I pushed against his grip; he was strong and maintained the distance. Only the tip. “All of it, Johnny,” I whispered, my voice hoarse.
“All?”
“Now. Please.”
“As you wish.”
I was so wet, when he shoved his length into me, there was no resistance. A whimper of pleasure passed from my lips and I tossed my head, throwing my hair across my naked back.
Johnny took a handful of my hair and twisted it around his hand until his grip was at the nape of my neck. He held me there with my head raised. It was aggressive and controlling. It was dominant. I liked it.
I liked the power play. The idea that he claimed a position of control excited me. But I was not without power. My back arched, knees flexed, almost drawing me off him. Then, with his other hand’s fingers pressed on my hip bone, he urged me back. I thrust myself onto him again.
We had a rhythm, a balance of control and consent. Still, I swiveled my hips every so often just to remind him his control wasn’t absolute; I could veer from the rhythm.
An incredible orgasm was ready to overtake me—
Then I felt Menessos clinging to life despite the rising sun. I could feel him kindling my flesh, burning under my sternum, heating deep in my core. It was so good, so powerful I lost myself in it, moving faster and more forcefully. I was almost there.
—Menessos died.
The kindling warmth disappeared. I was alone with Johnny again.
But none of the urgency faded. None of the desire dwindled. Somehow, knowing this was mine, all mine and mine alone, made it better.
Johnny was building up to his own orgasm. All he needed was a squeeze from me. That squeeze. He was waiting for me, in full control of himself, and now that Menessos had succumbed to his curse, I gave Johnny full control. I let go. I obeyed his rhythm precisely.
The orgasm hit me like free-falling, a glorious sensation rippling across my body, my heart pounding, my breath racing.
My elbows gave and I thrust my face into a pillow as I cried out. Johnny maintained his grip in my hair, but stretched his arm to allow me distance.
When the angle changed, my sensitivity to his movements redoubled and the climax was revived. My fingers clawed into the sheets until my body was overloaded, until the low growls from Johnny’s chest had stopped, until we collapsed onto the bed, twisting to lie side-by-side until we caught our breath.
While Johnny showered, I lounged in the bed. His return was quick, and he wore only his jeans. His wet hair was in a towel-dried but adorable mess. I left my warm bed and inspected his chest because I couldn’t not touch him. “You took the stitches out.”
“Yeah. Oh, look, it’s a tit bit nippy in here,” he said, performing his own inspection on me.
“I’ll crank the heat up if you like.”
“I do like it when you crank up the heat … but don’t touch the thermostat. More fun for me.”
I felt very grateful that his mood and his libido were elevated again. He’d laid out another button-down shirt and as I passed it to him, he volunteered to make breakfast and Beverley’s lunch while I showered. I accepted the offer.
The aroma of coffee and bacon lured me down the stairs. Though I had been a vegetarian for several years, as Menessos had warned me, my connections to Johnny were making the savory scents of meat more scrumptious to me with each passing day. I joined the rest of them in the kitchen where I discovered Johnny’s cooking had won over the sentinels. Outside, the night was fading. It was light enough that Johnny could see the dark shadows of the barns. “It’s like in the cartoons: ACME barns. Just add a drop of water and poof.”
Beverley thought that was hilarious.
Maxine and Zhan were in suits of navy blue and pale gray this morning. They donned their suit jackets to make a round outside before the Beholders showed up.
Johnny passed a plate into my hands. Though two greasy slices of bacon lay beside the eggs and toast, I accepted it eagerly.
Soon Beverley put her empty plate in the sink and left to brush her teeth. She hadn’t spoken a syllable to me.
“Enjoy your coffee,” Nana said. “Since we have spies in minivans, I’ll take her to the bus stop from now on.”
“Spies in minivans?” Johnny echoed.
“One of the objecting parents recognized me picking up Beverley yesterday.” For a few minutes, the three of us brainstormed about how we could get this party on track. Johnny pitched his disguise idea to Nana. She gave it her approval.
Beverley strolled slowly into the room. “If I get an A on the math test today, can I see the unicorns again?” she asked, studying the floor where the broken glass had been. With the very last word, her eyes lifted to meet mine.
She was blank; I hadn’t a clue about what she was feeling. But I conceded, “That would be a fitting reward.”
Nana drove her to the bus stop—after Johnny assured me he’d remembered to stick a joke in her lunchbox—and I began gathering my supplies for the ritual.
I packed white taper candles. Green, yellow, red, and blue votive candles. My incense holder and incense. Two bowls. A bottle of crystal water and a pouch of sea salt. I had hematites, aventurines, bloodstones, and coral. I tucked all of these into my overnight bag, added my wand, and had my broom ready. It was not the ritual broom that had been used in the previous version of this spell, but I felt that having my flying broom from the lucusi couldn’t hurt.
Hearing the LeBaron sputtering outside, I zipped up the bag and headed downstairs with the Codex copy in hand.
In the kitchen, Maxine and Zhan had completed their rounds and were having a discussion. Curious, I stepped down the hallway. From the muffled growling sounds, I guessed Johnny was rough-housing with Ares in the garage.
Nana shuffled through the front door and immediately joined us. She had brought down her notebook with translations of the Trivium Codex this morning, and she dumped her coat on the back of her chair then sat. “You take the Codex copy?”
“Yes.” I handed it to her.
On cue, Johnny strode in. After planting a quick kiss on my cheek, he claimed the last pieces of bacon.
“We should go with them,” Maxine said to Zhan.
“I believe one of us should stay,” Zhan countered, “to make certain that no one enters the house.”
Maxine said, “We were told to protect her, not her house or her grandmother.”
“Is it not implied?” the Asian woman asked. Maxine did not respond. “It would be negligent not to have considered all the implications,” Zhan added.
“But she will be surrounded by wærewolves.”
“Hey, Red won’t be in any danger there,” Johnny said.
“You don’t know that,” Maxine pressed.
His shoulders squared at her challenge. “Yes, I do.” His tone was more authoritative than I’d ever heard. The voice of the Domn Lup made Maxine swallow whatever retort she might have considered. From the garage, Ares barked. Guess he heard it, too.
“However,” Johnny added in a more conversational tone as he let the puppy into the house, “if you’d like to let me take the Audi, I won’t object to that.”
Maxine crossed her arms. She wisely did not say a word, but let her body language speak for her—although she lost some of the affect with Ares sniffing her ankles. I scolded him and he trotted off through the dining room. I was just glad he was past his growling dislike of these particular Offerlings.
“C’mon,” I chimed in. “The Domn Lup can’t keep showing up in a rusty Chrysler LeBaron.”
“I heard that,” Nana grouched, lifting her head from the notebook.
Maxine said to Zhan, “You stay.” She pulled the keys from her pocket, studied them for a moment, then tossed them to Johnny. “You drive.”