Authors: Velvet DeHaven
"May!" I hissed, causing Simon to shoot toward me and stand protectively in front of my person, snarling at the other two immortals.
Craning my neck to try and see over Simon’s shoulder, I watched Kendal move to Maymuna's side, bowing in the same position, and I realized that it was a submissive gesture. They were trying to show Simon that they were not a threat, but now that they were so defenseless, he saw this as the perfect opportunity to move.
He was going to kill them.
He stalked slowly toward them, and I attempted to stop his moves, calling his name and moving before him, pressing my hands against his shoulders in the feeble attempt to recapture his attention, only to feel myself being spun behind him far too quickly. The sudden displacement left me dizzy and, for the first time in my life, I was beyond thankful that I couldn’t keep my footing. His attention was immediately diverted back to me and just as he scooped me into his arms, he faltered, his eyes glazing over for a moment before going wide with mild recognition as the door opened ever-so-slowly to reveal Grace, who stood with her own head bowed and slightly tilted to the side. The pain in Simon's voice as he whispered "What have I done?" was heart-wrenching.
Once again, I was upstairs, but this time, he cradled me in his arms and buried his face in my hair. "I attacked Kendal," he murmured, his voice thick with emotion. He was obviously trying not to cry. "All he did was enter the house, and I attacked him."
I stroked his back and cooed, "You didn't hurt him, Simon. He's indestructible, remember?"
"It does not matter!" he growled. "I attacked him."
"You were protecting your mate, just as you needed to," I explained quietly. "It doesn't matter that Kendal was not the one to hurt me. I was humiliated, in pain, and you acted on instincts. Right now, your instincts are telling you that everyone is a threat to me. He knows that. Your instincts are in full-force, and knowing the changes we’ve been through, Kendal should have realized that barging in on mates entering their mating season was a potentially fatal thing to do."
"I need you,
cara mia
," he whispered harshly.
I smiled. "I'm here, Simon. I'm not going anywhere."
"No," he heaved a pain-filled sigh. "I need you." His hands began to wander slowly over my body, which responded immediately. "I need to touch you—" he pulled off my shirt— "I need to kiss you—" his lips found my pulse— "I need to be inside you—" he swiftly lifted me and removed my jeans and a hand slipped beneath my moist underwear— "I need to taste your blood." Suddenly, I was on my back, and he was braced above me, gazing down at me with dark eyes. "I wanted this to be different," he sighed as he traced every line of my face with his fingers. "I wanted it to be perfect,
m'amore
."
"Maybe I don't want things to be perfect, Simon," I said softly, reaching up to run my fingers through his dark, silky hair. "Maybe I just want them to be right."
That seemed to break his restraint and all of the intense emotions that had been driving his instincts poured out of him as he stretched himself over me, claiming my lips firmly with his own and grinding his erection between my damp thighs. "Tell me to stop,
bella mia
. Make me to stop, because this is the only time that I will be able to."
"I can't do that," I said gently as I began to undo the buttons of his shirt. "I can't tell you to stop when I don't want you to." I shoved the shirt down his arms, smiling when he shook the material away from his body. "You are my mate, Simon, and I want you to claim me."
He closed his eyes and his whole body trembled with desire.
"Mia Sofia,"
he purred, "If I claim your body, I will claim your blood." His gaze was hungry and adoring at the same time. "I can assure you,
la mia
, that once I have tasted your blood, I will crave it more strongly and need it desperately for years to come."
I rocked my hips against him encouragingly and reached up to pull his mouth back to mine, barely brushing my lips against his as I held him tightly to my warm body. "Then taste me."
His hands moved over my body with reverence, the cool pads of his fingertips barely ghosting over the delicate skin of my throat, down the heaving valley of my breasts to the clasp of my bra, flicking it open and purring as my breasts spilled out beneath his heated gaze.
Had someone told me two years ago of the events and emotions that I would experience the past months, I would have laughed. The idea of meeting vampires seemed ludicrous, and even more so was the idea that I would be the mate of one, that I would allow one of them to claim me after only a few months as his own, forever. I would have scoffed that such a connection could possibly exist, that there was no way that a love could exist that was so strong that it would have affected me to my core in such a way.
But it had. I belonged to this exquisite creature and never had I experienced something so profoundly that I felt it in my soul. Yes, with Simon, I felt him in every fiber of my being. When he was near me, I felt cherished, loved, safe… and when he was apart from me, I felt like my spirit was incomplete and sick.
I sighed as he tenderly took the weight of my breasts in his hands, panting shallowly when he leaned down and latched onto one nipple, the sweet suction of his lips pebbling the sensitive flesh. "Simon…"
His free hand slipped over my hip, grasping the lacy fabric in his deft fingers before ripping it away from my flesh easily. He did not, as I expected, let his fingers delve inside my aching heat, but simply cupped my swollen flesh, then teased me mercilessly by letting one fingertip trace my slit so lightly that it was as if air were caressing my skin.
I shivered and tried to rub my hips against his hand, moaning in frustration when it glided away to stroke up my side. "Please… Simon, please," I begged, squirming beneath him, trying to get closer to him.
He denied me, moving off the bed, and smiled when I attempted to growl in annoyance. "
Pazienza, mia cocca
," he purred reassuringly.
When he grasped his belt, slowly removing it, I felt my face flush with heat, my lips parting as I realized through my desire that I was about to see my mate completely nude for the first time. A part of my mind briefly wondered if I was ready for this or not, but as his fingers undid the button of his jeans, I knew that I was most definitely ready. He was my mate, completely incapable of causing me harm and only able to bring me happiness and pleasure.
I could almost feel my pupils dilate at the staggering sight of him. Beautiful could not even begin describe the sheer magnificence of him and, before I could stop myself, I had moved off of the bed to stand directly in front of him. I whispered his name in awe, timidly raising my hand to touch his face, slowly caressing from his cheek to his jaw, before standing on tip-toe to press a chaste and adoring kiss to his soft lips.
He patiently allowed me to explore his body, only shifting his head so he could follow my movements and watch me, as I moved both hands down the planes of his neck and over those broad shoulders that I loved so much. The lean muscles of his arms tensed and flexed involuntarily as I smoothed my palms over them, before raising my hands to his chest. I stepped forward and pressed a tiny kiss over the place where his heart rested in deathly silence inside his chest. "It doesn't have to beat," I whispered, turning my brown eyes up to meet his own, "because you have mine, and it beats only for you."
He pushed my hair back from my face. "And when yours ceases to beat?"
I smiled tenderly. "Then you will know that the last beat was yours, so you'll forever be frozen there. My love for you locked inside me, eternal and unbreakable."
He ran a slowly thumb over my cheek. "I love you, Sofia Capriola."
"I love you, too," I murmured.
I stared at him for a few moments more, letting him absorb the words and emotions of what I had finally said before I let my hands continue their eager journey, my fingers fanning out and tracing the lines of his abs. I smiled internally when that muscled plain contracted and relaxed beneath my touch as I explored. I heard him draw in a sharp hiss of breath when my warm fingers wrapped around his erection, and just as I was starting to appreciate the length I held, my mind immediately recognizing that my fingertips were not touching due to his thick girth.
I wondered if such generous attributes were part of all of the vampiric species, or just the sexual ones. Although, it didn’t matter at the moment, I supposed, because virgin or no, I was certainly bound for an intense first time with my new lover.
He sensed my concern and pressed a kiss to my temple. "I will never rush you,
Sofia mia
. I could never hurt you."
I gazed up at him with heavy-lidded eyes. "Do you have any idea just how stunning you are, Simon Treviso?"
He swept me up into his arms and laid me down in the center of the bed, stretching himself over me. "A gorgeous goddess that I am well acquainted with keeps informing me of this, but I know, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that the claimed beauty of my body and soul pales significantly in contrast to hers."
He pressed a kiss to my forehead then kissed beneath each of my lower lids, licking away the tears; he kissed my lips with such tenderness that I lost my breath for a moment, before he trailed his lips to my throat, licking the vein on each side. He worked slowly down my body, suckling one nipple first and flicking his tongue over the tip, before giving the other nipple the same delicious attention.
He paused in his journey to dip his tongue into my navel, and I squirmed feverishly under his administrations. He tormented me until I thought that I would scream in frustration, and when his mouth moved lower, I knew that I could not possibly survive the near-excruciating pleasure that shot through my core. His fingers parted my moist lips as he blew a strong, cool breath on my sensitive clit, grasping my hips and pinning them to the bed as my body instinctively thrashed. "Easy,
mi diletta
," he purred calmly, before dragging his tongue over my soaked slit, lapping up my juices greedily.
"Simon… Oh God." I whimpered helplessly, not knowing how much more I could stand when his tongue pushed deep inside my wet heat. "Simon!"
When he stopped, I thought that he was showing mercy, but realized my mistake when he pulled the swollen bundle of nerves between his teeth carefully, while slowly sliding three fingers into my dripping pussy. He thrust his cool digits in and out of me, slowly at first, then he sped up his pace as my passage fluttered around his hand, suckling the bead of flesh hard, his tongue flicking back and forth with inhuman speed. He pumped me hard and fast, and within moments, I was clenching around him and screaming out in rapture.
I was still floating on a cloud of intense pleasure when he appeared over me, his lips, coated in my juices, claiming mine. He used the combination of my afterglow and the distraction of the kiss to slide the head of his cock inside, my stretched passage clamping around the cool thickness like a vice, and I felt my cheeks heat up in embarrassment when I felt a pressure deep inside.
My eyes must have showed my panicked surprise, because he lowered his face to my ear, nuzzling and purring. "
La mia
," he cooed, "you need not worry. You have said it has been quite some time since you last had a lover, so it will take a few minutes for your body to stretch to accommodate me." He licked the shell of my ear, still purring softly as he slipped a hand between us, using his speed to rub my clit.
After several minutes of being teased, my body relaxed and accepted him more quickly, and I was alight with exquisite pleasure from him pumping steadily inside of me. I writhed under him, my fingers fisting in his silky hair as I met him thrust for thrust. "Simon! Oh sweet fucking God. Simon…" My breath came out in uneven pants as he pounded in and out of me, over and over, faster and harder. "Simon… Now!" I hissed. "Fuck! Please…”
It seemed that was all the invitation he needed, and I felt his sharp teeth bite low on my neck, sinking quickly through the flesh to the vein beneath. The sting from it made me gasp in pain, but it was gone almost instantly as he took a long pull of my blood. My body responded immediately to the intimate act, shuddering almost violently as I approached my peak, and when he took a second strong draw of blood, I squeezed my eyes shut and came hard, screaming and thrashing in the throes of divine ecstasy, as my pussy constricted around his cock. Even through the heavy blanket of pleasure, I could feel him explode deep inside me, my clenching passage steadily milking him of every drop of his come.
I laid there panting and sighed contentedly as one hand rose to cup my cheek. When I felt his lips brush over mine lovingly, I opened my eyes and immediately raised my hands to his face, my thumbs caressing the delicate skin below his eyes, and I frowned when he bowed his head. I slid a hand over his jaw and lifted his face, whispering his name so he would open his eyes and look at me. When he finally did, I gazed adoringly at him. "Simon Treviso, you… are… absolutely… beautiful."
At my words, a small smile curled the corner of his lips.
"Amore mio. T'amo. T’amo tanto."
For the first since meeting the stunning vampire, I saw something that I had never seen in his eyes before: pride. Pride in himself, pride for what he truly was. It was mixed so clearly in the adoration and love that glowed in his now bright red eyes.