Keeper of the Flame Read online

  “Flame,” she managed to speak through her rough voice as he slowly disengaged himself from her snug sheath.

  She turned to face her lover and the moisture on her back was explained. Tears of rapture filled his eyes and rolled down his face.

  Instantly, Kendall felt a quiver of alarm shoot through her love worn body. Before she could question him, he laid a gentle finger against her lips.

  “Such beauty never existed for me until you come into my life, My Kendall,” he said. “I now know that I can face anything this life has fated for me, because I have experienced your love.”

  Kendall reached out and bracketed his face with her hands, before pulling his mouth down to hers for an all-consuming kiss. No further words were needed. They both understood.

  When the sun was well on its journey across the sky, the love-sated couple entered the house, showered, and dedicated the rest of the morning to family style fun with their children.

  After a nature hike to the lake behind the house where Flame learned that it was prudent to feed the geese if you did not want to be nipped in displeasure, and hours of tickles and hugs to make the children laugh, they made their way back to the house.

  Night had fallen by the time that they finished their evening meal and now both Kendall and Flame took joy in the simple pleasure of feeding and bathing their children.

  They laughed through a wild bath in the kitchen where more water wound up on the floor or the happy parents than in the little plastic tubs where the twins splashed and played. Finally Kendall and Flame now sat on the living room floor preparing Ember and Spark for bed.

  “Kendall?” his deep voice questioned gently.

  “You are expecting to return to me,” she said at last, pulled back to the present by the sound of his voice.

  Losing the man of her dreams just when she found him made her a little sick at heart. The pain of those dark thoughts was enough to cause her breath to stop and her eyes to water.

  “I will do everything that is within my power to return to you, My Heart, but if things do not proceed as I have planned, I will ensure that you are not bothered by my family in their quest for power.”

  Unable to bear the pain in his eyes, Kendall looked down and saw silvery drops of tears on Spark’s face. Automatically she hefted him to her shoulder to comfort him. It took her a moment to realize that the tears were coming from her own eyes.

  “Kendall?” Flame’s voice was touched with worry as he eyes the crying woman who held his son.

  “I’ll guard them with my life, Flame.” She buried her nose into the soft fluff of bright red hair on Spark’s head. “Please, just come back home to me.”

  Uncomfortable with exposing her feelings even to Flame, she rose and walked into the bedroom where Spark and Ember’s cubes sat. “I love you, little one. I love your sister too, but that man out there is my life. I’ll keep an eye on him for all three of us.” Spark’s little gray eyes seemed to fill with anguished understanding and he observed his Mommy’s grief.

  Kendall quietly walked the baby murmuring comforting things for him to hear, but she didn’t know if she did it to comfort the baby or herself.

  Sensing that she needed a few minutes alone, Flame finished dressing Ember and paced the living room with her, agonizing over his decision to confront the Execution Squad.

  “I must face them, my little heart, for if I do not, we will never live in peace.”

  He pressed little kisses to her silver-streaked red hair.

  “If I can not stop them, you and your womb mate will be safe from my family. I swear it!”

  Ember’s usually bright and playful gray eyes were now filled with fear as she observed her father. Sensing that the children knew of the danger to come, Flame made an extra effort to comfort his little girl. The thought of never seeing his children’s precious faces cut as deep as the though of never seeing his Mistress again. Flame truly loved his children and would see to it that no matter what happened; they would be reared here on Earth with Kendall’s loving influence.

  Soon Ember’s large gray eyes closed and she nodded off into sleep. Flame carried her to the bedroom where Kendall sat looking at Spark through the clear material of the cube.

  “He’s going to be something special if he is anything like his father,” she whispered as she watched him place Ember into her cube.

  “Will you come with me, My Mistress?” he asked as he turned to face her. “I would perform a special rite with you, if you would allow it.”

  The fire that leapt into his eyes told her that this would be no simple ceremony. She nodded and placed her right hand into his. He pulled her to her feet, clicked off the bedroom light, and guided her to the master bedroom and into the master bath.

  Keeping in touch with the rest of Kendall’s ultra feminine bedroom, her personal bathroom was filled with decadence and luxury.

  Her large white sunken bathtub was the size of a small Jacuzzi and dominated the large room. Beautiful hot house flowers flourished on the low shelf that surrounded the tub and in hanging pots placed around the room. The floor was carpeted in a cream color that perfectly matched her ceiling. Hand painted borders depicted couples in several different positions and in different stages of orgasmic ecstasy. The beautiful gilt figures were taken straight from the walls of a Pasha’s harem, and recreated in miniature to match the mood of her sultan’s bedchamber. The walls were painted to resemble the columns in a harem bath. On the wall opposite the tub, a beautiful ever-blooming garden of rare roses and eastern flowers was painted. On the center of that wall rested a heavily padded fainting couch upholstered in the dominant cream and gold colors of the room. Kendall had spared no expense when designing her own private sanctuary. The master bathroom reflected her inner spirit and she had found hours of comfort there.

  Flame began by placing candles around the shelf surrounding her tub.

  “Where did you find them?” she asked gesturing to the soft white tallow tea candles in their small glass cups.

  “They were in a storage area in the kitchen. Do you mind? We need tapers for the ceremony, but these small candles will do.” She shook her head and he proceeded to fill the tub with warm water.

  The heat generated by the splashing water soon filled the room with steam. When he tossed in a handful of powder from a pouch sitting on her lounge, the room began to fill with an exotic scent. Flame’s image in her eyes to soften and blur and the now fragrant steam began the job of relaxing her tense muscles.

  With a wave of his hand, he lit the candles as he walked towards Kendall.

  “When a woman is life-mated,” he began with a sexy low voice, “it is the duty of her mate to prepare her for their first night as lovers.”

  Kendall gulped and nodded. This was serious if he was bringing up tradition.

  “I would like to prepare you, My Kendall, for it is an extension of my love and desire for you. I would show you my feelings every way that is possible for me to do so.”

  The “in case he did not return” was not spoken but easily understood by both.

  “Will you allow me to undress you?” he asked with a small grin. He had now figured out that his words inflamed her senses as well as his touch and he would use both to heighten her enjoyment of their coupling.

  “Yes.” She spoke softly and her voice carried shivers down his spine.

  He dropped to his knees before her moved his hands to the snap of her jeans, she preferred to go barefoot in her house so did not have to bother with shoes. The sound of the snap caused her breathing and heartbeat to accelerate. He eased her zipper down and smoothed the denims from her body. She braced her hands on his shoulders to step out of the mass of material, and received a mild shock where her skin made contact with his.

  At her gasp, he looked up at her through those sinfully long eyelashes, and she began to melt inside. “My emotions, My Kendall.” He spoke to her as he ran his hands over her bare legs. “Do you mind the sensation?”

  “God
, no!” was her quick reply. “If anything, it adds a new element to our joining, something that is yours and mine alone.”

  He nodded and proceeded to ease her shirt off her body leaving her standing in her underwear. She shivered, but not with cold. The room’s heat combined with Flame’s hot glances were doing a good enough job of keeping her warm.

  “Do I get to undress you?” she asked as he slowly rose to his feet, inhaling her very essence as he stood.

  “No,” he replied distractedly. He stood back to watch her body shimmer in the soft glow of the candles and rising steam. She was a goddess. That she waited for his touch awed him.

  “Why not?” she questioned. “No” was a word that rarely came out of his mouth, especially when directed at her.

  “Because it is faster this way, My Kendall.” In a matter of moments he striped out of his shirt and jeans, and stood before her proudly naked and unashamed.

  Again the sight of Flame in his natural state almost brought tears to her eyes. All that golden skin was hers. All of that long flowing hair was hers. His manhood, growing before her eyes accented softly with that auburn hair was hers. All that he was belonged to her and she was damn proud and excited to have the privilege. Already his body was taking on that deep golden aura, his mating glow, and the sight almost brought her to her knees.

  Flame was having a hard time fighting for his usual control; a common occurrence since he had first made love to his Kendall. Every time he came near this woman his body acted with a will of its own. Her beauty astounded him and the courage she held when faced with dealing with the unknown humbled him. His heart raced as he took a step closer to her. He wanted to drown himself in her scent and bathe in her essence. He wanted to burrow so deep inside her that the outside world would disappear, just cease to exist for the both of them. He needed her like he needed...air. She was a basic element to his survival and he would gladly give all to make sure she was happy and content.

  Remembering his duty, he turned and shut off the water before approaching Kendall and removing the last two barriers that stood in the way of her naked flesh, another lacy bra and a scandalous bit of material that covered her bottom and shielded her womanhood from him.

  After testing the temperature of the water, he lifted and laid her within the tub’s depths, her head cushioned on a soft bath pillow.

  “Aren’t you going to join me in here?” she asked when Flame suddenly stopped all movement. “It’s big enough for two.”

  Flame nodded, but his eyes were glued to her bare breasts.

  “What?” she finally asked. Something had shocked her lover and she wanted to know what had caught his attention.

  “They float!” his said more to himself, but Kendall heard him anyway and felt her face redden.

  Pulling himself away from his discovery, he shook his head as if to clear it of all thought, then stepped into the warm water and sighed as the heat began to penetrate his pores.

  He eased her long legs apart with gentle hands and knelt between them, fighting to keep his attention focused on his duties and not on the curling thatch of dark hair that protected her feminine secrets.

  He grabbed a nearby bath cloth and dampened it with the water that held them in its warm embrace. Tenderly he washed her face, pausing every few minutes to lean over and deliver small sipping kisses to her lips and her neck. Kendall smiled at him and ran a dripping wet finger over the bridge of his nose.

  “Why isn’t the water evaporating?” she asked for his skin felt as if it was on fire. His body was fever-hot and that turned her on.

  “Because I an exerting supreme control over myself, My Mistress. If I were to let go of my emotions, I would scorch you with all of this heat.”

  That sounded pretty good to Kendall, so she decided to see how high she could fan the flames.

  She grabbed the soap from a nearby dish and slowly began to twirl the bar until a rich lather exploded into her hands. “Stand up, Flame.”

  He eyed her wearily as if he knew some extreme torture was about to follow, but stood anyway as his bath cloth plopped unheeded back into the water. He could deny his Kendall nothing.

  Water slouched over the edge of the tub as Kendall stood and began to run slick soapy fingers over his hard chest.

  “I am supposed to bathe you, Mistress,” he gritted out between clenched teeth. The touch of her fingers was causing his body to vibrate. He closed his eyes in an attempt to regain some control.

  “This is Earth,” was her reply, “and I can do anything I damn well please.”

  Flame moaned as her small soapy hands ran across his shoulders and into the sensitive undersides of his arms. His body began to shake as her clever little hands ran down his tight stomach and across his thighs, rubbing and massaging.

  “Turn around,” was her next order and he was so helpless in the grip of her passion, his passion, their passion that he could do nothing but comply.

  The combination of her small soft hands working their magic on his body and the heated humidity in the room caused his head to swim. He had to clench his fists to keep from turning and driving himself into her, right up against the wall.

  Kendall reached up on the tips of her toes to wrap her arms around his chest. Flame let out a groan as the hard tips of her nipples dug into his back. He actually growled when her quick fingers eased over his sides to cup and caress his bottom.

  “You have nice firm buns, Flame.” Her hot moist breath caressed and tickled the sensitive insides of his ear and he had to brace his hands against the wall as the full force of his desire slammed into him.

  Finally her soft little hands ran around to his front and softly stroked his hot hard flesh. His knees almost gave out, as she gently cupped what was tender and firmly stroked the steel that what was not. He soon found his hand joining hers and showing her exactly which strokes he liked the best.

  Kendall thrilled at the feel of his hand guiding hers as they both pleasured his body. It was a heady experience, feeling his soapy male flesh slip and slide with ease through the grip of their combined fingers.

  “When we have time” she murmured, “I want to watch you touch yourself for my pleasure, Flame. I want to watch you and learn all about what you like the best.”

  The images that statement conjured up! Losing more of his precious control, Flame turned to grab Kendall, only to have her slip right through his soapy arms and land on her knees in front of him. Her slick body with its firm softness sliding against him caused him to imagine what it felt being inside her warm giving sheath. But then he looked down and saw what she was about to do.

  “Kendall, don’t,” he cried out just before her warm mouth encased him.

  Kendall had never felt more excited in her life. There was something to be said for taking control. Although he never realized it, Flame had held the ultimate control during all of their sexual escapades, and she wanted a little of that control back. Power was indeed a heady thing, and she wanted a chance to thoroughly explore hers.

  “You are so beautiful here,” she whispered as she teased and licked at his rock hard flesh.

  Flame struggled to keep himself in check as Kendall sought to...to...he did not know what she sought. What she was doing was causing his body to tingle and his brain to turn to mush. His head fell back against the tile wall as he reveled in the tingling flashes of heat that raced through out his body. He could feel pressure building and building and he feared that his body would explode, but he did not care. He was losing himself in the glorious sensations that she was producing in him, for him, and he loved her even more.

  Of their own accord, his hands tangled in her soft hair as his head slid from side to side on the cool tile of the wall. Then she began to hum.

  “You taste delicious, Flame. Like fire and heat and all my man.”

  “Kendall, I’m going to...” he began.

  “Explode,” she whispered as she continued minister to him with her self- appointed task.

  “Kendall
!” he cried as his sac tightened and his bones began to vibrate. Flashes of light and fire filled the air and the water surrounding them began to bubble and steam.

  “Ahh!” he shouted as his release tore trough his rigid body, slamming his head back against the wall and causing him to release Kendall and slam his hands through his own wildly whipping hair.

  The glass cups which held the tea candles exploded and for a moment fire shot from the shattered wax coated glass towards the ceiling with a loud whooshing sound before quickly burning its self out. The water stopped rolling around in the tub and the steam, scented with the herbs that he had added to the water, began to rise and fill the room. Then Flame slipped down the wall, all the strength leaving his legs and turning his body into a mass of quivering nerves.

  “What you do to me, My Kendall!” he gasped when he began to recover his voice. He looked up at the grinning woman who stood smug above him and let out a deep sigh of contentment.

  “I just gave you a reason to make sure nothing happens to you.” She said this with a superior look and an arched brow.

  Her body was on fire from his reactions and she hoped he was up to finishing what he had originally started. “You taste like all of my tomorrows, Flame.”

  In a sudden blur of movement, Flame stood and began to drag Kendall from the tub of water. It seems that it didn’t take Testrios men a long time to recover, for Flame was again ready for her.

  “I will give you a reason to long for my return!” he cried as he carried her wet body to the bedroom.

  “Do not wake the children,” he cautioned as he tossed her onto the bed, headless of her down comforter, and began to lap up the droplets of water that dotted her squirming body.

  Kendall twisted under the assault of his rough tongue bath and held back a cry of joy as his lips fastened to her turgid nipple. She nearly screamed as his oh-so-hot hands massaged and stroked her damp skin. Down they traveled until they tangled in the wet hair that sheltered her femininity.