Dragon's Storm (Legion Of Angels #4)(73)

I closed my eyes. “So why have you really come here? What is your not-entirely-selfless reason?” I asked him, dipping deeper into the water, allowing the heat to permeate my body.

“I couldn’t be away from you.”

The bubbling water beat against me, a slow, deep massage.

“You’re trying to make me more accessible to suggestion,” I said.

“Leda, we both know it doesn’t take much to make you accessible to my suggestions.”

Liquid ribbons streamed between my legs, each kiss searing my soft flesh. My body pulsed with an aching, growing need.

“If all I wanted from you was sex, I would have had you many times over already.” His voice was dangerously soft.

My breath caught in my throat. “Confident, aren’t you?”

“I’m merely speaking plainly.”

“So what else do you want from me?”

“I need your help.”

Water streamed over my shoulders, cascading down my breasts. My back arched, my legs parted, and I moaned in wanton desperation.

“Nero.” His name was a demand, my voice a hard and ragged rasp, my body a throbbing pulse of agonizing need.

The side ties of my panties burst open. The lacy garment peeled away from me, floating up to the water’s surface. The pool bubbled higher, harder, faster. More liquid ribbons flashed out, thrusting between my thighs. Like a bolt of lightning, the pressure inside of me exploded. My mind shattered, my body convulsed, and sweet ecstasy spilled over me.

“Gods, Leda. You will be the death of me.” Nero was breathing heavily, his shoulders shaking with the aftershocks of his own release.

I slumped against him, shaking, quivering. My pulse was pounding in my ears. Magic ignited in my blood. His magic, mine, both of us merging together as one. One blood, one magic. He wrapped his arms around me in a protective, tender embrace. He dipped his mouth to mine, kissing me softly. I’d never known an angel could be so gentle. So sweet.

He chuckled, his chest humming against mine. “If you could read my thoughts, you’d hardly call me sweet. And I’m not done with you yet.”

I smirked back at him. “Bring it on.”

He lifted me into his arms and carried me out of the pool, laying me onto a lounge chair. He sat down beside me, his naked hip burning against my quickly-chilling skin. I shivered.

“You’re cold.”

He waved his hand in the air, and the large umbrella lamp over us began to glow red. Heat bathed our bare bodies. He gazed down upon me, his eyes dilated with magic. His hand stroked along my side, his mouth trailing, kissing every spot his fingers touched. His lips brushed my scar, and I cringed, drawing away.

“Does it hurt?” he asked, concern warming his eyes.

“No, not anymore. I…” I glanced down at the hand I’d used to cover my scar. “I’m just self-conscious about it,” I admitted.

“Don’t be. It is a mark of honor. You survived the kiss of an immortal weapon.” He peeled my hand off the scar. “This scar is a window into your soul, Leda. It is a testament to how strong you are, to your compassion, to how you will always do the right thing, no matter the cost.” He kissed the ripple of imperfect skin burned into my stomach. “It is as beautiful as you are. Just like every part of you.”

“Even my quirks? My incorrigible snark? My penchant for undignified, dirty fighting?”

“Yes.” He took my hand between his, kissing my fingertips. “Every single one of them.”

I smiled. “Ok, I admit it. I’m a sucker for your charm. I’ll do it.”

“Anything?” The look in his eyes made me blush.

“You said you needed my help,” I reminded him.

“Yes. I do.” His lips caressed my shoulder. “I will soon undertake the trials to level ten, challenges set by the gods themselves. Every promotion until now was about proving that I could embrace my new power, that I could use it. This is different. This time, I will need to prove I can survive without my magic, by my will alone.”

“I don’t understand.”

“They will strip me of my magic.”

“I didn’t know that was possible.”

“There is a potion, a temporary magic inhibitor,” he told me. “It will strip me of my powers one by one as the trials become more difficult. By the end, my magic will be gone. I’ll have to succeed by my wits and will alone. And with one weapon.”

“A magic sword?”

“Not a weapon like that. I may choose one person to be my support in this. One person to be my ally.” His hand traced the curve of my spine, sliding over my bottom to settle on my hip. “I choose you.”

“Shouldn’t you choose someone with more power?”

“Magic is irrelevant. Yours will be stripped too for this trial. What matters is the power within.”

“So you want me there with you because I’m stubborn and hard-headed.”

He laughed. “I want you there with me because I trust you more than anyone.”

Warmth—content and happy—spilled out from my heart.

We’ve been playing this game for too long, Nero’s voice spoke inside my head. Do you trust me, Leda?

“Yes.”

Smiling, he climbed on top of me, his hand gently parting my legs. Heat blossomed inside of me. I felt myself opening up, ripening, wanting him with an intensity that bordered on madness. The insides of my thighs were slick and hot. A hollow, empty ache throbbed deep inside of me. He slid lower, a gasp breaking my lips as he thrust inside of me. A feeling of intense fullness filled that emptiness.