Deserted (Shadow Beast Shifters Book 4)

Guardians were well known for their stance on “silence is best.” It was no surprise when they herded us without a word of conversation toward the rooms which had been set up for our brief stay. That didn’t stop me from asking a few pressing questions. “How long have you been hit with these surges of power?” I asked a bald male in black robes.

‘Disturbances for some time, but only minor,’ he said. ‘We feel the swell now as it approaches the Delfora. It has enough power to break the wards and securities.”

“Have you seen any sign of Tsuma or others going to the Delfora?”

He shook his head, and that was apparently all the answer I would get, as he hurried away.

“There has to be other layers of security,” Alistair said, voice raspy. His skin was drier than I’d ever seen as some of it flaked away into pale, blue-green sheets. “Beyond the valley of the dead.”

Reece nodded. “There are, but with the power moon and this gathered energy from all the dynasties, they will be able to circumvent them. This power moon is so rare that if I hadn’t heard about the last one from my parents, I would not have believed it possible.”

That reminded me I still had to ask him if that moon was the reason for his existence. Another time, though.

“It will rise with the new-moon tomorrow?” Len asked. “That’s the sixth day, right?”

“Not the new-moon,” Reece said shortly. “If past stories are correct, it will take some time for the twin to form. My prediction is that between the mid- and half-moon there will be a fissure, and then power unseen for thousands of years will wash over our land.”

Our timing would have to be so precise tomorrow. And we’d have one damn shot.

“It stands to reason that we can only defeat Tsuma once she gets to the Delfora,” I stated, needing to run the facts through my mind. “She’ll be hidden until that point. There’s going to be a fine line between reaching the sacred lands and stopping their actions. What happens if we’re too late and the gods rise?’

I knew the overall the worlds will end big picture, but this time, I wanted the smaller details.

Reece’s expression turned darker. ‘If the rest of our information is correct, the gods themselves are the power that keeps Death from rising, so if the ancients find their way back to sentience, then there will be nothing to stop them from smashing through the final barrier.’

‘Why would they though?’ Alistair asked, grabbing a small jug of water that had been set out and tipping it over his head. The relief that crossed his face only added to my secret stress over his health.

‘Because Death is the ultimate vacuum of life essence,” Reece said shortly, “and the gods will be able to use its energy to restore all of their power very quickly.’

‘We can’t let them get that far,’ I bit out. ‘We must prevent Death from rising, whatever the cost.’

Whatever the cost. Words that no ancient bandied about with ease, but we were in a critical situation. This was the precipice of an extinction level event, and we had to go all in. This was not the time for holding back.

‘Angel is right,” Reece said, backing me in a way I still wasn’t used to. “But for now, let’s enjoy the hospitality of the Guardians. We have made the decision to recharge and go in, all powers blazing, in the new-moon, so take advantage. Trust me when I say that you should utilize their bathing rooms.’

Before anyone could comment on that, he wrapped his hand around my shoulders, drawing me into the hard muscles on his right side. ‘We’ll meet back here soon for dinner.’

Not one expression changed, our friends still following our cues in responding to this massive change in our relationship status. Reece and I ended up back in one of the farthest rooms, which was small, containing just a bed and what I hoped was an entrance into a bathing room. As soon as the heavy door closed behind us, Reece wasted no time tearing off my clothing—without actually destroying them this time. Useful, since I didn’t really want to head into this battle naked.

Needing to feel and taste him, I did the same, pulling every item from his body until he was as naked as me. Desperation tinged our kisses as he walked us backward, the warm stone floor caressing my feet. I managed to open my eyes long enough to see that this bathing room was a rainfall design, with warm water already cascading from the ceiling to the floor, vanishing into the heated stones. It was obvious from the design that the liforina would cycle continuously, filtering through the stone and sands before returning to the ceiling above. I had no idea what particular magic they used for this, but I needed one in the meadows.

Reece swiped his tongue across my lips, and I lost all focus on the shower, especially as our kisses picked up speed and intensity again. Before I knew it, we were under the water, desert life soaking across our bodies, cleansing and healing us. Reece’s low groan reminded me that he found pleasure in water as much as I did. It was an oddity for beings of his race to feel that way, same as mine, and yet here we were. Neither of us lived by the “rules,” hence the reason we’d bonded our two races together so long ago.

Reece’s hands traced over my sides, and I pressed mine to the words carved across his stomach. The ancient language had been lost, but he’d figured it out. “What does this mean?” I whispered, wondering if we had reached enough peace between us to share real truths.

His eyes held mine for so long that I was burning by the time he reached up and brushed his thumb over my lower lip, swiping at the water beading there. ‘I’ll tell you if we survive,’ he murmured. ‘Call it incentive to make it through this battle.”

Normally that shit would make me rage, but for some reason, I wanted this to look forward to. Thoughts of the future might be off my radar until I was sure there was one for all of us, but this little incentive… I could live with that. And until then, we had some existing in the moment to do.

Bending my legs, I launched myself at Reece, and he caught me with ease, hands sliding under my ass as my legs wrapped his waist. I was too far gone for foreplay, so I lifted my body and angled myself to slide right onto his hard length. His cock burned as the thick head pushed inside, stretching me to capacity, and I was starting to crave this hit of pleasure-pain. This stimulation of all my nerve endings.

My breath quickened as my body relaxed, growing wetter with each incremental slide deeper. Reece groaned as his patience snapped, and when he tightened his hold on my ass, he lifted me enough to slam the final inches of that impressive cock inside. I cried out, head falling back so that the waterfall droplets caressed my face.

‘Sorry, Lale,’ he rumbled, ‘I can’t be slow for you tonight.’

I would have laughed, but there was no time before he was lifting me again, thrusting into me one more time. ‘Are you ever slow?’ I choked out.

Reece’s chuckle was throaty, followed by another groan as his pace picked up. We’d only just started and already the brutal thrusts were destroying me. I couldn’t stop from crying out, craving every hard pound of our bodies. As I opened my eyes, teetering on the edge of an orgasm, it was to find Reece watching me, absorbing the signs of my pleasure. It was more of a turn-on than I’d ever imagined having his focus so completely on my being.

Just as my orgasm was about to explode, he slowed his pace. ‘Are you ready to push your boundaries,’ he murmured, mouth on mine in the same breath.

My mind immediately went to the ass play he was clearly a fan of, and at that very thought, my orgasm exploded, pleasure arching my spine as I cried out. When I finally returned to this plane of damn existence, it was to find Reece letting out amused, groaning laughs. “Guess I have my answer,” he said with the most perfect fucking smile.

Slowly he lifted me off him until his length left my body completely. ‘What do you want, Lale?’ he asked, his blue gaze filling my vision.

This time I didn’t hesitate, need blasting through any nerves. Despite the orgasm I’d just had, I was so far from done. ‘Fuck me, Reece. Finish what you started in the grotto.’

His eyes darkened. ‘Where do you want me to fuck you?’

This bastard loved this game. ‘In my pussy,’ I murmured, forcing away my smirk.

We both knew he was after another answer, but hey, two could play this game.

‘I could fuck your pussy all day, Angel,” he rasped, lips pressing against the side of my throat as he dragged his mouth across the surface, lapping up the water. ‘But is that all?”

A groan escaped me again. ‘No,’ I said before I could think it over. “I want more.”

‘More of what?” Another kiss, this time near the corner of my mouth, and my body jerked into him involuntarily, needing relief from the intense need inside. He was driving me insane. At one point I’d have waited to see who would break first, but now, I wasn’t wasting one more second of our time together.

‘Fuck me in the ass, Reece.” I didn’t whisper it, not remotely shamed by my wants. “But for the love of our creator, ease me into it.’ He wasn’t small, and even though my body would heal whatever happened, I really wanted this to feel as good as it had in the grotto.

His chest rumbled, and I felt the surge of his energy. Before another word was spoken, he flipped me over, his sands drifting in to cradle me on all fours a few feet above the stones. Arching, I backed myself up and let out a breathy sigh when I made contact with his heat.

Reece wasted no time, the thick head of his cock pushing into my pussy, and while it felt fucking amazing, I was ready for this new experience. ‘Reece,’ I groaned. ‘Do you need an anatomy lesson?’

A heavy hand landed on my ass, the sound loud in this bathing room, and I let out a small whimper that was definitely not from pain. ‘Patience, Melalekin,’ he murmured. ‘You wanted me to ease you into it.”

Dammit, I had asked for that. There were no more words from me since I was barely able to breathe and moan in time to his thrusts, turning me into a writhing mess. As I cried out, he used his finger to swipe through the liquid pooling between us, which he then slid to my ass, pushing that digit inside the tight muscles. For a few minutes he thrust into my ass and pussy at the same time, and I wondered if this was the actual event—in my thousands of years—that was going to take me out.

Death by double penetration. It was the way Mera wanted to go, and now I finally understood.

Stars spun before my eyes as my hands dug into the sands, desperate for something to hold onto. Just as I was about to explode again, Reece withdrew his fingers and cock from my body, and even as my vagina complained, the rest of me was about to shatter from the sensation of him finally focusing on my ass.

He entered me slowly, and I actually choked on my next breath. The muscles were tight, never having been stretched like this, and while it burned, a tingle of pleasure kept it from being too uncomfortable.

“Godsdamn, Lale,” Reece groaned, sounding strained. “I never fucking imagined…”

Yeah, same. So much the same.

When it felt like he was maybe halfway inside me, he leaned over to press his lips to my spine while his hand snaked around and stroked my clit in time to his slow thrusts. The initial, mildly uncomfortable sensation faded as new swirls of pleasure started low in my gut, and already I could tell it was a deeper and more intense build up.

“Mine,” Reece rumbled again, sounding much less like his normal self. The desert god had lost control, and I never thought I’d want to hear that one word from a male before. It was so possessive and domineering and claiming, and if Reece said it during normal conversation, I’d most likely stab him. But in this moment, another first for us both, it felt… right.

My essence had been reborn in the Nexus, but the dual nature of my energy wasn’t the part that defined me in this moment. Reece did, the god who was tearing down my walls and rebuilding me into a completely new being.

At this point, Reece’s pace increased, and I wanted him as deep inside as he could go. There was no way I’d fit his full length, but my ass was handling this much better than I’d anticipated. Gold fucking star.

Still, it was lucky I healed quickly, otherwise I wouldn’t be walking into battle tomorrow.

I’d be hobbling.

My breaths rushed out fast and shallow, leaving me gasping so hard I couldn’t catch my breath. My legs started to tremble as the ball of energy in my center swelled… ‘I’m going to come,’ I said in a rush, right as my entire body caught fire, and I all but screamed Reece’s name, arching and writhing against his hard length.

Reece let out a low rumble from behind me, and I swore I could hear the sands react to his pleasure, lifting to coat us as he thrust a few more times, the heat of his release burning with my own. My body was still jerking at the intensity, and I was thanking every damn being I knew that Reece had decided to push my boundaries.

Whether this lasted forever or ended the next moon, no part of me could regret this time with him.