Chapter 23
The Sight
The man who was dead had a smile on his face.
He'd been smiling while he'd watched me squirm in terror. And now he was dead.
Jerry rushed over and kneeled down in front of me. The gun, which he was still holding in his right hand, accidentally brushed against my hip. It was still warm. Alive. I winced and he understood- and tucked it back into his pants.
He was dead. Benny was dead. The bloody puddle underneath his head was growing bigger with each second.
And the air smelled of death. But the sky was blue and birds were singing.
"He's dead, Jerry… Oh my God… he was going… but you… and now…" All my sentences got lost in the sobbing. I couldn't get a coherent sentence out of my mouth. My lips were trembling and teeth rattling and I was clenching my jaw so hard it ached.
"It's okay, babygirl. It's over…" Jerry murmured, "you're fine..."
But I wasn't.
I just saw him kill my nightmare. I couldn't believe I saw it. One moment I was staring down the barrel of a gun… the next on a bloody torso. Benny was bathing in his own blood, the bastard. The son-of-a-bitch! I hated him. Hated him so damn much for all he made me go through. How the hell did he find me? I had not one fucking clue…
Hateyouhateyouhateyouhateyou…
"Sssssh, Ivy… Don't cry… that's it… breathe…"
Was I crying? I didn't know and to tell the truth- I didn't care. My brain was replaying the last couple of seconds over and over. Marvin disappearing in the back and then the utter never-ending darkness before my eyes. I had to have fainted.
I had no idea how Marvin knew Benny. If he'd called him. And how Benny got on Morpheus was a complete mystery to me.
"Look, Ivy. The cops are here."
Jerry helped me stand and my swollen eyes followed a group of police officers running up to us. One of them was huge, shouting orders, and he held a gun firmly in his hand.
The dark alley had become an investigation sight in a snap of two fingers. Everything was loud, the officers and assistants filling the narrow street, the police sirens howling in the distance.
The large man nodded at us.
"Secure them!" he yelled to his assistant.
"Yes, Captain, Sir!"
"Secure…?" I asked Jerry, while he wrapped his arm around my waist to support me.
"Check on us while they do an eyescan."
"Eyescan…?"
Jerry nodded. "Yeah. Eyescan. They scan the dead guy's iris. Analyze the tissue surrounding the pupil. It's a form of identification here on Morpheus. It tells them who he is and what-"
"You. Shutcha mouth. Don't make a move." A thin, tall man in his mid-twenties gestured at Jerry with his revolver.
Oh, the assistant. Right.
He glanced over at the large man near Benny's corpse and his sharp eyes quickly snapped back to us. He seemed pretty anxious. And determined to follow his captain's orders precisely.
"-what happened," Jerry finished, completely unmoved by the assistant's glare. And his weapon.
It took me a while to figure where he'd finished off.
Jerry continued, "It works like a camera, the human iris. Scratches the last moments of the person's life into the tissue. What they do is, that they run a scanner over it and then replay the 'data' on a small screen. Like a vid or something. They basically see the crime."
Whoa…
The assistant's glare turned into a scowl. He spat into the ground and faced us again. "You, smartboy, are you deaf? I said Shut. Up. Wanna piss me off?"
I rolled my eyes. Christ. He looked pissed off already. I knew the types like him. Strictly following orders and desperate for a promotion.
Jerry didn't seem bothered by the threats either, though.
"That's… I mean, that's really possible?" I asked, amazed. "To see it replayed?"
"Yeah," he said, nodding. "They'll see what'd happened any moment now. Benny pointing the gun at you and me interfering in time. Then this moron over here will stop bitching." He raised a brow at the assistant, whose jaw just hit the ground. "Won't ya?"
"How come?" I asked quickly, before the assistant managed to compose himself.
"See, he's securing us. We can be potential killers, or something like that. But after that scan they'll know what happened."
I finally understood why the assistant was frowning so much. He didn't know I'd almost been the victim.
A group of officers was hunched over the body while their captain ran the scanner over Benny's eyeball. Another group was filming the grimy alley behind them. One officer was drawing tape around the sight.
A paramedic ducked under it and sprinted over to me.
He lowered the medical bag and smiled, seeing we were all alive. "Who all's the patient?"
The assistant immediately shot him a glare from his wide repertoire. "They're with me. Secured. Potentially dangerous. Don't go near."
The medic was a good-looking man, with strong features and large hands. He wore a bright windbreaker and didn't seem excited by our guard at all.
"Well, they're potentially hurt, too. So I have to. Move."
"I'm not gonna say 'I told ya' after they sticks that injection into your eyeball, Doctor."
"Don't worry, sergeant. I can handle my knickknacks," he winked. "Now move aside, gotta check on the beasts."
The assistant reluctantly stepped aside and the medic casually approached us.
I wondered if he really thought that we were no real suspects, or if he did this on a daily basis and didn't care anymore.
"They take you hostage, Doc- I won't give a damn," the assistant growled.
But he seemed to relax a little when we didn't.
"Who's hurt?" the young doctor asked, his eyes scanning us.
"She is," Jerry said.
"What happened?"
"Probably a concussion," I said quietly. "I fell… and then I had to pass out… I don't really remember how Be- how he appeared…"
The medic stepped over to me and slipped his hands into my hair to search my head.
"What's your name?" he asked.
"Ivy."
"Ok, Ivy. Does that hurt?"
I nodded when he found the bump.
"All right… How long was she out?" he asked Jerry.
"I don't know, I wasn't here. They're scanning him now."
"We'll wait then." The medic turned back to me. "You feeling dizzy, Ivy? Headache? Feel nauseous?"
I laughed a little, mirthlessly. "Not anymore. I… I emptied my stomach earlier. When I realized who he was. That I was going to die…"
He nodded again. "And you're still feeling dizzy?"
"A bit."
He bent down, unzipped the medical bag and took out some tablets and something which looked like another kind of scanner. I had never seen anything like that on Earth.
"Here." He handed me one of the capsules. "Acetaminophen. For the headache."
I popped it into my mouth and the tablet melted on my tongue straight away. It didn't taste bad at all.
Meanwhile my doctor switched the scanner-thing on, punched in some kind of code and traced the outline of my head. The device made a funny buzzing noise and it stayed even the whole time. Which I didn't know if was right or wrong.
"What is that?" I asked uneasily.
"MRI scan," the medic said, smiling. "To rule out bleeding or other injury."
"Oh."
"It's okay, Ivy. You're fine." He switched it off and placed it back into the bag. "Everything's where it's supposed to be."
"That's comforting."
"I bet," the police assistant muttered.
"You'll be okay," the paramedic continued. "If you think you're experiencing any kind of problems though, don't hesitate and visit a doctor. All you need to do is take it easy now. Don't put any pressure on yourself. In a couple of days you should feel as good as new."
"Thank you, doctor."
"You're welcome." He smiled genuinely. "Now, that's everyone around here who's got head problems?" And he turned with a raised eyebrow to the assistant.
"Shut up, Mike," the assistant spat.
Oh, so they knew each other?
Mike chuckled. "I can always prescribe you something for that little problem of yours, Gary."
The assistant scowled. "Fuck you and your prescriptions. Get the hell outta here."
Mike rolled his eyes and turned back to Jerry and me. "You take care of her, okay? See you, Ivy. Or make that a 'I hope I won't see you', if you know what I mean."
I laughed. "I know exactly what you mean, Doctor."
"Well, finally someone knows. And she's too young for me. The irony of it."
Gary, our police guard, raised his hand and pointed back behind the tape. He seemed completely disgusted.
"I'm going, I'm going," the medic said in a hurry. "Unlike some- I do in fact work, ya know. Laters."
And he marched off.
I watched him walk away and much to my surprise I felt better. Aceta… whatsthename probably started working. Or maybe it was just the jokes. God bless the man for making me forget.
"Done!"
The Captain bent over Benny's corpse stood up and stretched his back. "Image done, people!" He lowered the scanner into its case. "You can leave 'em alone, Sergeant," he yelled over to Gary. "They're as innocent as one can be. Now get your ass over here and help us clean up the mess."
Gary didn't seem happy about that but he forced a smile and eased his grip on the huge revolver. "Yes, Sir!"
"You don't need us anymore then, Sergeant?" Jerry asked.
"No. It's none of your business from now on. We got all we need. Have a nice day." And he spat into the ground again and waltzed off.
"That's it?" I asked. "I mean- no witness report or something like that?"
"'We got what we need'," Jerry mimicked the sergeant. "You heard him," he laughed. "Everything's on the iris. On tape now, even. They don't need witnesses."
"Wow…"
"Amazing, isn't it?"
We slowly turned and started away from there. Like nothing had happened.
"You know, Jerry? Now I know why Tom's body was never found."
" * * * * *
" It was raining again and the sun was setting.
"You never told me how you found me," I said, wondering. "If it weren't for you…"
Jerry squeezed my waist in a reassuring gesture. "Don't think about it, Ivy. I was heading home from campus. You know that friend of mine who almost drank himself to death? Well, he was blabbering the whole night."
We turned into the busy street.
"Well," he continued, "he said something about Graham's Parts and that he'd wanted to buy a gun. To kill his girlfriend's lover… Yeah, he's crazy when he drinks too much. So I wanted to check on this 'Graham'. Make sure my friend hadn't already visited."
I stayed silent. Happy it was all over.
"You want to see Riddick, don't you?" Jerry asked after a while.
"Yes."
"But…?"
"I can't go back to the ship. Not when… Jack is there."
"He'll be worried sick. I bet he's checking hospitals now."
"Maybe."
"Definitely. I know him, remember? I'm his cousin. He's sick and pacing and he's probably smashed the whole damn ship already."
I laughed a little.
"Look, Ivy," Jerry said suddenly, "there's a small hotel- it's right behind that corner- called Fuyu Yasumi. Winter Break. Stay there. I'll go get him for you."
"You'd really do that?"
Jerry grinned.
"What are friends for?"
Chapter 24
The Night
The night was cool and it was raining a little, the scent of cherry blossoms from the garden lingering on the verandah, and I was thinking of Riddick.
Jerry had been right. This, the Fuyu Yasumi, was the most heavenly place I'd ever seen and it being a hotel didn't take away anything of its beauty.
It was small and square-shaped, characteristic Japanese architecture, a carefully planted garden in the middle with a majestic cherry tree looming high, high above the rooftops, the verandah framing it all round.
The breeze was mild and the insects were singing, fireflies flapping about mischievously.
I watched, through my window, two women in magnificently done kimonos sitting in the garden, chatting away. Their hair was raven black, pinned up, lips pink like the cherry petals of the tree they were sitting under.
I was startled by movement on the verandah right next to me and quickly slid the lattice shutters closed, only the pale blue ray of moonlight shining into my room now. I'd just come out of the bath and my skin was still wet, my body wrapped in a fluffy pearl-white towel the geisha had given me, the water from my hair dripping onto my shoulders.
A shadow appeared through the shutter and I stepped back, my heart pounding. I waited for something to fall through or someone, for a spray of bullets to pepper me- but nothing came, only the shadow remained.
Bravely(or stupidly), I took a step closer to the shutter and peered through.
A Japanese man, I saw, who wasn't facing me at all, reached inside his robes and pulled out a flute. I breathed a sigh of relief while he brought the instrument to his mouth and started playing.
His long fingers moved expertly, skillfully running over it, and the tune they evoked was soft and somehow full of sorrow. Completely mesmerized, I pressed my palms against the closed shutters, trying to see more, his music having me fully captivated.
Much to my surprise the two women in the garden rose from their places at the sound of the melody and, without looking at the man at all, they too reached inside their kimonos and pulled out some sort of wooden, string instruments.
I knew what those were called… I'd seen them in a book in the library once… but I just couldn't remember.
The women started picking at the strings, practiced fingers gliding over the wooden masterpiece and, almost absentmindedly, accompanied the flute player in his song full of grief.
What was happening to me? I felt tears roll down my face at every soft tone the women drew from their wagons. That was it! Wagons. The instrument was a wagon, I could remember now.
A loud knock on the door made me jump and snapped me from my daydreaming back to reality. I turned back into the room, the musicians long forgotten, and fixed my eyes on the doorway.
The knock came again, only this time it was a loud bang. Despite the uneasiness, I slowly made my way over the wooden floorboards, pushed a screen standing in the way aside, and stopped in front of the door.
The chrysanthemum incense burning in the middle of the room caught my attention and the fragrance calmed me down(numbed me?) that much, that I managed to ask, "Who is it?" in a small voice.
The knocking ceased and silence enveloped me from all sides, the musicians long since not playing.
Who was that?
I wrapped my arms around myself trying to stop the anxiety spreading through my veins and blankly stared at the door.
"It's me."
My heart skipped a beat. And, barely able to think or talk, I quickly reached for the doorknob and turned it.
The door opened with faint cracking, let in some pale blue light from the corridor, and I cautiously stepped back into the room.
Riddick filled the frame, large and heavy, and he moved, fast, after me. He crossed the wooden floor of my room, knocked over the pot of incense, and I gasped when he wrapped his enormous arms around my body and pressed me hard against his chest, knocking the air out of my lungs, and burying his face in my throat.
He was panting and his clothes were wet, and he held me so hard I was sure he'd break my ribs if he held any stronger. And I was sobbing into his tank, clutching the material in my fists.
His smell filled my senses, musk and spice and water, and I couldn't let go off him, blissfully happy in his arms, right there, in the middle of a small Japanese hotel room.
"Evelyn," he whispered and I looked up through the tears.
My name rolled off of his tongue like he couldn't believe I was really there, like he thought he'd never see me again.
I gazed up at him and he cupped my face with his hands. Then he peeled his goggles off and tossed them aside. Our eyes locked and I knew his were hurting. There was too much light in the room and there was no way it didn't hurt him. I opened my mouth to say something, to switch the lights off, but he was faster.
"I don't give a shit. Let me look at you."
And he did. He examined my whole face, searched for bruises, slipped his fingers into my hair, and his mouth quivered when he found a bump from when I'd slipped in the alley.
"He do that to you?" he asked, sternly, not for one moment letting go off me, like he thought I'd disappear the moment he would.
I shook my head no and ordered the lights to low, tears still rolling down my face. He gave me a soft smile at that and I noticed that his cheek was wet. And so were his eyes.
"From the lights," he grumbled.
And then he bent down and kissed me on the lips.
I shuddered against him and he grinned against my mouth, his hands on my hips, over the towel.
The kiss was soft, like he was scared he'd harm me. And when he pulled back I couldn't stop myself, I started crying once more.
"I thought I'd never see you again," I gulped, my hands going to cover my face.
He brought me closer and wrapped his big arms around me. "Ssssshh, it's all good, kid," he rumbled. "I'm here. And I won't be leaving. I love you."
My throat contracted at the sound of those three words and I managed to choke out, "I love you, too."
Riddick smiled down at me, brushed a wet lock of hair behind my ear and his fingers stayed there, gently stroking the back of my neck.
"What did that mothafucker do to you?" he asked. "He touch you?"
I shook my head once more. "No. No, he just… slapped me."
His eyes narrowed and he clenched his jaw. "Son-of-a-bitch," he hissed. "He should be thanking his lucky stars that I didn't get a chance to get shiv-happy on him."
I didn't say anything. I was just glad it was over.
"You okay, Ivy?"
"I am."
"Want me to call a doctor or something?"
"No, that's okay. I'm fine. Really."
"You sure?" he smiled at me, a flash of brilliant white against the toffee of his skin. "Because otherwise…"
A mischievous glint appeared in his silver eyes.
I raised my eyebrows at him, suddenly feeling very self-conscious in just the skimpy piece of cloth I had wrapped around my body. "Because otherwise what, Riddick?"
"Because otherwise…" and he lightly tugged on my towel.
I half-laughed, half-gasped, trying to push the wave of hysteria crawling into me away. "I-"
"Ivy," and he took my bare shoulders into his hands, bent down to look me in the eyes. "It was a joke. We don't have to do anything, okay? Relax." He brought his right hand to my cheek and let his thumb slowly rub over my lower lip. "You have to be tired. I know you haven't slept. C'mon," he smiled at me. "Let's get you in bed."
And he leaned down and scooped me up into his arms, like I weighed nothing.
I cried out and he smirked. "Take it easy, kid. I'm not gonna hurt you."
He lowered me onto the sheets and moved to stand up.
"Stay?" I asked him out of nowhere, then blushed at the other meaning. "Stay with me?"
He didn't laugh at me, didn't laugh at all, instead just smiled and then the smile turned into a grin and he said, "But you are going to sleep, right?"
"Right," I laughed, innocently. "And you are too."
"I don't sleep."
He drew the wet tank up and over his head and threw it into a corner, then climbed down into the bed next to me.
"You don't sleep?" I asked, incredulously, propping up on my elbow.
"No." He lay down and stretched out like a big cat.
I couldn't tear my eyes away from him. His body was magnificent. Rock hard chest muscles and rippling stomach, a trail of dark curls from his outtie belly button disappearing into his cargos. His skin was dark, chocolate-colored and I wondered whether he had a chance to catch bronze somewhere or if this was-
"What?" he asked and I watched as he turned his head on the pillow to grin at me.
Damn, he caught me staring.
"Like what you see?" he chuckled.
I turned my head away and stared at the ceiling, blushing.
"Maybe," I said.
" Maybe?"
I laughed. "Yup, maybe."
There was movement next to me and when I looked over at his side of the bed, he was already on top of me, straddling my waist, pinning me down.
I shrieked, then started giggling, while he mouthed the word 'maybe?'
He pressed his palms into the mattress next to my head and I caught his wrists.
"Well, we'll have to do something about that, won't we?" he growled out softly, his eyes snapping to my hands on his, then back to my face.
I stopped laughing and just gazed up at him. "Like what?" I breathed.
"Like this," and he lowered his head and pressed his mouth hard to mine.
My eyes flew wide open and I gasped for air.
Riddick pulled back with a smirk and watched me panting. "That still a Maybe, Ivy?"
I shook my head, gaping at him. He was beautiful.
"No," I whispered. "That's a Yes."
He sobered then, the smirk disappearing from his face, tongue sweeping across his lower lip. "A Yes?" he asked, stroking my cheek. "You sure?"
I nodded, disbelief and fear and excitement flooding my entire conscience. I was more sure than I'd ever been about anything.
Riddick leaned down and kissed my forehead. "We'll go slow," he said, voice low and hushed. "I promise." And then he found my mouth again and kissed me once more.
His lips were warm and soft and not at all invading, and he was testing how far he could go, what he could do that wouldn't scare me. He flicked his tongue out and when I opened up to him, he groaned deep in his throat.
I was trembling underneath his huge body, my hands leaving his wrists and going to his shoulders for support, while I kissed him back, and he drew back a little, sucked my lower lip into his mouth and then trailed off down my jaw with a series of smaller kisses.
"You taste so good," he whispered into my ear, his breath hot on my neck. "Good enough to eat," he added before gently biting my earlobe.
Oh… my…
God, he felt good too. My head was spinning and a warm, fuzzy sensation spread all over me like a velvety blanket.
And the ache. A sudden unfamiliar ache between my thighs…
Feeling the need to touch him back, I slipped my hands down from his shoulders and experimentally raised them up to his chest. I felt him tense above me, heard him groan, and encouraged by that, I cautiously ran my hands over his nipples, down to his abs, the tips of my fingers barely just brushing against the incredibly soft skin and solid-hard muscle underneath.
He grunted into my throat and focused on licking the skin there, while I slid my hands lower and when they reached his belt- I panicked and just couldn't do it.
Riddick sat up and drew my fingers gently away from his waistband, which I was grateful for, and then, eyes focused on me, he brought them up to his mouth and pressed a kiss to my wrists.
"It's okay, Ivy. Not yet. Let me touch you first."
Which really didn't stop me from panicking. He knew that and rolled his eyes.
"Relax," he said with a wink.
I punched him in the shoulder in frustration and he brought his giant paw to it in fake agony.
"Ouch."
Then he burst out laughing.
I wanted to say something witty to silence him, but instead, he pushed his knee between my legs and I lost that particular trail of thought.
"What are…?"
"Loosening you up a little."
I had no experience in that way and before I could protest or panic, he lowered his mouth to mine again and swallowed my protests in a burning kiss.
He kissed me softly at first, lightly licked the corners of my mouth, teased me with small bites, then parted my lips with his and slid his tongue inside. My heart was pounding hard deep inside my chest and I settled my arms around his neck and drew him closer, opened up to him completely.
When our tongues met, the thrill pulsating in my blood became exquisitely excruciating.
His fingers meanwhile slipped up my leg and when they reached the towel, I squirmed and he drew back.
I looked down, ashamed. "Riddick… I'm- I've never-"
"I know."
And he smiled at me and I knew it was okay. His hand disappeared under the towel again and I jolted up underneath him, eyes wide.
I hated myself for it. Why couldn't I relax? I had to irritate him, too. Jumpy whenever he touched me. A pussy of a virgin, Jack had been right.
Riddick didn't look annoyed at all, though. He just sucked his lower lip into his mouth, then released it. Our eyes locked and he rested his hand on my bare hip underneath the towel, fingers gently stroking.
I could scarcely breathe and he grinned down at me.
"You're beautiful like this," he said, voice rich and coarse and barely above a whisper.
"Like what?" I swallowed.
"Scared of me."
And his lips widened into a broad smile.
I laughed back breathlessly, thankful that he wasn't furious with me, that he wanted to ease my nervousness away.
Riddick shifted above me a little and took all of his weight on his left hand. He hooked his right thumb under the towel and gave me a questioning look. I knew I wanted the towel gone, wanted his hot hands and mouth back on my body, but all I managed was a small nod.
He gave me a reassuring smile, for about a tenth time that night, caught the towel in his fist and slowly unwrapped me. The last piece of the pearl-white cloth left my body and I lay there, naked as the day I was born, panting, staring up way into his face.
He studied me under heavy eyelids, his eyelashes thick and black, eyes displaying emotion I'd never seen on his face. Fascination and delight, hunger and lust and something else… something I couldn't quite place… all crossed his features and I watched as he rubbed a giant hand over his head, took me all in.
His hands, as he cupped my hips, moved slowly and easily up over my ribcage and to my breasts, and I arched my back into his sweet assault, my body moving completely off it's own accord, wanting to experience his touch, wanting to know how it felt.
A delicious warmth spread through me when his hands pressed against my breasts and he lowered his head and enclosed one nipple in the heat of his mouth, his fingertips playing with the swollen bead of the other. He sucked on it, flicked it with his tongue and then moved to lick the underside of my breast, nibbling his way down my abdomen.
I moaned, involuntarily rocking my hips up to meet his. The ache between my legs was unbearable and I knew there was something he could do about it, something that could bring me release, but he caught my hips with his big hands and clamped them down into the mattress.
When I searched his eyes, he managed a breathy, "Don't wanna spoil it, kid."
His mouth was hot and wet as he kissed my stomach and my muscles flinched underneath him, and he was biting my hipbones when it dawned on me that he was dangerously close to-
"Relax," he said. "I'm not gonna go down on you unless you want me to."
Ohh boy…
If there was really a time to start panicking now was the time to do it.
I watched the stubble on his head disappear between my legs and I flinched before he had a chance to touch me.
Riddick sat up and I opened my mouth to say sorry, to apologize, my heart sinking in unison. Get a GRIP!!! But he climbed up and lay down next to me, one of his enormous hands resting possessively on my stomach. I desperately tried to search his eyes, to see if he was finally fed up with me.
"Sssshh," he murmured, pressing a kiss to my forehead. Then he turned my face closer to his and slowly kissed me on the mouth, my eyelids, my nose, and when he kissed me on the mouth again I felt his hand slip from belly and cup my mons.
I arched underneath him and my hand went to his wrist. But he wasn't stopping.
He rubbed his fingers between my folds ever so gently, barely touching me, and I still held his hand, clutching it like he'd hurt me if I let go.
His mouth left mine and he moved to suck on my neck, but his hand never once stop-
"Sssshh now…" he whispered against my skin and added a little more pressure, his thumb finding my clit and gently massaging.
I didn't know what was happening to me. Sensations I'd never felt before shot out from his touch into my whole body, the core of me full and humming.
He obviously knew well what he was doing.
Biting my throat he moved lower, kissing my clavicles and licking the hollows underneath, and I felt his finger probe gently against my opening. I inhaled and he pushed it inside. There was pressure, and I tightened my grip on his wrist, but the pain went away as soon as it appeared.
Riddick started stroking me, slowly, almost lazily, his thumb never once leaving my clit. I moaned, lost in my pleasure, while he flicked his tongue at my nipples and kissed his way down my stomach.
When his breath ruffled my pubic hair, I felt that wave of panic flood me again, but before I had a chance to do something, or spoil it, he buried his face there and I couldn't prevent myself from crying out.
My hips rocked up and he seized them, rough hands under my ass cheeks as he pulled me deeper into his mouth. I was falling, caught in ecstasy.
He stroked his tongue gently over my folds, circled around my clitoris, kissed around it, his cheek grazing my thigh and I felt everything between my legs go hot and wet, and I was aching so much I thought I could take no more.
Riddick brought me even closer, alternating between tiny nips and feather-light touches. He never touched my clit though and I looked down at him, begging him silently to… His hungry eyes met mine and I watched his tongue snake out and lick his upper lip clean. I swallowed, my throat dry and everything else sweaty, and he smiled, ran his hands down over my thighs to my knees and back again, his chest rising and falling like he'd been running.
I shuddered, glad I could breathe, wasn't sure I could move if I wanted to, and he shot me a knowing satisfied smirk, before lowering his head again and kissing the deepest insides of my thighs. His tongue hit my clit and I was so hot, blood rushing in my ears and emotion pulsating in my veins, that I came thrashing underneath him.
He licked me through my orgasm, gentle but firm strokes, and when I calmed and he looked up at me again, I could barely think.
"That… I've never… never felt anything… like that…"
He acknowledged my surprise, climbed up and rested his head on my stomach with a smug grin.
"Thought for a moment you were gonna strangle my wrist there," he chuckled and brought his hand up to my eyes, dangled it in front of my face.
It had a red mark around it from when I tried to stop him from touching me.
I moaned and he laughed.
When he sobered he caught my small hand between two of his and raised his silver eyes up to mine. They were shimmering in the moonlight. "You're beautiful when you come, you know that?"
"Yeah?"
"Yeah."
"You're beautiful, too."
Riddick propped up on his elbow and raised his eyebrow, watching me. But he didn't say anything.
My eyes ran over the gorgeous man lying next to me. He was really there, with me. And, for the first time, I noticed the giant bulge in his pants.
As much as I was scared, I wanted to touch him, too.
"Riddick…?"
He moved to kiss me on the lips.
"No, that's okay."
"No, I want… I mean, if you…"
He pulled back and looked at me. His eyes narrowed, dropped to my mouth and then rose back to mine again. "You don't- um-" he cleared his throat, trying not to laugh, "-you don't want to end up being the only… undressed person around here, huh?" His fingers tousled my hair naughtily.
I rolled my eyes and he laughed some more.
"No, it's true, kid," he said, grinning big, his arms slowly slipping around my waist. "I'm in bed with a beautiful, naked young woman."
I didn't have time to wonder how come he could call me kid and woman in the same sentence, because he settled his arms securely around me and rolled us over. He landed on his back with me on top of him and I saw how he swallowed down on another smart-ass comment. Oh, I was pretty sure I knew what he was thinking.
He must have noticed my questioning look because he caught my hips, picked me up and lowered me down again, next to him.
"Can I…?" I managed.
He nodded, his hand still stroking my hip.
"You- you'll tell me if I do… if I do something wrong, won't you? I don't want-"
Riddick raised his hand up to my cheek and gave me a soft smile. "Ivy, you can't do nothin' wrong."
My heart fluttered and I focused my eyes on his belt. I wanted to desperately make him feel the same way he made me feel. I lowered my hands to his waistband, my fingers visibly trembling, and he caught them in his.
"Let me do that."
I let him and he unbuckled his belt, drew down the zipper.
Raised his hips and I helped him pull his pants down. And when he sprang free, I gasped.
He was HUGE! Not monstrously huge, but big enough and I knew immediately that there was no way he could fit all inside me. And if he did, somehow, I wouldn't be able to walk for a week.
I didn't want to know what he saw in my eyes as he studied me. But if he wanted to say something, it remained in his mind.
My attention swayed back to giving him pleasure. I wanted to. God, I wanted to make him feel good, but I had no idea where to start. The thing was a masterpiece.
I hesitantly reached out and touched him.
His mouth dropped open and he flinched a little, but didn't make any sound.
The skin was silky soft, and hot, and I lightly ran my fingertips up and down the length of him, fascinated by the pulsating veins under the surface.
"Hmmmmmmmmmmm…"
"Riddick…?"
He inhaled deep through his nose.
"Ivy…Whatever you're doing… Don't… stop…"
I smiled to myself. "I'm not planning to…"
He grinned and his hand moved to stroke my arm. "Good…"
I tentatively wrapped my fingers around him and gently squeezed.
Whoa, it felt like iron underneath!
"Mmmm… oh yeeeah…"
His eyes flickered closed and I swallowed self-consciously. "Riddick…? I want to… want to make you feel good. How…"
"Here," he moved his hand and curled his long fingers around mine on his cock.
The jolt of electricity at his touch made my heart pound and he had to have felt it too because his breathing rapidly quickened.
"And here."
He started moving his hand over mine, up and down, up and down, showing me the pressure he liked and the long tight strokes that brought him closer to the brink, and his hips started rolling even though it seemed like he was restraining himself for some- to me unknown- reason.
"It's okay, Riddick," I managed shakily. "You don't have to hold ba-"
"Don't…wanna…scare you."
"You won't," I replied. And to prove that to him, I shifted above his beautiful naked form and bent my head to drew him into my mouth.
Riddick hissed through his teeth, knowing well what I was going to do.
"Oh shit."
I didn't know where all the courage and curiosity was coming from, how come I was comfortable with him, with it, but I was pretty certain I wasn't going to stop.
I closed my mouth around the head of him and started sucking gently. No way was I sure this was what I was supposed to do but it just seemed right.
And he wasn't complaining.
Instead, he groaned, his hands going to my hair and smoothing my locks back so he could look at me. His chest was heaving and his eyes shone intensely in the pale blue light that was coming from outside while I quickened my assault.
"Shiit, I'm gonna…"
He moved me off of himself and flipped us over in a split second. I'd barely touched him and he seemed so aroused already that his hands were trembling. He was covered in sweat and his tongue flicked out to lick it off of his upper lip. His breaths were coming in short and fast and he just gazed at me with such sense-dizzying intensity I thought I would melt right there.
"Want you…" he whispered. And my God, his voice was shaking so bad.
"Want you, too…"
"You sure, Ivy?"
I nodded, all uncertainty gone like the leaves in autumn.
"It's gonna be okay," he murmured, moving in to kiss me.
"I know," I whimpered back and he covered my mouth with his own.
He leaned over to the bed-stand and I watched him take a small square package out of his pants.
The condom.
I was breathing hard now, as he rolled the piece of plastic down the length of himself.
Oh God.
He gripped the base of his cock and, for a moment, stared at the soon-to-be connection of our bodies.
Hell, I knew it was going to hurt like mad.
I braced myself for it. Tried to breathe.
"Evelyn."
Hmm?
"Breathe, Ivy," he said. Then laughed breathlessly. "Breathe, babe."
"I am." Damn, I sounded accusing.
"You are, huh."
It wasn't a question. More like a sarcastic remark. But he was smiling.
"Try and relax for me, okay?"
I was trying. I was almost certain I couldn't try more. But Riddick still seemed worried.
"This is going to hurt. I'll go slow."
I knew it was going to hurt. There was no way it wouldn't hurt. Why was he so anxious to remind me all the time?
"Relax," and I felt him rub himself against my opening.
The heat coming from him and the ache between my thighs was unbearable. I thought I'd burst- I was so nervous.
We were both breathing hard, sweaty, the nervous anticipation completely filling the room.
And then he just looked at me.
The familiar naughty flicker he gazed at me with vanished and his eyes narrowed.
I swallowed, so happy I wanted to cry and so nervous I wanted to laugh. It was really happening…
Riddick smoothed a stray curl of hair away from my cheek with his fingertips.
"I love you," he whispered.
And pushed inside.
OhGodOhGodOhGodOhGodOhGodOhGod!!!
It hurt!! Tears gushed out of my eyes and I swallowed back a sob, my nails digging deep into his back. It hurt, dammit! I was being torn apart, from the inside, and it hurt like a son-of-a-bitch. And he wasn't stopping-
"Riddick!"
"Love you…" His head fell onto my shoulder and he grunted into my throat.
I tightly wrapped my arms around his neck and sobbed against him while he pushed deeper.
Whatever I thought would come, however I thought it would hurt- this was worse.
And then he stopped.
His body lay flat on mine and he was panting into the pillow.
"I'm in," he managed.
I exhaled, not knowing I'd held my breath. He was in. He was in and the worst was over. Then I noticed the bloody fingernail trails on his back. Shit…
"You're not…" he started again, still out of breath, "…not trying… to relax for me… so fucking tight…" he laughed. " Jesus…"
I stayed completely still, scared if I moved I'd tear myself in half. It felt unbelievable with him inside of me.
"What are… you… trying to do… huh…?" I groaned. "…rip me in half here?"
He chuckled into my throat, then drew back to look at me. His forehead was dripping with sweat.
"Me?" he said innocently, wiping away the tears from my cheeks with his thumb. "I'm trying to make love here."
My mouth dropped open and he took it as an invitation to swipe in with his tongue.
Make love…
"You're the best thing that ever happened to me," he whispered, huskily. "Hold onto me."
And I did.
He started moving, gently at first, then increasing his pace, slow long strokes in and out of me, in and out, rocking me, his hands on my hips. It was an empowering feeling as he jerked his hips to meet mine, thrusting deep inside of my body.
When he came, he shuddered against me, growled out his orgasm, and I just held onto him like he'd told me to, feeling overwhelmed and completely bewildered.
After he'd rolled off of me and pulled me into his arms, I noticed the blood. There was a dark bloody patch on the otherwise pearl-white sheet and blood smeared over him, too.
I wondered for a moment if this bothered him but he seemed untroubled by it and just stared at the sheet for a short moment. Then he softly kissed me on the forehead and moved away from me, peeled the condom off of himself and threw it into the garbage.
In the shower, later, when we stood facing each other and the warm water ran over our naked sweat-slick bodies, Riddick told me again that he loved me.
He washed me then, his hands gently roaming over my frame, sliding over my breasts and over my stomach, and I sighed softly and closed my eyes, rested my forehead against his chest. It was a completely different form of intimacy than before. We didn't say much, but the silence wasn't embarrassing, and we just enjoyed the company of one another.
Riddick kneeled down and I rested my back against the cold tiles in the shower, and he softly proceeded to wash away the blood from my thighs. He was as gentle as he'd ever been with me, his fingers touching me ever so lightly as he started- almost absentmindedly- to stroke me.
I looked down at him wide-eyed, my heart pounding against my ribs once more, and his answering smile was soft and serene, and he took it as an invitation.
My body was screaming at me, every inch of my skin sore and bruised. But I wanted him, wanted him inside of me again and to prove that I brushed my groin against his, let him see what I was thinking.
Riddick laughed, blinked back the pearls of water and cornered me, placing both of his palms on either side of my head.
"You sure you can take me again?" he whispered mischievously into my ear and I felt him press against my belly, thick and hot. "Hmmm?"
Next TBC