by I. T. Lucas
“How?”
“He didn’t elaborate.”
Leaning against him, Ella sighed. “It was cool what you did in there.” She lifted up on her toes and kissed his cheek. “My hero.”
31
Ella
Julian was a badass.
Was it wrong to think even more highly of him because he’d almost killed two druggies?
Maybe the old Ella would’ve thought so, but the new Ella, the one who’d been touched by evil, appreciated having a strong protector at her side.
But that wasn’t the only reason she was feeling a weird happy feeling deep down in her stomach. To do what he had done, Julian couldn't be as pure as she’d built him up to be.
She’d seen the savage hiding just under the surface of the civilized, well-mannered doctor, and he’d excited her.
Not that she wanted him to be like that all the time. Cavemen were not her style, but Guardians and warriors were. Men who fought not for the sake of fighting, but to protect what they held dear. She had a feeling that Julian could have made an excellent Guardian.
Perhaps it was the career change he should look into?
Should she suggest it?
He had been deep in thought throughout the short drive from the hotel to the village. Figuring he needed time to process what had happened, Ella hadn’t interrupted, but now that they were walking toward her house, the silence stretching between them felt awkward despite the closeness of having their arms wrapped around each other.
Especially since Julian hadn’t calmed down yet. He was doing his best, and if not for his immortal tells she would have assumed he was fine. But his eyes were still glowing, and his back muscles were tight where she was touching them.
Maybe a little diversion was needed and talking about a career change might just be the thing.
“Have you ever considered becoming a Guardian?”
Julian chuckled. “When I was a kid, I hero-worshiped Kian. He was everything I wanted to be. A warrior who was also a great businessman and a respected leader. But then, I also worshiped my mother. It was a hard choice, but she convinced me that my talents were better suited to medicine than battle.”
“Well, I think you could be an awesome Guardian. So, if you’re still contemplating a career change, that’s something you might want to consider.”
“Thank you. That’s a very nice compliment, but being a Guardian is not as glamorous as it seems. Most of the time what they do is kind of boring, which is good because no one can function at high levels of stress indefinitely.”
Ella smiled. Her diversion tactic had worked. Julian’s eyes were no longer glowing, and he was back to his old, calm and civilized self.
Now the question was how to get him to kiss her before they got to her house.
Strangely, the unpleasant incident had brought them closer. On top of everything else, now they were also partners in crime, and that new closeness had brought about an unexpected side effect.
A craving for more physical closeness.
Ella didn’t want to go home. She wanted to spend the night in Julian’s arms and keep him safe from the bad dreams that were inevitably going to assail him after the violence he’d done.
The aggression had been so out of character for him, and it obviously bothered him.
Except, that would be unfair to Julian on several levels. As long as she wasn’t ready to have sex with him, she shouldn’t torment him like that. Maybe she should listen to Carol and just go for it?
What was the big deal? It wasn’t as if it was going to be her first time. And she wanted Julian.
But then there was the issue of freaking Logan.
“What are you thinking about?” he asked. “I can feel your agitation rising by the minute.”
She cast him a sidelong glance. “I thought you couldn’t read my mind.”
“I don’t need to. It’s enough that I look at your face. You’re very expressive when your guard is lowered.”
“That’s your doing. You make me feel safe.”
“That’s a good thing, right?”
“Yeah, I guess so. I didn’t do it consciously, though. I’m usually hyper-aware and careful about what I reveal with my facial expressions and body language.”
“So, what’s troubling you?”
She shrugged. “I want things that I cannot have.”
“Like what?”
“Like going to sleep with you in your bed and holding you throughout the night because I know you’re going to have bad dreams. But that’s unfair to you because I’m not ready for more than kissing.”
And then there was Logan and the game she was playing with him. She couldn’t tell Julian about that.
Talk about hurting a guy.
Blue balls were easier to deal with than a blue mood. At least in her opinion. A guy might have a different perspective on that.
“I don’t want to go to sleep alone either. I won’t lie to you, it’s going to be hard to have you in my arms and not do anything, but I’d rather have that than not having you there at all. And don’t worry about me starting something. You are in the driver’s seat, Ella. Nothing happens unless you initiate it.”
That shouldn’t have brought tears to her eyes, but Julian’s kindness and thoughtfulness were just too much. Even the old, naive Ella hadn’t thought guys like that existed.
And yet, she couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed too.
Damn, she was confusing herself. On the one hand were the cravings, and on the other were the fears, and she was continually teetering between them.
Hiding her little emotional meltdown, she looked away. “I need to tell my mom that I’m not coming home tonight.”
32
Kian
Usually, when the alarm went off at five in the morning, Kian was already awake. His body knew the rhythms of his days.
Not this morning, though.
When the annoying music started, he reached for his phone, turned it off, and went back to spooning his wife. Her naked body was so warm and soft, molding perfectly into his and robbing him of the willpower to get himself out of bed.
“Good morning,” Syssi mumbled sleepily.
He nuzzled her neck. “I’m feeling lazy today. I think I’m going to skip the workout.”
She turned in his arms and kissed his chin. “What’s the matter, couldn’t sleep?”
After they’d made love last night, twice, once in his home office and the second in the shower, Syssi had fallen asleep as soon as she’d gotten in bed.
He, on the other hand, couldn’t fall asleep for hours. It wasn’t often that he felt so conflicted about a decision, but using Ella to entrap Lokan made him uneasy. Not only that, both Ella and Vivian were still human and, therefore, more at risk of getting hurt.
And pushing Ella into having sex just so she could transition was even worse. Vivian could go for it, but then she might be out for a long time.
In short, Kian was stuck with using two fragile human females to entrap a very powerful and dangerous immortal.
He wasn’t going to back away, though. The upside of capturing Lokan outweighed any misgivings he might have, but that didn’t ease his conscience.
“I have a bad gut feeling about using Ella and Vivian to entrap Lokan, but at the same time, I can’t afford not to use them. And the thing is, I don’t know why I’m so worried. On the face of it, the plan seems foolproof.”
Syssi sighed. “There is no such thing as guaranteed success. But Turner knows what he’s doing. He proved that and then some with the rescue he orchestrated, and how well everything turned out. You can trust him to keep mother and daughter safe.”
“That’s what I’ve been telling myself last night. But it didn’t help. It’s just unconscionable to send Ella into danger so soon after what she’s been through. She is just a kid. And sending her mother with her isn’t making it any easier.”
Cupping his cheek, Syssi gave him a closed-mouth kiss. “I know what will
make you feel better. Let’s get up and have breakfast together, and then go back to bed for a morning delight.”
“Why get up?”
She chuckled. “Because your wife needs to brush her teeth and pee. And you should know by now that she can’t make love in the morning before drinking at least two cups of coffee first. The other day was a one-time exception.”
That was true, and the reason for a five o'clock wake up.
Syssi didn’t want him leaving the bed while she was still asleep, and she wanted them to have breakfast together before they left for work, which meant that his workout had gotten squeezed into a twenty-minute routine with free weights that he kept in their master closet.
A far cry from the full hour he used to spend at the gym, but it was a sacrifice well worth making.
“Then up with you, Mrs. Morning Coffee.” Reaching down, he playfully smacked her bottom.
“I’m up!” She scooted off the bed and rushed into the bathroom.
He watched her cute little bottom swaying from side to side. Knowing that she wasn’t doing it on purpose made it even sexier.
Kian’s bathroom routine was much shorter than Syssi’s, and when he was done, he put on a robe and went out to the kitchen where a tray was waiting for him.
“Good morning, Okidu. Thank you for breakfast.”
His butler smiled and bowed. “It is my pleasure to serve, master.”
Taking the tray back to the bedroom, Kian put it down on the table. He was pouring coffee into the two porcelain cups when Syssi came out of the bathroom wearing a silk kimono robe.
After watching an old rerun of Shogun, she’d decided that Kian would look even better than Richard Chamberlain in a kimono and had bought them a matching pair.
“Thank you,” she said as she lifted her cup.
He watched her face as she took the first sip, waiting for the look of pure bliss that always followed.
Syssi didn’t disappoint.
Sitting on the couch next to him, she leaned back with the cup in hand and kept on sipping slowly until it was all gone, and then handed it to him for a refill.
Other than lovemaking, their morning routine was the favorite part of his day.
He wondered how it would change when they had a child. Perhaps Syssi wouldn’t mind handing the baby to Okidu so they could keep enjoying their mornings.
Yeah, he was a selfish bastard, already jealous of a child that hadn’t even been conceived yet.
“I think the bad feeling in your gut has nothing to do with premonition. You just feel bad about using Ella and her mom. But you shouldn’t.”
“And why is that? I would love to hear a good excuse for exploiting a traumatized eighteen-year-old for my selfish needs.”
Syssi waved a hand. “You see? You’ve just proved my point. It’s that kind of thinking that keeps you up at night and gives you stomach aches. Eighteen is the age young men and women are drafted into the army, given machine guns, and asked to defend their country. It’s not too young.”
She handed him the cup for another refill. “Besides, I think it will be therapeutic for Ella. She hates feeling like a victim. She wants to feel like she can make a difference, and she wants to feel strong.”
Kian added cream and sugar to the cup, stirred them in, and handed it back to Syssi. “She is already making a huge difference with the charity that she’s organizing.”
“It’s not the same.”
He arched a brow. “Did you talk with her? How do you know all that?”
“Observational skills.” Syssi winked. “And Carol. Apparently, Ella, Carol, Eva, and Tessa have all become good friends. Do you see the pattern?”
“Not really.”
She rolled her eyes. “It’s so obvious. Carol and Tessa have both gone through similar experiences and managed to overcome them. Carol was always a badass, and Tessa learned how to be one. Eva, as we all know, is the baddest badass of them all. They are Ella’s role models. That’s who she wants to be.”
“She’s only eighteen, Syssi. I’m old, but I still remember myself at that age and how reckless I was. I can understand her wanting to prove herself, but I can’t use it as an excuse to ease my conscience. Besides, what about Vivian? The poor woman might suffer a heart attack from stress.”
“Vivian is only thirty-six, Kian. And if her heart survived the stress before, it’s going to survive it now. Besides, can you afford not to use them?”
“Not really.”
“Then stop tormenting yourself and just make sure that they have the necessary protection.”
33
Syssi
Kian nodded. “As a leader, I’m often forced to make hard decisions. I accept it, but it doesn’t make me sleep any better.”
Syssi put her cup down and lifted a piece of toast. “Speaking about hard decisions. What’s going on with Perfect Match?”
“We are still negotiating. I did what you suggested and offered them full control over the development and design. That made them much more agreeable to selling me more shares and giving me a majority holding. They weren’t cowed by me, though, which I respect.”
“I’m so excited about this company. I wish it were mine.” She regretted the words as soon as they left her mouth.
Thinking out loud about things she wished for usually meant Kian getting them for her right away.
She waved a dismissive hand. “I meant the clan’s. It’s not like I want to run a company.”
Leaning, Kian whispered in her ear, “Liar. And you know what happens when you lie to me.”
As a wave of intense heat washed over her, her nipples tightened, and her core flushed with moisture in preparation for what his words had promised. Usually, games were reserved for the night, but the dice had been cast, and Syssi was more than ready to play.
As his hand snaked under the lapel of her robe, she sucked in a breath, then moaned when he pinched her nipple. Lightly, but the message was clear.
The game was on.
Letting out a whooshed breath, she closed her eyes and whispered, “Yes, sir.”
Pushing the coffee table further away, Kian spread his thighs. “Stand right here and take your robe off.”
His commanding voice alone was nearly enough for her to climax. Merlin’s potion was indeed making her hornier, and it manifested in her arousal going from zero to one hundred in a nanosecond.
Releasing the tie, Syssi let the kimono slide down her arms and then fall to the floor.
The bright glow in Kian’s eyes was a reminder that her husband was not human, and neither was she. Still, the games they played, although not mainstream, were not all that unusual.
Taking her hand, he guided her to lie down over his thighs.
As four smacks landed on her behind in quick succession, they weren’t gentle.
“What did I say about you lying to me?”
“That you’re going to spank me if I do.”
“You’re damn right. And especially when you want something and then deny it.”
The next ten were none too gentle either, and Syssi bit on her lower lip to stifle a whimper. But even though he was harsher with her than usual, her arousal flared just as hot if not hotter.
Syssi wished she could blame it on Merlin’s potion, but the truth was that she craved Kian’s dominance, and from time to time she needed more than his playful warmup type of play.
When he stopped, she thought the punishment part was over and tried to push up, but he held her down with his hand on the small of her back.
“I’m not done.”
She didn’t know how much more she could take, not because it hurt too much, but because she needed him inside her like she needed to take her next breath.
“Do you want to own Perfect Match?”
“I want us to own it. But it’s the same as the clan owning it. I don’t know why I said that I wanted it to be mine.”
“Tsk, tsk, sweet girl. I’m afraid you’re going to have a very sore bottom if
you keep lying to me like this.”
“I didn’t…”
“Ow! That hurt!”
It did, but instead of trying to get away or pleading with Kian to stop, which he would’ve immediately, she found herself pushing her bottom up for more.
It was true. She was certifiable, and it was time to embrace it and stop berating herself for it.
With another ten done, he rested his hot palm over her even hotter butt cheek. “Would you like to rethink your answer?”
For a long moment, she didn’t respond.
“I’m waiting.” He slid his finger down her wet folds but didn’t push it inside her or touch her where she needed it most.
“You’re playing unfairly. I can’t think when you’re doing that.”
He chuckled. “I’m just giving you an incentive to hurry up and tell me the truth. What do you really want, my sweet girl?”
“The truth?”
“Yes, and nothing but the truth.”
“Let me up.”
Lifting her, he turned her around and seated her in his lap. “I’m listening.”
She would have preferred to get on with the sex and talk later, but Kian wouldn’t have it.
“I don’t know why, but I have this silly wish to own that company. I want it to be mine, but it doesn’t make any sense. I don’t have time to get involved with it, and whatever is mine is yours anyway. And what belongs to the clan belongs to us too. It’s not a dress or a pair of shoes, or even a crazy expensive diamond ring. Although to be frank, I would have rather owned that company than the ring.”
He regarded her with a frown. “You are serious, aren’t you? If you were free to sell your engagement ring, would you have done it to buy Perfect Match?”
Did he have to remind her that it was his engagement present to her?
“Ugh, now you’re making me feel guilty. If it didn’t have a sentimental value attached to it, then yes. I would have. But since it’s my engagement ring from you, I can’t part with it.”