A Smell So Sweet by BelovedStranger

Transcending Love

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I'm back with another Spicy lemon! I hope my readers aren't getting tired of them because it looks like Stella Mira added MORE spices to her challenge! Which of course means more lemon chapters :)

Prompt: Ginger

Read below in my second author's note if you wish to see the history behind this spice and understand why I choose this theme.

Slender hands slowly and methodically picked up two small cups and placed them on a round serving tray with exaggerated care beside a hot, small pot of ginger tea, freshly brewed not minutes ago before lifting the tray from the counter. The woman turned and made her way out of her kitchen with controlled steps as she consciously forced herself not to clench her hands around her burden, her emotions seething with pent up anger and disappointment as memories of a recent phone call filtered through her mind for the dozenth time, the reason behind her roiling emotions.

“I’m sorry, Kagome. You know how overly protective my mother is.”

Kagome’s grip on her cell phone tightened at the plaintive, male voice she heard on the other end of the line.

“It’s nothing against you...really...but I...”

Unable to control her anger and disgust, she spoke up, “I know she’s your mother, Hojo, but you’re an adult! You don’t have to let her dictate to you who you can and cannot date.”

“You don’t understand. It’s been really hard on her ever since my father passed away.”

“I know, I know, but that was years ago.”

There was silence on the other end, and Kagome knew she had spoken harshly. “I’m sorry, Hojo. That didn’t come out right.” She knew that Hojo’s father had died of cancer when he was young which only made her previous words sound callous. She felt like a bitch.

“It’s alright,” he said in a low tone, and she knew she had hurt him. She felt guilty, but she was pissed off dammit! Why was he letting his mother rule his life? No woman was good enough in Hojo’s mother’s eyes, especially not a shrine girl’s daughter like Kagome.

Hojo was speaking again. “I don’t want to upset you, but it’s for the best,” though his voice sounded hesitant, reluctant, as he said as much. But obviously not reluctant enough to go against his mother, she thought with bitterness. God, why did she even care? It’s not like she loved Hojo or anything. Not when she loved...she refused to finish that thought.

“Yeah, fine. Whatever. I get it. See you around, or not,” she replied stiffly before disconnecting the call.

And now here she was, alone, stepping out of her house on the back porch to sit on the wooden floor with her feet propped up on the steps. She set her burden slightly behind her, twisting her back in an awkward angle in the process and poured herself some tea, the smell of ginger waffling towards her nose, the scent familiar and pleasant. Then she sat with her back resting against a porch beam, steamy cup in hand, as she looked out at her backyard. Her grandfather had bequeathed her his shrine in his will after he had passed on.

She had fond memories of this place as she had grown up here along with her mother and younger brother. But after grandpa had died, her mother had decided to move on, the memories too painful for her, and took her son with her. They didn’t live far, in a nice apartment complex in Tokyo. Her mother had tried to convince her to come along, but Kagome couldn’t leave. She was compelled to stay...for him.

She shook her head, dispelling the thought. Then her mind once again replayed her phone  conversation with Hojo, making her ire rise once more. Sadly, this wasn’t her first failed relationship. One in particular came to mind, the guy she was dating before Hojo--Koga. Koga was a fine specimen of a man, muscular and handsome, every woman’s wet dream, but behind that flirtatious, hot-stopping exterior, was a real dictator.

He was addicted to exercising, going to the gym hours at a time per day and all but forcing her to go with him and work out. He was also a health nut, trying to keep her on a diet and all but starving her.

She had a bad history with men, she knew. Always going for the hot, athletic type. That’s why, this time around, she had accepted Hojo’s sweet, hesitant attentions. He was no slouch by any means, but neither was he the type to go to the gym and sweat. But apparently, she failed in that endeavor as well. The mama’s boy, she thought with a grimace.

She sighed morosely, wondering if she would ever find a real man to call her own. “Men suck,” she muttered before sipping her hot tea.

“Do we? I wasn’t aware that I ‘sucked’. Are you merely generalizing, or does that derogatory phrase also apply to me?”

Kagome scalded her tongue as her hand jerked in surprise. She lowered her cup to glare at her companion who had materialized on her left. “Are you trying to startle me?”

He chuckled and walked up the steps to sit beside her. “Is that second cup for me?” Without waiting for her reply, he poured himself a cup of tea, his favorite, she knew. 

Kagome gazed at the beautiful man beside her from the corner of her eye. She had never seen anyone who could match him in looks and demeanor. He was a self-assured, confident individual who had the face of an angel. He was fit but not overly muscular, with wide shoulders, broad chest, tapered down to a trim waist and long legs. His straight hair was a beautiful silver, almost white, that was much longer than her waist long, wavy, black tresses. His face was alabaster and he had the strangest most bewitching eyes, a mesmerizing golden hue. 

She looked away from him, her heart fluttering erratically like it always did around him. She hated her physical response to him because it was a hopeless infatuation, for he was a spirit, not a living, breathing man. Life was so unfair.

He had been haunting her family’s shrine for as long as she could remember, playing with her, keeping her company on the good and bad days.

“I’m not sure that applies to you,” she returned wryly, taking another sip of her tea, letting the warmth wash down her throat.

“Ouch.”

Kagome didn’t respond to his playful remark, hiding an answering grin behind her tea cup.

“I may not be amongst the living, but I assure you, I do have feelings,” he teased in his deep, baritone voice that always gave her shivers of delight. Stop it, she told her uncooperative body.

After a small silence, he asked, “Mind telling me why you are upset?”

“I’m not upset.”

She saw him from the corner of her eye, toss her a disbelieving look. “You are practically brimming with anger, Kagome. Don’t lie to me.”

She silently cursed her inability to hide her feelings from him. At least he didn’t know how she felt about him. Don’t think about that.

Sighing, she told him about her conversation with Hojo while he sat and listened sympathetically.

“As I said, men suck,” she said mulishly, gazing into her almost empty cup.

“I’m sure there are some decent fellows roaming around.”

Impulsive in her flare of anger, she said heatedly, “Not everyone is as dependable like you are and can be relied upon.” She should stop. Shut up. But she couldn’t. “I’ve tried to find someone like you, but it’s impossible.”

Then she froze, afraid to look at him. Had she revealed too much?

Sesshomaru didn’t respond. His silence unnerved her, made her fear that she had put her heart on her sleeve for him to see. For years she had tried to hide her growing feelings for him, and in just seconds, she might have ruined all her years of hard work and secret denials.

She felt him touch her hand, removing her cup from her unresisting grasp. His hand was still holding hers when she felt him lean close, his breath at her ear, making her shiver.

“Am I to believe I just heard a huge confession, Kagome?”

He made her name sound erotic, sinful. How did he do that?

When she refused to look at him, his other hand found her chin, and turned her face towards his before he captured her lips with his own. She blinked in surprise, then closed her eyes and leaned into him. This was the first time they had kissed. Never before had she dared to dream that he would do so outside her mind. His tongue stroked against her lips, silently beckoning her to open her mouth, and she did with a small sound of surrender. This was crazy, but she would gladly lose herself in insanity if it meant he would continue kissing her.

She had never experienced a kiss more heated, never responded so swiftly and completely, her body growing soft and complaint against his as he drew her closer. His teeth nipped at her bottom lip, eliciting a startled gasp of pleasure from her, but it also brought her back to reality. Reluctantly, she pushed against his chest, turning her face away from his.

Then anger set in, and she turned an accusing gaze at him filled with longing she could no longer hide, her barriers stripped completely away. “It isn’t fair! Why should I have such feelings for a spirit? A man who’s already dead? Why can’t I forget you?”

“And what are those feelings exactly, Kagome?”

She looked away from him again, refusing to answer. She had already said too much, gave away too much.

Again he leaned close, whispered heatedly in her ear. “If they are anything like my own, I believe I already know.”

Surprised, she turned to meet his gaze from inches away. Looking into his honeyed orbs, she recalled how she had had a huge crush on him all through jr. high and high school, how infatuation had turned into love. Impossible. She had tried to dismiss her growing feelings, knowing that it was impossible, crazy. So she had tried to forget him and move on by dating other guys, but it never seemed to work. She could never forget his golden stare, how he would always smile with her, how he would sometimes gaze at her with the softest expression.

Filled with wonder, she asked without thinking, “How do you feel...about me?”

Instead of answering directly, he replied, “I have watched you grow from a small, beautiful child to an even more beautiful young woman. Always, always watching. I know the names of every boyfriend, every man you have ever dated, and every time I felt raging anger and jealousy I have not felt in a long time.”

Before she could stop it, hope flared in her breast which only angered her more at the futility of the situation. “Why does it have to be you,” she asked in a tortured whisper. She met his beloved gaze with sad, hopeless eyes. “Why do I have to love you so much it hurts when you’re not even alive? You’re dead! We could never truly be together, but no matter how I try I can never find anyone else.”

When she was no more than a child, she remembered asking her mother why none of her friends could see Sesshomaru, and she was told that she came from a long line of priestess’, able to see and touch the spirits who were unable to pass on from this world to the next for one reason or another. Kagome never knew why Sesshomaru refused to move on, but she never pressed, never wanted him to leave her. She knew she was being selfish, but it was an impulse she had never overcome. Still couldn’t.

Tears of frustration and futility glazed her eyes, and she stood abruptly, wanting to escape him and her heart that felt as if it were breaking.

She took no more than a step away, intending on storming off when hands on her upper arms forced her back, pinning her to the wooden railing wrapped around the porch.

Sesshomaru looked down at her with an intense expression with a hint of sadness. She licked her dry lips in an unconscious, nervous gesture and watched his eyes track the movement. She stopped instantly, both aching for him to kiss her, yet hoping he did not.

“If I were dead,” he began, his voice gone rough with emotion, “then why does my heart feel as if it is breaking at the sight of your pain and tears.”

He leaned down and kissed her cheek wet from tears she had not realized until that moment that she shed. She closed her eyes as his lips moved to her temple. “Don’t cry,” he murmured.

“Sesshomaru,” she whispered longingly, her hands coming up to clench the fabric of the white, long sleeved, dress shirt at the bend of his elbows he always seemed to be wearing. 

He leaned back, his expression indecisive for long seconds before determination and resolve took its place. One of his hands went into her hair at the back of her head, tilting her head farther back, arching her neck slightly. “My feelings for you are selfish. I have always tried to hide them, treat them as if they do not exist. I wanted to do the honorable thing and let you fall in love with another man who could give you what I cannot.”

Kagome listened, barely breathing as her heart melted at his confession. She had dreamed countless times to hear such a declaration from this man who wasn’t really a man anymore, but his words were bittersweet, for how could anything become of a relationship between an ordinary girl and a spirit?  

She felt his other hand stroke the side of her neck and she swallowed, trying to wet her dry throat.

“But no more,” he said in a low fierce voice, possession clear in his touch and words. “You are mine, Kagome. You have always been mine, and I am going to take what you obviously want to give, no matter how selfish my wishes are.”

He crashed his lips against hers in a hot, heady kiss that stole the last of her breath, stole her senses and gave her pleasure as he plundered her mouth with his tongue, dominating her entire being with just one scorching kiss.

She didn’t stop him, couldn’t, because she yearned and ached for him. Her body was on fire as she leaned into him, returning his kiss with her own, her tongue stroking against his, taking up his pleasurable dance willingly, eagerly.

When she felt his large hand cup her right breast, gently molding the soft flesh, she moaned, her nipple hardening in the palm of his hand. His hand left her and she moaned in denial at his absent touch until she felt him roughly push her shirt and bra up, exposing her breasts to the evening air before cupping her breast once more, rubbing his palm against her aching nipple, sending sharp shards of pleasure through her untried body.

Never before had she allowed any other to take such liberties, unable to let them touch her because she loved them not. But she had to stop this, had to stop the man she did love from going any further and it tore her heart apart.

She yanked her head to the side, breaking the kiss with a gasp, his hand in her hair not letting her get far. She also grabbed his wrist and pulled, trying to get him to let go, but he was unmovable.

“It’s impossible, Sesshomaru! Don’t tease me with things I can’t have,” she cried. 

His expression held sexual promise and such an intense determination that caused her body to grow wet between her thighs. He refused to move his hand; instead, he pinched her hard nipple and she gasped at the shock of pleasure that went straight to her sex.

“And I cannot bear to stand on the sidelines any longer and allow another man take you. Forgive me, Kagome.”

Sesshomaru lowered his head to her breast, his lips around her nipple, sucking strongly, pulling in the hard flesh. Her back arched, unconsciously pressing her breast into his mouth at the pleasure his actions caused. Her hands were in his hair, clenched around the silken strands, holding him to her breast as he lavished her nipple with his tongue before moving on to the other neglected nub, while his hand shaped the abandoned flesh, squeezing and pinching gently.

Kagome tried to think, to push away the pleasure that tried to swamp her senses, but it was impossible, as impossible as a relationship between them was. But what was the difference? She was hurting already trying to deny him, denying herself her heart’s desire. Her heart was already lost, had been for years. If this was all she could have with the man she loved, then she was going to take it, accept it with open arms.

He felt her body go soft against his, all her resistance gone. He helped her out of her shirt and bra, sliding the straps down her arms, allowing the fabric to drop forgotten upon the ground. He saw her white breasts, nipples red and hard from his attentions, and lowered his gaze to her flat stomach. He stroked the flesh there, circled her belly button with his fingers and watched her shiver in response. The setting sun turned her flesh into a canvas of flaming colors.

“You’re beautiful, Kagome.” His hands went to her jeans, unsnapping the button and sliding down the zipper. “But I have to see all of you.”

As he lowered her pants down her thighs and calves before helping her step out of them, she became aware that she was outside, almost naked. When he reached for her panties she batted his hands away, a flush of embarrassment taking over her blush of passion, though her ardor did not wane in the slightest.

“Let’s go inside, Sesshomaru.”

Understanding her reluctance, he nevertheless ignored her swatting hands and lowered her panties down her legs until she was forced to step out of them. Her hands were on his shoulders as he knelt before her, gazing down at his silver head before looking up and around them nervously. She may be alone at her shrine with a hundred plus steps leading up from the city below where no one could see them, but they were still out in the open.

Her eyes flew back down to his as he placed his hands on her inner thighs and forced them apart. His golden gaze met her brown one. “I want your eyes on me. Only think of me when we are like this.”

Then he leaned forward and gave her the most intimate of kisses. She made a strangled sound as his tongue found her, sliding between her slick folds to the sensitive nub at the peak. Her hands tightened on his shoulders, bunching the fabric of his shirt. She spread her legs wider, opening up for him shamelessly.

Sensations she had never experienced before rocked through her, making her twitch and jerk. She feared she wouldn’t be able to stay standing much longer, but she couldn’t, wouldn’t tell him to stop. She was building towards something, ecstasy growing sharper.

She felt him cup her right buttock, his other hand at her core with his tongue. His finger sank deep, stroking inside her. “Ah, God!”

Two fingers, spreading, rubbing, driving her crazy. Her hips moved, meeting his pumping fingers. Then he engulfed her clit in his mouth and sucked strongly and she came hard, squirming, convulsing uncontrollably while he drank her juices, encouraging her to soar higher. She didn’t know how long she leaned boneless against the railing, trying to catch her breath, but the rustling of clothing had her opening passion glazed eyes to witness Sesshomaru undressing, revealing taught muscles.

His chest was a work of art as his shirt fell off his shoulders. He was hairless all but for a silver trail of hair starting under his belly button and into the waist band of his pants. His long fingers reached for the opening, but she batted his hands away and fell to her knees, wanting to do it herself.

“Kagome,” he whispered her name hoarsely, longing clear in his voice as she lowered the zipper slowly.

He wore nothing under his trousers, his cock falling out of the tight confines of fabric and into her waiting palms. Her eyes were glued on the large, heavy weight of his erection. She was awed by his immense size and slightly apprehensive, wondering how he would ever fit inside her.

She banished such thoughts as she leaned forward to return the favor, but also eager to taste him on her tongue. His hand on her hair stopped her, her breath hot on his straining flesh, causing his thighs to tighten and flex in restraint.

“You don’t have to do that.”

She gazed up at him under heavy lashes. “You don’t want it?”

“Hell, yes, I want it, but I won’t have you force yourself to do anything you’re uncomfortable with.” His voice was rough, his cheeks flushed red, his eyes revealing his desire for her, for what she was silently offering. But he resisted. For her.

His actions made her heart melt and caused her to fall even harder for him, but he was wrong. She wasn’t feeling forced. She was close enough so that when she flicked out her tongue, she was able to trace a pulsing vein along the length of his shaft. She heard him groan, lifted her eyes to watch him throw back his head as his hip thrust towards her involuntarily. He was beautiful in his pleasure, she thought.

Her eyes then lowered to his cock and saw a drop of precum slip out of the slit at the head, and she leaned forward to lick it, drinking him in.

His voice was ragged when he said her name. “Kagome.”

He wasn’t stopping her any longer as she mapped his shaft with the flat of her tongue, tracing the pulsing veins with the tip of her tongue. She was further encouraged by his panting breath, his guttural groans. Exploring further, she circled the head with her tongue, tasting more of his precum as it dribbled from the slit.

“Don’t tease me , Kagome,” he panted, his hips thrusting towards her, bumping against her mouth, in silent demand. 

She almost laughed, feeling empowered in her femininity by Sesshomaru’s reaction to her touch. Wordlessly, she kissed him at the base of the head before taking him into her mouth. His hands went to her cheeks as he commanded, “Suck, hollow your cheeks. I want to feel it against my hands, watch you pleasure me with your mouth.”

She lifted her eyes to his, watching him watch her, and she did as he said, her cheeks hollowing  as she sucked strongly, feeling his large frame shake and tremble. He put pressure on her face, moved her head up and down his length, teaching her, showing her how he liked it best. She was a fast study as she took more of him in her mouth, sucking strongly on every backwards pull, while her hands stroked the flesh she couldn’t fit in her mouth. And there was a lot she couldn’t.

He thrust into her mouth and would have choked her had her hands not been there to temper his thrusts. Her jaw ached from being open so wide, but she didn’t care.

“Stop!” he commanded, forcing her off his cock, the tip red with fierce desire.

Growling, the sound almost feral, he bent and picked her up bridal style and moved to sit on the porch, his feet firmly planted on the bottom step as he set her over his lap, straddling his hips, spreading her wide, open for his invasion “This first time I will spend myself inside your dripping folds.”

But instead of his cock, two of his fingers thrust inside her, and she cried out, still sensitive from her last orgasm, still wet for she had derived pleasure from giving it to him.

“You’re still wet for me. Kagome, did sucking on my cock arouse you?” He kissed her cheek before capturing her lips, thrusting his tongue inside her mouth, mimicking the thrust of his fingers.

Her nails dug into his shoulders as she moved her hips into his plunging fingers, small sounds of pleasure escaping her lips and into his as he devoured her mouth.

“Come. Come for me Kagome,” he whispered huskily in her ear before nipping at the lobe.

His words sent her over the edge and she cried out soundlessly, her voice stolen from her as she convulsed around his still thrusting fingers. He removed his finger and replaced them with something broader, thicker. He thrust upward into her still quivering flesh as she continued to ride her orgasm, taking her innocence painlessly for she was too caught up in the ecstasy of her release to feel the sting of first possession.

His hands went to her back, holding her close, her breasts pressed against his muscular chest as he surged inside her, groaning. “Damn. You’re so tight and wet.”

“Sesshomaru.”

Leaning towards him and he obliged her by tangling his tongue with hers once more, their hips moving as one, thrusting, staining towards each other.

He wasn’t going to last.

“Dammit, slow down.”

But she was mindless as his thick flesh hit every known erotic zone inside her, bumping repeatedly against her womb.

“Kagome, you have to slow down or I’ll lose it. Fuck! Stop! I won’t leave you behind.”

Sesshomaru grabbed onto her hips, forcing her to stop. Kagome shook her head in denial as he impaled her again then stopped. He was so deep. “I’ve got you, Kagome. I know what you need. Let me...yes!”

His thumb found her clit, circling the sensitive nub roughly. Her walls tightened around him, almost bringing him to the edge, but he gritted his teeth, denying fulfillment. Not yet.

“Come,” he demanded roughly, pinching her clit. “Come now!”

And she did, her face pressed into his left shoulder, small teeth sinking into the muscle as she convulsed around his erection. 

He exploded, coating her walls without having to thrust again, buried so deep, neither knew where one ended and the other began.

“Kagome,” he groan raggedly, his face buried in her neck.

After long seconds of both of them relearning how to breathe, Sesshomaru leaned back and cupped her face in his palms, leveling her with a fierce gaze. “You are mine. I’ll make it work between us. Believe in me, Kagome.”

“Yes.”

They sealed their promise with a heated kiss.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

Ginger

Ginger's current name comes from the Sanskrit srngaveram meaning "horn root" due its appearance. Queen Elizabeth I of England is credited with the invention of the gingerbread man, which became a popular Christmas treat. Ginger had great historic, medicinal value as a spiritual beverage, aphrodisiac, digestive aid, etc. The Chinese and Indians viewed ginger as a healing gift from God. They claimed long term use of fresh ginger as putting a person in contact with the spiritual advantages. Writings of the Koran describe ginger as a beverage of the holiest heavenly spirits. Throughout history, ginger is reported for its value as an aphrodisiac with references of ginger’s sexual tonic properties in Arabia’s A Thousand and One Nights.

Italy’s famed University of Salerno medical school prescribed that a rule for happy life in old age and a sexual healthy appetite was to “eat ginger, and you will love and be loved as in your youth.” This was a result of its widespread use as a systemic tonic, hormone balancer, energy enhancer, and agent for improving the appetite and circulation. In India it became popular to prepare meat dishes and drinks using ginger pastes. Fruit juices, tea, buttermilk and curd products were spiced with ginger. The Japanese soothed spinal and joint pain with it. The Chinese found it helpful with tooth aches, symptoms of a cold, flu and hangover. Over time, the widespread use of ginger to retard spoilage and disguise taste was superseded by modern refrigeration. During the 14th century in England, one pound in weight of ginger was equivalent to the cost of a sheep. Jamaican ginger is prized for its strong, perky flavor.