Phoenix Under Fire: A Zodiac Shifters Paranormal Romance: Aries

by Crystal Dawn

  “Are you ready to search a cake site online?” Cleo asked.

  “Why not? We usually get cakes from Sweet as Pie. It has anything to do with dessert. Daphne orders most of her desserts from there.”

  “Not all of them?”

  “No, sometimes clients get their own desserts from family members or a bakery they’ve always used.”

  “So who owns this one?”

  “My sister, Prudence. She divides her time between there and the family business.”

  “Have you ever considered opening your own business?” Cleo asked.

  “Many times, but my father relies on me.”

  “What would it be?”

  “Jewelry. I trained as a silversmith. I make all my own and I pitched a store to my father, but he decided there wasn’t enough money in it.”

  “Are you good at it?”

  Annie held up her hand which was adorned by several rings. Next, she pulled her hair back and showed where a silver dragon curled around the shell of her ear and dangled a jewel below it. “I like to think so. I sell items online once in a while.”

  “That’s gorgeous. People would pay a good price for something that beautiful. You know he was influenced by the fact he didn’t want your attention divided, right?”

  “I suspected as much,” Annie admitted.

  “What does Gertie have?”

  “She formulated a line of women’s beauty creams. They work well in both reducing wrinkles and making skin soft.”

  “Sounds like everyone in your family is talented,” Cleo observed.

  “It didn’t hurt that we all had money to get started with.”

  “Money can help, but it can also hurt. Many who have it never try to do anything worthwhile with it.”

  “I suppose that’s true too,” Annie acknowledged.

  “You better believe it! Now, have you reserved the ball room yet?”

  “No, let me check on that right now. Good, it’s open. Now it’s reserved. I reserved the whole building.”

  “That’s probably best considering your father’s plans.”

  “Yeah, he’s got that whole go big or go home thing going.”

  “Any idea how many will be on the guest list?”

  “The event hall can hold a total of ten thousand people. The ballroom can hold less than half that.”

  “Surely, he doesn’t plan to hit those numbers?”

  Annie shot Cleo a disbelieving look before she remembered she’d not even met her father yet. He planned this to be the event of the year until the wedding supplanted it. She and Ram would be the center of attention at both events which was something she didn’t care for. He’d do the same thing to Gertie and Pru when their time came.

  Lucky Annie got to be the first experiment every time. At least that spared her sisters some of the pain. Even if he’d been disappointed in his negotiating for her bride price, he’d make it up elsewhere. Getting the most out of his assets was what her father did best. He knew his daughters were three assets he would only get value out of once.

  She tried not to feel used. It wasn’t easy and she suspected Cleo sensed some of what was going on in her head. “He’s been waiting for this wedding since I was born. I wouldn’t be surprised if he began the list when I was born and reworked it every year since. What kind of list do you have for your mating ceremonies?”

  “Many just invite family and close friends. Ram’s will be more public because of who he is to his people.”

  “Does that mean we’ll have to do this twice?” Annie asked a hint of panic in her voice.

  “Sweetheart, breathe. We’ll do something when you come home with us, but it won’t be anything as crazy as what your father is doing. We wouldn’t put you through that.”

  “Thank you. I don’t know how I’ll make it through these two events as it is. He’s so excited about them too. You’d think he was getting married. My parents had a small wedding and a handful of small events with political allies before and after their wedding. I just don’t know where this mega event attitude came from.”

  “Your father has political ambition and he’s decided this is the best way to achieve it. It sounds like the results he wants are a good thing, it’s the methods of getting there that could be better. We’ll get through all this together.”

  “How did you meet your mate?” Annie wondered.

  “We always knew each other. Our families were both active in politics and they always hoped we would prove to be fated ones. Maybe it was all the praying they did. Who knows? It was so long ago when we came here newly mated and expecting our first child. Our kind became hunted and we separated, families dividing for a better chance for their lines to continue. Earth was primitive then so our parents felt we had the best chance to burrow in somewhere and hide who and what we were. Aha made friends and allies with other kinds when they came here or developed through the indigenous people.”

  “That was very forward thinking.”

  “He’s always thought like that. Ram and his father are very close and too much alike at times. Ram and his sister are close too, or at least they were before she went to Europe a decade ago. Our people take positions abroad for twenty-five years or so. At that point, people begin to notice they still look young no matter how they change hairstyles, the way they dress, or anything else. Sometimes they’re forced to leave sooner. How does your kind handle it?”

  “We don’t have a presence except among our own kind. If we’re around humans through work, we switch out those tasks often enough they never get used to any one of us. It’s a necessity because humans can get curious if you’re around them long enough for them to get attached.”

  “It’s a burden all our kinds carry. It’s especially hard on those who mate humans,” Cleo admitted.

  “You allow your kind to do that?”

  “Only if they are fated. That’s the first law of our kind. Nothing is more important than a fated mate.”

  “Many of the paranormal kind add a saying to that. Only if they are paranormal.”

  “Didn’t your father also add more? That’s the danger we fall into when we interpret old laws according to our personal needs. That should never be done. I heard your sister Gertie is feeling pressure now.”

  “Her fated mate is the one my father chose for me. That would have been messed up. That’s why I took an action I would have never taken otherwise.”

  “To find your fated one? That was brave and strong.”

  “My father wouldn’t think so if he knew.”

  “What about your mom?” Cleo asked.

  “She encouraged me to cast the spell for my fated mate. She and my father often disagree.”

  “I’m glad she was there for you. I can’t imagine being mated to the wrong male for a long life.”

  “The thought was terrifying. It was even worse that my father didn’t even cast a spell to see who my fated mate was and make sure his choice was better.”

  “He could have done that?”

  “Absolutely. There are so many things that can be done by an old well-trained witch.”

  “How old is your father?”

  “I know he isn’t as old as you are. He won’t discuss his age and I’m not even sure my mother knows it. She moved here with her parents several hundred years ago. They were fully grown when they met and my father was already the leader of the witches. Discovering he was her fated mate was a shock. I’ve always gotten the feeling she wasn’t political. At the time, he was considering mating a female from a prominent family. When she realized Maybelle was Royal’s fated one, she backed out. It wasn’t long after that Nicole found her own fated mate. My mom and Nicki are friends now. Weird how life works out.”

  “Your mom seems very capable politically.”

  “She had to learn, but she did it fast. Royal couldn’t stay away from her, although he tried.”

  “Your father has some odd ideas. He seems happy enough with your mom now.”

  “I don’t thin
k he’s ever regretted claiming her. They’ve done well building a life together and she’s been his strongest supporter. Mom draws people to her naturally. They sense her goodness.”

  “I liked your mom too. We had a nice talk and we agreed on almost everything.”

  “What didn’t you agree on?”

  “I wanted cherry filling and she wanted raspberry. We both like chocolate, but she thought you’d want something with butter crème.”

  “She was right. I love butter crème, but I love chocolate too.”

  “I’m sure we’ll work out a compromise. There’s no reason we can’t have it all!” Cleo encouraged.

  Chapter 11

  Raiding

  Ram was glad when his mom and mate rejoined them in the rec room. “Nice of you ladies to join us. Can I get you a drink?”

  “I’ll take a glass of tea,” Annie said.

  “A bottle of water?” His mom asked.

  He went to the bar pulling a cold bottle of water from the fridge under the counter and taking out the pitcher of sweet tea. A glass, adding some ice, and pouring the tea making it ready for Annie. Ram carried their drinks to the table and set them down in front of them.

  “Did we interrupt anything important?” Cleo asked. Ram and her mate just looked at each other before answering.

  “We were discussing a raid in the Tampa area,” The king mentioned.

  “You know we’ll want to be included,” Cleo noted.

  “Absolutely!” Annie agreed.

  “Yes, but I’m not sure you should be. You’ve not fought in a while and Annie never has,” the king added.

  “You’ve not fought in a while either and there’s always a first time,” Cleo pointed out.

  “Are you sure the first time should be against such aggressive and dishonorable thugs?” He questioned.

  “Are you saying next time the thugs will be honorable?” Cleo wondered.

  “No, I just feel these people are very bad,” Aha admitted.

  “I think you and our son are being overprotective,” Cleo observed.

  “It’s not possible to be too protective of the most important person in your life,” Aha said.

  “It is if you are stifling their need to be active in life.”

  “Mate, I object to that accusation. I would never interfere with your need to be active in life.”

  “Good, then Annie and I will be involved in the raid,” Cleo concluded.

  “She did it to you again, Dad.” Ram shook his head and hoped Annie wouldn’t find him as easy to manipulate as his mom did with his dad.

  “You can be in on the planning. It needs to be in the next two or three days and we need to get in fast and undetected. It will serve notice that we won’t allow them to take away free will. They will be against all paranormals, fully united,” Aha said.

  “Alright, how soon can we mobilize our teams?” Cleo asked.

  “That’s the question we have to answer as soon as possible,” Ram observed. “I spoke to Dae and Nite just now and they said they can have a six-man team ready to move in a couple hours. These will be people they trust completely. I can have the same, not including the four of us.”

  “Do we have any intel?” Aha asked.

  “Some and more coming in all the time. In Tampa, they’ve taken root in another paranormal community of fifty people. They have a six-man team there running things. They killed an elderly wolf as an example of what would happen to the others. They told the community the children weren’t safe either,” Ram explained.

  “See what I mean?” Aha asked his mate. “No one is worse than those who prey on children, the elderly, and the weak.”

  Ram saw his mother agreed with his father’s assessment of the situation, but she would go come hell or high water and Annie’s chin was set in a stubborn position. He’d never thought of her that way before. Was his own mother a bad influence on his mate?

  Annie was so sweet and helpful most of the time. Now, she was demanding her place at his side. It was sexy in a way, but it was also concerning. They hoped to have offspring and what would happen when she carried their young. She could carry his young now since they had made no effort to prevent it.

  “I have concerns with my mate. We intend to have children. She could be with young now,” Ram explained.

  Cleo took a deep breath. “She is not carrying right now. Once she is, I am sure she will not take any chances.”

  “I would never risk our child,” Annie exclaimed and looked hurt that he would even think she would.

  “You won’t know right away. I want you to be in a position where you aren’t taking the risks the rest of us are,” Ram insisted.

  “We can work this out,” Annie said with a grin. Ram had the feeling he’d just lost.

  “How do you propose we do that?” Ram asked.

  “I can follow the other team members in and watch their backs. That would minimize the danger I’d face,” Annie suggested.

  “That might work,” Ram admitted thinking she was good at this negotiating thing. That’s why he needed to be better. “Is there any type of magical protection you can use?”

  “I’ll wear a protective charm, but it won’t protect against everything. Nothing is that good,” Annie acknowledged.

  “What about your job? Can you just take off work like that?” Ram queried.

  “My hours will be cutting back and I don’t know what we will decide in the future. They need to get used to me not being as available as I once was,” Annie explained.

  “We will have to plan for the future, but that can wait until we have a better idea of the threat Hubolla is and what we’ll have to do to contain it,” Ram decided. He knew it was just putting things off, but he could only deal with so much at once.

  “When will we set the day and time?” Cleo asked.

  “Tomorrow,” Aha assured.

  Ram was sure by then they would have the information they needed and make arrangements for the teams that would help. A few extra people might be better since his mom and Annie were coming too. The overwhelming feelings of love and protectiveness he felt could not be ignored. Annie would be near him. It would be his back she would watch.

  They passed the rest of the day with his parents getting to know his mate. They had a nice family style supper and played some card games until it was time to turn in. Annie would work the next day while he, his father, and mother would receive intel and perfect a plan to raid the community Hubolla’s followers had taken root in. Probably the most difficult part of the plan and later the raid, was all the innocent people that were just victims of an evil presence they would have to work around.

  Their enemy wouldn’t care if others were harmed during the fight, but Ram and his teams would. One of their biggest fears was to harm an innocent during an attack. Careful planning now might prevent that from occurring.

  Ram and Annie bid goodnight to his parents and made their way to his rooms which were now their rooms. Annie had clothes and personal items in the room, but most of her possessions were still at her old room in her parent’s house. They stepped through the door and as he closed it, need rolled over him in a wave and it could not be denied.

  “Undress, Sweetheart. I’ve got something for you.”

  “Is it something good?” Annie smirked.

  “That’s what you’ll have to decide, but I intend to make sure you like it.”

  Annie began to undress. First, she toed off her shoes and then she slipped off her top. Meanwhile Ram also began to strip so he wouldn’t keep her waiting. They stared at each other as expanses of skin were revealed. Her delightful pink nipples were exposed as her bra fell to the ground and he wanted to caress and suck on them so badly. He dropped his pants the same time as she dropped hers and his cock popped out and stood at attention.

  Ram could smell her need, it was musky and hung heavily in the air. It was proof that his mate desired him above all others. She whimpered as her eyes clung to his shaft. “It’s all for y
ou, Baby. Sweet mate of mine, all I want to do is sink this into your wet heat.”

  “Do it, now!” Annie demanded.

  “Get on the bed,” he directed.

  Annie scrambled to do his bidding. That was an incredible turn on. Ram joined her on the bed and rolled on top of her. His weight rested on his forearms and he stared into her eyes. He knew the love he felt in that moment was looking out at her. Slowly, he dropped his lips to hers and lightly brushed over them. The need was there to just take her, but he wanted to reassure her that she meant so much more to him than just hot nasty, primal sex.

  That was there too and they would explore that eventually, but right now he wanted her to realize the depth of his feelings. He ran his tongue over her lower lip, then nibbled on it. Her lips parted and he took advantage spearing her mouth with his tongue. Exploring her mouth fully, he then coaxed her tongue into a playful duel.

  “By the ancestors, Annie, you are amazing. I can’t resist you.”

  “So why try?” She asked.

  Why indeed? All they both wanted to do was sate themselves until they fell into a deep sleep wrapped in each other’s arms. Ram’s hand moved his cock to her entrance and he slid in. She was soaked and it eased his entry.

  “Damn, you are so fucking tight!” He groaned. Ram began to pound into her.

  “More!” Annie demanded as she tightened her muscles around his shaft and pressed against him. “Oh, yes.”

  He continued to give her what she asked for as he pumped into her until a tingle ran down to his tailbone. Ram needed her to come first. His fingers moved between them and searched out her clit. They strummed it and plucked it like a fine musical instrument and she gave him the sounds he wanted to hear as she moaned beautifully in his ear.

  A scream of pleasure came next and she bucked in his arms, totally out of control. That’s when he lost it and orgasmed too. Jets of cum filled his mate as he pumped into her. A deep visceral groan ripped from him and echoed in the room. It seemed each time they joined was more beautiful than the last. That was the way it should be with fated ones.

  It still upset him when he thought how he’d almost missed out on this, on his bond with her. Had her father forced her to mate another, there was a chance they would have never found each other. That made his beast angry so Ram tried to push the painful thought out of his head.