loved his weight on her. His hands pressed her knees open. His mouth
came down on hers. It was like he was trying to inhale her.
“Wrap your legs around me,” Cian commanded. He reared up on
his knees and lined up his dick to her pussy. He stared down at that
place where the head teased her creamy slit. “Goddess, that’s a
gorgeous sight. You’re mine. I’ll share you with my brother, but you
should know you’re mine, wife. Look at us. Look at how beautiful we
are together.”
Meg slid her legs around Cian’s waist. She pulled her head up and
looked down the length of her body. Cian’s cock was teasing at her
pussy lips. His big cock was glistening with her juices. It was a lovely
picture. But she wanted more. She needed him inside her. “Please,
Cian.”
“Yes, wife, I want to please you.” He pulled his hips back and
thrust into her.
He spared her not an ounce of his weight. She was crushed
beneath him, and he was everywhere. He was deep inside her,
shoving his cock in until his balls hit her ass, only to pull out and
thrust forward again. His mouth took hers, his tongue stroking,
plundering her mouth. His hands clutched her tightly as though he
was afraid to let go. And his mind, his mind was giving his pleasure
to her.
It felt so good. Meg tightened around him, not wanting to lose an
inch of him. His thoughts came quickly and threatened to overwhelm
her. He wanted her so much. He loved the silky slide of her pussy
sucking at his cock as he moved in and out. He adored the sounds she
made as he hit her sweet spot. His entire being pounded with the
desire to mark her. He wanted everyone to know that this woman was
his.
Meg pushed back against him, rotating her hips to find that perfect
place. She lost track of who was feeling what and simply let the
experience fill her senses. Her hands found his well-muscled ass and
prodded him on.
Bound
199
She moaned as she felt how close he was. Everything inside of
Cian was tense, his body tightening as he approached release. He
went up on his knees and fingered her clit with a firm swipe of his
thumb as he thrust as far as he could go.
His head fell back as he came. Meg felt the pleasure he took in
filling her with jets of hot cum. It flowed from his body to hers, and
her womb clenched and released with waves of pleasure. Cian
continued to thrust, making sure he gave her everything he had. Meg
moaned at the little aftershocks she felt when Cian hit a sensitive
place.
Her husband finally fell forward, completely exhausted. He
pushed her deliciously into the ground as he buried his face in her
throat.
“Love you, Meggie,” he managed.
Meg smiled and held him to her.
200
Sophie Oak
Chapter Fifteen
“That makes me sick.” The vampire watched the couple as they
made their way down the road toward the ramshackle cottage.
Liadan took in his measure. He seemed thin compared to a sidhe,
but she knew that the vampire’s lankiness probably hid a wealth of
strength.
“Well, it doesn’t do anything for me, either,” Liadan replied. She
tried not to roll her eyes.
She was surprised at the depth of animosity she felt for the human.
She hated the way the red-haired girl hugged her body to Cian’s. She
loathed him for smiling down at Meg and teasing her as lovers did. It
was obvious that they were finally sleeping together, and that fact
chafed.
“You told me she was at odds with the brothers.” Kinsey Palgrave
frowned, the expression marring his handsome face.
Liadan and the vampire stood beneath a wide tree. The tangled
branches gave them a place to watch the road and not be noticed.
Liadan shrugged. She wasn’t sure why it mattered. “I told you she
wasn’t sleeping with Beck. He brought her home and left the very
next day for your home plane. He didn’t even spend that single night
with her. He preferred to sleep in the barn. She wasn’t pleasing to
him.”
Beck had never thought to sleep in the barn when he was seeing
her. Then again, he had never actually spent the night. He had used
her and then walked back to his own cottage. Liadan was being forced
to admit that her charms had not worked on either brother the way
Bound
201
they should have. She had been sure this form would work, but
something had gone wrong.
“Well, Cian Finn doesn’t seem to have the same problem.”
Palgrave’s eyes darkened. “He is obviously fucking the consort.”
“I don’t understand why you care,” Liadan said, studying the
young vampire. He was a royal, like the twins’ cousin, Dante. Unlike
that imbecile they were related to, however, this vampire was serious.
He was hungry for a mate and angry that the consort had been taken
from him. He did not believe the competition had been fair.
Dante had told the whole tale at the tavern the night Beckett had
brought his bondmate home. Liadan had heard the name Kinsey
Palgrave as one of the competitors Beck had brutally defeated. Kinsey
had been easy to persuade to her side. He had bought the story of how
desperately the human wanted to leave this barbaric place. Now he
was faltering. She needed to bring him back into the fold. She needed
to convince him to kidnap or kill the human.
“Do you honestly believe she is happy here?” Liadan asked. “She
is used to a world with technology. She might enjoy sleeping with
Cian, but living here? She is not used to the hardships. Beckett is still
gone from this plane. His twin is vulnerable. All of his power is in his
intellect. It will be easy for you to take the consort from him.”
The vampire turned to Liadan, his fangs out. They had popped out
the minute he saw that idiot human walking up the road. He had some
form of visual aid device. Liadan didn’t care to look through it. The
vampires relied too much on their technology.
“It might be easy to take the consort,” Palgrave agreed. “The
trouble will be in keeping her. I came here because I believed she
would go willingly with me. She doesn’t look unhappy. I could
kidnap her, but what’s to stop her from running the first chance she
gets?”
“You would.” She was beginning to wonder if anyone had a brain.
“Tie her up, for all I care. You would get the consort and your
revenge. Beck will fade if he loses her.”
202
Sophie Oak
It was the vampire’s turn to sound disbelieving. “More likely he
will simply go insane and attempt to track me. This is wrong. I only
came because I thought the consort needed saving. I’m not about to
get involved in carting off a screaming consort, and I’m certainly not
about to hurt one. You know what they say, be kind to consorts or you
will never find one yourself.”
Liadan nearly screamed in frustration. Her plan was fallin
g apart
because of an old vampire proverb? The royals had rules about
handling consorts, but she hadn’t expected them to be vigorously
upheld during a time when there were so few to be had.
The vampire looked very disappointed as he turned away from the
sight of the couple kissing. “Besides, it’s a good thing in the long run.
If the Finns can take back Tir na nÒg, our access to consorts will
return. It is obvious that you are angry at the brothers. Did they break
off relations with you? You have to be realistic, Miss. They were
always going to marry a bondmate. I have to be realistic, too.”
Palgrave pulled his hood up as he made to leave. “I came because I
want a consort, and she is lovely. She isn’t available, so the best I can
do is make some money off the situation. I don’t think anyone knows
the Finns have bonded yet. I’m sure that Beck went to the Vampire
plane to make a deal with his relatives. I might have time to buy up
some Dellacorp stock before the price goes sky high. I’ll make a
bundle and look like a genius in the trades.”
The vampire looked very pleased with himself as he turned to go.
He had come alone, and now Liadan was grateful for that fact. It was
easier to deal with a single vampire than a couple. The last thing she
wanted was him telling his tale to all and sundry. The minute he
mentioned her name, the brothers would be after her.
She pulled the silver knife from her sleeve. She said a quick spell
to make her aim true and then plunged the knife into the vampire’s
back. She was much stronger than she looked. The form she presented
made her look frail and weak, but her true body was solid. The
Bound
203
vampire’s body jerked once, and then he fell apart as his heart was
torn asunder by the silver.
Liadan shivered as she looked at her previously pristine clothing.
She wished she hadn’t worn her second-best dress. Killing vampires
was a filthy business. They tended to explode when their hearts ripped
apart. She was covered in blood.
If she moved quickly enough, she might be able to preserve some
of it. Vampire blood was very powerful. Perhaps the day wasn’t a
complete waste.
The sound of laughter filtered across the pond. She had to find a
way to get that bitch alone. She had to get her off this plane and make
it look like she had walked away. If the brothers thought she was
taken, they would move mountains to find her. If they thought she had
been killed, it could get ugly. Liadan didn’t like to think about what
they would do to her. She had no plans to martyr herself.
As she made the long walk toward her cottage, an idea came to
her.
* * * *
Beck walked out of the caves and handed his sword to Colin
Dellacourt. The heat of the desert scorched everything it touched.
Beck was filthy and covered in blood and he didn’t like to think what
else, but the job was over.
Colin took the King’s sword and reverently wiped it clean. He
motioned to the employees walking around camp. A young vampire
walked up to answer the sidhe’s call.
“His Highness is finished,” Colin said. “Take the telemetry unit
and gather the data we need.”
The young vampire looked to the mouth of the cave with anxiety.
“He’s sure?”
204
Sophie Oak
Colin’s brown eyes narrowed. Beck hid his smile as the former
farmer scared the shit out of a young executive with just a look. “Are
you questioning His Highness?”
The young executive shook his head. “Not at all, Mr. Dellacourt.
I’ll get you those readings immediately.”
Colin stared at the small group of Dellacorp employees as they
scrambled to do his bidding. Beck pulled his filthy shirt over his head
and reached for his robe. He needed a shower. The vampires had set
up the camp with all the luxuries their technology had to offer. One of
those luxuries was the portable shower that cleaned with something
called sound waves.
Beck preferred a good soak, but that wasn’t available out here in
the desert. He thought about the gift he’d approved before he left for
the Bad Lands, as they called this place. Susan had been insistent on
getting Beck a wedding gift. It was probably being delivered this very
day. Beck couldn’t wait to lie in the soaking tub with Meg in front of
him. He would hold her as they soaked in the hot water and talked
about their days. He would tell her about the work he’d done in the
fields, and she would talk about…
“What do you and Susan talk about?” Beck heard himself asking.
He hadn’t meant to. It just popped out. He wouldn’t take it back,
though. He was curious about the consort’s relationship with his
cousin.
Colin sat down beside him and pulled out a bottle of whiskey. He
was quickly handed two glasses by an assistant who always seemed to
anticipate the Fae’s needs. Beck gratefully took the glass and tipped it
back. He would be damn sore tomorrow.
Colin thoughtfully sipped at his well-aged whiskey. “We talk
about everything, Your Highness. Mostly, it’s business, of course.
She is the CEO of one of the most powerful corporations in the States.
It helps that I have a fairly decent head for business.”
He did. It had surprised him when Colin announced he was
accompanying his king on this job. Susan had nodded and told him to
Bound
205
send detailed reports. She hadn’t been his CEO when they parted,
however. She had been his wife. She’d asked Colin three times if he
remembered everything and checked his bag. She had kissed him
goodbye and made him promise to call.
“I also have a very thick skin,” Colin said cheerfully. “That helps
a lot when your wife is also your boss. Damn woman can flay a man
alive with that tongue of hers. I screwed up the quarterly reports a few
months back, and she took a chunk out of my hide right there in the
boardroom.”
“She yelled at you?” Beck was surprised that his cousin would
yell at a consort. Vampires were supposed to be as gentle with their
consorts as the Fae were with bondmates.
“Yelled, screamed, threatened me with all manner of humiliation,”
Colin explained with a smile on his face. “That woman of mine is a
righteous bitch when she wants to be. It’s all right, though. I took my
fair share out of her pretty ass later that night, if you know what I
mean.”
Beck thought he did. He had spent a lot of time thinking about
Colin and Susan while he was working in the caves. Colin didn’t
seem to want the type of life he’d expected a consort to require. He
seemed to like to work, and he was tough. His wife didn’t treat him
like he would break, but she still loved him. “You were rough with
her?”
The question came out with expectant curiosity rather than
accusation.
“Vampires are rough, Your Highness,” Colin explained with
out a
hint of self-consciousness. “Relationships here, at least sexual
relationships, involve a dominant partner and a submissive partner.”
Now Beck sat up and poured himself another glass. Meg had used
those words. “Are you the dominant?”
“Yes, I am. Susan prefers to give up control in the bedroom. It
was strange at first. You have to understand, Your Highness, I was
raised in a very isolated part of the country. I didn’t know I could
206
Sophie Oak
bond until I came to the Vampire plane. I was a farmer. I had been
taught to treat females with great softness.”
“We are bigger and stronger,” Beck said, parroting the words he’d
heard from his father. “They need our protection, not our abuse.”
Colin’s dark brows rose questioningly. “If you’re worried about
me abusing your cousin, Your Highness…”
“Say what you need to say, Colin,” Beck encouraged the slightly
younger man. “Forget I’m the bloody King. I’m your cousin. Talk to
me that way. The goddess knows I need someone who’ll be honest
with me.”
“Fine,” Colin said, his eyes narrowing. “I’d tell you, cos, to get
the stick out of your ass. My relationship with my wife isn’t open for
your judgment. I heard that gentry marriages were cold exchanges of
protection and money, for bloodlines and a proper bond. I don’t want
that. I want a real marriage. Maybe it’s because I’m a commoner, but
you can keep your perfect little bondmate. I don’t want to be treated
like a bit of fluff to be taken off a shelf and fucked when my mate
thinks about it. I certainly don’t want to treat my wife like that. Life is hard, no matter your circumstances. You should have a partner, not a
weight around your neck.”
Beck felt his stomach drop. He thought about what he’d said to
Meg. He’d told her she was a responsibility to be borne. She’d asked
to be his partner, and he’d complained about having to feed and clothe
her.
“I don’t think of her that way,” Beck said quietly. He didn’t. He
thought of her all the time, though. Now that he’d had her, he couldn’t
sleep without picturing her close to him. He held a pillow close to his
body at night and pretended it was Meg against his chest. Goddess, he