Isobel wanted to go to the big Kindred and cuddle in his arms but something stopped her. His oculars were down again, shading his eyes in impassive black, making it impossible to know what he was thinking…what he was feeling.
Was he happy that she and Brandon had come with him to his suite? Or were they invading his private territory? Was he still upset about what had happened between them during their abduction? Did he wish he’d left them back on Earth?
“Of course I don’t wish that.”
The quiet, deep voice in her head startled Isobel so much that she jumped.
“Oh!” she gasped, putting a hand to her rapidly pumping heart.
“I’m sorry—did I frighten you?” He turned his head to look at her and she saw that his oculars were retracted, showing his strangely beautiful, pale blue eyes. “I just wanted to see if I could call to you the way you called to me,” he went on.
“I can hear you,” Isobel said cautiously. “But I couldn’t tell if you could hear me,” she went on, trying some of the strange new mental-talk herself.
“At first I only knew there was something wrong—that someone I cared for was in danger,” Hail admitted aloud. “But as I got closer to Earth, I began to hear your words.”
“I’m so glad you came to save me—to save us.” Isobel came and sat beside him on the cushy, overstuffed sofa. It was a big, solid piece of furniture, obviously built to hold the large, muscular Kindred with no problem.
Looking into her eyes, Hail cupped her cheek.
“I told you, Isobel…I will always come for you,” he murmured into her mind.
“Oh…” she whispered. She couldn’t tell why, exactly, but hearing his voice inside her head was more intimate, somehow. Not to mention extremely erotic. “Hail—” she began but he cut her off.
“Tell me now, can you ever forgive me for what I did to you aboard the ship of the Chalombs?” he asked earnestly.
“The little gray men, you mean?” she asked. “Hail…there’s nothing to forgive. We did what we had to do to get free of them—to go home.”
He frowned and looked away. “I savaged you. I could not control my beast then as I can now. I forced you, Isobel.”
“No, you didn’t. Hail, look at me.” She got up on her knees so she was more on his level and put her hands on his broad shoulders. His shirt had burst open earlier when he had let his beast come out and it still hung open, showing his broad, muscular chest in the firelight.
Isobel put her hand on his rough cheek and turned him to face her. Reluctantly, he turned his eyes towards hers and she saw pain and regret…shame and despair in their lovely white-blue depths.
“Listen to me,” she told him, using her mind voice this time. “We had rough sex. It was scary and at one point, I did want to get away. But after I calmed down, I wasn’t upset.”
“You…you were crying. When I came back to myself and I found what I had done…when I saw the tears in your eyes…” Hail shook his head, obviously unable to continue his thought. “It was my greatest nightmare,” he sent at last. “The reason I feared to let my beast out in the first place.”
“I was crying because it was intense,” Isobel told him. “I’d never had an experience like that before. I felt taken…owned…” She ducked her head, biting her lip. “I…I felt like I belonged to you,” she finished at last, in a whisper. “I’ve never felt like that before with any man.”
“And I’ve never felt like this with any female,” Hail admitted hoarsely. He lifted her chin with his fingers and looked at her earnestly. “I…feel like I belong to you too, Isobel. If you want me,” he added in a low voice.
“Of course I want you. More than anything,” she said softly.
Hail searched her eyes with his intently.
“So…you really forgive me? And…you don’t fear me anymore?”
“I’m not afraid,” Isobel promised him. “Not for myself or for Brandon either. And I forgive you with all my heart, Hail.”
“I love you,” the big Kindred admitted. “At least, I think this is love. It’s a throbbing here…” He pressed one huge fist to his chest. “And I feel like I never want to let you go. Like I would die without you—is that love?”
“That’s love,” Isobel whispered and kissed him.
At first Hail seemed frozen in place. Then he wrapped his massive arms around her and kissed back. Before she knew it, Isobel was in his lap, straddling him as she ran her hands through his thick, short hair and pressed herself against him.
God, he tasted so good…felt so right against her. His big body seemed to cradle hers and his large, warm hands were everywhere, rubbing up and down her back and thighs, touching her eagerly as though Hail couldn’t get enough of her.
Isobel felt the same way. She was still just wearing the tattered remains of her white nightgown and now, with one sweeping motion, she pulled it over her head and dropped it to the ground. The act left her completely bare, since she hadn’t been wearing panties under it.
Hail’s eyes blazed and he groaned softly as he saw her body in the firelight.
“Gods, Isobel—you’re so fucking beautiful,” he murmured, pressing one big palm to her trembling abdomen, just between her pussy and her breasts. “It makes me so hard to see you all naked and open like this.”
“Then make love to me,” Isobel whispered breathlessly. “Take me again, Hail—make me yours all over again.”
“Mine…” he growled hungrily, just as he had when he was the beast. But he made no move to take her.
“What is it?” Isobel asked, catching his hesitation through the new mental bond they shared.
“It’s just…Yipper told me my emotions would be regulated now and that my beast wouldn’t come out unless I wanted it to but I still worry…”
“Don’t,” Isobel cut him off. She pressed her pelvis down so that her bare pussy rubbed against the hard bulge of his cock, still trapped behind his flight leathers. “Make love to me, Hail. And if your beast comes out, well…I’m all right with that.” She shivered a little at the thought but it was desire, not fear that tightened her nipples and made goosebumps break out all over her arms and bare back.
“You are?” He frowned. “But after last time…”
“You can think as the beast now, remember?” Isobel said. “It won’t be like last time. You’ll be able to give me all the intensity of the beast without worrying about hurting me. Please, Hail…” She pressed against him again and thrust her bare breasts into his face, surprised at her own need. “Please, I want you inside me,” she whispered through their link.
“Gods, Isobel, I can’t say no to you. But I have to ask once more—are you sure?”
For an answer, she reached between them and tugged at the tight black flight leathers, releasing his thick, hard shaft. God, he felt good in her hand! So hot and rigid but his skin was as soft as the petals of a flower. Isobel loved it. Suddenly she felt so hot she couldn’t breathe.
“I have to have you in me—now!” she commanded.
Hail’s eyes glowed with intensity and desire.
“Put me in you, then,” he growled softly. “Ride me, Isobel—take what you need.”
With a soft little moan, she did as he said. Fitting the broad head of his cock to her wet pussy, she rubbed him against her aching clit, moaning softly with need. Then she raised up on her knees and, with trembling fingers, guided him into her entrance.
They both groaned as she sank down on him and she felt Hail’s big hands tighten around her hips as he thrust slowly up, filling her to the hilt. Isobel gasped as she felt her inner walls stretching to take him but it felt good—felt right to be so intimately connected to him—to be taken by the man she loved.
“Gods, Isobel,” she heard Hail groan inside her head. “Feels good…almost too good.”
Isobel could feel the uncertainty in him and, through their new link, she could feel his alter-ego longing to come out. The beast wanted to claim her as badly as Hail did himself but t
his time he was waiting for permission.
Could she allow it? She thought of how frightened she’d been initially the last time they had been together. But Hail was in charge now, not the beast. And she couldn’t love one without the other. The beast was part of Hail—part of the man she loved.
Isobel wanted all of him.
“It…it’s all right,” she whispered in a trembling voice. “You…you can let him out. Let the beast out, Hail. As long as you keep control of him, I’m not afraid.”
“Gods, I shouldn’t…” he groaned but she could already see his eyes glowing and his hair growing wild and unruly. His big body was growing even bigger as he held her to him.
With a little gasp, she felt the shaft inside her swelling too. She’d forgotten how big he was—how he filled her to the breaking point when he was in this form. And yet, Isobel didn’t want him to stop.
“Yes,” she whispered, pressing herself against him, spreading her thighs to be even more open for his huge shaft. “Yes, Hail, take me…make me yours.”
“You’re so beautiful,” he whispered and this time his mental voice was tinged with a deep, animal growl that sent a shiver of pure lust through her. “Your sweet pussy feels so tight and wet around me.”
“Just take things slowly this time,” Isobel begged softly. “Just make love to me, Hail.”
With a soft growl of ascent, he wrapped his massive arms around her and bent to take her mouth in a passionate kiss. Isobel moaned and melted against him, feeling herself relax some in his embrace as she accepted his long, thick shaft inside her pussy.
Later she thought she would never forget that night. Though they had formed their mating bond before, during their abduction, this was when they really sealed their love. It seemed they stayed locked together for hours with Hail in his beast form, moving with long, slow, careful strokes in and out of her pussy as they looked into each others’ eyes.
Isobel lost count of her orgasms—or of his for that matter. For no matter how many times Hail filled her with his seed, he never seemed to get soft as a human man would. They just kept moving together in the firelight, bonding all over again as they made love.
Finally, after what seemed like forever, Hail’s beast receded and he came back down to his normal size. He withdrew and, with a soft groan, stretched out on the long couch, cupping Isobel against him.
Contented at last, she moaned happily and snuggled close, pressing her face to his chest as he encircled her with one muscular arm. The heat of the flickering fire felt amazing against her bare back and behind and she thought she had never felt so happy and contented and cared for in her life.
“Mmm, Hail,” she murmured drowsily. “That was amazing.”
“You’re amazing,” he murmured hoarsely. He looked at her with sleepy, contented eyes. “And you’re mine. I never thought it would be possible to be with a female—or to love anyone as I love you.”
“I love you too.” Isobel reached up to stroke his bristly cheek. “But…” She bit her lip. “Are you sure about this? About being together, I mean? I do come with what a lot of people would call ‘baggage.’”
Hail frowned down at her. “What do you mean? We did not bring any of your luggage up from Earth. Although we can certainly go and get it if you like.”
“No, silly…” She laughed softly. “I mean, Brandon. He’s still my main concern, you know,” she said, turning serious. “He needs me.”
“Of course he does. And it’s right for him to be your first concern,” Hail said seriously. “I…” He cleared his throat. “I care for him too, Isobel. I…I never had a father of my own but I would like to try to be a father to Brandon. If you would let me, I mean.”
“Oh, Hail…” She felt sudden tears sting her eyes and she buried her face in his chest again. “Thank you,” she whispered, sniffing.
“But you’re crying.” He tilted her chin up, looking at her worriedly. “Did I say something wrong?”
“No—what you said was exactly right.” Isobel smiled and swiped at her eyes. “Nothing could have made me happier. My ex—Mitch…” She shivered as she spoke his name. “He hated that Brandon was different. He wanted to change him—to make him normal.”
“He is perfect just the way he is,” Hail murmured. “His mind is bright and sharp—I greatly enjoy conversing with him. Why should anyone want to change him?”
Isobel felt like she was going to cry again but somehow she held the tears back. Instead, she pulled the big Kindred down for a kiss.
“Thank you,” she murmured in his ear. “Thank you for saying that—for accepting him the way he is.”
“Isobel…” He stroked her cheek gently. “How could I do any less? When you accept me the way I am. Though I have not known the two of you long, we have been dream-sharing for weeks. I love you and I care greatly for Brandon. I want us to make a life together.”
“That’s what I want too.” Kissing him again, Isobel cuddled in his arms. She had never felt so safe…so loved and protected and she felt a special burst of joy when she knew that the man she loved would also love and protect her son.
Together, the three of them would form a family and they would never be parted again.
Epilogue
“So you and Brandon are moving up to the Mother Ship?” Kat asked, smiling delightedly.
“Mmm-hmm.” Isobel returned her friend’s smile and took a bite of carrot cake cupcake. It was delicious—baked by a friend of Kat’s that she had promised to introduce Isobel to. Indeed, she told Isobel that she had a lot of good girlfriends she wanted her to meet here on the Mother Ship.
“Okay…” Kat took a sip of tea and arched one eyebrow. “I’m not going to say I told you so but—”
“All right—you were right. Kindred guys are awesome. There—satisfied?” Isobel grinned back as she said it. Since re-bonding with Hail, she couldn’t seem to help herself—she was smiling all the time. She couldn’t remember a time when she’d been so happy.
“How is Brandon adjusting to the Mother Ship?” Kat asked, nodding to a corner where Brandon was trying to teach her own young son, Shad, how to play chess. Though he should have been much too young to learn, Shad was studying the board with great concentration as Brandon talked. As for War and Peace, they were off with their fathers Lock and Deep on a trip to the park to get some energy out.
“He loves it here,” Isobel said. “I was worried at first about schooling and accommodations but the director of education aboard the Mother Ship has been extremely helpful. I think we’re going to be just fine.”
“And how does he like his new dad?” Kat asked.
“He loves Hail—and Hail loves him. They draw diagrams of new inventions together and Hail is teaching him some kind of advanced Kindred mathematics.” Isobel smiled at the thought of the two of them sitting at the table with their heads close, bent over some complicated design they had dreamed up together. “Hail just…gets him,” she told Kat. “In a way my ex, Mitch, never did.”
“That’s wonderful.” Kat sighed happily and took a bite of her own cupcake—chocolate with raspberry filling. “You know, I thought it sounded crazy when you told me Brandon had been dream-sharing with Hail too but now I think it was just the Goddess’s will. She likes to put families together too, I guess—not just couples.”
“She sounds like the ultimate matchmaker.” Isobel smiled. “I’m just so grateful that Hail and I formed that bond before Mitch came looking for us. If he hadn’t come to save us, I…we…” She felt a lump rise in her throat and tried without success to swallow it down. “We’d be dead right now,” she whispered.
“Hey, doll…it’s all right.” Kat put an arm around her shoulders and squeezed. “You’re alive and fine and if you don’t finish that carrot cake supreme cupcake, I will.”
Isobel smiled and blinked back tears before taking another bite of her cupcake.
“I suppose you’re right. I shouldn’t let myself get upset. Anyway, Mitch is going to prison—ho
pefully for a long, long time—so he won’t be able to bother anyone ever again.”
“Prison is too good for him,” Kat grumbled and sighed. “But I guess it was good of Hail not to, uh…” She lowered her voice. “You know, do away with him in front of Brandon.”
“Yes, I was grateful for that,” Isobel said, nodding. “I thought Hail showed incredible self control—especially since he was in his beast form at the time.”
“Speaking of Hail, where is he now?” Kat asked.
Isobel frowned. “At another hearing of the Kindred High Council. They’re still analyzing the data they got from the Chalombs about the Hive.”
“Ugh!” Kat shivered. “You know the Hive is a race of giant bugs, right? I hate bugs!”
“I’m not fond of them either,” Isobel said dryly. “But the Kindred Council seems to be taking them very seriously.”
Kat shook her head. “Brynn, one of the girls who joined our little group a while back, was sold to the Hive as a 'breeding queen'—if her husband, Varin, hadn't saved her…" She broke off, shuddering. "Anyway, people were afraid they were going to be a big problem in the future. But I thought they killed the Hive leader and everything was okay.”
“I don’t think so.” Isobel shook her head. “According to what Hail has been telling me, nothing is ever ‘okay’ when it comes to the Hive. So they’re trying to come up with a plan in case they attack again in the future.”
“I’ll tell you my plan—a giant bottle of Raid!” Kat shivered and took a sip of her tea. “Let’s stop talking about giant bugs, okay? Time for a change of subject. Tell me—what’s it like to make love to the beast?”
“Kat!” Isobel slapped at her friend’s shoulder but she couldn’t help grinning. Trust Kat to change the subject with her dirty mind. But though she wanted to join in with her friend’s laughter, she couldn’t forget some of the awful things she’d heard about the Hive and she hoped Hail was doing well in the hearing.
* * * * *
“We want to thank you again, Commander Hail, for bringing us this valuable information.” Commander Sylvan nodded at him gravely. “And I understand you went through a lot to get it.”