DESCENDANTS (THE DESCENDANTS SAGA) (21 page)

-43-

H
e wanted to explore her body, needed to. But he cared more about her than his need. Knowing he had to find a way to cool down, he focused his powers to create a ball of ice in his palm. She laughed when she realized what he was doing and placed her hand on top of his. She guided the ice over her exposed arm.

Suddenly, he could sense every inch of exposed flesh. Try as he might, he was failing miserably to focus his attention away from his burning desire. Instead, he set to observing how the water trickled over her as the heat of her skin melted the ice. When he traced the exposed flesh of her abdomen, she moaned and arched her back, pressing deeper into his icy touch.

As her need for him grew, she grabbed his neck, pulling his head down so their mouths could
meet
. His heart felt as though it stopped as her tongue demanded entry to his mouth. He was too weak to fight it and parted his lips, letting her run her tongue across his teeth. She withdrew it as he matched her need with his tongue.

A feeling, so deep it was beyond love, beyond passion, overtook him and he pulled her closer to him. White flames engulfed their bodies as they held each other. He drew further in, pushing her up against the headboard. Her legs wrapped around his torso. She arched her back, pressing her chest against his. Then she said the three words he had waited a lifetime to hear.

“I love you.”

He pulled his head back so he could see her face, gaze on her
red
hair.

“I love you too, Sollara.”

His words brought joyful tears. He used his cheek to wipe them off. She shuddered at his touch.

Her movements under him conjured intense emotions. After he dragged his tongue over her ear, he nibbled down her neck. With one hand he explored her stomach, and his other wrapped around her waist pulling her closer into him.

In soft-circled motions, his fingertips caressed her flesh moving ever downward as their lips met again for another embrace. His fingers came to rest on the top of her pants and then slipped underneath. But before he could go further she stopped him.

“Wait Kai… please... trust me I want this…but I want to do it the right way....” she managed through heavy breaths.

He rolled back from her and pressed his body against the side of the bed. “Of course Sollara. I’m so sorry. I’m an idiot! I told myself I want to do the right thing and respect you. But you have me so turned on that I let that get the best of me.” He slammed his palm against his forehead to punish himself for being stupid and putting his fleshly needs above what was best for her.

“I can tell,” she giggled.

His blue eyes locked with hers, grateful that she was lightening the tension with a joke. “That's it!” he retorted as he dove atop her and tickled her while simultaneously flipping her on to him.

They laughed and kissed and held
each other far into the night. When they finally came to rest,
their legs entangled and her head
lay
on his chest. Her hand traced the contours of his muscles, and he trailed his fingers over the warm soft skin of her lower back. Soon the white flames dwindled and sleep and contentment found them.

…
“That nap was perfect,” Sollara moaned as she stretched her arms and yawned. Her body still tingled at the thought of his icy touch. Kai dramatically flopped his arm over her and pulled her back down to him. A smile came to her face as she watched him pretend to sleep. He was perfect, and wonderful. Because of that is had been so hard to stop him from advancing their physical relationship. She still couldn’t figure out why she asked him to stop, as her body wanted it to happen.

The only thing she could guess was, she felt the need to respect him, too. It was hard for her to describe, but he was not just an amazingly handsome man. He was the most caring, considerate, protective, generous person she had ever known. She laughed when she remembered the times when she didn’t trust him, and when she thought he was a liar and a jerk. How silly those assumptions seemed now.

Being with him, being held in his arms. Listening to his heartbeat, feeling his chest rise and fall under her head. All this made her forget about the many hurts and losses in her life. Such things like not knowing her parents, her neglected upbringing, and the death of her closest friend, Asima. Now the only thing that brought her any pain was the thought of losing him.

“Hey baby,” he whispered in her ear, his voice still groggy from being asleep.

She smiled at him and watched as he opened his eyes. They were so bright and alive, bluer than she had ever seen them.

“Morning,” she blushed. Just looking at him made her temperature rise. He was striking.

“Let’s get something to eat and go to the Library. You can read me a book that you like before we have to go to training,” he suggested.

“That sounds perfect.”

She surveyed his features as he hopped out of bed: bronze skin, golden hair, chiseled muscles, tight behind. She giggled to herself.

“What's so funny?” he asked.

“I was just thinking it was funny that I can appreciate someone's bottom so much.”

“Hey, no fair!” he said as he jumped around turning his backside from her and exposing his front. Her eyes widened at the new focal point and a blush made its way to her cheeks. He pursed his lips and made a noise indicating she was being naughty. Then picked up a pillow and held it in front of his pants.

“Phew, that was a close one!” she said.

He cocked an eyebrow as if to ask what she was talking about.

“It was getting hard to not jump the hot guy standing in front of me,” she teased.

He looked at her and gave a mischievous smile before pretending to pull his pants off. She jumped out of bed and slapped him on the butt as she hurried past him to the bathroom to get changed.

-44-

L
aora had been watching Sollara for many days now, learning what she did and whom she did it with. What she saw of Sollara’s boyfriend she really liked. She would enjoy Mari’s orders more than she had thought.

She sat behind a bookcase in the Library watching Sollara chat with her mouth-watering man.

“He has to like you. Why else is he always around?” Kai asked.

“Sweetheart, Josiah does not like me. He is madly in love with Hannah. Everyone knows it but Hannah and apparently you. Stop being so jealous.”

Laora hated watching the crab Sollara talk so rudely to her scrumptious man. She hated even more watching her tickle his side. But watch she did, until Sollara and Kai left the library in different directions with an agreement to meet at training. Laora had been wracking her brain, trying to think of a way to infiltrate and get Sollara. And after watching them at the library, a plan started to form. She hurried out in search of Josiah.

When she saw him coming down the hall, she slipped into a side room and took the form of Hannah. “Hey Josiah,” she squealed, in the most Hannah-like tone she could muster.

“Hey Hannah, how are you today? I didn't know you’d returned from the party already. I thought you stayed with the other guys,” he replied as he leaned against a wall to talk to her.

She mentally kicked herself for not finding out what Hannah had been up to before taking her form. Now she had to think of something on the spot.

“Uh, I took a cab home early. I was tired.” She pressed her arms together trying to expose as much cleavage as she could.

“Ah,” he laughed, as he tried to be respectful and not look anywhere but her eyes. Laora could tell he really liked Hannah. In fact, she wo
uld even guess he loved Hannah

his eyes seemed to overflow with love the way he looked at her.

“Hey listen Josiah, I want you to go to Kai and tell him to wait for Sollara in her car. Tell him she told you that she changed her mind and doesn't want to wait,” she said as she ran her fingers over his chest.

“Why wouldn't Sollara tell him herself? Why does she need us?” Josiah asked, his voice and breathing reflecting his building excitement.

“Because she told me she was hoping that if the two of us helped them in their romance, that maybe it will help us in getting a romance of our own.” At that she leaned forward and gently kissed his lips. He stood frozen in shock and did not return the kiss. Laora knew she would have to do something extreme so she grabbed his hand and led him into a broom closet.

Laora did things in the closet that even she was not proud of. The whole time, she didn't let him kiss her. Instead, she pleasured him in many other ways. Her next kiss was being saved for Sollara’s mouth-watering man.

“Hannah, I had no idea you felt this way about me. I have liked you for years,” he confessed as he gently stroked her face.

Laora cringed

she knew what men did after being pleasured. It was the time when they spilled their deepest secrets, and she really didn’t care to hear how much Josiah loved Hannah. So she tuned him out and plastered a fake smile on her face.

When he finally finished, she made sure he would do what she had asked. “So can you tell Kai what I asked you? And if you are a good boy, I will come to you again tonight.” That was all she needed to say. Josiah had taken the bait. He quickly pulled himself together and left to find Kai.

Now all Laora had to do was distract Sollara. She stayed as Hannah and went out to find Sollara.

“Hey Hannah,” Sollara said as Laora entered the room.

“Hey Sollara, I found this note from Kai. It tells you to go to Phoebe’s office. Something about he had to go away, but he couldn’t explain any more than that. But being with Phoebe should help you. He also says he doesn't know when or if he will come back.” Laora worked to hold back her smile as she watched Sollara’s face drop. She snatched the note out of Laora’s hand to see for herself.

“Why? Why would he do this now? I just don't get it….” Sollara murmured to herself as she headed to Phoebe’s office.

Laora’s plan was fast in motion. It had been easier than she had expected to convince Sollara that Kai didn’t want her and that he had left her. Laora went upstairs to change into something sexy and wash Josiah's smell off of her. She wanted to smell fresh for Kai. When she finished getting ready, she hurried to where she had left him to wait. When she was out of distance of the school, and of Kai, she changed into the form of Sollara.

Sollara’s car was parked in a hidden cleft in the side of a hill. It was the perfect place for Laora to seduce Kai. When he saw her coming his face lit up. Good little boy waiting exactly where she had instructed Josiah to tell him.

“Hey, what made you change your mind?” he asked, his voice so full of love.

“Your hot body, what else!” she snickered.

He looked at her as though he didn't understand, confusion displayed prominently across his face. She didn't waste anytime, knowing she had to distract him from those thoughts before he figured something was different about Sollara.

Laora climbed into the car next to him and started undressing him. Her hands eagerly worked away until his delicious form sat exposed next to her.

He couldn’t be sure, but he thought her eyes looked different. There was intensity in them that he had never seen before. Her voice sounded deeper, darker. Maybe it was just the lust filled passion changing her, but for some reason he didn't feel comfortable.

“Sollara, are you sure you want to do this? What happened to waiting for the right time?” he asked, as he grabbed her hands and held them still.

“Kai, who knows what tomorrow brings. What if Mari kills one of us and we never get to experience the deepest passion? I decided why wait when we can be together now.” She knew he would take any excuse to hold her in his arms. She crawled up into his lap and started to undress. As she did, he gently kissed her exposed flesh.

-45-

“
P
hoebe, I don't get it. Why would he leave?” Sollara cried into her hands as she sat on the couch in Phoebe’s office.

“I don't know child, perhaps something changed his mind.”

She was trying to be comforting, but nothing other than Kai's embrace could comfort Sollara now. She needed to know why he left. She
had
to know or she would forever blame herself for not making love to him. That wouldn’t have been why he left, but try as she might, Sollara couldn’t think of any other reasons.

“Phoebe, take me to the room and make the mirror show me Kai. Not in the past but now. Can you do that?” She dried her eyes with her sleeve as she asked.

“Yes, I will do this for you.” What Phoebe did not admit, was that she, too, was worried. It wasn’t like Kai to act this way, and she also wanted to know why he left. Sollara followed her down into the depths of the manor to the room with the mirror pool.

As soon as Sollara entered the room, fear gripped at her chest. She hated this room. The last time she was there everything in her life shattered at her feet.

She closed her eyes and said a silent prayer to the Fates. “Please don't take Kai away from me, too.”

Phoebe started to chant, “Juint colapsio fornet extonia.”

The water started to glow and spin and twist and the mirror soon appeared. Phoebe then grabbed Sollara’s hand, and together they looked deep into the mirror.

Sollara’s vision slowly resolved into focus. She realized she was standing in front of her car. Inside of it were two bodies pressed against each other. Phoebe tightened her grip on Sollara’s hand as she felt her heart go into her throat. Hesitantly, Sollara walked up to the window to get a better look. She had to know if Kai was with another girl.

What she saw was unimaginable. She saw herself sitting almost naked on his lap. He was kissing her body while she moaned with pleasure. But she looked different, or maybe that was what she looked like when in the heat of passion. She couldn’t be sure. “I thought I asked you to show me Kai now, not Kai in the future.”

“But I don't understand. I am showing you Kai now. How can you be there?” As she said the words, her face dropped.

“Tha
t person is a shifter

it is so rare I would never have noticed one walking through our school. I am so sorry Sollara.” 

Anger built within Sollara. She wanted revenge
. She wanted more than revenge

she wanted blood.

“No. No Phoebe, it can't be. He can't be with someone else. I can't, I...Just...No!” she screamed as she crumpled to the floor.

“Sollara you have to get up now. We have to go and try to stop this,” Phoebe yelled as she tried to pull Sollara up.

Struggling to get to her feet, she relied on Phoebe to steady her. Her eyes were closed tightly as she couldn't bear to see him touching another girl, even if the other girl looked just like her. She felt sick, lost, and alone. Her heart pressed her to run and to stop what was happening. But her rational side told her that she was already too late.

…
A
s Kai felt his need and passion rise, he couldn’t help but feel wrong. It seemed as though Sollara wasn’t reciprocating. She was sitting on him and kissing his body, but it was just physical, about need not passion. The special connection they shared felt absent. It was one of the things he treasured, as it was deeper than passion, fuller than lust, and purer even than love. And it was definitely not there.

Their bodies were pressed against each other while they kissed. Yet unlike the other times, there were no white flames. It was weird, and Kai didn’t fully understand why things didn’t seem the same. But he knew that Sollara had been growing in her ability to control her gifts, and maybe she had learned to control their soul fire as well.

He started kissing down the side of her neck. Normally, she would let out a cute little moan. This time she said it tickled and asked him to cut it out. That was when he knew for sure something was not right. She didn’t seem to be enjoying herself, and truthfully, he was thinking too much to enjoy it either. Being there with her didn’t seem special or sacred enough for them to force making love.

He looked over her shoulder out the window while he tried to decide what to do. He had an odd sensation that Sollara was right outside. He felt foolish as she was on his lap kissing his neck. That was when he realized his heart was telling him that it wasn’t right, not here not now.

“Sollara wait,” he said as he pushed her off of his lap.

“Why? Don’t you find me attractive?” she pouted.

“No, it is not that. You
are the most beautiful girl I’
ve ever seen. It's just… I want to make this special for you. This is your first time and somehow this just doesn't seem right.”

“Fine, then we are over. Don't bother calling me, don't come to my room, just leave me alone. You were a horrible kisser and probably would be worse in the sack anyway. I hate you, Kai!” She grabbed her clothes and stormed out of the car.

“What the hell just happened?” He rested his head in his hands. How could she react like that when he was trying to put her first again?