Kai (A Dark Assassins Novel Book One) (24 page)

Her hand cupped his face and she brushed a soft kiss against his lips, and he marveled at her acceptance of him.

“Say it again,” he whispered.

“I love you, too, Kai.”

This time, he devoured her mouth, needing to taste her and to feel her heartbeat under his palm as he pressed it tenderly against her chest.
 
It took him by surprise when one of her fangs scraped against his lip, drawing a loud growl from deep in his chest.
 
The innocent move shot pleasure through his body, and when she licked his blood from the cut, he had almost forgotten where they were.
 

He craved her in a way that he could admit, and although he wanted to strip her before plunging deep inside her, taking and giving as much pleasure as they both could find, he remembered that they had an audience.
 
When she pulled back, startled that she had devoured the small drop of blood on his lip, he gave a short laugh and pulled her tighter into his body.

“You…turned me?” she asked.

“Yes,” he said, waiting for her reaction.

Again, she didn’t disappoint.

“Does that mean—”

“That you will be mine, forever?
 
Yes.
 
And when I have a chance to go and pick out a ring, I’m going to ask you to marry me, properly.
 
For now, let’s go home.
 
I’ve missed you.”

“Thank you,” she whispered.

“I couldn’t live without you, love.”

He stood with her still in his lap, and with one long hug, he reluctantly set her on her feet.
 
He watched as her eyes widened as she watched the assassins step out of the shadows of the forest.
 
Gracefully, she jumped into Hunter’s arms, and he easily caught her.

“We were worried about you,” Hunter choked out.

“I couldn’t let him hurt Seth, or any of you.”

Hunter sat her down with ease, and she turned to the rest.

“We understand, but don’t do it again,” Jade growled.

Jade jumped at Liv, who easily caught the smaller shifter in her arms, and they gave each other a long squeeze.
 
When they pulled away, he could have sworn that he spotted tears in Jade’s eyes, but she quickly turned away from him so he couldn’t be sure.
 
One by one, each of the assassins spoke to Liv, and when Thomas and Isaac spoke to her, they both had hope that they could find a mate.

“Where’s Reaper?” she asked.

Everyone grew quiet and shared strained looks before Ghost stepped forward and explained.
 
“He is with the woman who escaped from the facility.
 
It turns out she has certain…powers.
 
He’s keeping her safe until we figure out who knew about her and why they wanted her.”

“Is she dangerous?” Liv asked.

“We don’t know,” Ghost answered.

“Okay, that’s enough for today.
 
I’m taking Liv home,” he growled.

Liv hugged and kissed everyone, thanking them for coming after her.
 
He marveled at how close each of them had grown to Liv.
 
He had neglected their friendships over the years, but Liv was the central figure in bringing them closer than they had ever been.
 
As he pulled her to his side, he felt a rush of pride for the woman who had come to mean everything to him.

“We’ll see you soon,” he said.

Nodding, the assassins scattered.

They arrived home several minutes later, and as they burst through the front door, he locked and armed the system, before his hands found the button of her jeans.
 
He glanced into her eyes.
 
All his patience had fled, and when he tugged the button loose, he ripped the material off her.

“I can’t wait,” he groaned.

“You’re murder on clothes,” she murmured, pressing her lips against his.

Lifting her into his arms, he waited until she wrapped her legs around his waist before he rushed them both up the stairs.
 
He took a moment to flick the lock closed before he shredded the rest of her clothing.
 

Liv, enjoying her newfound power, decided that he shouldn’t be alone in the fun, and reached for the collar of his shirt, ripping it from him and exposing his chest.
 
His breath hissed out as her hands roamed over him, and soon her mouth followed.
 
Shrugging out of his jeans and boxers, he anchored his arms underneath her bottom and lifted her until her breasts were even with his mouth.
 
He nipped and kissed every inch of her skin, loving that she responded to him exactly as she had before.
 

He lay her on the bed, following her down, as desperation overtook him.
 
He kissed a path down her belly, over her rounded hips, and without giving her a moment, ran his tongue along her lips, drawing a long, low moan from her.

“You taste exactly the same,” he mumbled.

His tongue teased her entrance, around her lips, before circling her clit, once and again.
 
When he drew her into his mouth, he sensed her body tense before her orgasm overtook her.
 
She bucked against him, drawing out her exquisite release until she collapsed back onto the bed.
 
It had been too long for both of them, and her responses matched his desperation.
 
Taking his time to savor her sweetness on his tongue, he explored for several more minutes, before he crawled up her body, needing more of her.

“Kai, I need…something.
 
I don’t understand.”

Realization dawned on him that she hadn’t fed yet.
 
He didn’t know whether this would work, but he cradled Liv against his chest, her head buried against his neck, before he spoke.

“Can you sense the large vein in my neck?” he asked.

She lifted her head, and he smiled when her eyes widened.
 

“Numb the area near the vein with your saliva,” he instructed.

Her eyes darted to meet his, and he could see the trepidation that twisted her beautiful face.
 
He knew that drinking for the first time could be devastating, but he would never allow Liv to go through anything as terrifying as this without instruction.

“I don’t want to hurt you,” she whispered.

“You won’t, love.
 
I trust you.”

His words gave her confidence enough to try, and when she leaned toward his neck, he relaxed his body, letting her know that he trusted her completely.
 
The next moment, all thoughts flew out the window and he gripped her around the waist, pulling her closer as her sensual touch made his pulse pound and his need grew into something close to a frenzy.

“Think about the blood flowing on your tongue,” he choked.

He heard her teeth elongate, and she moved her legs so she straddled his lap.
 

“Now, smooth your tongue over the vein until you feel the blood flow.
 
When you feel it, sink your teeth in.”

She scooted closer to him as her arms went around his shoulders, and he snarled in his throat as he felt her wetness brush against his cock while she traced the vein.
 
Her venom made the area around his neck tingle.
 
He held himself still as he waited for her to drink from him.
 
The moment her teeth sank into him, erotic sensations unlike anything he’d ever experienced shivered through his body.
 

As she drank, he clutched her tighter against his body as wave after wave of pleasure left him hard and breathless.
 
He loosened his grip as she moved atop him in a rhythm of her own, and although he wanted to surge inside of her, giving her more pleasure than from his blood, she chose that moment to sink down on top of him.

“Oh, fuck,” he gasped.

Her fangs retracted and he shuddered when her tongue ran over the puncture wounds to seal them.
 
In the next moment, she lay flat on her back, eyes wide at his quick maneuver.
 
He held inside her, and when her eyes met his, he pulled back and surged deep.
 
The pleasure from her teeth and her body drove him into a frenzied state, and he built a rhythm that left them both panting and moaning.

“I love you, Liv, so much,” he said, his face buried against her hair.

“I love you, too.
 
More, Kai.
 
I need it…harder.”

His hands slid underneath her ass, and with each downward thrust, he pulled her into his body, driving him deeper than he ever thought possible.
 
He didn’t need the words to know that she was about to splinter apart with her orgasm, but she needed something more.

His fangs dropped without any thought, and unsure what she would now taste like, he sucked on her skin, numbing the area, before he plunged his fangs into her breast.
 
He was right about her taste.
 
As it coated his tongue, the sweetness of her blood came a close second in sensations to when her muscles clamped down on his cock, each tightening pulse driving him closer and closer to the edge.
 
He sealed her punctures with his tongue, and gripped her hips and drove deeper inside of her.

“Kai,” she gasped.

She threw her head back as she pulsed his cock in a rhythm that left him aching and needy.
 
With his name on her lips, she pushed him over the edge, and with a loud roar, he emptied deep inside her.
 
He held her close, some part of him worried that this had been a delusion, something to punish him for putting her in danger and not being able to protect her in the first place.
 
But as his muscles relaxed and his arms captured her in his grasp, he opened his eyes and marveled as he stared at the one woman who owned him, heart and soul.

“I’m not going anywhere,” she whispered.

“Am I that obvious?”

“Only because I know you.”

She leaned forward to bury her face in his neck and gasped.
 
“It’s gone.”

“What?
 
Oh, the mark.
 
I knew it disappeared the moment your teeth sank into me.
 
The theory I have is that my blood recognized who you were to me before I did, and I think it would have been permanent if I hadn’t changed you.
 
I know I was selfish when I made the decision, but I couldn’t lose you, not after you sacrificed so much for me and the others.
 
You are all I need in this life.”

“Same goes for me.
 
I’m sorry I worried you, and thank you for saving me.”
 
Her fingers lightly traced over his face, his eyebrows, and over his lips.

“You are who I’ve been waiting for my entire existence, and I should really be thanking you, because I never realized how empty my life was before you.
 
I’ll do everything I can to make you happy.”
 
He brushed a kiss against her soft lips.

“I am happy, but tired.
 
Is that normal?” she asked.

He tugged her closer and pulled the comforter over both of them, and smiled as she laid her head on his chest.

“Yeah, it’s normal.
 
I love you,” he said.

“I love you, too,” she whispered.

She cuddled deeper into his body.
 
When he felt her body relax into sleep, only then did he allow his eyes to close.
 
Despite the exhaustion weighing him down, his mind raced as he remembered how close he came to losing her.
 

It would take a long while to forgive himself, but he would make sure that she knew, every day, how much she meant to him.
 
He would no longer keep secrets from her, and from now on, they would be partners as well as mates.

Finally, his racing thoughts slowed and he pulled her closer to his body.
 
As his eyes drifted shut, he kissed her forehead and spoke in a whisper.

“I love you, Liv, and I will spend the rest of our existence proving it.”

Chapter Twenty-One

Olivia

Liv heard the front door open upstairs and not for the first time since she’d become a vampire, she was oblivious of someone sneaking up behind her.
 
When long, lanky arms wrapped around her shoulders, she jumped slightly, but enough for Seth to know he had successfully surprised her, again.

“Hey Livvy, what are we doing today?” he asked.

She closed her eyes and groaned.
 
“Did you have to pick up Jade’s nickname for me?
 
It makes me feel like I’m twelve.”

He laughed and released her, reaching for the rolling chair and dropping his lanky body into it.
 

For the last month, they had been testing her blood, seeing how her cells differed from when she had been human, and they had yet to find any real difference, except when the cells were threatened.
 

Although they both knew that she was different in a fundamental way, she was still Liv, and Seth hadn’t treated her any differently.
 
She suspected it had a lot to do with Kai befriending him at a young age, but he knew that she wouldn’t hurt him, so everything settled back to as it was before, as though nothing happened.
 
She had been impressed by his curiosity, but also his empathy.
 
The more time they spent together, he became more of the little brother she’d never had.

Seth had turned eighteen soon after she’d become a vampire and he had graduated at the top of his class from high school.
 
She was grateful that their ceremony took place at night so she and the rest of the assassins could attend.
 
They were a funny group—two tiny women surrounded by thirty huge shifters and several vampires—but they cheered the loudest when Seth’s name was called, drawing laughs from those seated next to the group.
 
His parents had kept to themselves, and as soon as the ceremony finished, they had gone back to work without a word of congratulations to their son.
 
But Liv was so proud of him and she told him, frequently.