Page 4 of Dance of the Phoenix
“It’s very magnanimous of you,” I said quietly, for once not feeling cynical at all. I raised my eyes back to him, and for the first time since I entered the office, I could see beyond his supposedly blank face.
Ragnor was exhausted.
He was so exhausted that, even though he’d managed to hide it, I was suddenly aware of the dark bags under his eyes, the drawn skin of his face, and the slump of his shoulders.
And just like that, I felt like a dick. Because in the past few days, while Ragnor was extremely busy, all I had done was wallow in self-pity and blame myself for Tansy’s current state. It hadn’t even occurred to me that Ragnor might need me. He wasn’t the type to exactly need anyone. Him being busy, leaving me to sleep alone in his private suite, not showing his face—I’d simply accepted it for what it was. I knew better than anyoneabout the extent of the mess I’d put him in, after all. It was a no-brainer that he needed to take care of things.
But I hadn’t given a second thought to howhefelt about everything. I had simply assumed he was fine, since he was the indomitable Ragnor Rayne. But seeing his face now, seeing through his indifferent facade into how tired he was, whether it be physically or emotionally, I realized I shouldn’t have assumed anything.
Swallowing hard, I rose from my seat and went around the desk, careful not to step on the discarded paperwork. He watched me silently until I stood before his chair, and then, feeling a little brave, I sat down on his lap and wrapped my arms around his neck.
For a few tense moments, I was afraid he would tell me to get off, but then Ragnor’s strong arms enveloped me, and he pulled me tighter against him, burying his face in my shoulder.
We didn’t speak. We just held on to one another. And in his arms, feeling his warmth, his need for me, my need for him, I finally let myself feel how much I had missed him in the last few days. How much I truly needed him too.
And suddenly, I could no longer stay silent. “Is this the only reason why you’ve been so busy?” I asked quietly, not letting him go. “Or is there something else you’re not telling me?”
He tensed for a brief second before he relaxed and leaned back just enough to look at my face. His hand cupped my cheek, and his eyes glowed neon blue as he replied, “I was looking for a way to not have you be there.”
I froze, eyes widening. “What?”
He gave me a humorless smile. “Prior to Renaldi being chosen as a moderator, I made calls with all the North American Lords. I even managed to meet some of them in person. I needed to make sure they were on my side. That they understood the situation beyond what was written in the official Hecatomb application. I was hoping for anyone but Renaldi to be chosen as moderator.
“Unfortunately ...” His smile disappeared, turning into a grimace. “The choice is always randomly generated, and Renaldi was picked.”
I could see where this was going, but I didn’t interrupt.
“Renaldi and I are not on the best terms at the moment,” he told me quietly. “After our talk regarding Zoey, in which I told him I was going to take Zoey in and use it as the favor he owed me, he’s been quite upset with me. After he was chosen as the moderator, I was basically chasing after him. I even flew to Vegas to meet with him in person. But when we met, Renaldi’s mind was already set.”
Zoey was another former suitemate of mine. She’d been sold in the Auction to Renaldi, and when attempting to escape, she was caught by a Jinni, an antagonistic entity that hated vampires. We saved her from the Jinn when Ragnor and I infiltrated their headquarters in Vermont, and instead of bringing Zoey back to Renaldi, as protocol dictated, Ragnor took her in as one of his own instead. Thus leading to Renaldi’s inevitable falling-out with Ragnor.
He paused, giving me a searching look, before he murmured, “I tried to dissuade him from requesting you to be present in the Hecatomb. I told him the situation with Atalon was hardly about you, more about Atalon’s hatred toward me. Renaldi turned a deaf ear, and this morning, I was told your presence is required.”
His words didn’t fully compute at first. But when they did, I leaned farther back from him and scanned his face, heart quickening in my chest as anger rose inside me. “Why?” I asked, trying to keep my voice calm, and failing. “Why did you try so hard to keep me away from it?”
Ragnor’s hands grabbed my waist, his face darkening. “I don’t want you anywhere near Atalon,” he said with a sudden growl that made me tense. “Nor do I want you anywhere near the other Lords. I don’t want any attention on you. I don’t want everyone to realize that you were the catalyst for the Hecatomb.” He paused, then added in a lower voice, “Or that you are the youngest Sacred vampire to ever exist. That you are ... what you are.”
He rearranged me smoothly so I was completely straddling him, and before I could say anything, his hands tore away my shirt, shoved off my bra, and grabbed my breasts possessively. I gasped, heat pooling at my abdomen. “If they realize what you mean to me, they’ll do everything in their power to hurt you to get to me,” he said, his glowing eyes suddenly hungry and desperate. “I don’t know what they’ll do if they realize what you are, and I refuse to let it happen.”
Before I could speak, his mouth covered mine in a hot kiss that made rational thought impossible; all possible retorts left me in favor of a sudden wave of lust.
Losing common sense, I leaned into his hands kneading my breasts and moaned into his mouth as he tangled his tongue with mine, movements fast and furious.
Impatient, I pushed off his tank top, spreading my hands against his hard, toned chest, and he pinched my nipples, making me groan and undulate against his hard erection. I then fumbled with his pants, desperately looking to free his cock.
Before I could do that, though, Ragnor pulled back and, wrapping his arms around me, he rose from the chair, and put my ass down on his desk.
We were then wrestling, battling over who could undress the other first. It was a furious, maddening fight that made my desperation for him all too real, making me realize just how much I had missed him. Missed his touch. Missed his skin on mine. Missedhim.
No words were needed when, with both my wrists tied in his hand above my head, he pushed his thick, long cock inside my aching pussy, filling me up so beautifully, it took my breath away.
Then, with mesmerizing power, Ragnor fucked me deep, raw, and hard, until we both found our release with screams and growls that shook the walls of his office.
Some time later, as we cuddled in Ragnor’s bed (after we sneaked out of his office with barely any clothes on), satisfied from a few rounds of frantic sex, I said, “You know, you never took me out on a date.”
His chest vibrated under my cheek as he chuckled, his hands twirling my blond hair, which I gave up on dyeing brown a while ago, playfully. “That’s what bothers you right now?” he asked, amused.
I shrugged, grinning. “Well, it’s the truth. You’re still on probation, you know. You’ve already wasted a week out of the one-month limit.”
