Dark Awakening: Echoes of Destiny (The Children Of The Gods #88)

42. Ell-rom

42

ELL-ROM

E ll-rom lay still in the darkness, his eyes fixed on the ceiling, which he could see perfectly in the dim light filtering through the curtains. Not that there was anything remarkable to see on that cream-colored surface.

That was not where the answer to his problem was to be found.

The soft sound of the air coming through the vent was soothing but not enough to calm the turmoil in his mind. Beside him, Jasmine's steady breathing should have been calming as well, but tonight it only highlighted his restlessness.

His mind was too busy churning with thoughts and worries to find peace.

He hadn't taken any naps today, not even after Julian put him through a strenuous exercise circuit in the gym. The physical exhaustion should have knocked him out, but his mind refused to let his body rest.

The events of the day played on repeat in his head. The mugger, the sudden realization of his power, the confession to Julian.

Had he done the right thing by revealing his ability?

The question gnawed at him, refusing to let him rest.

Ell-rom's hand drifted to the nightstand where his new phone lay silent. Since the incident, he'd carried it everywhere with him, part-expecting, part-dreading, and part-hoping for a call from Annani or Kian, but the phone had remained stubbornly quiet, and somehow, that silence was worse than facing the fallout that would no doubt be the consequence of his action.

What decisions were being made about his fate today?

The possibilities terrified him. What if they deemed him too dangerous, like they had deemed Igor?

What if they also put him in stasis indefinitely?

What would happen to Jasmine? To Morelle?

He swallowed hard, trying to push away the image of Jasmine and Morelle moving on without him.

Surely, Annani wouldn't allow that.

She was his sister. She would protect him...wouldn't she?

Not if she considered him a threat to her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. As much fondness as she might have for him, her offspring came first.

When Jasmine stirred, Ell-rom tensed, holding still and hoping she had just moved in her sleep, but when he turned his head to look at her, he found her eyes trained on him.

He expected her to ask what was troubling him, but the understanding in her eyes meant that she didn't need to ask because his turmoil was written plainly across his face.

Instead, she smiled salaciously, her eyes glinting with mischief in the low light. "You are restless, my love, and I know just the remedy for that."

Her husky voice didn't leave much room for misinterpretation of what that remedy might be, and Ell-rom felt his body respond instantly, but even as desire coursed through him, doubt crept in.

His mind was too cluttered with anxiety for him to be able to concentrate on giving Jasmine pleasure.

"I'm too strung out to be any good to you." He took her hand and brought it to his lips, kissing her fingertips one at a time.

"Don't worry about that." She smiled. "Leave it to me," she whispered, her hand already trailing down his chest.

Ell-rom closed his eyes, surrendering to her touch.

When she pulled away, he opened his eyes in surprise. She was on her knees, her hands gripping her nightdress and yanking it over her head in one fluid move.

Underneath, she was gloriously naked, the perfection of her body taking his breath away.

"You are so beautiful," he whispered.

She just smiled and reached for the elastic of his sleep pants, pulling them down. When his shaft sprang free, she licked her lips. "You're not bad yourself, big boy."

That got a smile out of him. "Are you talking to me or my erection?"

"Both."

She lay next to him, and when her hand closed over his shaft, he gasped and shivered, and then her lips found his in a sweet kiss. He was lost to the sensations, to the taste of her, the warmth of her body pressed against his, and to the gentle up and down strokes of her hand.

When she shifted, pushing him onto his back and straddling him, Ell-rom groaned.

With the heat of her core pressing against his length, he moved his hands to her hips and let himself be swept away by sensation. When she started rocking against him, the electrifying friction melted his worries away, replacing them with a burning need that consumed everything else.

When she finally sank down onto him, taking him deep inside her, Ell-rom's world narrowed to this single point of connection. Nothing else mattered—not his newfound power, not the uncertain future, nothing but this moment, this feeling of completeness.

They moved slowly at first, finding a rhythm. Ell-rom let Jasmine dictate the pace for as long as he could, but then the need to take over became overwhelming, and he gripped her thighs.

Pounding up into her, he went fast and hard.

Jasmine's soft moans turned into gasps, mixing with his deeper groans. The strain that had been coiled tight in his chest all day was replaced by a different kind of tension, one that built with each roll of Jasmine's hips.

As their passion reached its peak, his fangs descended, and he flipped them over with Jasmine still impaled on his shaft. He had just enough control left to lick the spot he was about to bite and then, with a hiss, sank them into the soft flesh of her throat.

The taste of her blood exploded on his tongue, rich and sweet and uniquely Jasmine.

She climaxed with a scream, and the pleasure of her body clenching around him sent him over the edge. Ell-rom erupted, holding Jasmine close as waves of ecstasy washed over him.

When the haze dispersed, he retracted his fangs and licked the small puncture wounds on her neck, his saliva sealing them closed.

Jasmine was out, soaring on the wings of ecstasy, and the room was quiet save for her gentle breathing and his more labored one. Turning on his side with her still in his arms, he kissed her forehead.

"I love you, my Jasmine. I don't want to ever be separated from you."