“And what the hell kind of party is this anyway?” I gasped as I turned my head to see the man’s bare ass pass by me.
Vincent laughed and looped his arm around my shoulders after releasing my hand. He bent low, his breath washing over the shell of my ear. “What kind of party would you expect a Succubus to throw?” Seduction dripped from his words and echoed through my veins. My body came alive with a single touch, his finger dancing lightly over the bare skin of my arm.
“An orgy?” I asked breathily, my eyes fluttering shut as Vincent chuckled against my neck.
“Correct, Theera.” His fangs nibbled lightly on my pulse point, eliciting a moan from my throat. “And you are already causing quite a stir with your potent arousal. Arousal that is entirely mine.”
Snapping to attention, I opened my eyes and looked around the room. Dozens of eyes were on us. Desire burning deep within their depths as the onlookers licked their lips in anticipation. “Vincent,” I hesitated and clutched the sleeve of his suit jacket, suddenly self-conscious. His body left my side to press against my back.
“Relax,” he whispered into my ear and drew my body back against his. “No one will dare approach you without my permission. We are only here to meet with Damius and the council. It was a convenient excuse. We will not stay for any additional activities,” he paused and arched an eyebrow, the ghost of a playful smile on his face. “Unless you wish to, that is.”
I clenched my jaw at the teasing lilt of his voice before I relaxed into his arms and arched my back seductively. My backside pressed against his groin, where his erection started to press against me. He growled low and deep in my ear as his hand tightened against my hip. I tilted my head back and looked back at him. Lust formed in his eyes as the red of his irises swallowed the black and his demon took control of his body.
“Maybe I will,” I reached back and threaded my fingers through his hair and tugged firmly. “And maybe I prefer our bedroom activities stay private,” I growled and tried to step out of his embrace.
His warm chuckle assaulted my senses as his arm banded around my waist and held me in place. “No, no Theera. I seem to recall a little minx of a Nephilim who quite enjoys me stirring her up in the company of others.”
Of course he would have to bring up the time where he brought me to orgasm in the middle of Nicolae’s hospital room. Throwing that in my face was a bold move, considering that we had done it to save Nicolae’s life and restore his energy.
“Vincent, give the girl and the rest of us a break. Her energy is making the whole room practically drool,” Nicolae drawled as he sauntered toward us. His skin was back to its normal radiant olive glow, his hair shiny and full and he was the picture of a GQ model in his sharp all black suit and shirt. The top button was undone, showing off just a hint of his muscled chest. He looked to be the picture of health, but deep in those aqua eyes, the lingering sadness of his ordeal remained.
My heart ached at the reminder, all traces of the previous banter with Vincent completely forgotten. Poor Nicolae, having to be separated from his mate while she remained with her evil mother. Layla, the daughter of Adrianna, and Nicolae’s mate had to stay behind and play the part of double agent for us. It allowed us to remain informed about The Syndicate’s operations, but the toll that it took upon Nicolae was great.
Vincent sensed my rapid change in mood and his touch turned comforting rather than arousing. A large hand settled on the small of my back as he moved his body to my side and shook hands with Nicolae. It was a warrior’s handshake, grasping of the forearms with a quick pump up and down and then release. Short. Simple. No more contact than was needed.
“Good to see you up and about.” Vincent’s two-tone eyes looked Nicolae up and down, taking the same assessment as I did. My mate’s mouth firmed into a thin line.
“He may look healthy in body, but his mind is still fractured,” I whispered telepathically to Vincent.
“Yes. I know what he is experiencing right now. Being separated from your mate, even when you aren’t fully bonded is excruciating.”
My eyes fell to the floor as I swallowed and blinked back the tears that were forming in my eyes. “Stop it right now, love,” Nicolae chided in a low voice. “I don’t want to see you fretting over me tonight.” He shook his head, the blonde strands of his hair falling across his forehead.
I snapped my gaze up to him and pressed a finger into his hard chest. I ignored Vincent’s growl with a wave of my opposite hand. “I will worry about you all I want to, Nic. You’re part of my family.”
His aquamarine eyes widened in shock with his jaw slackening at my admission. “You honor me, Lorelei,” he said thickly, his voice choked with emotions.
My shoulders rose up and down in a shrug. “Why wouldn’t you think that you were family? You’re basically Vincent’s brother. You’ve done nothing but treat me like a sister. An annoying little sister, maybe, but it is still something that I’ve never experienced before.” I reached up and patted his face. “Besides, I need to keep you around to help me annoy this one.” I jerked my thumb over my shoulder at Vincent.
“What are you talking about? Why would my mate want to annoy me?” Vincent said looking wounded, but the hint of a smile on his face betrayed the amusement he felt.
Nicolae laughed and for the first time since we rescued him, the smile reached his eyes. “You need someone to keep you on your toes, boss man. It’s why the fates put Lorelei in your life. She’s a feisty little one.” He circled my shoulders loosely and drew me into his side for a quick hug and backed off before Vincent could go all cave man on us both.
“I suppose,” Vincent chuckled and pulled on my hand to bring me back into his body. “If it was anyone but Nicolae, Theera, they would be dead for such a move or daring to touch you.” He pressed a kiss into the crown of my head and smiled on as if nothing had happened.
“Or Kaniul,” I teased.
He let out a deep exhale and rolled his eyes before pressing a hand into the small of my back again, trying to get me out of the corridor. “We need to go now. I’m sure that Damius and Leo are waiting for us.”
“It’s why I came out,” Nicolae grabbed a flute of champagne from a passing server and downed it in one long swallow. “I was the one sent to fetch you as soon as your presence was announced.” Sarcasm dripped from his words in typical Nicolae style.
“Well aren’t you the lucky one?” Vincent said dryly and ushered me along the white marble floor. My low heels clicked along the smooth stone as I admired the vast surroundings. This place was incredible.
“Drya isn’t one for doing anything by half measures, is she?” I nibbled on my lip as I peeked around a corner to see a large St. Andrews Cross against one wall. A woman secured to the tethers, writhing in pleasure as she begged and strained against the ball gag in her mouth. A male demon dressed in just a simple pair of leather pants approached her from the back and brought a huge bullwhip down against her back. She cried out in a mixture of pleasure and pain, while begging and pleading for more.
My heart drummed rapidly in my chest as arousal surged in my body once more. Vincent whirled to face me as he tightened his grip on my waist. “Ah,” he exclaimed when he saw what I saw staring at, a hint of a smile in his voice. “Do you like that scene, Theera?”
Throat parched, I could only nod as his hand slid up my waist, over the side of my breast and finally wrapped around my throat. With his hand firmly wrapped around the back of my neck, he brought me against his body. “I would be happy to scene with you, little one. Whenever you desire it.”
His husky words send a shiver of awareness rippling through my body. I was on fire with desire, the flame burning hotter and brighter with each word that fell from his perfect lips. “Vincent,” I breathed, unable to help myself. I clung to him. My hands wrapping around his biceps, using his strong form to ground myself.
“Again?” Damius exclaimed on a deep sigh. “Seriously, can you two keep your hands off each other for more
than five minutes, please? In case you haven’t noticed, the world is kind of going to hell in a handbasket?”
I blinked, trying to clear myself from the spell of lust that Vincent wrapped me up in. Always drowning in his overwhelming presence, I struggled to maintain my sanity. Clearing my throat, I looked away sheepishly with heat flooding my cheeks. “Yeah, sorry.”
“I’m not,” Vincent growled. “It was his bright idea to have this meeting in the middle of a Succubus orgy. Not my fault if I get a little distracted with my mate along the way.” He winked down at me.
Pushing at the wall of his chest, I tried to turn in his arms. “Not getting away from me that easily, little mate,” he breathed into my ear. A shiver ran down my spine at his low, husky words.
“Vincent,” Damius snapped, power lacing his voice.
Vincent laughed and led me down the corridor. A strange feeling washed over me as we walked through the opulent mansion where Drya lived. The tingle that ran through my body made my blood run cold as a prickling sensation pierced my forearm.
“Vincent,” I muttered my eyes going wide as I rubbed at my arm where the Eye was.
He kept walking, his jaw set as Damius said some nonsense about Naomi and Nathan. “Vincent. Damius. Listen to me now. Something is wrong.” I stopped, coming to a full halt in the middle of the corridor. My stomach roiled with nausea, bile rising in my throat as I fought to control myself.
Damius turned his fierce red gaze to me. “Lorelei, what are you feeling right now? Describe it for me.” He snapped his fingers and several men came sweeping out of the room just ahead of us.
“Cold. Nauseous. The Eye itches. No,” I paused and rubbed at my arm again, desperately trying to make the sensation stop. “It fucking burns,” I bit out through clenched teeth.
Vincent’s large palm spread out between my shoulder blades and warmth seeped out from his skin and into my body. His touch seeking to calm and soothe me through the riot of sensations that were taking over my body.
“Shit. We need to get out of here. Something is going down. Where is Kaniul?” Damius snapped to his soldiers as they filed out.
“We need to go. Now,” Kaniul rasped as he staggered out of the room. He planted a hand against the wall to steady himself, the heel of his palm pressed into his forehead.
“A vision?” Vincent asked. He had snapped into full alert, his eyes sharp as they took in every detail around us. His words were harsh and quick. The demon prince had taken control. Yet, his touch on my back remained gentle. The feelings he projected throughout the bond stayed soothing for me.
“Yes.” Kaniul’s amber eyes snapped open and he pinned Vincent and me with a fierce look. “Get her out of here, Vincent.” His voice was harsh. Desperate. I had only ever heard his voice like that one time before.
The night my mother died.
The pure desperation and despair that dripped from those simple words made me dig my heels in when Vincent tried to drag me away so that he could teleport us back to our flat.
“Absolutely not. Whatever this is, we face it together,” I bit out, pulling him back toward me.
Vincent and Kaniul both opened their mouths to voice a protest, but I raised a hand to cut them off. Sparks danced from my fingertips. Shock penetrated me as I felt the electricity arc through my veins. The power of the lightning slamming into me and strengthening me.
“That’s it, my daughter. Feel the power of the Astrapi.” The whisper in my mind had a smile dancing across my lips.
Finally, I felt whole. My resolve hardened. Doubts fading away as the raw energy surged through me. I threw back my head, laughing at the feeling of life flowing through my veins. It was unlike anything I’d ever felt before. The time I’d tapped into these powers when I zapped Damius days ago was just a drop in the bucket compared to this feeling of raw power.
“Theera,” Vincent whispered from behind me. I barely heard the words. Barely felt the touch of his hand as he laid it against my back. Flashes of light danced around me, flowing from my body into his. He grunted as it connected with his flesh, his spine going ramrod straight. His jaw flexed with the pain.
A vortex swirled around us, whipping my hair from its updo and making strands lash against my face. Vincent’s face appeared before me, blue sparks danced in his two-tone eyes and it was one of the most beautiful sights I had ever witnessed. The lightning was consuming us, making us whole within its center.
“Holy fuck,” Nicolae gasped. He was pinned to the wall by the whirlwind surrounding Vincent and I. “Guess Akakaios is giving her all of his powers.”
The lightning settled. The wind swirling around us died down. Vincent wrapped his arms around me and drew me close into his body. My fingers dug into the lapels of his suit jacket, clinging to him for support. My blood was on fire, every molecule in my body dancing with energy. It was a high I’d never felt before. Everything was alive before me, colors danced, swirled. The very air around us seemed to move with energy.
My wings burst from my back and wrapped around my body, sheltering me. I smiled in joy at the feeling of the soft feathers on the bare skin of my arms.
“You would be correct,” Damius muttered and slowly climbed to his feet.
Vincent regarded me with heavy eyes, his gaze dancing over my face and over to my wings. “Fully Archangel,” he murmured and slid his knuckles down my face. “So beautiful.” His beautiful irises turned molten and warmth flooded me.
“I hate to break up your little love fest, but we have bigger issues to deal with now,” Damius bit out, irritation lacing his voice.
An explosion knocked us all to the ground as white-hot flames burst through the corridor. Fire licked across my back as I forced my wings to retract so that they wouldn’t be damaged. I was torn from Vincent’s embrace and slid along the floor until my head collided with the wall in a painful crash.
Smoke flooded my nostrils and invaded my senses as heat gathered around me. My head was spinning, ears ringing and thoughts foggy as I tried to sit up and look around the room. I vaguely heard my name called; Vincent’s voice rattled through my burst eardrums as well as echoing through my head.
Firm hands wrapped around my upper arms and hauled me up onto unsteady feet. “Lorelei, can you hear me?” It wasn’t Vincent who spoke, but Kaniul. His amber eyes wavered as I tried to blink his face into focus.
I nodded, my voice catching. I coughed and sputtered from the smoke, trying desperately to speak. “Where’s Vincent?” I managed to croak out.
Kaniul’s eyes scanned my body up and down, checking me for injuries. I reached up and felt a tender knot on the back of my head from where I hit the wall. My fingers came away sticky and dripping with blood. It trickled down from my ears where my eardrums had burst. There was a gash in my forehead that sent another stream of crimson liquid flowing down my face.
My dress was in shreds, hanging from my body in ragged tatters. It left more skin exposed than it covered, and I was suddenly thankful I had worn underwear tonight. My bones ached and I was sure that I had broken several of them. I would heal, and thanks to my genetics, I could already feel my body starting to knit itself back together. The blood that I had taken from Vincent earlier helping to speed up the process.
Kaniul coughed into his hand and his voice was raspy as he spoke. “Trying to eliminate The Syndicate attackers.”
I sucked in a harsh breath and reached out to Vincent mentally, needing to reassure myself that he wasn’t injured. Ghost hands whispered over the cut on my forehead. “I’m well, Theera. Stay with Kaniul. He will guard you with his life. Damius and I are tracking down the intruders.”
His words and telepathic touch calmed me slightly, but fear still lingered within me. In my heart, I knew that this wasn’t the end of the damage that would be done this night. The Eye of Horus that was currently burning on my arm confirmed my suspicion as two unfamiliar men descended upon us with murder gleaming in their dark eyes.
3
Vincent
“How many do you sense?” Rather than speaking aloud and potentially alerting any lingering Syndicate soldiers, I projected the words telepathically.
“At least two dozen. Maybe more beyond the scope of my senses. They came prepared. There has to be a mole because only the inner circle had knowledge of our attendance today.” Damius didn’t slow his swift pace as we approached the center of the blast radius.
My jaw clenched together, the muscles in my face and neck protesting the action. My worry for Lorelei was growing, a sense of foreboding washing over me. Kaniul would watch over her while Damius and I took care of the intruders, but it didn’t help to calm my demon being separated from her while danger was lurking behind every corner. The thought that there could be a traitor in our immediate circle was something that didn’t sit well with me.
The tendrils of Lorelei’s telepathic presence reached out to me, surrounding me in her warmth. But there was an underlying terror radiating from her as I connected with her. Her injuries were healing—thank the gods that she had fed from me just this morning. I ghosted my fingers over a deep gash on her forehead and sent her a wave of reassurance.
“I’m well, Theera. Stay with Kaniul. He will guard you with his life. Damius and I are tracking down the intruders.” I slowly drifted away from her, distancing myself, but kept our connection intact if something went wrong.
“This way.” Damius gestured for me to follow him through the living room. The makeshift BDSM dungeon that Drya had constructed for the party lay in ruins, scattered throughout the room. The benches, manacles, and tools of the trade were littered around. Trashed. Wasted. I remembered the days when I lived for Drya’s parties. Reveling in the thrill of dominating willing submissives to feed off their sexual energy.
Embrace The Shadows (Shadows Ascending Trilogy Book 3) Page 2