“What gods did the Greeks worship?” Stone asked, frowning. He was trying to remember Earth cultures and religions but there were so many of them he sometimes got them confused. The Kindred only worshiped the Goddess, but humans had all kinds of deities they called on.
“What gods? Oh, Zeus…Apollo…” Cassandra frowned. “Although with your hair and eye color, I think you probably look more like Thor. If you had a beard, I mean.”
“Really? You want me to grow a beard?” Stone asked. He would do it for her, if she really wanted him to—he would do anything he could to please her.
“Not really.” She laughed again. “You’re fine without one. More than fine.” Reaching up, she stroked his cheek. Stone turned his face and placed a soft kiss in her palm, making her sigh. “Stone,” she murmured. “There’s something I want to ask you, only I don’t want to, uh, impose on you.”
“Nothing you could ask would be an imposition,” Stone assured her. “Ask, Cassandra.”
“Well…” She nibbled her lush lower lip. “I’ve heard that Blood Kindred can heal with their essence—is that right?”
Stone nodded. “Yes, that’s right. It’s the reason I bit you so many times on Bachanalius. I was hoping my essence would lessen the burning you felt.”
“It did.” Cassandra said earnestly. “It was like a soothing, cool river flowing over me and putting out the flames—it was wonderful. But, well…” She shifted in his arms and winced. “I’m kind of having a different kind of pain right now.”
Stone frowned.
“You mean you’re in pain because I was rough with you.”
“Because you had to be,” she reminded him again.
“That doesn’t matter—you are still in pain,” Stone growled, frowning.
“Then why don’t you heal me?” Cassandra demanded in apparent exasperation. “Heal me with your essence, Stone—like you did when you bit me.”
He frowned again.
“In order to heal the places you are injured, I could not simply bite you. I would need to lick you and spread my essence to your injured areas with my tongue.”
Cassandra’s cheeks went pink and her breathing sped up. At the same time, her pupils dilated—a sign of desire, Stone thought.
“I don’t mind that if you don’t,” she said softly.
Stone felt his cock surge and was glad for the waters of the bathing pool which were hiding his reaction. He wanted desperately to heal her—to taste her—but he knew he shouldn’t.
You might not be able to stop with just healing her, he told himself sternly. You’ve bitten her so many times and there’s so much of your essence in her it’s going to be very difficult not to want to Claim her and bond her too.
But the shy, hopeful look on Cassandra’s lovely face was too much to resist.
“If you would really like me to heal you,” he told her. “Then we must get out of the bathing pool and dry off.”
“All right.” She nodded eagerly. “I’m ready.”
Shouldn’t be doing this, Stone told himself again.
But instead of listening, he reached for a towel.
Sixty-One
Cassie hoped she was doing the right thing. Should she really take Kat’s advice and ask her partner to heal her with his tongue?
But it was too late to take it back now. They were both out of the pool and Stone was drying her off as carefully as though she was fine china that might break if he handled her too roughly.
This is how he wants to treat me—to touch me, Cassie realized as he finished on one leg and started on the other. Gently, with care and love and tenderness. That’s one reason it was so hard on him to be so rough back at the palace. That’s why he feels so guilty.
Well, maybe she could help ease his guilt by letting him treat her the way he had always wanted to. She held out her arms and let her partner dry her completely and then Stone swung her up and carried her back into the bedroom. Laying her gently on the bed, he looked into her eyes.
“I’ll start with the bruises I made on your hips and thighs, sweetheart,” he murmured. “And then move down. Let me know if you want me to stop for any reason.”
“All right, Stone,” she whispered as he moved down her body. But inside, she was vowing that she wouldn’t stop him for anything. They were finally headed in the right direction—she wanted the momentum to continue.
Stone’s tongue felt warm and soothing against the bare skin of her hips. He healed her with long, slow licks, as though he was savoring the taste of her skin. Cassie watched in surprise as the dark bruises that had formed after the big Kindred had gripped her there, began to fade.
“That’s amazing!” she exclaimed, when the bruises were all gone. “I can’t believe your essence healed me so completely.”
“That is what it is for—to heal the female I care for,” he murmured, looking up. “Are you ready for me to heal you lower now, Cassandra?”
Cassie bit her lip, feeling herself clench with desire. The hot bath had worked wonders for her but she still ached inside… She longed to feel his tongue soothing those aches and pains.
“Yes,” she whispered. “Yes, Stone—please heal me.”
“As you wish,” he murmured and laid a soft kiss on her hip bone.
Then he began to work his way down, kissing a soft, ticklish trail down her belly until he came to the apex of her sex.
“Spread your thighs for me, sweetheart,” he murmured, looking up with half-lidded eyes. “Let me heal inside you.”
“Yes, Stone,” she whispered, spreading her legs obediantly.
He frowned at what he saw, a look of regret coming over his face.
“Your poor, soft little pussy. I was so rough with you!”
“Then heal me,” Cassie whispered. “Heal me with your essence, Stone—heal me with your tongue.”
“I don’t deserve to ever taste you again,” he murmured. “But the Goddess knows I want to.”
“Then do it.” Reaching for his head, Cassie tugged impatiently on his hair. “Heal me, Stone. I want…want to feel your tongue inside me,” she admitted breathlessly.
His eyes were suddenly half-lidded again.
“As you desire, Mistress. But it might take a while to heal you thoroughly. Why don’t you guide me to the places you need me most?”
Cassie understood that he had liked it when she grabbed his hair. Hmm, so maybe her dominant partner had a bit of a submissive side too. Or maybe he just liked servicing her. Either way, she was completely there for it.
“All right,” she murmured, tugging his hair again and tilting her pelvis up. “You can start by licking me here.”
As she spoke, she pulled him down until his mouth finally came in contact with her aching pussy.
Stone didn’t have to be told twice what to do. With a low groan of pure desire, he buried his face between her thighs and began to heal and taste her with long, slow laps of his tongue.
“Oh!” Cassie gasped as his essence soothed her aches and pains and his tongue glided over her inner folds. Her hands fisted in his hair as she bucked her hips to get more of his tongue inside her.