Alliance Forged (38 page)

Varian dropped her onto her bed, grinning at the small scream she issued as he let her go. She landed with a bounce, then huffed as she levered herself up on her elbows.

“You did that on purpose!” she accused him.

He placed a knee on the end of her bed and a hand on the soft blanket near her ankle. With a gentle nudge he parted her legs.

“Why would I”—he began, and starting at her feet, kissed and licked and sucked and bit his way up her calves and thighs—“want to bruise this body?” Past her hips. Her stomach. “I can think…” Her breasts. Her throat. “… of so many other”—her soft moan thrilled him—“more desirable ways”—she was squirming beneath him as he reached her lips—“to mark you.”

Her scent was so rich and thick it made his mouth water. Their uneven breaths mingled, and from the corner of his eye, her hands fisted the blanket into wrinkled wads. He was surprised the heat pouring off both of them didn’t set the fabric alight.

“I can sense how much you like teasing me.” A sensual smile curved Kymora’s lips. She slid one leg up the side of his, then locked it around his hips. In a single motion, she flipped him onto his back so their positions were reversed, the action so smooth it reminded him she trained daily in combat. “You can’t feel how much I like it, but I can show you.”

She angled her hips so the heat of her core pressed against the base of his erection, an intimate meeting of flesh. A slow drag of her
hips along his length startled a groan out of him. Her wet heat coated him.

Lady’s Breath!

With a hiss, he arched upward. “Kymora…”

Her kiss cut him off. She nibbled at his lips, tongue sneaking out to taste them, the depths of his mouth. She was fire and sweetness and desire. And focused totally on him, on driving him to the edge with everything she did.

Her teeth closed on the soft lobe of his ear, an erotic nip that twisted the temperature inside him so high he felt like he’d been thrust into a potter’s furnace. A growl erupted from his chest; his hands clamped on her shoulders. He gazed up at her, then froze, stiffening with shock.

Kymora’s skin and everything around her had turned a light shade of crimson.

V
ARIAN’S fingers dug into Kymora’s upper arms, and beneath her he stilled. A hoarse cry exploded from his lips even as she sensed the powerful surge in energy coming from deep within him.

“Kymora, get off me!” His voice had dropped, deepened into the familiar gravelly growl associated with battle rush.

Her breath caught as strands of sensations whipped at her mind, a maelstrom of rage, desire, loneliness, hunger, sorrow, and agony, all shadowed by a cloud of desperation and need.

“No, wait, Varian.” She gripped her legs against his flanks to stop him throwing her off. “Let me feel this. Don’t move.”

“I don’t want to hurt you!” Varian’s panic slammed into her.

She clasped his head between her hands. “Focus on my voice.” His hands clamped around her wrists. His breath heaved in and out of his lungs. “I can sense your other half. It wants something.”

“It’s angry.” His voice came through gritted teeth.

“Yes, I know.” Her heart thundered in her chest, but she kept her
voice calm. “Kiss me.” His head shook from side to side. “Trust me. Do it. Now!”

Their lips locked, the kiss lacked the heat of their previous ones, but it served the purpose she intended. She felt pressure against her aura. Pushing, straining.

“It’s reaching… for this,” she whispered against his mouth. “Our pleasure. Our joy. Can you feel it?”

Her heart constricted as she understood the why of what was going on. The
Lady
had designed all
Na’Chi
to have both human and
Na’Reish
traits, but
She’d
never intended them to live one without the other. Circumstances and thoughtless behavior had created the problem Varian, and the other scouts, now faced.

He’d rejected part of himself for so long, only drawing on it when he needed it to protect or ensure the survival of his people, and now all the emotions associated with those actions were mostly negative.

A child raised on harsh discipline would crave the gentler emotions, but having never experienced them, it made sense he would feel threatened when confronted by them. Controlling and twisting that particular situation to something more familiar, yet ultimately harmful, was logical. For him.

It explained the anger and more destructive feelings Varian’s other half showed in times of high emotion, but it also accounted for the desperate need buried deep beneath them.

Feed it and the balance would be restored.

Kymora laughed softly. It made sense. She lifted up on her knees and reached down to clasp Varian’s erection. His grip on her wrist tightened.

“Trust me, Varian. Focus on what I’m doing and what you’re feeling as we make love.”

Fear stained his aura; she could sense it swirling around the edges of the maelstrom inside him. She waited, not willing to push him into
this.
Lady
help her, she was asking a lot, but what waited on the other side of the storm was something she hoped would be worth the risk.

Varian’s hold gradually slackened. “Just go… slow.”

“I will.” Her stomach fluttered with nerves as she took a deep breath. “Remember, focus on us and only us.”

As she brought the head of his erection to the heat between her legs, she slid him against her, gently at first, then when his hips started thrusting upward, with more friction. Her mouth dried at the hard, steely heat of him gliding against her. She was wet, covering him and her fingers with her cream.

“All right?” she asked, the pleasure shortening her breath.

“There’s fire in your touch, Kymora.” Varian’s hands dropped to her hips, then skated over the curve of her rear to grip the flesh behind her thighs. “It brands me.”

His words scorched her. She swallowed hard, her whole body heating, tightening, needing something more. While she knew what that more was, actually knowing and doing were two separate things.

Biting her lip, she settled herself against him and lowered herself down. Her mouth parted on a gasp at the blunt feel of him stretching her, the sensation unfamiliar. With every slow push, her body wept to accommodate him. There was heat and pleasure from working him a little deeper every time.

Against her mind, she felt Varian’s aura pulsing, twisting, one moment giving off a thousand sparks, the next sucking inward like a vortex. A struggle between desire and the need to cause pain.

Varian fought to keep his gaze on Kymora. Every gentle movement of her hips, the incredible heat of being taken by her, the way her thighs trembled as they spread over his hips, tested his resolve to keep his eyes open.

Concentrating on their combined pleasure was one of the toughest battles he’d ever encountered. Her every movement threatened to shatter his control, yet to lose it would mean endangering her.

Through gritted teeth, he growled, “This burns all the way to my soul.” The words helped ground him. He stretched a hand up to cup her arm and steady her. A fine sheen of sweat dampened her skin. “I didn’t think it would be this good.”

Kymora smiled and her fingers dug into his forearm. “Good?
Mother
, this is more than I think I can handle….” Her husky voice trailed off on a laugh that hitched and altered into a moan.

On the next rise, she hesitated a moment, then dropped down on him fast. She cried out, a sharp painful sound. Something inside her gave as the friction whipped like lightning along his shaft and straight up his spine. His head jerked back and the crimson world around him flared.

Vision swimming, lungs working like a pair of bellows, Varian forced himself to focus once more on Kymora. She remained seated on him, unmoving, her brow creased in a frown, a slight grimace on her face. His heart thudded hard as he realized the significance of her last action.

“Breathe, Kymora.” His gruff reminder drew a shaky smile from her. She was tight around him, furnace hot. “I need to touch you.”

She gave a jerky nod. With one hand, he parted her wet folds and stroked her with his thumb. She shuddered and her inner muscles clamped tight around him. Her hips rolled toward him.

“More, please,” she gasped.

Watching her shiver and respond to what he was doing continued to help him focus. Slowly she started moving again, rocking against him, falling and rising. Her soft cries grew louder.

Varian tried to let her set the rhythm, but the heat of her consumed him. He couldn’t help thrusting up to meet her every other stroke. He lost himself in the incredible sensation of her muscles gripping and releasing him. The sounds, the scents, the burning tension tightening between them centered him. Then there was nothing except pure pleasure rushing through him. At the edge of
his hearing, Kymora cried out, her body convulsed against his, and she peaked with him.

Their mutual pleasure took him hard, surging over him like a wave of fire. One after another. Each stronger than the last, then finally ebbing.

When he regained some sense of his surroundings, he discovered a warm, limp weight draped across his body. Kymora. His lips curved. The heavy spiciness of their scents mingled, a satisfying accompaniment to the satiated exhaustion afflicting his limbs.

Varian blinked, breath catching. “I see color….”

And he did. The inky blackness of Kymora’s hair, the rich deep blue of the blanket, the stark whiteness of the walls. His throat tightened.

Kymora’s hand pressed against his damp chest. “And what do you feel inside?”

Focusing inward, he was startled to discover there was no surging darkness, no tearing fury or anger threatening to consume him, no hollow emptiness waiting within. Just a salve of contentment spread over his soul.

How had she known what to do? The gift she’d given him was overwhelming.

“Breathe, Varian.” There was a smile in her voice.

With a shaking hand, he cupped the back of her head, unable to find the words to speak.

“There’s no need, Varian,” she whispered. “Not when I can feel your heart.”

“Y
OU’RE thinking too hard.” Kymora paused in brushing Varian’s hair.

Kneeling behind him on the bed gave her a height advantage. A quick pull to free her dress from under her knees, and she looped her arms around his shoulders to hug him. His shirt still carried a light herbal wash odor, but beneath it was Varian’s unique fragrance. A clean, outdoor, woodsy scent.

“You’re not having second thoughts about this dinner are you?”

His large, warm hand closed over both of hers. “I won’t say I’m comfortable with the idea, but I said I’d go.” He took a deep breath. “I need to see Lisella.” Kymora nuzzled his cheek as pain slashed through his aura. “And I should also talk to the other scouts.”

Kymora’s heart squeezed tight. There was an edge of vulnerability in his tone, but in typical Varian style, he was preparing to take action to protect those he loved. She truly loved his strength and determination.

“Since Arek discovered the secret of our shared
history with the
Na’Reish
in Zataan’s journal, Kalan’s had our historians searching the archives for more information about the times before the first war.” She returned to brushing his hair. “He wants to know more about what life was like when we all lived together. Human and
Na’Reish
and
Na’Chi
. That information might also explain more about you and the other
Na’Chi
.”

“Don’t you think that past Councilors who kept the secret from everyone would have made sure nothing remained?”

“I’m sure they destroyed a lot of documents and journals, but obviously some were overlooked. Perhaps more will be uncovered in time.” Placing the brush aside, she smoothed her fingers over his temple braids, unable to resist also tracing his
Na’Chi
markings before tucking the strands behind his ears. “I love touching your hair. It’s so soft.” She rest her hands on his shoulders. “Actually, I love touching you anywhere. You’re a feast for my fingers.”

Varian’s snort drew a grin from her. The bed creaked as he shifted next to her. He caught one of her hands in his.

“And you bring me peace like I’ve never felt before.” Spoken low, the words were rough and thick. Her breath caught as his lips kissed the pads of her fingers. Soft and warm. There was a lightness to his aura that reflected his statement. “You have such faith and strength. It humbles me, priestess.”

“And here I was thinking the same thing about you,
Na’Chi
.” Her own voice wasn’t too steady.

His kiss held heat and hunger, but it wasn’t hard or aggressive, just a tender melding of lips. One that made her wish they didn’t have to attend the dinner she and Lisella had planned.

As they finished getting ready, Kymora reflected on the past few hours. So much had happened. They both needed time to sort through everything. And more than anything, she needed to explore what loving Varian meant to her.

Merciful Mother
, the gift the
Lady
had given her was one she’d long
dreamed of but never expected to happen. Not since taking on the calling as
Temple Elect
. For most it meant a lifetime of serving
Her
. It was a future she’d never considered changing until now, and it left her feeling more vulnerable than she’d ever been before, yet an incredible joy tempered it.

The uncertainty of giving up her vocation still weighed heavily on her mind. After nearly twenty years, the last eight as
Temple Elect
, she’d never imagined a life outside
Her
order. Routines, structure, discipline, timetables, all of these things gave her independence. She’d be giving up the familiar. And that was what probably frightened her the most. But did it mean she’d become too reliant on them? Too set in her ways? That in itself was a form of dependency.

No closer to making a decision about her life, Kymora accompanied Varian to the
Na’Chi
apartments to join the others for dinner. A handful of orphans from the city and those the
Na’Chi
had agreed to shelter were among those she and Lisella had invited.