Viper (Second Wave Book 1) (26 page)

“I thought the time apart would
encourage you to want to at least speak about the future. It became a misery of
my own making because the more time I spent away from you the more I wanted to
be near you. I had to stay away more and more in order to stop myself from
claiming you. Then you were gone.” Viper barely said the last through the
sudden tightness in his throat. The pain of that day rushing back to him all
over again.

Lara reached across the table and
held his hand. “Hey, look at me.” Lara said, waiting for him to look at her
with his beautiful green eyes before continuing.

“It wasn’t your fault. You were right;
I really wasn’t ready, and I didn’t know who I was without any of you. I was
never really my own person. From the moment of my birth, I ceased to be Kinara
and became Viper’s mate. I was even introduced as ‘This is Viper’s mate,
Kinara.’” Lara mimicked their parents perfectly.

“Half the time those people never
remembered my name, only the ‘Viper’s mate’ part and that’s what they would
call me. The older I got the more I started to resent it. So when you started
spending more time away, I became bolder and more aggressive in my attempts to
get away and feel like I was living my own life. Instead of the life, everyone
demanded I have.”

“You know the worst part? I didn’t
realize until the moment I knew we were going to crash that the thing I had
been seeking, had been to be by your side while you were on your travels. To
experience all of those new adventures with you. Like when we were growing up.”

“I used those stupid adventures
with our brothers as a poor substitute for the ones I wasn’t having with you.
It was childish, and all of us paid a high price for that mistake. I’m sorry,
Viper. I truly am.” Lara said, choking down a sob as she put her head in her
hands.

Viper didn’t even think; he just
scooped her into his arms and went into the house. Heading down the hallway, he
entered the first bedroom he found and laid her gently on the bed. Sliding in
beside her, he pulled her into his arms while she cried quietly.

“You know the One God has a great
sense of humor. Don’t you think?” Viper asked, startling Lara.

“What?” Lara asked, her crying
beginning to cease as she looked at him in puzzlement. Her mind was trying to
figure out what the hell he was talking about and why.

“Think about it. In the past, I
tried to keep you in a protected little bubble, here you became a tough soldier
who has probably seen as much battle as I have. I’m assuming it provided you
with plenty of adventure as well.” Viper said with a grin, completely taking
her attention off the reason for her tears.

“What?” Lara said looking at him
like he was crazy for his train of thought, even as she smiled at his craziness.

“Oh and we can’t forget that now
you have some powerful, mutant beast who gives you a
slight
edge over my
own abilities. Then there’s the fact that you’re the one here with a mission,
and I will be the one following you around.”

“The One God must be female, and
she’s pretty pissed off at me.” Viper said with a dramatic sigh that caused
Lara to burst out laughing at him.

Lara felt the comfortable rumbling
of Viper’s chest beneath her hand as he chuckled along with her. The man was
definitely crazy, but he always knew exactly how to make her feel better and
stem her tears.

“You’re still crazy.” Lara said
with a grin as she cuddled deeper into Viper’s side.

“Probably a little more than I used
to be, but I think it helped me to loosen up a bit. I’m still crazy where
you’re concerned, that will never change, but strangely enough, your new
abilities make me more confident in our success together. I won’t hold you back
this time; I'll be by your side instead.” Viper said, squeezing her tighter and
kissing her head.

Lara took a deep breath to prevent
the tears from returning. “You’re still a wonderful man, you know that?”

Viper puffed out his chest. “Yeah,
I’m pretty awesome.”

Lara just laughed at his antics.
“Yeah, yeah you’re so bad. Mr. Mighty Death Bringer. Ooooh.”

They shared a few moments of
comfortable silence between them before Viper turned serious again.

“I know things are different here,
and I don’t want to rush you into something you’re not ready for, but can you
see us making this work between us? Here… with everything going on? Everything
that’s happened between us?” Viper asked, scared to death that he’d missed his
only chance at happiness with her.

“Honestly, I don’t want children
yet. There is too much that depends on Abexis right now, and I’d rather wait
until there are enough Primes to handle things first. Agreed?” Lara asked a
little nervously.

“I believe Dog’ee will be enough of
a child for us, for the time being.” Viper said, trying to contain his
excitement that she was even thinking about children. Now or ever. Sadly, they
had never spoken of it in the past.

“Awww, Dog’ee is a sweetheart. He
just needs a little guidance.” Lara said with a grin, thinking of the charming
little cat.

“The backseat was on fire, and we
almost went off of a mountain because of that cat! He’s a menace, reckless,
irresponsible…” Viper began in exasperation, before Lara interrupted.

“He’s just very young and needs to
learn some self-control. I swear he reminds me of that strange boy… what is his
name?” Lara said, frustrated that she couldn’t remember the name of the boy
she’d shot.

“Traze. You’re right; they are a
lot alike. Can’t we give Dog’ee to him? A ‘sorry I shot you’ gift?” Viper
asked, knowing it would needle Lara.

“Oh my God! You’re not giving away
my cat! Besides, that boy needed to be shot as a lesson to calm down more. If I
had been anyone else, he could have been killed and so could everyone else that
was there.”

“He was very reckless. I think
Abexis and the Prime residing in David are going to make him their personal
mission.” Lara said, waiting for the fireworks she knew were coming.

Viper sat bolt upright in the bed
and turned to Lara, who was playing with the comforter in order to avoid eye
contact. Yanking the fabric out of her hands he stared at her until she finally
looked at him a little sheepishly, a light blush covering her cheeks.

“You are not telling me that David…
and that boy, are going to be permanent fixtures in our daily life. I cannot
have heard you correctly.” Viper said, looking a little frazzled and
overwhelmed at the thought.

Lara truly did feel bad about the
circumstances, but there was no other option. “Abexis needs them to be close
enough to easily send the energy needed to awaken their Primes. Tricia is
already close because she, and Grai live a few cabins up from yours.”

“Maggie lives in an apartment in
town and David, and Traze live in a cabin too far from us. They will have to
move closer by necessity.” Lara said watching the look of horror and disbelief
that crossed Viper’s beautiful face, and she struggled not to laugh.

“You are jesting. You must be. Right?
Ha ha ha…” Viper said, his eyes begging her to end the joke. He wasn’t sure if
he could handle it.

It was one thing to continue living
with his brothers; they had all grown up together like that anyway. But the
addition of Dog’ee and now Traze around, would ensure that he would rarely have
time alone with her. That wasn’t acceptable to him at all.

“Don’t look at me like that! It’s
not a joke. It will be only temporary with Maggie and David, until their Primes
are awakened. Then as we find the others, they will have to be assisted next.”
Lara said, peeking out from under her lashes at Viper who looked at her as if
she’d grown an extra body part.

“So we are never going to be alone.
Ever. Are you kidding me? How are we supposed to have a relationship if we’re
never alone?" Viper yelled, getting up to stalk around the room like an
angry predator.   

“We’re alone right now and all you
want to do is talk and bitch so what difference does it make? We can do this
through the Shengari’ in front of the world, and no one would care! We don’t
need to be alone for this!” Lara yelled back at him, standing on her knees on
the bed and facing him. Her own anger getting the best of her as past and
present memories collided in her mind.

“You think that because I’ve barely
held my desire and need in check that I don’t want to rip your damn clothes off
and take what is mine? Have you gone stupid?” Viper growled, his breathing
becoming ragged as he stalked toward the bed and leaned down on his hands until
he was nose to nose with Lara.

“The only thing that has saved your
modesty, and pride are the fact that I refuse to stand in your way this time,
or I would have thrown you over my shoulder days ago, and we wouldn’t be seen
for weeks.” Viper said, his voice softening only a little as her scent and
being so near to her, drove him crazy.

“Isn’t that how we ended up here?
Yet, there you are breathing in my face and… talking.” Lara teased in a whisper
as, she gently caressed his cheek with her own.

Viper released a frightening roar
as he lunged forward and threw Lara onto her back. Instead of being scared, she
just giggled and looked up at him as if daring him to continue.

“This is the only warning I will
give you before I do something we can never take back. If you have any doubts,
then run, while you can.” Viper warned in a low growl as, he leaned in closer
and breathed in her scent from her waist to her neck.

“I’ve waited hundreds of years and
two lifetimes for this, don’t you dare chicken out now.” Lara said, challenging
him just enough to instigate his beast as well.

Viper didn’t say another word, he
just leaned down and took her lips in a possessive, soul searing kiss. It was
everything she had ever dreamed it would be, his lips and tongue finally
staking his claim on her with every swipe of his warm tongue and touch of his
soft lips.

Lara heard, more than felt, Viper
rip her shirt as his hands moved everywhere at once while his lips kept her
mind reeling from the emotions and energy he allowed to flow freely from him.

Her own hands seemed to have a mind
of their own as they wandered over the hard planes of his stomach and up to his
shoulders to hold him tightly to her.

By the time he lifted his lips from
her own, her clothing lay scattered in tatters around the bed and floor along
with his shirt that she hadn’t even realized she’d torn from him in her urgency
to touch him.

Both of them panted slightly from
the passion raging through them as Viper’s green eyes glittered like emeralds
as he stared down at her. The dark swirls that designated his bond with his
beast, swirled like angry storm clouds among the green.

Lara allowed her love and
acceptance of their bond to flow through her energy to him, telling him she was
more than ready for this. She adored him even more for giving her another
chance to change her mind, but she wouldn’t change it. Ever.

It had taken every bit of Viper’s
self-restraint to pause long enough to give her a chance to run; her love and
need for him wiped it away in seconds.

Lara undid the velcro closure on
Viper’s tact pants and groaned along with him as her hands slid inside, along
his lean hips to his upper thighs. She couldn’t stifle another groan as she
squeezed him tightly to her and ground her hips upward.

Viper let out croak of near pain at
his need for her; his hands fisting the comforter as he fought the blinding
pleasure of her touch, her naked body finally beneath him. He was quickly
losing all control and thought. Everything but his need to make her his.

Viper’s response to her touch only
emboldened Lara. She pushed his pants further down and almost gasped as the
heat of his hard length on her stomach ignited her body.

“Lara…” Viper whispered raggedly in
her ear, before taking her lips again.

Urgency and need flooded Lara as
Viper’s emotions crashed into hers like a wave. Her own emotions mixed with his
and flowed back to him, creating a pendulum of energy and emotional transfer
that heightened their pleasure and senses.  

Past and present need and desire
collided for Lara, and it quickly overwhelmed her, causing her to wiggle and
adjust her hips until his thick head was teasing at her slick entrance.

They both groaned in need and
pleasure as he slid just inside, as he tried desperately to hold himself still
so she could adjust to his size. However, Lara was having none of that and
thrust upward enough to seat him fully inside of her. Lara gasped and clung
tightly to Viper as she held him still by tightly gripping his hips with her
hands and thighs.

Viper barely heard the sheets rip
as he fought the need to complete his claim on her, to leave no doubt in her
mind that she belonged to him. With him. Her first tentative movement was all
he needed to lose it.

Lara thought she was ready for
more, but she had no idea how heightened the feelings and sensations would be,
and she gasped and panted helplessly as he pulled out slowly and drove himself
back in as deep as he could go.