Mated to the Chaos (Portal City Protectors Book 5)

by Georgette St. Clair

His wolf only huffed in response, and Carlo took that as a no. But he could at least be aware of the wolf in ways he wasn’t before now. Carlo studied the Chaos, the tendrils much like Nanshe’s were when she’d sent it out to help protect Kallan.

  Nanshe?

  “It’s doing what it is supposed to do. Your wolf will have to become accustomed to it. There will be changes on both sides.”

  What changes?

  Of course, she didn’t answer, and Carlo knew what that meant.

  “Is my man okay?” Arturo’s voice was rough with the promise of retribution.

  Carlo had to swallow his need to growl at his own Alpha. Now that he had claimed Nanshe, the wolf didn't like how Arturo was speaking to her.

  But he also understood the fear inside his Alpha.

  “He's fine. He just has to adjust. If I can get him to a place he is comfortable, he can ride out the storm much better. Can we have someone take him to his room?”

  “You will explain to me what is going on with my wolf, first.”

  Nanshe rolled her eyes and faced the Arturo. “What is going on with your wolf is beyond you. You forget who is more powerful. I have respected you, Alpha—everything you have demanded—and I understand your need to protect him. But what's done is done. He is my mate. You all saw him claim me earlier. Do you think I could do anything to him that would harm him?”

  Arturo stomped over to Nanshe and got right in her face. “I don't give a shit who you are. Do you understand me? I will rip you to shreds and throw your body into the fucking sea, if that's what I have to do. Anything to protect what belongs to me. Now, do you understand me? You may be his mate, but I am his Alpha. I am family. I would never let anyone harm him, no matter who they are.”

  “I understand your fear, but arguing when he is in this state is not going to help him. His wolf will need to come and protect me. And it will only involve him battling more against what's happening inside. Please, get me and him to his bedroom so I can help him. What I need to do doesn't need to be done in front of anyone else.”

  Arturo glared at Nanshe before finally nodding and stepping back. “Fine.”

  “Dominic and Romano, get him into the car to drive him home”

  “We'll all follow. Nanshe, you will ride with me.”

  “I need to be with my–”

  “You will ride with me.” Arturo’s tone didn’t allow for more argument.

  Carlo groaned, once again struggling against the need to fight for his mate. He fell to his knees on the ground, a cry wrenching from his body.

  “Be calm,” Arturo demanded. “I am just making sure you're protected when you're at your weakest. I will not harm your mate, as long as she does nothing to harm you. This, I promise.”

  That was as good as Carlo was going to get. He knew no one could get in Arturo’s way when he was like this.

  “Damn, you have to lose some weight. I heard the keto diet is actually pretty cool. And since you're a wolf, you would do well eating all that protein.” Romano snorted. “Protein. I would’ve said something else you could take for all the protein, but I don't think you swing that way and you might you beat me. Let's get you in the car.”

  If Carlo wasn't battling with the Chaos, he probably would have punched Romano. For now, he’d let the younger wolf lift him in his arms, Dominic right at his side, and carry him to the elevator to leave the arena.

  Arturo had the presence of mind to make sure he and Nanshe got into the elevator with them and ride up in the first wave of people exiting. They powered out of the arena where mages stood by, still maintaining a protective barrier.

  “We're fine. We're going to travel to our homes. Let Giuliana know what is going on, Pasquale, once you get to her. All the other wolves will be dismissed to patrol their various areas once we have reached our pack lands,” Arturo ordered.

  As one, the wolves moved. Carlo could do nothing else, his head lolling to one side. But shit, he felt horrible, a power struggle happening within his own body he couldn't stop or change. His wolf was snapping and snarling at the Chaos, trying its best to destroy it from the inside out.

  Knock it the fuck off, Carlo warned his wolf. You're just killing us. But his wolf didn't listen. He kept fighting. Carlo jerked in Romano’s arms.

  “If you do that again, I'll drop you on your goddamn head like you were as a baby. Cool off.”

  Oh yeah, Carlo was definitely going to get Romano back after all of this.

  They all piled into the car, with Nanshe getting into another car with Arturo. She spared him a last glance before she got in, her gaze filled with worry.

  You can still talk to me like this in my head, right?

  The relief in her voice was overwhelming when she responded. “Yes. Let's just keep this connection open so I know you're fine as you travel.”

  Are you worried about how the Chaos is reacting with my body?

  “Of course. You have been fighting it for so long. It could really hurt you. If your wolf doesn't give in …”

  Well, contrary to popular belief, I'm trying as hard as I can. The thing isn't really making it easy.

  “The Chaos isn't a ‘thing.’ It is simply trying to find its place within you that should have been there a long time ago.”

  Yeah. If you say so. As far as I'm concerned at the moment, Chaos could take a long walk off a short pier. Now, can you tell me why it's so important for me to be this King of History?”

  “You know I cannot,”

  So what can you tell me?

  “Nothing much, to be honest.”

  Okay, well let's try a different tactic. What will the Chaos do to my wolf?

  “It will make your wolf stronger, faster, harder. You're going to get enhancements from magic. In essence, you're going to be a hybrid of Chaos and wolf. One unlike anyone has ever seen before.”

  I’ll to be able to kick ass better. Can't be mad about that.

  “You are always a warrior. And, of course, you would enjoy having that benefit. It will help you. Also, because you will have the Chaos within you and within your wolf, your wolf will also gain the extra sense of being able to detect when Chaos is around much easier than it does now. You may find you will react faster than others. That is all I can give you. The rest, you will find out on your own.”

  It’s enough for now. I'd rather not have my head explode with too much information as I'm trying to get through this.

  “That’s understandable.”

  They sped closer to Arturo’s home base, and Carlo could not deny he felt better for it. Temporarily, the battle was over and everyone was safe. This was the best time to invite the Chaos. He would just hope there was nothing else that could come through or battle with them.

  For now, they could focus on gathering the power they needed to be stronger. A twisting of unease filled his belly.

  “What is it, Carlo?”

  Something doesn't feel right. The Chaos is uncomfortable.

  “The Chaos is uncomfortable, or your wolf is?”

  The Chaos itself is uncomfortable. It’s dancing through my body, trying to tell me something, but I can't see what it is.

  “Try to listen. It’s different from listening to your wolf and what you are accustomed to. The Chaos shows things visually as it has done with me. That is how it operates. Ask about that and see it that way.”

  Carlo did as she explained, feeling silly as he asked the Chaos to show him what was going on and what he needed to do. It came through quickly, blasting his head and ribboning his vision until it was layered with so much information, he could barely choke it down.

  What is this?

  “This is called scanning. There's no way to really make this easier. Breathe deeply and take the time to see what it is showing you.”

  Yeah, that's easier said than done.

  “My fierce warrior, my stubborn male, I know you can do it.”

  Carlo once again followed her previous instructions, looking at the different ribbons of Chaos. What was
it trying to show him? Where was the threat? He kept holding on to that feeling, using it against the other visions and information he saw.

  Wait a minute, Nanshe. I'm scanning the past, just like you, but I'm not a Norn.

  “No, you aren't. Now you understand what your title means? The King of History. See, history.”

  What the fuck?

  He jerked, pulling out of Romano’s arms. No, he didn't want to see this. This was not what he was meant to do. People were not supposed to have this sort of power. No. He jerked again, screaming.

  “Calm down, dude. Calm the fuck down.”

  He fought, trying to get away. No, he would lose his mind again. This was not what he needed. He had to stop it.

  An Alpha call rolled out over him, hot and fierce. Dominic. He recognized the wolf’s touch even without hearing him utter a single command. It slammed over his wolf, jerking it to a stop.

  But it didn't break away the fear. It didn't change the fact Carlo had to get away. He couldn't do this again.

  “Be easy, wolf. We are here.”

  Yeah, fuck that. They didn't know what was going on inside him, the way he would break.

  The car screeched to a halt, and the door was ripped open.

  Nanshe was already standing there. “Bring him inside. I need to get into his room quickly.”

  Dominic growled at being ordered, but he did as she commanded. He and Romano yanked and pulled Carlo until he was out of the car. Dominic wrapped steel arms around Carlo’s legs while Romano carried him under his arms. They raced into the building, moving quickly over the hardwood floors and slamming up the stairs. Nanshe kept pace with him the whole time.

  Romano shouldered his way into Carlo’s room, stuttering a moment as he looked around. “His room is fixed. How the hell did that happen? I need these housekeepers back with Kalinda.”

  “Shut up, Romano,” Dominic ordered.

  “We don't have time for this. Get him on the bed and leave.” Nanshe stared pointedly at Dominic.

  “I am an Alpha wolf, woman.”

  “Right, I’m mated to a wolf. This is my domain. Leave and let me take care of him.”

  Carlo would have laughed if he wasn't stuck in abject horror, but Dominic and Romano left the room without saying anything else.

  Please, Nanshe, help me.

  “I am here, mate. I'm here. Trust me.”

  Trust was hard for him, but he had no choice. He lay on the bed as Nanshe’s quick fingers began removing his clothes.

  What are you doing?

  “I'm going to distract you. What's the best way to distract the wolf?”

  Are you out of your mind, woman? In this mode I could hurt you.

  “But I would be assuming it would be the good type of hurt?”

  He had no response as she stripped the rest of his clothing from him and then yanked her dress off her body.

  “Now, let's see if I can distract a wolf.”

  He thought she started off doing a damn good job of it when she sucked his cock into her mouth. Her mouth was burning silk coupled with the razor edge of teeth. She didn’t take it easy on him, sucking him from tip to root.

  Goddess. Fuck. Do that again.

  “Pushy, pushy. Let me do this.”

  His hands clenched into tight fist as her tongue laved under the sensitive head and danced down to the base. It kept seeking, tasting the heavy weight of his balls. She was magnificent. Even thought she was superimposed with glimpses of different times and spaces, he could see her. Her wild wheat-colored hair was spread over his thighs, her pinks lips stretched around his girth and her gaze on him.

  “Watch me. See how good you taste on my tongue.”

  He was a goner. There was no way he’d be able to tell her no again. She let him slide from her mouth with a pop and traced her lips with her tongue.

  “You are delicious, you stubborn male. Enough that I don’t think I’ll ever tire of you.”

  His jaw was clenched too tightly to utter a fucking word, but he didn’t need to. Not with this vixen. She crawled up his body to straddle his hips, her strawberry tipped breasts swaying with the movement.

  It was the first time he’d ever seen her truly bare in the flesh, and he couldn’t even move to touch her. He wanted to feel the warmth of her skin, taste the sweetness of her tongue.

  But he’d settle for the scalding heat inside her as she sank down his hard cock. She took him in one smooth motion, her wetness easing the way. She’d gotten aroused just from tasting him.

  Goddess, that turned him on.

  Her hips worked over him, battling against the fear, soothing his wolf until it howled. It wanted to claim its mate, to bite her again as he came deep inside her. Carlo gripped that need and yanked on it, breaking away from the past within the Chaos.

  With a roar, Carlo sat up and wrapped his arms around her. “Now it’s my turn, woman.”

  He lifted her and slammed her down on his cock, over and over again, loving how she tossed her head back and wailed. His mouth found her nipple, sucking in the tip and nipping it with sharp teeth. His motions were rough, hard, frantic.

  He needed her.

  He rolled them over and positioned her on her back, her legs spread wide. Gripping her ass, he plowed into her. Each stroke bottomed out within her, each met with a sharp slap of their bodies coming together. His wolf wouldn’t be denied, and he couldn’t stop if he tried. He wanted her wild and screaming.

  He fucked harder, screwing his hips against her clit to add extra pleasure with each internal stroke.

  “Yes!”

  He kept pushing, sweat dotting his brow. She was soft and tight, squeezing him like a vise. “Take it all. Let me have you.”

  “I’m yours.”

  Her choked promise only served to inflame the wolf. He dug his claws into her flesh and lifted higher on his hunches until her body was curled upward, her ass off the bed. Then he drove harder into her. It must have hurt, it must have been too much, but his mate didn’t stop him.

  Nanshe threw her head back and forth, eyes wide and wild. She took every bit of him and dared to ask for more. They were two broken pieces, shattered by life and circumstances. He could see all their timelines in that moment, when they were together and when they weren’t. Even times he had the same face but a different name.

  The moments when she’d screamed her love and he’d told her he hated her.

  All the instances he’d felt betrayed, only to realize later he’d been so wrong. So very fucking wrong about her.

  She’d always been his through moments in time.

  But he also saw something else, something that made his blood run cold even as his balls tightened against his body and Nanshe screamed her release.

  Even as he came, yelling against the hell he saw.

  Remaining by her side, in all timelines, had also killed her.

  And Carlo had been the one to do it.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Carlo took his time to appear relaxed as he could. To keep his heart steady and his breathing comfortable. Nanshe curled around him, still asleep after their bout in bed. She had been magnificent; wonderful in ways he had never experienced. But he could not shake what he saw in the past. No matter how he looked at it, his connection to her and history was why he was her mate, but it also meant so much more.

  He would also lead to her demise.

  Perhaps he should correct himself.

  It wasn't that he would, but he had. Countless times. Each time in the past she was screaming and crying for him, telling him she loved him and would always be by his side. But his anger was too powerful and the rage at whatever happened between them made him lose his grip on reality and destroy her.

  Over and over, he saw her broken body littering the floor in front of him. Heard the wail coming up and out through his ravaged throat, from the depths of his soul, when he realized he had destroyed the woman he was meant to always protect.

  When he emerged from the loss of his mind,
he was full of remorse.

  Every.

  Single.

  Time.

  Why would she seek him out over and over again? Why she would give herself to him and let him be around her was beyond him. Perhaps her selflessness was why she did it over and over.

  Because each time, somehow, she was reborn and lived once again, only to be broken by him—again. What did this all mean? What was so important between them that she had lived countless lives to go through this with him each and every time?

  So many fucking times in history. In different locations and places. And what the fuck was wrong with Skuld that no matter how many times she lost, she still attacked again? What was going on with these Norns? What type of battle of epic proportions were they truly fighting? Not knowing the answers to any of these questions, but understanding one thing before anything else, Carlo made his decision.

  He had to leave Nanshe behind.

  Now that he had claimed her and tasted what it was like to be with her, now that he knew the beauty and wonders of her body, there was no way he would risk harming her. The Chaos may have been necessary to win this battle, and he would be sure to be there when the time called, but he would stay as far away from his mate as possible.

  She deserved to have a different fate than him. And how horrible was it for them that life had decided a long time ago they would be the beginning and end of the other? It wasn't fair they couldn't enjoy happiness. That they couldn't have a life where they had their love and could survive.

  But maybe being given their great powers meant they had to sacrifice something. They wouldn't be able to have happiness the way other people did and only could share moments in time where they were as one.

  Carlo could be grateful for this. And he wished for a moment he could take her again. That he could connect with her once more in bed and see the way her body responded. Her pleasure at being taken by him and making her climax over and over and over again.

  How he wished this didn't have to be the last time they’d come together. How he wished their pasts and futures were different.

  And maybe that's what Nanshe had been trying to do all along, what she hadn't been able to tell him. The rules binding her in pain to not tell him they were meant to fail. But she would try for him anyway. What kind of love had he created in her that even through death, space, and time, she still came for him?