Chapter Thirteen
The snuffling stopped and then there was a low growling sound outside the door that made the short hairs at the back of Sophie’s neck stand up. It was answered with a deeper, and even more menacing rumble. After a moment she realized it was coming from Sylvan.
She edged toward the bathroom but she didn’t go in yet. Indeed, she couldn’t go in—she was too transfixed by the sight of Sylvan, who seemed to be changing before her eyes.
She shivered when she looked at his face. His fangs were out again, deadly and sharp and the pupils of his eyes had grown until the iris was only a thin blue ring around a well of black. But not just black, she saw—his pupils were red. Blood red. And the look on his face was one of pure menace. Completely inhuman.
But then he’s not human, she reminded herself. He’s a warrior from another galaxy. But even telling herself that didn’t help—he still looked chillingly animalistic in his anger. She wondered if the urlich could see as well as they could smell. If so and they were looking through the crack in the door, they would have to be crazy to confront such a threat.
For a moment the growling rose to a crescendo that made her want to cover her ears. Then, miraculously, the sounds from outside the door began to die. To Sophie’s vast relief, in a matter of minutes they faded away to nothing, until even the snuffling was gone. Still, she waited anxiously, watching Sylvan who was still on high alert.
He turned to her at last. “They’re gone.” His voice was a snarl and he still looked more animal than man.
“Okay.” Sophie shrank away from him when he came toward her. God, he looked scary with those blood red eyes and was it her imagination or had his fangs gotten even longer? “So…” She cleared her throat. “So we can relax?”
“No.” He was still glaring at her, his face filled with some emotion she couldn’t read. Maybe raw aggression? “There were only one or two out there,” he continued, still advancing on her. “They weren’t sure of the scent so they went to gather the rest of the pack to reach a consensus. If they decide that the scent they’re looking for is here, we’re done for.”
“Oh.” Sophie put a hand to her throat. “What…how long do we have? What are you going to do?”
“I’m going to mark you. Right now.” Reaching out, he gripped her upper arm before she could dodge away. “On the bed. I need you out of your clothes— all of them.”
Sophie’s mouth was so dry she couldn’t even scream—not that it would do her any good even if she could’ve. “Sylvan…Sylvan, please,” she whispered.
“I said now.” His voice was a muted roar and his face was still the mask of a beast. Gone was the kind, patient male who had carried her for miles, gone was the gentle soul who had healed her wounds so tenderly. In his place was a monster—at least that was how he looked to Sophie.
“I d-don’t understand,” she stammered, unbuttoning the blue uniform shirt reluctantly. “Why…why do I have to be naked?”
His eyes blazed. “You told me you knew about scent marking.”
“I thought I did,” she protested. “But—” The rest of her words were lost as he stripped the loose shirt from her shoulders and led her forcefully to the bed.
“Lay down.” It was a command, not a request.
Sophie was too frightened to disobey but inside the panic was taking hold. What is he going to do to me? This is like a nightmare. A horror story. I can’t get away, there’s no place to run. What am I going to do?
She climbed on the bed and lay there, shivering, with her arms crossed over her breasts. Wondering what he was going to do next.
She didn’t have long to wonder.
With quick, efficient movements, Sylvan stripped off his tight black uniform pants and tall black boots, baring himself with no shame. Clearly he was completely intent on the task at hand—whatever that was. His mating scent was still strong in the air and Sophie could feel her body responding to it—her nipples were hard and her pussy was wet—but her mind was a seething mass of fear and dismay as she watched him strip.
But as frightening as he was, she couldn’t take her eyes off of him.
Sylvan naked was even more imposing than Sylvan clothed. His broad shoulders and chest led down to a set of six pack abs and trim hips that put any other man she’d ever seen to shame. But it was his muscular thighs that held Sophie’s attention—or rather what was between them.
Sophie remembered that Kat had once joked that all Kindred were hung like Clydesdales. And to her dawning horror, it was obvious that Sylvan was no exception. Long and hard and fully erect, the club of his sex looked as thick as her wrist and its broad, mushroom shaped head rose to the level of his navel. Sophie hadn’t seen much male equipment but to her it looked angry and red—a battering ram ready to breach her defenses whether she wanted it to or not.
He’s so big. How is he ever going to fit that thing inside me? Because by now she was sure that was exactly what he planned to do. He was going to take her right here and now and there was nothing she could do to stop him—no way to get away. Outside the urlich were hunting her and inside her worst nightmare was about to happen. The cabin, which had been a welcome refuge, was now her cage.
She was trapped.
Her mind ran in circles. Not again. Please, God, I can’t stand it again. Oh please…
“Take the panties off too.” His voice was rough.
“But…” Sophie covered herself protectively. “But Sylvan…”
“I need to completely eradicate your scent—can’t do that with a barrier between us.” He nodded at her lace panties again. “Take them off .”
“I…all right,” she whispered. She’d been in this situation before and she knew from bitter experience that fighting would do her no good. I can’t stop him. All I can do is try to survive it. Sophie sat up, trying to cover her breasts with one arm. Feeling horribly naked and vulnerable she pushed the panties down her hips with one hand. When she had them down to her ankles, Sylvan pulled them off and tossed them carelessly in the corner.
Then he climbed on the bed with her.
“Open yourself,” he ordered in a low growl. “I can’t mark you unless you’re completely open to me.”
Her chest felt unbearably tight, her entire body shaking with fear, but there was nothing else she could do. Maybe it will be over with quickly. Maybe it won’t hurt that much. Maybe if I just try not to think about it… But she could think of nothing else.
In a last gesture of despair, Sophie lay back and parted her legs for him, spreading her thighs as he had commanded. The past and the present were blending together now. Her mind was filling with the memory she’d worked so hard to suppress. The dark room. His hand on my mouth. His body so heavy on mine. The pain between my legs—so sharp it makes me scream. But no one can hear me. No one cares. There’s no way out, nothing I can do to stop it from happening. I’m trapped… trapped …
The big warrior was about to reenact her worst nightmare and she couldn’t stand to watch. Throwing an arm over her eyes, she turned her head to one side. And as Sylvan lowered himself on top of her, she let out a low, hitching sob.
* * * * *
The soft sound of distress broke through the red haze of anger, aggression, and the territorial need to mark and claim that had taken over Sylvan’s brain. It was the rage—the rage came over me! He could scarcely believe it but it must be true. All his life he’d heard other Kindred talk about the all-enveloping protective anger that filled and overpowered them when a bride was threatened but he’d never expected to experience it himself. He was cold, logical, above such things.
Well, apparently not where Sophia is concerned.
From the minute he’d heard the urlich at the door all he’d been able to think about was keeping her safe in any way necessary. And since it was her scent they were following, he had to eliminate it—to change it completely by masking it with his own. Instinctively he knew that when faced with the odor of his unleashed aggression, no sniffer would dare to come within a hundred yards of the small cabin they were staying in.
Unfortunately, he’d been so set on his purpose that he’d completely forgotten to consider the human girl he was protecting. Looking down at her now with clear eyes, he suddenly saw how she trembled under him. She had opened herself as he ordered, true, but her entire body spoke of reluctance and fear and her scent was muted with despair.
Look at her. Her shoulders are tense, she’s covering her breasts with one arm and her other arm is over her eyes, as though she can’t bear to look at me. To see what I’m doing.
“Sophia?” he whispered roughly, rolling to one side. “Sophia, are you all right?”
“Don’t…” Her voice was a broken whisper. “Please don’t. Don’t do it to me again. I can’t stand it again.”
“Do what to you?” He tried to make his voice soft and non-threatening. “Sophia please…” Gently he pried her arm from her face to find her beautiful green eyes were filled with tears. She looked up at him and Sylvan knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that the horror and fear in her face was all due to him. Goddess, Mother of All Life, what have I done? He tried to cup her cheek but she shied away from his touch.
“Please…” She shook her head. “If you’re going to do it, can’t you just…just get it over with?”
“I was only going to mark you. To use my scent glands to cover your scent with my own,” he protested, but it was clear that Sophia was beyond reason. She just kept trembling and crying, the tears running down her flushed cheeks and her shoulders shaking with barely suppressed sobs.
Sylvan felt like his heart was breaking. No, not just breaking—it felt like someone had ripped the beating muscle from his chest and thrust it into a fiery forge. This female—the female he would rather die than hurt—was shaking herself apart and he was the cause of her distress. She thought I was going to hurt her—to take her by force. Goddess, no wonder she’s so upset.
“Sophia,” he murmured. “I’m sorry. So damned sorry.” Wanting to remove the threat, he got off the bed and put his pants and boots back on. But when he sat back down beside her and put a hand on her arm, she flinched away from him again, her face drawn with fear.
Again Sylvan felt his heart twist in the flames. It was agony —burning in the seven hells couldn’t be worse than this—than seeing that look on her face and knowing he had put it there. “Look,” he whispered brokenly, taking his uniform shirt and draping it over her to cover her nakedness. “I…I’m dressed. I’m not going to hurt you. I won’t even mark you if you don’t want me to. I swear it.”
At last his words seemed to get through to her and she looked up, her eyes red from crying. “B-but I th-thought…you said if they smelled me they’d attack.”
He nodded. “Yes.”
“But…” She blinked up at him. “You’ll be killed.”
“I don’t care.” Sylvan held her eyes with his. “I’d rather die than cause you such pain.”
“I’m sorry…” She wiped at her tears and sat up, clutching the shirt to her. “I just thought…”
“I know what you thought. But I would never take you by force. Never .” He let the vehemence he felt creep into his voice and at last she seemed to be convinced.
“Thank you,” she whispered, wiping her eyes again. “You just looked so scary. It was just like when Burke—”
“Who?”
She shook her head and turned her attention to getting the shirt back on without exposing herself. “Never mind. It doesn’t matter.”
It appeared to matter a great deal to Sylvan but now wasn’t the time to address it. “Come here,” he said, holding out his arms to her. “Please?”
Sophia looked at him doubtfully. “Why?”
“I was about to heal you before the urlich showed up,” he said quietly, trying to gage the effect his words had on her. “Would you let me take up where we left off?”
Sophia still didn’t look completely willing but at least she was no longer afraid to come to him. When she got close enough, Sylvan gathered her into his arms and held her in his lap. She stiffened against him at first but then, when he didn’t do anything but hold her, she began to relax.
Sylvan held her as tightly as he dared, breathing in her scent and feeling his heart burn. Goddess, how he wanted her! He’d never felt this way for any female before. The urgent need to protect, to shelter, to comfort and love and care for her swelled inside him until he could barely breathe. But he didn’t want to scare her again, not even if all the urlich in the Scourge Fathership were after them.
At last, after a long silence, she spoke. “I…I thought you were going to heal my lip.”
Sylvan stroked her hair which had come loose from the knot at the back of her neck and now cascaded down her shoulders in soft chestnut waves. “I thought your heart needed healing first.”
She shifted against him, getting more comfortable. “This is nice,” she admitted softly. “I…I’m sorry I freaked out on you.”
“The fault is entirely mine,” Sylvan murmured. “The urlich aroused my protective rage . And then I got so completely focused on marking you I forgot to consider your feelings. Can you forgive me?”
“I…I think so.” She looked up at him. “I guess you can’t help the way you get when there’s an enemy around. But please just…don’t come at me that way again.”
“I won’t. I swear it.” He meant it from the bottom of his heart and Sophia seemed to sense his sincerity.
“Thank you,” she whispered, her gaze still locked with his. “I…I appreciate that.”
“I don’t want you to fear me.” Sylvan heard the break in his own voice but he couldn’t help it. “I would die to protect you, Sophia. To think you would believe I could hurt you in any way—especially that way…” But he couldn’t go on.
“Sylvan…” She was looking at him with something like wonder on her face. “You…you’re crying,” she whispered. She sounded like she could hardly believe it.
Sylvan didn’t believe it himself. “No, I’m not.” He had never given in to such emotion, never allowed himself such weakness before. Even after his father’s passing and Feenah’s betrayal, not so much as a single tear had come to his eyes.
But Sophia was nodding. “Yes, you are. Or at least, you’re sort of leaking a little.” Reaching up, she brushed lightly at his cheek. “See?” She held out her hand. To his surprise her fingertips were wet.
“I’m sorry,” he said stiffly.
“Why?” Sophia sounded genuinely curious.
He shook his head. “To show such weakness before one I am supposed to protect…it is unacceptable. Unforgivable.”
“No, it’s not.” Suddenly she put her arms around his neck and hugged him. “It’s not, Sylvan,” she whispered in his ear, pressing her soft cheek against his. “Not at all, I promise you.”
His heart swelled until he thought it might burst and he hugged her back carefully. He no longer cared if the urlich and the AllFather with all his hellish legions came upon him and killed him. At that moment, with Sophia willingly in his arms and her sweet feminine fragrance invading his senses, he knew he could die a happy and contented male. But she’ll die too. Or be captured without you to protect her.
Sophia must have had the same thought because after a long moment she pulled back and looked at him seriously.
“How long do we have until they come back and find us?” she asked softly.
Sylvan shrugged. “It could be an hour or several hours. It depends on how widely scattered their pack was in the first place and how far away the lead urlich is. They won’t form a consensus without her.”
“Her?” She frowned. “I thought everything to do with the Scourge was male. I mean, they have the AllFather and you were saying they don’t have any females…”
He nodded. “This is the one exception. Female urlich are craftier and more intelligent. So while the others in the pack might be male, the lead is always a female.”
Sophie sat up straighter in his lap and looked him in the eye. “Well, whatever they are, you need to mark me before they get back to us.”
“No.” He frowned. “No, Sophia. Absolutely not.” He’d been looking forward to the feel of her soft, naked body under his but clearly it was not to be.
However, now that she no longer felt threatened, there was a stubborn look in her lovely green eyes. “I don’t accept that. I won’t let my…my phobia be the cause of your death.”
A phobia, is it? They would have to address that later—if there was a later. And he wanted to know who “Burke” was too. But right now he’d barely gained her trust—he wasn’t about to throw it away for any reason. “I won’t do it,” he told her.
“But—”
“Think what you’re asking, Sophia,” he said gently. “If I mark you the traditional way I’ll have to be on top of you, completely naked and you’ll have to be naked as well, under me, open for me. I’ll have to be touching you, rubbing myself against you. Do you really think you can handle that with your…” He paused, trying to think how to put it. “With your phobia?” he finished, using her word.
Sophia paled and he could see she was considering what he’d said. “No,” she said at last in a low voice. “No I…I’m pretty sure having you, uh, on top of me would probably set me off again.” She looked up at him. “But…didn’t you say earlier there was another way to, uh, to mark a female? I mean…when you were talking about…about wanting to…to taste me…” Her voice had fallen so low that he could barely hear it and her cheeks were a bright pink. “I mean, if you…if that wouldn’t bother you too much.” She looked down at her small hands as though she couldn’t stand to meet his eyes.
Sylvan found her embarrassment both charming and incredibly arousing.
“I could mark you with my mouth,” he said, a surge of lust rushing through him at the thought. To kneel before her and spread her open, to taste her sweet juices and lap her soft little pussy until she moans and cries… Goddess how he wanted that! But he wanted to be careful with her as well. “We Kindred have scent glands around our lips and mouths as well as between our legs,” he told her. “But I don’t want to hurt or embarrass you.”
Sophie looked up at him again, the light of determination in her eyes. “I trust you not to hurt me and, well, being embarrassed is better than being dead,” she said in a voice that wavered only a little. “And I mean, you could just kind of…uh, rub against me some? Maybe? I mean you wouldn’t have to actually…you know.”
“I could,” he agreed gravely. “Though I would have to be very, very thorough. The scent glands around my mouth aren’t as strong as those on my shaft.”
“That’s all right.” She looked down at her hands again. “As long as you’re not on top of me, I think…think I can handle it. That is… if…if you really don’t mind.”
“Sophia, look at me.” Lifting her chin gently, he made her look into his eyes. “Nothing on this world or any other would give me more pleasure than spreading you open and tasting your sweet juices,” he murmured. “You need never have a question about that.”
“Oh,” she whispered and her cheeks were nearly crimson now. “I…thank you, I guess.”
“But I realize,” Sylvan continued, trying to gauge her reaction. “That we’re doing this for necessity, not pleasure. So if you’d rather, I can try to keep it…” He frowned. “I don’t know the word in your language.”
“Businesslike?” she offered. “Professional?”
Sylvan nodded. “Yes, I guess those work. What I’m saying is, I don’t want to make you any more uncomfortable than you already are. So I’ll just do what is necessary—no more, no less.”
“Okay.” She was looking a little more comfortable with the idea now, which eased his heart. No matter how much he longed to savor her juices and bring her to orgasm again and again, her comfort was more important than his need. “Just one more thing,” she said in a small voice.
“Anything,” Sylvan told her. “You have only to ask, Talana.”
“I…well…I don’t want to offend you but…” She hesitated for a long moment but he waited patiently until she went on. “Could you do it…uh mark me…without letting your…your fangs come out?” she asked at last. “I mean, it’s not that I don’t trust you but that’s kind of a very delicate area and…and…”
“No, it’s all right. I understand.” He nodded, trying to look unconcerned but inside his heart burned again. She still fears me. Still fears what I am. “I can do that—hold them back if I concentrate,” he said. Though it was going to hurt like a son of a bitch.
“Oh thank you. Thank you for understanding.” She looked so relieved that Sylvan couldn’t help feeling another twinge. Of course, under normal circumstances, Blood Kindred never made love without his fangs completely extended. Then again, if these were normal circumstances he would be planning to bite her thigh at the moment she came and Sylvan knew she would never agree to that. It’s for necessity, not pleasure, he reminded himself sternly. She doesn’t actually want you to taste her—just mark her, that’s all.
“It’s all right,” he said roughly, stroking her hair. “In fact, I’ll make you a promise here and now, Sophia. I will never bite you for any reason—unless you ask me to.”
Her eyes widened. “Really?”
He nodded. “Really. I swear it as a Blood Kindred and a warrior. And we do not break our oaths.”
“I know that well enough, by now.” She smiled and reached out tentatively to brush his cheek. “Thank you, Sylvan. You really know how to put me at ease.”
“I’m glad you feel safe with me again,” he said sincerely. “But we really should get started. We don’t know when the urlich will come back.”
“All right.” Slowly she slid from his lap and settled herself on the bed again with her thighs slightly apart. “I guess I’m ready.”
“I’ll try to take things slowly and let you know what I’m doing each step of the way,” Sylvan assured her.
“Thank you,” she whispered, shifting her hips a little, as though trying to get comfortable. “I’ve, uh, just so you know I’ve never done this—or had it done to me, I guess—before. So I’m not quite sure how—”
“Like this.” Lust surged inside him again as he positioned her gently, pulling her down to the end of the bed until her calves and feet hung over the side.
“ Oh .” She propped herself up on her elbows and watched him anxiously as he knelt on the floor between her legs. “Why…why like that?”
“It’s the best way to open you completely,” Sylvan explained, placing his hands on her inner thighs. “I told you I’ll have to be very thorough. I need to be able to spread you open and stay between your legs for a long, long time. Long enough to mark you completely.”
“Oh,” she whispered again and there was a soft, breathless tone to her voice that told him she was embarrassed and excited at once. He liked hearing that tone—liked it a lot.
“You can watch if you want,” he offered, caressing her thighs. Gods but she had such soft, smooth skin… “If you’ve never been tasted before you might want to see what I’m doing.”
Her face was bright pink now but she was watching him with a fascination that belied her embarrassment. “You…you wouldn’t mind?”
“I’d love it,” Sylvan assured her in a low voice. “I’d love to be able to look up and see your face while I’m marking you. In fact…here.” Standing for a moment he took several of the pillows from the head of the bed and propped them behind her back. “There,” he said, resuming his position between her legs. “Might as well get comfortable. We’re going to be here for awhile.”
“Okay,” she breathed. “Thank you.”
“No.” Sylvan bowed his head briefly. “Thank you for allowing me to mark you, Sophia. You honor me with your trust and the gift of your body.”
“Sylvan…” she murmured, lingering over his name in a way that sent another surge of lust through him. Gods, how he wanted to hear her call for him in the throes of passion! But I’m only here to mark, not taste, he reminded himself sternly.
“I’m going to begin now, Talana,” he told her. Slowly, trying to gauge her reaction, he unbuttoned the last few buttons of the blue uniform shirt and spread it open, baring her completely for him. Sophie shifted a little but said nothing, so he placed both hands on her thighs and began to part them gently but firmly.
At first she trembled under his touch and resisted him but Sylvan looked up and caught her gaze. “Look at me, Sophia,” he commanded softly. “I’m not going to hurt you. I only want to mark you and bring you pleasure. Can you open yourself for me and let me do that?”
She looked at his face for a long moment and what she saw must have reassured her. Slowly she nodded. “…yes.”
“Good.” He applied gentle pressure again and this time her knees parted completely, revealing the soft little mound of her sex.
For a moment Sylvan just looked at her. She was so beautiful, so perfectly formed it took his breath away. His fangs, which had automatically retracted when he’d sensed her fear and anguish, were already aching to come out. Again he had the sensation of his cock being trapped in too-tight pants but he set his teeth and grimly ignored it. This was about pleasing Sophia. Showing her he wasn’t a beast—that he could be gentle and non-threatening and tender. That was all that mattered.
Sophia must have misinterpreted his silence because she cleared her throat and shifted uncomfortably.
“Uh, I’m sorry I’m not waxed or anything. That, uh, area doesn’t really see a lot of action so—”
“You’re perfect.” Sylvan looked up at her, letting her see the admiration and lust in his eyes. “And I like your curls.” He brushed his fingertips over them lightly, making her shiver in response. “They make you more sensitive, I think.”
Sophie looked relieved. “Okay, if you’re sure you don’t mind…”
“I don’t,” Sylvan assured her, looking between her thighs again. Gods but her fragrance was delicious. And the outer lips of her sex were so pink and soft and innocent looking—like the petals of an exotic flower that had yet to bloom.
Sylvan knew she was no virgin—the things she’d said led him to believe as much. And as for her “phobia”—there had to be a cause for it. Possibly a past lover had hurt or frightened her. Or worse, he thought darkly. But whatever the case, she couldn’t have had many lovers—or any that knew what they were doing. How could any man have access to such beauty and ignore it? How could he not wish to be between her legs for hours every day, exploring her lush pussy with his tongue?
She shifted again. “Is…is everything okay?”
“Fine.” Sylvan realized he was spending too much time admiring her. “Forgive me,” he told her. “But you’re so beautiful I don’t want to rush things.”
“Yes, but the urlich… ”
“You’re right.” Bending, he pressed his face to her inner thigh, breathing in her heady aroma before looking up at her. “It’s time we began.”