Spence made a sound low in his throat and melted into her.
His hands came up to her waist, not pulling or demanding, just holding. Anchoring himself to her as she deepened the kiss.
The scent of his arousal wafted around her like a drug, but beneath it was a note that made her purr with satisfaction — submission and willing surrender. The trust of a wolf offering his throat to someone worthy.
Emmy’s fingers slid into his hair, angling his head exactly where she wanted it, and he let her. Let her orchestrate every moment, every sensation. His breathing quickened, his grip on her waist tightened fractionally, but he didn’t try to take control.
The music above them pulsed through the walls — bass and drums vibrating through the concrete and into her bones. They were suspended between floors, between the magic of the aurora overhead and the utilitarian reality of the security floor, and it made this moment feel even more intimate.
When Emmy finally pulled back, Spence’s eyes were dark and dazed, his chest rising and falling too quickly for a werewolf.
“I’m glad you telepathed Zander,” she said quietly, holding his gaze. “After he kissed me. Telling him you wanted to kiss me, too.” She cupped his cheek with her palm. “I hope you’ll always speak up like that, to let us know how you feel. It’s important.”
Spence’s hands flexed at her waist. “It’s one of Zander’s rules, to speak up about my feelings and needs.”
“Good rule.” Emmy ran the backs of her knuckles along his jawline. “If this gets to the point where I can make rules for you, it’ll be one of mine too.”
His breath caught. “I hope we get there,” he said, voice rough with emotion and want. “God, Emmy, I really hope we get there.”
She smiled and kissed him again — quick and sweet this time, a promise rather than a claiming. “I love your honesty, and the way you offer it.”
Reluctantly, she put a few inches of distance between them, and then ran her fingers through his hair, trying to smooth it down, but nothing helped.
“You look as if you’ve been ravished in the stairwell,” she told him with a smile.
“Good.” He grinned back at her. “My scent probably says the same thing, right? They may as well match.”
The two laughed, and Emmy took him by the hand and led him up the steps even though she wanted to kiss him all over again. Wanted to climb on him and ravish him for real, until neither of them remembered their own names.
But she led him back into the magic of the ballroom and walked him to Zander, who gave them a huge smile and mussed Spence’s hair even worse before pulling them both into an intense hug.
“Let’s walk Emerald to a table and sit with her,” Zander told Spence.
“No,” Emmy said. “The two of you should…” She waved at a couple fucking nearby. “I don’t want to spoil your chance to frolic under the northern lights.”
“Tonight,” Zander said, “I’d rather sit with you under the northern lights and play the part of the voyeur.”
Servers brought more food, and when Emmy asked Zander if he was telepathing to have it brought, he merely said, “One should always make sure dragons and wolves stay well-fed.”
“Master vampires, too,” Spence said with a grin. “It isn’t wise to make them go hungry, either.”
Later, someone stood in the center of the room with a large Tibetan bowl and made it sing so the sound resonated through the dome — deep and haunting, a sustained note that Emmy felt vibrate through her sternum and into her soul. The tone seemed to shimmer like the aurora itself, endless and otherworldly.
Around them, the energy shifted. Vampires changed focus and the air thickened with anticipation as vampire hungers shifted from fucking to feeding.
Spence was suddenly in Zander’s lap, moving with the fluid certainty of long practice. Zander’s hand cradled the back of his head with devastating tenderness, and then his fangs sank into Spence’s throat.
And Emmy could only watch the beauty of it. Spence’s eyes fluttered closed, his body going boneless in Zander’s arms. Complete surrender. Total trust. He gave himself over to it — to the taking, the draining, the intimacy of being fed upon.
Of nourishing Zander with his very essence.
Zander drank deeply, his throat working, and Emmy watched the way his free hand splayed possessive acrossSpence’s lower back. Claiming and cherishing in the same gesture.
The beauty of it stole her breath. It was so much more than merely sexual, though there was heat there, but it went miles deeper. Spence giving of himself and Zander taking what was offered with a reverence that made Emmy understand why Spence had given himeverything. Why he’d chosen this life.
She wanted to be part of this. Wanted to hold them both and be held in return. Wanted to learn the language of their intimacy and add her own voice to it.
Soon,she promised herself.
