He nodded. “I am.”
“Did you do this for me? Did you become a mastyr on my account, I mean?” She dipped a bag of cinnamon tea in the steaming water, plunging it slowly.
His lips curved. “It just seemed like the right thing to do.”
She put her hand to her chest and his gaze followed. He frowned, “Are you feeling laden again?”
“Of course. It’s been almost a week.” She couldn’t believe she was a blood rose but it explained so much, especially that her heart was so heavy in her chest these days. She remembered reading an interview about Mastyr Gerrod’s blood rose, Abigail, and how she’d described her blood as ‘lumpish’.
Brianna thought the description spot on.
She sat down on a stool at her white marble island, shaking her head and still working the tea bag. “I pushed you hard because I was a blood rose. I can see that now.”
“I don’t want you to feel guilty because you did the right thing. I needed the push.”
She lifted her gaze to his. “I feel really bad about this, Yolen. That I pressured you so much.”
He reached across the marble island and covered her hand with his own. “We can’t always choose what we need from another person. And I apologize for digging my heels in like a mule, refusing to see beyond my own view of things. I had our relationship in this tidy little box by trying to keep you safe. But because that box could have cost me everything that I cherish, I’ll live with a chill in my heart for a long time.”
“How did you figure it out? I mean you knew I was a blood rose, earlier when you called, didn’t you?”
“I did.”
“But how? What tipped you off?”
“It was the strangest thing, but I’d been working the case, trying to solve the mystery of who the latest drug lord was, when I realized one name kept coming up: Keynes. And when he started pursuing you, I had this bad feel he was after something beyond what a typical male will chase a woman for. Somehow, all those pieces tumbled into place because for a mastyr of ambition, to discover a blood rose right under his nose, how could he resist? You would have fulfilled so much for him.”
“Because the bonding process enhances power, doesn’t it?”
“Yes.”
“Keynes spoke of ruling Cameron and eventually Bergisson.”
“When did he say that?”
“Just before he took me out of my house.”
“Then I really was just in time.”
“You were. So, why do you suppose he suddenly moved his plans up? Why did he get to my house before you?”
“I think I know why. Do you remember what you did when I came to your house this morning? When you said good-bye to me?”
She nodded. “I sort of fell against you.”
“And hugged me, remember? Well, I suspect Keynes was still hanging around, and saw you do that. So, rather than take a chance, he went after you, bringing along his wraith-pair for good measure.”
“I still can’t believe that Keynes could be that bad. Or that I could have gone with him as easily as breathing.” She shook her head once more. “I couldn’t keep away from him. It was so bizarre and unnerving. I can’t begin to imagine what would have happened to me.”
She finally let go of the teabag but only to bury her face in her hands.
He rounded the island. “And I’m trying not to think about it as well.” He pulled her off her stool and into his arms. “I love you more than life itself and I’m sorry my stubborn streak got us into this much trouble.”
She petted his face. “I just wish I’d had a clue what was going on. I feel like I completely mishandled everything, but especially you. I was unkind to you. I’m so sorry.”
He kissed her forehead, her cheek, then her lips. “You’re never unkind to me. Even while you were trying to break up, you never yelled. You gave me plenty of warnings and opportunities. You have nothing to blame yourself for.”
“Yolen, this whole things scares me. We came so close to losing everything we had.”
“I know. So, how about we fix that now.”
“What do you mean?” But her heart had started thumping really hard as though she already knew what he would say next.
“Will you bond with me? Will you be my blood rose?”
She wanted to say yes, but what flashed through her mind was all his tidy boxes. “I’ll need calling rights.”
At that, he smiled. “Honey, from this moment on, I’m turning all my rights over to you. Make a list. I’ll follow it to the letter.”
She couldn’t believe what he was saying. “And you’re really serious?”
“I’d be offended right now, but I’m smart enough to know that you have reason to doubt me. So, here’s how this is going to go. I want you to move in with me and you can call me every hour on the hour, or the half hour or the quarter hour. And you can call whether I’m working one case or a thousand.” He drew a deep breath. “That old life is over. It ended the moment I realized my stubbornness had almost cost you an enslavement to Keynes, because it would have been nothing less.
“So, what do you say? Do you feel like packing a few things and letting me fly you back to my riverside home? Or, if you prefer, we can stay here.” He smiled once more, “Though I really did have something planned for us tonight.”
Brianna’s throat ached. Tears brimmed in her eyes as she kissed him. “I’d love to be in your home.”
“Our home.”
“Oh, Yolen.” She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him hard. He returned the favor, wrapping her up in a tight embrace.
After a moment, she drew back. “So, you have something special planned?”
He smiled, his brown eyes full of affection. He ran his fingers through her hair and kissed her once more. “I want to make love to you in front of the fire. I want to fulfill all that we have between us. And I want to make you my blood rose.”
Brianna’s heart pounded harder still. Was this really happening, everything she’d hoped for and then some?
“Let me change my clothes and pack a bag.”
***
Chapter Six
While Brianna packed, Yolen called his housekeeper and had her recreate the romantic setting, lighting more candles, setting up a new bottle of champagne, and spreading fresh rose petals on the carpet near the fireplace.
Once Brianna descended the stairs, he made sure her security system was armed, then led her to her backyard. Holding her close to his side, with his free hand carrying her satchel, he rose into the night sky. He flew slowly, wanting everything to be ready when he opened the front door for her.
She clung to him and kept sighing.
He couldn’t believe this was happening, that he would have Brianna with him forever from this moment forward. He would build a life with this woman and what had seemed so impossible just a few days ago now felt as natural as breathing.
First, however, he needed to bond with her, to make sure that no other mastyr ever stood a chance of getting close to his blood rose.
When he finally flew her up the long, shady walk of his two story home, his heart thrummed in his chest. He’d never brought one of his dates here and now he understood why. Letting a woman enter his house was a significant act, akin to letting her into his soul.
He dropped down lightly to the front door, but didn’t release Brianna. Instead, he turned her in his arms and held her gaze. “I love you so much, more than I ever imagined being able to love anyone. And you’ve done this for me. You’ve made it possible.”
She smiled and touched his cheek. “You’ve done the same for me. All this time, until you came along, I was never serious about any man, only my art.”
“I think it’s all very realm, that we’re fated somehow.”
“After the exhibition, I thought my heart would break when you didn’t call.”
“And I wish I had. I wanted to. You must know that. I wanted to call. I wanted to be with you every fucking minute of every day. Tell me
you know this is true.”
She slid her arms around his shoulders and hugged him. “I wasn’t sure.”
* * * * * * * * *
Brianna drew back to look up at him. He was the man for her and she’d been wanting this level of commitment with him for months. Yet now that it was here and that she would be this close to him, even binding herself to him, she trembled.
“What is it?”
“I’m overwhelmed and suddenly I’m nervous. We’ve never done this before.”
His gaze softened and he nodded. “I’ve got this.” He released her, but took her hand in his, then opened the front door.
Brianna stepped inside a room lit like something out of a fairy tale. Candles flickered all around the space, champagne and strawberries waited on the coffee table along with a beautiful spray of roses in a vase, and rose petals littered a soft gray carpet. Adding the final touch, a fire burned in the hearth.
The furniture was modern with wood accents, lots of leather as well, very male and very Yolen.
She took it all in, her gaze drawn to the fire. She moved toward a chaise covered with a soft sable-like fur. She touched the throw and put a hand to her chest. She felt so much in this moment, mostly a deep sense of gratitude that she was here, with Yolen and that he’d completely opened his heart to her.
He moved to the far side of the fireplace, then turned to face into the room. He lifted a hand, gesturing to the opposite, paneled wall. “And what do you think of the artwork I purchased recently. I’d really like your opinion.”
She turned and blinked, unable to believe what she saw. “You bought them? You were the anonymous patron?” The trio of cityscapes, of how she envisioned the transformation of the tougher elements of Cameron, adorned the long wall leading into the dining area. The mounting of the paintings showed professionalism. “You had help with this.”
“Absolutely, I did. The gallery owner brought his crew in, set up the lighting, everything.”
She remembered her earlier anger toward Yolen, thinking that while Keynes had purchased one of her landscapes, Yolen hadn’t bought so much as a framed print.
How wrong she’d been, since instead, he’d paid a fortune for the three that held the most meaning for her. Now they were here, in the home she would share with Yolen.
He held his hand out to her and when she moved forward to settle her fingers in his palm, he guided her to stand in front of them. “The moment I saw what you’d done, I had to have them. I can’t explain it, but what I feel from these paintings is the actual future of Cameron. All three speak to my heart, what I love best about our world, and about our city.”
She slid her arm around his waist, her heart full of her love for him. In that moment, she understood their deeper connection, that each felt a powerful commitment to the city they inhabited.
He held her close as they viewed the paintings together. “The fae part of me came alive when I created these cityscapes. I painted them with the same kind of love you hold for Cameron. Sometimes, I feel as though the city lives inside me.”
“I know exactly what you mean.”
For a long time, she stood with him just looking at the paintings and in a way communing with the future.
Finally, he turned to her, holding her loosely in his arms, which allowed her to look into his eyes. “I want to do this right, Brianna, so I’m asking you formally, will you bond with me as my blood rose?”
Once again, her heart swelled with emotion, with her love for him, for all the ways she valued him. That he would ask, just to make sure, made her all the more willing. “I will.”
He kissed her, his familiar lips soft on hers. She let the moment happen as her mating vibration came to life, responding to the strong pulses that emanated from deep within him.
As she related in a realm way to all that he was, she sensed the new layer of his strength, that he had truly accepted and embraced his mastyr calling. He felt complete to her now, born anew with power and purpose.
She gripped his arms as he deepened the kiss, his telepathic voice, overlaying her thoughts. I love you so much.
And I love you.
His tongue searched her mouth, moving in and out slowly, the promise of things to come.
Love rose like a powerful wave within her. She moaned, kissing him back, clutching his shoulders, his arms, his back. She wanted him to feel all that she was feeling, how much she loved him.
Brianna. His voice in her mind sent a fire raging through her. He drew back and held her gaze. “You’re like a storm in my soul right now. My mating vibration is so ready for you.”
“Mine as well.”
His gaze softened yet again, as love shone in his eyes. He guided her toward the fireplace, then in a swift, easy motion, stripped off his long-sleeved shirt.
Her gaze traveled over his massive shoulders, ripped from working out, then down his thick pecs, to his sculpted abs. The firelight created shadows, enhancing the dips and swells of his muscles. His scent, like wood burning in the open air beside the river, flowed and made her senses reel.
Stepping into him, she followed the undulating lines of his body with both hands, starting at his stomach and caressing in a slow movement up his chest. Her hands kept flowing upward, over his neck and the lines of his cheeks. She reached behind and undid the Guardsman clasp, sinking her fingers into his hair. She loved the length of it as well as the texture.
She kissed him, pressing herself against his massive chest as his arms surrounded and caressed her. But she needed more, and leaning away from him, she removed her shirt and bra. His hands found her breasts, stroking and fondling. He connected his hips at the same time so that she felt the solid length of him, which in turn caused her breathing to falter.
Passion now flowed in heavy waves. She felt his mating vibration touch her and her own respond in a rush toward him.
She met his gaze, gasping, as their vibrations suddenly swirled over and around each other causing her desire to ignite. “Sweet Goddess, that’s amazing.”
His eyes fell to half-mast and he breathed hard. “I think this whole thing might consume us in a sudden burst of flames.”
He removed his leathers, t-shirt and boots, while she got rid of the rest of her clothes.
Her throat grew tight all over again at the sight of him, how much of a man he was, the beauty of his physique, the strength of his thighs and always his arousal. She touched him, caressing his cock, that part of him that fit inside her and that would make them one.
More than at any other time in their very sexual, passionate relationship, she desired him as never before. She could hardly breathe for wanting him, for needing him.
He turned and gestured to the chaise. “I wanted this here for us tonight, by the fire.” He picked her up suddenly, then laid her down on the soft fur.
She couldn’t take her eyes off him. Even her vision felt hungry for the man, unable to get enough. He lay partly on top of her and partly next to her, one arm braced near the top of her head. He leaned down and kissed her, then swept a hand over her shoulder and neck, then lower to stroke her breasts. He had large hands and caressed both breasts at the same time, the tips now stiff with need. He added the softest most sensual vibration to his fingers that had her arching and moaning.
He shifted to take a nipple in his mouth, licking and sucking, tugging hard, just the way she liked it. She cried out, unable to decide which was better, the pleasure from his mouth or the sensual way their mating vibrations were flowing around each other, almost stroking and teasing at the same time.
He left her breast and kissed her mouth, his tongue driving deep once more. He drew back just enough to hold her gaze. “I can feel that our mating vibrations want to lock in place, which will complete the blood rose bond. Can you feel that as well?”
Her eyes once more brimmed with tears. So much emotion, love, and desire all threatened to explode from her. “I want our physical bodies joined at the same time. Yolen, I’ve never needed you as mu
ch as I do now.”
He nodded several times in succession.
As she parted her legs, he shifted to cover her, groaning heavily at the same time. I love you so much, slipped from his mind into hers.
Her hips flexed as he held his cock against her entrance. She clutched at his shoulders, pulling him down to her as he pushed inside. His breath came as a series of gasps next to her ear. She knew he struggled to control himself, so she kept her body quiet, while he settled down. Tears, unbidden, leaked from her eyes.
Slowly, he established a rhythm, stroking her deep. How she loved being joined to him. His mating vibration began moving over her own frequency in the same way his cock moved inside her, with long sensual strokes.
Then suddenly, his vibration tightened around hers. She cried out, as pleasure flowed through her chest and their frequencies came closer and closer together.
“Oh, Sweet Goddess,” he groaned. “I need your blood and I need it now, to complete this process. Is that okay?” He pushed at her neck with his nose.
“Yes, please, yes.” She tilted her head to fully expose her throat to him. His hips grew quiet as he licked a line up her throat, while her heart pounded in anticipation.
His fangs struck, hitting the right depth. When he retracted them, her blood flowed, creating a new kind of sensation that tightened her well. She flexed her hips drawing him deep inside her body, savoring the length of him as he began to suck steadily on her throat.
As the built-up supply of blood left her body, she felt connected to the universe and the whole of the Nine Realms all at the same time. She fed him, she fed their love, she fed the world. What they were becoming together in this moment, would make a difference in their lives and in Bergisson. The fae part of her knew this as an undeniable truth.
Slowly he began to thrust inside her once more and all the while he drank the abundance she provided for him. Her mating vibration, now fully surrounded by him, gloried in his strength and all that he was a realm vampire. She felt lost in the sublimity of the moment, of belonging to Yolen, of giving herself so completely to him, of binding her blood rose self to serve his critical needs.