Secret Keepers: The Complete Series

by Jaymin Eve

  “And everyone has bailed on you,” Chase finished for her.

  I nodded in jagged, rapid movements. “Oh, totally. I’m fine. Xander knows what’s going on. You go and catch up with your family. Take as much time with them as you can.”

  She let out a happy squeak, gave me a tight hug, and pointed a finger at Xander. “Don’t be an asshole,” she told him shortly before turning and nudging Chase and Star out of the room.

  “Come on,” Xander said, heading in the opposite direction. He didn’t look back to see if I was following, and I spent most of my time glaring at his broad shoulders, almost missing the stunning house we were moving through. I had no idea what the city was like outside of this castle, but I imagined it was lush and rich, with green rolling hills like those I’d seen on the platform.

  The inside—I noticed when I tore my eyes from Xander—was very light and open, with pale cream walls and lots of thick rugs and plants. The air was warm; it was light and breezy, almost like spring on Earth.

  “How big is the city outside of this castle?” I asked Xander, wanting to fill the silence. “Are we out in one of the valleys between the mountains?”

  He looked over his shoulder. “We’re inside a mountain. Everything in this city is carved from stone. I believe there are tens of thousands of Darkens in this particular city.”

  I blinked; a chuckle escaped. “You’re messing with me, right? Inside of a mountain? Like dwarves?”

  All I could think of was a fantasy movie I had seen years ago where the dwarves lived deep in the mountains, carving everything out of the stone. It made me feel claustrophobic. All of that mountain above us.

  Xander didn’t chuckle at my statement though, and my feet ground to a halt.

  “A m-mountain?” I stuttered. I was an outside, water person. I couldn’t be in a mountain or cave or anything that like. It was like the plane all over again. I felt embarrassed to keep having these moments, but I couldn’t seem to help my body’s responses.

  Salt water and sunshine flitted across my senses and I closed my eyes. “It’s okay,” he whispered, his voice very close to my ear. I could smell him. Feel his energy. The tendrils of panic started to lessen. “My room here has a very deep bathing pool. You will feel better when you’re in the water.”

  He continued to talk to me, his voice remaining in that same low, soothing tempo, and eventually I was able to open my eyes and straighten. I bumped into him, not realizing just how close he was. Our eyes met and I sucked in a breath. His were the darkest blue I’d ever seen. They almost looked black.

  “Thank you,” I breathed, not moving away because I physically couldn’t force myself to.

  He nodded a few times. “You’re going to have to learn to deal with the sensory deprivation better.”

  He didn’t say it meanly, but it still sparked annoyance within me. “It’s been like a day, maybe two, since you plucked me out of the ocean. I’m currently standing on an alien world. I think I’m dealing about as well as one could be expected to in the circumstances.”

  He tilted his head to the side then, like I had reminded him of something. “Right,” he finally said, focusing on me again. “You are right. You’re actually handling this better than the majority of Royales would. I forget … that you’re mostly human.”

  He swung away from me and I almost sagged.

  Just attraction. It’s just attraction.

  The mantra ran through my head as I started to move again, following Xander the rest of the way along the hall. We ended up on a floor of bedrooms, from what I could see through their open doors. Xander stopped at one about halfway along. “This is where I usually stay.” He gestured for me to step forward. “You should stick with me, Avalon. As I said, I have the largest bath, and I’m also the only one who can calm you down. You respond to Royale energy.”

  Another spark of annoyance, but I didn’t disagree.

  Xander dropped the bags Star had put in his arms on the bed, and I saw a few different items, along with some Converse, tumble out.

  There was only one bed in here, but it was huge—like two king-sized beds put together. I tried to focus on that so I didn’t have to focus on the one thing really drawing my attention … the male across from me.

  It didn’t help that my body was on fire, my skin so sensitive that just my clothing moving across it was almost painful. Painful but good. I was trying to think of what I should say when hands wrapped around my waist, picking me up and pulling me back against a hard chest. Xander’s lips were on my neck before I caught my breath, and then I forgot everything except him.

  He held me like that for many long moments, my back plastered to him, his lips exploring whatever bare skin he could find. I was a blissed-out, turned-on mess by the time he spun me around and lifted me higher. Through instinct and need, my legs wrapped around his waist, my body arching into his. I wanted to be closer. I wanted to be naked.

  I really wanted him to be naked.

  Lifting my head, I kissed him hard. He let out a low groan as our tongues tangled together. The taste of him was so fucking good … better than I ever anticipated.

  “You’re still sure,” he murmured against my mouth, “that you can handle a sex-only relationship?”

  If I hadn’t been able to see the softness in his eyes and hear the true concern in his voice, I might have been pissed at his question. But it was clear that he was genuinely checking in with me.

  ‘I’m sure,” I whispered back, wondering if maybe, just maybe, I was lying to everyone in this room. Because Xander was an enigma begging to be unraveled. And I shouldn’t be this curious about someone who was only a booty call.

  I couldn’t stop, though, even if I wanted to. I’d just have to be strong enough to let him go when he walked away. I’d lost things I cared about before. I could do it again.

  “I’m sure,” I repeated, stronger this time because he was still watching me closely, dissecting my expression.

  Before he could pry further, I tilted my upper body back and ripped my shirt off, leaving just my bra and a lot of bare skin. Xander’s throat moved as he let his eyes trail across my body. “I’m ready, Xander Royale,” I said. My voice had a distinct purr in it, which was not like me, but I had pretty much lost control of myself at this point.

  Whatever concern he’d been holding faded then and he took control again. Kissing me hard, he walked us back toward the bed, dropping down with me still in his arms. He lowered himself back, slowly, using some sort of impressive core strength. I mean, how freaking strong was this guy? I was thin, but not exactly light. You couldn’t be six feet tall with swimmers’ muscles and weigh nothing. But Xander lifted me and moved me around like I was featherlight.

  There were just too many attractive things about him, which was no doubt why my needy hormones had kicked in. Except his personality. Couldn’t forget what an asshole he could be. Hopefully that would be enough to stop me ever really falling for him.

  When he was flat on his back, I shifted so I was straddling him, clenching at the hard length of him under me. “Shirt off,” I ordered. “And pants.”

  Xander grinned, a wicked sort of smile, and I forced myself not to react. “I like a bossy woman in the bedroom.”

  Sweet. Baby. Jesus.

  He lifted himself half up and reached back to pull his shirt over his head. My breath caught as his chest came into clear view. I’d seen him in the water before, but at the time I’d been trying not to pay too much attention to the broad, bronze, ripped lines of his body. He was so well-muscled; bulky only where he should be, and lean carved lines in other areas. I had to swallow hard to clear my throat. I repeat: sweet baby Jesus.

  The overlord marks extended down his neck just a little, but his chest was bare, and I took my time running both hands across the smooth skin. He was like me, not a lot of body hair, but there was still enough for me to trace.

  I’d been so consumed with his amazing chest—what could I say, I was definitely a pecs and abs
sort of girl—that I’d missed the fact he’d managed to get his pants off without dislodging me. He wore boxer briefs underneath, and as I let my eyes roam across the muscled length of his thighs, I wondered if I might have been a little hasty in choosing my favorite parts.

  Xander was fucking incredible. Damn him.

  He distracted me when he lifted me up with one hand, somehow removing my pants with the other so I was now clad only in bra and underwear. Xander took his time, just as I had done, to explore my body.

  “You’re perfect,” he said under his breath. And then he added, so low I almost didn’t hear him, “Of course you are.”

  I wasn’t sure what he meant by that, but I did like that he was as attracted to me as I was to him. When he reached out and linked his fingers through mine on my scarred hand, I started to think I was in way over my head. There was no way to remain impartial to someone like Xander.

  In desperate need, I leaned forward. Xander rose up to meet me in a searing kiss. I opened my mouth, allowing his tongue to sweep against mine, and we moved frantically together, underwear the only thing keeping our bodies from joining.

  When Xander pulled away from me, my breathing was heavy. “Please tell me you have condoms,” I huffed, as I pulled my hand from his so I could thread my fingers through his hair.

  He groaned as I pulled his head closer to mine. “Xander?” I asked, more demand in my tone. “Protection … do you have some?”

  He shook his head. “Fuck. No, I don’t. We don’t require the same sort of birth control that humans use.”

  I stilled against him, my body aching. The last thing either of us needed was a child to deal with. That would really hurt the “friends with benefits” arrangement. We stared at each other for an extended moment, unsure what to do next, then his expression brightened. “Wait, Lexen might. I’ll check his room. Don’t go anywhere.”

  In a flash, he lifted me up and then he was gone. With a groan, I rolled facedown, closed my eyes, and screamed into the bed, the sound almost completely muffled. I was so damn turned on right then I couldn’t think straight.

  Strong arms lifting and turning me had my eyes flying open again. Xander wore a satisfied look on his face as he settled me back onto his lap. “We good?” I asked him.

  His smiled broadened. “We’re good for five rounds. Do you think that’ll be enough?”

  I laughed, wondering where this bold, sexy side of me had come from. I’d never been this way in the past, but something about Xander….

  “For now,” I replied.

  His eyes went dark and hooded. He dropped the foil packets on the bed, reached out, and cupped my face. My lips parted and all breath rushed out of me as he leaned forward and kissed me again. This time it was controlled, slow. I could feel the softness of his full lips and taste the slight saltiness.

  “I’m predicting that sex with you might just kill me,” he said, when he pulled away.

  I lifted an eyebrow. “Only one way to find out.”

  In a flash he flipped me over, dropping me back on the bed so he could crawl over the top of me. His lips pressed into my stomach, and my muscles there tensed as I started to move on the bed. I couldn’t seem to stay still. I needed … everything.

  “God,” I gasped, fisting the bedsheets as he moved lower.

  Using his teeth, he slowly pulled my underwear down, his hands under my butt to lift me higher. My head was spinning. I wondered if you could actually die from pleasure overload. Every part of my skin was on fire, sensitive to the point where the bed felt like it was sparking energy across my body.

  When my underwear was gone, Xander returned to exploring my body, taking his time as he touched me, moving his tongue over me. “I need…,” I begged.

  “You need…,” he repeated, lifting his head up.

  “More,” I gasped out. “I need more. Now.”

  He tilted his head to the side and his beautiful eyes shone. “All you had to do was ask, Avalon.”

  He reached for the protection, and somehow got naked and put the condom on in the same single movement. For someone who didn’t normally need to use protection, he was skilled at getting it on. He moved over the top of me again, and I reached out to wrap my arms around him. As he lowered down toward me, my legs wrapped around him too.

  “I’m really liking the 'benefits' part of this arrangement,” I murmured as he slowly entered me. So slowly that it was almost like torture. The sort of torture I would sign myself up for anyday.

  “I got you, Avalon,” he murmured, his lips already moving across my throat as his body moved inside of mine. “You will never leave my bed unsatisfied.”

  As another gasp left me, I knew that every word he spoke was the truth. As long as I could continue to protect my heart, I was in safe hands with Xander.

  Chapter 13

  It turned out that five was the exact right number of condoms needed to satisfy Xander. And … if I was being truly honest, me as well. By the end I was exhausted and fulfilled in a way I’d never been before. Daelighters had a lot more stamina than human males, that I could attest to. I’d only been with a few guys before Xander, of course. The ocean was a much bigger priority to me than sex, but the difference was very clear.

  “Come on,” Xander said, after we’d finished session five—both of us crashed out on the bed, covered in sweat, breathing heavy. “I think it’s time for us to clean up.”

  I groaned, trying to lift my hand up to cover my eyes, but not having the strength to move it. “Too tired,” I mumbled at him. “Dead.”

  He laughed, this low intoxicating rumble, and my insides tightened. Holy shit. It was like my body had been trained. In half a damn day. Trained to respond to his husky voice.

  Before I could hurt myself with all that thinking, I was lifted up and thrown over his shoulder. Gently. But my breath still whooshed out because I wasn’t ready for it.

  Xander slapped a hand on my ass, holding me in place as he walked toward the bathroom. “You need water,” he said, moving with graceful strides.

  From my current position, I was staring at his perfect ass. Firm, with the long lines of his thighs flashing beneath as he walked. Jesus. Maybe I’d just stay here for a few hours.

  His hand on my butt started to move slowly up and down. I groaned. “No more. We don’t have any more condoms. So … control yourself.”

  He laughed again. “Easier said than done when you’re naked across me like this.”

  I huffed. “You threw me across you, and … just shut up.”

  His entire body shook as his laughter rocked through us. I realized that up until this point I’d barely heard him even chuckle. He had been so closed off when I first saw him … so angry. I wondered if his attitude problem back then had been about me, an expression of his annoyance at being “forced” into a relationship by the fates, or if there was more going on in his life, more that weighed on his mind.

  I wanted to ask him. I was a naturally curious person, but something told me that question might destroy the very fragile peace we were currently experiencing together. I was not ready to go back to Asshole Xander yet.

  Xander paused, then there was a light jolt as he stepped down. I couldn’t see anything, but warm water washed over my legs. My body went even more blissed out as warmth surrounded me.

  “Arghhh, sofreakinggood,” I mumbled, when he lowered us. My words cut off as our heads went under the water.

  The bath had to be massive, because as he released me I could spread myself out and still not touch the sides. It was also at least six feet deep from what I could see below.

  As I floated on the top, facedown, Xander’s face came into clear view underneath. He was lying back on the bottom of the bath. I let my eyes rove down the length of him, greedily drinking in every naked inch. He pursed his lips, and I knew what was coming now. The exprendo channel. The bubble crashed into my face.

  “You need to stop looking at me like that,” he growled, the moment the water drained from
around my face. “Otherwise, we’re going to play the pull-out game.”

  I snort-laughed, because he was so damn confident. “I don’t play games when it comes to diseases and babies,” I shot back at him.

  I moved closer to him and the bubble around my head popped. As I brushed against him, he reached out and pulled me down, blowing another bubble out at the same time.

  “I would never put you at risk” was the first thing he said. “There are no diseases you need to worry about from me.”

  “What about pregnancy?” I asked, trying not to think about what else he’d said. “Never put you at risk” was a very caring sort of statement.

  He moved under me and I groaned, my legs winding around his waist. “Pregnancy … still a possibility. A very small possibility because we don’t know if we’re that compatible. In truth, Royales do not view offspring the same way as a lot of other houses, but overlord children are different. Because of the royal bloodline, they stay with their family. I would not object to having a child with you, if you’d like to share that responsibility with me.”

  I froze then, trying to see his expression through the bubbles. That was the only thing I disliked about the exprendo channels—they distorted my underwater vision.

  “I was created by two parents who didn’t really love me,” I said slowly. “Or each other, from what I could tell. If I ever have a child, I want it to be with someone I plan to love for the rest of my life. And considering my life now looks like it might be indefinite, that would be a rare find indeed.”

  I hadn’t, until this moment, stopped to think about the real consequences of living forever. I could love a human. But even if I found someone I could trust with this secret, I’d only be able to love them for a short speck of my life before they grew old and died. I wasn’t sure my heart could handle that.

  “What are you thinking?” Xander asked, sounding somber.

  “I’m not a Daelighter,” I whispered, “but I’m also not human. I don’t fit in anywhere. I’ve been alone most of my life … and I can’t see how that is going to change for the rest of eternity.”