Incomplete
- Chapter Twenty-Five -
Author's Note: Fair warning that this chapter contains some citrus content.
oOo
Kagome wanted to hate him. It was easier to hate him than it was to spend hours pacing around her room wondering what she'd done wrong.
For a brief moment she'd foolishly thought that things had changed. When his lips found hers the fire had returned, and her body felt hungry and alive for the first time in weeks. There was need behind his touch; it was a need she understood because it so closely mimicked her own - deep and insatiable.
So why had he pulled away?
She'd gone over it in her mind countless times but the answer eluded her. Too add to her frustration, the only person who could give her what she wanted was the exact person making it his mission to avoid her. He was adept at it too, but tonight she wanted the truth and wouldn't stop until she'd heard it firsthand from the demon himself.
Kagome navigated the corridor that led to Sesshomaru's private quarters with ease, careful to avoid being seen by prying eyes. The rich wooden floors, as beautiful as they were, did little to keep out the wintry chill that seeped through them. Goosebumps erupted along her arms and legs and she rubbed at them to ward off the cold.
Her plan had seemed foolproof, if a little reckless, earlier on but as she drew closer to his room her stomach was awash with doubt.
Can I do this?she wondered while standing outside his door.
She stared at it for a long while knowing that he'd likely been aware of her presence for some time. Sucking in a breath she knocked softly before sliding the door open and letting herself in.
A warm fire roared in the hearth and in its orange glow she could see Sesshomaru seated in one of his lounge chairs. Wearing a strained look, he stood up slowly but made no move to close the distance between them.
Kagome fidgeted where she stood, entirely unsure what to do now that she was here. She glanced nervously at the door and seriously debated racing out of it and back down the hall to her own room. However, Sesshomaru's voice kept her rooted to her place.
"Why are you here?"
"I-" She stumbled over her words and felt the heat rise to her cheeks. Averting her gaze she looked down at her feet and pulled nervously at the hem of her sleeve.
"You should leave," he determined, his tone every shade of unwelcoming. Her head snapped up sharply and she fixed him with a long look.
"I don't understand it," she admitted quietly. "After you kissed me I thought... And then today..."
She didn't notice the unsettled look that crossed his features or that his claws were gripping the back of his chair so tightly they burned through the leather.
"Is it because I'm human?"
She needed to hear it from his lips, no matter how painful the truth might be. He crossed the room in three paces and took hold of her arm, forcing her to meet his gaze.
"You must leave."
Doubt flashed across her features and she stubbornly demanded to know the reason. He seemed to sigh and looked away, directing his gaze everywhere but at her.
"Showing up here wearing…"
He glanced fleetingly at the thin silk robe she had on that left very little to the imagination and quietly cleared his throat.
She hadn't imagined their kiss earlier today, or the desire behind his touch. If he wanted her, why did he keep pushing her away? What was going on? She took a step towards him and he discretely moved back.
"You cannot know what you're asking," he warned.
Whatever his reasons for pushing her away, they weren't easy for him to set aside. She could see that now in the exhaustion behind his expression. He wasn't toying with her, he was...protecting her?
"What do you think you're protecting me from?" she asked, amazed that she was finally starting to understand him just a little.
He held her gaze and answered with certainty, "Myself."
A part of her wanted to laugh. She'd come up with a hundred reasons why someone like him could never possibly want a girl like her. She was human. She was a miko. She was inferior in every way. In the end, she'd been completely blind to the truth.
"Please don't."
Smiling faintly, she loosened the ties of her yukata with trembling hands and let it fall open. His eyes travelled slowly over her before lifting to meet her gaze. He was a demon of ruthless intelligence, impeccable skills, and perfectly honed self control, but he was also a man. Even the great Lord Sesshomaru could only take so much temptation before finally giving in.
He drew close with a careful step and his hand slipped round her waist. It followed the line of her body, drifting slowly up over her ribs and the curve of her breast to rest atop her shoulder. There, the silk soundlessly fell away and landed in a heap atop the floor.
She stood naked before him, her body humming with expectation and excitement. His eyes moved appreciatively across her form, taking in every part of her. They came to rest on the scars that marred her chest, and his expression hardened. His hand trailed softly over them, tracing their outline against her skin. The look in his eyes wasn't difficult to decipher. Anger simmered there but it wasn't directed at her. It was directed at the ones who'd dared to hurt her.
He would protect her. He would keep her safe. These two things she knew with every fibre of her being and the rest didn't matter.
His hand dropped to the small of her back and he pulled her in close.
"You're certain?" he asked, ghosting his lips across her cheek. He pulled away briefly, just enough to see her nod, before his lips found hers.
His touch was soft at first and she liked the possessive way he cupped her head with his hand. She nibbled at his bottom lip, rather enjoying how it made him groan and the sudden tightening of his fingers through in her hair. Thiswas what she'd wanted. This was what she'd been waiting for. And all she could think was how she wanted more. She pulled greedily at the ties of his kimono, determined to see what was waiting for her underneath.
With a small feral growl he tucked his arm beneath her knees and carried her purposefully to the bed. There was no hesitation in his kisses now or in the hand that skilfully explored her body.
His lips brushed the hollow of her throat and her eyes drifted closed when he found that one spot that left her completely at his mercy. If this was a dream and nothing more than some deluded fantasy conjured up by her subconscious she didn't ever want to wake up. Nothing in her life had ever felt thisright.
The flame in the pit of her belly that'd been re-kindled with their earlier kiss was now a steadily roaring fire. Each kiss and every brush of his fingertips against her skin only served to stoke the flames until she was squirming beneath him demanding more.
Frustratingly he refused to give her the release she so desperately sought. Instead he took his time, mapping her collarbone and the tops of her breasts with his kisses. Helpless to stop herself, she bowed to her body's insatiable hunger and ground her core against his hardened length. He smirked and playfully pulled away until she was practically whimpering with need.
Determined to have what she wanted, she found the sash of his kimono and hastily untied the knot. The silk slipped easily through her fingers and he rewarded her with a punishing kiss that left her lips bruised and swollen.
While he explored her mouth she impatiently pushed away layers of silk to reveal the battle hardened body waiting for her underneath. With skin as fair as his, pale and unblemished like marble, it was easy to believe that he'd be just as cold to the touch. Instead he was warm, so very warm, and smooth beneath her fingers.
Her hands skimmed over his broad shoulders, marvelling at their power, and then down to where his arm had been severed by Inuyasha's sword. She gasped involuntarily and pulled away. He moved quickly to hide the disfigurement, lifting his kimono to cover his shoulder.
"Does it bother you?" he demanded, the hardness in his voice masking his wounded pride.
Kagome looked at him wide-eyed and shook her head 'No'. He couldn't be more wrong. He was such a proud creature and so incredibly strong that it was easy to forget that a part of him was missing.
Placing tiny apologetic kisses along his cheek and jaw she whispered an apology towards his ear.
"I'm sorry, I was just surprised. Please don't be mad."
Despite the stiffness in his posture she returned her attentions to his shoulder and placed a soft kiss against each inch of pale skin that was revealed to her as she pushed the silk away. It didn't take him long to give in. Shrugging out of his kimono, he discarded it on the floor in a heap of elegant white silk.
His hand was soft against her thigh, gently caressing it before pulling her towards him. Realizing what was about to come next, the breath suddenly hitched in her throat. Was she ready for this? Could she do this? Was he the one?
Her mind and heart both answered "Yes" but that didn't keep her lungs from heaving or her heart from racing.
Seeing her distress he paused and fixed her with a patient look.
"Do you trust me?" he asked, brushing the hair back out of her eyes.
Without hesitation she nodded. She was scared out of her mind but his presence was reassuring. He would protect her. He would keep her safe.
"You need to relax," he instructed soothingly, his expression warmer than she'd ever seen it. "It will hurt otherwise."
She nodded and let out the heavy breath she'd been holding. She could do this, no, she wantedto do this. With him.
His kiss was soft and lingering and it stole away her fear. Before long he turned his attention to the sensitive skin of her neck and she moaned quietly in response, wanting more. He continued to tease and play with her until she forgot entirely about her nerves and thought only of him. She wanted him inside of her, to feel every part of him. She wanted her every sense to be full of him.
When she was ready she nodded her head against his shoulder.
"Please, I'm ready."
He didn't waste time. Capturing her lips to stifle her cry, he entered her in one swift motion. Suddenly her entire body burned with a new kind of feeling, the fiery pain that accompanies a body being stretched in two. Wincing, she clamped her legs around his waist to stop his movements.
"Are you hurt?" he asked, planting a kiss against her brow. She nodded and bravely met his gaze. There were tears swimming in her eyes but she quickly brushed them away.
"It's okay, I'm fine now."
Her hands found purchase on his shoulders and gripped them tight as he surged gently forward, rocking her body in a steady rhythm.
Sex was, in many ways, everything she'd expected and in many more nothing at all what she'd thought it would be. The pain and fear she'd expected, but the awkwardness and clumsiness she'd assumed would also be there were noticeably absent. Even the pain had dulled to the point where it was beginning to feel good.
She enjoyed his body inside of hers. He filled a void, an emptiness she hadn't even realized was there. Each time he pulled out in preparation for his next thrust her body screamed out for him to return. She'd never known that kind of need before and it was intoxicating.
Possessed of a will entirely its own, her body reacted to his every touch. Her back arched into him and her hips lifted off the bed to meet his thrusts. When he began to move faster her fingers knotted into his thick silver hair and clung to the broad muscles of his back. Her thoughts were no longer coherent. All she knew was the body above her and inside her and the steadily growing pressure building in the pit of her stomach.
Romance novelists had many fancy ways of describing the moment of an orgasm - a violent wave crashing against the shore; a dizzying, unstoppable explosion; a blinding, pulsing moment of release. Her body was alive, its every sense tingling and hyper aware. She felt whole and satisfied, and thankful that she'd been allowed to experience the greatest pleasure she'd ever felt in her life, but it wasn't something better described with a fancy metaphor. And something told her that it wasn't a mind blowing orgasm either, but that didn't matter. She couldn't have been happier in this moment if she'd become the next Nihon Idol.
Above her Sesshomaru grunted with restraint before pulling out of her in one quick motion and releasing himself onto the sheets next to her. Out of breath and satiated, he collapsed at her side and pulled her into him. She made herself comfortable with her head against his chest while he absently combed his claws through her hair. Her entire body felt soft and pliant like freshly kneaded dough and she couldn't will herself to do anything more than sigh. In the quiet it was impossible to resist the pull of sleep and she drifted off to the feeling of his knuckles gently grazing her spine.
Before this night, it had been three hundred years since he'd last taken a mate. He'd known from the beginning that it would only be a matter of time, but that hadn't stopped him from doing his best to delay the inevitable and protect her.
Gazing down with dark eyes at the sleeping girl in his arms he felt his resolve evaporate. Now that they'd crossed every boundary, nothing could be the same as it was before and he wasn't sorry for it. Skimming his knuckles down the soft skin of her arm, he dipped his head and planted a kiss against her brow. He wasn't sorry at all.