by S. K. Yule
“Nina?”
He nodded.
“Why did you talk to Nina? How did you even know how to contact her?”
“Sorry, Izzy. I have this plan, so I filched your address book the other night.”
“Cyrus! This is a personal matter.”
She was horrified that he had told Nina about Stephen being back. Her friend had been worried sick over her the last—first—time Stephen had nearly killed her. Isabelle didn’t quite know how she felt about dragging Nina into this sordid mess.
“I should have asked you first, but honestly?” He shrugged. “I wasn’t sure how you’d respond, and I was willing to risk your ire as long as it meant keeping you safe.”
She rubbed her forehead with her fingertips. “How could you? This was my decision. Not yours. You lied to me about who you are—which I do understand, even though I still don’t like being lied to—then had plans all along to go behind my back with my friend?”
“No. It is our decision. I can’t allow you to come to any harm.”
Isabelle stood and began pacing. “Are you listening to yourself? It is my decision. It’s my body, my house, my problem. Do you see where I’m going with this? I make all of my decisions.”
“Izzy, be reasonable.”
He reached for her, but she evaded him, spinning around to face him instead. “Reasonable? You have dragged my best friend into something that has the potential of causing her harm, and you want me to be reasonable?”
“Settle down. Let me explain.”
“Do not tell me to settle down! Ever. You have no idea how angry I am at you right now. I should—”
The shrill ringing of the phone cut her off. She stomped over and picked it up on the third ring. She wasn’t sure if she was more relieved or agitated to hear Nina on the other end. She wasn’t any happier with her friend for agreeing to help Cyrus with whatever plan he had devised behind her back.
She loved Nina dearly though, and in the end, Nina convinced her to at least hear Cyrus out. Isabelle only agreed because this wasn’t worth losing Nina over—at least she hoped. After hanging up, she went back to the living room where Cyrus was waiting.
After crossing her arms over her chest, she leveled a stare that she hoped he took as a you-better-tell-me-the-whole-truth-and-no-bullshit look, with a little of I-really-want-to-kick-your-ass-right-now as a side dish. “Spill it. All of it.”
“I asked Nina if she could come up with a spell to bind Stephen from harming you or anyone else. She said she could do it.”
So far that didn’t sound too terrible. “Continue.”
“You can’t be here when we perform it. Nina needs to invoke an invitation spell. When Stephen tries to possess her, I’m going to grab him and restrain him until Nina binds him.”
And that was where the plan fell to shit. “Absolutely not!” Isabelle put her hands on her hips and glared at him. “You will not put my friend in danger like that.”
“Damn it, Izzy! What about you? What if you’re here when we do this, and Stephen gets inside you somehow? What if I can’t get him out in time? You take too many risks with your life already.”
She stepped up to him, not backing down when he loomed over her. “I don’t care what the consequences are, Cyrus. Stephen is my problem, not Nina’s, and I won’t let her risk her life for me.”
“She won’t be risking her life. I’ll get Stephen before he has a chance to possess her.”
He was scared. She could read it plain as day in his eyes. He was frightened for her. That meant he had to care for her. Isabelle’s heart flip-flopped in response. Maybe, just maybe, he could learn to love her after all?
She pulled him over to the couch, tugged him down beside her, and faced him. “Then what is the difference if we use my body or Nina’s? You say there is no risk because you will get him before he hurts her, so it won’t matter if it’s me or her.”
Cyrus took a deep breath and let it out in a long exhale. “Izzy, no plan is foolproof. I will get him, but sometimes things…happen.”
“Exactly. That’s why I won’t let my best friend risk her life. Would you allow your friend to do the same if the tables were turned?”
“No. I wouldn’t. But there’s a big difference. You can die. I can’t.”
“Yeah, and so can Nina.”
“Nina has already agreed to do this. She loves you, and she doesn’t want anything to happen to you. We both know Stephen will be caught off-guard when he doesn’t find you here, and that will be the advantage I need to get him before he realizes what’s going on.”
“Cyrus, listen to me carefully. This is not going to happen without me. Nina will not invite anything into her body. She cannot do what I can do. If she happened to get possessed, and you still got rid of Stephen, she would most likely come out damaged. I won’t…most likely.”
“Why do you have to be so damned noble? I’ve never met such a fierce woman. I admire your courage, but not so much at this moment.” He rubbed at the bridge of his nose, then sighed. “You aren’t going to back down, are you?”
She shook her head, and a small growl of frustration slipped from his lips. “Fine, Izzy.”
Every muscle in his body was tense.
She let out a long, calming breath, hugged him to her, and ran her fingers up and down his back. “Cyrus, I trust you. It will be okay, and Stephen will finally be gone forever.”
* * * *
Cyrus would call Nina and make arrangements for a backup plan. Yes, he would go behind Izzy’s back again. He had no choice. He would not allow her to come to any harm, and he hoped Nina would agree that they needed a Plan B in case things with Plan A went to shit. He wasn’t going to tell Izzy what he intended to do if something went wrong, because he wasn’t sure if she’d agree. And if it came to that, if everything turned out badly, he would not let her die.
He returned Izzy’s hug. “If I can’t get to my body before it dies, you know that I will be back, right?”
She nodded. “I understand that. I don’t care what body you’re in. It’s you I want.”
“And there’s always the possibility that I won’t make it to Stephen before he gets to—”
“Cyrus, you will get there in time. I trust you. I know everything will be okay because you will be there.”
He squeezed her tighter. “I won’t let anything happen to you. I promise.”
“Cyrus, if something does go wrong—”
“Don’t say it. I couldn’t bear it.”
She put two fingers over his lips. “If something does go wrong, you have to promise me that you will not blame yourself. I would never blame you. Tell me you won’t hold yourself responsible if something goes wrong.”
He couldn’t tell her that if something did go wrong, he’d use the backup plan, and she’d probably hate him and definitely blame him. “Fine.”
“When is this all supposed to take place?”
“Tomorrow night.”
“Sounds like we have time to have some fun. And I know just what I want to do for starters.” She grabbed his arm and started for the front door. “You have your keys?”
He looked at her a little puzzled. “Yes.”
A wicked smile curved her face, and he realized what she was up to.
“Good. Give them here.” She waggled her brows at him. “It’s time for me to drive that black monster of yours.”
“Here you go.”
Her eyes widened in surprise as he threw her the keys. She dropped them on the floor, making him laugh. Izzy scrambled to pick them up, grabbed her purse, and practically ran out the door.
Twenty minutes later they were flying down the interstate.
“This is wonderful,” Izzy said. “I feel revived. My blood is practically singing, and the adrenaline rush is like nothing I’ve ever felt.” She glanced over at Cyrus. “I have to admit, she handles even better than Wanda, but don’t tell her that.”
“Wanda?”
She laughed. “Yeah, my BMW.
I call her Wanda. Every car needs a name, and cars are usually named after women. What should we call this beauty?” She rubbed her hand along the smooth dash in front of the steering wheel and pursed her lips. “I’ve got it. We’ll call her Betty.”
“Betty? You’re driving a bad-ass car, and you want to call it Betty?”
Izzy frowned. “What’s wrong with Betty?”
“It seems sissyish to me.” He shot her an annoyed look. “Good God. Betty?”
She laughed again. “How is Betty a sissyish name? What makes it any sissier than say, Wilma or Linda or Michelle or—”
He threw his hands up in surrender. “Okay, okay. Betty it is.”
“Now let’s see what Betty can do.”
She floored it, and Betty roared to life before easing into a deep purr as they cruised down the highway.
He’d never get enough of this woman. She took everything life threw at her and rolled with it, enjoyed it, loved it. He wanted to tell Izzy he loved her, but he wanted to make sure it was the truth—not empty words to make her feel better. He cared about her more than he had ever cared about anyone, but he had never been in love and wasn’t exactly sure what it felt like.
* * * *
Two hours later, Isabelle, Cyrus, and Betty arrived home. Isabelle ran her hand along the smooth line of the hood, but stopped when she noticed Cyrus staring at her, hip cocked and resting on the other side of the hood with an all-knowing grin.
“Hey. I already told you how nice Betty is,” she whispered. “But now that we’re back, I can’t talk about her in front of Wanda.”
She glanced at her BMW sitting on the other side of the drive, looking lonely and maybe a bit pouty.
Cyrus tossed his head back and laughed. She watched his throat muscles work as he did so, and thought how enjoyable it would be to kiss his neck at that very moment. He locked eyes with her and began a slow, predatory walk toward her. She was being stalked, and she liked it. It was the first time she sensed how lethal Cyrus could be. Her knees turned to jelly at his approach, and she felt empowered that this man, this demon, had been gentle, protective, and caring with her.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“What I’m doing is thinking about what we did in the back seat. What I’m going to do is kiss you senseless.”
And she wanted him to, but she also wanted some answers. He was stronger, and still he had never so much as put a tiny bruise on her…unless she counted the love-bites on her breast after they’d made love. “Cyrus, are you stronger than humans?”
He pulled her to him and kissed her neck. “Yes.”
A simple answer to a simple question. She had other questions, questions she had been wanting to ask, but her brain was melting into a puddle of desire. She took a deep breath and put a little distance between them while she still had the willpower to do so.
He brushed the stray hairs off her cheek and let them sift between his fingers. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong. I still have a few questions is all. I was wondering if you, um…Are you able to father children?”
* * * *
Cyrus pulled Izzy back into his arms and smiled against her neck. “Are you worried I might have gotten you pregnant?”
Just as suddenly, his smile evaporated as raw pain hit him in the gut. No. He couldn’t have children, and for the first time in his long existence he actually regretted that fact. He could picture their child, a little girl with her mother’s eyes and charm.
Only, it could never happen.
The thought that she might have been worried that she may be carrying his baby made his chest ache. Would she have even wanted his child?
“No. I can’t father a child,” he went on. “And I can’t give you any diseases, either. As I told you before, once I take a body, anything that is ailing it, other than old age, is cured or healed.”
She stiffened a little, and he leaned back to look down at her. “Are you relieved?”
She reached up and softly stroked his cheek with her fingers. “No. I’m not relieved. I just wondered, since we haven’t used protection.”
He sighed and swayed into her touch. “Are you saying you would want my baby?”
Cyrus watched as she closed her eyes. A small smile played over her full lips. “I would have been happy to have your baby. You have to know that. I love you, and even if you don’t love me, it doesn’t mean I wouldn’t want your child…our child.”
She loved him. His heart thumped as joy filled him.
Then it hit him like a lightning bolt. He did love her. How could he have questioned that? He doubted he’d survive if anything happened to her—hell, he would go freaking crazy if something happened to her. He wanted to spend every waking and sleeping moment with her, and he wished he could give her a child. If that wasn’t love, he didn’t know what was.
Cyrus kissed her gently. “Izzy, I—”
Her cell phone started ringing, cutting off what he was about to say. She pulled it out of her pocket. “It’s Nina.”
He was in love with her. How had he survived for so many long years without ever falling in love? Because you never met Izzy until now.
They were soul mates. He wanted to make her happy, be the reason she smiled. He wanted to protect her, hold her, share every minute with her. She could steal his breath with a simple grin or giggle, hold his heart in her hands. She could decimate him.
Maybe he had finally found something that could kill him, because if she ever turned her back on him, his soul would shrivel up and die.
Chapter Thirteen
“I don’t want you to do this, Nina.”
Isabelle paced back and forth while talking to her friend on the phone and shooting Cyrus I’m-going-to-murder-you glances.
The man had the nerve to keep cool and calm. In fact, he was infuriating, standing nonchalantly with his hip propped against the couch. As much as that irritated her, her heart thumped harder. He was gorgeous, feral, and…hers? She wanted him to be hers. She was forever his, had no choice in the matter. Her heart had decided that without bothering to consult her brain. But would he break her heart?
“You are my best friend.” Isabelle chewed on her nail and listened to Nina’s protests and insistence about accepting her help. “I don’t care! I would never forgive myself if something happened to you.”
Isabelle couldn’t deny that if the tables were turned, she’d do the same for Nina. But the tables weren’t turned, and if something happened to her friend, she’d never forgive herself.
Yet hadn’t she done the same thing to Cyrus? She’d insisted on being a part of Stephen’s binding, and had asked Cyrus to promise not to blame himself if something happened to her. How could she expect someone else to do what she couldn’t?
Stephen was going to get her if he wasn’t stopped. After that, he’d hurt someone else. Isabelle shivered at the memory of the pain he’d caused her already. Her soul felt tainted from the bastard’s touch.
She stared at Cyrus. Did she trust him enough to put her own life, as well as Nina’s, in his hands? A resounding yes vibrated through her in response. He would protect them. She had to have faith that everything would work out.
Nina was surprised by her change of heart, but promised to see them tomorrow night. Isabelle hung up the phone and was so engrossed in her thoughts, she jumped when Cyrus wrapped his arms around her from behind.
She sank back against his warmth and sighed. “I’m scared.”
Saying those words out loud was a tough pill to swallow. She hated admitting fear.
“I won’t let anything happen to you or Nina.”
“That’s what I’m counting on.” She turned to face him. “Promise me something.”
His brow rose. “What?”
Tears pooled in the corner of her eyes and threatened to spill down her cheek. “If something does go wrong, and you have to choose, save Nina.”
He shook his head. “I can’t.”
She tried to wrig
gle free from him, but he held her to him with ease. “Forget it! I won’t do it, then.”
The tears finally escaped and flowed freely.
Cyrus brushed the tears away with his thumbs, brought one to his mouth, and kissed it. “You have to. You know that.”
“No! If you can’t promise me that, I won’t do it.”
“I can’t, damn it!” He waited until her gaze rested on his face. “I’m not capable of making the choice you are asking of me. I can never choose someone else’s life over yours, Izzy.”
“Why?”
“Because it would kill me to lose you. I love you.” He pulled her tight to his chest and buried his face in her hair and repeated the words. “I love you. Do not ask such a thing of me. It would destroy me.”
She cried out in frustration and joy. He loved her. She framed his face with her hands and brought his mouth to hers. “Kiss me,” she whispered.
“With pleasure.”
His lips were soft but firm, and he cupped the back of her head with one hand, twisting his fingers in her hair. Cyrus tugged gently until her head tilted back, and deepened the kiss. His tongue slid into her mouth and tangled with hers in frantic exploration.
Isabelle moaned and pressed her body tight against him. His heat radiated through her, warming her, igniting her.
He broke the kiss, then, and she cried out in frustration. But Isabelle quickly forgot the absence of his mouth on hers when he nibbled and licked a path down her neck to her nipples, gently tugging and nipping at each peak through her shirt. He continued lower, kneeling down to undo her jeans, sliding his hand under the waistband and panties, his finger finding her clit.
She squirmed closer to him as he rubbed the sensitive nub. Her wetness coated him, intensifying the friction on her center, and she clutched at his shoulders. “Cyrus!”
He slid a finger into her tight channel. Isabelle’s orgasm ripped through her, searing every nerve into a perfect, exotic mixture of pleasure and pain. She screamed Cyrus’s name over and over until the ripples of pleasure began to abate.
He rested his head against her stomach, breathing hard. “I have to taste you, Izzy.”