Unraveled Heart [The Exiled 5] (Siren Publishing: The Lynn Hagen ManLove Collection)

by Lynn Hagen

  “But I left you a note.” Silo nibbled along Palmino’s neck. Palmino refused to be distracted by Silo’s soft lips and his wandering hands. He pressed against Silo’s chest, trying to push the man away, but his attempts were laughable at best. He wasn’t really giving it any effort, especially when Silo pulled Palmino onto his lap. “Don’t be mad at me, babe.”

  “I just don’t like the fact you go out there chasing down things most people run from,” Palmino said. When he’d seen the note, his gut had twisted and the worry had kicked in. Images of that soul-sucker came to mind. “It isn’t safe.”

  Silo gave a soft chuckle as he pulled Palmino close for a kiss. “If my brethren and I didn’t patrol, then the streets wouldn’t be half as safe.”

  “I’m not gonna win this, am I?” Palmino tilted his head as his mate nibbled his way from one side of his neck to the other. He softly moaned when Silo sucked at his Adam’s apple.

  “I’m sorry, but no. It’s my job to kill as many hellhounds as possible. I shudder at the thought of one of them getting their hands on you.”

  The image made Palmino shudder, as well. Or was that because of those delectable nibbles Silo was giving him? Either way, Palmino definitely didn’t want a hellhound chasing after him. Although he’d never met one in the flesh, he’d heard about them, and what he’d heard made him terrified to run into one.

  “Just promise me you’ll stay safe.” Palmino twisted on Silo’s lap, straddling his mate, and wishing they could have sex. Unfortunately, Palmino had to leave in about ten minutes if he didn’t want to be late for work.

  Having a job really sucked. It cut into his time with Silo. All Palmino wanted to do was strip the man and ride his cock.

  Silo chuckled. “I can tell what you’re thinking, babe.”

  “How?”

  Silo tapped him on the nose. “Your pupils are dilated and you have a healthy flush to your skin.” He pulled Palmino down by the nape. Oh how Palmino simply loved being nibbled on by his man. He glanced at the clock on the wall and cursed the fact he had to leave soon. The flower shop was only a few blocks over, and Palmino could get there in five minutes if he hustled, but damn if he didn’t want to stay on Silo’s lap for the rest of the day…or at least the next hour.

  “I have to get to work.” Palmino tilted his head to the other side and sighed as Silo licked his jaw. “Seriously, stop enticing me to stay.”

  “I told you I’d take care of you,” Silo reminded him. “You could stay right here with me.”

  As tempting as that was, Palmino knew he couldn’t. He was determined to make changes in his life. His parents had footed the bill his entire life, and his father’s words still rang in his head. Palmino wasn’t a lazy guy and he wasn’t sure what his goals were just yet, but he would make some. He wasn’t even sure why he wanted to prove his father wrong. It wasn’t as if he would ever see the man again. Hopefully. Palmino still worried his father would find out about his mating and then all hell would break loose.

  Silo made a cute noise as he playfully bit at Palmino’s jaw. “If you have to go, then why haven’t you moved yet?”

  Because Palmino felt Silo’s hardened cock beneath him and moving away seemed completely impossible right now. “I like being in your arms.”

  Silo leaned his head back and stared at Palmino. He didn’t know how to interpret the look in his mate’s eyes. This time when he pulled Palmino in for a kiss, it was slow, as if the man was trying to convey some kind of emotions to him. Palmino slipped his arms around Silo’s thick neck, moaning at the kiss, his body humming for relief. He wanted to be consumed by Silo, to be taken in a way that branded Palmino. The touches were light, exploring, as Silo’s lips traced a path from Palmino’s jaw to his collarbone. How was he supposed to tear away from this?

  How? For a man Silo’s size, he was incredibly gentle. Palmino shivered as his mate’s fingers ghosted down his back, and then rested at the hem of Palmino’s pants.

  “I want you,” Silo whispered against the dip at Palmino’s throat. “I want to be buried deep inside of you.”

  Palmino swallowed roughly. He wanted the same thing. But it was more than sex. When he was with Silo, Palmino felt loved, wanted, and desired. His mate had a way of making Palmino feel as if he were the only man on the planet. “I want to stay,” Palmino said with a deep, salacious moan. “But I can’t.”

  Life was so damn unfair. Cruel, if you asked Palmino.

  With deep regret, Palmino wiggled his way off Silo’s lap. His mate slouched back and stared up at him with those bedroom blue eyes. God if the man didn’t look delicious all laid out on the couch. Palmino’s teeth ached to bite Silo’s swollen biceps, his chest, his belly, and then lick his way to his mate’s cock.

  Palmino shook his head and grabbed his jacket as he headed for the door. “You can sleep in my bed while I’m gone.”

  “Why don’t you join me?”

  “Because you wouldn’t get any sleep and I would be fired.” Palmino had no doubt Mr. Cooper would do just that. If the guy had been preternatural, Palmino would have time off since he was newly mated. Kyle had told Palmino that. But the prick was human and probably wouldn’t give him even a day off. Palmino didn’t have to work on Sunday, but that was four days away.

  Silo settled on the couch, his arm slung over his head. Palmino had to get out of there before he stripped naked and rode his mate’s fat cock to heaven. With a sigh, he hurried out the door and down the back steps with a hard-on from hell. Palmino left through the back of the tavern and cut around the alley to make his way to work.

  As soon as he stepped into the shop, he felt his sinuses clogging. Kyle was already there, working as the sappy music played. Palmino wanted to break that speaker so badly, but all he did was glare at it.

  “Well?” Kyle asked as Palmino rushed by him to get to the office. “How’d last night go?”

  “Like I’m gonna give you any details.” Palmino used the computer on a desk to clock in, and then he slid his jacket off and threw it over the chair.

  He sauntered back toward Kyle and grinned.

  “So, I take it Silo claimed you.” Kyle’s smile turned just as wide.

  “My lips are sealed,” Palmino said. “But I will tell you that, yes, I am now a claimed man.”

  They high-fived each other before Palmino stared at what Kyle was doing. “Those are odd colors for a wreath.”

  ‘They’re harvest colors,” Kyle explained. “Thanksgiving isn’t that far away, and orders have been pouring in for decoration pieces for the tables, doors, and even yards.”

  Palmino had to admit that the red, orange, and gold hues worked well together. “What’s Thanksgiving?”

  Kyle’s hands still as he stared wide-eyed at Palmino. “You’ve never heard of Thanksgiving?”

  Now that Palmino glanced around the place, he noticed those colors everywhere. He turned back to Kyle. “Nope.”

  “Where have you been living, under a rock?”

  The question made Palmino uneasy. He didn’t want to lie to his friend, but he wasn’t about to reveal his secret either. “Just explain to me what it is and stop making a big deal about my lack of knowledge.”

  Kyle stared suspiciously at him before he explained to Palmino what Thanksgiving was all about.

  Palmino’s stomach rumbled. “People seriously eat all that food?”

  “And then lie around moaning because they’ve made pigs of themselves.” Kyle’s light blue eyes lit up. “Say, why don’t you and Silo come over for Thanksgiving?”

  “I’ll have to talk to him about that first.” Palmino wasn’t sure if he even wanted to celebrate the holiday. He was still trying to work out other things in his life.

  He glanced up when the bell over the door jingled. A man walked in, glancing around at the arrangements, vases, baskets, home décor stuff, knickknacks, and other items gathered at the front of the shop. He wore a dark business suit, and his blond hair was combed stylishly to one side, his chiseled f
eatures stunning. When he turned to look their way, Palmino saw he had breathtaking hazel eyes.

  “Can I help you?” Kyle came from around the counter and met the gentleman.

  “I need some flowers for the wife.” The guy glanced Palmino’s way and smiled. That handsome smile should have had Palmino’s heart fluttering. He was mated, not blind. But the only thing it managed to do was make Palmino’s hairs stand on end.

  “Sure,” Kyle said and helped the man as Palmino moved behind the counter and stared down at the wreath his friend had been making. Palmino had no clue how to finish it. There were intricately laced weeds strewn with leaves, cranberries, and fall-colored ribbons.

  “How about some lilies?” Kyle asked.

  “I’ll let you know,” the man said. Kyle smiled and nodded before he joined Palmino.

  “Want to learn how to do this?”

  “Not really,” Palmino said. “I’ll go clean something.” As he moved around the counter, he saw the man had a cell phone in his hand. The stranger looked as if he was typing something, but Palmino swore he saw the guy take a picture of him.

  Turning away, Palmino started dusting the back shelves. When he glanced over his shoulder at the stranger, he had his phone held up and was taking a picture of Kyle. The man noticed Palmino looking his way and smiled, tucking his phone in his pocket.

  Nope, that wasn’t suspicious in the least. Maybe Palmino was just being paranoid. The guy could’ve simply been taking pictures of the stuff around the store as reminders for gift ideas. Other people had done that when visiting the shop.

  So why did he still have a creepy feeling about the man?

  “I’ll just take these.” The guy grabbed a prepackaged arrangement of flowers that had been sitting in a water bucket.

  After the guy paid for his purchases and left, Palmino turned to Kyle. “Did he give you the willies?”

  Kyle rubbed his nape. “Like he was here for something other than flowers? Yeah.”

  A thought struck Palmino. He hurried into the office and tapped on the keyboard until the shop security footage came to life. He rewound it and then hit Pause when he had a clear shot of the stranger’s face.

  “What’re you doing?” Kyle asked as he strolled into the office.

  Palmino really did need to get his own phone. “Let me see your phone.”

  Kyle handed it over, and Palmino took a picture of the guy’s face. “Keep that in case we need it.”

  “Let’s just hope we don’t,” Kyle said.

  “We could be just a pair of paranoid men.” Palmino clicked out of the program and turned in the seat to stare up at Kyle.

  “But we both felt that funky vibe,” Kyle argued. “I’m not ready to dismiss it so easily.”

  Neither was Palmino. But what could they really do? Tell the cops the man gave them the creeps?

  With no other choice, Palmino let the matter go. Those holiday decorations weren’t going to make themselves, and after a bit of coaxing, Kyle had talked him into helping with the dozen ordered wreaths. At least they smelled nice. Cinnamon, cranberries, and nutmeg. That was what he scented all through the shop.

  Maybe there was more to this holiday thing than met the eye. Palmino still wasn’t sure if he wanted to celebrate, but helping Kyle for the rest of the afternoon had eased his mind and even made him smile.

  When the bell above the door jingled, he looked up to see Silo entering. Palmino sucked in his bottom lip and glanced the man over. Handsome wasn’t a good enough description, and as soon as his mate pulled Palmino into his arms, it was like being enveloped in home, hearth, safety, and everything else that warmed Palmino’s heart.

  “What’re you doing here?” Those baby blues were smoldering as Silo looked down at him. Palmino loved how big the guy was compared to his short and slight stature. He loved how his mate smelled, too. Palmino loved how Silo smiled down on him. Hell, he didn’t think there was anything about his mate he didn’t like.

  “Time to go home.”

  Had time slipped away from him that fast? The clock on the wall said Silo was right. The afternoon had flown by.

  “I was thinking about taking a drive for dinner.”

  “Where to?” Palmino wasn’t sure if Silo wanted to go alone or if the guy was inviting him to go along. Since yesterday, they’d been inseparable, but Palmino knew everyone needed their space. Maybe Silo was meeting up with his buddies.

  “The Lucky Clover,” Silo said.

  Kyle whistled. “Fancy.”

  Silo was meeting his friends at a swanky restaurant? “How long will you be gone?”

  Silo chuckled. “Did you think I was going by myself?”

  “You want me to go with you?”

  “No, I was thinking about hooking up while I was there,” Silo teased. Not finding his joke the least bit funny, Palmino punched him on his solid arm.

  “Try it and I’ll…” Palmino curled his lips in. He was about to say he would zap Silo’s ass back to infancy, but even though he’d been joking, Palmino didn’t want Kyle to catch a clue.

  “Ah, look at my little fairy all jealous and shit.” Silo wrapped an arm around him and Palmino melted into his mate. Silo’s thick, smoky, masculine scent overpowered the smells in the shop. Palmino inhaled deep drafts of Silo’s wonderful aroma as his cock started to rise.

  He pulled Silo down so he could whisper into his mate’s ear. “As long as we can fool around while you drive, you can take me anywhere.”

  Silo’s breathing hitched and a low, guttural growl vibrated in the air between them. Just for added emphasis, Palmino nipped Silo’s soft earlobe and then slid his tongue up the side of it.

  “Keep that up and we won’t make it out of town,” Silo warned as he slapped Palmino on his ass. “Go clock out, vixen.”

  Pulling away, Palmino remembered one of the things on his to-do list. “I need to get a phone.”

  He became curious when Silo’s face, neck, and ears turned a lovely shade of red. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a silver phone, and then handed it to Palmino. “I know you like to do your independent thing, but I don’t like not being able to get in touch with you, so I took the liberty of buying you one.”

  The phone was slim and sleek and weighed nothing in Palmino’s hand.

  “I set up an Apple account for you and programmed your phone. It’s ready to use. I even input necessary phone numbers in your contacts.”

  Palmino wasn’t sure what to say. He liked the fact Silo had been so thoughtful, but he also knew how much these phones cost. He’d done the research when trying to find the cheapest phone he could buy. Palmino started to tell Silo he couldn’t accept it, but the pleased look on his mate’s face stopped him. Palmino smiled instead. “Thanks.”

  “Getting spoiled already,” Kyle teased.

  Palmino snorted as he pointed the phone at his friend as if it were an extension of his hand. “You have room to talk. Nikoli bought you a house.”

  Kyle’s smile widened. “And I love every square inch of that place.”

  Rolling his eyes, Palmino went into the office and clocked out, grabbed his jacket off the chair, and then slid his arm through Silo’s. “Ready.”

  “You guys have fun,” Kyle said just as Nikoli entered the shop. No one could mistake how the winged beast felt toward the impala. Nothing but love shined in Nikoli’s eyes.

  Palmino’s mating was still brand-new, but he couldn’t wait until Silo stared at him like that. He wanted to feel what being loved was like. Palmino’s parents had been busy with their careers, and he had been raised by an elven nanny. Palmino really had to be an oddball among his kind because dark elves didn’t love the way most mated couples did. They cherished beauty, money, and power above all else, and if you fell short, you were left behind to wilt like a flower that never received any sun.

  But Palmino didn’t crave those things. All he wanted was to be loved by someone who truly cared about him, and to be left the hell alone by the dark fairies.
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br />   Things were going slow, but he felt as if his life was finally heading in the right direction.

  * * * *

  “Which one is it?”

  “I couldn’t figure out which one was the fairy.”

  Joe took the phone and looked over both pictures. It was a hard call. The blond, blue-eyed guy looked more like a fairy than the dark-skinned guy with pink hair.

  Pink hair. What was the world coming to? He flipped back to the picture of the blond and handed the phone over. “Set things up to have that one taken. I want to study him before he’s killed.”

  “You got it.”

  At least the bug hadn’t been found yet. Joe had gotten some useful information, but not enough. He’d already heard about hellhounds, but Silo’s conversation solidified the rumor. Now all he had to learn was how to catch one of those hellhounds. The idea of a bug had been brilliant, though he could have done without the moaning and sex noises.

  Joe dropped down into the chair at his desk. The longer he lived, the more tired he became. He’d sought out a powerful fairy when his wife had been murdered, and begged Lucinda to give him immortality so he could kill the ones responsible for his wife’s death.

  That had been over eighty-six years ago, and Joe wasn’t sure he still had the fire in him to continue his campaign against nonhumans. He’d killed those who had murdered his sweet Mary, and he’d gone underground for the past twenty years because he’d needed the break.

  But now that he’d resurfaced, Joe wasn’t sure his heart was in this. He would live as long as Lucinda’s heart still beat, but how long would that be? Another decade, ten decades?

  He may have a supernaturally long life, but he wasn’t a monster. Not like the people he hunted. He’d seen horrors over his lifetime that served only to fuel his hatred. He may only look to be in his late twenties, but his body and soul felt his true age.

  Did he really want to keep the fight going?

  Deciding now was not the time to contemplate his growing weariness, Joe stood and headed out the door. He needed to set up for the fairy’s stay and find a way to shove back his melancholy feelings.