* * *

  “Unless it’s a declaration of war,” Aaron observed as they left the palace. He was grinning, the triumph of the occasion overcoming his disgruntlement, at least temporarily.

  Michael grinned. “Even then it would be better to know.”

  “I take my hat off to you. I thought you’d blown it, but you got further than I ever imagined.”

  “Well, I have a sneaking suspicion I wasn’t saying anything they hadn’t already thought for themselves. Look, I’m going for a walk, clear my head -- I’ll meet you later back at Beth’s.”

  He turned away from the suddenly shuttered look in Aaron’s eyes, but the guilt followed him. He knew he should talk to his friend, try and make it right. Only what could he say? “I knew you wanted her. Well, I did too, I just didn’t tell you. And I didn’t let Eve stand in my way either. I got to her first and Christ, I don’t care how pissed-off you are with me, it was worth it for a night like that. Sorry.”

  Smiling sourly, he ignored the instinct that wanted to take him back to Danna’s now, not just to enjoy that delectable body again, but to talk about the morning’s discussion. About Aaron. And Eve.

  Deliberately, Michael turned his steps to the outer hills. Though the sky was a pale, uninteresting grey, dotted with the odd flying Dragul in the distance, it wasn’t raining and it wasn’t cold. Michael strode out, revelling in the exercise, in the open space, in being blessedly alone. With relief, he breathed in the fresh, clean air of the Dragul Kingdom, expelling his tension and his guilt and his confusion.

  He found a steep, difficult hill, just what he was looking for, and began to climb. In places he had to haul himself up with his hands, but, legs aching pleasurably, he made it to the summit and sat there, looking down on the Dragul city below, and the infinite stretch of wild, rolling land beyond.

  You could feel for this country. Even in Michael’s cynical soul, it spoke, evoking emotion he had no name for. But it was a peaceful feeling, almost a cleansing one. For a long time, he let it wash over him, inhaling the deep, grassy scents around him. And then, because it was inevitable, he called with his mind. Eve? Eve, are you there?

  There was a pause, then clear as a bell, in tones of surprise and pleasure and wariness all rolled into one: Michael?

  Can you talk?

  There was another pause, then, with less pleasure and more wariness: Of course. What about?

  Michael looked up at the sky. Unrelieved grey, like his heart had been for so long. Because love was dead and he was incapable of reviving it. Because it should have been forever, and because his memory was full of her. Eve as a clever, mischievous child, twirling in games with him and the others. Eve standing up for herself, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Beth in some childish conflict and refusing to let him intervene. Eve suffering the changes as she became the wolf, and fiercely learning to control her inner beast. Eve, his friend.

  He had no idea how to begin this conversation. So because she was first and foremost his friend, he just said it. Eve, shall we call it a day?

  Over the miles, her amazement hit him like a blow to the stomach. Michael kept looking at the sky, giving her time. And at last her mind’s voice came to him, rich with amusement and relief. About bloody time!

  Michael closed his eyes and smiled. I’m sorry. I was waiting for you to do it. After all, you left me first.

  No. That came back fast and rueful. And then, with a return to brightness. Are you okay?

  Fine. I’m absolutely fine. Eve? In the only way that matters, I’ll always love you.

  There was that pause again. He could never remember Eve’s words coming so slowly before. He’d surprised her by doing this now. Like him, she’d imagined they would have done it face to face. Which was why she never came home, why he never went to the Dome. Though long ended, their fear of parting had kept them from the relief of release.

  Friends… I haven’t forgotten any of you, you know. I never will…

  I know.

  And we can stay in touch now without fear of upsetting each other, she teased. Have you seen Beth?

  Beth is fine. She’s done the right thing, Eve.

  Good. Good. Tell her… She broke off in a jumble of confused thoughts, quickly superseded by laughter. Never mind! I’ll give it to her myself! Got to go, Michael. Take care…

  And you.

  His mind as silent as the surrounding hills, Michael opened his eyes and gazed down once more at the Dragul city. Chiefly, he was conscious of overwhelming relief, because finally he had done it. It was over. And despite the inevitable sorrow, he was glad. So glad.

  Taking a deep breath, he rose to his feet, and began to climb back down the hill.

  In the only way that matters, I’ll always love you. His words to Eve, and he meant them. But was it the only way that mattered? Unbidden, Danna swam into his mind, smiling lips parted, her eyes clouded with passion.

  So lust was important too. And now he was free to enjoy it.

  Chapter Six

  Danna had spent the day teaching children to dance. Now, as darkness fell, she was in her studio, putting her body through the gruelling exercises that kept it supple and flexible and strong enough for the exertions of the dance. The trouble was it didn’t stop her thinking or longing. It didn’t stop her hoping, or constantly scanning for his approach to her house.

  He never came. She knew she shouldn’t mind. He had only left her this morning. There had been a huge build-up of sexual tension within him that she had been glad to release. He had slaked her own sexual hunger, indulged her craving for newness, for something and someone out of the ordinary. And for the Dragon Dancer, who had shared the beds of the two most powerful beings in her kingdom, Michael was very far from ordinary.

  She knew she was exotic to him too. Last night’s sex had been mind-blowingly good for both of them. But she was not of his world, just a pleasant distraction from the cares -- personal and political -- that he had brought with him. She had no right to make it more than that, and she wouldn’t.

  But it didn’t stop her feeling it. A deep ache, a ferocious joy all at once, and all centred on seeing him again. She had never known anything like this before and she had no idea what to do about it. Except exercise and dance and wait and hope… and how did you exist through the centuries like that?

  She laughed at herself. It would ease. Her obsession would die from lack of nourishment. Unless…

  Unless he was her One.

  And that was unthinkable. She didn’t want him to be her One, because he didn’t feel it too. Because deep down she knew there was no future for them, and she didn’t want a lifetime of missing her One…

  Annoyed with herself, she spun across the floor and spread her wings to carry her farther. Then, throwing herself back on the ground, she wiped the sweat from her brow and walked through to her bed-chamber.

  She was in the stone bath when she heard him. Not in her house, but in her mind.

  “Danna…”

  “Michael.” Her heart thudded in her ears. She had to hide the tumult inside her before he felt it too.

  “I wasn’t sure I could reach you like this… would you mind if I came over?”

  “You could…” It came to her that she was at a crossroads in her life -- like choosing the path of the Dragon Dancer. She had fought hard to win that title and to keep it. And it seemed to her, she had a similar choice here. She could accept that she was beaten, that Michael would go and never look back with more than a smile. Or she could fight for him…

  Her thoughtfulness seemed to provoke him. “You can also tell me to bugger off.”

  She laughed. “What a quaint image. Are you at Aurel’s?”

  “Yes…”

  “Then why don’t I come there? I can travel more easily.” And I can give you what you need…

  “But can I sneak you past Aurel?”

  She smiled. “You won’t have to.”

  “Of course,” he said wryly. “I forgot, you already have the key.”

  “We don’t use keys and we don’t need them. Are you in bed?”

  “Yes -- are you going to ask me what I’m wearing? I thought that was my line.”

  “Sometimes I have no idea what you’re talking about. I won’t be long.”

  * * *

  Beth was right. Dragul ideas of time were elastic. Lying in bed, restless with lust, his hugely erect cock straining against his naked stomach, Michael just hoped she wasn’t going to make him wait the full century.

  He had forced himself to stay away from her all day, even after putting things right with Eve, because somehow the idea of using Danna as a simple lust object seemed wrong. She had a big, generous heart, and an understanding, a compassion that went way beyond any he had ever encountered. As for her body and what she could do with it… well, he couldn’t go there or he’d explode. But he was only too aware of her worth, and of his own base instincts.

  Yet lying in bed, alone and aroused by constant memories of last night, he couldn’t stop thinking about her. His telepathic call had come almost by accident. So superior were her abilities to his he hadn’t really thought he could reach her that way. But when she had answered with such alacrity, his heart had soared. So had his cock. His brain was humming with all the things he would do to her when she eventually came through that door…

  His hand holding his throbbing cock, his eyes fixed on the curtained arch, he almost missed her arrival. But the movement of the dark shadow crossing his window attracted his attention, and held it. For it was Danna, landing on the broad sill.

  Michael felt his eyes widen. Then, in an instant, he was out of bed and across the floor, feeling helplessly all around the window frame for a catch to let her in.

  Husky and amused, her voice spoke inside his head. “Stand back, Michael.”

  Expectantly, he obeyed. Outside, silhouetted against the night sky, she stood very still. And he had forgotten her beauty. Not all of it, just the part that tugged at his heart and made it ache…

  The glass shimmered, and he blinked. Danna stepped through the window and walked into his lifeless arms.

  In spite of himself, he closed them around her, hugging her warmth against his nakedness while he stammered out like a fool, “How did you do that? How --”

  “It’s just a rearrangement of matter. Like shape-shifting.”

  “Bloody hell.”

  She was tracing a line of kisses down his jaw, her hips moving gently, subtly against his painful erection. Happy to be distracted, he slid his hands down her back, playing against her wings with his fingers until he could reach under them to cup her taut, round buttocks.

  “You look pale, Michael,” she observed, sliding her mouth down his freshly shaven chin to his neck.

  He swallowed. “That’s anxiety. I thought you’d never get here.”

  “I thought it was hunger.” Her lips closed on his skin. He felt her tongue probe the vein, and abruptly, he became aware of the rhythmic beat of her heart, the strong, sweet smell of her blood.

  He closed his eyes, fighting it. Please, Father, it’s your strength I need here now, not my mother’s, please not my mother’s…

  Her teeth grazed his skin. To distract himself from the blood, he stripped the white tunic from her, loving the smoothness of her naked flesh, and wishing he could see more of it. But she seemed obsessed with his throat, and his gentle tugs didn’t budge her.

  When her teeth sank delicately into his flesh, the shock of the pain made him gasp. But at once she spoke in his mind. “I taste your blood, I share it… Oh, come inside me, let’s take these pleasures together…”

  She lifted her leg over his hip, pressing closer to him, giving him access. At the same time, he felt the pull of her mouth, felt the unfamiliar, aching pleasure of his own blood leaving his body and going into hers. Like his semen into her pussy…

  His breath caught. His hands gripped her buttocks harder, lifting her, so he could push his cock inside her.

  Oh Christ!

  It was incredible. The feel of her hot wetness clamped around his cock, her hot mouth pulling his blood. At last he began to understand the bliss of his willing victims. He moved his head, letting her drink deeper, pushed his cock harder into her, and groaned aloud.

  He couldn’t last like this. It was killing him…

  Feeling it, she laughed softly in his mind. “Let it go. Drink from me too. I want it.”

  “Now?”

  “Right now, please…”

  Shuddering with the pleasure of her body and her mouth, he bent his head round, brushing his mouth against the vein that beat at the side of her neck.

  The king and Aurel had both drunk from her. He should be different, he should be strong for her.

  Hell, they’d both fucked her too.

  “None of that matters. I want your blood. You want mine. Drink from me, fuck me, make me come…”

  With another groan, he sank his teeth into her flesh, felt her breath catch against his own. Her delicious blood spilled into his mouth and he drank, pushing into her hard. Then, pulling back, he sucked from her throat, and thrust his cock into her again. His whole body shuddered with pleasure. So did hers.

  Enchanted by the novel sensations, by the extraordinary intensity of every movement, every taste of her, he wanted to make it last. And yet he couldn’t. He wanted to come while still drinking, and he couldn’t drain her dry. Besides, he was so desperate for release, he doubted he was capable of making it last.

  Giving in, he fucked her hard and fast, grasping her buttocks to hold them steady while he drove into her. She hooked her legs around his waist, spread her wings to take some of the weight, but he didn’t care about that. Right now he was so high, he could have carried any weight at all if it meant he could still be inside Danna.

  The demented rhythm of their feeding and fucking carried them across the room toward the big, round bed. And just when he felt he couldn’t hold himself back any longer, she convulsed around his cock. Her mouth loosened as she cried out her joy, and with one more suck, one more thrust, he was there with her.

  His knees buckled, and they both fell onto the bed, collapsing in an abandoned tangle of limbs as the orgasm tore through him and his seed shot into her in stream after stream of joyous release.

  When at last it began to die away, and with the same instinct they had sealed each other’s wounds with their tongues, he gathered her into his arms more comfortably. “Thank you,” he whispered, and she smiled into his lips, answering him in the same way.

  “It was my pleasure, believe me.”

  * * *

  He woke to the pale grey light of dawn. He was still inside her, semi-hard, and he was conscious of a satisfaction and contentment deeper than any he’d ever known before.

  She lay on her side, with her back to him, her dark red hair spread out above her on the pillow, the tips of her beautiful wings tickling his nose. For a while, he studied those, fascinated by the veins and bones, entranced by the soft, intricate web of their underside.

  Raising himself on his elbow, so he could see her face, peaceful and smiling, even in sleep, he skimmed his finger across her cheek in the lightest of caresses.

  He didn’t want to wake her. He had a desire to make love to her while she still slept, to let her wake to the pleasure like a gift. In return for the wondrous one she had given him last night. Not that there hadn’t been more sex after the initial encounter -- it was a point of honor to give her no less than four bouts, after all -- but this one was only for her, no matter how aroused he got.

  Fully erect now, from just thinking about it, he began to move within her, thrusting gently. She stirred in her sleep, instinctively moving with him. Her thighs parted further and she emitted a little moan of pleasure. Reaching over her, he slid his hand between her thighs, gathering up the hot moisture that had seeped there. Slowly, lightly, he stirred her clitoris, rubbing his rough thumb over it, feeling it throb and grow under his touch. He moved faster, matching her quickened breathing.

  She was nearly at climax when her eyes opened, cloudy with sleep and sexual passion. Quite naturally, she twisted her head round to find his mouth, and he gave it, kissing her deeply, swallowing her moans as she came. All the time, he watched her, avidly, totally absorbed by the play of expression on her face, every tiny desire and satisfaction, her growing flush as she neared completion, and most of all, her total abandonment to the orgasm he gave her.

  It was a long time before she stilled. Slowly, he released her mouth. She smiled at him, reaching up with one hand to touch his cheek in an oddly moving gesture of tenderness.

  But her smile froze. Her eyes moved beyond him. She said aloud, “Aurel.”

  Michael’s head whipped round.

  The Keeper of the Laws stood there, regarding them blandly. “Good morning.”

  Michael stared at him. “How long have you been there?”

  “Not long,” Aurel soothed. “I let her finish her pleasure first. Yours, however, I don’t care about.”

  Michael looked back at Danna. “Oh, I’ve had mine too,” he said, and watched, enchanted, while her face flushed anew. Only then did he turn back to Aurel. “What do you want?”

  “The king has reached his decision. He will speak to you later on, of course, but he has authorized me to pass this on to you now.”

  “I’ll get up…”

  “No, don’t bother. This won’t take long, and it seems to concern Danna anyway.”

  Unfazed by their nakedness, or by the fact that they were still joined, he sat on the chair by the bed.

  Reluctantly, Michael slid his cock out of her and reached for the sheet to cover her. She cast him a quick smile of gratitude, and while Aurel began to talk, he got up and padded across the floor in search of his jeans. His cock stood up like a ramrod against his stomach and he was aware of Aurel’s sardonic observation. He didn’t care. His pleasure would be all the more intense the next time he had Danna…

  With difficulty, he forced his mind to follow the Keeper’s words.

  “We agree with you that we cannot change what has already happened. Like it or not, we are, as you said, now in the daylight, and we have to share the world with those around us. Namely the so-called City of the Damned, and the Dome, who holds authority over most of the rest of the island.”