Crimson Truth (Onyx Assassins 4)

Home.

This could be my actual home, where so many of the people I loved resided.

All I had to do was say so, and it would be done.

But would choosing this home damn my other one?

I swallowed hard, my focus narrowing as Avi moved. We all held our breath, hopeful she may be shifting so she could face us, speak to us—

She curled on her side, tucking her knees to her chest as she slid a hand underneath her pillow and closed her eyes.

Tears bit the backs of mine, the move such a surrendering it tugged at my heart. Her exhaustion was palpable. Olivia curled around her friend, a silent show of support and comfort.

I leaned my head back against the chair where I sat, fully content to only move if she needed me. The Assassins may be chomping at the bit to get to her, to question her, to coddle her, but they had one hell of a line of females to get through.

And we sure as shit weren’t going to let them unless Avi showed us she was ready.

13

Benedict

I slid deep inside Jocelyn and groaned, her pussy gripping me like a velvet fist. “Fuck, you feel good.” Good wasn’t even the word for it, but my brain had shut down. All I could do was feel.

She gasped in answer as I took that last delicious inch, seating myself to the hilt.

“Look at us,” I said, grazing my fang over the shell of her ear.

Her eyes flared open, taking in the sight of us in the full-length mirror as I kneeled behind her on my bed—our bed. Her spine stretched along my chest, her breasts high and firm in my hands as I thrust into her again and again.

“Benedict,” she whispered, her hips rising and falling against mine as she lifted one arm and lightly scraped her nails down the back of my neck.

“You’re so damned beautiful.” This gorgeous, sexual, powerful woman was all mine, flushed and desperate for one thing—me. The mating bond was its own kind of aphrodisiac, driving us forward, demanding appeasement through more than just our bodies.

“Harder,” she cried, her cheeks flush, and her violet eyes bright from her first orgasm.

I gripped her hip in one hand, pulling her back into me to meet every thrust. Holy fucking shit, this was everything. Every thrust was hotter, pleasure coiling within me like a spring, tighter and tighter with each roll of my hips.

“Yes!” Her fingernails dug into my neck with delicate bites of exquisite pain, and I bared my fangs, scraping them down the side of her throat.

Hunger gnawed at me, rising swiftly at her scent, the feel of her pulse beating beneath my lips. Thank God she was a witch. Her natural, healing magic restored her blood so swiftly that I could feed off her and her alone.

“Benedict,” she moaned as I sent one hand down her stomach to cup her core.

“So slick,” I muttered, my fingers skimming over her clit, the flesh slippery and so very swollen.

She gasped as I rolled and pinched, increasing the thrusts of my hips, taking her faster and harder as her muscles tensed and her breathing hitched.

“Feed,” she ordered, her eyes locking with mine in the mirror. “I want all of you.”

I let my fangs hover over her skin for precious seconds, working her into a frenzy, waiting for the perfect—

There it was. Her thighs locked and her back arched.

I struck, deep and true, the taste of stars flooding my tongue as she convulsed, coming around me as she called out my name. She fell back against my chest, and I cradled her even as I drove onward. The sound alone was enough to put me over the edge, and I tumbled after her, coming in an explosion that blackened my vision as I found my release. I brought us both down with lazy pumps of my hips as I finished at her throat, sealing the cuts with a swipe of my tongue.

Our hearts pounded in time, slowing in unison. In that moment, it felt like we were one person—one being. The bond flared bright between us, wrapping us both with tendrils of connection that went further than just our bodies. We were melded to our very souls.

Oh, shit, are you falling for her?

I pressed a kiss to her neck, taking her scent deep into my lungs. Home. She smelled like home and trust and unconditional acceptance...and love.

Shit. I wasn’t falling for her, I’d fallen.

“I’m in love with you.” The words fell from my mouth in a rush.

Her spine stiffened and the only sound in the room was her sudden intake of air. “Benedict—”

“Don’t,” I said quickly, my hands splaying out over her stomach and ribs. “You don’t have to say anything. And I know that it’s probably the mating bond triggering every emotion to keep us closer. I know it’s too fast. I know it’s really fucking complicated. But I also know that I’m not one to withhold the truth in any situation, so there it is. I’m in love with you.” I drew my gaze up to hers in the mirror.