. He only wanted me. I had no idea why or what he saw in me that appealed to him more than a nubile fae woman. But he was in my bed, in between my legs, and touching me so skillfully I thought I might explode.
I still couldn’t help myself. “And what happens if I fall in love with you?”
“Then I will make you a queen and give you whatever you wish for the rest of our lives.”
My fangs grew heavy in my mouth, the potent toxin used to make my bite enjoyable filled to the brim.
Cernunnos’s eyes widened. “Moira?”
He snapped his fingers, leaving us both completely naked.
Oh gods.
One of his hands pushed my leg up, opening me to him.
I brought him closer. Poised at my entrance, his powerful body stilled.
His throat worked as he waited for my decision.
As propositions went, his was an excellent one.
Neither of us were virgins, but both of us were choosy.
He saw something in me I didn’t understand, and I genuinely liked him.
It helped that I was hella attracted to him, even against my better judgment.
We were both single. My eyes cast a crimson glow over his face as my vampiric nature came out to say hello. His nostrils flared and he closed his eyes.
“Say the word,” he gritted.
I sank my teeth into his neck, pumping that toxin into his bloodstream before I drank. Cernunnos jerked, gripped my hips, and slid home.
Pleasure overwhelmed me. He let out a loud, shuddering moan that almost undid me.
“Fuck,” he gritted. “Moira. Oh my fucking gods.” Cernunnos began to move in powerful strokes, every one bringing me closer and closer to the edge.
He spoke in a language I’d never heard as our combined magic rose through the air, a beautiful tangle of syllables as I drank. I met each thrust of his hips, and when I had my fill of his blood and was about to seal the wounds, he shook his head.
“No,” he gritted. “Let the world know you’ve claimed me.”
Release barreled over me, more powerful than I’d ever experienced, a shattering scream ripping from my lips. Cernunnos followed me over, his breath choppy and rough, his entire body shuddering against me.
I lay there too stunned and out of breath to speak.
What in the actual shit?
“Fucking hell, Moira.” Cernunnos let out a shaky breath. He was doing his best not to crush me under his weight, but the poor guy didn’t seem to have the energy to move. “What the hell is in your bite?”
I blinked. “Umm. Normal vampire stuff?”
He snorted. “Wrong. I’ve been bitten before. Numb, a little bit of a pleasant sense, then nothing. Your bite is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced.”
I peered up at him. “I’m sorry?”
His chest rumbled with amusement. “Never say you’re sorry for that.” He managed to roll off me but grabbed me around the waist and pulled me against his body. My back lay against his chest and a heavy arm lay draped over my hip. He pressed a kiss to my shoulder blade.
“I can’t believe we did that,” I said in a small voice.
“Well.” He exhaled. “I’m not even a little sorry. Are you?”
I took stock of myself and realized I felt better than I had in years. My stomach was full, my limbs were sated and lazy, and I could spring out of bed and run a marathon if I wanted.
He chuckled. “I’m right, aren’t I? You’re already feeling better.”
“Don’t be smug,” I chided. “I can’t be sorry for that. We’re adults, aren’t we?”
“We are,” he agreed.
“And we’re making no promises to each other.”
“I think we’ve been honest with each other as much as people like you and me can be. I meant every word I said.”
I snuggled into his chest. “As did I. Still complicated, though.”
“Aye,” he said in a thicker accent. “Yes, it is.”
“Are we going to tell Evie?”
He snorted against my hair. “The moment you walk out of your apartment, every single shifter in this Keep is going to know what you’ve been doing. And with whom.”
“Oh goodie,” I said faintly.
Just in time for someone to bang on the door.