He rested his forehead against mine. “Pandora, you are testing my control. I don’t want to mate because of everything going on. Let’s finish this case and spend a week somewhere with no drama, and we can mate. Because when we do, we aren’t leaving the bed for days, and right now, that isn’t an option.”
“Days?” I squeaked out.
“Yes, days. Now, will you at least use my blood to heal your wounds?”
I nodded, and Atieno let out his breath. He used the tip of his fang to slice his wrist. I closed my eyes as he pressed it to my lips. I expected it to taste like metal. It didn’t. His blood tasted sweet, almost like cotton candy. With each swallow, my body felt more alive and renewed.
Atieno pulled his wrist back and ran his tongue across it. The wound sealed a second later.
“Wow, that didn’t taste bad at all.”
Atieno ran his finger over where my bruise used to be. It was gone along with the cuts on my knees and the scrapes down my arm. Now my body had only dirt and blood on it. I reached forward and unbuttoned Atieno’s jeans. They dropped to the ground, and he stepped out of them. He hadn’t put boxers back on after the change. He stood naked in the bathroom.
“Let’s go get clean,” I said.
He turned and walked toward the shower, and I followed a step behind him. He quickly turned on the water and waited a few seconds for it to warm up before he guided me into the giant shower.
He pushed me under the water. The shower slowly washed the dirt down my body.
“Turn around,” he said.
I spun toward the wall, and I heard Atieno grab a bottle off the shelf behind me. He massaged the foamy liquid through my hair. I let out a groan as he kneaded my head. The soapy suds ran red. My white hair finally peeked through as the water rinsed off the fight.
“That feels good.” I turned in his arms, grabbed the soap off the shelf, and put some in my hand. I ran the soap over his rock-hard chest and abs and worked my way down his body. Atieno let out a groan, and his head fell back. I dropped to my knees and ran my tongue along his length. The water fell on my back.
He groaned again.
The goddess inside me reveled in having control over the big lion. I took him deep in my mouth and worked him up and down. Atieno’s grip tightened in my hair, I worked to take his length down my throat while resting my hands on his muscular thighs. Right when I thought he was close, he pulled back and lifted me up.
He gripped my ass, and I wrapped my legs around his waist, enjoying the feeling of his cock pressed against my clit. Atieno stepped out of the shower and headed toward the bedroom. He tossed me down on the large bed, and the sheets clung to my wet body. He was on me before I settled into the bed. His lips pressed against mine, demanding entrance. I opened my mouth, and our tongues tangled together. Atieno ran his hand down my body.
Slowly, he pulled back before kissing down my neck and working his way to my hard nipples. He took one in his mouth and rolled the other between his fingers. My body arched off the bed. He raised his hips so I couldn’t grind against him. I needed friction, something to take me over the edge. Atieno switched between my nipples before trailing kisses down my stomach.
He placed one of my legs over each of his shoulders and slowly worked his tongue up my velvety folds, locking his lips around the most sensitive little bundle of nerves. I screamed out his name. Right when I was about to go over the edge, he pulled back and slowly slid a finger inside of me as he pressed his lips to my clit.
“Please,” I begged.
Atieno placed his hands under my ass to position my hips higher. My folds tightened around him, enjoying the feel of his touch.
“Oh, fuck… Atieno,” I cried as he bit down on my clit.
My inner muscles clamped around his finger, milking it. He slowly worked his finger in and out as I rode the wave of pleasure to the end.
Not stopping, Atieno pulled his finger out and doubled the effort on my clit. He pressed hard with his tongue, and I could feel another orgasm approaching. My hips lifted off the bed. I wanted him inside me. “I need you.”
I felt Atieno smile against my thigh. “Soon,” he whispered before his tongue circled around my clit. He sucked hard, and my body exploded. The second orgasm was stronger than the first.
“Oh, God, yes. Please, I’m coming…”
I still shook from the orgasm as Atieno lowered my legs to the bed. He got off the bed, went to the nightstand, and pulled out a condom. He worked it down his shaft as he sauntered back to me, making sure his huge, hard cock was completely sheathed before climbing back over to where I was sprawled out waiting for him.
“Open your eyes,” Atieno demanded.
When our eyes met, he eased into me. I wrapped my legs around his waist, trying to pull him in.
“I need all of you in me now. Fuck me,” I panted.
My words sent him over the edge. Atieno slammed inside me, his thrust hard and demanding. With each plunge I could feel his balls against my ass. After a while of this, he groaned and buried his face in my neck. I used my legs to pull him in deeper, tightening my muscles to grip him as he impaled me.
I tightened my inner muscles to grip him as he thrust forward. He pressed his lips to my neck. I was in bliss. Nothing had ever felt so good. Water from his wet hair dripped on the sheets as he thrust forward.
“Faster,” I demanded.
“You feel so good. I don’t know how much longer I can last,” he breathed into my neck.
“Don’t hold back. I can handle all of you.”
Atieno searched my eyes. He must’ve seen what he was looking for. He leveraged himself with one hand and pounded into me hard. It felt good. My body was close. As if reading my mind, Atieno reached between us and pressed my clit. The brush of his finger was enough to send me over the edge.
I lost it and screamed out his name. I could feel myself milking his cock. Atieno reared back so only his tip was in me before he pushed forward. He did this a few times before speeding up. He leaned down and captured my lips.
Atieno gripped my ass and pumped forward. His body tensed before he pumped a few more times and stilled. Atieno quickly rolled to the side and pulled the condom off and tied it in a knot before tossing it in the trash. I lay next to him, tracing the lines on his chest.
I laid my head on his chest. “That was amazing.”
Atieno ran his hand through my hair. For now, I was going to enjoy a few moments of peace.
13
Today was Sunday, and I came over to Grandma’s house for a late-afternoon tea. The council called and wanted Atieno to come to a meeting. They said it was urgent. After telling him six times that I would be fine, he dropped me off at Grandma’s. When I walked in, Wrath and my sister Paldon were in the living room. Paxdon had shifted into his pandacorn and was holding two cute babies. I didn’t know how Paldon felt about me, but the second I stepped into the house, she wrapped her arms around me, and it felt like we knew each other our whole lives.
Grandma broke out the wine instead of tea and fixed a plate of cheese.
“He showed up while you were naked in bed?” Wrath asked. Two days had passed since I spent the night in Atieno’s bed for the first time.
The next morning, instead of waking for another round of sex, we woke to Lucifer standing at the foot of the bed. The man had no sense of boundaries.
“That wasn’t even the worst part.” I took a sip of wine. “He asked if we had made his next grandkid and, if not, when we planned to.”
“Well?” Grandma asked. “What did you tell him?”
“I met Atieno less than two weeks ago. I think a better question is, ‘Did you mate?’ And before you ask, no.”
Wrath snorted. “You should be like Paldon and make him wait ten years before even giving him a chance.”
Paldon winced. “I thought I was protecting him. You know, I wasn’t supposed to talk or associate with shifters.” Paldon grabbed her wine and took a swig. “Even now, as I say it out loud, it
sounds dumb. I never feel more alive than when I’m with him and look at the two precious babies we made.”
“They are precious,” Wrath said with a laugh. “Last week I caught Rex lighting a tree on fire, but his brother was right there to make a downpour in the backyard. Their powers are going to be unstoppable.”
“Enough about my precious babies. I want to know why you are holding back on mating. You know you can’t fight it, right?”
I winced. “Ugh, we just met. I understand the whole mate thing. We will when we figure out where the warlock is and finish the case. I also feel guilty about moving on without helping my friend. For fuck’s sake, she’s a ghost trapped in her apartment.”
“If you wait for the case to be over, a new one will start right after. For some reason, when I found out I was the devil’s daughter, all shit broke loose. I used to have a no-PI-work-for-the-supernatural policy. That went out the window when I mated with the North American alpha.”
Wrath flipped a blade in her hand. “Someone is supposed to be getting back to me. There is a stone out there Sasha can use to leave her apartment. She shouldn’t be stuck there. But Fate is a bitch and always has a plan.”
“Don’t talk bad about Fate in my house. She might strike me down,” Grandma added before she took a bite of cheese.
“Last I heard, Fate was on vacation in Jamaica. Maybe she drank too much and screwed up your friend’s life. Once she figures it out, everything will be fixed.”
“Why don’t we head to Jamaica and join her?” Paldon gave Wrath a wicked grin. “I’ve gotten really good at using the hell portal system. We could be on the beach in less than a minute. Paxdon can watch the kids.”
Grandma closed her eyes and groaned. “We aren’t hunting down Fate on her vacation.”
“It would be a fun adventure,” Wrath said between bites of cheese.
“Can we back up a second? What’s the hell portal system?” I asked.
“Nobody’s told you about the portal system?” Paldon asked as she got up from her chair and walked to my side. She sat down next to me, pulled out her phone, and pointed to a flame app. “You need to download this app. It tells you where to find a portal, and you can even summon a taxi. We don’t pay because we’re Lucifer’s kids.”
Wrath barked out a laugh. “Keep telling yourself you’re not paying. I bet my sword Riker is paying the bill.”
“Riker promised he wouldn’t pay,” Paldon pouted. “If Lucifer wants to see his grandkids, he better make the bill go away.”
“Maybe when the case is over, I can have Atieno show me how to use the portal system,” I said. I got up and filled my plate with cheese and crackers. Grandma had baked a brick of brie in pastry, one of my favorite cheese plate items. “Have any of you heard of a warlock named Synth?”
“Yes,” Wrath grumbled, her lips turning down.
“Were you around when he stole the Sword of Eternity?” I asked. “I still don’t think the sword should exist.”
“Welcome to the world of supernatural shit. Half of what we have shouldn’t exist. Last I heard, they moved the sword to the Bermuda Triangle. Why so many questions about Synth? His ass was banished into exile.”
“He’s back.”
Paxdon stopped playing with the kids and shifted back to human form. Unlike Atieno and other shifters, he had a perfectly pressed black suit on when he shifted. Wrath had her sword in her hands.
“Are you sure Synth is back?” Paxdon asked, holding the two babies in his arms. “He was sent to exile by the gods. There is no way he could have escaped.”
“Yes, I’m sure. He escaped, and we told Lucifer,” I told the overgrown Ken doll. For some reason, Lucifer hadn’t told Paxdon the information. Lucifer said it was my and Atieno’s job to bring Synth in.
“They should’ve killed him and that hussy years ago.”
“Grandma,” I warned.
Grandma held up her hands. “She played mind games with Synth. If she hadn’t put a spell on him, he would never have tried to take on Fate. I still think he’s under her spell. Why else would he be here?”
“You were there?” I asked.
Grandma let out a huff. “Back in the day, I was the witch the fate called when she needed help. But I did my job long enough, and handed my thorn down to another when your moth—sorry, dear, still not used to her not being your mother. When my daughter decided she didn’t want anything to do with magic.”
Tears stung my eyes. Paldon came and sat next to me and squeezed my hand and I squeezed back. Wrath watched the interaction as she ran her hand along her blade.
I still hadn’t met my real mother. Paldon wanted to meet me and thought it would be too much to bring her. Deep down, I wasn’t ready to see her. Not because she didn’t raise me. So much had changed in the last week and my head felt like it was close to exploding.
Anger washed over me as I wished I knew why my mom did what she did. Grandma gave me the journal her daughter had written about taking me. I couldn’t bring myself to read it yet.
“I still don’t understand why Mom did what she did. But she raised me. She might not be my bio mom, but you and she will always have a place in my heart,” I wiped a wayward tear from my eye. “Anyone who tries to say anything different can go suck a big fat troll toe.”
“I know Mom wouldn’t want you to be mad at your mom,” Paldon added. “A crazy person ripped us apart when we were born and put our mom in jail. I don’t know how you ended up with such an amazing family, but your mom and grandma did a great job.”
Grandma shook her head. “It wasn’t us. Pandora, you never complained, and when your mom—bless her heart—when your mom passed, you took on the weight of the world. I know you held it against me for years that I didn’t let you bring her back, but it’s not what she would’ve wanted.”
“It wasn’t so much that you didn’t let me bring her back,” I said quickly. “Something about the accident was wrong. Why did she drive off the road? It wasn’t raining or anything. What if someone killed her, and we never tried to find out who?”
“It wasn’t worth you having to watch her death.”
“I agree with your grandma,” Paldon added. “Knowing your mom died and watching your mom die are two different things. The second you touched her, your mind would have changed, and you would have brought her back like you did your grandma.”
“She’s right,” Wrath said. “I can tell you right now, if I had your powers, I would have brought my husband back in a heartbeat. I wouldn’t have cared about the consequences. Family is important to us, and we do what we can to protect them.”
I gripped Paldon’s hand again and squeezed. I had replayed the night over in my head numerous times. They were right. I would’ve brought Mom back and figured out the repercussions later.
“This conversation has turned dark,” Paxdon said. “Why don’t we do a round of shots?”
He got up and headed toward the kitchen.
“So let’s get back to the sexy man who dropped you off earlier.” Paldon laughed. “What are you going to do about him?”
I glanced at Wrath, and she was watching me closely. “I don’t know.”
“Deep down, I know it’s not Atieno’s fault my husband’s dead.” Wrath winced at her words. “Don’t ever tell Atieno that. I’ll deny it until the day I die.”
Paldon let out a huff. “We went over this last year. You can’t die.”
Wrath shrugged. “So we won’t ever tell him. But if you feel the mate pull, stop holding back, because once you mate, your powers will be even stronger. I’ve accepted Riker as a brother-in-law. I can do the same from Atieno. After all, isn’t that what family is for?”
This was my family.
“We planted the seed, didn’t we? I bet you don’t make it to the end of the week.”
Something moved outside the window, and I froze. I told myself the warlock wouldn’t try to attack us again in the city, especially with so many people in the house. I got up and walke
d over to the window to get a better look.
Wrath stood by my side. Paxdon shifted back into his pandacorn and picked up the twins.
Paldon’s fingers sparked black. “What do you see?” she asked.
I held my hand up, trying to get a better look. “I thought I saw a flash of purple, so I wanted to see what it was.” The door to the house creaked open, and Paldon sent a black ball of magic flying.
The door exploded into a thousand pieces. When the dust cleared, a man stood on the other side and no portal in sight. I must’ve seen something that wasn’t there.
“What the fuck, Paldon?” Atieno yelled.
I ran to his side and brushed the wood off his shoulder. “It’s my fault. I saw a flash of purple.”
Atieno pulled me in for a kiss. “You must have seen my headlights flash, but they aren’t purple.”
He was like a calming force. My worry went away when he had his arms wrapped around me. Paxdon was already fixing the door when Atieno pulled me toward the living room. Paldon poured him a glass of wine and topped mine off before Atieno pulled me into his lap.
“What did the council want?” Wrath seethed.
Atieno ran his hand along my arm. “Fate is missing. She’s been gone for a little over two weeks. Someone in the council tried to cover it up. That’s why it took me longer than usual. I spent another hour looking for the mole. I was too late. He killed himself.”
“What does that mean?” I asked.
“For starters, Sasha didn’t die because of you. Fate corrects the balance of life when you mess with it. She wouldn’t have been able to do that if she was missing. The council said the universe is out of whack and we need to find Fate soon.”
I looked over at Grandma. “Does this mean when Fate is found, someone else will die?”
“No,” Atieno and Wrath said at the same time.
Fated Mates of the Underworld, Books 1-3 Page 23