Shadowing Bright (An Obscure Magic, #15), page 8
She held his face with her shadows. “Then, give me no reason for regret.”
He grinned and kissed her again, pausing to say, “Will you lose the sleep shirt?”
She chuckled. “Earn it.”
His eyes glowed, and he released her hands. “Challenge accepted.”
He kissed her neck, and she ran her hands over his shoulders, dragging her nails up his back. He shuddered under her touch and stroked at the edge of her sleep shirt. She smiled and allowed her sleep shirt simply to fade away. Kremoryn froze and then moved over her, lifting her from the bed with his clawed hands as he slowly turned her over. He shuddered again as he ran his hands over her shoulders, back, the narrow taper of her waist, and the wide flare of her hips.
“Beautiful.” He kissed the back of her neck, and she felt the sharp nip of his teeth.
“Hey.”
He chuckled, and she felt something in her ass as well as the thick tendril in her vagina.
She grunted and leaned forward. This was apparently what he had been hoping for. The tentacle in her sex pulled out, and Kremoryn surged in.
He wrapped his arms around her midsection and leaned against her. “You feel perfect.”
“Thank you. You feel unfinished.”
He laughed in her ear and started to move, dragging back and sliding in until he was pressed against her again. He was deep. There was no doubt that he fit into her like a hand into a glove, but she wanted to have words with the glove maker.
Kremoryn wrapped his hand around her throat, and she arched back. He was moving smoothly inside her, and a finger of shadows worked her clit while he remembered that he had invaded her back passage. All of a sudden, everything was in motion, and she flexed and clenched before shuddering a moment before he groaned and growled as he thrust into her and held himself deep. She felt a sting and heat and then a strange coolness.
He groaned softly and slowly draped himself over her, his shadows wrapping around her and holding her carefully.
He muttered, “I just want to stay here.”
She smiled as her breathing settled. “It will make driving difficult. Getting dressed will be awkward.”
Kremoryn chuckled. “You can wear me if you like.”
She snorted. “Isn’t that traditional?”
“It is, but many mates object.”
“If I can choose the style, sure. I will wear your shadows.”
He shuddered again, and she felt a cool surge inside her. She tried to twist in his arms. “What the hell is that?”
He chuckled. “The spike is a primer, the heat clears out anything left by males before me, and the coolness is just my cum.”
“Oh. Just. We should have had the birth control talk.”
“I wouldn’t have listened. You want kids?”
“Yes, or I wouldn’t have waited and blown up all those suitors over the centuries.”
“And yet you still tried. I do love persistence in a woman.”
She chuckled. “So, are you going to dismount?”
He sighed. “Must I?”
“At least drop to the side so we can spoon, and get that tentacle out of my ass.”
“But it’s so warm and comfortable.”
Hura looked back at him. “I always thought that my first time with someone, I would be facing them.”
“I was facing you during your first orgasm with me. Does that count?”
“Sure. I suppose.”
He touched her ribs. “How is your side?”
“Fine.” She smiled. “Thanks for asking.”
She heard her phone chirp and leaned over to send a shadow to grab her phone and bring it to her. The message was from Min, and it made so much sense. “Did I miss this last night?”
“What?”
“Some of the other shadow lords are trying to kill me to stop you from doing what we just did. Oops.”
“Why?” He kissed her temple and her ear and nibbled at her neck.
“I think it has something to do with you getting stronger. You don’t feel stronger today, do you?”
He grinned. “I don’t know. We should try it again so I can check on how I feel.”
He knelt, and she blinked as she saw his physique without the shadows between them. He had muscles on his muscles, his skin was a dark grey-brown, and it gave him the appearance of being tanned, which was funny for a creature who didn’t see the sun that often.
He withdrew, rolled her to her back, and slid back inside her. She gasped, arched toward him, and her lashes fluttered. He growled. “You are right, this is much better.”
He kissed her carefully, shadows covering the sharp edges of his teeth, and he surged into her as she held onto him for stability, while his shadows cupped and stung at her breasts while roaming everywhere else.
His kiss was deep, and his shadows were everywhere because if you could, why wouldn’t you?
She dug her clawed fingers into his shoulders, her arms tucked under his to wrap around his ribs. When she came, she raked his back, which sent that cool spill into her again. The kiss slowed, and he lifted his head.
Hura smirked. “You are really trying.”
He grinned. “It has only begun. We are between right now, so we can have endless time in here before we need to rejoin the waking world.”
“If you wear it out, I am going to be very unhappy.”
Kremoryn chortled. “Mine or yours?”
“Either.”
He sighed and lifted off as her hands dug into his back. “Why didn’t you ever offer yourself to me?”
“Aw, snooky, I am a traditional woman from a traditional time. I need a man to make the first move.”
“Wait. So, at any time in the last decade, I could have propositioned you, and you would have been favourable?” He stared at her. “Seriously?”
“Yup. I mean, not all the cuffs and chains at the parties, but I have no issue being confined in shadows.” She chuckled softly. “In fact, I enjoy it.”
He blinked, and his eyes shifted from red to gold and back again. “I am an idiot. Where have you been all my life?”
“Just out of reach. I have wanted to get a solid idea of my future breeding partner.” She felt a small curl of cold. “Damn you are easy.”
He blinked. “I don’t think I have cum this often in the last century.”
“Well, I can pin down at least once. I wonder how she and her husband are doing?”
Kremoryn blinked. “Ah, yes. I need to summon her family to a chat. I do not like the fact that she sold our child.”
“I am less impressed with her kicking the child out as soon as the dowry payment was offered.”
He growled. “What?”
“Oh, yes, Vaia was given a direct payment as her dowry, and then maintenance payments were sent to her family. But they kicked her out, and she had to scramble to find out how the world works.” Hura shrugged. “I helped when I could.”
“Wait. So, you knew that Vaia was my daughter.”
“Yes. Well, I knew she was shadow-sired. She has some of your hallmarks. Either way, she needed help feeding, and I was teaching a class at the time that helped her with her path through dance. She took to it like a duck to water.” She ran her fingers down his back. “She got stronger and more confident.”
“How did you know about her at all?”
“Minayel. She’s an oracle, and she also rents a room from me as she is often between jobs. She got a job with Vaia, and I have helped her keep it.”
“Why?”
“This is so stupid.”
He frowned and whispered, “What?”
“Because she saw us all standing together, power whipping, she has a child, and there is a dragon standing with her.” She paused.
“And...”
“And we have two kids by then. You have one little girl on your arm, and I am holding the second.”
His eyes glowed. “So, I am a shadow king with a little family.”
“Yup, and growing rapidly.”
“You do realize what is going to happen when you threaten me with another daughter?”
“I am gonna be sore.”
He laughed. “Not until you are receptive, but yes.”
She smiled. “Good. In that case, get off me before I see if my shadows can put teeth where no teeth should be.”
He sighed and backed out of her.
She gave him a bland look. “All of you.”
He chortled and pulled the shadows out of her. She huffed and used her energy to shove him backward. “Comfortable bed.”
He laughed. “I find folks are more likely to want to stay if they are comfortable.”
“Ah. Well, this is only going to work one way. If there is another woman where I should be, I don’t come back. Ever.” She looked at him calmly. “I have other places I can make a home in.”
“But what about sex?”
“I have lived without it this long. Once we are no longer in contact, the urge will fade.” Hura smiled. “Basically, I will not have my children growing up in a place where their mother is considered disposable, disrespected, and not honoured for her presence in their father’s life.”
He paused. “I see.”
“You haven’t had the same woman on your lap in the last ten years I have been entertaining at your parties. It was not my business then, but it would become my business the moment you were trying for a child with me.”
“You sound like you speak from a wound.”
“Sure. I was born near the gateway. My father was delighted that he had spawned on a demigoddess. She was quiet, shy, and happy to be at his side while he kept her at his side during the pregnancy. When she was in labour, he brought his next mistress to show her what awaited her if she quickened with his seed. Of course, he had no idea that my mother had been a fertility goddess and had done more than her share of the heavy lifting to bring me into the world. Her labour stalled, and she cursed him for his infidelity, his cruelty, and said that this was the only child he would ever have. Then, she disappeared.”
“What?”
“Oh, yeah, she bore me next to the gateway, encouraging me to embrace all the power it had to offer. She lived another fifty years, but then she was done with life and decided that it was time to leave the earth. I buried her and then sought out my father. He was sitting amidst a hundred unhappy women, and his eyes lit up when he saw me until I let my shadows flare. I told him I was here to congratulate him on his enormous family. His eyes got huge. I told him I was desperate to meet my new brother or sister. The one he had been so desperate to meet that he had degraded my mother in the most vulnerable moment a woman could have. He stared as the last fifty years of denial swamped him, so I simply pulled all his power and walked away. He died two days later.” She smiled softly.
He looked at her. “You are the Scourge of Corvenyn.”
She beamed. “I am. So, before you turn gardener, be very, very sure that you can be happy with a single partner.”
He frowned. “It will work for me. I haven’t done more than play with anyone in the last ten years. I do enjoy watching those who wish to experiment come to me for instruction.” He paused. “But will you be able to handle being without me while I go to a variety of councils and courts across the year?”
“Probably.” She wrinkled her nose. “I will get peckish close to the end of the pregnancy.”
“I would like to set up a backup snack for you. I have a few names that I have pulled together. All are willing.”
“Wait. What?”
“I do not expect you to live between, but I am going to set you up with a bed that I am comfortable under. Be prepared to be visited often.”
She laughed. “Formal arrangement?”
“Blood mates are our normal tradition. You and I can engage in that later.” He grinned. “For now, I would like to see your home.”
“Oh. Right. It’s covered with paint.”
“That’s fine. It plays into one of the options for your second.”
“Oh. I need to put something on.”
He laughed. “I thought you would demand a shower.”
Her fire washed over them both. All the sweat and most of the emissions were gone.
She laughed. “Forgot I could do that, huh?”
Kremoryn’s smile was slow. “Yes, I did. Can you keep the fire in with another partner?”
“Yeah. There are things I can do to get around the destructive factor.”
He paused, “Like what?”
“Condoms. My body reacts really aggressively to attempts to breed me without my authorization.” She fluttered her lashes at him. “My mother gave me a singular education.”
She eased away from him and stood up, swaying a bit. He got out of bed and held her. “Are you all right?”
“Yup. Fine. Just feel... peculiar.”
He smiled and moved behind her to wrap his arms around her. “You will get used to it.”
She leaned back against him as shadows moved over her and formed a very daringly cut gown.
“Interesting choice.”
“I like your curves. A lot.” His hands dropped to her hips.
“So do I.” She smiled. “They fill out the bras and keep the skirts from falling off.”
Kremoryn laughed and said, “A meal in the physical world?”
“Yup. Incidentally, the child will have to be conceived there.”
“Yes. I am aware.”
“Good. Some guys think it works anywhere. Time is too large a thing to mess with.” She looked at him. “So, if you want to get dressed, we can go out and have dinner. I don’t care how relaxed a restaurant is.” She waved at his torso and groin. “That needs to be hidden for sanity.”
“You flatter me.”
She shook her head at the sight of the abs, the smooth muscles on either side of his hip arrowing toward his groin, the erection that was now rising as she watched. She looked away. He walked around her and smirked. “That was flattering.”
She sighed. “Right. Get dressed, Your Majesty. I want to get something in my mouth, and I am not getting on my knees today. I prefer to pace myself.”
He huffed, and a lovely suit wrapped around him, forming trousers, a shirt, a vest, and a suit jacket that made him look like he was going to take over a corporation.
He offered her his arm. “Shall we continue our negotiations?”
“Sure. Where are we going?”
He grinned and slid a pair of dark lenses over his eyes. “I have a hankering for tacos.”
She was still laughing when they stepped out of the shadows and got into line.
Chapter Six
Amy got a call at work, and when she answered, Emmers was on the line with a sexy, sleepy voice. “Amy, I know it is last-minute, but my grandmother has arrived in town and is demanding that we meet with her.”
“Oh. Shit. Um, sure. Where?”
“The Glacier. She likes to eat where things are chilly.”
“Oh, um. Sure. When?”
“Six? We have reservations under Frostclaw.”
“Wait, is that your last name?”
“Zip it.” She could hear the smile in his tone. “I will see you then. Dress warm, or don’t, and I can keep my arm around you.”
She smiled. “I will see you there at six. Shit. I have to go home and change. Bye!”
He was laughing when she disconnected the call.
Amy wanted to rush out of her office, but instead, she logged off, locked up, and locked her door before closing her department right on time for a change. Benny was there early and grinned. “Where are you going?”
“I have a date... I think... that or an expensive banishment. Either way, I have to figure out what to wear.” Amy waved and continued to her car in the staff lot. What the hell am I going to wear?
She looked at the women who were walking in and sighed when she was dressed appropriately for the restaurant. Amy got out of her car and grabbed her small purse, moving her arms free of the handkerchief sleeves that swung gracefully but would let her eat without being confined. The cocktail dress was ice blue with small beads along the neckline and hem. It was understated and pretty, even if it was above her knees by an inch or two. Or three.
She walked across the parking lot with her four-inch heels clicking as she moved. She knew she looked insanely tall, but next to Emmers, she would just look statuesque.
As she walked into the cool air of the restaurant, she checked, and she was precisely on time. The woman at the podium looked at her and smiled. “Hello, I am meeting my party here. The Frostclaws?”
“Oh, yes, miss. Please follow me.”
Amy didn’t fidget but followed the young woman at a suitable distance. She didn’t want to run her over. She saw Emmers and a woman with snowy hair whose gaze locked with Amy’s the moment she came into view. Emmers got up and held her chair out, putting her across the table from his grandmother.
Amy said, “I hope you weren’t waiting long.”
Emmers’ grandmother looked at her. “You were right on time. You didn’t portal here?”
“No, ma’am. I didn’t. If this restaurant has anything I like, I don’t like portal transport on a full stomach.”
She arched her brows. “You haven’t been here before?”
“No, ma’am. This is primarily a date and special occasion restaurant. I have never had a reason to be here.”
“You don’t date?”
“No, ma’am.”
His grandmother looked at him. “You aim to change that, Cookie?”
He winced. “Yes, Grandma.”
“Well, then. Formal introductions.”
“Oh, shit. Right. Lady Heigara Amberoth Frostclaw, this is Amhoran Balloren or Amy.”
Amy inclined her head. “Pleased to meet you, Lady Frostclaw.”
“Call me Grandma.” The older woman with the sparkling blue eyes smiled. “Now, let’s order and then get to the meat of things.”
“Typical polar bear.” Amy smiled as she opened her menu.
Emmers coughed and had amusement in his eyes.
When the server came, Amy ordered a mocktail when it was her turn, and the young man bowed and left. Amy closed her menu, and Emmers’ grandmother was staring at her.
