by Ann Aguirre
Chuch grinned, slapping him on the back. “I missed you, mano. And I’d have been pissed if you got out of buying my little girl presents so easily.”
“It’s good to finally meet you in person,” Booke said, offering his hand.
“You too. Thanks for taking care of her while I was gone.” Chance made it sound like he had been on a business trip. They shook firmly, then he hugged Shan around the neck. “Looks like you turned into a badass.”
Shannon hefted her sword. “This trims peen, you know. Hurt her and I’ll make you wish for demons. And welcome back.” She kissed his cheek.
After Eva hugged him again, we turned toward the exit. The warehouse looked like hell, but it had been almost this bad before we invited Armageddon out to play. No collateral damage, so Twila wouldn’t come gunning for me. Chance matched his steps to mine, his arm tight about me. He’d hardly let go of me since Kel died. At the Pinto, Booke tossed me the keys, and Shannon handed me the bag. My dog popped out, safe and sound. He had had the brains to hide while the worst shit was going down. To my amusement, he lunged from the purse toward Chance, who caught him, accepting the Chihuahua kisses as his due.
“I’ll give Booke and Shannon a ride,” Chuch said. “We can catch up tomorrow. I figure you’re all heading out soon?”
Booke nodded. In the starlight, his gaze was already far away as he planned his world tour.
Shan said, “No way. You’re stuck with me.”
“We’ll go as soon as she’s ready,” Chance murmured.
He guided me into the passenger seat, then ran around the car to drive. Anxious nausea rose in my throat. Please let the baby be all right. Please. If it turned out that I had chosen Chance over our child—I cut the terrified thought, but I felt sure he knew my worry as he pulled away from the warehouse. First, we stopped at a gas station so I could clean up a little. The way I looked, I was afraid I’d be admitted whether I needed it or not. Then Chance found a twenty-four-hour clinic.
There were a hundred questions, but with his natural charm, he came up with a story that satisfied the doctor on duty at this hour. The lateness made it so we didn’t have to wait. They ran a few tests, listened to the baby’s heartbeat, which Chance heard for the first time. His expression melted, tiger’s eyes liquid with love and wonder. He pressed a palm to my belly, his gaze locked on my face. At his request, they also checked my thigh beneath the wrap.
“You’re a lucky woman,” the doctor told me, warming up to a lecture. “No more hiking in dangerous areas. I understand how you daredevil types are, but you’ll have to put off the adrenaline rushes until after the baby’s born. Is that clear?”
“Yes, sir,” I said meekly, amused at the cover story Chance had devised.
“Take her home. See that she rests and drinks plenty of fluids. Her throat will heal in a few days.”
He thought I’d strained it screaming for help after a fall. Of course, the doc also thought I was an idiot for hiking and climbing on a bum leg while pregnant. But I was sure there were people that stupid in the world. It was definitely more plausible than the truth. In short order, we were back in the Pinto and heading to a hotel.
Any will do. The closest one.
Maybe it was an incomprehensible, unforgivable reaction, maybe it was hormones or a need to affirm the fact that we were alive and together, but I wanted to get naked with Chance. He rushed through check-in, and then he carried me through the lobby. He had no luggage. I had a few things in a backpack and a dog in a purse; that didn’t deter us. The elevator moved like a snail up to the third floor. This wasn’t a posh place, but the relentlessly airport lodge décor in the room couldn’t distract me from my need to touch him.
Evidently he felt the same way. As I was unbuttoning his shirt, he pulled mine over my head. With shaking, eager hands, we undressed each other. I led him toward the bathroom because after everything that had happened tonight, there would be no sex without a shower. Well, I needed one anyway . . . and I never turned down a chance to see him with water glistening on his tawny skin.
With tender hands, he unwrapped the bandage on my palm, then the one on my thigh. “I hate how much it hurt you, bringing me back.”
“Living without you would’ve hurt more,” I whispered.
He went for me with a growl, his mouth ravenous. His body felt incredibly good against mine, hard and hot, throbbing with need. Chance lifted me into the warm spray, then stepped in behind me. I went for a washcloth but he plucked it from my fingers with a laden look.
“Let me.”
“I could be persuaded . . .”
With deliberate care, he washed me all over, lingering on my breasts and between my legs. I moved against his fingers, maddened by the teasing, but he shook his head. “You need a bed, not shower sex.”
“But I like shower sex.”
He groaned. “I want to. But your leg.”
Yeah, the muscles in my thigh probably weren’t up to that level of acrobatics, however hot it sounded. A flash of a memory heated me all over. He’d taken me in Sheol like an animal—on desks, against walls—even when it was Ninlil, it was still me. Maybe I should be jealous of her, but she was gone, and I was here. He’d come back for me. And I’d enjoyed the rough sex every bit as much as she did. Talk about weird, orgasms in stereo.
He swept me into his arms, wrapped me in a towel. I submitted to the caretaking because I knew he needed to assert himself, put his stamp on me. As he dried me, I warned, “I won’t put up with this forever.”
“Until the baby’s born?”
“Maybe. It depends on how crazy and/or cranky I get. And right now, I want you so bad, I can’t stand it.”
“God, me too.” He shook with it. “Ever since I came through, it’s all I can think about. You. Mine. Baby. I think my brain’s short-circuited.”
“Too much testosterone. You weren’t used to it over there?”
“Don’t know. Don’t care.” Yeah, he was out of patience.
Thank God.
No foreplay. There would be years and years for slow, seductive sex. This, this was raw and primal when he came down on me, taking me in one powerful stroke. He cupped my hip, drawing my good leg around his. I left the other straight, as it hurt enough already. The pain added a layer of spice to the pleasure as he pushed. His thrusts lost their cadence, going ragged and fast straightaway. I matched him as best I could, pushing hard, my fingers digging into his shoulders.
Chance kissed me as the intensity ramped up. His tongue moved in my mouth as he did within me. The hint of passivity of my straight leg and his wildness drove me higher. It had never, ever felt this good—and we’d had some amazing sex. He sensed he was outpacing me and he reached between us, strumming so I arched, working against him with agonized, delighted gasps. He broke the kiss when he lost control completely, but he didn’t avert his eyes or hide his face. As he came, he stared down into my eyes, giving me everything.
No barriers. No doubts.
My whole body clenched, rocked in gradually diminishing waves. He didn’t let go of me, even afterward. He eased off me, on my good side, and wrapped me up in his arms, hands gentle on my back. I peppered his face with kisses, unable to stop, as if we broke physical contact for even a second, then this reality would dissolve.
“I’m not going away again,” he promised.
“Me either.”
For just a moment, I closed my eyes, head on his chest listening to his heartbeat. This man gave up godhood for you. He died for you. Part of me still felt I didn’t deserve him, but that girl was mostly gone. I did deserve to be loved; I wasn’t a cipher, insignificant and unworthy of joy. Contentment laced with sorrow swelled in me—I’d always grieve quietly for Kel.
I didn’t mean to sleep, but the day’s events overwhelmed me. The next thing I knew, it was late morning . . . and I was alone. Panic spiked, but there was definitely an indent on the pillow beside me to promise I wasn’t crazy. Then I heard the shower running.
H
e’s still here. This is real. This is my life.
I pushed out a long breath, then joined him. The shower was long and messy, and the housekeeper probably wouldn’t thank us later. But I managed shower sex. Afterward, I dressed in clean clothes while Chance put on what he’d been wearing the day before. I gave Butch his breakfast and a drink in his collapsible travel dishes. Then we took him out for his morning business.
Just in time, it seemed.
Once the dog was settled, Chance said, “Let’s swing by Chuch and Eva’s. Then I’m ready to go home if you are.”
“One stop before that.”
“Oh?” He cocked his head in a heartbreakingly familiar gesture.
I know him, I thought. I love him. Always.
With some effort, I roused myself to answer. “Twila.”
“You have business with her?”
“I swore to her. It’s polite to let her know I’m leaving her demesne.”
“Okay.” I could tell he was eager to get out of Texas—to get back to the life we had been building together before the demons ruined everything.
Talk about unusual relationship obstacles.
“This won’t take long.”
Twilight was closed when we arrived, but Bucky, Jeannie’s husband, was cleaning the place and stocking the bar. He smiled at me, likely remembering the time he helped me with some remote viewing. Good to see him one last time. If I could help it, I wouldn’t be back in Texas for a while. Our friends could visit us for a change, and the baby gave me a great excuse to make them.
“Twila in?” I asked.
“Go on back. She’s expecting you.”
“Of course,” I murmured.
Chance cut me a grin. He knew firsthand how knowing and powerful Twila was. One of these days, I’d get the truth of what went down between them. She was working on account books when I walked in, Chance behind me, and her brows shot up. To be honest, I think she expected this quest to kill me.
If not for Kel, it would have.
“Well, I’ll be damned. The loas gave you low odds for success,” she said in lieu of greeting.
“I had an ace in the hole.”
Not really. I had friends who loved me beyond reason.
“Smart girl.” Twila skimmed me head to toe, then smiled. “Looks like smooth sailing ahead, Ms. Solomon. The darkness I saw before has fallen away.”
“I just stopped by to tell you I’m on my way out of San Antonio. I’ll be in Laredo for a little while. Then I’m gone from Texas entirely. You still have my pledge, if you ever need—”
“Oh, child,” she said, shaking her head. “That vow doesn’t bind you now.”
“Why not?” Astonishment radiated through me, like the spinning colors of a kaleidoscope, until I couldn’t process a rational thought.
Twila sighed; clearly my ignorance was a great trial to her. “Because you’re human. I govern only the gifted.”
Holy shit.
Just in case I didn’t get it, she elaborated, “Your concerns are mortal now. None of my business.”
That was unexpected good news. If Twila had washed her hands of me, the rest of the supernatural world should follow suit. “I made peace with the Luren, so hopefully I’m done with demons. And the rest of them should be busy fighting for power in Sheol.”
The tall, majestic woman came around the desk to kiss Chance on the cheek. “You have a tiger’s eyes but a lion’s heart. Guard your family well.”
“I will,” he said firmly.
I fixed a stern look on her. “Look after Booke for me. He’s the best . . . and I don’t know if you appreciate how amazing he is.”
“Oh, child. I have such plans for that man.” Her tone was positively lascivious, her smile greedy with anticipation.
Twila and Booke? Well, why not? Texas could do worse than a man like Ian Booke as their king. I wondered if he had an inkling of her attraction. Theirs would be an interesting courtship and I looked forward to hearing about it secondhand. They could have the adventures from this point; I was done.
Then Twila offered me her hand. Since I had no gifts, only a pentacle scar on my palm, I didn’t expect the flash between us. She pulled me into a vision so fast that I couldn’t fight it, like the riptide of rushing rapids. Images flickered before my eyes, faster than I could process them. A party with all our friends, Chance laughing forty years from now, a baby dressed in a blue onesy, a little boy with black hair and amber eyes, running toward me. I saw Jesse and Shannon, ten years down the road, and Twila, holding hands with Ian Booke. The images sped up until they were a blur of color, and they flung me back out into the real world when she let me go.
“What the hell,” I panted.
Chance wrapped an arm around me, his expression worried. “What did you do to her? I might not have the power I once had, but—”
“A parting gift.” Twila ignored my furious lover. Her smile was gentle, almost tender, as if she knew how disorienting the exchange had been.
Damned freakin’ loas. It would serve her right if I barfed on her carpet.
But there was a more important matter to hand. So I asked, “You’re saying that’s what lies ahead?”
“Possibly. Such things are never certain. Witness love’s triumphant return.” She tipped her head at Chance. “There are no destinies now. Life will be what you make of it, whatever you choose.”
“Thank you,” I said softly. “Freedom is a priceless gift.”
I remembered Kel. I ached. And yet I didn’t see how it could’ve ended otherwise. He had given up all hope.
“You earned it, not me. Farewell, Corine Solomon.” That was a dismissal, and one didn’t waste Twila’s time, so I backed out of the room like she was an empress, a courtesy I’d learned in Sheol. Her smile flashed wide and white; she understood.
Then she went back to work. Texas didn’t run itself.
The drive to Laredo went in a wink. At least, it seemed fast with all the talking. We both had so much to say, so many questions.
“I hated seeing how broken you were,” Chance said softly. “But . . . I loved it too. Since you left, I’ve felt like I was fighting to gain equal ground.”
“I was afraid. Of so many things. And then the worst came to pass. I lost you. If I could do it all over, forgive you sooner—”
But he was already shaking his head. “I wasn’t ready in Kilmer. You were right to call me on my bullshit. I needed you, but I didn’t want to open up. I was still clinging to the old double standard that had already failed once.”
“So you’re saying if I’d taken you back in Georgia, it wouldn’t have lasted.”
He lifted a shoulder in a graceful shrug. “I suspect not. You needed more from me than I was willing to give then. It took some straight talk from both you and my mom to wake me up.”
“Not many couples can say they’ve literally been to hell and back.”
His smile melted me from the inside out, and when he reached out to caress my stomach through my thin T-shirt, the tingles increased. I’d heard that sex drive spiked during pregnancy, but I could totally drag him into the backseat right now. From the way his eyes heated and his breath caught, he read my desire.
“Keep looking at me like that and we won’t make it to Laredo today.”
Butch yapped, keeping us on task. I fixed my gaze on the road and changed the subject. Already, Chance didn’t remember much about his time in his father’s realm. It was a protective measure, preventing humans from learning too much, coveting power they shouldn’t possess. But Ebisu didn’t need to worry about that with his son. Maybe, in time, he would be comforted to know he had a grandchild on the way—that his line would continue in the human fashion.
Then it occurred to me.
“Oh, my God,” I said.
“What?” Chance cut me a worried look.
“Pull over. Right now.”
His worry escalated to fear. “What’s wrong? Is it the baby? Oh, God, are you bleeding?” He was shaking when
he pulled onto the highway shoulder, eyes frantic.
To shut him up, I kissed him as he’d done me in Sheol. That took longer than I expected, as he responded with full ferocity and desire. Only the honking of an eighteen-wheeler reminded me why we’d stopped in the first place. Otherwise, we might’ve tried to see if we could have sex in a Pinto.
Breathless, I handed him my phone. “Call your mother.”
Fond Farewells
Min was incoherent when she heard Chance’s voice. For the first ten minutes of the conversation, it was just her sobbing and him reassuring her. Eventually, she said, “I love you. I love you. Tell me where you are.”
I said quickly, “Have her meet us in Mexico. Give her Tia’s address.”
Chance complied. Then he added, “I’ll see you soon. It’s all right, I promise.”
More joyful tears, and I joined in, while the big trucks rolling by shook the Pinto’s windows. “Put Corine on the phone,” she eventually demanded.
With a surprised look, Chance gave back my cell. “Here.”
“Yeah, Omma?”
That surprised him again. He laced our fingers and brought my hand to his lips, thanking me silently for honoring his mother. But I’d always loved Min, even when he and I were apart. But from his expression, you’d think I had given her a chalice of solid gold. Since they’d had only each other for so long, in a way, I had.
“Thank you,” she whispered. “Thank you, ddal.”
“I have even better news for you,” I said then.
“Impossible. Nothing could be better than this. Nothing.” Her voice was strong, certain, but also shaky with repressed tears.
“Not even your first grandchild?”
The silence held for almost thirty seconds, and then she deafened me with incoherent, joyous shrieks. When she found the words at last, she said, “I was wrong.”
As she rang off, Min was mumbling about buying plane tickets. It seemed we would see her soon. Chance didn’t let go of my hand as he pulled back onto the highway. Our fingers clung for the remainder of the drive, and he didn’t release me until he had to in order to open my door at the Ortiz place. Inside the house, I got hugs from Chuch and Eva, but Booke wasn’t in the front room to greet us. I caught him packing. When I came into the bedroom, he folded the shirt in his hands meticulously and then faced me. As soon as Barachiel’s body hit the ground, he must’ve been booking travel arrangements. I didn’t blame him. He had only eleven months of freedom left. I hoped Twila treated him well upon his return, but that was his issue to deal with; he’d made the bargain freely, after all.