Midnight Flame and Crowns : a Shifter and Demon Fantasy Romance Boxed Set

by Meg Xuemei X

  “We’ll go to Atlantis first,” Sebastian said and turned to Octavia. “But we’ll come back with an army to squash the demons, I promise.”

  Octavia swallowed and nodded. She couldn’t argue with that.

  Max touched the screen of a device on his wrist, and the needles and arrows inside twirled wildly before they aligned.

  “What is that?” Sebastian asked suspiciously, leaning closer to Max.

  “A magical compass,” Max said, yet his amused eyes stayed on me. “Never seen one before?”

  “How does it work?” Octavia asked before I could.

  “Earth is a big magnet that interacts with other magnets,” Max explained. “It draws the north end of a compass to align with its magnetic field.”

  “But we aren’t in the Upper Realm,” Sebastian objected, as if he knew science.

  “So we got a magical compass, boy,” Max said.

  Sebastian glared at him, not fond of being called boy. But he couldn’t bully or tower over Max and Ash like he did the other diggers.

  I appreciated their resourcefulness. These males had come prepared.

  “We can’t just blindly follow the direction indicated by the magical compass,” I reminded them. “We’re in the demon realm, and the demons can be anywhere.”

  Max nodded. “Clever thinking, doll. We’ll have to avoid all the main roads, as the demon sentinels will be waiting for us at every outpost.”

  “Don’t call me doll, Max,” I grunted.

  I’ve never called any woman doll except you, doll, he said in my mind.

  I shook my head. I’d found that it was often pointless to argue with either him or Ash.

  “I’ve learned by heart the geography of the Underworld,” Octavia chimed in. “That’s our first training. We all prepared ourselves for this day, to serve the Queen of the Flame in every capacity.” She surveyed the area. “We’re now in Cocytus, the land of lamentation. In which direction will you decide to go, Lord Max?”

  Max flashed her a grin. “Just Max will do,” he said. “I have no penchant for the title of lord. We’ll go south.”

  “That will be Acheron, the land of woe,” Octavia said.

  Sebastian smiled at my courtesan friend. “It’s good to have you with us, Octavia.”

  She beamed back. It seemed their romance was going to bloom before mine did.

  I stole a quick glance at Ash and Max, only to find that they were watching me. I turned away and marched ahead, determined to return home before Mom and Dad took off to the far galaxy.

  CHAPTER 15

  _____________

  “It’s not that way, Blossom,” Ash said with a chuckle.

  “It’s dark,” I complained. “Who knows which way is which.”

  It wasn’t that dark, but I didn’t want to admit I was still overwhelmed by what I’d learned about my heritage and the danger that lay ahead.

  “That’s why you have us.” He veered me toward the south, his large hand lingering on the small of my back, unwilling to break contact.

  Even though the contact came through layers of fabric, a shiver of pleasure slithered up my spine.

  I wanted more of his scorching touch. But if heat kept rising in me and between us, we’d never get out of here. It would be all too easy to sink into a mating frenzy if I allowed this indulgence.

  I was incredibly horny, but I was also pragmatic. So I stepped away from the fae prince.

  “That’s wise,” Max said in approval, yet he failed to conceal the thick desire in his deep, rich voice. “This is going to be harder than I thought.”

  The mating call summoned and commanded us, driving us to the land of madness, especially after Max and Ash had revealed that I was their mate.

  What are you waiting for? it demanded. Mate already.

  We aren’t beasts, I hissed back.

  “There isn’t even a cold shower in the wilderness,” Ash sighed.

  Max snorted. “Like a cold shower would help.”

  Despite my misery, I bit my bottom lip to suppress a darkly amused chuckle. At least I wasn’t the only one who was suffering the shit storm of lust.

  “I have superior night vision,” Ash said. “I can see for both of us, Ayanna. All you need is to stay by my side.”

  My birth name rolled off his tongue sensually, sending a shiver of pleasure up my spine. Even his voice had that kind of effect on me. What if he ran his hand all over me? First, he could cup my breasts, knead my nipples, and then slide all the way down…

  Helplessly, my mind drifted to images of the fae prince pounding between my thighs. His big cock filled me and thrust into my depths.

  Would he fuck me differently than Elijah had?

  Stop, Calamity, I ordered myself. I mean it. Just stop.

  “No, thanks, Ash,” I said. “I can see pretty well in the dark.”

  Then I realized I’d told them that the darkness confused my sense of direction just a minute ago. I shook my head and hoped they didn’t catch on to my inconsistency. This throbbing mating need was addling my mind.

  We trod on.

  The big cat rushed ahead. Ash and Max strode on either side of me. Octavia and my brother trailed behind.

  Ash and Max refused to let me carry anything except for Dreamkiss, the angelblade that was made for me. I’d thought it was because I was a woman and they were gentlemen, but they had no issue letting Octavia carry a bag or two.

  The ground grew less frozen as we headed farther south. The gray light pierced the thick clouds. Dawn was here.

  “So, what exactly are you, Max?” I asked, unable to hold back my curiosity anymore. If he was my mate, he should at least let me know his heritage, right? I wouldn’t get into a relationship with anyone who I knew nothing about.

  “I’m a hybrid of vampire and Sváva,” Max said. “Elijah is my half-brother.”

  “What is a vampire?” I asked. He might be the first vampire in the Underworld.

  “Uh,” Max said, perplexed.

  Probably no one had asked him this question before. It was like asking a human what a human was, or asking my brother what a dragonian was. He looked at me, trying to find the proper words. My heart fluttered at his smoldering-hot expression.

  I sighed. This intense attraction would never get old.

  When a lock of his chestnut hair dropped into his eyes, all I wanted was to brush it away. I’d thought I only felt lust for them, and this new, tender feeling scared me more than the mating fever.

  Despite the fact that they had fought for me and saved me, I still didn’t know much about them. I didn’t even know their races.

  Max froze, as if mesmerized by the tenderness in my eyes.

  “I can answer that for him,” Ash said, shattering the moment, and Max threw his companion an outraged look.

  “A vampire is a supernatural being that feeds on the blood of all living things,” Ash said. “It’s also commonly believed that a vampire is remade from a reanimated corpse. Legend says that a vampire is allergic to garlic and holy water, and the only way to kill a vampire is to stick a wooden stake into its heart. And the only way to kill an original vampire is to use the white oak.”

  “What?” It was my turn to stutter as I gave Max a once-over. No way was he that kind of creature, but Ash looked deadpan serious.

  I heard a gasp and looked over my shoulder. Sebastian and Octavia widened their eyes and dropped their jaws. Sebastian was one step away from rushing to me and dragging me away from Max.

  “Fuck off, fae,” Max snarled. “Can you stop being an ass for one second? Don’t ever try to confuse my future mate and ruin my chances with her. I’m not one of those remade undead.”

  “Where’s your sense of humor, bloodsucker?” Ash smirked. “I didn’t say you’re part of the majority of vampires, who all have pale skin and dark countenances, since you can obviously walk under the sun and get a tan. However, the vampire part of you does need to feed on the vital force of the living, preferably blood, and Ayanna h
as to know that part of you. I won’t lie to her for you.”

  “I don’t need to sink my fangs into anyone’s veins to feed,” Max hissed. “I’m a primordial, superior vampire.”

  I blinked. “You have fangs, Max? But I’ve never seen them.”

  “When I need blood badly or when I get angry, my fangs come out,” Max said reluctantly. When he gazed back at me, anger and harshness melted from his handsome face right away.

  I’ll never hurt you by any means, doll, he said in my head.

  “I don’t mind your fangs,” I said. “My brother also has a pair of them when he’s upset. He once bit a mean digger who tried to hurt me. That was the first time I found out that he has fangs.”

  “Which digger?” Ash snarled.

  “I took care of the fucker,” Sebastian said. “He never laid a hand on my sister again.” He then raised a hand in order to ask questions, wearing a worried look on his blue face. “Max, are there many vampires in the Upper Realm?”

  “They’ve grown in number as the human populace exploded,” Max said. “But the supernaturals on Earth are still the minority.”

  “And you aren’t like the remade undead vampires Ash talked about?” Sebastian asked. He wanted to make sure I wouldn’t end up with an undead.

  “I was born a half-vampire, half-Archangel,” Max said. “A branch of the fucking Sváva race used the original vampire blood to experiment and created the undead vampire race, and they spread like a virus in the galaxies. The new vampire race is as notorious as the fae.”

  Ash hissed.

  “Yep,” Max said with satisfaction, pulling me closer to his side as we trekked on the edge of the road, over dried grass and rocks. “Fairies are noted for trickery and cruelty. They’re commonly believed to be creatures of malice on Earth. Humans have to put salt and iron around their fences to protect themselves from the fae. I’ve heard all sorts of stories about fairies stealing human babies.”

  Ash spat. “Lies! What do we need human babies for?”

  “You tell me. You’re their prince,” Max said with a shrug. “If you refuse to reveal your secrets, as you fairies love to keep dirty secrets more than anything, I don’t mind spilling the beans for Ayanna. She has to know. For one, everyone is saying that the fae need human babies since immortal fae have issues with reproduction.”

  “We don’t steal babies.” Ash gritted his teeth. “We don’t want mortals among us to taint our pure blood. The humans regard us as gods.”

  “I see,” Max said, arching a mocking eyebrow. “The fae are also elitists and racists. But aren’t trolls part of your kind, too? You haven’t come out of your ivory tower in the Twilight Realm for a while, so you might not know that the most popular human opinion is that your species originated from the devil.”

  “Do I look like a devil?” Ash said, his voice low and threatening.

  “Maybe one in disguise?” Max offered. “Who knows what’s really beneath a person these days.”

  Sebastian and Octavia had moved to walk with us. They were as curious about the Upper Realm as I was.

  They traded a bewildered look at the mention of the devil, then glanced at me.

  I had no idea what the devil looked like, either. Maybe he looked like the Emperor of the Underworld. I had seen his form, morphing between an angel and a demon.

  “Stop, Ash, Max,” I sighed. “You’re better males than that.”

  This mating fever had gotten them so riled up that they had to take out their aggression on each other to blow off steam. Right now, they were merely throwing insults, but soon they’d escalate to violence.

  I’d seen how lust drove men to the edge in the tunnel, and I bet their base lust paled in comparison to the intense carnal need coursing between Ash, Max, and me.

  “You can’t let it get to you,” I added, appealing to their honorable side, which I knew in my gut they possessed. “If you aren’t worthy, disciplined males, you’d never have come to hell for me. I expect you to bring my brother and me home safely.”

  “She’s right,” Max said with an exasperated sigh. “We should be better males for our mate instead of acting like fucking adolescents.”

  “This is getting out of control, fuck,” Ash said in agreement.

  “If we don’t get it under control, we might let our woman get hurt,” Max said.

  My heart swelled at him calling me their woman.

  “You watch the sky, vampire, and I watch the ground,” Ash said. “We won’t let anything harm her.”

  “I’m not some damsel,” I protested.

  Ash grinned at me, fire burning in his blue eyes. I wondered if the women in the Upper Realm all fawned over his killer smile and gorgeous looks, and the thought sent a stab of possessive jealousy into the center of my heart.

  Did Max and Ash have a complex romantic past? What kind of women were their types? I tore my thoughts away from the dark path.

  “I must clarify a few misconceptions about fae, Blossom,” Ash said. “We share similar features with the humans, but we aren’t humans. They regard us as a fairer species, and some of them worship us, while the ignorant and fundamentalists hate us, as they hate all supernaturals. We, the fae, are immortal beings who possess magical powers that come from Mother Earth. But during these last few centuries, Earth has shifted to welcome the age of technology, and the magical realm is fading, so most of my kind have left Earth. I’m among the last ones who still linger in the Twilight Realm and hold on to the remnants of the magic on the planet.”

  My heart ached, and I suppressed an unreasonable fear that he’d abandon me.

  “Will you leave with the last of your kind after we return to the Upper Realm?” I asked.

  “I was about to,” he said softly, his eyes full of tenderness and heat. “Now that I’ve found you, I’m not going anywhere without you.”

  “We’re already bound to you,” Max said.

  A current of warmth and gratitude washed over me. My life had turned upside down, in a good way, all because of the arrival of these males. And now I knew why I’d been obsessed with going to the Reaper landing site every time the airship returned.

  Somehow, deep in my soul, I’d been waiting for them.

  We jogged in silence for a while, and the heat, need, and want in me only grew stronger with every step.

  Liquid fire licked between my thighs, growing thicker and more intense, making my flesh throb and ache. I tried to squeeze my thighs together, but while I was walking, I couldn’t achieve that. And I for sure didn’t want to embarrass myself by walking funny.

  I bit my inner cheek until I tasted my own sweet, metallic blood, yet the pain couldn’t overpower the flames of lust leaping higher and higher in me.

  There was only one way to quench it—fuck the two males on this rocky terrain, over and over, until I passed out from mating with them.

  That’s out of the question, I shouted at the maddening drive in me.

  Unable to help myself, I stole a sidelong glance at Max. His amber eyes turned molten gold as equally potent lust blazed in them.

  That was not good. That was fuel to my fire.

  My heart pounding, I tore my gaze from the bulge in the front of his pants. I shouldn’t even have looked there, but I couldn’t help it. The next moment, I fought hard to erase the image of his large cock nudging at the entrance of my pussy, teasing and rubbing, before driving into my molten core.

  Panting, I snapped my head to the other side, only to find Ash sniffing.

  A flush crept up my cheeks.

  Both males had a superior sense of smell. Ash had obviously scented my arousal. A pained look of longing and desire filled his ice-blue eyes, turning them to flaming blue.

  He looked like he wanted to pull my pants down and fuck me where I stood.

  With a profane curse, the fae prince shifted into a massive gray wolf to defuse the tension. I could see that he was a hair away from pouncing on me. Then the wolf whimpered. The scent of my pheromones was probably to
o potent in the air; even I felt like I could smell it.

  The wolf gazed at me as if I was the most delicious thing, yet I didn’t think he regarded me as food.

  He knew I was his mate.

  Even in his beast form, Ash couldn’t take it anymore. He raised his beautiful gray head, howled, and bolted ahead like a flying arrow under the gloomy sky of dawn.

  “What’s that for?” Sebastian called in alarm, then darted his eyes around to seek threats. “If there’s any danger, Prince Ash should stick around to defend my sister, right?”

  “Let him run,” Max said. “One of us will always be with Ayanna.”

  Killian roared with joy and shot after the gray wolf.

  “If I’m not mistaken, I think the three of them are fighting the mating call,” Octavia whispered to Sebastian. “I heard of the legend of true mates and the mating fever they have to endure for each other, but I didn’t think that it was possible until I witnessed this phenomenon today.”

  “Mating call?” Sebastian asked in puzzlement.

  Octavia swatted his arm for his loud whisper.

  I could no longer take it, either. The mating fire was burning every inch of my skin. I leaned toward Max, but before I grabbed him to take him down to the ground and mount him, I bolted after Ash.

  “I need to run,” I shouted over my shoulder at my companions.

  “But you haven’t had breakfast yet,” Sebastian called after me.

  Max nodded. “I’m coming, too, doll.”

  He reached me in seconds, keeping his easy pace with me.

  The fire between my thighs wouldn’t abate.

  “Uh, Max, maybe I should run alone?” I said. “You can stay a few paces behind or jog ahead?”

  “It won’t help, doll,” he said with a dark chuckle. “It won’t stop until we fuck.”

  My cheeks burned hotter, despite the cold wind biting into my face.

  “We’ve finally found you,” he drawled. “The bond between us needs to be formed as soon as possible. The force that paired us together isn’t pleased about being put on hold.”

  “We can’t just mate like beasts here,” I hissed.