Goddess of the Rose (Goddess Summoning #4)(93)

He laughed and put her down. In seconds, she'd stripped off what was left of her chiton and, with a satisfied groan, walked down the smooth steps and sank into the deliciously hot water. From behind her, she heard him speaking quick, sharp commands in the magickal language he used to call things to him, and she turned her head in time to see two baskets burst into being. One was filled with soaps, clean towels and lengths of soft chiton material. The other - she sighed happily - was full of food.

Asterius lifted a crystal bottle from the first basket and then smiled at Mikki. She grinned back, wondering at why he suddenly looked so shy.

"What is it?" she asked.

"Your soap," he said, holding up the bottle.

"I didn't mean the bottle. I meant what's that expression on your face about?"

"I would like to ask you something."

"Okay." Then she laughed. "You look a little mischievous." Feeling much revived by the warm mineral water, she gave him a sexy smile. "Are you feeling like being a little bit naughty?"

"I - I would like to bathe you," he said in a rush. And then he thoroughly shocked Mikki by flushing a deep red against the bronze of his skin.

"I would love that."

He walked to the edge of the rock pool and put down the crystal bottle. Then he took off his leather cuirasse and the short tunic he wore underneath. She loved looking at his body, watching as more and more of it was exposed. He was so physically powerful, such an amazing blending of extremes - man and beast, just as his mind was a blending of extremes, too. He was fierceness and compassion - childlike innocence and ancient knowledge mixed together to form a being truly unlike any other who would ever exist in any world. She was so distracted by her happy contemplation that it wasn't until he entered the pool that she realized the blood that spattered his body had come from more than her wounds. His arms were covered with slashes and bite marks.

"They hurt you!" She pulled him down so she could begin soaking the wounds in the hot water. "I'm such an idiot! Do you have bandages? Ugh - some of these look like they need stitches. There has to be a doctor in the realm. Let's get these cleaned up and I'll call for her, and - "

Asterius caught her wrists. "I do not need the healer."

She frowned at him. "Look, I worked at a hospital. Just take my word for it. You need a doctor."

He smiled and kissed her gently. "Your care for me warms my spirit."

"Lovely. I'm glad it does. It would warm my spirit if we'd get the doctor in here."

"Mikado, I am an immortal. I do not require a healer. The wounds already heal themselves."

Still frowning, Mikki lifted his arm and stared at it. "You're right! They are healing."

"Are you satisfied?" he asked.

"I'm dumbfounded," she said. "But definitely relieved." She splashed water over his arms, touching the newly healed bite marks, watching as the flesh knit itself together. "Is there any wound you can't recover from?"

"If you said you no longer loved me, it would destroy me."

She met his eyes. "Then you will live forever."

Asterius took the crystal bottle from the edge of the pool. "Let me show you how much I cherish you, Mikado."

She stood so the pool's water covered her only to her waist and then took the bottle from him and poured a generous amount of the heavy liquid over her neck, arms and br**sts before putting it back on the ledge. The heady fragrance of the Empousa's anointing scent mixed with the heat of Mikki's skin, subtly changing it and making it unique to her.

Slowly, Asterius slid his hands over her slick skin. He caressed her neck and shoulders before moving to her br**sts and the seductive flesh of her stomach. His hands dipped below her waist, carrying the rose-spiced scent to her thighs. Mikki felt as if she had turned to liquid heat as his hands slicked over her skin. His fingers found their way briefly between her legs, where he used his thumbs to stroke her with quick, circular motions, but then those knowing fingers would glide away, to tease her stomach or br**sts before returning again to her core. She felt as if his touch was calling awake sleeping parts of her body that the warmth of the water continued to caress even when his touch had moved on. He turned her, and this time took the bottle himself and poured the soap in a thick line down her spine. Weak-kneed, Mikki leaned forward against the edge of the pool while his hands caressed her back and then dipped down to knead and cup her ass.

"Remember the last time I came to your dreams?"

She felt his breath hot against the middle of her back as he stayed on his knees and worked his clever hands across her skin.

"I remember," she said huskily.

Both of his hands slid around her body. She leaned back against him as they caressed their way slowly up her thighs.

"We were in a pit of roses." His deep voice rumbled across her skin, sending little ripples of pleasure through her body. "I was on top of you. You opened your legs to me." His fingers found the center of her excitement. The tempo of his caresses increased. "I was engorged, and when I pressed myself against you, rubbing and stroking, I could feel your wetness and heat and how your body gathered itself and then exploded with release." With a choked cry, Mikki climaxed, hard and fast.

And then he turned her to him, and in one swift motion lifted her through the water and impaled her while her body still pulsed and throbbed. Mikki arched to meet him, using the edge of the pool as support. His hands gripped her hips, and with a throaty growl, he extended his claws. His sex plunged in and out of her, exquisite in the barely controlled strength of his thrusts. Mikki didn't close her eyes. She wanted to see him, to watch the terrible beauty of his face as he loved her. Her skin was tight and overly sensitive, and jolts of pleasure were sensual shocks every time his claws shallowly pierced her skin. The liquid sound of him moving in and out of her coupled with his growls and the husky way he moaned her name, and it became an erotic symphony, the crescendo of which broke through her body with pleasure so intense it verged on painful.