Embrace the Hunt

  Regan’s body was lit with a red aura, a sign she was battling Margetta in her own way, but with limited success. Margetta could have killed her outright that much Ian could see. Instead, she was taking pleasure torturing the Ruby Fae.

  He let his battle energy ride across his shoulders then flow down both arms. He knew in that moment, because of his bond with Regan, he could kill the Ancient Fae.

  Margetta shifted suddenly to stare at him, her eyes wide with shock.

  He aimed his blue battle power at her, opening his palms wide. But the moment he fired, the golden light vanished. Margetta had disappeared. Which meant the energy he’d just released exploded the wall opposite him as well as the bathroom beyond.

  He quickly covered Regan with his body, protecting her as debris landed all around them.

  ~ ~ ~

  Regan couldn’t believe what it was like to have Ian’s frequency connected to hers. Power flowed, for one thing, so that she felt lit on fire. And the pain Margetta had been causing disappeared completely.

  As the dust settled and Ian rose up, she followed, turning to stare at him. His dark gray eyes also seemed as fiery as she felt. She gripped his forearms and felt his power pulsing as though they still shared the blood tattoos.

  “Ian, is this what you wanted? The bond, I mean?”

  He drew her into his arms. “Being connected to you like this is exactly what I want. I love you. I always have.”

  She slid her arms around his neck and held him close.

  After a moment, her gaze drifted to the floor. Ben was on his stomach, half buried in debris.

  “Oh, sweet Goddess, is he dead?”

  Ian released her and went to Ben. She watched him push some of the drywall and tile away from his body, then lean down to check for a pulse. “He’s gone.”

  “Ian, I didn’t mean to kill him. I saw where the battle was headed and because I’d fed him, I knew he had too much power. I swear I didn’t mean to hurt him that bad. Just to incapacitate him.”

  Ian returned to her, pulling her close once more. “I’m sorry, Regan. I know this isn’t what you wanted.”

  She drew in a ragged breath. “It’s horrible. All of it. And he was so close to forging the bond with me.”

  A shudder passed through Ian. “Let’s get you out of here. I’ll contact Stone and let him take care of this. I know he won’t mind taking charge.”

  She wanted to respond, but couldn’t. Tears had started to flow and wouldn’t stop.

  ~ ~ ~

  Ian led Regan slowly through the house, an arm around her waist, her head pressed to his shoulder and chest. He knew she was weeping and he let her be.

  When he tapped Stone’s telepathy, the brother responded, Tell me you got him.

  We did.

  And Regan?

  She’s fine. Ian then related all that had happened, including the newly formed bond between himself and Regan.

  When he told Stone he needed him to take care of Ben’s body, Stone responded, Give me the location and I’ll be there as fast as I can. I’m in the air already, heading east with five of my best Guardsmen.

  As Ian shared the same directions Scott had given him, he walked Regan out onto the front walkway. He didn’t stop there but kept her moving in the direction of the street away from the house. Though she trembled and his tank grew damp with her tears, all he felt was tremendous relief. He had her with him and she was safe from a man he now considered a sociopath and a monster.

  He waited at the bottom of the long drive for Stone. The brother arrived a minute later with five powerful Guardsmen in tow.

  Stone clapped him on the shoulder. “We’ve got this, Ian. Go. Take care of your woman.”

  Ian nodded. He felt blasted up one side and down the other from the events of the past few minutes.

  As Stone and his men headed up the drive toward the house, Ian settled Regan on his boot, slid his arm tight around her waist, and once more headed into the night sky.

  At first he wasn’t sure where to go, except that he needed to be alone with her. In the end, he decided to take her back to his cabin near Juniango.

  On the way, he pathed his caretaker and was told provisions had already been taken to the cabin. The man’s wife had made an excellent leek and potato soup and a loaf of savory rosemary bread.

  A few minutes later, when he landed on the front porch, Regan finally lifted her head. “I’m glad you brought me here.”

  “You’ve been through hell, so tell me what you need and I’ll do it. Anything.”

  ~ ~ ~

  What Regan wanted most was a hot bath and some time alone to heal. Ian led her to his master bedroom, giving her the space she needed. Though she told him she was fine, a worried frown never left his brow.

  A few minutes later, as she sank into the warm water, she let out a painful sigh. Part of her was euphoric from the unexpected bond. But another part was hurt in ways hard to quantify, as though the act of releasing her battle energy straight into Ben’s head, had stripped something from her soul.

  She’d never killed a fellow Realm-person before and she hoped more than anything else in life she never had to again.

  But in that moment, when she saw how simple it would be to take Ben unawares and save Ian’s life, she’d moved in and released her power. But the level of it had been greater than she’d realized. She’d thought she was streaming only enough to knock him out. Instead, it had been a killing blow.

  She drew her knees up to her chest and wept anew, uncertain how long it would be until she felt like herself again.

  Later, when a knock sounded on the door, she called out for Ian to come in. He didn’t, however. Instead, he asked if she was all right. When she said she was, he offered her soup and a lot of wine.

  She smiled. “Both sound great.”

  Her wounds had healed and she knew in time she’d come to forgive herself for the accidental death. She wasn’t sorry Ben was gone, only that she wished he’d lived to be put on trial and his acts exposed for the treasonous murders they were.

  ~ ~ ~

  Sitting on the deck, Ian held his third bottle of beer in his hands. He clinked his thumb ring against the glass, the sound oddly soothing. He’d wanted to shut off his vampire hearing because he’d heard Regan weeping. But he’d forced himself to listen and to acknowledge her suffering. In that way, he could honor the sacrifices she’d made tonight.

  She appeared in the doorway, then moved toward him. “Hey, I can feel you thinking all the way in the bedroom.” Her light brown hair was damp and hanging down her back. She wore a soft-looking blue sweater, blue jeans and no shoes.

  Love for her rushed through his body, which caused a vibration to pass through their joined mating frequencies.

  She put a hand to her chest. “That feels so strange. Wonderful, but strange.”

  He rose to his feet swiftly, then set the bottle on the table by his chair. “How you doin’?”

  “Better. I think I’m in shock.” Tears touched her eyes again.

  He forced himself to take a deep breath. He ached inside his chest as though hands had grabbed his heart and squeezed. Hard. “Regan, I’m so sorry. Words … hell, I don’t know what to say. I misjudged everything.”

  “I didn’t see it, either,” she said, her eyes now swimming with tears. “I would never have believed anything so bad of one of your Guardsmen and especially not Ben. I mean, I’ve never been completely easy around him and at times could feel something was off with him, but never this.”

  He took a step toward her. “I was so wrong.” He put a hand to his chest, his own eyes burning. “Sweet Goddess, he was my best friend.”

  “Oh, Ian.” Tears flowed down her cheeks as she moved quickly toward him.

  He opened his arms and she fell against him, sobbing once more. I can’t stop crying. I think this is going to hurt for a very long time.

  I think you’re right.

  She slid her arms around his waist, holding him tight. “All tho
se people. Your sister, too. It was the worst night of my life at Raven’s Overlook.”

  “Mine, too. I lost so much. I lost you, my nieces, my sister and her good, decent husband, even Ben’s older brother, and all because …” He couldn’t say it. The reality was too raw, too painful.

  She squeezed him tight. “Don’t think about it right now.”

  “Hard to think about anything else.” He rubbed her back, loving the feel of her against him, remembering what it had been like after the massacre to sleep in an empty bed. He’d felt hollowed out for years afterward. Now here she was, in his arms.

  And they’d bonded.

  “Regan.” He had to ask. “I know the battle forced the bond between us and now I don’t know what to say. I know how I feel about it, but—”

  She drew back and caught his face with both hands. “How do you feel, Ian? I need to know.”

  His chest shuddered. “Regan, I love you. I’ve always loved you. Every woman I ever met had to live up to you and they couldn’t. It’s always been you.”

  She searched his eyes. “You’re afraid, though. I can feel it. But of what?”

  “That you won’t be able to forgive me, even though we now share the blood rose bond. I treated you badly. I thought the worst things about you and let you know it. I don’t deserve to be this close to you, ever.”

  For reasons he didn’t understand, she smiled and more tears brimmed in her eyes. “Ian, all is forgiven. You have to believe me. Since we’ve been together these last couple of nights, and maybe even before when I helped Zane and Olivia defeat Margetta in Swanicott, I’ve gotten a better glimpse at what the ruling mastyrs have had to endure. That’s one reason I can let it all go now. You gave me up to save Camberlaune and I know what it cost you. I also know that if you hadn’t built a wall of blame between us, we would have come back together one day and Ben wouldn’t have hesitated to act against us.”

  Ian nodded slowly. “You’re right. He couldn’t allow someone so powerful into Camberlaune. And eventually, given your fae insight, you would have seen him for what he was.”

  She drew a deep breath. “But I have to know, are you regretting the blood rose bond?”

  “No. Sweet Goddess, no! Don’t think it for a second. It’s everything I’ve wanted but felt I could never have.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes, but what about you? Do you feel you’ve made a mistake? Do you wish the bond undone?”

  ~ ~ ~

  Regan wanted to tease him, wanted to tell him, ‘too late now’. But she knew he needed reassurance. Guilt had dogged him on every front and she didn’t want it to have an effect on them as they moved forward together. “I refuse to think of anything that’s happened as a series of mistakes, including the bond. For me, this is my destiny, one I’ve craved since we were together so long ago. I don’t in any way feel cheated because we chose to engage the bond in the heat of battle. Instead, I feel incredibly fulfilled. I mean, look what we were able to do? We ended Ben’s secretive hold on Camberlaune and removed a powerful ally from Margetta’s army. These are no small things.

  “And to be honest, even if I didn’t love you as I do, saving Camberlaune alone would have been worth it.”

  “You mean everything you just said, don’t you?”

  She arched a brow. “When have I ever lied to you?”

  At that, a smile disrupted his somber, dark look. “Never. You’ve always told it to me straight and kept pushing back, even when I blamed you.”

  She hugged him, then pathed, I love you so much and I love that we’re bonded.

  When she drew back, his eyes were full of affection as he settled his lips on hers. The kiss warmed her heart, her mind and her soul. She became acutely aware of the way their mating vibrations now moved as one, sending pulses of love through her body.

  After a moment, Ian drew back, but still held her tight. “There is something I want to be clear about. Saying good-bye to you back then hurt for years afterward. You were everything to me. It’s my deepest regret, pushing you away.”

  “Ian, throughout all these centuries, you’ve had one of the toughest jobs around, all the ruling mastyrs have. I didn’t like what happened after the massacre. But I came to understand that Raven’s Overlook destroyed a part of you that my love could never have rebuilt. Even if we’d stayed together, you would have felt guilty the whole time.”

  He stared at her for a long moment, then said quietly, “I think you’re right.”

  “So we’re good?” she asked. She needed a lot of reassurance herself.

  He nodded. “The bond feels so right to me and I love you more than words can ever express.”

  With her fears allayed and after one long, beautiful kiss, he offered her a meal. She took him up on it and savored the rosemary bread, flavorful potato soup, and glass of sweet German wine.

  Later, with the dishes cleaned up, she took him out onto the deck. She had an idea about what she wanted to do next, but she wasn’t sure he’d go for it.

  She leaned into him, caressing his face and rubbing a thumb over his lips. “We have some lost time to make up for, don’t we?”

  “Yes we do. A mountain of it.”

  “I know this may sound irreverent, Ian, but I’d love to go to your cave right now. I know you’ve had women there, probably lots of them. But this has been a rough night and what I want needs to continue in that theme, though in a good way.

  He rocked his hips into hers. “Rough like this?”

  Her eyes fluttered. “Exactly like this. The only question remains, how fast can you get me there?”

  His eyelids fell to half-mast. “As I recall, I could always get you there fast.”

  She gasped, remembering. “You’re a wicked man. But the way you could use your vibrations ... ”

  “Several places at once as I recall. So, how about we see if we can do it again?”

  ~ ~ ~

  Ian took her into the air and focused on the small lake in the south of his realm, set in the middle of a series of low, green hills. He’d discovered and purchased the cave a couple centuries back, which meant Regan had never seen it before. He’d bought the surrounding land at the same time.

  He also knew all sorts of rumors abounded concerning his activities in the cave, most of which weren’t true. But he didn’t waste his time trying to correct them. He was pretty sure he’d only add fuel to the fire if he made the attempt.

  When the hills appeared on the horizon, he dipped and dropped down through the external opening that angled off the side of the westernmost hill. He descended slowly, turning Regan so she could see the sight below.

  “It’s an underground lake.” She sounded surprised. “With a beach. How on earth did that happen?”

  “I confess I had the sand shipped in.”

  “Smart thinking and the water is so clear. Can we swim?”

  “Of course. Anything you want.”

  He flew her down to the edge of the water, descending to the sand. She stepped off his foot and got rid of her boots. He couldn’t recall the last time he’d seen her move so fast as she stripped out of her clothes.

  She ran into the water and once she was knee deep, she dove. The last thing he saw were the two mounds of her bottom as she disappeared beneath the water. A moment later, she resurfaced thirty feet farther in.

  “I was right to have you bring me here,” she called back to him. “There is something so cleansing about water.”

  He took off his boots, leathers and tank then followed her lead, wading in and diving. Once in the water, he swam to her before he surfaced. Reaching her, he caught her in his arms, but didn’t stop there. Instead, he added levitation and carried her fifteen feet into the air.

  “What are you doing?” But she was laughing.

  He then turned her to face the water. “Plant your feet on my thighs then dive.”

  “Yes!”

  He bent his knees and arched his hips so she could catch her balance. He stayed steady in th
e air, holding her at the top of her shins. When she was well-balanced, and probably using her own levitation as well, she hunched down, then launched. He added a bit of his own thigh-power to the dive, which sent her arcing into the air in a perfect swan-dive.

  She surfaced, smiling and afterward levitated straight out of the water. She flew over to him and into his arms. His mating frequency vibrated heavily in his body, surrounding hers, a seduction all its own.

  “Make love to me, Ian. That’s what I want more than anything right now.”

  He looked into her face and saw her love for him, a connection he never believed would belong to him in this life. He kissed her, letting his love for her flow so that his entire body hummed with the promised vibrations.

  She’d wanted to be in the cave and in the air. So, instead of taking her to the beach, he sustained them with his levitation and slowly leaned her backward. They were at least twenty feet above the water and another two dozen yards below the cave ceiling.

  Once aroused and with the practice of centuries, he entered her body while in midair and began to move inside her. He realized she was levitating as well, her hips rocking into his in an erotic push back.

  She surrounded him with her arms and kissed his throat. “I love you, Ian. So much.” Her kiss turned into a nip. “But I want you to bite me while we do this.”

  He groaned as he drove into her. He paused just long enough to strike the vein at her throat. She cried out, her voice echoing in the domed chamber.

  Her jasmine-lime flavor as well as her latent power flowed down his throat. The moment her life-force hit his stomach, his entire being lit up. Vibrations flowed everywhere, through their joined mating vibrations, along his arms and over his groin.

  He’d never experienced anything so perfect in his long life. How is this for you?

  ~ ~ ~

  Regan was ready to pass out from pleasure, certain she was about to die an extraordinary death. “Incredible,” she whispered. Wherever he touched her his vibrations flowed into her, including his cock. And his lips on her throat as he drank from her kept her sex alive with desire.

  She matched the thrusts of his hips, pushing back which gave him a solid place from which to drive into her again. Pleasure began to rise and sharpen. “Ian, come with me. I want you to come with me.”