Alliance Forged (31 page)

That made her laugh. She smoothed her hand across his face to find his lips and discover them curving upward. “I like to see you smile.”

He kissed her fingertips, then he drew both her arms over her head and pressed them against the pillow. “Touching me isn’t allowed from now on. If you do, I stop what I’m doing.”

Her heart tripped in her chest. “And what will you be doing?”

“Experimenting.” His mouth tickled the shell of her ear even as his voice dropped to a whisper. “Scouts talk. I want to try some of the things I’ve heard about but never experienced.” His weight on the bed shifted and his voice came from a little farther away. “I also want to discover what pleases you.”

Kymora bit her lip. She suspected anything he did would please her. It didn’t stop her imagination taking flight though. Scouts weren’t the only ones who talked. How many times had she overheard the Temple Servants sharing tales of their mutual exploits and wondered if she’d ever get to experience them for herself?

The soft touch of Varian’s finger at the base of her throat claimed her attention. He traced a slow line straight down between her breasts, dragging the blanket to a point just below her ribs. The friction of the heavy weave and exposure to the air tightened her nipples into sensitive buds.

“Mother of Light.”
His hissed curse was almost reverent. “I know you’re naturally modest, so last night I didn’t look at you all that closely, Kymora. Not even when you entered the water.” His hands spanned the width of her rib cage, just touching the undersides of her breasts. “Now I wish I had.”

Kymora drew in an unsteady breath, expecting him to touch her then. He did, but with only a single finger, one from each hand. He traced circles on her breasts, drawing them smaller and smaller, the speed slowing the closer he came to her nipples. The burning beneath her skin intensified the closer he came to her nipples. They throbbed
with the concentrated sensation. She clenched her hands in the soft material of the pillow, needing the contact to ground her.

“You like that.” Satisfaction and hunger laced Varian’s words.

Her smile trembled as much as she did. “Yes.”

His thumbs brushed over nipples. Pure pleasure speared from the point of contact to the heat coiled tightly between her thighs. Her back arched from the bed. Wet heat engulfed her left breast, a tongue swirling around the quickly peaking nub.

“Varian!”
She choked on the fiery experience. He began to suckle.

Kymora remained breathless as Varian took his time pleasuring her breasts with his mouth, his tongue, and his lips, his entire attention concentrated on her and how she responded. His absolute regard, his focused intent pushed against her mind even as she spiraled higher and higher, swept away by what he was doing to her. Everything seemed to be moving too fast, yet every moment felt drawn out, like time had been dipped in treacle.

“I could spend the whole day doing this.” Varian’s voice was a low rumble against her hypersensitive skin.

Kymora sucked in an uneven breath. “By the
Light
, you’d kill me if you did!” Hot breath brushed over her dampened skin as he laughed.
Lady
, how she loved the deep, sensual sound of it. “Can I touch you yet?”

He issued a negative sound. “I won’t be able to concentrate if you do.” One hand smoothed down her side. The rough calluses on his palms and fingers lightly abraded her skin. The sensation made her shiver. “I want to see the rest of you.”

He dragged the blanket all the way off her this time. At the long, drawn-out silence, Kymora swallowed against a dry throat. “Varian?”

“Hmm?” He sounded distracted. His weight shifted farther down the bed. One warm hand clasped her hip, then a bristled jaw scraped across her thigh and rested there. “Your scent makes my mouth water, Kymora. It’s like honey and spice. Unique.” He grunted. “You know,
now that I’ve memorized it, you won’t be able to approach me without my knowing it anymore.”

“But I’m aroused.”

“Doesn’t matter, aroused or not, I’ll still know when you’re near.”

The idea held a certain appeal. “My aura-reading skills, your sense of smell. Now we’re even.”

Soft chuckling accompanied the slide of his hand on her hip. She felt the lightest of touches brush the curls on her mound, a soft downward stroke. First one side, then the other.

“Do all humans have hair here?”

Kymora smiled at the curious question. From firsthand experience, she now knew
Na’Chi
bodies were naturally hairless, a characteristic inherited from their demon parent.

“Yes.”

His thumb parted her folds and brushed against her swollen core. Her breath hissed in through her teeth.

“So hot and wet.”

Her laugh was more of a hiccup. “That’s your fault, Varian.”

“So it is.” Lips nibbled the skin of her inner knee. “I want to see more.”

Varian’s heart pounded in his chest at the sight of her stretched out on his bed. He pushed her leg to the side, watching for any sign of reluctance or discomfort. That she’d allowed him the liberties he’d already taken astounded him.

The color in her cheeks darkened. Her teeth clamped on her bottom lip as he opened her to his gaze.

“Tell me if you don’t like this, Kymora.”

Her lips curved as he used her own words from last night.

“This is all new to me.” The lilt in her voice was more pronounced. “It’s the unknown, not you, that’s making me anxious.”

“It’s new to me, too. Remember?” He stroked the soft skin on her thigh, then pressed a kiss there. “Comfortable?”

“Not yet, but if you get on with whatever you’re doing, I’m sure I’ll get there.” The corners of her mouth twitched. “Eventually.”

Varian bit the flesh so temptingly close to his mouth for her taunting. She yelped, then laughed. He let her feel his smile against her skin. “Be careful I don’t consider that a challenge, Kymora.”

She shivered with his warning. Her scent grew stronger. He drew it deeply into his lungs and let it wrap around him, like her hand had last night. The memory made him ache and throb now.

Kymora moaned softly. “I can feel that, Varian.” Her husky voice drove like a spike through him.

His hands shook as he smoothed them along each of her thighs, up to where he finally allowed his gaze to settle. Her feminine folds glistened, so wet and swollen. “
Dear Mother
… you’re beautiful.”

He used two fingers this time to tease open her folds. Her soft, swift inhalation told him just how sensitive she was. He stroked, gently, learning the contours of her sex, watching how his touch made her respond. A gasp. A groan. Flesh flinching, then flushing with need.

Discovering what pleasured her most.

And what drove him to the fiery edge of insanity.

From conversations among his scouts, Varian knew a
Na’Chi
female could be stimulated to her peak with his fingers, but there was another way. One much more intimate. Anticipation unfurled in his gut. Since beginning this game of experimentation, he’d been aching to try it. But would a human woman… would Kymora like it?

“Yes!” Her hissed affirmation surprised him. Was he broadcasting his emotions that strongly? “Please, Varian!”

Rising up on his knees, he placed his mouth over her, wanting… needing to taste her. Her salt-sweet essence exploded on his tongue the same time she cried out and shuddered. Her hips pushed up, undulating. She worked herself against his mouth, muscles straining against him. Moving his tongue against her changed her cry to a moan, and the shudder became a convulsion. Her flavor intensified.

He held her tight, steadying her with his hands, drawing out her pleasure until the power of her need abated. She collapsed onto the bed in a loose tangle of limbs.

Varian drew back, her taste still coating his lips. Intense satisfaction at the sight of her so sated replaced his reluctance in letting her go. Moving up beside her, he enjoyed watching Kymora come down from her peak. Her breathing remained erratic. He could hear the heavy thumping of her heart as well as see it pulsing in her throat. Wetness sparkled on her closed eyelids.

His heart thudded hard. Once. Had he hurt her?

Tentatively, he touched her flushed face. “Are you all right?”

Kymora curled into him and wrapped her arms tightly around his waist. “I hope you’re done experimenting, Varian.” Her voice was a hoarse whisper. Her fingernails dug into the skin low on his back. “Not sure if I’ll survive anything more right now.”

The wide grin on his face felt unfamiliar, but he couldn’t contain it. He released a slow breath and dared to savor the way she fit against him.

“Smugness doesn’t become you,
Na’Chi
,” she murmured against his chest.

He grunted and considered her statement. Sure, there was an element of conceit in what he’d done for her, but most of what he felt was satisfaction. Yet something else was there, another emotion, hidden beneath them. What was it? The heat reminded him of desire, but it was infinitely deeper, softer. Definitely unfamiliar.

His gut tightened as he tried to figure out what it was; frustration heated his blood when he couldn’t. Not wanting to spoil the moment, he dismissed it with a shake of his head. Later. He’d worry about whatever it was later.

A faint knocking drew Varian from his thoughts.

Kymora stirred beside him. “Someone’s at your door.”

“Stay here.” He pulled the blanket up over her as he slid out of
the bed. A quick search in the chest at the foot of his bed produced a clean pair of breeches. “I’ll see who it is.”

As he left, he pulled the door to his room partway closed, not wanting anyone intruding on Kymora’s privacy. His plans for the morning included spending time with her, so seeing who their visitor was and getting rid of them quickly took priority over anything else.

Lisella stood on the other side of his apartment door, an apologetic smile on her face. “I’m sorry to disturb you.” She fiddled with the end of her plait, twisting the black strands around her fingers. Voices and laughter echoed down the corridor from the main living area. It seemed others were already up, even at this early hour. “Is Kymora with you?”

Varian raised an eyebrow. “You know she is, Lisella,” he said, and folded his arms. “I can hear Ehrinne’s voice in the common room. She wouldn’t be here if Kymora wasn’t.”

Lisella’s smile faded and her gaze searched his. After several moments, she took a deep breath, like she’d made up her mind about something.

“I’ve been worried about you, Varian,” she said. His nostrils flared as he caught a sharp peppery scent coming from her. “We used to talk, but ever since we arrived in human territory, that hasn’t happened much.”

The truth in her statement prodded his conscience. Lisella had always sought him out as he’d never been one for mixing with others. Sometimes they’d talked, sometimes he’d just listened while Lisella filled him in on the goings-on of their group. With the alliance, something new always seemed to be cropping up. Establishing a new home, planting crops, meeting and living with Guild-families, training the Light Blades; all new issues and problems to cope with.

Still, guilt prodded him. “There’s been a lot going on. We’ve both been busy, Lisella.”

“True,” she agreed, a sad smile curving her lips. “But perhaps
we’ve both been remiss, letting that get in the way. I should’ve made more of an effort to spend time with you.”

“You can’t split yourself a hundred ways. I’m able to look after myself. There are others who need you more.”

“But it helps to have a friend to share the load.” Her gaze met his again, and the green flecks in them warned him she wasn’t going to be deflected. “When Zaune came back to the common room alone last night, I was surprised. I didn’t think Kymora would be able to reach you this time, not after what Taybor told me.”

Varian’s mouth flattened. Who else had he spoken to about what happened out on that patrol?

“I know you both don’t always get on, Varian, but he was genuinely concerned about you. Don’t forget you share the same Gift. You might be the strongest scout among us, but he knows the struggle of dealing with battle rush. His fears concerning it aren’t all that different than yours.”

His head jerked up. “He believes he’ll end up like me?”

“You two are more alike than you think, Varian.” Lisella’s voice softened. “One thing I’ve noticed though is that the scouts who mingle with others seem to recover from it faster and cope with it better.”

His thoughts turned inward. If what she’d observed was true, then it could explain why he was having difficulty dealing with battle rush. Since their arrival in human territory, he hadn’t spent as much time with her or the children as he’d done in the past. Too many other things had taken precedence.

“I’ll say just one thing more, then leave the subject alone. I don’t know what sort of friendship you share with Kymora but I’m glad she visited you. And that you didn’t turn her away.” She reached out to lay a hand on his arm. “You needed her last night, as much as she needed you.”

Lisella had to be curious about their relationship, but he was glad she didn’t question him. He glanced toward his room.

“Kymora didn’t actually take heed of my no, Lisella. I’m sure Zaune told you that.” A small smile twitched on her lips. He grunted, suspicions confirmed. “She’s too much like you.”

“Scary, huh?” Her eyes sparkled. His narrow-eyed glare was ignored. “It’s about time someone refused to put up with your stubbornness.”

Leveling his gaze on her, he lifted an eyebrow. “So, why are you here, Lisella?”

She cleared her throat but thankfully said nothing else. Her expression sobered. “Rissa just arrived from the hospice with a message from Candra.”

This early? Varian straightened. “What was the Master Healer’s message?”

“Kalan’s awake and asking to see both of you.”

K
ALAN lay propped on a stack of pillows with Candra and Annika flanking him. He looked drawn, even after a night’s rest, and his skin was pale, but the hard gleam in his gaze as he greeted everyone offset any physical weakness.