Angel knew she’d survived when she woke. Every muscle seemed to ache. The heavy weight on her back and the warm breath that fanned her neck made her smile though. Creed had made it through the ravage, and she felt it was appropriately named. She muffled a laugh. He’d ravaged her. She tried to shove her hair out of her face, but chains rattled and her arm wouldn’t bend more than a few inches.
She was still restrained. The last thing she remembered before passing out was Creed giving her water to drink and gently cleaning her. He’d also adjusted the chains at the side of the bed, moving them to the top so she could lie more on the mattress instead of just being bent over it. Her ankles and legs had been freed. He’d collapsing on top of her after that and brushed kisses along her shoulder. The heat faded to a warm glow inside her body. The need for Creed to fuck her had calmed. He’d come down from the high of his hormones soon after she had. Not that she’d had any complaints.
“Creed?” Her voice came out raspy, her throat dry.
He tensed over her and his breathing changed.
“Can you untie me yet? I need your bathroom.”
“Yes.” His voice sounded gruff.
She stifled a laugh. He was probably experiencing the same issues as her. She just hoped he ached a little bit less. He slowly moved off her and unbuckled one wrist. She bent that arm, stretching it up. He undid her left arm last and she rolled over.
Creed stood at the end of the bed with his back to her. “I’m sorry I fell asleep. But you did, and I just thought I’d let you sleep for a little bit before I took you home.”
She sat up and adjusted the so-called dress. He had on his towel garment but it was a bit askew. She grinned at the line of beefy ass that showed. She noticed his coloring then. He was a golden brown again. He looked healthy and sexy.
“It’s okay. Do you know what time it is?”
He crossed the room, not looking at her. He opened a drawer and peered inside. “Damn.”
“What?”
“It’s past noon. We slept the morning away.”
She eased off the bed and cringed when she stood. Her legs were wobbly but held her weight. “I didn’t have anywhere to be. Did you?”
“No.”
“Where’s your bathroom?”
He pointed to the closed door in the corner. “There.”
“May I use it?”
“Of course.”
He wouldn’t look at her. That hurt. She hadn’t ever had a one-night stand before but she wasn’t liking the aftermath of her first experience at all. He could at least act as if she were a person. Instead, she felt as if he wanted her gone. Pain came first but it was quickly followed by anger. She walked past him and opened the door. She didn’t glance his way. Two could play that messed-up game.
The bathroom was a surprise. She expected a compost toilet in his cave but there was actual plumbing. It was a little crude in the rock-hewn room, but still nice. She closed the door and shook her head. GarLycans were pretty ingenious with making their cave dwellings comfortable. She quickly used his flush toilet and decided to shower while she was in there. The shower was a lower section of the room, with a drain in the floor and a hanging hose-like faucet. It would probably make him pricklier that she planned to get clean before he took her home, but she didn’t care.
The water wasn’t hot but comfortably warm. She sniffed his shampoo and liked the scent. She took her time, and then dried off, putting the dress back on since it was all she had to wear. She borrowed his toothpaste and used her finger to clean her teeth. She opened the bathroom door finally and found him sitting on the end of the bed. He met her gaze. His eyes had returned to their normal stormy blue. He also looked as if he’d showered. She wasn’t certain how that was possible, but his hair was freshly wet.
“Two bathrooms?”
“I have an outdoor shower above. I climbed up there since you were taking your sweet time.”
“Why do you have a second one?”
“I don’t think you want the answer to that.”
“I wouldn’t have asked otherwise.”
He hesitated for long seconds. “So I don’t have to clean up inside if I come home bloody. I can wash outside.”
She wasn’t shocked. GarLycans and Lycans sometimes dealt with violence. It was just a fact. Creed’s job was to protect the pack, and she was sure blood had been spilled on many occasions over the years. “That’s smart. I’m ready to go.”
He arched an eyebrow.
“What? You want me gone. Let’s go.”
“I didn’t say that.”
“You wouldn’t even look at me. I got the message loud and clear.”
He stood. “It’s because I feel guilty. I was trying to think of a way to apologize. I’m sorry.”
“I knew what I was getting into.”
He narrowed his eyes. “Really? Because I didn’t mean to keep you chained down and pass out on top of you. That came as a surprise to me.”
Angel shrugged. “We were both pretty worn out.”
He came closer. “How are you feeling?”
“The shower helped. How do you get warm water down here?”
He hesitated. “Do you really want to know?”
“I asked. It’s pretty clever.”
“I installed solar panels for electricity and keep water tanks above. They refill when it rains. They’re metal and they heat up in the summer. I also have a propane water heater for the winters. It doesn’t get as hot as your homes would but it’s more comfortable than trying to heat water and take a bath in a plastic tub.”
“And the toilet?”
“I drilled in water and waste lines. That wall isn’t too far from the edge of the cliff and a small ledge. It and the sink aren’t hooked to the hot water but come directly from the collection containers above that store all the rain water. That’s what I use for the kitchen too. I boil anything before I use it for cooking.”
She glanced around the bedroom. “How did you get that big bed in here?”
He grinned. “I had my brothers help. We flew it in pieces and put it together. I helped them with their homes too.”
“It’s very comfortable and big.”
He came even closer. “Was it everything you thought it would be?”
“You have a nice home.”
He reached out and fingered a long wet strand of her hair. “I meant what happened between us.”
She stared into his eyes. They made her feel a little weak in the knees when he looked at her like that. She swore it was passion she saw but dismissed it as hopeful thinking. He was over the ravaging. She debated on lying. She decided not to answer at all.
His features tightened. “Did I hurt you?”
“No.”
“Would you do it with me again in thirty years?”
He wasn’t going to let it go. Maybe he needed to ease his conscience or was looking for a compliment. “In thirty years, I’ll be almost sixty. I doubt you’ll want me by then. I’m human, remember? Those aren’t Lycan years.”
His hands clenched at his sides. “Isn’t your mother sharing her blood with you to slow your aging?”
“No.”
He turned a little ashen. “I thought she’d started doing that when you turned twenty-five. We discussed it and that was the plan.”
“You discussed that with my parents? Why?”
He said nothing. Which irritated her, but she figured he had brought her to the Lycans when she was a child, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that he might want to know about her life. It actually made sense once she thought about it.
It was also a little nice that he kept tabs on her. It softened her anger.
“Plans change. I left here to live in the human world. I’d need to take blood from her on a regular basis to do it. That’s kind of hard since they don’t like to leave the pack and I only get two weeks of vacation time every year. It could also trigger me to change into a Lycan at some point. I wasn’t willing to take the risk.”
“You’ll live longer.”
“And I could die. It happens sometimes. Long-term blood taking when it’s not from a mate can trigger a violent change without warning that few survive, or worse. I could start rejecting the blood, and it would shut down my internal organs one by one. I’d rather live a normal human lifespan than risk two out of the four possible outcomes if I accept the blood. My chances aren’t good at fifty-fifty.”
“Two out of four?”
“Sudden violent shift that’s usually fatal; rejection of the blood resulting in death; I change over without it killing me; or nothing goes wrong, and I just slow down in aging.”
“I didn’t know that.”
“Now you do.”
“Why does being a mate matter?”
“He’d be drinking my blood as well, and it would change his chemistry to be more in line with mine when I take his. Every pregnancy would help too. It would change me enough gradually while I carried his offspring, making for an easier transition if his blood were to turn me into a Lycan. The rejection rate is extremely rare that way.”
“You should take your mother’s blood. You’re a part of the pack. You’re not considered human and shouldn’t have to die the way they do.” His tone changed, anger coming through. “I’ll discuss it with your parents again.”
“Don’t bother. I made up my mind. I’ll live a normal human lifespan.”
“I won’t allow you to die of old age!”
She managed to keep her mouth from falling open over his angry outburst. She grew suspicious though. It wasn’t like him to lose his cool. Not Creed. He was usually indifferent. “The only other option is allowing my parents to arrange for me to mate some strange Lycan, and hope he’d treat me as good as if I were a Lycan.” She was testing his response.
He snarled, his fangs sliding down. His eye color changed. The blue turned so dark it appeared black, the silver glints startling, like torn pieces of light coming through a pool of utter black.
Angel reached up and gripped the back of his neck. He didn’t flinch away but he did stiffen. She felt the base of his skull. The lump was smaller but she still felt it. He lifted his hand and wrapping his fingers over hers.
“What are you doing?”
“You’re still emotional.”
He growled. “I’m not emotional.”
“You are.” She used her other hand and placed it on his chest. He was warmer than he had been the evening before but not hot. “I thought the ravage only lasted one night.”
“It’s just some remaining hormones that need to work out of my system today. I should take you home.”
She licked her lips. “Or we could go back to bed for a few hours.”
“I’m too wired to sleep.”
“Who said anything about sleeping?”
She twisted her hand under his and it made him lose his grip. She caressed that swollen spot on the back of his neck. He closed his eyes and leaned toward her.
“That’s kind of sexy. Most men respond that way when you do this.” She let her other hand slide down his chest and over his stomach. He clenched his muscles under her exploring palm. He didn’t try to stop her when she hit the material around his waist. She stroked his cock and felt the instant response. He hardened.
“Angel, don’t.”
“This again? Don’t you ever learn? I never listen.”
He snapped his eyes open and they were pitch black, all the silver gone. “You should.”
She wasn’t afraid. His eyes would probably have sent others running for their lives. They were dark and gleaming, a little evil looking. But she didn’t believe that about him. It was also a Lycan trait, only he wasn’t about to shift into a wolf. “Do you know how irresistible you are when you’re like this?”
“Are you angry with me?”
“No.” She pressed up against him and wrapped her fingers around his stiff cock, giving it a gentle squeeze. “I just love seeing you a little unleashed.”
“Don’t push me, Angel. I’m still having control issues.”
“Now you’re just teasing me.”
He grabbed her by her arms, tearing her hands off him. “What are you doing? Are my hormones still in your system?”
“Why? Because I want you. That’s nothing new. I don’t need to drink anything to feel this way.” She slowly pulled out of his hold and opened her hands on his chest. “I just have to look at you, Creed. The next time you need someone like this, I’m going to be some white-haired grandma. You won’t want me then.”
“No. I’m not going to let that happen to you. You’ll take Lycan blood to slow your aging and I’ll bring you back here.”
“I’ll be mated to a Lycan if I’m still young-looking. I think he’d mind you carrying me off. I would too, if he’s my mate.” She pushed and he stumbled back a few feet. It caught him off guard or she never would have been able to move him. She glanced at the bed and then threw herself at him. They both fell, landing on the mattress.
Angel climbed on top of him and straddled his thighs. She reached up and untied the dress. Creed clenched his teeth but his fangs puffed out his lips a little. She tossed her dress aside and leaned forward, opening her hands on his chest again. She loved the feel of him under her.
His gaze ran over her naked body.
“One more time, Creed. You get to be on bottom this round. I want to ride you.” She curled her fingers and lightly raked her nails down his skin and over his abdomen. His muscled rippled and a moan escaped him. She untied the material at his waist and he didn’t try to stop her. She parted it, baring his cock.
He was big. She knew that from feeling him inside her. He was hard already, responding to her. “I could look at you all day,” she admitted. “Touch you all day.”
“You need to get off me. You don’t know how dangerous this is.”
“You’re not going to hurt me.” She leaned all the way over and opened her mouth, sticking her tongue out to run the tip of it over his nipple. It puckered instantly. She did it again and then closed her mouth over it to suck. She nipped him gently with her teeth, catching just the tip.
He moaned and his fingers stabbed into her hair, cradling her head there. His cock twitched against her belly. She let one hand trail over the shaft of his cock and dip lower, caressing his balls. He arched his hips under her and spread his thighs to give her freer access. She released his nipple and went for the other one.
“Angel,” he groaned.
She sucked on him and stroked her hand back up his shaft. She was getting wet just touching him and hearing the soft rumbling noises that started to come from deep within his chest. She lifted her gaze, watching his face. His eyes were closed, his mouth open to show off those fangs. Pleasure twisted his features.
Creed fisted her hair in his hand but he didn’t force her to lift her head away from his skin. She started moving her mouth downward, using her lips, tongue and teeth to lightly bite and lick his ribs, then under them to his stomach. She scooted down his body as she went, until she reached his lower stomach. She lifted up a little and gripped the base of his shaft with her hand. She licked her lips, and then opened up wide to take in his girth.
Creed snarled when she wrapped her mouth around his cock and began to slowly move up and down, using her tongue to rub against the head. He twisted on the bed a little but didn’t try to unseat her.
“I’m going to lose it,” he warned in a very deep, inhuman voice.
She wanted to smile. Oral sex on men wasn’t her favorite but Creed was different. There was something just too sensual about him and his reactions. She wanted him to come. She took more of him inside her mouth.
Creed used his grip on her hair to force her off his cock. She winced a little but before she could protest, he rolled them over. She landed flat on her back and then Creed used his legs to shove hers wider apart. He gripped her knee, lifting it up against his hip. He adjusted and the crown of his cock pressed against the opening of her pussy. He wasn’t gentle or slow when he took her.
Angel moaned, loving the feeling of him filling her up. She frantically grabbed the tops of his shoulders and dug her nails in when he started to move. “Yes.”
He pinned her knee against his hip with his arm, still holding onto her leg. He fucked her hard, wildly. She hooked her other leg over his waist, digging her heel into his muscular ass. It angled her pussy just right so he hit that spot inside that drove her insane. She rocked her hips, meeting his rapid thrusts.
It felt too good to withstand, and she knew she wasn’t going to last after just a few minutes. The climax built, and then she tossed her head forward and tried to muffle yelling his name by pressing her face against the top of his shoulder, next to her hand.
He buried his face in her neck and snarled. A jolt of pain came next but it felt amazing.
She frantically grabbed at his back just to cling to him when the wave of pleasure hit. It wrecked her inside. She felt him come. He shook violently over her and she held on to him tighter. She couldn’t think. All she could do was feel. Their bodies locked together while they both rode it through.