Triptych

by S. C. Mitchell

  Shoving all her worries and fears aside, she fell into the passion of the moment.

  The kiss, so scorching, set her core on fire. Her senses heightened as his lips ravished hers. He laced his fingers into her hair, cupping the back of her head, and intensified the kiss.

  So wonderful, so passionate, but she needed more. She needed him.

  Snaking her hand between them she worked the buttons of his shirt open and slid her hand inside, against his bare chest.

  She ran her fingers over tense, lean muscle. Felt his heart hammering in his chest. Then loosened more buttons to work her hand lower, over his rippling abdominals.

  She’d watched Paul work out with Pike’s Rangers. Often times, especially in the heat of summer, they’d shed their shirts. Every man a sculpted Adonis, but none of them matched Paul in muscular perfection. In the field, he was a lethal weapon. But to Maggie, he’d always been sex on a stick.

  Paul slid his hand up her side to cup her breast.

  She pulled back from the kiss to breathe and sigh. “Yes.”

  He ran his thumb over her nipple, and she experienced his reaction the moment he realized she wasn’t wearing a bra.

  Delight in his eyes and a strong pulse from below accompanied by an,” Oh, baby.”

  She leaned in, planted a wet kiss on his neck and whispered, “I thought you might like that.”

  He held her out at arm’s length, his gaze raking over her.

  She felt her nipples puckering under the thin material of the dress.

  “And you are definitely wearing one of my flak jackets when you head back to your room. And maybe my trench coat.” He moved in on her again, nibbling her ear and whispering, “Provided I ever let you out of here.”

  She finished the last button on his shirt and slid the garment off his shoulders, letting her fingers linger on the bulging muscle of his biceps. “You have nice bumpiness.”

  His gaze locked on to her chest. “Yeah, I kind of like your bumps too.”

  “That better not be a rolled up sock in your pants.” Her cheeks heated. She’d never been so brazen. Then again, she’d never felt so comfortable with a lover before.

  “That’s an amazing dress. Do you have anything on underneath?” His eyes said he hoped not.

  “In my rush to see you, I might have skipped a few steps getting dressed.” And obviously that had been a good choice on her part.

  She loosened his belt and managed to work the hook on his slacks before he spun her around.

  “Now, let me enjoy this.” He grasped the zipper, and as he slowly opened it, he peppered kisses on her bare back. Lower, lower, sending a shiver through her core.

  He was on his knees behind her when she shrugged the dress from her shoulders and let it flutter to the floor. “Paul Tompkins, you can kiss my ass.”

  And of course, he did.

  His hands molded the flesh of her derriere. “Do you have any idea how many times I wished I could grab this ass?”

  Probably as many times as she wished she could grab his.

  “I feel you have me at a disadvantage.” She spun to confront him.

  His gaze lingered on the apex of her thighs before skimming up her naked body to her eyes. “I imagined you naked a number of times, and it was always amazing, but still never this good.”

  She lowered her eyes. “Now you’re makin’ me blush. Stand up and strip while I compose myself.”

  He stood, but pulled her in. “I love the feel of you against me.”

  Yeah, there was something about skin on skin contact. Wonderful heat, erotic friction, all that bumpy muscle mass pressed against her.

  She tugged on the zipper at his crotch, and pushed down his slacks, then pulled back to admire the view of his kaki-green boxer briefs that did nothing to hide the size of his erection.

  Yeah, that wasn’t a sock. And he was big.

  The thought of him inside her had her mouth going dry. “Somehow, I always envisioned you going commando.”

  He chuckled as he toed off his boots and pulled his legs free of stockings and slacks. “It’s a little hard to let everything hang loose in combat. And around you, I’ve always needed a little extra restraint.”

  She hooked her hands under the elastic and slid the garment down. His cock jutted out, boldly erect.

  “You poor thing, you are now free of your restraint.” Talking to his cock seemed like the most natural thing.

  She took him in her hand, sliding her palm along his rigidness. Hot, pulsing, wonderful.

  “Oh God, Maggie. You’re killing me.”

  He scooped her up in his arms, carrying her toward his bedroom door. “Let’s take this horizontal.”

  He kicked open the door, strode into the room, and dropped her on a perfectly made bed. She’d never been in this room before, but had envisioned herself on his bed countless times.

  His room was a bit Spartan, lacking decoration, but neat, clean, and orderly. More so than she’d ever imagined.

  “You’re supposed to be a slob. I’m so disappointed.” When was the last time she’d made her bed?

  He chuckled as he climbed on the mattress with her. “For you, I’ll be a slob.”

  He cupped her breast and drew the peak into his mouth. His dancing tongue did some delightful manipulations that had her clenching and panting. “Okay,” pant, “not so disappointed anymore.”

  As he sucked and licked, his other hand cupped the apex of her thighs.

  Her channel slicked, and his fingers slid easily inside her, finding magic places to touch and caress.

  Maggie’s core ignited with a passionate flame that continued to burn hotter, and leap higher inside her. “Oh, God, Paul. That’s heaven.”

  “You’re heaven,” he said, his breath heavy.

  She grasped his cock, sliding her hand up and down the rock-hard shaft. “I need this. I need you inside me.”

  He reached over toward his nightstand. Pulling open the drawer, he extracted a condom.

  “It’s okay,” Maggie rasped. “I’m on the pill.”

  He tore open the foil package. “Double protection. We can’t be too careful, can we?”

  No, they probably couldn’t. The Morrigan inside her certainly counted on her conceiving a daughter at some point.

  In the future. Not now.

  Rolling the condom over his erection, he positioned himself between her legs.

  He paused, gazing down at her. “You are so beautiful.” Sliding the tip along her slick folds, he pushed inside.

  So big, so filling; his girth had her channel tightening around him.

  And so long, so deep, he slid to the hilt, filling her completely.

  A wave of passion rippled through her core. Heat, so intense it scorched. And underneath it all, a growl of pleasure so pure it made her head whirl.

  Paul stroked, long and slow at first, as the rumble inside built and spread to encompass her whole being.

  Faster, deeper, harder.

  Maggie fisted her hands in the bedding, trying to hold on to the shreds of her sanity as wave after wave of orgasmic energy rumbled through her.

  Never before had she been driven to such heights of ecstasy, and yet Paul quickened his pace to drive her higher still.

  Breathe. I need to breathe. But the air was thick with passion, and she found herself gasping.

  “Paul!” The dam burst, as her release consumed her. So amazing. So much more than she’d ever felt before.

  “Maggie, I can’t . . .” Paul stiffened.

  His release set off a ripple of orgasmic pleasure throughout her core. Passionate, powerful, all encompassing. Maggie’s heartbeat thundered in her ears.

  He huffed as he withdrew and crashed to the bed beside her. “T
hat was . . . Wow.”

  She found her center, and pulled in a deep breath. “Yeah, it was.”

  Rolling to her side, Maggie placed the palm of her hand against Paul’s cheek. She stared deeply into his eyes.

  His smile reflected complete satisfaction. “Was that what you needed?”

  God, yes. “Well, I wouldn’t say no to more, but I suppose we need to get back to work.”

  “Not yet.” He pulled a blanket up from the bottom of the bed where it had been neatly folded, covering them both and allowing her to snuggle into his heat.

  Right here. This was where she wanted to stay for the rest of her life.

  Chapter 16

  Paul kissed Maggie’s cheek, drank in the last of the passion, the last moments of closeness. He’d never felt so entwined with anyone before.

  Why did the world have to suck? Why couldn’t they have this forever?

  But it would change. Inevitably, it would change. She was a superhero, he was only a soldier. They’d always come from two different worlds, but now, she wasn’t even in his same galaxy. He wasn’t sure how they’d become so close. They’d always be friends, he knew that, and they’d always have this morning to remember, but could they really make this work?

  The world was about to fall in love with its newest superhero. She deserved it. She was awesome.

  And in the end, he was still only a black guy from Center City.

  He took a deep breath, drawing in the fragrance of flowers and passion hanging heavy in the air.

  Time to get back to work.

  He rose up on one elbow, meeting her gaze. “So. What—?”

  “You were awesome, the best. I can’t even imagine . . .” She sighed.

  Chuckling, he picked up a strand of her hair and twirled the end. “Thanks for that, but what I was asking was what scared you so badly it led to this? Not that I’m complaining.”

  She rolled her eyes as her cheeks flushed the prettiest shade of pink. He wanted to kiss each and every one of her cute freckles.

  But he fought the distraction. “You said there was something you would tell me after. Much as I hate to admit it, it’s after.”

  One more deep sigh. “You remember those celestial beings Quantum and Wylde told us about after we picked them up in Russia?”

  Yeah. That had been weird.

  He nodded.

  “Well, El Brujo picked up on some of the mystic energy there, and he thinks he can make some kind of connection with one of these beings. He wants me to help him because I have some of the same kind of energy inside me. We’re going to do some deep, high-level magic stuff tonight to communicate with what is essentially a god.”

  The hair raised on the back of Paul’s neck. “He thinks these beings are ancient, mythical gods like the Morrigan?”

  “Worse.” Her eyes narrowed. “The Morrigan, Buddha, God? Those are the little guys. They came to Earth to hide out from the big bads, the real powers fighting it out in the center of the galaxy. We’re just lucky to be born on a planet that’s so far out on the edge of everything none of them care about it.”

  Gooseflesh crept up Paul’s arms. “And Carlos wants to bring one of them here? Tonight?”

  Maggie nodded. “He’s thinkin’ about it? He plans to run all of it past Aaron and Joel, but he wanted to talk with me first. If I’d said no, he’d have abandoned the idea, but he does think it’s our best bet for findin’ out about those aliens. I agree, and I don’t want to be standin’ in the way of us getting information that may save people’s lives, but I don’t mind tellin’ you, it scared me plenty.”

  No kidding.

  ~ ~ ~

  Xi Force assembled in the conference room. Maggie sat next to Paul at the round conference table. All the other Xi Force members were seated around the table except Shade and Aaron, who had a propensity to pace during the tamest of meetings.

  And this meeting was anything but tame.

  “Will this even work?” Aaron sputtered, shooting his glare at El Brujo.

  “I don’t know.” Carlos shrugged. “And if anyone has a better idea of how to find out information on the Sha’Xari, I will gladly withdraw the proposal.”

  Z-Bot snorted. “It’s not like we can look up these aliens on Wikipedia.” His eyes went unfocused. “Okay, it looks like there is a page already, but there’s nothing helpful on it.”

  Aaron leveled his gaze at El Brujo. “What are we about to get into, Carlos? I can’t think of anything else to try, and we need information on those aliens.”

  El Brujo nodded. “I’ve been studying these creatures, these cosmic beings, since I picked up some magical essence, that is, residual energy from one of them at the ruined Red Guard base.”

  Quantum squirmed in her chair. “They were scary powerful. Are you sure they’re something we want to mess with?”

  Sitting close to his wife, his arm slung over Quantum’s chair back, John Wylde shook his head. “So the author is cranking up the drama? I had a feeling they’d be more than a small chapter in my book.”

  Shade rolled his eyes. “John, please.”

  Quantum added an elbow to his side to emphasize Shade’s point.

  Wylde threw up his hands and, wide-eyed, shook his head, but remained quiet for a change.

  Carlos narrowed his gaze at Wylde. “As I said, I’m open to other suggestions.”

  Silence permeated the chamber for a long moment.

  Shade locked eyes with Aaron, both of them pausing in their paths. “Admit it. We’ve got nothing.”

  Nodding, Aaron began pacing once again. “Keep going, Carlos. What do we need to know?”

  All attention centered on El Brujo as he continued. “The weakest of this race of beings hide out in remote places in the galaxy. Places like our planet. The Morrigan was one of these. The mystic energy Triptych inherited has the same resonance as the essence I picked up in Russia. Essentially, she carries the same DNA as these galactic entities.”

  All eyes shifted to Maggie.

  She shrugged. It wasn’t like she’d had a choice in this.

  Carlos continued. “Through my connections to other realms of reality, different dimensions if you will, I have ascertained the most powerful of these beings live, love, and make war in the center of our galaxy. They aren’t omniscient or all powerful. They aren’t really gods, but they exist on a level far different from mere humans. And they are the source of all magic in the galaxy.”

  Shade stopped pacing and cleared his throat. “You mean all that stuff you do?”

  “Yes. The way my magic works, the way almost all magic on this planet works, is that the spell-castor makes a gift or sacrifice to one of these beings. The hand gesture, the spell component, the secret word, somehow these creatures benefit from them, and they grant the caster the power to bend physics, break scientific laws—to make the impossible a reality.”

  Dr. Logan thumped the table. “Wait a minute. Anyone can do magic like you? They just have to know how to ask one of these creatures?”

  A sly smile creased El Brujo’s lips. “Yes. And no. It takes years of study and developing a relationship with these beings. It needs to be built with knowledge and by small favors, gestures, or sacrifices. I have devoted the better part of my life to this, and have, to date, found my way into the graces of perhaps five of the hundreds of entities hiding out here on Earth. I know some of the spells they can impart, but have access to only a minute fraction of their celestial energy.”

  Paul shook his head. “Triptych does magic. Big magic. I know she hasn’t studied for years.”

  Nodding, El Brujo shifted his gaze to Maggie. “Do you want to tell them, or should I?”

  Maggie’s stomach knotted. “You tell them. I’m not sure I understand it myself.”

 
He’d tried to explain it last evening, but there’d been so much to take in.

  He nodded. “Thousands of years ago, the beings known as the Morrigan and Manannan mac Lir melded their existence into a human woman. This existence then passed from mother to the first born daughter in every generation, and has now passed to Triptych. Unlike me, Triptych has no need to develop a relationship with these celestial beings. In effect, she is one. She carries the essence and the power within her.”

  “So why not contact one of these other beings you know of?” Aaron asked. “One you already have a relationship with.”

  Carlos shook his head. “I already have. The entities I have access to know nothing of the Sha’Xari. They are here primarily to stay out of the conflicts taking place off this planet. The being I’m planning to contact is one of the more powerful beings, one of the ones from out there. One of the beings that came here to confront Jonathan Wylde’s father.

  “Yes, I have no relationship with it whatsoever, but it appears to have some regard for our planet. It did come across the galaxy to confront Dr. Wylde. Still, I have no idea how it will react to a summons.”

  Silence hung in the air a long moment as the people around the table drank it all in. Maggie had heard most of this the evening before, and it still took her breath away.

  Paul broke the silence. “So how does Triptych figure into whatever you’re planning?”

  Concern for her was evident in his tone. She clasped his hand under the table.

  “These beings would never deign to answer a summons from a mere human, so I will be funneling the request through Triptych, using the essence of the Morrigan to send a message to the cosmos.” Carlos lowered his eyes to the table, not meeting anyone’s gaze.

  Paul stiffened in the seat beside her. Maggie squeezed his hand, trying to tell him it was all right. That she understood.

  But he released her hand, stood and put his knuckles on the table, leaning toward Carlos. His eyes narrowed. “So you’re saying you’re going to make Maggie the bait?”