Love Eternal

by Nikki McCoy

  He yanked Dhani up and claimed his mouth as he kicked off his shoes and pants. Dhani pulled away only long enough to shed his own clothes, then jumped onto Tailor, wrapping his legs around Tailor’s waist. Their mouths fused together again and Tailor pressed the tip of his hard shaft firmly against his mate’s entrance. Anticipation raced like electric currents through his blood, goading him to take what Dhani offered, but his protective instincts flared, making him pause.

  He was a large man, and taking Dhani without preparation would hurt him. Tailor drew back and panted heavily into Dhani’s mouth. “We can’t do this here. I won’t hurt you.”

  Dhani merely smiled in understanding and pulled at one of Tailor’s arms. Tailor shifted his mate’s slight weight to his other arm, holding him easily. For a brief second, he marveled at the way Dhani’s slender body fit so perfectly against his. The way Dhani’s slim curves molded around his corded muscles like their bodies had been made for each other.

  Dhani drew Tailor’s hand to his mouth and sucked in two of his fingers. He lathered them with saliva, sliding his tongue evocatively around them as he had with Tailor’s cock. Tailor stared, enthralled at the erotic sight, until Dhani let go. He brought his fingers to his mate’s entrance and eased them in, rolling them to stretch Dhani’s entrance as much as he could.

  Dhani buried his face in Tailor’s neck and whimpered, “Please. Please, I need you.”

  The stark craving in his mate’s voice stole the last of Tailor’s reserve. He lined up the head of his dick with Dhani’s ass and sank himself into the depths of his mate’s hole. The sensation of Dhani’s hot ridges squeezing him tightly drove every other thought from his mind. He encircled his mate’s smaller frame in his arms and used the leverage to pump into him in long, deep strokes.

  Dhani clung to him, pressing his face into the curve of Tailor’s neck and groaning with panting breaths. The brace of his arms around Tailor’s neck strengthened, yet it didn’t counter the authority of Tailor’s control. The way he yielded to Tailor’s dominance, giving him all the control, caused tendrils of excitement to spiral throughout Tailor’s being.

  He pummeled into his mate harder and felt the demanding need of Dhani’s energy rise. It made his head swim and his cock throb with increasing pressure. Then Dhani threw his head back and shouted. Ropes of cum spurted from his rigid length, bathing them both.

  Tailor felt the force of his climax crest as Dhani’s muscles clamped down around him. He yelled out his own release as he impaled his mate onto his thick length one last time. His body shook with the tremors of his aftermath and he held fast to Dhani’s warmth until his legs threatened to give out.

  Without letting go, he knelt down then lay back onto the cold ground, smiling when Dhani curled up on top of him.

  Time passed with only their soft breaths and the sounds of nature surrounding them. Tailor closed his eyes, giving in to the tranquility in his soul. He surrendered to the feel of his mate encasing him and forgot about what the future might hold. Dhani was safe, in his arms, and that was all that mattered.

  * * * *

  A cool breeze wafted over Dhani, waking him from his slumber. He stirred and immediately felt a band of arms tighten around him. Tailor’s reassuring scent filled him, making him smile. He snuggled into his mate’s hold, tempted to go back to sleep, until a pang of hunger hit his stomach. When another draft of cool air made him shiver, he pushed himself out of Tailor’s grasp.

  Tailor lay underneath him, gazing up with infinite patience. It was an expression Dhani was becoming familiar with, yet one that still confused him. When had the asshole from his past turned into the knight in shining armor of his present?

  He instantly berated himself for that thought. Tailor didn’t deserve his anger, and Dhani was tired of clinging to the pain of his mate’s betrayal. That part of his life was over. Tailor had shown him nothing but acceptance since his return, and that alone was more than he ever could’ve hoped for.

  Tailor lifted a hand to thread his fingers through Dhani’s hair. Dhani leaned into the soothing gesture, until he caught sight of the deep furrows in Tailor’s chest. Four long claw marks had been scraped into Tailor’s flesh on each side, deep enough to leave marred trails of dried blood painting the skin over his ribs. Farther down were more lacerations in the same formation running from the top of Tailor’s abs to his lower midsection. It appeared as if a wild animal had tried to gut him.

  “How did you get these?” Dhani breathed as he brushed his fingers over the wounds. They were dark in the fading sunlight and flushed by swollen, red skin on the outer edges.

  Tailor frowned, then shook his head dismissively. “Nothing. How do you feel?”

  The question caught Dhani off-guard. He felt fine. It was his mate he should be worried about. Then the memories of what happened crowded into his head.

  His mother, Layzani, appearing out of nowhere. His blind rage and escape into the woods. The power of Roh Se Kahn’s soul rising up in response to his anger and challenging him for control.

  He’d been wild with the need to contain it. To keep it from devouring him. The more he’d resisted it, the more it had fought back with a cold so intense, he’d felt like he was burning alive from the inside.

  Then Tailor had shown up with his kindness and steel fortitude. He’d been the rock Dhani knew he could cling to. The only protection he could trust to drive away the fury of Roh Se Kahn’s madness with the emotions Tailor evoked in him. Even when he’d learned Tailor had kept Layzani’s presence a secret, he’d known his mate hadn’t meant to hurt him.

  Yet, he couldn’t say the same for himself. He recalled the threat he’d made when Tailor had tried to touch him. Only it hadn’t been his threat. By that time, the darkness in him had grown so powerful, it had temporarily slipped past his control. Roh Se Kahn had taken over and spoken through him. It had taken all that he had to reclaim his soul to keep Roh Se Kahn from harming his mate.

  He ghosted his fingers over Tailor’s wounds, too afraid to touch them. “I did this,” he whispered. The dark God may have taken control for a few brief seconds, but it had been his frantic need to take what his mate offered that had harmed Tailor in the end.

  Tailor took his hand and placed it on his chest above his beating heart. “You didn’t hurt me. I’ve suffered far worse, love. I know what’s going on. Roh Se Kahn still has influence over you. I don’t know how hard this must be for you, but I swear, I’ll be here to help you through it.”

  Dhani stilled in dread. Was it possible Tailor knew about the trade Roh Se Kahn had forced? That he’d taken a part of Dhani and replaced it with a piece of his own soul? More importantly, what had Tailor meant when he’d used the term ‘Love’?

  “What is it, daishen?” Tailor asked after a period of silence.

  Dhani frowned, unsure of what to think. “You used the word ‘Love’.”

  Tailor shifted his gaze to the side uneasily. “I know this isn’t the time, and I have no right to feel the way I do.” He took a deep breath then looked directly at Dhani. “I love you. I have since the day I met you.”

  Warmth bloomed in Dhani’s chest and his lips slowly curved up in a smile.

  “And not just because we’re mates,” Tailor continued. “You’re kind and forgiving in spite of everything you’ve gone through. I was a fool to push you away. An idiot. I was just scared of losing you like I’d lost Dominic. Not that I think you’re Dominic. I loved him, but you’re the one I want to be with. I love—”

  Dhani shut him up with a kiss. Excitement made his heart pound and his body soar with pleasure. So long… He’d waited so long to hear those words and had no doubt in his mind they were meant only for him. He’d never been jealous of Dominic. It had been Tailor’s unshakable love for his first mate that had made Dhani certain Tailor was worth waiting for. Any man who could love that completely could love again, if he was given the chance to.

  He sat up and blinked the tears from his eyes. “I love you, too.”


  Tailor met his gaze unwaveringly and gave a small smile. Dhani could feel the truth of Tailor’s conviction in his energy, yet it felt like there was something else Tailor was hiding from him. As though Tailor was purposefully suppressing a part of his emotions just as he had in the past.

  When Dhani shook with a chill from the wind, Tailor tapped him on the thigh. “We should get back.”

  Dhani hesitated at the sudden distance of his mate, but decided to let it go for now. He found his scattered clothes with Tailor’s help, then paused again while dressing when his thoughts veered back to Tailor’s previous statement. “What did you mean when you said you know Roh Se Kahn still has influence over me?”

  Dhani pulled on his shoes, avoiding his mate’s gaze and holding his breath. As thrilling as it had been to learn that his mate loved him, Tailor’s knowledge of the truth behind Roh Se Kahn’s scheme would put an end to their relationship faster than Dhani had foreseen. Duty was everything to Tailor. Dhani knew that. There was no way Tailor would ignore the fact that Roh Se Kahn would eventually overpower Dhani’s will and force him to carry out his plans.

  Tailor knelt to take Dhani’s face in both hands. “No one can go through what you have and come out unscarred. Being around him has changed you. It’s why your hair is turning white. I’ll never forgive myself for making you feel like you couldn’t trust me. I respect the sacrifice you made in giving your freedom for Keenan’s life, but I should’ve been there. I swear on my life Roh Se Kahn will never touch you again.”

  More moisture sprang to Dhani’s eyes as relief swept through him. So his mate didn’t know. He still had a little more time. Yet, how much was that time worth with the threat of Roh Se Kahn’s darkness looming over his head? Even now, he could feel the dark God’s soul hanging on the precipice of his tentative control. One more bout of rage and Dhani didn’t know if he would be able to come back from the edge of Roh Se Kahn’s insanity.

  I’ll just have to control my anger, Dhani told himself. He didn’t want to let his mate go for a second longer than he had to. Tailor was his sanctuary, his freedom, his love—if only for a short while.

  They shifted and headed back toward the cabin. Tailor led the way, streaming swiftly through the shaded trees. Sometime later, he cut in front of Dhani’s path to snatch up a field mouse peeking from its burrow. After snapping the mouse’s neck, he peered over at Dhani with an eloquent expression. Dhani rolled his eyes and mewled, then sought out a rabbit to feed on.

  When Dhani was done, he took off at a lope in the direction of the cabin. Tailor gave a shrill cry of displeasure at Dhani’s poor appetite, but Dhani couldn’t force himself to eat any more. His stomach was tied in knots over the prospect of seeing his mother again. With any luck, she’d heeded his sharp request and left, though he highly doubted it.

  At the steps leading to the cabin, he stopped and shifted back, frozen with trepidation. The lights were on inside and a slim profile paced in front of the windows.

  Tailor took back his human form beside him and took his hand. “You don’t have to do this. I can tell her to leave.”

  The temptation to let his mate take care of it was strong. The yearning Dhani had felt to see his mother again had died years ago, along with his innocence. It was so easy to hate her—to blame her for the misery of his life—but he couldn’t give in to that. Not with Roh Se Kahn’s soul hungering for the chance to feed off his anger and take control. “No. I have to do this.”

  They went into the cabin together and simultaneously flinched from the miasma of odors that assaulted them. On the coffee table in the living room was every food item known to man. The table was littered with pizza, chicken, sushi, Mexican food and several different varieties of Asian food he couldn’t begin to identify.

  Cy was chugging a beer when he walked in from the kitchen and almost choked in surprise at the sight of Dhani and Tailor. “Thank the Mother you’re both here. This woman ordered every Gods-damned meal from every restaurant she could find in the human town, then made me pick it all up. Have I eaten? No, of course not! ’Cause she wouldn’t let me!”

  Laya flashed him a menacing glare. “This is for my son.”

  Cy glared back. “I’m just sayin’, tip the driver. When did that custom become outdated?”

  Dhani fought the grin twitching at his lips. Cy was so much like Tailor, it was scary.

  Laya huffed then turned to Dhani in earnest. “I thought you might be hungry when you got back. I didn’t know what you’d like so…I got a little bit of everything.”

  Quinn came in from the kitchen waving a fried chicken T.V. dinner in his hand. “This is why humans are obese and why we’re following in their footsteps. When did fat become the main ingredient in convenience? We’re shifters, for fuck’s sake. We can feed off the— Dhani!” He dropped the dinner and ran to Dhani, pulling him into a tight hug. “Your mom told me you’d left. I had to come over to make sure you were okay.”

  Dhani returned Quinn’s hug, grateful for his concern. At the doorway to the kitchen was Quinn’s mate, Manning, who was pouring whiskey into the three glasses he held. He strode to Quinn and gently pushed him aside, saying, “Let the man breathe.” He handed a glass to Dhani. “Drink this. Trust me, it’ll help.” The second glass he gave to Tailor and the last he offered to his mate. When Quinn wrinkled his nose and averted his face, he shrugged and kept the glass for himself.

  Quinn reached out to touch a lock of Dhani’s hair. “Did you bleach your hair recently?”

  Dhani pulled his hair over his shoulder, noticing with dread that more of it had turned white. Fortunately, Laya interrupted before he could think of a lie.

  Laya cleared her throat, looking around at everyone nervously. “I appreciate the support all of you are showing my son, but I’d like to speak with him alone.”

  As one, all eyes turned to Dhani. He looked around at the familiar faces, seeing the worry and protection they all held for him, and was awed by their commitment to his safety. In their energies, he could feel their caring sentiment, even in Cy, who he trusted the least. It humbled him, and at the same time, gave him confidence.

  However, their presence couldn’t quite diminish the anger he felt over what his mother had done. Air rasped through his lungs as his throat constricted with pain. The darkness inside him surged forth and threatened to swallow him whole. He reeled around, gave the glass to Tailor then clasped onto Tailor’s bare midsection, pressing his forehead onto his mate’s solid chest. His palms sparked with the spitting electricity of Roh Se Kahn’s power fighting for dominance, causing Tailor’s body to jerk spasmodically.

  At any moment, Dhani expected Tailor to shove him away in suspicion or shock, or at the very least, fear. But Tailor didn’t. Instead, he pulled Dhani close and held him in the circle of his arms. Dhani knew he had to be causing his mate pain, yet Tailor refused to let go of him. The knowledge somehow brought Dhani back to his senses and gave him the courage to push down the darkness.

  He gulped in several deep breaths of air, trying to compose himself, then looked up to find the same infinite patience gazing down at him from his mate’s clear blue eyes.

  Tailor leaned down and whispered in his ear, “I’m not going anywhere.”

  Dhani nodded then took back his glass of whiskey and swallowed half of it. “I’m okay.” He walked to one of the recliners and sat down. To Laya, he said, “I want them here.”

  Laya gave a disapproving look. “Son, I don’t think—”

  “I’m not your son,” Dhani snapped. He took another calming breath when Tailor squeezed his shoulder then sat in the chair beside him. “Anything you have to say to me, you can say to them.”

  She paused, her lips twisting in an awkward smile. “Are you hungry?” When Dhani only gave her a deadpan stare, she straightened with a cursory nod. “All right then, I’ll get to the point.”

  She was silent for minute and walked to the fireplace as if gathering her thoughts. Quinn, Manning and Cy sat on the
couch opposite Dhani. Cy looked at Tailor then down at the welts on his chest, wiggling his brows with a knowing grin. Tailor merely narrowed his gaze in warning.

  “When I found Tailor,” Laya began, “I told him why I had to give you up. You father and I were bonded mates by the time I became pregnant with you. I loved him very much, but I learned later that he wasn’t the man I thought he was.”

  She went on to say that she’d discovered her mate was in league with many other Ba’Kal, Vam’kir and humans who all worshiped Roh Se Kahn. How they had devised a plan to free Roh Se Kahn from his prison with a dark spell that had been preserved and hidden for more than two millennia. By the time she’d found out who her mate truly served, it had been too late. The group had already started the incantation, testing it on several Ba’Kal needed for the light of their spirits.

  She claimed she’d tried to run away, but her mate had refused to let her leave. He couldn’t risk her telling anyone and was convinced she would eventually come to accept the dark God as the rightful ruler over all the races. For six years, he’d held her and Dhani captive at Roh Se Kahn’s castle until she’d managed to escape to the United States.

  Dhani frowned. “I don’t remember my father or growing up in a castle.” In all honesty, he barely remembered his mother. He had only vague snatches of his youth. The only thing he recalled clearly was the day she’d left him.

  “Of course you wouldn’t,” she said sorrowfully. “Your father kept us secluded and didn’t want to have much to do with you until you were older. I’d tried numerous times to escape, killing a few of the guards during my attempts. At that point, I think he would’ve killed me if our life forces hadn’t been tied together by our bond. I knew he would come looking for us and try to raise you as a follower of Roh Se Kahn. I had to give you up to keep you safe. It was the only option.”

  It made sense, though Dhani couldn’t imagine being so utterly clueless about one’s mate. He glanced over at Tailor, certain he would be able to tell if the man were keeping secrets that important from him. Then again, wasn’t he keeping a secret far worse? He harbored a sliver of the dark God’s soul, essentially putting everyone around him in danger. All because he couldn’t bear to let his mate go yet.