Tempted By Fate

by Cynthia Eden

  “I’ll get one of the hounds to bring her back!” Leo thundered. “I have to find a way. The spell will work. Mora will come back—I’ll make a deal, I’ll do anything—”

  “Bloody fucking hell,” Luke swore as understanding sank in, and he used one of Julian’s absolute favorite expressions. “A deal with a hellhound…”

  Then he was stalking toward the cell door. He barely hesitated as he opened it…Leo won’t attack. And he needs me.

  He strode into the cell and made his way to Leo’s side. Then, sighing, Luke let his own claws out once more as he sliced his wrist so that his blood would join Leo’s. “It’s not your blood that we need for this spell.”

  Leo looked up at him. There was hope in Leo’s stare. And he’s looking at me…the way he did when we were kids…when he was the brother—older by two minutes—who always thought we could do anything together.

  Locking his jaw, Luke said, “I’m the one who saved the hellhound’s life—Dax, remember? I’m the one who helped him, and I’m the one he owes. So we need my blood for this to work.”

  Impossible, of course…Mora couldn’t have planned for either him or Leo to save the hellhound that day, could she? Yes…yes, she did. And if she’d planned for that, then she would have known that the hound would owe his savior. And the way to pay back that debt?

  Luke closed his eyes and summoned his power. “Dax…I’m calling in my debt. You hear me, hound? Bring back Fate. Bring her…now.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  He could smell brimstone and smoke, but Leo was worried those acrid scents just came from his own beast. His heart beat like a freaking drum in his chest, and hope clawed at him. Desperate, wild hope.

  Could Mora truly have seen all this coming? Could she have been pushing them all, trying to change the fate of everyone?

  Come back to me. Come back.

  “It’s not working,” Luke snapped. Frustration grated in his voice. “Dammit, I was so sure…I’m…sorry.” He started to back away.

  Leo grabbed his brother’s hand. Their blood fell together. “We stand together.” They’d always been stronger together. “Dax, you bastard!” Leo roared as he threw back his head. “You owe a debt! Bring her back!”

  Fire erupted—just shot straight up from the stones at their feet. Leo didn’t stumble back. He didn’t even feel the burn against his skin. The fire blazed and crackled and then…

  The hellhound was there. Dax. The guy looked a little worse for wear…and he was holding Mora in his arms. Her hands were looped around Dax’s neck. Soot covered her face and limbs. And she slowly turned so that her eyes met Leo’s.

  “Resurrection,” she whispered. Smoke drifted from her clothes—and from Dax’s.

  Hell, yes. He snatched her from the hellhound’s grasp. Leo yanked her against his chest and held her so tight that he was probably hurting her. She was pressed against him, her body warm and soft and real, and his life wasn’t chaos. He could think and feel and everything he felt—

  “Don’t send me back.”

  Leo lifted his head. Over her shoulder, he saw that Dax was swaying.

  “I’ll…I’ll make any deal,” Dax gasped. “Just…don’t send me back…”

  Dax’s desperate stare was on Leo.

  “Don’t send him back,” Mora whispered, her voice barely a rasp. “Please, Leo, don’t…please…”

  His gaze shifted back to her. “You never have to beg me for anything.” He pressed a kiss to her lips. She’s real. And I will never let her go again. “The deal…” Now his voice was as much of a rasp as hers had been. “The deal is that you’ll protect Fate. Always. If she ever leaves this world…” Once more, he glanced at Dax. “Then you bring her back to me.”

  Dax nodded. “Agreed.”

  Fuck, yes.

  Leo squeezed Mora even tighter. Held her even closer. She’d slipped from his world and everything…everything had gone dark for him.

  It wasn’t dark any longer.

  He kissed her again. She met him eagerly, rising onto her toes and putting her soft hands on his cheeks. She opened her mouth, and he just wanted to feast. He wanted—

  “So, yeah, this is great…” Luke drawled. “But you two kids seriously need to get a damn room.”

  Dazed, Leo lifted his head.

  “But how about you start by at least getting out of the cell,” Luke said with a wave of his hand.

  Leo stumbled out, pulling Mora with him. Luke followed and Dax rushed forward—

  But Luke slammed the cell door shut, blocking the hound. “Not so fast, hound. I’m not sure I trust you.” His body was tense. “And you’ll find that I added a few upgrades since your last little visit. As soon as I find a flaw in my security system, I eliminate that flaw. Once you’re in the cage…now the only way out for a hellhound is through this door.”

  Fear flashed on Dax’s face. “Not another cage…Don’t keep me locked up!”

  Mora’s body stiffened.

  Leo spoke before she could. “I trust him.” He would give that hellhound anything. Leo knew just how much he owed Dax. “He brought Mora to me.”

  Luke spun to face him. “Yeah, um, did you miss the whole story about how hellhounds had to be sent to the fire because they get so crazed? That they just want to destroy? That they—”

  “He’s only half-hellhound,” Mora announced quickly. “So his control will stay in place.” A pause. “I know his fate. I’ve seen it.”

  Luke’s gaze dropped to her face. He studied her a moment, then he slowly opened the cell door. A faint smile curved Luke’s lips as he mused, “You planned every move, didn’t you?”

  “You can only plan so much,” she replied, and there were echoes of weariness and pain in her voice. “Only do so much…without completely destroying lives.”

  Leo turned Mora toward him. His hands slid over her back. He couldn’t stop touching her. “Why didn’t you just tell me to resurrect you? Why not say the hounds were going to take you? Why not just tell—”

  “If I’d told you. then you never would have acted on your own. You never would have changed.” She pointed at Luke. “He never would have changed. People make choices. You both had choices to make. Just as I did. I put the dominos in place, but even I didn’t know where they’d fall, not in the end.”

  Dax had walked out of the cell. He stood there, his body shuddering and smoke still rising from his clothes. “What…happens now?”

  Mora’s hand was on Leo’s chest. She smiled up at him. “Leo takes his new place of power. He rules the Dark. The bad things aren’t going to know what hit them.”

  “What about me?” Luke demanded. “What in the hell am I supposed to do now?”

  She didn’t look at him. “I think you know.”

  He swore.

  “But then, I think you’ve always known.” Her head turned. “Thanks, partner. I truly couldn’t have done it without you.”

  And Luke inclined his head as a faint smile teased his lips. “Damn straight.”

  ***

  They were on a mountaintop—snow was falling lightly and the rest of the world seemed to be a million miles away. After she’d come back, Leo had asked Mora where she’d wanted to go.

  Her answer had been immediate. Someplace cold.

  So he’d taken her to this slice of paradise. She thought they might be in Switzerland, but…she wasn’t sure.

  She just watched the snow fall and thought about how truly lucky she was.

  The door opened behind her. Mora’s eyes closed. Her body tensed. His scent came to her. Masculine and sexy. Enveloping. Then she felt his warmth. Reaching out to her even though he was still steps away. She yearned. She ached.

  So when he finally did touch her, just his touch alone brought her pleasure. Because it was…his touch was like coming home.

  “Will you tell me what it was like?”

  Her eyes were still closed. “You don’t need to know, Leo.” Because it would just be something he used to torture
himself. There had been fire and pain, and Mora knew she’d never forget that terrible nightmare.

  And I wasn’t about to let Dax go back to the flames.

  “I want to know. I want to know everything about you, Mora.”

  She opened her eyes. The snow was so beautiful as it fell. She shivered.

  “It’s cold. We should go inside,” he said immediately. “I don’t want you to get sick.”

  Mora laughed. “I’ve never been sick.” She turned in his arms. “You don’t have to worry about that.”

  His face was solemn. The lines around his mouth seemed deeper than before. “I worry—I will always worry about you. I never want you to hurt, Mora. If something happened, if I lost you again…”

  She swallowed. “Do you want me to scry and see what our future holds?”

  “You are my future.”

  “And you’re mine.” She knew this with certainty. He’d been her future for a long time, but to ensure that future…so much had needed to be done. “I love you.”

  He lowered his head. His lips took hers. “I love you.”

  Tears pricked her eyes, but she didn’t let them fall. Wouldn’t let them fall. “I knew you’d get past the darkness. If you had the right people around you…you’d get past it when it took over.” The first true taste of darkness was always the most dangerous. “And once you had the darkness under control, then you’d be able to think clearly again. You’d find a way…” Her words trailed off.

  “A way back to you.”

  “I knew you’d find a way for me to get back to you.” She nipped his lower lip. “Now that you’re ruling the Bad Things, you’re going to need me at your side. You never know what might come your way.”

  His gaze drifted over her face. “What about the prophecy?” Leo asked gruffly. “Luke and I—the big final battle—”

  “Some prophecies aren’t literal. In a sense, you did die, Leo. The man you’d been is gone. You rule the dark now. And Luke? He’s different, too.” She hoped the world was ready for that difference. “You’re both safe. Balance is here, and that’s what matters.”

  Some of the tension left his face.

  Her smile stretched a bit. “You know what I’ve always wanted?”

  “Tell me. It’s yours.”

  “To make love in the snow. To feel the snow against my skin…and you inside of me.”

  She could feel the change in his body. A very distinct change.

  She leaned up closer to him. “Do that thing…” Mora invited. “Where you make our clothes vanish…”

  His hand waved. Their clothes were gone. He lifted her up, holding her easily and she wrapped her legs around his hips. He carried her out into the snow. Its cold touch was like heaven against her skin.

  I’ll always remember the fire, but I’ll also never forget the touch of snow and Leo’s kiss.

  His mouth was on hers. Kissing. Licking. Her breasts were tight and aching. His cock pushed at the apex of her thighs. She arched a bit, rubbing her sex over his hard length, not taking him inside, not yet, but enjoying the friction of his body.

  She enjoyed so much about him.

  He kissed a path down her neck, stopping in all of the spots she liked the best and holding her easily with his amazing strength. When the snowflakes touched her skin, he just kissed them away. Licked them away.

  And then she was ready for him because she couldn’t wait longer. His cock slid inside, lodging deep as the passion burned between them. He lifted her up and down, and her nails raked over his shoulders. The pleasure was building fast and she needed to slow it down because this moment mattered—she wanted it to last—

  But the climax hit her. A wild burst of pleasure that had her crying his name even as she felt him inside of her, exploding and coming as he held her in an unbreakable grip.

  Mora rode out the pleasure with him, blind for a time to everything around her, and when her eyes opened again…

  They were in the snow.

  Leo was on his back, with her cradled above him. He was still inside of her, and she knew they’d be making love again.

  So they did. Only this time, she was in control. When his hands reached for her, she pushed them back down. She slid them over the snow and she rode him, rising and falling slowly, taking her time, drawing out the pleasure because she wanted it to last and last and last…

  They climaxed together. A wave so hot she was surprised it didn’t melt all of that wonderful snow. Soft snowflakes still fell down on her, dusting over her skin as Mora’s breath heaved in and out, and her heart slowed back to its normal rhythm. She stretched on top of him, and her hands pressed to his chest as she stared down at him.

  Then she laughed.

  A bemused expression crossed his handsome face. “Mora?”

  “Not sure how we did it…but you look like an angel.” The marks around his body…a perfect snow angel. She could see his wings so clearly in the snow.

  “I’m far from an angel.” A wicked light made his eyes shine. “I think that deal belongs more to my brother now.”

  Yes, she supposed he was right.

  Then Leo was surging up, holding her easily and her laughter came again as he carried her back into the cabin. There was no more need for worry or fear. She had her fate…he was holding her in his hands.

  “I love you,” Leo whispered.

  And even in the cold, his words made her warm.

  ***

  Luke Thorne had been called many things in his very, very long life. Evil. Bad. The Devil himself…

  But now, it would seem he had a new title.

  “Are you sure about this?” The question came from his delectable Mina. Her beautiful face was adorably worried as she bit her lower lip. “There are angels here.”

  He pressed a tender kiss to her cheek. “I know, love, that’s the fun part.”

  A line of angels waited in front of him. All of the good paranormals would be coming to pay him a visit, coming to check out the new Lord of the Light.

  It was fucking fantastic.

  He might be ruling the Light, but he still had plenty of bad things up his sleeve. Oh, Mora, you think I didn’t know what you were doing? You were absolutely right. We were partners. I wanted Leo to live, too. And I also wanted to see…

  If it would be fun to raise a little hell in heaven.

  “Showtime,” Luke whispered.

  A nearby angel flinched.

  Luke smiled, but he knew his grin held a wicked edge.

  Some habits were just hard to break.

  ###

  If you enjoy paranormal romance, keep reading for an excerpt from THE WOLF WITHIN, Purgatory, Book 1.

  The Wolf Within (Purgatory, Book 1)

  FBI Special Agent Duncan McGuire spends his days—and his nights—tracking real-life monsters. Most humans aren’t aware of the vampires and werewolves that walk among them. They don’t realize the danger that they face, but Duncan knows about the horror that waits in the darkness. He hunts the monsters, and he protects the innocent. Duncan just never expects to become a monster. But after a brutal werewolf attack, Duncan begins to change…and soon he will be one of the very beasts that he has hunted.

  Dr. Holly Young is supposed to help Duncan during his transition. It’s her job to keep him sane so that Duncan can continue working with the FBI’s Para Unit. But as Duncan’s beast grows stronger, the passion that she and Duncan have held carefully in check pushes to the surface. The desire that is raging between them could be a very dangerous thing…because Holly isn’t exactly human, not any longer.

  As the monsters circle in, determined to take out all of the agents working at the Para Unit, Holly and Duncan will have to use their own supernatural strengths in order to survive. But as they give up more of their humanity and embrace the beasts within them both, they realize that the passion between them isn’t safe, it isn’t controllable, and their dark need may just be an obsession that could destroy them both.

  The Wolf Within - Ch
apter One

  Special Agent Duncan McGuire raced around the street corner, chasing his prey even as his heartbeat thundered in his ears. Duncan’s partner, Elias Lone, was just steps behind him. No damn way were they letting the killer escape.

  The twisted bastard had already murdered four women in Seattle. Slashed their bodies. Torn out their throats. This nightmare was ending.

  Duncan would make it end.

  The perp rushed into an alley.

  Dead end, asshole.

  The killer didn’t know the city as well as Duncan did.

  His hold tightened on his weapon, and he leapt right into the entrance of that narrow alleyway. “Freeze!” Duncan roared. “FBI!”

  The perp—a man with long, shaggy, blond hair—was facing the brick wall that ended the alley. At Duncan’s shout, the man did freeze, for all of about twenty seconds. Then he started laughing as he spun to face Duncan and Elias.

  “You humans are so out of your league,” the blond snarled. His hands were up, and, as Duncan watched, the guy’s nails began to transform—

  Into long, black claws.

  The blond laughed again. “Just the two of you? This should be so easy.” His teeth were lengthening. Turning into sharp fangs. As Duncan watched, the man’s face elongated. His bones snapped.

  “Hell,” Elias muttered from behind Duncan. “You were right. He’s a wolf.”

  Duncan smiled, but didn’t take his eyes off the killer before him. “I told you, vamps would never waste that much blood.” Since Elias had just lost the bet, the guy owed him a hundred bucks. Duncan knew his werewolves.

  The blond seemed to realize that they weren’t exactly quaking in fear before him.

  “What?” Duncan asked, lifting a brow. “Is this the part where we’re supposed to act shocked because you can grow fur and howl at the moon?”

  “You fuckin’—”

  “Sorry,” Duncan muttered, “but you’re hardly the first Para that we’ve taken down.” Actually, Duncan and Elias were part of an elite unit that only hunted the paranormals in Seattle. The paranormals usually hid in plain sight, mostly managing to pass for humans.