"I hope this house is big enough for all of us," Jayson said.
"Trina and I can share," Kathleen said. "If that's all right with Trina."
"Ms. Rome, you know it is," Trina said.
"Trace and I can bunk together," Trajan offered. Hank pulled me against him, so I knew where I'd be sleeping. Gavin didn't seem to care either way, I think, as long as he could block sunlight completely.
"Can you take all of us plus the luggage?" Winkler asked me.
"Yeah. No trouble," I shrugged. Hank let me go, and I studied those around me. Winkler, Trajan, Trace, Weldon and Jimmy made up the werewolf contingent. Gavin and I represented the vampires. Bill, Jayson, Kathleen and Trina were the humans making the trek, while Opal represented the shapeshifters. Hank, as a High Demon, was likely the first of his race ever to set foot on the Gulf of Mexico.
"Let's go, then," I squared my shoulders. I should have seen it coming. I should have. I have no idea what blocked it from me. Bullets sprayed through Winkler's kitchen windows as I folded everybody away.
* * *
"I've had a lot worse," Winkler attempted to wave Hank away, but Hank insisted on treating the graze on Winkler's arm. He was the only one who'd gotten hit, and I figured he'd been the target. I felt shaky, but didn't want to point that out—Kathleen was as white as cotton, and shaking harder than I was. Jayson was doing his best to calm her down while Hank tended Winkler.
"Mom, just breathe slow, okay?" Jayson soothed.
"Ms. Rome, we're not about to let you go," Trina said. "You do not want to see what might happen if you dare to have another heart attack."
"Hear that? Trina will yell at you," Jayson smiled gently at his mother.
"We can't have that," Kathleen's voice trembled.
"Good. Breathe with me," Jayson said. "We'll be all right, I promise. Nobody knows we're here."
* * *
"Honored One, I'm asking your permission to travel to Texas." Charles was back inside Wlodek's office.
"Charles?" Wlodek lifted an eyebrow in surprise. Charles never asked or volunteered for any assignment. Wlodek had considered sending Radomir or Russell, but Charles was offering instead.
"Rad or Will can cover for me while I'm gone, and I can work with Breanne while I'm there," Charles pointed out.
"I am willing to allow this, as you seldom ask for anything," Wlodek nodded. "Pack and call for the jet."
"Thank you, Honored One."
* * *
Breanne's Journal
"Charles will arrive tomorrow evening," Gavin said, pocketing his cellphone.
"What?" I blinked at Gavin in confusion.
"Wlodek wanted to send another vampire, and Charles asked to come."
"But," I said.
"Baby, it'll be all right," Hank soothed. I hadn't told him about Charles, but then Hank and Gavin may have had conversations I didn't know about.
"Charles is just as capable as any Enforcer," Gavin said, misinterpreting my worry. I didn't want a showdown between a vampire and a High Demon. That's what I worried about.
"Bree, we'll be asking you to shuttle us between Dallas and here," Bill interrupted my side trip. "We may ask to be taken other places as well. Hank says he can help, so we don't wear both of you out carrying us around. I need to be in D.C. the day after tomorrow, for a meeting. Think you can handle that?"
I turned to Gavin. "That is fine, as long as she has a guard," he said.
"I'll make sure of it," Bill said, sounding as if he were offended that Gavin might think he'd leave me unguarded.
"You're having a meeting on Saturday?" I asked. Honestly, I thought the government shut down on Friday afternoons.
"This is a meeting with the President and the Joint Chiefs, and this was the time when we could all get together," Bill said.
"Then I'll be happy to take you on Saturday," I nodded at Bill.
"Can I get a kiss with that?" Bill asked.
"I, uh, guess," I said.
"Yeah. I've missed that," Bill stepped forward and took my face in his hands. "We've had too many things going on lately. I haven't thanked you for getting us to Tahoe in time." He leaned in and gave me a tongue-scorcher. I love the way your eyes look after I kiss you like that, Bill sent.
Bill, I replied, and then went silent. Is it possible to be tongue-tied in mindspeech? I was. There wasn't an ounce of fat anywhere on Bill, and for a forty-something guy, he looked damn good. You're not still worried that you're too old, are you? I asked. Because you're sure as hell not.
I don't give a damn, anymore. I just want you, sweetheart. That's all.
That's what I wanted to hear, I leaned in and kissed him, this time.
Get a room, Jayson complained. Well, could I mist or what? I misted Bill into the bedroom he'd selected.
"Is this real?" Bill's hands clutched my waist and pulled me against him once we were corporeal.
"If you want it to be," I said.
"You think I don't? An old guy like me shouldn't have a constant hard-on," he mumbled against my mouth. "It's probably bad for me or something."
"Bill, I've only had one lover," I said, pulling away from him.
"Hank explained that," Bill said. "And don't be upset that he told me—we didn't discuss details—and we won't unless you want it."
"Well, I guess that's not exactly true. Does having a climax with the vampire bite count?" I asked. I might as well tell Bill all of it.
"I hear the bite lesson is mandatory," Bill leaned in for another kiss while his hands wandered beneath my top. "I just want to touch this," a hand covered one of my breasts. "I want to take that bra off and taste it, too. Then, I want to put my mouth on you and make you scream."
"Where?" I asked.
"Right. Back. Here." He walked me backward toward his bed, then coaxed my body to relax and sit on the end of it. "Lean back on the bed, sweetheart, I'm gonna undress you. Let me know if I hurt or scare you, okay?"
"All right." While I wasn't completely scared, I was nervous. I worried that Hank would be upset. I worried that Charles would be upset—with either or both. Poor Jayson, I had no idea what to do about him. No idea at all. And lately, too, I'd been having unexpected visions of Graegar in my dreams. Sometimes he was alone—sometimes he was with another Larentii I hadn't met. I had no idea what any of it meant, and Bill was pulling off my jeans anyway.
"This is beautiful." He touched bare flesh. At that moment I couldn't say for sure whether I felt good or bad about the wax job. Bill went to his knees, lifted my legs over his shoulder and dipped his head. Did some guys get lessons in this stuff? I ended up pulling a pillow against my mouth to muffle the screams.
* * *
Reah's Journal
"Tory, I don't want her anywhere near Kifirin. The god or the planet," I said. "I know you told Jayd and Glinda they could see Lexsi, but I don't want them too close. Taking her to them is too close, in my opinion."
"Her older sisters want to see her, too," Tory pointed out.
"Look, I don't want to argue, but there's nothing preventing them from coming here. Ashe said he'd allow it." I gazed down at my sleeping daughter—she was barely two months old and had the shortest white fuzz atop her head. I hoped she'd have the signature white hair that Belarok had passed to Glinda and to me.
"Baby, bring Aurelius and Edward with us. Hell, bring Zendeval, if you want. Jayd says he hasn't seen a Greater Demon in fifty thousand years."
"Zen might punch Jayd," I sniffed. "He knows what they've done to me."
"Zen isn't completely pure," Tory grumped, releasing a curl of smoke from his nostrils.
"Zen hasn't stolen my children, either," I snapped.
"Re, don't be upset," Tory soothed. "I'm sorry I told Jayd we'd come."
"Look, I'll do it, but only for a little while. They can ooh and ahh and then we go, all right?"
"All right."
* * *
Breanne's Journal
"This wine is exceptional. I wonder where it cam
e from." Jayson poured another glass. He, Hank, Bill and I sat on the deck at the back of the house, watching a half moon hover over the waters of the gulf. Bill and I, well, Bill now wore a very satisfied (and maybe a little smug) smile, and we were relaxing with the others before going to bed.
"Let me see the bottle," I reached for it—he'd emptied the last of it into his glass. It was a red wine, and not too dry. I didn't usually drink red wine, but this was very good, just as he said it was.
"Here." Jayson handed the bottle over. To him, the label seemed printed with gibberish.
"It's Refizani and worth a lot," I handed the bottle back. "Refizan has some of the best vineyards in the Reth Alliance."
"Refizan? Reth Alliance?" Jayson stared.
"Rather bland, as a society," Hank pointed out.
"I'll have you know my favorite healer is Refizani," I said, wrinkling my nose at Hank. "And he's married to my sister," I added.
"What?" Bill sputtered, nearly choking on his wine.
"Uh-oh," I slapped a hand over my mouth.
"Lissa's alive?" Bill's voice was scratchy from the cough.
"In the future," I sighed. "I shouldn't have said that."
"In the future? What the hell are you talking about?" Jayson demanded.
"Keep your voice down, you want Gavin to hear?" I hissed. "You want to know why I can't tell anybody who turned me?"
"Why?" Jayson leaned back on his patio chair, his body stiff with disbelief.
"Because Gavin did it, around four hundred years from now," I whispered.
"Breanne," Hank held up a hand in warning. Yeah, I was telling too much.
"How did you get here, then?" Bill asked softly.
"Because Breanne is more special than most suspect." I stared. Here was the man from Gavin's memory—the one I'd only glimpsed for a moment. While Hank might be more beautiful than this one, he didn't radiate with the power this one did. He raised a hand and my head jerked—Hank, Jayson and Bill seemed frozen in time.
"It is a trick some know," he said indifferently. His voice was low. Almost gentle. "I am removing the memory of what you said from these," he gestured toward Bill and Jayson. "They do not need to recall. They are human, and humans have weaknesses." He was chastising me, albeit not harshly.
"You're the third one, then," I shivered.
"Yes. You would do well to be as circumspect as possible in the coming days. We are in enough danger without releasing all our secrets, even to the most trusted of our allies."
"Yeah. You're right," I ducked my head. I'd just gotten so comfortable with Bill, Jayson and Hank that I let my mouth get the better of me.
"Love, we all make mistakes," his fingers lifted my chin so I could stare into his eyes. They were a clear gray, and I felt I could drown in them if I looked too long. "Don't make any more," he said and disappeared.
"Breanne, tread carefully from now on," Hank said softly, as Bill and Jayson blinked. I could see that neither recalled what I'd said or that Wisdom had just made his presence known.
* * *
"Hank, what do you think is going on? Really?" I asked. He lay beside me, and pulled me close to rest my head on his shoulder. Bill may have wanted me in his bed to sleep, but after my faux pas, I didn't feel comfortable doing that. I'd given him a kiss instead and allowed Hank to herd me toward our shared bedroom.
"Baby, I don't know, but none of it looks good, does it?"
"No. It doesn't look good. Will you slap a hand over my mouth in the future, if I get out of hand again?"
"I can try," he said, kissing my forehead. "While a ball gag might work better, people tend to drool a lot with those."
"You wouldn't," I leaned back to stare at his chin. I watched as the corner of his mouth curled in a grin.
"Nah, I'm not into drool," he teased. "I just tell 'em to stay quiet or the hand descends."
"Huh?"
"I can spank. I don't mind doing it."
"I bruise easy," I pointed out. I didn't add that he and Jayson had already tried that tactic, with bad results.
"I know. If I spanked you, I'd ruin it by kissing your little ass afterward."
"Too bad Jayson didn't feel the same way," I muttered, huddling against Hank. It wouldn't do to go too far down that road; I was already trembling slightly.
"Hey," Hank tightened his arms around me. "This is just pillow talk. Nobody's gonna hit you, I promise."
"Yeah?" Jayson stuck his head inside the door. Hank had obviously sent mindspeech.
"Come here, Rome." Hank said. "You need to kiss Bree's ass for spanking it," Hank said.
"What?" I struggled in Hank's grip.
"Baby, he owes you more than that. Lie still, now."
"No," I thrashed against Hank.
"Hey, I'm not gonna hurt you," Jayson settled on the edge of the bed and leaned over to tug on the waistband of my short pajamas.
"See," Hank said as Jayson slowly pulled the fabric down, revealing bare skin. "Now," Jayson breathed against me, "I get to kiss this." He did. Several times. And then the pajamas came down more. Hank took my hands and kissed them before sucking on my fingers. Jayson pushed me over on my back, pulled the pajamas off and buried his head between my legs.
"Hank," I whimpered.
"It's okay, baby. It's okay. Jayson's gonna take care of you."
"God, you taste good," Jayson murmured against me.
"Bree, there's nothing to worry about. No need to feel embarrassed. This is natural. Normal, with multiple mates," Hank still held onto my hands, kissing them between words.
"Move aside, bro," Jayson pulled himself over me. Hank scooted out of the way. "Yeah. I get a kiss. Finally," Jayson locked his mouth onto mine, and his body joined mine at the same moment. "See? I can treat my girl good. Yeah. So good. So tight. Like heaven."
* * *
Did I say I felt like a shameless hussy before? That was like the snowball that started the avalanche. I'd been in bed with Hank and Jayson, all night. We may have gotten four hours' sleep. Maybe.
Hank and Jayson didn't seem to think anything of what we'd done the night before. I couldn't believe I had so little willpower. I told Hank that.
"Bree, willpower has nothing to do with it," Hank said, running fingers through my wet hair after we'd gotten out of the shower. Yeah, Jayson was there, too, and showing off the tattoo of a black rose on his left hip. The rose looked like leather. Who knew?
"It has everything to do with love, caring and affection," Hank added.
"And embarrassment," I huffed.
"You're not embarrassed are you? Bree, I want to fuck you all day long," Jayson settled beside me on the dressing bench. "I had no idea anybody could clench that hard in a climax. That pussy is like magic."
"Jayson, please shut up." I covered my face with both hands.
"Bree, bite him," Hank said.
"What?" I dropped my hands and stared at Hank's image in the mirror.
"Go on, give him that."
"Will it hurt?" Jayson asked.
"Says the man who likes to swing a whip," I huffed.
"I've never been bitten before," he pointed out.
"Fine. Jayson, I won't hurt you," I cupped the back of his neck in my hand. "I'll be gentle," I added, leaning in to kiss the skin covering the artery. Jayson moaned. "Shhh," I soothed, before sinking my fangs in his throat.
* * *
"Breanne, please bite me every day. Please," Jayson begged after coming back from the most intense climax (according to him) he'd ever experienced. I'd swallowed a mouthful of blood with difficulty, but I'd done it.
"Hon, you don't need to give up the blood. Every three or four weeks is acceptable."
"Not to me," he pouted. "I can't believe we wasted so much time, when you could have bitten me at the start."
"I've created a monster," I sighed and went to find something to wear.
* * *
"I knew I wanted this house before, but this is amazing," Winkler hopped out of the indoor pool when
Jayson, Hank and I walked in. He was right—the house was huge and had everything, including ten bedrooms, a game room, the indoor pool and spa, plus a kitchen that most people could never hope to afford.
Bill sat on a lounge chair nearby, reading reports on a tablet. "Hey," I walked over to him and leaned down for a kiss.
"Sweetheart, sit here with me," Bill pulled me down beside him while Hank and Jayson dropped into the pool for laps. "Have a good night?" he asked before kissing me again.
"Yeah. I think so."
"Did you enjoy yourself?"
"I think so."
"Breanne, stop thinking in outmoded terms," Bill said, setting the tablet aside and pulling me against him. "This is how multiple mates works. Everybody knows each other and gets along. That's how it is."
"How many conversations have you and Hank had about this?" I asked.
"Several. You can't expect us not to communicate about how to make this work, Bree. We want you happy. We want to be happy, too, and if we don't get along or talk to each other, there could be problems."
"Great."
"Look, talk to us. We'll listen. It's not like we're ganging up on you or something."
"Really?" I leaned back to watch his face. "It seems to me that you all make the decisions now, and I get left out of it."
"Bree, what are you saying?" Hank stood at the edge of the pool, his black hair wet from jumping in and swimming a few laps. His elbows rested on the slate tiles as he studied me, his dark eyes unreadable.
"She's saying that you're men, and you're going to do what you're going to do, no matter what. She can talk all she wants, and you'll pretend to listen, but at the end of the day, you'll always believe you're right." Opal's bare feet pattered on the tile as she walked toward the pool. "Even if you're not right," she added, "you'll only say you're sorry afterward, instead of considering that you ought to pay better attention next time."
"Opal, I hope you're not right about that," Bill said. I pulled away from him and stood up.
"I'm going to read for a while. Feel free to argue amongst yourselves," I said and walked out.
* * *
"Dee, I don't feel right," Gavril complained.
"What? Do you need a healer?" Dee jerked his head up to stare at Gavril. "I thought you weren't susceptible to disease." Gavril had wandered into Dee's office after ignoring a report on dwindling resources on Campiaa.
Blood Revolution (God Wars, #3) Page 20