Darkest Risings (26 page)

A
split second later, he was pounding into her over and over like there was no
tomorrow. Her back thumped against the wall, and she slid up a few inches with
each thrust of his hips. She held on for the ride as he took her hard and fast.
Her muscles unclenched with each upward stroke, and clenched with each retreat
as if trying to prevent him from leaving. Her skin turned clammy, and she cried
out as the beginning of her release hit her like an avalanche.

He
pulled his teeth from her skin, stood straight, cupped her ass with his hands,
and kissed her while he continued to thrust into her. She bounced on him while
he held her with ease. His tongue tangled with hers and he tugged her up then
down again over his thick cock.

“
Come for me now, Wilhemina.”

The
waves of her orgasm had already begun to crash over her, but after his command,
they rushed to shore, making her scream out with each surge. Her body trembled
in pleasure from her release, sent shockwaves of bliss through her one after
another until she thought she might black out from the sensory overload.

“
That’s it, honey. I’m right with you.”

He
slammed up into her again and threw his head back to yell out his own release.
She cried out as he pulsed hot, hard, and deep inside her. The hot jets of his
seed made her muscles clench again as if trying to milk him of every last drop.

She
was replete, satiated beyond comprehension, and sagged against him. She was
glad he held her since she was sure her rubbery legs would not be able to
support her weight at that moment.

He
tangled his fingers in her hair and tugged back until she was looking up into
his face. The blackness started to recede from his eyes, and a hint of
turquoise peeked around the perimeters of the onyx. He kissed her gently,
thoroughly, and she felt the hot tug of desire once again.

He
let her slide down his big body, and she watched as he carefully tucked his
impressive cock into his jeans and buttoned the front.

“You
held back again. You keep telling me how dominant you are in the bedroom, but I
don’t see it.”

“I
don’t feel the need to be that way with you.”

“Oh.”
She frowned. Did she not excite him like other women had? Was she lacking the
skills needed to draw his dominance out?

“Wilhemina.”

She
looked up at him. His mesmerizing eyes nearly made her forget what she’d been
thinking.

“My
dominance
in the bedroom has always been
a way for me to release my stress, my anger, my frustration. With you, I don’t
need that release because the moment I touch you, all of those things cease to
exist. The mere caress of your fingers on my skin has the ability to make me
forget about everything but you and me. You can soothe me with a laugh or
single longing look from those beautiful gray eyes. No other woman has been
able to do what you do. I don’t need from you what I needed from them. With
you, I need things that I’ve never wanted, never longed for.” He gently stroked
her cheek. “With you, I yearn to make love to you thoroughly. I ache to bring
you pleasure like you’ve never known, to hear you cry my name while I’m deep
inside you, to know that you are aware that no other man can make you feel the
way I can.”

“Believe
me when I tell you that even though I’m inexperienced, I know in here”—she
placed her hand over her heart—”that there is no man on Earth that could make
me feel the things you do.” She smiled up at him.

He
kissed her, but ended the kiss way too soon for her liking. She was about to
protest when he spoke.

“Grab
you clothes, Wilhemina. Someone is coming.”

“What?
Oh my God!” She raced to the door with him close behind and bent to pick up her
clothes. He retrieved his shirt from the floor, but when she turned to make a
hasty retreat to the bathroom, he stopped her.

“I
need to get dressed,” she said.

“There’s
plenty of time.”

“But
you said someone was coming.”

“Someone
is.”

“Then
let me get dressed.”

He
shook his head and a hint of a smile tugged his lips up at the corner. He
pulled her against his chest and wrapped his arms around her. “Close your eyes
and relax,” he murmured next to her ear.

“But—”

“Trust
me. Take a deep breath and close those gorgeous eyes of yours.”

She
should be running for the bathroom before whoever was coming caught her
bare-assed with Aldin wrapped around her, but her need to be in his arms was
stronger. She leaned into him and did as he asked. A strange sensation washed
through her, and when she opened her eyes, they were in Aldin’s room.

She
swayed, and a momentary bout of dizziness hit her. He held her against him
until the sensation passed.

“That…was…interesting,”
she said for lack of better words.

“I
didn’t frighten you, did I?” he asked before running his finger gently down her
cheek.

“I think
it happened too fast for me to have been startled by it. Maybe if I had known
what you were about to do beforehand, it might have scared me.”

“I
wouldn’t do anything to hurt or scare you. Not on purpose.”

“I
know that.” She reached up and cupped his cheek.

He
closed his eyes for a moment and leaned into her touch. Her heart thudded at
his response. She loved him more than she ever thought possible. But what kind
of future did they have?

“As
much as I hate to say this, maybe you should get dressed. We need to talk, and
I don’t think I’m going to be able to concentrate with your gorgeous curves on
display.” He leaned down and kissed her quickly on the lips.

She
nodded and made her way to his bathroom to clean up and get dressed. They
needed to talk, but she was dreading it. Would he expect her to forgive and
forget what his mother had done? She didn’t think she could and prayed that
wouldn’t create a wedge between them that had the capability of tearing their
newly budding relationship apart.

Lindsey
wanted her to be happy, but things were chaotic and complicated at the moment.
As she finished dressing, she wondered how long she could hide out in the
bathroom.
You can’t hide out, girl.
Remember what Nana always said.
She smiled when she thought of her grandmother’s
favorite saying for tough times.

“Hope
is the very essence of our souls, and is the very thing that must be hardest
fought for. Every hour wasted on anger holds the possibility for a lifetime of
regrets.”

She
straightened her shoulders in determination and walked toward the door that led
to her possible future.

“There
was absolutely no reason for your mother to kidnap me.” Lindsey tapped her foot
impatiently on the wood floor in the kitchen.

Uriah
leaned against the counter and stared at her with those eerie turquoise eyes,
one condescending brow raised. She couldn’t deny that he was good-looking.
Hell, he was more than good-looking. He was a hot piece of man candy any woman
would be happy to lick, but she didn’t want anything to do with him. For
someone who had been locked up his entire life, he had little compassion for
his fellow human beings.

She
almost snorted. Maybe that was the problem. He wasn’t human. She’d only been
locked up for seven years, and she’d never be more humbled or thankful for her
freedom. Yet Uriah acted like a spoiled, rotten child who thought the world
owed him something. She was not, and would never be one of those
somethings.

“Lovely
Lindsey, whatever are you chattering about?” He crossed his arms over his broad
chest and continued staring at her.

“You
know exactly what I’m talking about.”

Although
she’d only met him a short time ago, she was certain of one thing. Uriah was
crafty, witty, and sharp as a rapier’s edge. She wasn’t lacking in the brains department
herself, but she was no fool either. To spar with Uriah, she would need to be
on her toes.

“Please
enlighten me with your intellect.”

“Fine.
I’ll try to explain it in terms that even you can comprehend.”

She
didn’t miss the way he tensed at her dig. Lindsey, one. Uriah, zero. She wanted
to smile smugly, but decided not to push her luck.

“There
was no need for your mother to kidnap me because you and I will never happen.”

He
didn’t move. Not even a twitch gave a hint to what he thought of her words. “Am
I that repulsive to you?”

That
caught her off guard. Did he really not know how gorgeous he was? “No. I mean.
Of course not.”

“See.
It wasn’t hard at all admitting I’m hot.” He grinned.

Grrrr.
The man was impossible. Uriah one. Now the score was tied.

“Look,
I’ve only known you for a few hours and already you’ve hit my sister and have
acted like a spoiled ass.”

He
uncrossed his arms and laid one palm over his heart. “Oh how you wound me.
Besides, I don’t know what you are talking about.”

“Really?
Not only did you hit my sister, but you caused the fight that resulted in you
hitting her. If we can agree on only one thing, it is that you are not dumb. It
is obvious to anyone with eyes that Aldin and Wilhemina are involved, yet you
came on to her anyway because you are selfish.”

He
straightened, and a somber expression painted his already dark features. “In
case you hadn’t noticed, I was a prisoner just as you were. Only for far
longer. And in case you’ve forgotten, until after the incident with Aldin and Wilhemina,
I was not aware that you and I are life mates. She seemed familiar to me
because she is your sister. If my mother had given me that information before I
was released, I wouldn’t have made that mistake with Wilhemina.”

Lindsey
frowned.

“Marilena
not only stole my entire life from me, and seven years of yours, but she also
nearly robbed me of my life mate. I haven’t a clue to what she might have done
if not for the coincidence of your sister being here. Wilhemina’s presence at
the estate was the final straw in Mother’s plans crashing down around her ears.

 
“Before Wilhemina, Marilena had the option of
wiping your memory and eventually returning you home. But Wilhemina’s ties to
Aldin, and thus my family, puts not only her in danger, but you as well. I
think Mother has finally come to the conclusion that if she does not allow us
to find our life mates and let Ragnor perform the
virtus ritus
that will bring us into our true blood powers, we will
lose the upcoming battle with the drifters. I think Mommy Dearest has finally
realized that she cannot win against Fate, and that we will all most likely die
if she doesn’t stop interfering.”

“I
will never be with you, therefore, Fate loses anyway.”

She
stiffened when he closed the distance between them. They stood toe to toe, and
he stared down at her with that unsettling gaze.

“You
cannot fight Fate, Lindsey. One way or the other, you will be mine.” He reached
out and traced his thumb along her lower lip.

She
jerked away from his touch. “No. I have been imprisoned by your family for
seven years. I was not freed only to be trapped by another Aleksandrov.”

“You
would let us all die, hold all of us responsible for my mother’s actions?”

“That’s
not my call. Apparently, that is Fate’s call, or so you keep saying.”

He
smiled wryly. “I would never trap you, Lindsey. I, better than anyone, know how
that feels.”

He
probably did. While she was okay with her sister being with Aldin, with being
connected to Marilena through Wilhemina if it meant her sibling’s happiness, it
was the closest she wanted to be to the family whose mother was responsible for
her imprisonment.

“
I will always respect your freedom, Lindsey.
No one understands the price of it better than I. But know that I will do
everything in my power to make you love me.”

“Ain’t gonna happen, buster.”

“I like challenges.”

“I’m tired of them myself.”

She
turned to leave, as she’d made herself clear where she stood with him and had
nothing further to say. Before she’d taken two steps, his fingers wrapped
around her wrist and halted her.

“It
would be better if you did not fight the inevitable.”

“Better
for who?” She snorted.

“Better
for all of us, including your sister. Think about that when you are so easily
condemning me and my family to death.”

She
jerked her wrist from his hold and stormed out of the kitchen.

* * * *

Aldin
wasn’t sure Wilhemina could ever come to terms with what his mother had done,
and he wouldn’t blame her if she couldn’t.

“I
know my mother was wrong for what she did. I don’t condone anything she’s done
where the whole prophecy is concerned—except for the part where she finally
decided to set things right. And I will never be able to forgive her for
hurting you. I also thought you should know that I am aware when you are upset
or angry or have any other strong emotion. I can sense your feelings when they
are intense. Right now, you are confused, upset, and hurt. I could read your
mind if I wished, but I will never do so. I respect your privacy, and would
never betray you in that way. I wanted you to know that up front before we
continued.”