Burning Dawn (Angels of the Dark #3)(61)
Author: Gena Showalter

Gaze hooded, she moved around the table, eased onto the couch, and slowly spread her legs. She crooked a finger at him. “Come here.”

A willing slave, he closed the distance, shoving the coffee table out of the way and breaking its legs. He knelt in front of her. With his hands on her knees, he forced her to spread her legs even wider. He fought to retain composure.

Mine. She’s mine. That’s mine.

He’d never tasted a woman—not the way he was currently thinking. He knew some men hated the act, and some loved it. He knew some tolerated it the same way some women tolerated sex, willing to do it to please a partner, but not necessarily enjoying it.

Now, in a daze, almost desperate, fueled by desire, he lowered his head. Hovered, still waiting. “Elin?”

“Do it. Put your mouth on me.”

He slooowly tasted her. His eyes closed, and he savored the feminine flavors that instantly drugged and addicted him. “More,” he said. He took another taste, and another, until he was lapping at her…indulging.

Her exhalations turned shallow. “Yes,” she moaned, hips writhing, seeking more of him. “Don’t stop. Please, don’t stop.”

Would rather die.

“Die. Yes, I’ll die if you don’t take me all the way.”

He reached up to knead her br**sts, but she took one of his hands and sucked a finger into her hot, sweet mouth. He felt the suction all the way to his sac, and jerked, rubbing his erection into the couch. When he next licked her, he was frantic, flicking the tip of his tongue over the little bundle of nerves at her apex, again and again, and she cried out.

“More,” she said, and sucked him harder.

He slid lower, to her entrance, and thrust his tongue in and out, in and out, mimicking the motions of sex. He was so hard he feared he would burst at any second.

“Thane.” She anchored her feet at the edge of the couch and undulated against his mouth. He returned to the bundle of nerves, flicking, flicking, and slid two fingers deep inside her. She was so warm and wet the glide was easy. “Yes!”

My woman likes this. He sucked on her, using the same rhythm as his fingers, and she began to buck against him. Faster and faster. The sounds she made became incomprehensible. It was exquisite nonsense…until she grabbed him by the hair and screamed his name, her inner walls clenching on him.

He was still kissing her when her body stopped twitching. Still kissing her when she sagged against the couch, spent and boneless.

Still kissing her when she stopped sucking his finger and gave him a little push.

Though he wasn’t nearly done with her, he lifted his head. As she watched, he licked his mouth, taking in the rest of her essence. Nothing was left behind. Each little bit was a reward.

She straightened. Expression bright with contentment, she reached out and rubbed her palm over his aching shaft.

He almost spilled. He definitely moaned. “Harder.”

“No. I’m going to leave you with this,” she whispered raggedly, “and you’re not going to do anything about it. That’s your punishment for sending me away.”

Punishment. Pain.

But the best kind…

He would not be injured. She would not be injured. Guilt would never enter the equation.

It was…perfect.

He nodded slowly, eager to play her game. “I will not touch it.”

She placed a soft kiss on his lips. “Maybe I’ll see you later.”

“Count on it.” She stood, stepped around him, and clothed herself before leaving the room without another word.

* * *

ELIN STOOD BEHIND the out-of-bounds line and tried not to tremble. The Fang Bangers waited on the other side of the court, ready for the gun to fire and signal the start of the game. The team was made up of six women, with two substitutes on the sidelines. Each was a vampire.

“Hey, hemogoblins,” Savy called. “How does it feel to know you’ll be leaving the gym in pieces?”

Every member of the Fang Bangers hissed at her. One even growled, “Go ahead and start singing, fat lady songbird. This game is already over.”

Between the two teams were six huge boulders Elin would never be able to lift. Thane was right. She hadn’t improved.

Why am I even here?

Answer: because the girls asked her, and she couldn’t say no.

The “rules” raced through her mind.

The first rule of dodge boulder: there were no rules. Kidding! If a boulder was thrown at her, and she caught it, the thrower was benched, but there was no such thing as an illegal shot. Someone could nail her in the head or the groin, and she would be out. Literally. Causing someone to experience a physical death for five seconds or more added ten points to her team’s score—immortals would revive. There were no breaks (other than bones) and no time-outs. No penalty flags. The game would last until an entire team was out.

Basically, it was dodgeball on a steady diet of steroids and growth hormone.

This is gonna hurt, so bad.

Boom!

In the opening rush, every player converged in the center of the basketball court to claim a boulder. Except Elin. Have to play to my strengths. Aka survival. Dodging thousand-pound missiles equaled survival. She hung back and waited.

Her heart drummed in a wild rhythm, and sweat trickled down her spine. Loud cheers scraped at her ears. The surrounding stands were filled to capacity with immortals of every race, a sea of faces grinning with relish. Everyone was foaming at the mouth, eager to witness the first splat.

For a moment, Elin thought she felt Thane’s gaze upon her. Only he could heat her skin with a look, and melt her bones, and make her tremble. But there was no way he’d come here to watch her play. Not after she’d taken her pleasure and left him without his own, hard and desperate. She’d just thought…hoped… Well, it didn’t matter now. He was probably ticked. The sensation of being visually caressed must have sprung from their new connection. A connection she hadn’t wanted! Already she was too aware of him. She needed distance, not a chain that bound them.

Concentrate.

Good idea, and none too soon. One of the boulders acted as a heat-seeking missile, heading straight for her. Elin danced out of its path at the last second, barely avoiding a meet-and-greet with her internal organs.

Bellorie ran past her, a huge silver rock clutched to her chest. “Plan Hurt Some Biatches, Bonka Donk! It’s a go!”

That was right. Plan A: Stay close to Bellorie, but not so close Elin would be hidden. Taunt and tease the other players, drawing their wrath, and thereby making them forget the Harpy was nearby.