King Cave

by Scarlett Dawn

  “God,” Cahal growled, rubbing his hands over his face in agitation, “I’ve taught you so much, but you’re still so fucking young.” He sighed heavily before turning a glare on me.

  I went utterly still, my gaze glued to him. Along with all that anger on his face — and there was plenty — there was a deep hurt riding it. A profound one. That was a life experience staring me in the face.

  His nostrils flared, and he muttered, “At least your damn mate’s dead.”

  “Dad!” Ezra barked, taking a step in front of me, partially blocking my view. “What the fuck?”

  My jaw was clenched at the callous remark, but I quickly placed a hand on Ezra’s bicep. “Don’t.” Cahal’s comment hadn’t been geared to hurt me. It had been his past talking. I could see that. “I’m not offended.” Ezra’s wide gaze met mine in disbelief. I shook my head, giving his arm a tug and placing him back where he was originally standing. “It’s okay. Really.”

  Ezra’s gaze flew to Elder Merrick.

  Elder Merrick’s arms were crossed, a fist in front of his mouth, intelligent eyes watching. Mute. But he met Ezra’s silent question. “Truth.” His navy blue gaze turned to me. “It’s amazing how much you see.” A pause. “And don’t.”

  Well, that could mean a million things.

  I cleared my throat, trying to get back on track. “When is this new Law supposed to be decided?” My gaze flew to each Elder in the room. “And do you plan to tell them about us?”

  Elder Jacobs chuckled softly where he had been sitting quietly. “You have some balls, girl.”

  I shrugged. “It’s best to be prepared.” I left it at that. Their responses would dictate whether I would be asking a favor of Antonio. If they planned to blab, I would have their memories permanently erased. There were survival instincts on many different levels.

  “I’m not sure I want to know what’s going through your mind right now,” Elder Merrick murmured softly, eyes scanning my face. “You get this certain look about you sometimes that scares even me.”

  “I raised her. What else would you expect?” Antonio stated quietly, intervening graciously as a small smile played at his lips. He winked at me. He knew what I would ask of him.

  Ezra’s hand landed on the small of my back, surprising me — he was apparently no longer afraid to touch me in front of them and pulled me against his side. “I don’t believe the answers are written on her breasts, Elder Merrick.” My gaze flew to the Elder, and I caught his eyes lifting from my chest. “Just answer her questions.”

  Elder Merrick shrugged, waving a hand. “Forgive me. I was just daydreaming about attractive bunnies.” I bit my lips as the man still managed to antagonize Ezra, but watched as he shook his head. “I believe they plan to decide this Law quickly. And, baby Zeller, I’ve known many secrets in my life, and I’m the very soul of discretion.”

  Ezra growled quietly, but his gaze went to Elder Jacobs. “And you?”

  But Elder Jacobs was staring at Elder Merrick. “Bunnies? I thought they were lambs.”

  My eyes closed as I rubbed my forehead. “Can everyone please stop talking about my bra?”

  “They were bunnies. Get your fucking eyesight checked,” Elder Merrick griped. “I’m not going to save your ass on the field just because you’re too afraid to see a doctor.”

  Elder Jacobs’s face scrunched up. “Where the hell does a grown woman even buy lingerie like that?” His gaze went to my chest. “She’s not small enough for the children’s section.”

  Face flaming brightly, I didn’t even mind when Ezra shoved me behind him and rumbled, “No, she’s not a fucking child, as you all,” his predator growled low, “saw. And I would appreciate it if everyone would quit staring at her damn breasts.” I rested my forehead against his back at the reminder of how much they had seen. And I couldn’t help the fact I was a smidge pleased at seeing him act possessive. That was a good sign for what I had asked of him. “Now, Elder Jacobs, would you mind answering her question?”

  “I’m not a snitch, nor bored enough to really care about your sex life,” I heard Elder Jacobs rumble. “Although, I agree with Elder Zeller. I don’t think you two have any clue about the consequences of your actions.” A pause. “But since you’re young and headstrong, and more than likely won’t listen to the voice of reason, I will state that you need to make it a priority to wrap it up, since you two have already proven you’re damn fertile.” He paused with a heavy sigh. “Do you know how long it takes almost all Mysticals to conceive? And you two did it so quickly.” He cursed. “Wrap. It. Up.”

  Ezra cleared his throat. “Condoms…got it.” He was careful not to say he would.

  Elder Jacobs half chuckled, half grunted. “Jesus, Zeller, didn’t you teach your kid anything?”

  “Apparently, not who to stay away from,” Cahal muttered.

  “That’s enough, Cahal,” Antonio said in a quiet, clipped tone. Too quietly. “I’ve let you have your fun, but don’t you dare take out your aggression on her any longer.”

  I peeked around Ezra’s shoulder when the room went quiet.

  Cahal was peering at Antonio, slightly glowing eyes narrowed. “I will do as I damn well please where my son is concerned.”

  Whew…he was upset.

  Antonio’s lips lifted, and he actually bared his teeth at Cahal. “And I will do as I damn well please where Lily is concerned.”

  Well…they were both pissed.

  Elder Jacobs clapped his hands loudly. “Okay, that’s enough of that, you two. You want to take it outside later, feel free, but right now, we need to finish this, so we can finish our other business because,” he glanced around, “all this gold is making me queasy.”

  “Elder Farrar?” Ezra asked after a moment, again surprising me as he slid his hands back, taking hold of my hips and pulling my body flush against his warm back.

  Antonio heaved in a large breath, moving his attention away from Cahal. His head tilted back on the wall, eyes closed, as he waved a hand. “I’ll never do anything to harm Lily.”

  “Don’t even ask me, Ezra,” Cahal’s head was now in his hands, “You know I’ll protect you.”

  A pause, then Ezra murmured quietly, “I know, Dad.” Slowly, he started backing up, pushing me with him. “I think we’ll go now.” His steps were growing larger, even as he lifted me off my feet when my strides wouldn’t match his. “You all have a nice evening.”

  “Yes, please go,” Antonio stated quietly, but waved a hand. “I will expect you to come back to fix that crack you put above my door.” One eye opened. “When you’re invited.”

  “Of course,” Ezra stated, setting me on my feet, even though I was pretty sure he had no clue what Antonio was talking about. “I’ll wait for your call.” He opened the door for me.

  I had one foot in the hallway when I stilled. Cahal was using the old Vampire form of communication. Grabbing my earlobe, I tugged on it while I listened to his voice hiss in my ear, “If you ever hurt him, I will kill you.”

  My wolf wanted to growl, but I swallowed it, dropping my hand and glancing back at him. He loved his son something fierce. There was no denying that. Ezra had frozen when I had, his gaze snapping to his father, smart enough to understand what was happening. Cahal’s head lifted. His dark eyes met mine.

  Oh, did he ever mean his threat, too.

  I got it, so I nodded, then exited the room with a hovering Vampire next to me.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Ezra was an intermittent growling mess once out of his dad’s eyesight.

  On the plus side, no one tried to intercept us as we made our way to our bedroom.

  On the downside, when we entered said bedroom, he went all loco-Vampire-freaky.

  As soon as the door shut, his eyes glowed, and maybe a heartbeat later, I was dizzy and sitting on the bed with my back resting against the headboard. Jack and Pearl were lying on the bed being bums and watching TV, and they both froze as I thumped next to them. Eyes wide in shocked wooziness,
I stared at the Vampire whose eyes were glowing fiercely as he growled continually, his movements too damn smooth — his predator peeking out to say hello — as he lifted the blanket over me, tucking it tightly around my legs and meticulously fluffing it up to my shoulders.

  Jack started to tap my shoulder, more than likely to ask me what the hell was going on, but his face suddenly glowed green as Ezra’s attention snapped to him. His fangs fully bared, his growl rumbling more deeply than before. Oddly, the bone structure of his face was even more sharply defined, somehow appearing more beautiful and deadly at the same time. Intelligently, Jack’s hand retreated before he touched me. Ezra’s growl continued a moment longer at that lower tone, definitely a warning of sorts, before it went back to the only-just-scary growl…right before he gently placed his hand on my shoulder, pulling me forward to place a pillow behind my back.

  He straightened, his head cocking. Reached to lift the blanket higher on my shoulder and brush a few stray strands of hair off my face. Slowly, his head slanted toward Pearl and Jack. He growled that deeper tenor before saying in a musically creepy tone, “Don’t touch her.”

  They both nodded.

  Finally, blinking past my dazed astonishment, I found my voice. “Ezra, I’m alright.”

  He only stared at me.

  Talking in a soft voice, one people use specifically when someone’s going off the deep end, I said, “Really, Ezra. No one hurt me. They only talked—” I squeaked when he was suddenly in my face, a finger over my lips.

  “My dad had you,” he hummed, the tone just shy of hypnotic. “One time, you called him seriously scary, but that doesn’t even begin to describe him. He didn’t get his reputation by being…nice. The things he’s done, the things he’s taught me, are not anywhere kind enough for nightmares.” His head cocked, the movement all Vampire. “Don’t ever be that naive again, sweetheart. If he’s ever upset with you, hit him with every ounce of power you have,” he leaned forward until our noses touched, “then…fucking…run.”

  My lips pinched under his finger. “Antonio was there. He would never let him harm me.”

  Ezra growled so loudly the sound actually vibrated against my entire body.

  I wasn’t one hundred percent sure how to handle this situation. All I had were Shifter experiences to go from. If I had to compare the two, which truly weren’t all that far apart — between the four Mystical factions, Vampires and Shifters were the two predators of the group while Mages and Elementals were the gentler of our people — his reaction was extremely similar to the way a Shifter would behave after feeling a loved one had been threatened. Hoping I was right, risking his predator seeing it as a threat, I acted to try to calm him the only way I knew.

  Shifter style.

  Inhaling heavily, I cautiously pulled my hand out of the blanket and rested it on his cheek. Then hit him with a dose of soothing Shifter magic. His growl sputtered as he blinked a few times. I whispered, “I was fine. I know when to run. And that wasn’t the time.” Brushing his finger from my mouth, I bent forward and placed my lips gently against his slightly parted ones. “Shh. It’s alright, baby. I’m right here. I’m fine.” I kissed him softly. Once. “Calm down.”

  His breathing became pants against my lips as we stared one another in the eyes. Again, I hit him with another dose of soothing magic. His whole body trembled, his growling quieting, no longer loud enough to rock the air around us. Shakily, he stated, “You scared me. When I heard my dad order you off the phone…fuck, I was so scared.” His nostrils flared. “Promise me you’ll do as I said if your instincts tell you he’s too angry.”

  That was a no-brainer. “I promise.” Cahal was one scary mother-fucker.

  His eyes holding mine captive, Ezra’s growl turned into a purr, and he tilted his face into my palm, kissing it softly before rubbing his cheek against it, then he moved fluidly — like he floated — over me to lie between Jack and me, half his body resting over mine. With an arm and a leg firmly wrapping me tight under him, he rested his head on my lap. He closed his eyes, the glow disappearing even though his soft purr didn’t.

  Pulling my other hand out, my heart melted as he shuddered once and buried his head further against me, his grip unbreakable, and I started softly petting him. Fingers moving slowly through his almost dried hair, I began working the tangles out, running my other hand over his muscled back. We’d had one hell of a roller-coaster ride between having ‘the talk’, our sexual frustration, and then the inquisition. Now, we were free to just…be.

  His Vampire seemed to like the gentle motions, because when I stopped for the barest moment to peer at Pearl and Jack, the purr turned into an ill-mannered growl until I started caressing him again. Then he went back to purring. My lips curled at the badass Vampire’s churlishness. It was a bit adorable, which I never thought I would say about a powerful predator.

  As I continued to stroke him, my eyes moved to Jack and Pearl. They were staring at Ezra. I decided they appeared a combination of freaked, confused, and a bit uncomfortable — as if they were witnessing something they shouldn’t. That last one was more than likely because they were observing what Ezra and I kept private, our more intimate discussions only ever happening when we were alone together — normally between lovemaking sessions.

  After clearing my throat, I began to softly whisper to them what had happened. Skimming over the more physical details, and further skimming over our intimate discussion throughout our time in Antonio’s office, I got to the point of why Ezra was acting as he was. Jack’s and Pearl’s expressions varied from fear to wariness as I spoke. And all the while, Ezra gradually pulled me down lower on the bed until I was flat on my back with a heavy Vampire over me, his purring only diminishing when he actually fell asleep with his face in the crook of my neck.

  “Do you trust what they said?” Pearl asked softly so she didn’t wake the troubled Vamp.

  “Yes,” I whispered, still running my hands through Ezra’s hair. “Their answers were truth.”

  Jack eyed me, having stayed quiet the longest. “What aren’t you telling us?” He slanted his head toward Ezra. “That was something else entirely.”

  Resting my cheek against the top of his head, I inhaled his scent heavily. I wasn’t going to lie to them, and at the same time, I hadn’t told them initially because I wasn’t sure how they would handle it. But Jack had figured out something was askew. “I asked him to be exclusive. To have a real relationship.” Their expressions carefully stayed the same, not giving me much to go on. “He said he had already been thinking about it,” I rubbed my cheek against Ezra’s head, “This is him not hiding his emotions.”

  Jack ran a hand through his hair. “I can’t say I didn’t see this coming.” He stared at the bedroom door. “But why did he fly in here the first time, pissed the fuck off, go immediately to the shower, only to come out in a mildly better mood?”

  My lips pinched. “We have…a little issue…with jealousy and I told him we weren’t doing anything…intimate…until we figured out what we’re going to do relationship-wise.”

  Jack’s lips twitched. “That explains the shower.”

  Pearl cocked her head. “You sure about what you’re asking for?”

  I sighed. “We’re practically already doing it. I just want it agreed on.” I wanted him to be mine.

  Golden eyebrows rose. “I think you know what I’m talking about.” She gestured around the room. “I’ve never seen him like that before. When he first came in, he was floating.”

  Ah. “Like I said, we’ll have a little issue of jealousy to work out in the beginning.”

  Both gave me a look.

  My eyes narrowed. “Okay, a big one, but that doesn’t mean I don’t stand by what I want.” I paused, and gradually began to grin, staring at Jack. His expression became instantly wary, so I asked sweetly, “Jack, can you help me with something?”

  “What?”

  I plucked at my shirt. “I need a man’s opinion on what’s,” I imit
ated Ezra’s deep voice, “sexy and seductive.” I rolled my eyes. “He pretty much said my clothes suck.”

  Jack gurgled, and quickly cleared his throat. “I could probably help you with that.”

  My smile grew. “Perfect.”

  Sometimes things work out perfectly.

  Right after Ezra left for kitchen detail the next morning, Elder Merrick called the room to tell me he had a meeting to attend and wouldn’t be available for our training session. So I had jumped on the private time and tried to wake Jack up, ready to have him help me with my clothes dilemma. He had groused unintelligibly for a few minutes while I tried to wake him, but had woken fully when I dragged his ass out of bed where he had been snuggled up, all nice and warm next to Pearl. He hadn’t much appreciated hitting the cold floor.

  But we had gotten to work…sort of.

  “What about this one?” I asked, holding up a pair of jeans almost identical to what Ezra wore yesterday, only girl-style, and a strapless silver shirt. “I really like it.”

  Jack pounded his head against the wall. Literally. We had been at this for a half-hour. He, I was finding out, was like any other man I saw in department stores being dragged around by a woman. The look of pain was barely masked.

  The only difference between him and the other men I had observed was he didn’t lie to hurry me. He kept vetoing every outfit I pulled out of my closet, in effect making this process much longer than it should have taken.

  I shook the garments. “Ezra wears pants just like these!”

  “Ezra’s a guy!” Jack sighed, grabbing the jeans from my hands. “Jeans can, at times, be sexy on a woman, but they’re always hot on a man.” Frustrated, he tossed the jeans onto the pile in the closet. “You don’t want at times. You want always.”