Darkness Seduced (Primal Heat Trilogy #2) (Order of the Blade) (23 page)

She wanted to stay right where she was, igniting under the intensity of his sizzling gaze.

Lily swallowed hard, trying to break the spell she felt like she was under. “You wanted something?”

Still he stood, his clothes getting drenched, water streaming down his face, staring at her.

“Gideon?”

“I’m thinking.”

God, she should be thinking. Thinking would be smart. So much smarter than letting herself ride the wave of heat building inside her. But she couldn’t think of a single thing other than
him
. He was simply the entirety of her mind, of her being. His aura, his power and his maleness were consuming her.

His gaze finally went to her body, and his jaw tightened at what he saw. His hand moved, and she knew what he was going to do before he did. She pressed her lips together as his fingers brushed over a bruise on one of her breasts. She watched his expression tighten, letting his growing anger be her shield against the memories of how she’d gotten those injuries.

“Hell, Lily,” he whispered, his voice raw. “You’re covered in bruises.”

She lifted her chin, refusing to look down at what he was seeing. She didn’t want Gideon to regard her as damaged goods. She wanted him to look at her as a woman who was beautiful, strong and desirable. She wanted to be who she was today, not what she’d experienced in the past. “It’s over. I’m moving on.”

He slid his hand over her skin, his touch soothing and stirring at the same time, moving down until he laid his palm over a large, yellowing bruise on her inner thigh. Sadness flickered in his eyes. “You’ve suffered too much already.”

She felt her throat thicken. “Don’t give me sympathy, Gideon. I can’t take it right now. I have to focus on what I need to do. I need to be strong.”

“Turn around.” He gently cupped her shoulder and turned her even as he spoke.

She let him spin her and leaned her forehead against the cool tile of the shower as she felt his gaze on her back. His fingers traced the cuts from the glass. The glass had been washed out in the river, but the slices still stung. She could only imagine how awful her body looked right now.

Gideon’s curse was a whisper as he caught her wrist and turned her around to face him again, touching her jaw with the pad of his finger before dropping his hands to his sides. He was intentionally not touching her, and she ached at the distance between them. The few inches seemed like a tremendous gulf, a chasm that made her feel alone and desperate for connection.

“Stop worrying about my injuries. We have much bigger things to deal with now.” She gestured at her bruises, forcing herself to stay focused. “These matter only if I get more of them. As long as I can stay safe from here on out, I’m good—”

His eyes narrowed ever so slightly, and she had a fraction of a second to realize he’d made a decision before he moved. He was on her so fast she didn’t even know he’d moved until she felt the rough material of his shirt against her breasts, until the wet denim of his jeans scraped across her belly, until his hands gripped her bare hips. He pinned her against his body for a brief moment, his eyes searching hers, as if for confirmation.

Oh, wow. This was going to be some kind of kiss. “Don’t—”

He slammed his mouth over hers before she could finish her protest.

“Gideon,” she gasped, unable to articulate the need building inside her as she moved her hips in desperate invitation.

“No, not yet.” Gideon held her writhing hips to the bed with a heavy forearm across her belly. He dropped his head and bit her nipple, his teeth nearly closing through the skin.

Pain shot through Lily, morphing instantly into a pleasure so hot she couldn’t think past the crackle of energy pulsing through her. His mouth closed on her breast again, this time his tongue and his lips, while his fingers stretched her and teased her.

There was a loud crack somewhere in the distance, a crack that sounded like a Calydon weapon coming out. “Gideon—”

“Shh. It’s okay. It was me.” He worked his way back up her body, kissing and licking as he went, and she felt the cold steel of his axe on her belly.

Lily tensed, and he kissed her before she could protest. “I’m not going to hurt you,” he whispered, his breath hot in her mouth. “I swear it. I’m going to keep you safe.”

There was something dark in his tone that sent alarm spiraling through her, penetrating the lustful haze he was weaving around her. “Wait—”

“There’s no waiting, Lily. There’s no more time.” His fingers began to work their magic again, sliding deep inside her, drawing her into their spell, even as she struggled not to succumb to the heat he was stoking within her. “Trust me,
sheva
. I can do you no harm. You know I can’t.”

His words touched a truth she’d long known about a Calydon and his
sheva
: a Calydon would die before he would hurt his mate. Steeped in the thrill of knowing this strong, deadly warrior was her ultimate protector, Lily’s body refused to resist his touch, and desire began to build within her again.

Gideon’s axe moved over her skin, a cold edge teasing dangerous fires within her. He pressed it under the underside of her breast, and she felt the pressure of the icy metal against her skin.

But there was no fear in her, just dangerous pleasure as Gideon took her to that edge, as she let her head fall back and arched her back, pressing her body against his blade as his fingers slid deeper within her. His thumb teasing over her folds as she gave herself over to him, even as his blade scraped across her breasts, so close to her heart.

“You’re giving me the chance to kill you,” he whispered.

“You won’t.”

“But I could.” The blade slid over her throat, a sharp edge so close to cutting her, but not quite. “By trusting me with something so dear...your life, we just completed another stage of the bond.
Trust
.”

His satisfied words penetrated the sensual fog clouding Lily’s mind, and she realized he’d done it on purpose
. He was trying to tighten the bond
. She started to tense, then his fingers plunged deeper, tearing a gasp from her throat.

Gideon kissed her hard, knowing he had her where he needed her. Her mouth was warm and wet, her tongue desperate for him. Her need for him was burning deep inside him, matching his own, but he could feel her mind struggling to surface, trying to rationalize, trying to plan what was best for them.

Fuck that. He knew what was best, but he also knew they were both too damn cynical to let him do it, if he gave either of them time to think about it. He was riding the high of his instincts, and he didn’t want to give either of them a chance to think about what he was about to do.

Lily moaned softly, her hips writhing beneath him as he found his rhythm, stroking her most sensitive spot with his fingers. His arm still pinning her to the bed, he could feel her belly tightening beneath his forearm as he coaxed her response. Still kissing her, he shifted his position to take his weight off the hand with his axe, and he moved the axe over his wrist, over the small white scar he carried.

Lily stirred beneath him.
What are you doing?
Her question was foggy, barely surfacing through the haze of desire he’d stirred up inside her.

Protecting you
.
He shoved the blade into his wrist as he thrust into her with his fingers again. He barely felt the prick as his skin split. Lily moaned with desire as the blood began to slide down his arm. He positioned the axe over the side of her neck, testing for the right spot. Minimal pain, maximum result. The cold metal pressed against her skin and Lily’s eyes snapped open.

He hesitated for a split second, as she stared at the axe. At his arm. At the blood.

Realization dawned with instant clarity. “Bastard!” Lily grabbed his wrist, her fingers slipping on the blood. She dug deeper, her nails digging into the cut he’d made on his arm as she fought to get out from under him. “Get off me!”

Gideon grabbed her shoulders and pinned her to the bed, looming over her. “They’re going to try to take you from me, Lily. I have to bind us to keep you safe. It’s the only way I’ll be able to find you.”

“Damn you, Gideon! Let go of me!” Lily tried to bring her knee up between his legs, but he blocked her easily, not releasing her.

“No, dammit!” He could smell her panic, and guilt hit him. “Listen to me, Lily! They’re going to take you! Do you want to be kidnapped again?”

His words seemed to register, and she stopped fighting. She stared at him with her chest heaving and her eyes wide. “I can’t be kidnapped again,” she whispered. “
I can’t
.”

“I know, babe.” He softened his grip. “If we do the blood bond, I’ll be able to find you anywhere, no matter how far away we are. No matter how well hidden you are.” He smoothed her damp hair off her forehead, letting his weight settle on her. “It’s the only way I know I’ll be able to find you.”

“How could Frank get me here? How could he get past all of you?”

Gideon hesitated, having difficulty admitting it was the Order who’d been planning to take her, that it had been his own team he was planning to screw with. He’d been ready to risk the Order’s vitally important plans to use Lily to keep Ezekiel from getting free. Where was his loyalty? Fuck.
Fuck.
Was he really going to make that choice? No, he wouldn’t. He would find a way to fulfill both his missions. “I can’t let you die,” was all he said instead.

Lily’s eyes held a wisdom he hadn’t expected. He’d expected anger, retaliation, and fury that he’d planned to tighten their bond without her consent. But Lily wasn’t that kind of woman. Logic was her tool to survival, and he saw her rapidly assess their situation and analyze it. “It’s not just Frank, is it?” she asked. “You’re worried about the Order as well. They’re the ones who want to take me from you.”

Gideon said nothing, feeling that any answer was a betrayal to his Oath. To his team.

“Is it because I’m your
sheva
?”

“That, and more.”

She pressed her lips together and let her head flop back on the pillow, staring at the ceiling. “You could have discussed it with me.”

“I wouldn’t have done it if I’d let myself think about it.”

“Why not? Because it’s a stupid idea? Because it’s not necessary?”

He hesitated.

She lowered her gaze to look him.

“Because it scares the shit out of me, Lily.” He rubbed his finger over a bruise on her shoulder, as if he could wipe it away. “But I won’t make the same mistake twice.” His voice hardened as he met her gaze. “No way in hell am I going let another
sheva
die for me.”