Lover of the Nightkin Read online

  She could feel the prince shaking as he still gripped her, his eyes searching hers, waiting for some unspoken sign. When Danielle nodded and placed her hands on the sides of his face, with her lips close to his, he seemed satisfied. He brought his mouth down on hers again and pulled her against him.

  He tore away and kissed down her jaw and then her neck and Danielle arched against him. She could hear a low growl starting in his throat as he went lower…

  When he lifted his head, their eyes met again and Danielle began to tug at the lapels of his jacket. Acknowledging her want, Prince Morgin stepped back and his clothes disappeared into wisps of shadows. As he stood naked before her Danielle couldn’t help gazing over his body, seeing the great length of him between his legs; smooth ridges along the hard shaft forming into a thick bulge at the base. The sight of him was enough to make her wet.

  With a shaking hand, Danielle went to remove her dress.

  “Allow me,” Prince Morgin said and he gripped the center of her dress and tore it from her body. He then grabbed her and swung her around, backing her into the table. He swept the contents from the table surface and lifted Danielle, placing her on top. Clinging to him, Danielle shivered as she felt him press against her. She kissed his chest and stomach and Morgin grabbed a fist of her hair. Carefully he pulled her head away and lowered her back to lie on the table. His other hand stroked down her chest, down to her stomach, and then back up to take hold of her breast, rubbing his thumb along her nipple.

  He released her hair and took hold of his thick length and positioned it against his stomach. Then he lowered his hips, placing himself between her legs so that his cock rested on her core. He moved against her and Danielle felt her core throb as a wave of little spasms hit her.

  “My prince…” Danielle breathed, arching her back. “Take me.”

  Prince Morgin closed his eyes and seemed to laugh softly. “How badly I wanted to hear that.”

  He brought his hips away and let his length slide from her core. Then, placing himself perfectly, he pressed into her and slowly filled her, stretching her.

  As he slid into her hot center, the prince bared his fangs, as if the pleasure of sinking himself into her was agony.

  “Gods, the feel of you… slick and wet for me.” As Prince Morgin filled her completely, he shuddered and smiled. Danielle caught the sight of his tail flicking beside him, then straighten, curving up slightly.

  He paused for a mere second then began to move, slow and deep at first, pausing every time he sank fully into her. “This is what I truly craved,” he whispered.

  He began to quicken his pace. He lifted one of her legs up, holding it in place with his arm, and beat down on her. Danielle could feel every incredible stroke against her, building up the aching heat within her.

  Danielle’s expression twisted into a look of torture from the unbelievable ache beginning to tear through her. Sweat broke along her breasts and neck, her nipples hardened and goosebumps rose over her skin. She could feel her release coming as her center began to clench against him.

  “I want you to come inside me,” Danielle said, unashamed. “I want to feel you come!”

  Prince Morgin watched her and gave her a wicked grin. “As you wish, my little pet.”

  With that, he thrust hard a few times into her and Danielle felt him come. He inhaled sharply and lifted his head and, as his cock throbbed against her and she felt his hot need fill her, the unbearable ache broke from her and Danielle screamed.

  With her screams of pleasure, Prince Morgin turned wild. Growling, he grabbed her legs and made her wrap them around his hips, then he pulled her up and held her firmly against him. With her in his arms, he turned from the table and nearly slammed Danelle against the opposite bookshelf. Taking hold of her rear, he kept her up and thrust violently into her, her body rising and falling quickly. The shelves shook and more books fell. With her back against the shelf, the prince pulled her legs up more and, with one hand holding her at her lower back and the other grasping the shelf, the prince tore into her, nearly crushing her between him and the shelf as he pounded against her. Danielle’s screams turned into loud moaning cries and she wondered if the whole palace would hear her.

  The prince also grew louder, his low growls melding with her cries. Then she heard him speak.

  “Danielle…” He moaned in a low, primal voice she never heard before. “My sweet Danielle... my sweet... little... princess.”

  With one final, hard thrust, Danielle once again felt the prince throb and burst inside her. He gritted his teeth and shuddered, his eyes never leaving her face.

  As Prince Morgin began to calm, he finally tore his gaze away from hers. They both looked around the room and saw the damage they had made.

  “I think it’s time we took this into the bedroom,” he said in a still low voice.

  Gathering her up, they left the library and entered his bedchamber. Prince Morgin sat her on the edge of the bed and spread her legs out. He kissed along her inner thigh then drew his mouth down to her core and swirled his tongue around her. Danielle arched and grasped the side of his head and then clasped both of his horns. The ache returned, but it didn’t stay long. She came against his mouth and collapsed to the bed. He fell on top of her and Danielle clawed at his back, feeling the small spikes along his spine. He turned her over to lie on her stomach and he took her again from behind. As the prince lay on top of her, grinding into her, he bent his head down and bit into her neck. Danielle gasped and lifted her body against him. She felt him sink his nails into her flesh and the pain made her double over with sweet pleasure.

  Through the passing storm and beyond moon fall they lied together, exploring and discovering every part of each other.

  With every stroke, every bite, and every touch, Danielle came to one final conclusion.

  I thought I had fallen into hell. But it had really been heaven.

  Chapter 11

  When Danielle woke up she immediately knew something wasn’t right. Her body felt hot and when she opened her eyes and searched around the dark room, her vision swam. Groaning, she sat up and felt a wave of nausea twist in her stomach. Wiping the sweat from her brow she slowly rose from the bed.

  The lanterns hanging above Prince Morgin’s room were burnt out and the swirling darkness from the entrance had slithered its way through the antechamber and was now crawling along the walls and ceiling as if reaching towards her.

  Shivering, Danielle turned and saw the soft orange glow coming from the library. Stumbling, she made her way to the library door and peered inside.

  The library had been clean and straightened back to its original state and Prince Morgin stood by the table, wearing nothing but his robe, flipping through a large tome. He was so focused on what he read he didn’t notice Danielle enter the room until she approached the table, placing her hand on its surface in order to steady herself.

  “Ah, my dear, forgive me, I did not see you.” Morgin smiled, closing his book. “I take it you slept very well. The moon has risen already, but I thought to let you…” When he gazed at her more closely, his smile quickly turned to a frown. “Danielle, what’s wrong?”

  Danielle shook her head and wrapped one arm around her waist. “I don’t feel so well,” she said softly.

  Prince Morgin shot over to her and grabbed hold of her arm. He touched her forehead gently and winced. “You’re burning up. I’ll have you lie back down and give you some…” The prince glanced down at her arm. He brushed a finger along her skin and his eyes narrowed. “Come over to the fire.”

  Carefully he led her over to the fireplace and brought her arm up closer. In the firelight, he examined her and saw the large dark blotches spreading up her arm. He raised both her arms and saw marks going across her chest like stripes.

  “I’m sure it’s nothing... just a bad reaction to something... I’m sure... ill be... fine.” Danielle weaved before him.

  “Danielle... Danielle!”

  She felt hersel
f falling. Prince Morgin caught her but, as he gathered her in his arms, darkness took hold of her and Danielle saw no more.

  Danielle felt like she was floating in a vast universe of endless dark. The shadows wrapped around her body, embracing her. There was nothing to see at first, then tiny brightly colored lights pierced the dark until a cloud of distant stars sparkled and swirled above and around her. They were all she could see. She felt nothing and heard nothing for what seemed an eternity until the echoes of voices stirred in the dark and the feeling of being stretched and pulled filled every joint and muscle in her body. She moaned and the voices grew louder and more discernible. She couldn’t respond to them, but she could listen.

  “When? When did you first notice the marks?” came a male’s voice, filled with anger and worry.

  “A few nights ago, my prince,” came a shaky female voice. “Forgive me... forgive me.”

  “Send for the witch,” responded the male coldly. “My brothers will be here soon.”

  There was nothing else for some time after until Danielle sensed several beings surrounding her and felt a smooth and slender hand grip her arm.

  “I have never seen anything like this,” said a different female voice. “The power I bestowed on her has never affected another in such a way. No nightwoman with such a gift has ever changed or been hurt from it…”

  “No nightwoman, except…” said a male’s voice.

  “Danielle is human... and she has come into contact with incredibly powerful beings.”

  “Or perhaps it was from being exposed to this place for so long. How many humans do you know lived here long enough to remain the same?”

  There was silence for a long moment.

  “I should have reversed the spell as soon as I knew…”

  “I’m afraid it’s too late now. Either we let this ailment take its course or…”

  “We will discuss it.”

  After that only smatterings of conversations came and went. At times Danielle rested peacefully until a wave of dark energy pummeled her and her body writhed and jerked as a strange fire seared through her. The spasms only lasted a few moments, then they would calm and she would rest awhile until the cycle continued. Every so often she would feel hands caress her or soft voices whisper to her. She would reach out in the dark but couldn’t move to let the ones she sensed nearby know she could partially hear and feel them.

  “It may be the only way... she might recover if we send her…”

  “Or she won’t and she will die alone... you know we can’t go with her.”

  “It is what she wanted... we did this to her.”

  “I will speak with the... Lords.”

  “We must prepare regardless…”

  Another eternity seemed to slip away and Danielle thought she might never return from the abyss.

  Eventually, another violent spasm came and Danielle heard a scream in the dark. Her bones seemed to break and shatter; her muscles and tendons ripped. It was as if her insides were reshaping themselves, morphing into something completely new.

  “Metamorphosis!” cried a voice in revelation. “Find the princes quick.”

  Not long after, Danielle felt herself being lifted up and taken to an unknown location. She felt herself shaking as she was placed onto a hard surface. The dark abyss around her began to recede and the pain that had been a dull ache before now spread over her, tearing through her. The screams in the dark, she realized, had been her own, but they quickly turned into cries and moans and then to growls.

  Then came the final change.

  She felt her teeth elongate into sharp points. Felt her nails curl and her spine lengthen. The ripple of scales shredded over her skin and an explosion of pain seared along her skull as horns twisted outward.

  With one last shift and crack down her body, Danielle finally lied still. Unmoving for a turn, Danielle jerked awake and inhaled sharp and deep. Her eyes shot open and she arched, stretching her strange new body. She moaned as she could feel everlasting heat at her core.

  “Danielle…”

  Danielle slowly sat up from the altar she had been placed on and gazed around her. For a stunned, almost terrifying moment, she thought it was daylight out. She could see everything as if light penetrated every point of darkness. When she glanced up at the sky, however, she still beheld the stars.

  “Danielle.”

  Danielle glanced back and saw the princes before her. Each gazed at her in stunned disbelief. They encircled alongside and in front of her where she sat upon the altar and touched her, grazing their fingers along her skin and clutching locks of her hair, mesmerized.

  Danielle seemed to quiver. Her gaze fell on each of them; to Prince Sethris, Prince Ferien, Prince Xaris, Prince Cyre, and Prince Morgin.

  Then her mouth twitched and curved into a wicked smile.

  “I feel... much better now,” she said in a silky voice. She stroked the side of her thigh. When she looked down at her body, she gasped. She raised her hand up to her face and stared perplexed at the unfamiliar, monstrous claws; the bluish-black skin layered with tiny scales that rose a little past her elbows like long gloves, then fading into smooth pearly-white skin as pale as the moon. When she looked down at her legs, it was just the same; dark-scaled skin rising to her thighs. Narrow stripes made a pattern along her hips and up her chest. Her hair fell long and straight over her shoulders and was now shiny black.

  “What’s happened to me?” she whispered.

  Prince Morgin moved first and took hold of the hand she held before her. He looked at her with awe, his expression glowing. He kissed her hand and grinned. “You have been made perfect... for us.”

  “Our perfect mate,” Prince Cyre said, taking her other hand.

  Stunned, Danielle shook her head in disbelief. “How?”

  “I’d say the credit is mine, Mistress.” Behind the princes, Sheek, the witch of the swamplands, stood before them. Behind her, Danielle spotted the Night Lords watching, free of any shackles. Beside them stood Hydric, the knowledge keeper of the Onyx Pass.

  “When I gave you power, I had no way of knowing how it would affect humans,” Sheek said. “But, as you intimately connected to each of the most powerful Nightkin, your power grew and, as if a mind of its own, the Magik knew that you must change and adapt. It is the power of the gods and they know what is best for their kin.”

  “And your lucky that is the truth now,” said Prince Morgin a little coldly. “If she had died from it, you wouldn’t be standing.”

  Sheek flushed and bowed. “You are not wrong, your highness, and I assure you I’m grateful.”

  “So I am... a nightwoman now?” Danielle asked.

  “Oh no, much more than that,” Sheek replied. “As the princes said you are their perfect mate. That makes you…”

  “Our princess,” said Prince Cyre. He gripped her hand tighter and pressed it to his lips.

  The princes all nodded in agreement. All except Prince Morgin who shook his head.

  “No…” Morgin said, looking only to Danielle. “Not our princess. Our queen.”

  They each looked over at him in surprise.

  “Queen?” said Prince Sethris.

  “Are you sure?” said Prince Xaris.

  Danielle stared up at Prince Morgin wide-eyed and he fixed her with a smile. “Yes. A princess couldn’t make us all hers alone. Only a queen.”

  They each looked to Danielle and she grew still.

  They are waiting for me. And I must give my answer.

  Gently, Danielle released her hands from Prince Morgin and Prince Cyre and placed them on her thighs. She opened her legs, baring herself completely.

  “As I am yours, you are mine,” she said.

  It was answer enough. Like an invisible string tying them together, the princes each knelt before her. One by one they came up and kissed her—first her mouth, then each breast, then right above her core. A symbol of their oath.

  When they were finished, the Night Lords, Sheek, an
d Hydric all too bowed and Danielle was lifted from the altar. A cool wind swept past the pillars around the open chamber which Danielle came to realize was on top of the palace as she could see the city from below. When she glanced at the altar and the statues of guardians standing to each side, she knew it to be a place for the gods.

  “Now that it’s official, I’d say a celebration is in order. And I can think of a few new ways to honor our queen,” Prince Cyre said.

  The princes grinned wickedly and drew close to embrace her.

  Danielle grinned back and allowed each of them to stroke and fondle her, biting her throat and nipping her ears and kissing down her back.

  Caught up in their playfulness, Danielle glanced over and saw the Night Lords still watching, now with longing and envy.

  Frowning, Danielle had the princes stop. “There is one thing then I would ask now.”

  “What is it, my queen?” said Prince Morgin.

  Danielle broke from them and stepped toward the Night Lords. She stopped before them and smiled sadly. They said nothing, only bowed to her once more. She could see they too longed to embrace her.

  Danielle turned back to her princes. “I ask that the Night Lords be pardoned. They have admitted defeat and I don’t wish to see them caged or hurt any further.”

  Prince Xaris and Prince Ferien tilted their heads slightly while Prince Sethris crossed his arms. Prince Cyre and Prince Morgin smirked.

  “You needn’t worry about that. It is already done,” said Prince Morgin.

  “Already done?” Danielle said.

  The princes each glanced at one another.

  “They have cooperated with us, securing a deal, and, in turn, we gave them back their freedom,” said Prince Cyre.

  Danielle turned back to the Night Lords. “What was the cost?”

  Lord Tyris lifted his hand and sparks of electricity leaped across his fingers.

  Danielle gave a confused frown and shook her head. “I don’t understand.”

  “Their energies... mixed with ours,” said Prince Morgin. “To make this.”