“Report.” The male voice on the other end had no inflection.
She looked around, Boone was in the bathroom, and she could hear him moving around.
“Improvement, eating well, walking slowly.” She wanted to tell the truth, as she was obligated to do, but she’d lose the only man that had ever stayed in her home.
The line clicked. She put the phone down.
“They are ready for me to head to where they can interrogate?” Boone’s voice was quiet, calm.
She nodded once.
He sat on the edge of her bed, hands between his knees. “We shouldn’t put it off.” He stared at the wall on the other side of the living room.
Not thinking, she put her hand on his. His head turned, and the air sizzled as his eyes met hers. “I want you here,” she whispered. The four words held everything. He’d stopped breathing. She noted it, that her next words were important, as if he was waiting. “Stay with me, show me a little of that heat you keep hinting at.” Who the hell was in charge of her mouth? It wasn’t her brain, for certain.
“I don’t think you know what you ask,” he stated in slow words, his body tense, eyes on her mouth.
“You’re right. Show me.” She leaned close, her mouth near his ear. “Not everything, but a taste. Give me a reason to defy my parents.”
His big body, usually in motion of some sort, went stock still. She squeaked as he grabbed her, and flipped them both. He eased to lay at her side, a hand on her waist, the other propping his head up. A heaviness settled deep in her groin, and a pain she didn’t recognize lit through her. She needed something and couldn’t put a name to it. His thumb slid across her stomach, bunching and smoothing the fabric of her sweatshirt. She wanted him to touch her skin.
A boldness overtook the shyness developing and she lifted both shoulders off the mattress, grabbed the hem of her sweatshirt, and in a quick motion, took it off. She lay bare before him. Watching his face, she turned a shade of red, not from embarrassment, but heat. His eyes roamed over her torso, and he slid a hand across the skin of her stomach. The muscles bunched and shook, her hips moving without a thought from her. She needed, she wanted. And couldn’t voice what it was.
He leaned forward, “Do you need me to touch you?” He nuzzled the back of her ear, nipping at the sensitive area. Electricity zinged across her body, and she grabbed his bicep with one hand, the other sliding under his arm and around his back. She tried to get him to move, to cover her, but he was too strong. He didn’t budge. “Easy, Iroida, I won’t do anything you don’t want me to, but I also know my limits. Touch me anywhere you like, but I’m not sliding between those beautiful thighs.” He sucked her earlobe into his mouth.
Iroida’s hips bucked, and every sensation was unknown, uncounted for. “Please.”
“Shhh, it’s okay. It’s okay. I think I know what you want.” His hand slid until it cupped the bottom of her breast, and as he gently kneaded the swollen flesh, his thumb raked across one nipple.
Iroida cried out, a clench deep inside surprising her with a short wave of pleasure. “More,” she whispered.
He grinned. “I promise.” He slid a hand into her thick hair, grabbing and pulling. Her thighs fell to the side. He blinked once, lowering his head. When his lips met hers, she put a trembling hand against his cheek. His mouth moved across hers, and she opened for him. He took full advantage. Kissing her, he teased, and nipped, and nibbled. He mimicked the very act her body begged for, and a moan rose from her chest. He pulled back, panting.
“Please, Boone!” she begged.
With a smile, he kissed the side of her neck, nibbled on her collar bone, and before she realized his intent, took a nipple into his mouth, sucking. She cried out, and grabbed his head, pulling him closer. One of his hands slid up and down her waist, before moving to her thigh. He grabbed the back, squeezing it and lifting. As he teased both breasts with his mouth, he had her in an open and vulnerable position at her very core. His hand moved up her thigh, and she wanted him to touch her, to go under all the cloth, and do ... something.
When her calf was resting against his back, knees open, he cupped her core.
She jumped and cried out. He pushed the heel of his palm against her and made small circular movements. The feeling of something building started overwhelming her senses. He continued to suckle her nipples, even as his hand moved against her. Less than a moment later, pleasure spiraled throughout her body. She felt as if she’d exploded, only to fall back together as it eased away.
She was boneless, and unable to speak.
Boone eased back, and she saw a tightness to his features, as if he was in pain. His hand rubbed up and down her side, until she returned to reality.
“Wh... what was that?” she frowned at him. Her instincts were screaming, saying not to do it again, don’t pursue, don’t give it all up.
“That, my beauty, was an orgasm.” He leaned over, kissing her on the forehead.
“Did you have one?” she looked down.
“No, but it’s okay, I promise.” He turned her on her side and pulled her into him. She felt his erection against her ass and resisted pushing against it. A shudder raced along her body, but she didn’t care. Sleepiness, and satisfaction, held her hostage. “Sleep, beauty. Get some rest, it’s okay.”
She pulled his arm tighter around her waist, and in moments, was lost in the bliss of sleep.
Chapter Fifteen
Boone
She slept peacefully, and he watched. His erection wasn’t going anywhere. Holding back the moan as she moved against him in her sleep, he thought of what happened. Not just touching her in intimate places, but the sounds she made, the way she’d called his name.
He could name the number of lovers he’d had since Naomi’s death, when his need had overridden his will. He’d found a willing partner, spent a night sating it as best he could, and then wait decades.
Iroida wasn’t a physical need. He wanted more, and that created a hurricane of fear to settle in his chest.
He pulled her close, burying his nose in her hair. It smelled of coconut and lime. Soft, thick, and he remembered it wrapped around his fist for a moment. His hips moved, and he froze.
Counting to ten, he went over a solid century of baseball scores and players, World Series winners and losers, the ups, the downs, anything that would take his mind off the warm, soft woman his arms held close. His breathing evened out, his body calmed, the desperation receded to the background. His eyes grew heavy, and he let sleep take him away.
Movements against him brought him out of a dream, and as both eyes opened, he noted they were no longer alone.
“Come, Boone Copper. You are healed, and it is time.” The feminine voice held an accent he couldn’t immediately place, one that seemed as if it spawned a dozen other dialects he’d heard before.
Sitting up, he looked at the tiny woman. She couldn’t have been taller than five feet, with jet black hair almost to her knees, straight, thick, and gorgeous. Her eyes were ink black with no relief. The tiny woman was petite, with dark skin, and sharp cheekbones. She wore a silk blouse and a pencil skirt, without shoes.
She scared the hell out of him on sight. His heart threatened to jump out of his chest, and he fought not to lose control.
“No, Descendent of Romulus and Remus, do not allow the power you hold to be released in front of me. I wish you to live, not die.” Her voice, soft, feminine, held an edge Boone thought might inflict great bodily harm. “My daughter is in the next room, and you will not invoke her as we walk past, am I understood?”
“Yes, ma’am.” He stood, thankful for the sweats and t-shirt. He wasn’t sure nudity was something he could handle. He understood what the old men had meant when they spoke of the Praesidio being run by a goddess. The old men would look down, when speaking of her, as if she could be conjured with a thought. He got it now. Yet a part of him told him to look her in the eyes. To not back down. She turned, and for a moment he swore her feet never touched the floor. Shaking it
off, he followed her small form out of the apartment.
Outside, Naomi, his nurse, handed him a pair of slip on canvas shoes, and offered him a quick pat on the forearm. She didn’t look at the goddess, instead watching her feet, left hand holding right wrist. Boone paused for a second and moved on. He heard Naomi whisper, “Nasi is her name.”
Nasi hesitated but said nothing. Boone realized she was a little insulted he’d had no idea who she was. He offered a slight nod to Naomi before moving on.
The apartment complex was modern, with clean lines, dark gray coloring, black shutters, and light gray trim. The stairs were split in two, and he worked his way down with slow steps. A large man came to his side, put a hand under his armpit and lifted. Boone snorted as he damn near skipped down the steps with little effort. The man was a good six-nine, and made the young Schwarzenegger look a little weak.
At the bottom, he was allowed to find his balance and he followed to the back of a large SUV. Once inside, he watched out the windows, and saw a small town, with a downtown filled by mom and pop stores, people bustling along the sidewalks, others sitting under table umbrellas drinking coffee, and other activities intrinsic to small towns. He noted the cleanliness, the smiles, the relaxed carriage of each person.
His instincts rang loud and clear, telling him he was among full humans, humans that gave off power, ringing against his own. Goosebumps rose along his skin, as he sensed a full array of abilities. A few stopped and watched as the SUV went by, some of their eyes glowing in the bright sunlight.
Boone sat back, closed his eyes, and realized he was driving through the infamous Showtime. One of the satellite bases of the Praesidio.
They pulled into a parking garage, going down to the basement. It followed further than possible, and Boone figured they were in the building he’d seen outside. A full ten stories tall, and it’d been gold colored. Though if Nasi were like some of the gods Boone had met, it was likely real gold. They were a fickle, asinine lot. Narcissistic, power hungry, and uncaring of the mortals under their care, they liked to show off their wealth, their abilities. And wanted every human who could rival them.
Hence the Praesidio and the Iudex. Both were after the same thing. Keeping humans from those same gods, and from causing more harm under the tender mercies of monsters.
The SUV stopped, and he was escorted through corridors, the big guy next to him the entire time. When he started to lag, he was swung onto the big guy’s shoulder, and experienced a fireman’s carry for the first time in sixty years. It still hurt like hell. And he wasn’t going to say a word about the abject humility of it. Dignity was long gone. He suspected Nasi wanted it that way.
The elevator stopped, and they stepped off. The carpet was blood red, and matched Nasi’s toenails. They went through five sets of doors, each sliding open and shut as they moved through. Reminded Boone of all the Star Trek shows.
Inside an office, he was carefully lowered onto a couch, and the man left. He was alone with Nasi. Deciding not to push his luck too far, he merely met her gaze, but ensured his body language remained neutral.
She moved from one end of the room to the other, over a pattern in the carpeting. It was a single gold line, approximately two feet wide. He watched, said nothing. It was best to let her talk first.
“Boone Copper, Descendent. Sent by Iudex to capture the female asset for the men who run the company. And somehow ended up in my daughter’s bed.” She turned, and faced him.
He felt the blood drain. She, Nasi the ancient goddess with no pantheon, was the mother of Iroida.
He was in deep shit.
Chapter Sixteen
Iroida
Mother was beyond pissed. Iroida was on house arrest, after being caught with Boone wrapped protectively around her. In bed. Asleep. They’d literally yanked her out of bed, and she hadn’t been allowed to touch the ground until she was outside and being held in silence.
The apartment felt smaller somehow, with Boone out of it. And the waiting was going to make her do something stupid.
Make her? Hell no. She was going to do it, just had to figure out what. She wanted Boone’s body wrapped around her again. It was the best night of sleep she’d ever had, in over three thousand years. No sleeping with one eye open, no nightmares, no emptiness keeping her awake. Warm, protected, the first time she’d felt a man’s heartbeat at her back.
And damn it all, she wanted it again.
Her cell phone rang, and she frowned. Seeing the caller ID, she answered. “Yes, Mother.”
“You will not attempt to rescue your would-be lover, Iroida. He will not die at my hands.”
“Who will kill him, then?” she held her temper in check. Anyone that did would do it at Nasi’s orders. Her father, Mextli, wouldn’t have bothered to call. Either he was allowing Nasi to take the reins, or he was off doing something else. She suspected it was the latter.
“He will not die. I will return him alive, and in one piece.” Nasi’s voice was calm, the words clipped. Her ancient Sumerian accent missing, Iroida recognized she was skating on thin ice.
“Mother, you will not harm a hair on his head. Question him, but do not harm.” Iroida’s mouth ran ahead of her brain, and she froze. To speak to Nasi in a manner was inviting punishment.
“We will speak after, daughter. For now, stop making plans to storm my office and take him. I will not allow you near him again.” The line went dead.
Iroida frowned, staring at the black screen of her phone. Wiping her mind clean, she set it aside. A shower and clean clothes helped to replace the block on her mind. She hadn’t realized it was gone until the phone call. Thinking about it, the block had disappeared when Boone was kissing and touching her.
A memory, fuzzy, unbidden, and long forgotten, rose from the murky depths. She was still a mortal child, no older than six. She’d been stubborn from the moment of birth. And there had been a wave of power that woke her from a nap. Getting out of the bed, she’d wandered through the halls, not seeing the murals painted on the walls, denoting her parents’ wealth. The sheer curtains, the luxurious furniture, all things she’d seen from the day she’d been created. It was the yelling after the power ripples that told her where to go. Her big sister’s. The one who like her, the one with the dark red hair, and the pink skin. The one that men followed, but she ignored them. It was Iroida who held her big sister’s attention, and love. They played all the time, and Puella sang her to sleep at night, calling her the special one.
Iroida frowned, thinking there might have been other sisters, but Puella was the center of the memory. She was in the room, on her knees, arms wrapped around her waist. Her dark red hair fell forward covering her face and screams of pain echoed through the house.
Nasi stood over her screaming, “You stupid, stupid girl! You have ruined your life, the lives of your family! You have shamed us all by acting the whore for a man who will not stay around! You threw away your immortality!”
Iroida gasped, and Nasi looked up, her eyes glittering like stars, rage and hatred warring for space on her small face.
“Go to your room and remain there. Do not disobey me, Iroida.” Her voice carried the power of command, and Iroida ran from the room.
She shook and stumbled. Gaining balance, Iroida went over the memory. It hit her what Nasi was speaking of. Puella had left not long after, and every trace of her removed from their ancestral home. She’d never seen her sister again and had been forbidden from speaking of her.
Iroida’s temper flared, and the temporary wall she’d erected around her thoughts shattered. She had to find Puella.
She spun, her front door opening, and seeing her father, Mextli. A look of rage made him ugly. His normally broad features, evenly spaced, with high cheekbones and dark brown eyes were handsome, strong, and she always thought it easy to worship him. But his expression made him terrifying.
“Where is he?” he spoke, voice echoing throughout the apartment.
“Mother has him. He’s mine, F
ather. And I’ll not have either of you harming a hair on his head.” She stood her ground, knowing he could do great harm. Boone meant a lot, and he didn’t deserve the harm that her parents could mete out.
“I’m not worried about your Descendant. I’m worried about my wife. And she will not expel another of my children.” He turned on a heel and stalked out.
Iroida blinked. Surprise and confusion warred within her chest. Shaking it off, she hightailed it after Mextli. She realized that he always seemed large, when in fact he was barely five-eight, and she topped him by four inches. “What are you talking about, Father?”
He didn’t stop, and in a bold move, she grabbed his elbow and pulled. He stopped but did not turn. He dropped his chin to his chest, and she could see a look of defeat.
Yanking his elbow from her grip, he raised his head, and stared ahead. “I had seven daughters before you. Daughters of intelligence, of beauty, of cunning. All athletic, all loved, all so different, like your younger sisters. But they, like you, were created with a human foundation. And they allowed their human emotions to rule, and Nasi cannot have that.” He straightened, throwing his shoulders back, and marched.
Iroida knew gods couldn’t conceive children, though they all had the power of creation or destruction. One or the other. Despite the myths of humans, Zeus couldn’t keep it in his pants. He was a player, a rapist, an asshole, that part they had correct. What they didn’t get right was he never conceived a child with any of the women he manipulated, violated, or otherwise harmed. Achilles and Hercules were his creations, some of his first, and he’d messed up, making them weaker than they should have been, without the power he could have given. That was his story. More than likely, he’d refused to give up any of his power, which would regenerate over a couple of years.
He opened the door to his Audi, and as she walked around to the other side, “No, my dearest. Back to your apartment. I will ship your Descendant to you, before we have it out. And I’m going to suggest the two of you leave Showtime as quickly as you can and go find Heather. She will not disturb you on a hunt.” He slid in, and the door shut with a solid thump.
Moonlight Mist: A Limited Edition Collection of Fantasy & Paranormal) Page 121