Winter Solstice Wishes Read online

  I sat up and spoke more assertively. “I see you are in pain. You will stop being stubborn and take my blood. Arguing with me is fruitless.”

  He tried to smile, but the pain was too great. “You don’t understand. I may not be able to stop. I’d never hurt you on purpose, but I—“

  “Then I will beg you to bite me.” His eyes widened. “You said you would bite a female if she begged you. Is that not true?”

  A crease formed between his eyes. “I believe…we were discussing feet.”

  “Blood from my wrist will taste better and the bite will be less painful.”

  “And you know this, how?” He’d managed to get himself up on his elbows.

  I tilted my head in thought. “Garrett drank from my wrist when I offered to share with him. He was weak and in great need. No one has taken blood from my feet so I do not know for certain if it would be less pleasant, but I would imagine it is so.”

  Despite his pain, he smiled widely. “Do you know where it tastes the best?” He looked me over from head to…

  “You are a rogue with a dirty mind.” But his words made my body sing with heat, imagining his mouth in that intimate, needy spot. I ached for him so. I placed my hand on his chest, where his heart used to beat. “You need the strength my blood will bring you.”

  He grasped my hand and held it there. “I need you, Elle, not your magic. I look into your eyes and I’m lost. I’m never happier than when we’re together, even those few times you’ve been angry with me.”

  I smiled and placed his hand on my chest. My heart was beating faster than I could ever remember. “I want to share my blood with you. You will not hurt me.”

  He winced as another wave of pain swept through him. “I’m dying, yet all I can think about is making love to you, even if it’s the last thing I do.”

  “I will not allow it to be the last thing you do. Feed from me, Sasha, and as you drink I will tell you what I wished for at the bonfire.” I would open my heart to the male who’d stolen mine, even if he left me shattered.

  “You’re weak too.”

  “You must regain your strength. We have not finished.” I slid my hand down his body and squeezed, enjoying the look of pleasure on his face.

  He managed a laugh and gave in, accepting my wrist and biting down quickly, each swallow of my rich blood healing the remains of his burns and returning his strength. “Tell me,” he mumbled, his lips brushing my palm before going back to his feeding.

  I trembled and I knew he felt it even in my wrist. He lifted his gaze. “I wished to spend the entire night in the arms of the vampire warrior with whom I have fallen in love.” I combed through his blonde hair with my fingers. He closed his eyes and moaned. “I wished to bring him pleasure and heal a small bit of the pain I sometimes see reflected in his eyes.”

  Sasha licked my small wound, then pulled me toward him, kissing me firmly on the mouth. When he finished, he grinned, teasing, “I’ll kill that guy whoever he is.” I smacked his stomach and he grunted, pretending to be in pain. “It’s you, silly vampire.”

  “But you must know, don’t you? Every minute I spend with you heals me.” He cradled my face between his large hands. “Tell me the truth. Do you really only want one night?”

  I crawled closer, relieved his skin had healed and joyful I’d assisted in his recovery. I rested my hand on his chest moving it in a slow circle. Even without a beating heart, he could not be more alive to me than he was at this moment. I kept my eyes turned down, afraid to see his expression when I confessed. “I would ask for a lifetime, but I do not have the right.”

  He lifted my chin. “Elle. Hear me, please. You weren’t responsible for what Fionna allowed those males to do to you. You fought against them with every ounce of your energy.”

  “I tried, but I was too weak. The things they made me do…” I shuddered and turned away. “I am unfit to stand beside you.”

  “Shush. You’re the most perfect female ever created. A lifetime with you won’t be long enough.” He kissed my eyes, my cheeks, my mouth—our passion growing once more.

  “Can you look at me and not see…not see…”

  “I see my Lady Elle, a warrior who not only survived, but triumphed. I would be honored if you stood beside me, although I like this position even better.” Our next kiss was deeper, more demanding, his tongue dancing with mine in the most delicious way. When he moved away, Sasha’s expression held a note of yearning. “I’ve done horrible things in my past. I still kill when it’s necessary. You may not want to stick around when you hear the details.”

  His hand had moved to my ankle, beginning to slowly push up the hem of my gown. He was giving me the time to say no and I had no doubt he would stop if I asked him to. Those other males had laughed when I’d begged. “Death is sometimes required to sustain balance.” I visualized gutting them all, especially Kennet and Fionna.

  “When I was in the tsar’s army, I helped to burn villages. The people did not escape. Not even the children.”

  His eyes glistened with the guilt he still carried. I cradled his face and he placed his hands over mine, as if he couldn’t bear to release them. “The Sasha I know is honorable and compassionate. This male would no longer follow orders that destroyed innocent lives. We will leave our pasts where they cannot hurt us and look to our future together.” Not able to resist a moment longer, I stood, unfastening my gown and allowing it to pool at my feet. I was naked, displayed for his eyes alone. “May I have my wish?”

  “Only if you wish for a lifetime instead of a day.” He drank me in with his eyes, resting on certain places longer than others. My face heated in a way I hadn’t experienced since I was a maiden.

  “I freely give myself to you tonight and every night to come.”

  I was on my back and underneath him in seconds, his clothes in a pile beside my gown. He clasped my hands, pulling them over my head and holding them there. I’d been restrained with ropes and chains many times by many different males. Torture would usually follow. But Sasha was my love, my heart, and I knew to the depths of my soul he would never hurt me. In fact the inability to move beneath him accentuated my need.

  “Lady Elle, you—are—mine. “ He spoke with a fierceness I did not recognize. “No other male will ever touch you or hurt you, because I’ll kill them if they do.” He kissed me to seal his promise, rough and possessive, a marking of his territory. His tongue stroked over mine, his fangs scraping my lips, nibbling and drawing a drop or two of blood. “I can’t wait to taste you everywhere.”

  It occurred to me that before we went any farther I should stake my claim as well. “I will kill any female who touches you.”

  He shrugged. “I’ll need to feed almost every day. I’ll make sure it isn’t an erotic experience for my donors.”

  I rolled suddenly, flipping him over and straddling his hips. “You will feed from only me. I do not weaken as a mere human does.”

  “Sometimes I go on assignment and am away from the house for several weeks.”

  “Then I will join you. You will teach me to fight with a sword or a knife as you do.”

  He laughed at my wild command. “Yes, Lady Elle. I have no doubt you will become my favorite pupil. But there still may be times…”

  I narrowed my eyes and kissed him again, marking my own territory with hungry lips. I frowned. “You have not told me what you wished for at the bonfire, even though I kept my word and danced with you until I was dizzy.”

  “You’re beautiful when you’re dizzy.” Sasha stroked my face, my shoulder, my breasts. I arched into his hands, cherishing his touch, so different from the touch of any other. His heated expression warmed my belly and I ached for him to join his body to mine.

  He laid his hand over my heart, the way I had his. “I wished I could be a male you trusted with your heart and your body. A male worthy of speaking your full name.”

  I couldn’t breathe for a moment, the truth of his words almost too much to take in. Sasha wanted my
love, my respect, my trust, not knowing he had them already. My last defenses fell, crumbling to dust. “A mate?”

  “Your mate.”

  I lifted my body and slid down his sex, opening my mind and senses as we became one. When he was fully seated, I explored his chest and shoulders and arms with my hands and mouth.

  “Elle…” he whispered reverently as he brushed his thumbs against my already erect nipples. I arched my back as he rose up to put his mouth on me, the lightning shooting from each nipple to my sex, adding more slickness to my wet channel. Sasha’s light blue eyes had glazed over in pleasure, yet he held himself still inside me, weaving his fingers in my hair, forcing my mouth to meet his in a passionate exchange.

  When we broke apart we touched forehead to forehead, sharing breaths and heated gazes. “My gentle warrior. I was called Eleandra as a child. It is a name worthy of a lady of Faerie.”

  His wide smile warmed my soul. “I love you, Eleandra.”

  My smile returned the love of this male who knew my secrets but did not allow them to brand me. “I trust you with my heart, my sould, Sasha Vodinski, and I will love you for all time. I swear this on the longest night of the year, a sacred time for our people.” He flipped me onto my back, taking my hands and stretching them over my head once more. “You wish to take charge, my warrior?” I tried to wiggle beneath him but he had me trapped.

  “I’ve waited for ages to have you beneath me. We have all day, and I’m going to take my time.”

  “You are certainly a male of infinite patience, but there is just one more thing.”

  “Oh?” He ground his hips into mine then stopped again. He was obviously resolved to drive me crazy.

  “Next year you will bring a live tree into your home and we will replant it in the forest. Sinlae does not need more compost.”

  He grinned. “Anything. It’s your house now, too.”

  To have a true home again, a family, was more than I had ever imagined. “Then today I am your slave,” I teased.

  I gasped when he bit into my ear lobe, sucking the drops that formed. In retaliation I squeezed my inner muscles so hard he growled and finally began to move, stroking in and out slowly at first, creating a friction that would bring me to orgasm all too soon. He filled me in the most exquisite way.

  I moaned and moved my hips in sync with his rhythm, wanting so much to touch him, yet forced to submit. When I reached the edge I opened my body and mind to the release, allowing it to take me into a pleasure so strong I cried out in surprise and elation. He released my hands and moved faster, extending my pleasure and finding his own.

  It took several moments to find our words. “You are exquisite, my love,” he whispered, stroking my cheek.

  I stretched and purred. “I feel loose limbed and impossibly randy.”

  “The first time is just the warm up.”

  “Set me on fire.” I leaned closer and bit his shoulder, then grabbed a thick lock of his hair and pulled him closer.

  When his fangs extended fully, he moved down my body to find the large vein in my inner thigh. By the time the sun set that evening, I was sore and satisfied and more in love with my warrior than ever. We traveled the lines to his bedroom and slept for many hours wrapped in each other’s arms. I had given up hope of finding such happiness, never imagining a vampire warrior with a troubled soul would bring magic as strong as any fae to rekindle my damaged heart. I’d found a home, a family with Sasha and the Rogues, a reason to live again.

  I snuggled closer, hoping he’d awaken soon.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Sasha

  It was Christmas Eve and the party was in full swing. Rick and Liam had outdone themselves cooking and ordering the most delicious food, and I’d made sure the bar was well stocked. We had a small band playing in the corner and everyone was dancing, eating, drinking or kissing under the mistletoe.

  “What is this?” Eleandra held up a candy cane, sniffing it suspiciously.

  “It’s a magical treat called a candy cane.”

  “Oh? Magical in what way? I do not sense power emanating from it. I smell mint, but that is a most ordinary fragrance.”

  “Except at Christmastime. Mint symbolizes the fae and the red symbolizes the blood they share with their vampire mates.”

  She giggled, something she’d been doing more and more lately. “And it is bent in such a way because?”

  “So her mate can hook her by the wrist and bring her under the mistletoe for a kiss, or a bite.” I used the end of the candy cane to illustrate my story.

  “Her mate.” She’d whispered the word like a benediction.

  “For all time, remember?”

  A male’s rich voice interrupted. “Only if I approve her choice.”

  Even though I’d never met the guy, I knew who he was by the expression on my future mate’s face. Finvarra, the King of Faerie, stood beside me, wearing the same arrogant glare his grandson, Aedus, often used to bully those who didn’t agree with him. I placed myself between Elle and her king, meeting his gaze with my own brand of power.

  The music had stopped and everyone but Elle, the king and I were frozen in place. I’d forgotten Finvarra’s magic was strong enough to stop time and seeing it happen before my eyes was shattering. I swallowed down the small amount of spit still in my mouth, stretching out my hand to Eleandra, who was already kneeling before her king. “You’re mine. You don’t have to kneel to this guy anymore.”

  “He is my sovereign lord. If he commands me to return to Faerie, I must go.”

  “Over my dead body.” I spun to face this so-called ruler. “You allowed your people to torture her. She’s not going back with you.”

  He grinned in an incredibly annoying way. “They are no longer my people. Every one who hurt her or any of the others has been…dispatched.”

  “Too late.”

  “Yes, I agree.” The king stretched out his own hand and Elle grasped it. “Rise, my sweet and let me look at you.”

  “Yes, lord.”

  He scanned her, then me with black eyes that spoke of untold centuries. “Is the vampire good to you?”

  “He is the very best male imaginable.”

  That comment produced a smile. “Truly? And you wish to be his lifemate?”

  “I do.”

  He turned to me, grasping my forearm and breaking through my shields as if they were nonexistent. “And will you protect her with your life, your blood, your strength, your honor?”

  It was hopeless to battle against this ancient creature, although I would never show weakness. “I will, not that it’s any of your business.”

  “Even against me?”

  “Especially against you.”

  “I could rip off your head before you take your next breath.”

  “You could try.”

  And Fin laughed, releasing my arm and looking around the room for the first time. “What is this celebration?”

  I took a couple of breaths to calm myself down, then answered. “A human holiday.”

  “May I stay? It seems a pleasant gathering.”

  “Depends,” I muttered.

  He lifted Elle’s chin and kissed both of her cheeks. “Do you think I would deny the happiness of a child who has suffered so under my daughter’s rule? As long as she lives in this realm, I grant her the freedom to make her own choices. I only ask two things. That she comes when Faerie has need of her magic, and that I be allowed to visit on occasion. I am often at Jacqueline and Garrett’s home, or Liam’s.

  “Why would Faerie need her magic?”

  “Surely you know we are on the brink of war.”

  “And you’ll allow me to accompany her?” We stared at each other. He nodded.

  “Is that okay with you?” I asked, halfway hoping she’d throw the dude out on his ear.

  “I will serve my people with pride and would be most honored, sire, if you would come to see us in our home.” Elle was beaming, making me feel guilty for not thinking about her happine
ss. If her king respected her enough to be a guest in her home, no one in Faerie would be allowed to treat her poorly. Maybe this guy wasn’t so bad after all.

  Finvarra’s ear-to-ear grin was catching. He must have some of that charisma magic. “Excellent.” He snapped his fingers and the party was suddenly back in full swing. “Do you have honey wine?”

  “Yes. At the bar,” I pointed in that direction.

  “We must toast your happiness tonight.”

  “Thank you.” Why did I get the feeling he intended to drink me under the table?

  He waved at Liam’s partner. “Kellaine, grandchild, come and dance with your king.” And he was off, singing and dancing, eating and drinking along with the rest of the crew. Weird how he fit right in.

  “Sasha.” My female was nuzzling my neck, an incredibly hot sensation.

  “Yes, Eleandra?”

  “We are under the mistletoe, and I’ve hooked you with my candy cane.” She’d hooked it in my hair—leaving it dangling there.

  “I think this calls for a kiss.”

  “And a bite?”

  “Whatever my lady requires.”

  The End

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  Acknowledgements:

  I’d like to thank my daughters and my brother for their continued love and support. A huge shout out also goes to the wonderful members of the Silicon Valley chapter of RWA. I’d never have been able to write my stories without the inspiration I get at every meeting. Supreme gratitude to Debbie Williams and Emily Schiller for their editing skills. And a ton of very special love and thanks goes out to the Le Bou Crew for their patience and encouragement.

  Winter Solstice Wishes Cover Design: Tatiana Villa http://www.viladesign.net/

  And to my readers: You help my world and my characters come to life. I appreciate you so very much. Thank you from my heart.

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