Tariq slumped on top of Reyna, his body a deadweight, flattening her on the mattress. He had neither the strength nor the energy to care how his weight affected her. As long as he was inside of her, surrounding her, she couldn’t flee. She’d come seeking him but it hadn’t been out of a desire to commit to their mating. Reyna had wanted to bargain with him for her release.
His Heart’s Blood didn’t recognize she belonged to him as completely as he belonged to her. After this last lovemaking session, Tariq felt he understood his woman very well. Until all of her accepted the inevitability of their mating, he planned to keep her chained by his side.
By whatever means necessary.
Tariq didn’t waste time lamenting the fact Reyna wasn’t Vampalien or a malleable human. The Ancient One didn’t make mistakes. He’d given Tariq this beautiful, complex, obstinate woman, and it was up to Tariq to hold onto her.
They would talk. He planned to learn all of Reyna’s secrets and reveal all of his. The first thing he wanted to ask is who was the man she’d been with in the cave? Reyna had loved him enough to be protective of him, and concerned for his safety, but she wasn’t in love with him. Now that he had her with him and jealously wasn’t clouding his vision, Tariq realized what he’d felt from her emotionally hadn’t matched what his eyes told him. He could also see what he’d missed before. Reyna had been feeding from the male’s neck. In the future she could plan on getting the blood she needed solely from him.
Tariq needed to have another, more in depth talk with Alvaro. He’d said the Felini couldn’t teleport. He’d also stated the Felini were a lot like earth’s big cats. To his knowledge, those felines might like their meat bloody but they didn’t have fangs capable of draining blood. His Heart’s Blood was a walking mystery. One it was up to him to decipher.
His cock was still rock hard, courtesy of the venom. He shifted them both onto their sides, careful to keep their bodies connected. Tariq groaned when the silken glove of her sheath tightened around him. Then smiled when he heard her purr. Oh yeah, the Ancient One knew exactly what he was doing. Tariq planned to coax a lifetime of purrs out of his reluctant blood mate.
He rolled his hips, gliding smoothly in and out of her vagina. Tariq kept the pace slow, in no rush to reach completion. Reyna sighed and ground her ass against his stomach. The purring got louder.
Tariq lifted Reyna’s leg, holding her open for deeper penetration. With his free hand he strummed her clit. He buried his face in her neck and inhaled her scent, imprinting it on his senses. Even blindfolded he’d be able to distinguish her from any other.
Murmuring to her in the ancient language of his homeland Vampalien, Tariq told her how much he loved her, wanted her, and needed her. How his life had been void and empty until she’d come and filled him. Now that she was a part of him he would never be able to let her go. And when she left this world for the one beyond, he’d follow behind so they would always be together.
Reyna reached an arm back and curled it around his head. The claws of her hand dug into his scalp as she pulled him closer to her. She moaned, low and deep in her throat. When he licked her neck and sank his fangs into the tendon, Reyna cried out and came around his cock in a gush of liquid heat.
He licked the trickle of blood away. Her orgasm felt so good, he wanted more. “Do it again,” he commanded as he shifted closer, plunged deeper, and lost himself in the pleasure. He was in her and around her, filling her heart, mind, body and soul. The link between them cemented into an unbreakable bond. There was no Tariq without Reyna and no Reyna without him.
Time lost all meaning. He drowned his senses in the essence that was his Heart’s Blood. Indulged his need for the gratification only she could supply. When his body reached its crisis point, Tariq made sure Reyna was with him again as he hurtled over the edge.
Temporarily sated but by no means satisfied, he fell into a light doze, allowing his and Reyna’s bodies to rest before the next round began.
The dark veil of sleep gradually lifted from Reyna’s slumbering consciousness. The first thing she noticed was a dull throb between her thighs. It was echoed by the pain in her neck. Her head felt fuzzy. Not quite aching but disjointed as though it wasn’t directly attached to her shoulders. The heaviness in her chest caused her breath to come out in raspy pants.
It took long precious moments to realize the weight wasn’t inside her chest, but on her back. No, her entire body. Had there been an earthquake while she slept? Was she even now buried beneath a pile of rubble? Afraid of being entombed alive, she gathered her waning strength and pushed up. The weight rumbled its displeasure and settled more securely against her. She became aware of the thickly muscled masculine arm wrapped securely around her waist and the long, hairy legs bracketing hers.
Recollection returned in bits and pieces. The Vampalien. She’d come to try and reason with him and had instead ended up in bed with him—again. Of course, Reyna placed the blame for her current predicament on her cat. Disregarding her wishes, it had arched and preened and prowled inside her skin, making her crazy with the need to be fucked.
The growing heat in her nerve endings caused another memory to slide loose: the mating venom. The male—I can’t believe I still don’t know his name!—had stated the toxin acted like an aphrodisiac, which was the last thing she needed. Her cat didn’t need yet another excuse to get laid. Also that it prepared her womb for his seed.
Despite her mental reservations Reyna found herself moving, stretching, and arching into him. His hardening male organ was lodged inside of her liquefying sex as though it belonged. Involuntarily, she tightened around him. Her mind might not believe they belonged together, but her body wanted him.
The Vampalien side of her nature reminded her, We are his, as he is ours.
At the sound of that voice, the remainder of the evening came rushing back in a flood, with all its associated emotions and sensations. She and this vampyr—I have to find out his name!—had connected on a soul deep level. He was in her, melded to her. They could never be disconnected.
The hurt child in her immediately protested. No! Remember all you’ve suffered because of his kind. This one is no better than your father. Your father took your mother, just as this one claimed you, without asking your permission or opinion on the matter. As though it were his right.
Jorlan’s words came back to haunt her. “You can’t continue to blame a whole race for one man’s actions.”
Mentally, Reyna stood at a crossroads. She could go back to her old life, such as it was, and possibly convince Jorlan to breed her. Perhaps becoming a Queen in truth would gain her the acceptance and love she craved. If not, surely her cubs would love her.
“Yes,” her inner child quickly agreed. “Jorlan loves you. He stayed with you when everyone else turned their backs on you, casting you out as so much rubbish. It’s his duty to breed you. Then you’ll have the family you’ve always wanted.
Or she could let go of past resentments and embrace the Vampalien side of her nature and all that came with it, this vampyr in particular. She could share his life. A change might be just what she needed.
Jorlan. Choose Jorlan, her inner child chanted.
Forward or backwards, Reyna, which will it be?