Chapter Three
Being at the beach with Lucian had been nice. Lucian wasn’t one to talk. He was the one who asked questions—tonight, though, Tessa would do the asking. They had bought a movie to watch and Lucian was now putting it on. Tessa had microwaved some popcorn and waited for Lucian. The screen lit up and Lucian sat next to her. She snuggled into him and shoved some popcorn into her mouth.
“So, at dinner you found out my favorite color is purple, the shade that lights up the sky when the day fights the night. That I’m a dog person over cats, and I always wanted a chocolate Labrador. I am an only child and my mother had me late in life. It’s my excuse for not being able to talk to them. I have only ever been sexually active with one other man. That I was stupid and left with that guy and racked up a bunch of debt, and it took me some time to realize my mistake and grow up. You also learned that I love chocolate, dancing, and am not a fan of horror films, but I haven’t learnt anything about you beside your favorite color being red, like a blazing fire. That you have five brothers, which is just crazy, and I think I only found out about your brothers because you were talking to one of them. I’d love to know other things, like how long have you owned Devil’s, Inc.?”
Tessa felt Lucian’s body stiffen against her. He paused for a long time, like he was thinking about his answer. “You would say I have owned it from the beginning of time. I would say half my life.”
She shoved more popcorn in her mouth to stop her frustrated moan. Lucian had answered, but not properly. Fine, she’d ask him about something else. “Are your parents still alive? If so do you see them?”
Again, he seemed to take forever to answer. “My parents died long ago.”
“What do you do when you’re not at work? You know I read or go to the beach and I also help out with Vision Australia.”
“I keep in shape. I go to fundraisers and, before you, I spent time with women showing them the pleasures of life.”
Holy crap, getting information was like trying to get blood out of a stone. The poor man sounded like he had no life. “Surely you must do other things. What about socializing with friends? You have brothers, do you socialize with them?”
Lucian started stroking her hair. “I socialize with friends. I haven’t seen most of my brothers in a while. The movie is about to start. Let’s talk later.”
Tessa sighed and wiggled herself further against him. She knew later there would be no talking.
* * * *
The movie was about to finish and Lucian wasn’t ready for more questions, not now. He needed to be sure Tessa loved him and would stay no matter what she saw or learned from him.
As the credits came up he untangled himself from her and turned everything off before reaching down and picking Tessa up, cradling her in his arms. She snuggled into him straight away. “Are we going somewhere to talk?” Her voice was sultry. She knew where they were going there would be no talking—screaming, moaning and groaning, yes, but no talking.
Lucian picked up speed and didn’t say anything until he laid her on their bed. He made quick work of taking off their clothes before he climbed on the bed and hovered over her. “Talk is overrated.” His lips met hers and he let his fingers explore, committing every inch of her to his memory. Her round face with kissable lips, to her large breasts and lush, womanly body with its wide hips, thick thighs, and perfect pussy made just for him.
He tasted her mouth as his fingers played with her pussy lips before he devilled into her core, seeking warmth. She arched up to meet his touch and her breasts rubbed his chest. Tingles of heat rushed around his body and settled in his now hard erection. She moved to help control his movements as he pumped his fingers in and out.
His demon, that’d been quiet all day, roared inside his head, eager to be let free so he could play with their mate. Lucian tried to reason with him but he wanted out. He hadn’t been out to feed or to fight in the last couple of nights, and he was eager for action.
Easing himself down his mate’s body, he settled between her thighs and leaned forward, letting his demon feast on Tessa. She gave loud pleasure-filled screams and he buried his face close to her and licked, sucked, and nibbled. Her hands came to rest on his head and her fingers raked through his hair and gripped it tight.
“Lucian, oh Lucian,” she moaned over and over. Her voice spurred him on and he sucked in her clit, then dug his tongue into her core. His teeth lengthened and he gently scraped the sensitive sides of her nub. Tessa bucked against him and her grip on his hair tightened. “Right there, yes there.”
His pumped his fingers into her pussy, deeper and faster. He let his teeth glide slowly over her clit before gathering it into his mouth and biting down on either side, drinking. Tessa’s whole body shook and she pulled at his hair as she yelled her release. Drinking her blood and come, his body grew and he fought to keep himself in check. A high came over him, knowing he satisfied his mate.
Growling, he swiftly detached and flipped Tessa over, hiding his transforming body. Draping himself over her, he let his wings out and pushed her down onto the bed before driving his cock home. Her muscles squeezed around him from the orgasm she’d just had and he grunted at the tight fit. Wanting to be deeper, he lifted her up so her back was against his chest as he kneeled. Spreading his legs, he let his wings balance them as he moved his hands around to play with her bouncing globes as he fucked her.
Lifting her body, he propelled back in and tweaked her nipples, basking in her cries for more. Tessa bounced back on his cock. Leaning down, he ran his sharp teeth over her neck and nibbled on her ear. Tessa was now panting for breath and gripping the bed headboard like a lifeline. Wanting more control, he fluttered them away so she had no anchor bar him. Her hands came to rest on his and he moved one down to play with her puffy clit, still tender from his bite.
“No, please. I can’t take anymore.” She tried to hold his fingers as they massaged her nub.
Leaning over so her face buried in the pillows, he drove into her. For a moment, he sat up and watched as he retreated and sank back into her. Fuck, it was hot seeing his dick covered in her come and buried deep into her over and over.
“Oh, God, I’m going to come,” Tessa groaned.
He wasn’t ready to come yet. He knew when she came around his cock he would erupt. “No. You will not come. You will come when I tell you.” Tessa shook her head and he palmed her arse. She mewled against him and he felt her clench. “No.” With his open palm he smacked her arse. The clenching stopped and he did it again. This time her cheek turned pink and her muscles tensed. He placed two smacks on her other cheek, making them both shimmer with a tinge of red. By the fourth smack to her arse Tessa was moaning and her muscles squeezing.
Shit. He wasn’t going to last. Moving back over her, he nuzzled her neck and thrust into her faster and faster, his body climbing her for his release. When he was on the edge ready to jump, he bit her neck and sucked in her essence as he exploded. Her whole body quivered under him and her pussy clamped around his cock and spasmed, milking him of everything he had. Tessa screamed his name and he felt her body as it turned to liquid.
Putting his wings away and coming back to himself, he gently moved to the side so they could spoon and cuddle each other. Tessa sighed and hugged his hands to her as he brought them around her.
“That was so good. I can’t move. You’ve turned me into a puddle of goo,” she mumbled.
Brushing a kiss to her head, he closed his eyes. “With you it is always amazing. I’m so lucky to have found you, Tessa. You’re mine.” He kissed her head again and listened as her heart rate slowed and she drifted off to sleep. Feeling happy and content, he let sleep claim him.
* * * *
The weekend had been unreal. Tessa had never had so much sex in her life. Lucian asked her everything about herself but avoided any questions about him, giving only vague answers. He always turned the conversation back to her.
They spent this morning arguing and she didn’t get info out of him then, either. “I need to go home, Lucian. I have my work clothes there and it’ll be better if I get myself to work. I don’t want the office talking.”
“No.”
“What do you mean, no?”
“No, you’ll not be going back to that tiny thing you call home. You can wear the clothes I bought you and come to work with me. I want you close where I can see you, and I don’t care what people say at my office.”
“I can’t do that. I care what they say and I need to work. I need the money. I have debts to pay.”
“I’ll pay your debts and you don’t need to work. I will provide for you. You’re mine. I don’t want you to work. I need to see you to know you’re safe.”
“There is no way you’re paying my debts. I was stupid enough to get into to debt. I want to get myself out. They’re my responsibility. And I can keep myself safe. I’ve survived all my life without you, I think I can last eight or so hours at work.” She stormed away, only to be picked up and thrown over Lucian’s shoulder.
So now Tessa sat in his black Lamborghini as he drove them to work. Lucian drove fast, brooding next to her. “I’m not the type of woman who is happy to have everything handed to her, or have a man do everything for her and expect her to wait around for him. That’s not me, Lucian. I’ve had an awesome weekend, but I’ve only just met you. I want to get to know you before we take this relationship, or whatever it is, further. Let’s go on some more dates. I have a Vision Australia park day this Saturday and you’re welcome to come with me, but how about we go to the movies or out on a picnic? Rolling blading, ice-skating…crap, I don’t know, anything on any of the other days this week.”
“We went out on the weekend.”
Tessa rolled her eyes. Yeah, they’d gone out. Saturday they’d gone to her little flat and ended up leaving with nothing, then they’d gone shopping and he’d spent an obscene amount of money on her. The rest of Saturday, they lazed around, having sex. Sunday they had gone to the beach for a couple of hours, but again come home and had an amazing night filled with sex. This morning she found out Lucian had a cook. The chef had Saturdays and Sundays off, or so she’d been told. The guy she’d seen didn’t look like a cook—he was tall and beefy, but everything was muscle. He reminded Tessa of a body builder or bodyguard. His food was okay, but not the quality from a chef she thought would be in Lucian’s employment.
“We left the property twice. Otherwise we spent most of our weekend fucking.” Nibbling on her lips, she felt her cheeks heat. “Oh, I forgot the movie. We stopped long enough to watch that.” She turned to face him as he focused on driving. “Look, I think we need to go slower. I know your reputation. Everyone knows your reputation. I think we should take this day by day if you’re serious.”
Lucian’s knuckles turned white as he gripped the steering well. “Okay, we’ll go slower…for now.”
* * * *
Taking things slower, her arse. It had been almost five days since Lucian told her they’d take their relationship slower, and if this was slow Tessa would hate to think what fast was. Tonight Lucian was taking her out to a new restaurant.
This morning she’d tried to have another discussion about taking it slow and going somewhere beside work and his house. Lucian had dodged the subject until she’d told him she was staying at her flat tonight. He’d changed his tune then, telling her he was taking her to dinner tonight and to the movies this weekend.
Tessa wondered if Lucian was embarrassed to be seen with her. Maybe that was the reason why he didn’t take her anywhere. But, that theory didn’t work because he dropped her off right at her desk every morning and picked her up every afternoon, kissing her in front of everyone.
Greg had been super nice to her, and for once actually did his own work and not fobbed it off on her. Come to think of it, everyone was nicer to her. She knew why, and it worried her because she knew when Lucian got sick of her it would go back to what it was or probably worse.
Tessa wasn’t fooling herself that Lucian would keep her. He was way out of her league, and he had a reputation of never keeping a woman. He was the playboy billionaire.
* * * *
He was a demon, for Christ’s sake, and right now he was in the park watching his mate laugh and play games with a bunch of blind and vision-impaired children. Last night he’d taken Tessa out to the exclusive restaurant Life Eats. It was the first time in a good century he’d been in a restaurant alone with just one woman. Even more, with a human. He didn’t like Tessa out in such an open space. He worried an angel or one of his many other enemies would target her. The shifters helped him with protecting her when he or his demons couldn’t.
A little boy stepped up to him, his head to the side. “Hi, I’m Zane. I see you.”
Lucian looked at the boy for a moment. The kid kept cocking his head and blinking. The boy was studying him like he had no idea what Lucian was. Weird. What the fuck was Lucian supposed to do or say? He wasn’t a kid person. Seth was the last child he’d been around, and that was a good century or so ago. “Argh…I er…I see you, too, kid…Zane.”
Turning his focus back on Tessa, Lucian ignored Zane and hoped he went away. Children were trouble, and anywhere kids were it seemed to follow.
“No. You don’t understand. I see, see you. You’re the color of hot. Can you fly with those?”
What! Shooting his gaze back to Zane, he really studied him. The kid was about six, maybe seven years old, with bright red hair and freckles. His skin was white like porcelain and he looked skinny, but healthy. Quickly looking around, Lucian let his demon out enough to take stock of the child before them and breathed in. Lucian smiled when he took only a couple of sins. Ah, a good boy. Lucian gazed down, noticing Zane’s hand gripped hold of the reins linked to a yellow Labrador. Fuck, the kid was blind. What was going on?
Standing up, he stared down at the boy, hoping to intimidate him. Lucian hadn’t been around faulty children or adults before. He’d never seen the need for them. Back in the old days, if it was known from birth a child wasn’t perfect or what they considered perfect, most species—especially the humans—killed them. This was the first time in all his centuries he’d willingly spent time with a faulty being. Lucian was curious. “Are you the only one who can see me? Has another pointed me out?”
Zane shrugged. “We can all see you, I think. I know everyone I’ve asked said they can. It’s why you’re by yourself. We’re all scared you’re like the color of the cold ones. Jenny, who used to be able to see, said they were white.”
Holy shit, they’d seen angels.
“The white ones killed our friends. My Mum said that I’m imagining things and that Billy and Rachael were accidents, but I know. We are being watched. We are all scared and no one will believe us. I told the others that Miss Jackson was nice and wouldn’t ever bring anyone who could hurt us. Jenny said to leave you alone. She said that Miss Jackson probably can’t see, see you like we do. I don’t think you’re bad like the white ones, though, because Frodo likes you. He hasn’t growled at you once. None of the dogs have. They all growl when the white ones are around.”
Zane kept talking, but Lucian was on high alert now. Yanking out his phone, he called Sullivan, the new country’s alpha wolf.
“Lucian, long time.”
“Protection is needed. The angels have targets and I want to know why. Be at my house tonight.”