7. Alandra

I woke from my sleep, feeling more refreshed than I had in months. As I stretched, I pushed against a solid chest, one warm and pulsing with energy that tempted me on every level.

How embarrassing that I'd fallen asleep on him. Pray Shadows I hadn't drooled. I discreetly glanced up at Aerolus and sighed with relief that he continued to slumber. At least I could gather my bearings, and my dignity, before facing him again.

Slowly easing myself up, I sucked in a breath when he grasped my hips and draped my legs so that I straddled him. He murmured something low, then relaxed back into sleep, his hands cupping my thighs.

I debated whether to jump off him or stay still, so as not to wake him. I needed to appear in control of the situation. Or at least, he needed to believe it. For all that Aerolus acted laid-back, he had a tendency to take charge.

And I was running this show.

Unfortunately, my body hadn't gotten the memo. Glancing down at my bare thighs straddling his warrior-hard body, I felt a renewed surge of lust for the silver-eyed mage. I prized myself on knowing my limits, yet my body never cooled around him. It moved from simmer to boil in a flash.

It was going to be difficult to remain aloof from a man I should have considered beneath me. Staring down at him, I couldn't help the smart-ass in my that added, literally.

Aerolus sighed and rolled up into my hips. I gave a low groan before stopping myself. How could a man in sleep be so enthralling? Vibrant shades of gold and silver entwined in his aura, a clear sign of latent power that drew me like nothing else could.

Nothing about Aerolus Storm was weak. After a year spent observing him, the only vulnerability he seemed to possess was the deep love he had for his family. Though the Aellei considered any show of open honest emotion a risk, I couldn't help admiring his feelings. On a deeper level I couldn't ignore, I felt a tug of envy, wishing I had as much care for my blood kin as he did his.

Unfortunately — if I knew the Aellei royals, and I did — we would likely sign a blood oath to rejoin the Dark Lords. Heck, we probably already had while I sat on top of a Storm Lord, intimately close.

Thoughts of the Dark Lords made me frown, and I unconsciously tapped Aerolus' chest as I pondered Sin Garu's connection to the hint of unrest in the royal court.

My exile hadn't exactly been a waste of time. Though only a few weeks had passed in Aelle, here in this plane I'd had an entire year to gather information. While dodging the occasional Aellein search party and staying one step ahead of the Storm Lords, I'd heard things.

Whispers of astonishing organization in the wraith community. Rumors of the Aellei queen's strange, insatiable sexual appetites, of her odd reluctance to share her Dark Lord lover with anyone else, a state completely contrary to Queen Lidra's open desires.

The search parties thought it strange indeed that her lover had never given his name. Considering how well Sin Garu liked to brag of his conquests to anyone who would listen, his secretiveness seemed most curious.

An answer to all my questions hovered just out of reach, and had I not been so distracted with Aerolus, I would have figured out Sin Garu's plan by now. Obviously, he wanted Tanselm. But why that land when there were others with as much, if not more magic? And how did he think to gain leadership over the Storm Lords and their all-powerful sorcerer, Arim?

A hand caught my tapping fingers, and I blinked in surprise down into Aerolus' intense gaze. Staring into the central focus of his power was like looking into the vortex of a storm — one that could kill or pass over calmly in the blink of an eye.

"Purie?" He brought my palm to his mouth for a kiss and studied me through half-lidded eyes.

Reconciling this Aerolus with the academic mage who'd done without sex for a year confused me… and stirred an unwanted, erotic response. It was like I was melting on top of him.

"My name is Alandra, not ‘little one,'" I answered breathlessly, irritated at how easily he made me forget my resolve. I had to stand firm and distant from the captivating mage. "Look, Aerolus," I began, only to stop when something nagged at the back of my mind. An unpleasant tingle made me shiver.

"You're bossy for such a little thing," he said with humor, his voice a husky rumble that distracted me long enough to allow his tug-of-war with my hand. A quick jerk had me off-balance and fully in his arms, my breasts kissing his chest, my legs draped on either side of him, our sexes pressed up against each other.

I could feel how wet I'd become, and it was impossible to ignore his hard, thick erection barely protected by his clothes.

"There's something going on here," I tried again, trying to listen to my instincts instead of my libido.

"There sure is." He dragged me to him for a kiss that sent gales of desire coursing through my blood. The wild taste of him had reason retreating behind a storm of lust so intense it shook me with its power.

A small part of me was thrilled to know he was just as caught as I was. Tendrils of energy wrapped around us both, his latent elemental energy feeding my shadowy nature.

I was ready to strip him naked and ride him until neither of us could walk again. I squirmed on the ridge growing between my thighs, and he groaned and deepened the kiss, one hand wrapped in my hair as he angled my mouth over his, the other on my lower back, edging me harder over his erection.

When his tongue stroked mine, I moaned in pleasure. The sheer magic of the man, amazing for a Light Bringer, called out to my Dark energy, to the Shadow that dwelled within me.

"So sweet, so hot," he murmured against my lips, leaning back to stare. "Your eyes are like stars, your lips like wine."

I flushed, pleased to hear such flattery. But when he stopped, I prodded, "And my skin? Like pure-white marble? Or how about snow-spun down, maybe?"

"Like thick, sweet cream." He ran a finger down my cheek to my neck, resting above my fluttering pulse.

"Cream?"

"Hmm." His hand traveled lower, slipping between my legs to cup me. He rubbed his palm over my wet sex, teasing me by brushing his knuckle against my full clit. "Sweet, milky cream that just keeps coming and coming." He drenched his fingers in my arousal.

I gasped but couldn't help riding his hand.

"That's it, love." He nuzzled my neck and licked my pulse, making me shudder at the effort it took not to come. "I want you to climax again. And this time I'm going to come inside you."

He stopped rubbing me to release the snap on his jeans.

But before he could tug the zipper down, my senses cried danger.

I shivered so violently Aerolus couldn't mistake it for passion.

He stilled. "Alandra? Love, talk to me."

I tried to speak but couldn't catch my breath. The room seemed so cold and devoid of life.

"Something's coming." My teeth chattered, and I gaped at the taint of evil energy filling my small haven. Dark blue light surrounded the malevolence, a void where warmth should be. And then I knew. "Ice wraiths. A lot of them."

As if saying the words had conjured them, a dozen ice wraiths suddenly appeared. Tall and thin, the creatures lived in the Dark, hungering for the Light in others to bring them some reprieve from the eternal cold hammering their bones.

Brittle skin spotted with black and blue bruises marred the sickly yellow of their rotting flesh. Lumpy, hairless skulls sat atop obscenely thin necks, their gangly bodies strong despite their frail appearance. A dozen pairs of white eyes searched unblinkingly for their quarry, and the ice wraiths laughed and shrieked in pleasure upon seeing us together.

Typical Sin Garu henchmen. Henchwomen? Hench-things.

"They could do with a toothbrush," I said, a little disappointed Sin Garu hadn't sent stronger minions to deal with me.

Several of the wraiths hissed, each exposing rows of black teeth and forked tongues that sparked when they met the air. Upon closer inspection, I noted bloodied entrails hanging from several mouths, and my first impression that the wraiths were more fool than threat faded under a growing alarm.

"Sin Garu has much to answer for." Aerolus rose and set me down on my feet. He studied the invading danger with a calm that confused me. Did my Storm Lord not understand what the ice wraiths' sparks meant?

"Um, Aerolus, I know you've dealt with wraiths before, but these are a different breed than the ones you're used to."

"I know, purie." He pulled me back behind him and glanced down into my eyes. "We're going to have to fight our way out of here. I'd teleport us to freedom, but I have no doubt they'll follow our trail the minute we leave."

The ice wraiths circled, keeping a small measure of distance between themselves and their prey, toying with us to increase the pleasure in killing. If I hadn't been their intended victim, I might have found a small measure of respect for their attempt at fun in battle. As it was, I could only hope my organs wouldn't soon be dangling from someone's jagged teeth.

In agreement with Aerolus that we should stay and fight, I still reached for my Mir charm…and froze in shock when I found it missing. Without it, I couldn't travel between planes.

This was bad.

Aerolus glanced at my neck and away. The bastard.

"Where is it?" I growled, keeping an eye on him and the wraiths. "You bring this mess to my door and you steal from me? Your own protector?" I smacked his chest.

His eyes narrowed, a huge indicator he wasn't pleased.

"I've been here for a year without incident. You visit, and within hours I've got pests." I glared at the wraiths over his shoulder. "I don't suppose it occurred to you to conceal yourself." At his confusion, I sighed. "You masked your trail here, but did you cover that mask with anything? A good hunter looks for what isn't there as much as what is."

He kept his eyes on the circling wraiths.

I continued, "You covered your magic when you flew here, yes. But you covered it with a huge ball of nothing, clearly announcing your trail."

He remained silent, but the flush on his cheeks spoke volumes.

Despite our dire situation, I felt tremendous pleasure in instructing an arrogant Storm Lord, my Storm Lord in particular. The Light Bringers always thought they knew everything. Ha. When it came to raw magic, Aerolus was a novice.

"I apologize," he said stiffly and moved directly in front of me, placing himself between me and the threat. "Follow my lead and hold on."

That had to be the briefest apology I'd ever received. "What?—"

A dense pressure invaded my body and mind, a subtle popping in my ears breaking the void where thought had once been. And darkness pitched me forward.