Becoming D'Vaire (D'Vaire, Book 11)

by Jessamyn Kingley

  “What do you think I’ve been planning all day?”

  “A way to make synthetic blood a reality instead of still needing a few drops?”

  “You know, now that we’re on the subject, I’m grateful you and your crafty sorcerer friends haven’t suggested finding a cure for vampirism.”

  Delaney gave a little shake of his head as he tugged the blankets up to his chin. “It never crossed my mind. It’s who your people are, and now I know how hard your mom fought to survive. To even suggest she give up her identity just to make people who find drinking blood taboo is nothing less than insulting.”

  “Mom’s a warrior.”

  “Damn right she is,” Delaney agreed, then smacked the hand Grigori was trying to nonchalantly creep over to his thigh. “Stop that.”

  “What’s wrong?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Are you really tired or just not in the mood?”

  “Grigori—do you have a middle name?”

  “Yeah, it’s Alexei.”

  “Okay, great. Grigori Alexei Volkov, I’m not having sex with you with your parents sleeping right down the hall.”

  Grigori tossed back the blankets and hopped out of bed. “Let’s go home then,” he insisted. After the words left his mouth, he realized that was how he already thought of D’Vaire. It was home because Delaney lived there.

  Delaney’s gaze widened in disbelief. “We told your parents we were staying the night and for Fate’s sake, at least put on some underwear.”

  “We’ll leave them a note to say we changed our minds,” Grigori said as he slapped his hands on his naked hips. “Unless you don’t want to have sex at all and I’m being a horny lout. Did you want to?”

  “Since I met you I always want to, but we can’t. We’re staying here, and we are going to behave ourselves. What if someone heard us?”

  “What if I was very quiet?”

  “Grigori, seriously. You need to put on some pants. I know I can’t be quiet. It’s too fucking good.”

  “Aren’t you willing to negotiate?”

  “Nope. Pants.”

  With a sigh, Grigori shuffled over to the dresser and tugged on a pair of pajama bottoms. “What about Greggory?”

  “Your balls missing him?” Delaney asked with a snicker.

  Ignoring him, Grigori said, “We’ve left him home all alone. It’s probably the first night he’s ever been without you. He’s probably scared and lonely.”

  “He’s fine. Idris told me he’d call if Greggory got upset. He’s going to be sleeping in Roger’s space with him. It’s like a familiar slumber party. They’ll probably stay up till the wee hours of the morning watching movies or playing the tablet games they like.”

  “I’m going to miss him, you know,” Grigori commented as he climbed back into bed.

  “I know, me too.”

  “Will you kiss me goodnight?”

  “You have to promise to keep your hands above my waist.”

  “You’re taking all the fun out of things.”

  Much to Grigori’s delight, Delaney cupped his jaw in his hands and pressed their lips together. The kiss was sweet, and whatever small corner of his heart did not already belong to the wizard tripped headlong into love. Grigori was fully conquered by a set of black eyes, a stalwart soul wrapped in a goofy and easygoing shell.

  The wish list he put together for his mate turned out to be woefully incomplete compared to the reality of Delaney. The truth was, his imagination was incapable of coming close to creating a man like the one lying next to him, even on his very best and most demanding day. Delaney was simply too perfect.

  When Delaney pulled away, Grigori stared at him with a smile. He didn’t know what magic he’d used to capture him so fully and so fast.

  “What’s wrong?” Delaney asked.

  “Nothing. Nothing at all.”

  “You have a strange look on your face.”

  “That’s because my brain just registered that you’re wearing pajamas with brightly colored whales all over them.”

  “When you move into D’Vaire, Larissa’s going to make some for you too. She makes them for the entire family.”

  “You did mention she liked making pajamas, I just underestimated her creativity when it comes to fabric choices.”

  “Awesome, right?”

  “I still prefer you without them.”

  “We’ll make up for lost time tomorrow night.”

  Grigori’s smile bloomed again. Since the first night he shared a bed with Delaney, the wizard hadn’t gone a day without inviting him over. “I’ll have two full days of fantasies, so be prepared. Eat a good breakfast.”

  Delaney pressed another soft kiss to his lips. “I will. Goodnight.”

  When Delaney scooted back over to the other side of the mattress, Grigori was aghast. “Okay, I get the sex thing. You don’t want to embarrass us or them, but we can’t even snuggle?”

  The dark sorcerer didn’t even turn to look at him. “Put on a shirt.”

  “If you make me wear a hat, you’re sleeping on the floor,” Grigori griped as he once again threw the covers back and strode over to his dresser. He grabbed a T-shirt and pulled it over his head, then returned to where Delaney was lying. “Happy now?”

  “Honestly, no. I’m horny but I’ll live.”

  “Join the club. Now get yourself over here so I can cuddle the fuck out of you.”

  Delaney ventured over to Grigori’s pillow, and they assumed their favorite sleeping position, wrapped in each other’s arms. “Goodnight.”

  Grigori grazed his lips over Delaney’s hair and wrinkled his nose at the feel of the product the wizard had put in it. He preferred not only the normal way Delaney wore it, but the soft texture of its normal state. “Night.”

  “Grigori?”

  “Yeah?”

  “The lamp?”

  “Oh, for Fate’s sake.”

  * * *

  “I really appreciate how fast you’ve gotten everything ordered and are getting it into place,” Grigori told Harley Griffinis as they walked into the space where they were converting an empty room into a large laboratory.

  “Anything for our favorite neighbors,” Harley said. “And Aleksander’s done all the supply ordering.”

  “Actually, my brother Worth’s been handling it. He’s become a real asset when it comes to anything financial. The man must’ve been born with killer cheap instincts. Worth won’t pay one extra cent for anything. I like making money and there’s plenty to do around here at D’Vaire, but he gets pissed every time we pay too much for something. I have a feeling he’s going to have all kinds of forms and hoops for our family to jump through,” Aleksander replied.

  “Sounds like you two make a good team,” Harley remarked. “I still can’t get used to how much you resemble each other.”

  “Tell me about it—it’s like a mirror into my past. He looks remarkably like I did before I shifted for the first time, and Fate gave me the two-tone eyes and added the blue to my hair,” Aleksander commented. “Is there anything else you need, Grigori? Or are we on the right track?”

  “We’re definitely on the right track. This is way nicer than the one I have at home. Of course I’ve been buried in it for the last dozen years, so it hasn’t really been updated.”

  “While I’ve got you here, are you going to need any modifications to your room? Perhaps you were thinking about redoing the bathroom to something that you both pick out together? I’ll need to order those things too, so the sooner we can get designing the better,” Harley offered.

  “I love the way our room looks now.”

  “You don’t want to put your stamp on it at all?” Aleksander asked.

  “I’ve always been surrounded by red roses. I’d like to add some of those but other than that, I’m fine with the room just like it is,” Grigori answered. There was a noise behind him, and he turned to find Delaney in the doorway of his new lab space.

  “Hey guys, I wanted to
come and check the progress. Harley, you move fast, this looks practically done,” Delaney said.

  “Finished laying the floor tiles yesterday and we’ll finish up the paint tomorrow. Took longer for Aleksander’s brother to order the ventilation system than it did for us to install it. I understand the furniture will be here by the end of the week, then we’ll turn it over to Grigori,” Harley replied. “We were just talking with your man here about your bedroom and whether you’re going to need us in there.”

  “I told him it was perfect and that we didn’t need anything,” Grigori rushed out. He did not want Delaney to think he didn’t like the space or that he was planning for their shared space behind his back.

  Delaney smiled. “It’s all black, which suits me, but that’s not necessarily us. It’s fine if at some point when we’re ready, you want to change things around. We’ll get back to you, Harley, when we get to that stage of our relationship.”

  Grigori’s mood plummeted at Delaney’s words. It was clear that he’d rushed headlong into love, and Delaney was still working on getting there. He wasn’t upset with him; they’d only known each other a couple of weeks. It was him and his desire to have everything before Delaney had the chance to fall for him that annoyed him. He would have his bags packed and be moving in if Delaney would give him permission to do so.

  “Sure, just give me a call,” Harley replied.

  When the gryphon shifter left the room where the three remaining men were standing—at least one of them awkwardly and stupidly miserable—Aleksander said, “Grigori, you mentioned roses. I know Dravyn has a few different ones in the garden. Did you have a specific variety in mind?”

  “Vampires use different shades of red. I’ve always preferred the black magic ones. They’re the same ones I wear on my lapel when I’m in a suit or tux. They’re so deep red, they can appear black,” Grigori managed to mumble.

  Aleksander nodded and reached out to give his arm a squeeze, then headed for the door. “I’ll let Dravyn know,” he promised as he left Grigori alone with Delaney.

  “Hey, what’s wrong?”

  Desperate not to make things weird between them, Grigori made up a white lie. “I just remembered I forgot to write down an equation I thought of this morning. Now, I’ve probably lost it forever.”

  “No way, you’re too smart. It’ll come back to you. The best things always do,” Delaney assured him with a grin. “Have you always really worn black magic roses? I didn’t even know such a thing existed.”

  Shaking off his uncharacteristic melancholy, Grigori focused on the man he was not clever enough to dream about before they met, and he returned his smile. “Absolutely. You can ask my parents. You named Greggory for me because you knew my soul was yours, and I was drawn to black magic. Do you think we were mated before in another life?”

  “You kidding me? I don’t even know who my parents are—let alone who I was in the past,” Delaney joked.

  “Does it bother you, the not knowing?”

  Delaney shrugged. “I guess. Sometimes. When I became High Arcanist and had full access to all wizard records, I decided to look up my file. All the wizards have participated in Vadimas’s DNA database. I wasn’t sure what the fuck I’d do when I found out who my parents were, but I had to look.”

  “Well, don’t keep me in suspense. What happened, and why are we just having this conversation now?”

  Another negligent lift of his shoulders. “My file’s sealed. It’s the only file in the entire Spectra Wizardry that’s fully and completely irrevocably sealed, only to be opened by the Prism Wizard.”

  “What did Vadimas say when you confronted him about it?”

  Delaney’s eyes met his. “I didn’t. I was too afraid to know why he’d sealed it.”

  “You don’t have to be ashamed to be scared. It’s a big deal.”

  “I don’t like having a chickenshit part of me. I want to know what he’s hiding. He’s known me since I was four, he knew I’d look.”

  “If you ever want to talk to him about it, I hope you know I’d be at your side helping you through it.”

  “You’re better at this mate stuff than me.”

  “Don’t be silly, we’re both awesome at it. Look how good we did last night.”

  Crossing the small distance that separated them, Delaney wound his arms around Grigori’s waist, and he cherished the moment of casual affection. Grigori smoothed his hands over his back. “I wasn’t referring to sex,” Delaney grumbled. “But we are awesome at it.”

  “Delsaurus?”

  “Yeah?”

  “I may or may not have purchased a vibrating butt plug for you.”

  Delaney’s head popped up from where it was resting against Grigori’s chest. “What?”

  “It’s black.”

  All Delaney did was blink.

  “I thought it’d be nice to build you up toward having intercourse with me. Unless you’ve changed your mind. Which is fine. I’ll use the plug.”

  “What the fuck?”

  “I should’ve talked to you first, huh?”

  “You’re trying to steal my plug before I’ve even had the chance to use it.”

  “Oh good. You’re excited. I ordered it. It should arrive in a couple of days,” Grigori responded.

  “Really? I was ready to drop my pants now.”

  “This isn’t a sex lab.”

  “You’re probably the best mate ever.”

  “I need to do more shopping.”

  “With me next time,” Delaney demanded.

  “Okay, but it’s time for our serious faces. You have a meeting with your super-secret cool kids’ club.”

  Delaney grabbed his hand and dragged him out of the room. “We really do need a name for our group,” he muttered.

  Chapter 20

  Delaney sat down next to Grigori, who winked at him. He was desperately trying to get his mind and his dick far away from the butt plug the vampire confessed to purchasing. They hadn’t had intercourse either way yet, but it didn’t matter. They were having a fantastic time in bed together—or at least Delaney hoped so. Without any experience, it was difficult to tell how much improvement he needed, something he had not fully factored in when he’d decided to wait for his other half. He wasn’t going to stress over it; Grigori was always eager and so was Delaney. He figured that was a good barometer for their sex life.

  As the other sorcerers and their mates filed in and found chairs, Delaney wished the rest of his relationship was as easy to grade. His heart had plopped out of his chest and landed on Grigori’s shiny shoes the first night they met. Which was frightening and ridiculous—they were supposed to take their time and get to know one another before professing their undying affection. Delaney was not supposed to fall in love with him yet, and it was chilling to contemplate how it would destroy him if Grigori didn’t return his feelings.

  He did not like the vulnerability that being this far gone for someone brought out in him. It was not something he could brush off or work his way through; he just had to wait until they were both on the same page. Grigori was everything he’d ever hoped for or secretly wished he could have in a partner, but there were no guarantees in life. He simply could not handle the pain in his chest at the idea of somehow losing him. It is too soon to be contemplating all these weighty matters, Delaney thought. Fate put them together, but they needed to figure out what that meant for them.

  For Delaney, he could see a future with Grigori and no one else. If Grigori woke up one morning and insisted they break their bond with a demon spell, there would be no better match for him. He would never find a man with his quirky sense of humor, incredible kindness, and who simply just understood Delaney at a fundamental level few people touched. He already considered him as good a friend as Idris—something incredibly important and sacred to Delaney.

  “Hey Aleksander, are you trading in your dragon wings for a magic wand?” Renny asked, which thankfully yanked Delaney from the miasma of his wayward thoughts.<
br />
  “Interesting take from a warlock familiar with a dragon form,” Aleksander remarked as he grabbed a seat. “T’Eirick and Saura invited me.”

  “We’ve been making these plans to resurrect Saura and myself. The least we should do is include Aleksander in the whole thing—it is happening under his roof,” T’Eirick explained.

  “We certainly don’t have an issue with him being here, Dad,” Dre’Kariston said. “Where do we want to begin?”

  “Let’s start with the D’Vaire stones,” Delaney suggested. Talking about things he could control was exactly where he wanted to be now; it gave him back the confidence he was lacking in the more personal areas of his life. “I think we’re ready to do this. We’ve tinkered with the simulator until our eyes have crossed and with the spell we have now, it’s about an eighty percent chance it’ll work. At least the two wizards, one warlock equation. It’s a bit lower with the other combos, but I feel like when we have some practice, we can improve those odds.”

  “How long are the stones going to last?” Saura asked.

  “They don’t last until all the magic is used?” Grigori inquired.

  “Magic bleeds, but this spell is pretty airtight, and if we cast it with precision, as we did Immortalis, it should be only a minimal runoff. Conservative estimate, one stone untouched will last a thousand years,” Delaney responded.

  “Well done,” T’Eirick remarked.

  Delaney grinned. “Thanks. Dra’Kaedan and I can start working on a couple and see how it goes.”

  “Let’s start with the fun stuff. Mom, you’ve been smiling for three days. What have you come up with?” Dra’Kaedan asked.

  “I’ve been tugging on my brain cells since we came up with this idea. We wanted to honor every part of the incredible group of dark sorcerers we’re joining. We’ve built the spell from the fallen knight’s model, added in a dash of sentinel and of course, constructed a new portion for mending which, at Del’s suggestion, will come from Fate. So here’s what I think. I think our race should be called Darkfallen Court, informally known as the darkfallen. If Fate gives us the power to heal, we’ll be Lichpriest and Lichpriestess. If she doesn’t, then we’ll come up with something new, but I have incredible faith in her,” Saura said.