A/N: So I got a few reviews about this chapter and I realized that I needed to clarify on a few things so this re-post is an update with some further clarification on the whole mare situation. And also my Swedish translations since I was almost comatose when I posted this yesterday.
Okay, guys I know I said I would reply to reviews this chapter but this bad boy is 22 pages and I've been working on it for 8 hours straight so I'm gonna go get some coffee and watch some Judge Judy. BUT I want you to know that I love you guys and your reviews are my only happy time all day (except for my dogs and my husband and also my cats but that's a separate different kind of happiness.)
WARNING: THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS LEMONS - LOTS OF LEMONS. That being said... Enjoy...
Chapter 24: Fucked (And in a Good Way)
"PUT ME DOWN, YOU BIG GORILLA SHITHEAD!" I shrieked, pounding at the ridiculously attractive back of Eric Northman, Viking hothead, and my official enemy until my death. Grunting, he hefted me higher, making me give a grunt as his broad shoulders dug into my ribs and forced a yelp of agony from my throat. Instinctive tears welled in my eyes as I stopped struggling and let out a howl. "THAT HURTS, YOU OVERSIZED BITCHZILLA OF A VAMPIRE!"
I was in pain. I was covered in dried blood from some guy who probably would have raped my dead body if he had had the chance. One of the few people who had given me any information in my entire life had vanished with nary more than a middle finger wave. And now Eric was fuming, snarling under his breath in Swedish while he hauled me back to the church where I was sure everyone was still waiting.
"Sluta et nu," he growled, his words feral with rage as we slid down one of the hills and neared the chapel doors.
I shrieked, rage making me see red. "Stoppa upp den i röven på dig!"
Oh, he didn't like that one.
An almost inhuman sound snapped from him, followed by him all but tossing me from his shoulders and to the ground. His eyes were deadly, something akin to the wastelands of the arctic as he glared down at me, his bulking form towering over me. My ribs gave a cry of discomfort, making me lose my breath for a moment which made my returning snarl sound more like a kicked puppies whimper.
"Twice in one night you've just dashed away, putting yourself in danger, nearly exposing your abilities to no less than 20 humans and a dozen vampires," he hissed and a part of me quivered at his deadly tone, the blue of his eyes that bled seamlessly to white. "Do you think that you're invincible? Do you think that-"
"No," I snapped, flustered and angry and unwilling to let him continue on when I felt so unfairly judged. Because I had done most of it for him. For my sister. "The first time - the first time I let you know. Sookie - that man was about to… I couldn't let that happen-"
I stumbled off as his mouth twitched as if he were dissatisfied that he might actually have to give me this small win. Still, his gaze remained unflinching, his stance hard and mean.
Unwanted, my throat squeezed closed, my pulse racing as I remembered the mare. Should I tell him? Would he think I was crazy? No. Not Eric. He knew about mares. Hell, he had all but told me that that was what I was. If anyone would understand, it would be him.
As I gazed up at him, I realized once more how much I actually trusted him. When had I become like this? This wasn't my nature. But still, if anyone was to know, it was him.
"There was a mare here," I finally murmured, tearing my gaze away from him and to the cement beneath me. He blinked, taken aback for a moment. The gentle glow of the church from just behind me lit the path with clean, sharp light. "She was riling the people inside the church. If I didn't stop her then they would have been provoked into a state of… It would have been a massacre."
"For me," he snapped, baring his teeth. His fangs were visible in the low light, glinting softly. "They wanted nothing more than to-"
"To kill you," I hissed right back at him, baring my teeth as well. "Do you think I would have let them do that to you?"
His eyes widened, jerking as if he hadn't fully considered the fact that I didn't want him to die. Embarrassed, blushing, and still angry from even having to tell him a fraction of how I felt about him, I crossed my arms, still on my butt on the sidewalk. He was such a jerk. Really. Who would think after all this time that I didn't want him to live?
A shadow fell over me, dark boots coming into view as he sidled up to me and slowly crouched. I was still blushing, I realized almost disgruntledly. Those blue eyes had melted, the thundering light in them having subsided to a warm sun. Slowly, his eyes traveled over me their depths giving nothing away. He was like that. So easy to control his own emotions. It was his best weapon - that ability to detach and concentrate on the bigger picture. Jubelåsna.
Without a word, he scooped me up, lifting with a hand around my waist and under my knees so that I was cradled against the solid lines of his chest. Silently, he started slowly toward the church once more, his face drawn with his own musings.
"It was really a mare?" he finally inquired as we entered the chapel. A few shell-shocked members of the Fellowship of the Sun skirted away, looking near to peeing themselves as they tried to exit quickly.
"Yes," I murmured, eyeing the gathered vampires - one of them being Stan (barf) and a few others that I assumed were Area 9 members. I was surprised to feel calmed at the reliable presence of Godric, his face impassive as he watched the humans leave. "She mentioned a lot of... disturbing things to me."
"Hm," he murmured, his stride long and sure even as the other vampires eyed him with a mixture of amusement or disgust at the sight of me in his arms. I was too tired to do more than give them all a glare as we passed.
Reverend Newlin, a green mark apparent on his forehead was trembling at the foot of the chapel pulpit, his eyes still somehow able to convey hatred even with his fear. For a moment, I couldn't tear my eyes away from the small man, his face a mixture of plain features and clean lines that incited no real emotion from me. He was neither handsome nor ugly. He seemed neither loud nor quiet. A perfect medium - something that inspired trust because of its general lack of interesting personality.
At his back, the still form of Godric stood, his eyes roaming around the church with the calm analysis of a general surveying the slaughter after a war. No one had died, I took in but maybe it had been more of a moral defeat from the look in his somber eyes. It was the look of a man that wished that things had turned out differently but knew that there had been little that he could have changed.
In more ways than one, by allowing the humans to capture and keep him - I stopped, looking up at Eric as he slid closer to his maker, his face showing the same resigned judgment. Eric's cool eyes met mine, his big hand tightening beneath my knee as he saw - what did he see? Maybe understanding? Because I knew all too well what Godric had been trying to accomplish in giving the humans little to no fight in their pursuit of destroying him.
By submitting when he could have killed them all so easily with no ulterior motive, he had given them everything.
And that in itself made me very, very sad.
"We'll speak of this later," he said quietly, his eyes softening further before he put up those walls again and glanced around.
"Yo, is that Runa?" I blinked, whipping around.
"Jason?" I cried, squirming around as I tried to get a look over Eric's shoulder. Sure enough, huddled in the background just to the side of the stage was my sister and brother, blinking over at me in surprise. And also Bill but sometimes I just ignored his presence in favor of not being annoyed. "What the hell are you doing here?"
He grinned sheepishly over at me, the ring on his finger glinting golden in the overhead lights. Across his chest was a heavy-looking camouflage vest with a few ammo rounds tucked into it. And clutched in his hand was a gun.
I pointed an accusing finger at him. "I can't believe that you joined these nasty little rodents! You should be ashamed of yourself!"
"Please stop moving around," Eric said blandly.
I ignored him, nearly crawling over his hulking body to get a better look at my brother's ruffled appearance. His hair was tousled, dirty as if he had been rolling around in the dirt. A bit to my left, Godric's dark eyes tracked my movement with a dawning sort of amusement, his lips twitching as he caught Eric grumbled exasperations.
"Yeah, well this was that church I was telling you about," Jason said bashfully, eyeing the glaring vampires all around him with a twitch of nervousness. I grinned, ignoring Eric's sigh as I grappled with his shoulders, his grip adjusting to holding me just under my rump. "And then I got here and they made me a Soldier of the Sun-"
"Ex-soldier!" Reverend Newlin bellowed shrilly, his voice twisting with childish petulancy. "Ex."
My nose wrinkled at the sheer audacity of his tone. You got to have some real balls to still not look afraid when you were surrounded by more than a dozen vampires who looked like they hadn't eaten in a few days.
I glared down at him from my perch. "I bet its a real loss considering how gallant you look right now on your ass in the middle of a room full of vampires."
He spluttered out an incoherent line of indignation. Eric gave another long-suffering sigh as Godric's head tilted to the side, a ghost of a smile curving his lips as he met his progenies gaze.
"Yeah. You look real stupid," Jason called from across the room, earning a reproachful glance from Sookie and a smack.
"Someday your life of sin and depravity will-" I rolled my eyes, tired of all this bullshit. I wasn't going to stick around listening to this nonsense when my ribs were probably broken and my tongue felt like someone had taken a knife to it from how many times I had bit into it that night. Sookie's eyes met mine from across the room, warning me without words. I wasn't as good of a listener as Jason. "- and when that happens, I'm afraid that nothing will save you from the fiery depths of Hell-"
"Maybe I can room with your wife," I threw out sweetly, getting a ridiculous leap of joy at the confused, hurt expression that crossed his face. Eric's eyes rolled heavenward.
Jason's groan ripped through the room. "Aw, man, Runa."
"How dare you speak about my wife-" Reverend Newlin started in. From the slight purpling of his ears, it looked like it was going to be a good one.
"Okay," Godric sighed, his eyes catching mine in a silent rebuke. "Thank you, Miss Stackhouse." Newlin's teeth bared, his throat working around an oncoming tirade until Godric gently caught his gaze. "That's enough."
I blinked. How had he known my last name? Were vampires able to read minds after a certain age? I stared dubiously up at Eric, not at all fazed by the general look of warning in his eyes. Be good, they seemed to say.
Slowly, Godric's eyes drifted over the kneeling Reverend, still fumbling for a response scathing enough to give me without getting him into more trouble with the imposing vampire behind him. Finally, after a long pause, Godric glanced up, taking a step down from the pulpit. "Come."
It wasn't a suggestion. Without a word, the other Area 9 vampires filed away, looking surprisingly unfazed by the command. Perhaps after so many years under Godric, they had come to know his ways. Only Stan's face tightened, his jaw clenching as he stepped up to block Godric as he made his way slowly to the exit behind his vampires.
"Sir, after what these humans have done to you?" he inquired and I could sense the undertone to that question. It was a thin line of disrespect, the whisper of someone who didn't agree with your decision.
The size difference was massive between the two. While Eric towered over everyone, his darker-haired maker was around my own height. It was a startling contrast to see nearly a foot of difference between the two, Stan's smile one of a person that was used to getting his way based on imposing height alone. Against me, I felt the almost imperceptible shift of Eric's body as he took personal offense to the action even though his face didn't show it.
Perhaps it was more of a sign of their relationship that he didn't step in, didn't even put me down to be able to defend. No. Godric didn't need that kind of support. Not for the first time, I felt a sharp shiver run up my spine.
I wanted to ask him about this, inquire mercilessly into the nature of his maker. But instead, I slipped back down against Eric, knotting my hands behind the strong column of his neck as he readjusted his hold on me once more to hold me beneath my knees and waist.
"I said come." Again, the things that weren't there told more of a story than the things that could have been. No aggression. No force. Just a gentle command.
But Stan's face changed, his face slackening as he stepped to the side and let Godric stride past him. Like a dog that had been tied up in the back for eating a cookie.
"I don't like that Godric is around him," I whispered, almost without thinking, my eyes trained on the pair as they walked silently out. I didn't like that the bigger vampire was to his back either. Even if it seemed that Godric could tear out his throat in one second flat.
"He can take care of himself," Eric murmured to me but his eyes were on the pair as well.
"That means very little to me," I mused. Finally, Eric's eyes flicked to meet mine, a small smile curling his lips.
"I haven't known you to be fond of vampires before, lover," he murmured, that smug smile still curling his lips as he gazed up at me.
I frowned. "Godric…" It was hard to put into words. How had I grown so… attached to him so easily? Maybe that wasn't the right word. There was something in him that inspired devotion, an unflinching loyalty that made people instinctively bend the knee. Like being at the center of a temple that had stood for thousands of years and would continue to stand long past your years. How many people have walked here? How much heartbreak and joy have touched this place? Humbling and chilling - that was what standing with Godric felt like.
"I can't explain it," I finally said, confused at the round way that my head was going. How could a person feel like that? How could I know that when the farthest I had ever stepped was right here - Dallas, Texas?
I wasn't the type to bend the knee. Nor was I the type to give my loyalty so easily. Even with Eric, it had taken months to inspire more than a general dislike. But there was a kindness in Godric that burned inside of him - a patience that made me think that he wasn't meant for this world. Not because he couldn't survive it but because I didn't want to particularly see him survive it.
Eric's eyes ran over me for a moment, analyzing before he said quietly, "I know."
I gulped, feeling suddenly small. I'm sure he did but the sucking reality of what I just felt was a million miles from what I imagined for Eric. Because the difference between Eric and I was so simple and yet complex that most days I tried to push it away. Because no matter how alike we were there was still a whole life that he had led - a life filled with war and starvation and conquering. A life that ended and then abruptly began again. I knew what he had lived through - the Renaissance, the Black plague, the French revolution, the formation of nations where there had once only been bare land with no owner, the Great Depression, and the downfall of kings - but there was a difference between knowing and truly understanding. And that, in its own way frightened me.
I blinked, snapping back to myself as Eric took a step forward, following silently behind the other vampires of area nine. "What are you doing?"
He didn't even glance up as he answered casually. "The nights over. Godric has called us back to the nest."
My eyes narrowed on his impassive face. "Um, in case you haven't noticed, you're still carrying a whole other person with a whole other set of opinions on where she should be going tonight."
"You're right," he said mildly. "I didn't notice."
I seethed, glaring at the side of his head as his footsteps took us steadily closer to the exit. Behind him, I heard Jason give a grunt of confusion.
"Are we just letting that blonde gorilla carry her away?"
Eric spun, his fangs clicking down in an altogether unholy action as he let out a sound similar to what I had heard in a few horror movies right before someone got torn to shreds. Jason's face paled to curdled milk as he shifted a bit behind Bill, his big brown eyes showing more white than ever.
Eric took a menacing step forward, his hands claws in my skin. "You ever call me anything other than sir and I'll tear out your tongue, are we clear, little human boy?"
I blinked, staring at the side of Eric's face as he sneered across the room at my brother. I had called him out of his name many times. Somehow I didn't remember him acting like this. I gulped, an uneasy pit opening in my stomach as Sookie shrunk behind Bill as well. For his part, the dark-haired vampire looked only a bit apprehensive about the whole exchange, his eyes giving way to more exasperation than anything else.
Jason's adam's apple bobbed nervously, his eyes darting from me to the man holding me quickly. "Y-yes." At Eric's harsh snarl, he flinched. "Yes - yes, sir."
The big, blonde Viking gave a snarl, sounding more annoyed than accepting of the reply as he turned away, muttering under his breath in Swedish. "Useless imbecile."
I stared at him dubiously for a moment longer. The amount of rage that was pouring off of him was slightly confusing. It took a lot to get such an outward reaction from him. Little could get under his skin and even if that person was Jason (and I knew from first-hand experience how irritating he could be) it was highly unlikely that Eric Northman cared enough about my brother to get this upset.
Still, it was probably better to get him as far away from my brother as possible at the moment.
"I'll see you guys at the nest," I called, leaning back in Eric's arms to meet my siblings' gazes. Their expressions were almost identical as they stared after me: yeah and leave your dog at home, please. I grimaced.
As we exited, I heard Jason whispering quietly to Sookie. "When did that become a thing?"
We were already out into the lobby before I could hear a reply. I wasn't even sure if I was going to like it, in all honesty. Things between Eric and I - well, they weren't simple. I wasn't entirely sure if I was okay with being labeled as his pet for the rest of my life. And how would that even work? Us? Being a couple seemed like dangerous ground to tread. Under my fingers, the muscles in his shoulders and back bulged, rolling. For a moment, a dizzying, stupid, girly moment, I let myself admit the obvious: the sex would be phenomenal.
Which was embarrassing. I blushed, ducking my head, trying to wipe the steam away from my now horny brain.
Because if the warnings from the other mares was to be taken seriously than there couldn't be anything other than sex between us. My stomach churned, my mind playing across the words of the mare from earlier. Something wasn't right. If her words were to be taken then that meant that the power of the mares was waning and to back that was the fact that I hadn't gotten a visit from them in months. Did they think I was dead? A lost cause?
Sudden, blaring doubt crashed down on me. A parlor trick had made me submit to their will - the promise of death if I let Eric take more than a physical bite of me. Taming, she had said and then that blinding pain. But that had all been months ago and since then - nothing. Did they even have the power to control me?
That was a dangerous thought.
"You'll need blood," Eric rumbled suddenly. "Your ribs are probably either fractured or broken. And I can smell the blood on you. You bit through your tongue didn't you." The eyes that lasered onto me were dark, dangerously heated as he eyed me, his gaze focusing on my lips. For one heated moment, I thought that he was going to lean down and kiss me. Again. My stomach fluttered at the reminder of the last time his lips had met mine. I wouldn't have minded a repeat.
But in the end, he let out an annoyed grunt, his teeth baring in a snarl. His eyes flashed an icy blue. "This time you won't fight me, Runa Stackhouse."
It was always so fun to rile him up though, I thought, a bit dejected. And my ribs didn't really hurt that bad anymore. As long as I stayed still, I could almost imagine that it was just a bruise. I blinked up at him, debating.
Snarling, he ducked his head a bit closer, his fangs snapping down as he stared into my eyes. "Say it, mare."
I played dumb, fluttering my lashes up at him in feigned confusion. "Say what?"
"I'm not playing these games with you tonight, Runa," he snarled and I squeaked as he deftly hefted me up, switching his grip so that he had his hands under my arms, my feet dangling a bit higher from the ground than I would like as he kept me suspended there. A power move most definitely, one that I was afraid was working. "Your imbecile of a brother annoyed me and I'm in no mood to dance around on whatever string you want me to this night."
Wiggling around, I ignored the burning pain that was crackling up my sides my hands grappling with his bicep as I tried to get a bit of leverage to do more than dangle in his grip. I had known that vampires were strong but he was lifting me like I was a teddy bear. I scowled at him.
"I'm not the one that got you angry," I snapped, kicking out at him until he was forced to hold me at arm's length. "I don't even know what you're so angry about. He didn't do anything-"
"Have you forgotten that he killed one of my own for a bit of v?" he cut me off, sneering. I blinked, wincing. I had actually. It seemed like a lifetime ago that he… I blanched, ceasing my struggle as I remembered our arrangement. My service for the freedom of my brother and sister. How could I forget so easily? A cruel, twisted smile curved his lips, matching with the sharp glint of his fangs. "Ah, there it is."
I blushed, glaring down at the cement of the walkway that led to the church's front door. "I haven't forgotten."
I had. God, I felt stupid. I was stupid.
His next words were quiet as he drew me to his front, my breasts pressing along the hard ridges of his chest as he set me down gently, his eyes searching. "Do they even know what you've given up to allow them to walk around without any fear of consequences? Have you told them?"
I gulped, heat burning my face as I ducked my head away from his penetrating stare. His arms had curled around me, keeping me against him. "They don't need to know. It's not their problem."
A soft snarl vibrated through him, his head dipping until he met my gaze head-on, his eyes serious. "Maybe they should," he murmured. "Do you understand how badly things could have gone if he were found among Newlin's follows after slaughtering one of my vampires? Maybe telling him is the least that you could do since he seems like more of a buffoon that I could ever comprehend."
I gritted my teeth. "He has other talents."
"Well, his talents are about to get his throat slit open," he replied blandly. I didn't reply. There was a point to his warning. Tonight Jason had nearly been on the wrong side of a battle that he was sure to have lost. Silently, he drew me closer, hefting me up until I had no choice but to wrap my legs around his middle. He seemed hell-bent on getting me accustomed to flying. More than that, he seemed to thoroughly enjoy having me wrapped around him, his hands able to squeeze onto my rump whenever he liked. "Hold on."
It always amazed me how quickly Eric could get from one place to another. Perhaps by now, I should have submitted to the fact that nothing about Eric was human. Even being a mare, I had mortal instincts, human weaknesses. But Eric Northman was a whole different species. Even among vampires, he was an entity among itself.
There was a simmering quiet to the Area 9 nest when Eric breezed through the doors, a low, hypnotic beat vibrating through the room - more aura than noise. Vampires lounged here and there, dabbling in sex or argument or a mixture of the two. Only a few noticed as we slid through the doors, the others too engaged in the party around us.
Eric stalked through the halls, his eyes darting this way and that as he kept me hugged to his front, hissing a warning as I tried to get down. Against my butt, his fingers tightened, dragging me further against him until my pelvis ground against his. Warm, electric aches clenched at me. That one action sent me on fire, making me catch my breath.
"Sheriff Northman," a low, sultry voice hummed and I raised my head from Eric's shoulder to take in Isabela, her eyes tired and a bit sad. The news of her pet's betrayal must have traveled very quickly. There was a definite lack of bite to her gaze, a sorrowful longing as she took in the way that Eric was holding me, my legs curled around his waist. I felt a bit sad for her, I realized. "Godric is greeting his nest in the living room."
His eyes flicked to the side, following the swell of bodies. It reminded me of a court with chortling mistresses and lords gathering around the king. Except this was a house filled with vampires. I shrunk, a bit of fear beating through me as I saw one couple withering on the couch, the female reeling back before chomping down into another's neck. Here, even with Eric, I felt vulnerable. Small. Too weak to take on more than a few at a time. They could kill me easily if they wanted to.
A rabbit in the den of wolves.
"My pet is injured," Eric said smoothly, one big hand running up my spine comfortingly. "I need somewhere to treat her."
Isabela's smile was gentle. "Of course. The third floor, fifth door on the right. Those rooms are for play and guests. No one will bother you."
I blinked, blushing furiously. That sounded… not innocent. I gulped, taking in the flash of a smile to my right as one of the vampires gave a knowing smirk in my direction, his eyes lingering where Eric's head had tipped into the crook of my neck. Suddenly, I didn't want to get down from my place in his arms. I wanted to completely disappear. Eric gave unsteady sigh, his breath cool against my inflamed skin.
"My thanks," Eric rumbled and before I knew it, he was striding purposefully toward down a long hallway, the music fading into quiet conversation.
The stairs were located in a back corner of the massive house, slim and made of glass. The whole back of the house was made of windows, overlooking a lush garden that gave way to other houses. It was weird that we were in the middle of a suburb, the night sky outside glowing with city lights.
I glimpsed a wide-open concept for the second floor, something like a training room or series of spacious offices before we were on the third floor. The third floor, however, was darker, lined with closed doors. Through the glass, the moon and stars shimmered through the hallway, bouncing off the wood floors. There was a quiet sort of eduction that seemed to emanate through the halls, making the moaning pleas coming from one room seem dirty and altogether enticing. Eric's fingers tightened on me as I flinched, paling at the sound of a whip and then a scream that bit through the air, muffled.
"You don't think-" I started, anxiously peering down the dark hallways as someone else screamed. The odd thing was that I couldn't tell if it was heavy with arousal or pain. My heart skittered.
"Vampires like to play a bit rougher than whatever paltry humans you've had," he murmured, slipping a hand to the knob and opening it quietly. His fangs flashed as he gave me a smirk. "I've never had any complaints."
I frowned at him.
It's a richly furnished room with a creamy brown carpet just a shade lighter than the walls. The bed is larger than my own by a few feet, snuggled down with expensive-looking gray sheets and downy pillows. A few lights trickle down from the ceiling around the bed, casting the space in a soft, cozy glow. It's nicer than my entire house, simple and spacious in a way that screams money. It always struck me how little a room needs to look like a millionaire lives in it. Stick a loveseat at the end of an enormous bed with a simple color scheme and it looks like Bill Gates lives there.
"Comfy," I say but it comes out strangled. Like I realize what a compromising position I'm in. Because there's a difference between Eric kissing me in the lobby of a hotel or fingering me in his office at the dirty end of a deal and being locked in a room with a bed while he offers me his blood.
Eric's face is still heated, that same smile still in place, sharp as a blade as he carried me over to the loveseat at the foot of the bed and sat us down. I gasped at the intimate contact, my face heating. His large hands adjusted comfortably on my thighs, kneading along the muscles there before squeezing down on my ass and then working back down. Tingles shot up my spine, my whole body aching with the contact.
"Take off your shirt." I blinked, reeling as he eyed the offending material with obvious disdain.
Heat burned across my face as I snapped back a quick no. "How about you take off yours first?"
Bad idea.
With a wicked grin, he leaned forward, grasping the material at the back of his neck and slipping the tank top away and tossing it the ground. I gulped, shivering, and shocked. I had meant it to be snippy and now - now I couldn't think. Eric's hulking figure was made up of muscles upon muscles. His abs rippled with wiry strength, bunching, and expanding into shoulders and pecs that looked like they were made out of granite. I blinked, shaken, and melting as I took in the full expanse of his biceps and forearms.
There was usually a level of consistency in the men that I had hooked up with. All of them understood that this was a one-time thing and most of them were attractive in the average bum-fuck town kind of way. Eric Northman was not like those people at all. His presence cowed me, making the small part of me that was wholly aware of how massive our leagues were from each other cower like a little girl. Because there was no other way to look at it - Eric Northman could have anyone he wanted and Runa Stackhouse was still living in her Grandmother's house in backwater Bon Temp.
"You smell like pig's blood," he says blandly and in one second I feel that familiar irritation flare up again. Still, he's so close to me and I'm sprawled over him, straddling him so that if I press a bit more. I let out an unintentional gasp, watching as Eric's pupils dilate, a rumble vibrating through him as I grind my hips down. He's hard, I realize. Somehow even though I was thinking it before now that I know it makes my very bones ache. His fangs flash down as his hands flex on my ass once more, gripping and releasing like he's trying to control himself. "And I need to see your ribs."
My finger's slip to the hem of my tank top before I can think about it. Because if he doesn't touch me anymore in the next few minutes I'm going to catch fire and burn. This was a road that we were traveling down - one that was twisted and gnarled but that led to the same spot none-the-less. I knew from the moment that I had seen him that he was going to set me on fire - that I belonged to him in a way that was ancient and primal.
But still, a girl's got to play hard to get. And I hated that cocky glint in his cobalt eyes.
I blink down at him. "Just to see my ribs."
His fangs flash in the barest of snarls. "Just to see your ribs."
I hide my smirk, shucking it off with a low hiss as my ribs give a snap of annoyance at the movement. Eric had licked away most of Gabe's blood from my throat and face and the rest had been sopped up into the tank top. His eyes immediately zeroed in on my bra, taking in the lacy black material. I had used all of my more modest ones the first two days of the trip. Apparently, that had been a blessing in disguise.
There's nothing between the calloused scrape of his fingers and my bare skin as he slides his hand from the swell of my rump to run along the sensitive skin of my spine. His expression is ravenous as he grits out a curse, his eyes focused on the exposed upper swell of my breasts, the material thin enough to show the hardened peaks of my nipples.
"You usually wear lacy underwear when you go into life or death situations?" he growls and I feel his breath skate along the tender skin of my breasts as he leans forwards, nuzzling against them. Like he's trying to control himself from sinking his teeth into me.
"You're supposed to be looking at my ribs," I remind him softly, my fingers curving around his shoulders as I try to keep myself from grinding down on that erection I can feel pulsing against me.
He lets out a growl, his teeth scraping along my left breast. I shiver, something hot and aching exploding through me at the touch. But then he's pulling away, rolling his shoulders as if he's trying to regain some semblance of control. Irritation and hunger war on his face, making him look half-wild. I pant, feeling overwhelmed from just that small chafe of his teeth.
Almost against his will, he forces his eyes downward, taking in the motley decoration of bruises and swelling along my ribcages. I definitely fractured something. His mouth twitches downward in a scowl before he's leaning back against the loveseat, those eyes cool again as he meets my gaze. "You'll need blood if you want to heal properly without going to the hospital."
And then he waits, eyeing me with a sudden calm determination that confuses me. Isn't this where he offers me his blood? I frown, glancing down at where his big hands still rest against my hips, his thumbs tracing lazy patterns along the curve of my waist. He doesn't speak. My frown turns into a scowl.
A single blonde brow quirks. "Something the matter, mare?"
"I need blood," I stated flatly, unsure of what game we were playing now.
His eyes glitter a bright blue, water reflecting sunshine. "So you do." And then he didn't say anything again, continuing the maddening circles along my hips.
He wanted something. He knew I was waiting for him - couldn't have brought me up here unless he - Oh. Suddenly the words from the last time I had needed his blood came roaring back to me. I'll give you what you need and when the time comes…
But he couldn't possibly want me to - I gave a snarl as his brows tipped up, his eyes catching on the incredulous expression widening my eyes. Oh, he could. Vindictive, petty - I snarled out a breath, all of a sudden so angry that I could barely think coherently. He knew that he had something over me and now he was going to hold it out of my reach - make me beg -
"You can't possibly be serious," I whisper, astonishment and rage making my words come out strangled.
A small smile curls his lips. Lazily, his eyes roam over my face, down the slim column of my throat, heating mercilessly as they catch on my hard nipples peeking through the lace of my bra. His hands flex on my hips and his next words coming out low, a little raw. "Ask me nicely and I'll give it to you without a thought."
I snapped, jerking forward with a sneer. "I. Don't. Beg."
His eyes darkened, his fangs flashing in a returning snarl. "You just make me."
I blinked, jerking. Had I? My mind swam in confused circles. Not Eric Northman. Eric Northman wouldn't submit to anything. No… The blue of his eyes churned in annoyance. His whole body pulsed with it.
"You taunt me with ideas of finally having you in my bed - finally getting to see if you would be the hottest fuck I ever had-" His teeth bared in a feral snarl like the idea enraged him. At my ass, his fingers dug into the flesh there. "Then you make me go galavanting all over that damned hotel like a love-sick puppy. Do you enjoy seeing my pad after you? Seeing the lengths that I go to just to get a taste of those lips?"
"You want me?" It seemed stupid now that I said it out loud. Of course, he wanted me. Even if it was in a purely sexual way - I knew that. But there was a submission in those words - something that gave me a bit more ground and made him a bit more vulnerable in the process. It was that more than the knowledge that made me unsteady, made my breath catch.
Slowly, he leaned forward once more, his face tipping up until his lips whispered along mine, those blue, blue eyes filling my vision. "From the moment you walked into my club in that tiny outfit. I could barely hold myself back from bending you over the bar and taking a bite out of you."
There was a promise in those words. My heart ached my legs shifting from where they were pressed around his hips as I tried to relieve some of the ache there. I wanted him too. I had wanted him for a while. Briefly my mind flashed to the warning of the mares: a mare cannot be tamed. Was this taming? No. She had said that sex was one thing - the rules were meant for my heart. Gulping, I stared into the crystal depth's of Eric's eyes. Was he taming me? I let out a breath. Did I care if he was? Sudden, indignant fury made me burn. How dare they give me rules when they had given me nothing in return? How dare they act like anything other than dream parasites, the crumbling gasp of a race that was on the verge of extinction. I was willing to take this risk. I was willing because my fear had little base behind it. They had chanted at me, given me nightmares that made me wake vomiting but nothing more. Powerless creatures - it made my insides burn with hatred.
Taking a breath, I leaned a little bit closer, my lips dragging along his and made a rash jump for solid ground.
"Please, Eric. May I have your blood?"
A harsh sound vibrated from deep within his chest, his fangs flashing as he pulled away from me. I barely had a moment to miss the press of him against me before, his teeth were sinking into his own wrist, the red splash of blood flowing from the bite as he pressed it to my lips. The metal smell hit me a moment before I was opening my mouth. There was very little hesitation this time as I tongued the wound, feeling him jerk beneath me, his hips grinding up into my sensitive folds.
It was an odd mix of sweet and bitter, something crisp cutting through the thick texture. It tasted like him, I realized already feeling my skin tingle with hyper-awareness. It tasted how I imagined he would - mostly bitter with that spike of honey. But he didn't let most people feel that part. I whimpered, shivering as his teeth scraped over my nipple, feeling the tantalizing tips of his fangs tighten. And then a snarl as his hands grip my waist and drag me forward.
His mouth latches onto my nipple and when he sucks hard on my sensitive peaks, I can't help the tumbling sounds that break from my lips, his wrist forgotten. All I can think of is him. His body is so big, rolling with such strength as his mouth leaves my nipple with a final, sharp nip. A shiver races up my spine as his head dips, his tongue and lips giving my fully healed ribs a wet kiss. It's a reverent move, his eyes closing like he's lost in the first bite of a meal after starving for a century.
"Eric-" In one moment, I'm staring down at his bowed head, and in the next, he's on his knees in front of me, my back against the loveseat as his long fingers work at my belt and jeans.
His eyes are burning, dark as he drags the material down my legs. My black panties are drenched, sticking to my folds in an obscene picture. "So wet, love. Is this all for me?"
I didn't know how to answer, his shoulders pressing my legs wider, wide enough to make my panties barely be enough to cover me. Almost absently, his hand traveled slowly up my calf, kneading at the muscles there before dipping behind my knee. My breath catches, my flesh tingling. He's going so slow - so slow when all I want is for him to finally take me, hard and fast. His hair flashes with golden light as he leans forward, forcing a whimper from me as he bites lightly at my inner thigh.
"Eric," I plead, hesitantly reaching out, catching his darkly amused stare as he tracks that hand, watching as I think better of tugging at his hair and instead grasp his shoulder.
"Come on, pet," he murmurs and I shake uncontrollably as he drifts a bit closer, his lips so close - just there as he kisses along the edge of my underwear. "You've always been so good at words and now you can barely speak." It was obscene - the flash of his eyes between my thighs. His hands had reached under, massaging the underside of my thighs, rubbing along my ass. "Is this all for me?"
Heat burned across my face, my body sharpening at his words, the possessive tilt of his smile. I would give him anything he wanted, I realized. Is this what it feels like to be tamed, my traitorous brain mocks. The word slipped from my lips without my permission, quietly. "Yes."
"Good girl," he says and just like that his lips are there, his tongue pressing into me through the soaked fabric of my panties. My clit throbs as he gives a groan that vibrates through my core. Like he's tasted the best thing in the world. Like he can't get enough of me as his teeth scrape across my thigh for one feverish moment before his hands dig into my ass and drag me to the edge of the loveseat. A rip tears through the room and suddenly I'm bare, Eric groaning as he stares down at my drenched folds. "I'll buy you another pair, sweetheart. Couldn't wait to get a taste of this pussy. Open your legs up a bit more, love. I need more."
I fall back as he tugs my legs over his shoulders, nearly drowning in need as he lets out a satisfied grunt before leaning back down. And then I can't even think anymore because his tongue is sawing back and forth along my clit, making me arch and go blind. My fingers which were so shy before spear through the soft mess of his hair, wanting him closer and there, there, there and sobbing because I can't even comprehend what I want.
I'm a mess, shaking as his tongue spears into me, his fingers bruising my ass as he lifts me like I'm a dish that he's decided to finish off. I'm drenched, so wet that the sound is echoing around the room, sinful and debauched. And when he groans that I taste so fucking good, just like honey and his teeth pinch at my clit, I nearly lose my mind.
"Eric," I sob, tugging at his hair, my thighs shaking as his tongue fucks into me again. "Eric, please."
"Fuck," he hisses, sounding angry, furious, pulling away for a second before he's nipping at my folds, his fangs making me squeak. "Need to be in you so bad. Fuck. This is only going to be a quick taste just to get you good and wet. But later I'm going to spend all morning licking this pretty pussy, you understand?"
His words make me burn, my core tightening as if he's already inside of me and oh god, I'm on edge, my belly hollowing as I whimper. Because I think I'm close to losing my mind. And I let out a screaming moan as he immediately goes for my clit, one of his fingers playing at the edge of my pussy before sliding in. Sobbing, I yank at his hair and the answering feral rumble is the final straw before I'm clenching, blind as my orgasm takes over.
It's an all-consuming kind of peak like tipping over the side of a cliff and letting gravity take over. It takes my breath away. I shudder, helpless as Eric stays with me, murmuring softly against my folds in between gentle licks.
I've rarely felt the kind of high that only a good orgasm can get you. Maybe once? But here it is, my mind buzzing, humming languidly from one sensation to another as I feel Eric's body slide along mine, my back cushioned on a warm, soft carpet and then the feel of Eric's body over top of mine, his chest pressed to mine.
Dazed, I run my hands through the knotted mess of his blonde hair, getting perverse satisfaction from knowing that it was me who made it that way. For a moment, I remember his longer hair, imagining how much enjoyment I would have gotten from tangling that. My fingers drift down over the hard column of his neck and then to the solid ropes of his shoulders and back. He's built like a - well, like a Viking. Built to haul heavy equipment or swing weapons all day - built to fight. My eyes catch on a few pale scars that run along his back and over his ribs - so thin and smooth that if I wasn't this close I wouldn't have noticed them. Reminders of his human life.
A soft moan whispers from my lips as his tongue laps at my nipple. Somewhere in between my orgasm and him slipping me to the floor, he removed my bra. I'm afraid to think of what state it's in considering my panties from earlier. And… Testingly, my toes slip over his bare calves, the hair there coarse and abrading. His thighs are massive, pressing my own wide around him and a shiver of bliss travels up my thighs and dances in my stomach. Finally, my toes skim along his bare ass and all at once I'm drenched again, horny as I remember the hard length that pressed into me as I straddled him. I'm tempted to ask him to lean just a little bit-
His voice is muffled against my breast, the tips of his fangs an erotic press. "God, you're fucking beautiful. I thought you were gorgeous before but I could watch you cum all day long."
His mouth is wet, glistening with my juices as he glances up, those eyes bluer than the clearest sky and so hot that my thighs automatically tighten around him. And all I want to do is drag him down to my lips so that I can run my tongue over his fangs. Feel him break like he did to me. Is this what it is for someone to tame a mare? Can a person really be completely at the will of another?
"You're bossy," I murmur, my heart thumping possessively as he slides up my body, his chest rasping along the sharp peaks of my breasts. He's all around me suddenly, his arms braced beside me. Against my most intimate parts, I can feel him, long and hard and very, very big. My hands slide along his biceps, enjoy the solid mass of his on top of me as he tips his head so that our lips can graze. "And dirty."
"You like it when I'm bossy," he mutters, his head tipping to the side as his lips slide along mine - barely a kiss but tender and intimate in a way that makes me burn. "And you seem to like it when I'm dirty too."
I don't see the use in lying. "You might be right."
His chuckle is dark and sinful. Biting my lip, I try and rub against that him, my core already aching all over again. This man is an addiction and I don't think that one orgasm will even begin to sate me. His touch has opened up a gaping hunger.
But all at once, he's tsking, the smirk curling his lips teasing as his hips level off of me and my thighs lose their grip, sliding pathetically down his own until I don't have any contact. I frown, frustrated, my legs trying to drag him down again.
"What do you want, sweetheart?" he murmurs and I clench my teeth at the light in his eyes. Ugh. He makes me so mad. His smile broadens at that enraged stare. "Come on, pet. You asked so sweetly earlier. I went to my knees for that little plea."
My eyes narrow, face burning as I remembered all too clearly. He's such an ass. Slowly, his chest drags along mine, reminding me of the aching need that has been smoldering. I hated him.
But he has something I need. And the idea of walking away from it…
"Eric," I gritted out, baring my teeth up at him as he nuzzled his nose against mine - just to irritate me. "Eric, will you please make love-"
He nips at my nose, those fangs snapping down close enough to nearly draw blood. "Wrong, sweetheart. Later I'll lay you down on a bed and take my time but what I'm about to do to you is going to be rough and hard. I don't think I'll even have the control to be a little bit gentle with this pretty little body of yours tonight." My breath caught, my core clenching at his words. Why did that make me so hot? His eyes burned into mine. "What we're about to do is fuck."
My breath was uneven as I tried to regain that thread of anger that had made me so clear-headed a moment ago. But my next words were unsteady. "Eric - Eric, will you please… will you please... fuck... me?"
My words teetered off, shaking and quieting as I went on. It was lucky that he didn't wait until I finished, his eyes burning into something ravenous and feral, groaning as he braces a rigid arm beside me and reaching down to grasp his cock. My nails dig into his biceps as he rubs the broad head through my slick folds and then wedges it against my entrance.
God, he's so big. So big, so big, so big. That's all I can think as her pushes into me, deeper and deeper, stretching me in such a way that I can't breathe, I can barely think. Because he feels perfect. My thighs shake around his hips, whimpering as he finally seats himself firmly and he lets out another groan.
"God, knew you were going to be tight but this is ridiculous," he grunts and I gasp as he grinds against me, my muscles clamping down on him in return. "You all right, sweetheart?"
I let out a moan in answer, unable to string words together to make sense. Why does he feel so good?
"And your wet," he snarls and there's a thin line of fury in that statements that makes me shiver. Slowly, his shaft drags out and then forces it's way back into me and I can't help but arch into him.
I've had sex before. More hookups than I would like to admit. Fast and frenzied was the usual tone, sometimes so fast that I still had my underwear on. There was always a common thread. Most guys just fuck with their hips, pounding away blindly until they reached an end that they had thought they worked for.
Not Eric. His thighs push against mine, forcing mine wider until all I can feel is the way that his cock sinks into me, his knees shoving into the carpet as if he's trying to get as deep into me as he can. His biceps roll beneath my fingers tips, bunching and tightening each time he thrusts into me, pulling his upper body against mine. It's intoxicating and I feel myself tightening already, my whole body tingling.
Moaning, my thighs come up to grip his hips, silently begging him to just stay inside of me and somehow he gets me hotter as he reaches back and catches my legs, cinching them higher around his back. For a moment, I wonder what his version of making love is. This feels like it to me. Fucking was never this good - never made me want to burn along with someone else like this.
My body trembles beneath his and with a low growl, he moves away from me, making me whimper in disappointment. Abruptly, he levels himself to his knees, his hands move to my waist as he drags my hips up so that he can crash into me. And suddenly I realize that that bit of bliss was just the warm-up as his hips crashes into mine. His eyes close, his mouth open as if he's caught between agony and pleasure so great that he isn't sure what to do. It's hard and dirty and the sound of his cock slamming into my wet folds fills the room.
But he's gotten so much tonight - more than he can ever imagine - and I want something to. If this is my taming then I'll leash him to me too. Because if I have to burn for this than I want to know that for this one night, he burned with me.
"Eric." His eyes are half-lidded, guarded as he opens them, his hips still slamming into me with such force that I can barely catch my breath. I whimper, trying to look pathetic and in need and succeeding partially because I am both of those things at the moment. "Eric, I need - I need… to feel you...against me."
His teeth flash in a pained grimace, his tempo picking up as if he can't handle the broken plea in my voice.
I can't either. "Please?"
A groan rips from his chest and he leans forward, lowering me back to the ground, bracing himself above me. Not close enough. But then again will it ever be at this point? I loop my arms around his neck, dragging him down to my lips even though I know he could fight me. But he doesn't. And that makes me moan more as his lips part on another groan and I drag my tongue along those fangs. God. I could eat him alive right now.
All at once, he's fucking me like a man starved, sucking at my tongue, one hand going back to make sure that my thighs stay high on his hips. Writhing, trapped inside this mid-section of being so close to cumming and wanting it to last longer, I moan, clawing into his back. "Eric - baby - I need more. I need-"
I don't know what I need but it's like Eric is a part of me, his chest rumbling with a hungry snarl as his hands move to dig into my ass, rocking against my clit with every thrust. I feel myself tightening around him, my breath shuddering out of me on a sob. "So good, Eric. Feels so good. Love the way…"
My fingers scramble from his back, fisting in his hair as I cum. It's shattering, so overpowering that for a moment the world goes quiet and there's nothing but my body clamping around him, arching into him as he grunts a harsh curse.
And as if my own release is his undoing, he roars, snarling as he pumps into me faster and harder. His whole body tenses, his knees shoving my legs wider as he grinds down into me and I feel his cock jerk and somehow I'm reeling into another release as I feel him cum in me, his shoulders bunching as his thrusts slow.
Tired contentment settles down over me, making my limbs heavy as he finally stops, my legs slipping weakly down his back as he settles over me, his lips soft as he nuzzles against me. My heart warms, his body cocooning me.
Groggily, I hear him whisper something into the curve of my neck, his blunt, human teeth grazing over the slim column of my neck and for one moment I realize he didn't bite me. Even though he could have. Even though I would have probably begged him to. But then that thought was drifting away and I was settling into a needed sleep.
"You're mine now, mare," I thought I heard him say, his lips sticking to mine for one wet moment as he gave me a languid kiss.
Groggily, I kissed him back, enjoying the gentle slide of his tongue along mine before I garbled out a response. "And you're mine, Viking."
Woo! SEX! Please drop a review. This is 22 pages, folks. *Stares emphatically at everyone* So yeah I would love to hear from you guys!
A/N: So I got a few reviews about this chapter and I realized that I needed to clarify on a few things so this re-post is an update with some further clarification on the whole mare situation. And also my Swedish translations since I was almost comatose when I posted this yesterday.
Sluta et nu: Stop it now
Stoppa upp den i röven på dig
Jubelåsna: Idiot
