Stone's Embrace: A Captive Souls Story.

by Delilah Devlin

  A hand slipped between their bodies, scraping intimately past slick bellies and lower. Fingers pressed against her clit and Petra screamed as her body exploded.

  The fingers moved from her clit, and Hades halted abruptly, his head swiveling toward Octavius. “Let go of my balls.”

  “Enough,” Octavius said furiously. “You’ve ridden her hard. Find your release now.”

  “I can’t stop,” he said, emphasizing his point with another deep lunge.

  Octavius heaved a huge sigh then climbed onto the bed behind them.

  “Tav… fuck!” Hades ground out.

  “You’re done. Now!”

  Petra didn’t have to guess long what Octavius was up to. His hands smoothed down Hades’ sides to his buttocks.

  Hades sank against her, rutting helplessly.

  Over his shoulder, she watched as Octavius cupped his ass and slid fingers down the other man’s crevice. Then he gritted his teeth, his lips pulling back in a grimace, and thrust them inside.

  Hades shouted and liquid heat washed inside her in pulsing streams.

  “Now get off her, before you harden again.”

  Hades gulped for breath but nodded against her. The crank ticked, lifting Hades by the hands off her body until he hung, suspended from the ceiling.

  Petra backed away, careful not to touch him again. Then she knelt in front of him to look into his face. “Do we have a bargain, milord?

  His lips curved into a tired smile. Sweat ran in rivulets from his hair to drip off his chin. “When you meet my wife, you must never tell her what your gargoyle did.”

  Petra smiled with relief. “Do you think she’ll believe you less manly?”

  “She’ll laugh like a hyena. And don’t mention the manacles.”

  “Because you don’t want to give her any ideas?” Petra quirked an eyebrow. “Are you in control of yourself?”

  He nodded.

  She leaned around Hades. “Unlock him now.”

  Scrambling off the bed, she put distance between herself and the two men. She had yet to see the gargoyle’s face lose its tension. She didn’t know if he was angry. Didn’t know if eventually he would be pleased with her bargain because she’d all but tied them together. Maybe he didn’t want a permanent relationship with her.

  Hades glared daggers at Octavius as the winged man released him from the shackles. Then he sprang from the bed, his movements fast and jerking. Despite the fact she wasn’t touching him, his cock was already filling. “Damnation,” he said, staring at himself in disgust.

  Petra suppressed a grin, knowing how he felt. Her body ached deliciously—her pussy throbbed in time with her heartbeats, her nipples stung. Another round of lovemaking would be painful. Still, she was willing. It would only take a curl of his fingers to convince her she must lie down again.

  Octavius didn’t watch Hades staring at his cock. His gaze pinned her, red spots of anger blooming on his cheeks.

  She sighed. How must he feel? A woman, a human woman, had bargained for him like he was a coveted object.

  Hades gripped his cock and stroked himself, eyeing the two of them. “This won’t be a comfortable bargain.”

  “Not for either of you,” Petra murmured.

  “But you are pleased.” Hades grunted and raised his head. With his feet braced apart, his hands on his hips, he was darkly handsome. Nearly irresistible.

  She didn’t want to admit that her bargain was more than a little self-serving, not in front of Octavius, but she nodded anyway. “I know what this place is. I know what you are. But I’m willing to return. Eager even.”

  Hades’ slow smile turned sly as he faced Octavius. “You have another chance. Go, before I change my mind. But first…” He strode toward the cabinet and pulled out the golden headdress. He tossed it to Octavius. “For your return journeys. Charon is destined to be disappointed.”

  At that, Octavius’s scowl eased. A soft grunting chuckle erupted. He bowed at the waist.

  “Now go. And send my attendants in as you leave. I have need of them.”

  Petra bit back a grin and followed Octavius out the door, happy to be escaping, exultant that she’d won.

  When the doors closed behind them, Octavius grabbed her arms and turned her, slamming her back against the wall of the corridor and easing so close they shared the same breaths. “I don’t need you to save me. Never again.”

  “I had to do it.”

  “Because you need me?” he asked, his gaze boring into hers.

  Petra wet her lips, hesitating to say it, but she’d been completely honest with Hades, how could she be less so with Octavius? “I had to do it, because I love you.”

  His breath caught and his mouth swooped down to devour hers in a fierce hot kiss that ended far too quickly. Then he was jerking her behind him, stomping furiously away.

  Petra didn’t mind his show of dominance. She’d pushed him, manipulated him as much as she had his overlord. For a long time to come, she figured she’d be made to pay for his frustration. She didn’t mind. He hadn’t cringed when she’d made her declaration. Maybe he didn’t know quite how he felt about her. Not yet.

  But he’d known all along that they were fated to be together.

  ***

  Octavius stepped off Charon’s boat and didn’t look back. Charon had pouted when he’d slipped the gold coins into his palm, but he’d kept silent when he’d recognized their stamp. Hades himself had paid the passage. Clothing had been delivered to the boat for both of them. Charon didn’t dare attempt to renegotiate their fare.

  Before Petra could turn to offer her farewell, Octavius hauled her into his arms and ran three steps, lifting off the ground with ease.

  The flight back to the garden took less than a minute. When he set down, Petra unwound her arms and legs, then glanced around them. Her gaze went to the house where light filtered through curtains at several windows. “My sisters are home.”

  Octavius read the excitement and uncertainty in her wide blue eyes. She’d been ostracized for most of her life and now found a purpose for her gift, and a new family awaited her discovery.

  He prayed she’d find acceptance inside their circle even while he wished he could keep her completely to himself. He’d dare offending Hades himself to refuse his future calls, but he knew he wouldn’t because Petra was attracted. And inexplicably, Hades felt genuine affection for the woman or he would never have granted her request.

  “Do you think Bacclum and Malvo are inside with my sisters?”

  Octavius reached out, mentally searching for the tether and found it. “Bacclum’s here. I’m not certain about the other.”

  “Are my sisters in danger?”

  “Only if they’ve disturbed them. Only if they interfere in their battle. Then again, your sisters might not even be aware of their existence.”

  “Do you believe that?”

  Octavius shook his head. “Just as we were fated to meet, I think that your sisters are also part of The Fates’ weave.”

  “We should go.”

  He heaved a sigh. “A moment first.”

  She turned a questioning glance his way.

  “Before…” Octavius lifted her hands and held them between his own, stroking the backs of her hands with his thumbs while gathering the courage to ask what he must. “You said you love me.”

  Even with only moonlight shining on her face, he could see color bloom on her cheeks. “Do you want to know whether I meant it, or whether I think I love you because of everything you bring me?”

  “Yes,” he said, a lump forming at the back of his throat.

  Petra pulled away one hand and placed her palm against his cheek. Her eyes glistened with unshed tears, but a smile trembled on her lips. “I might not have lived centuries and known a host of men. And I’m not sure exactly what love is. But I can tell you this… I can’t imagine not spending all my days with you. I can’t imagine ever wanting a man the way I want you—inside my body, in my heart. I risked my own life a
nd freedom for you making that bargain. Isn’t that proof enough that you’re the most important thing in my life?”

  Octavius nodded. He slid his hands up her arms then cupped her cheeks in his palms. “I have lived a very long time. And I can tell you without any doubt that I’ve never allowed a woman to lead me even once. And yet, this night, I held two men while you pleasured them, and I derived pleasure from watching your arousal and confidence blossom. I can’t imagine ever wanting a woman more than I want you this moment. I love you, Petra.”

  Bending, he pressed his mouth to hers, intending a chaste kiss. But again, in her magical way, he was drawn deeper as her arms wound around him and her fingers played along the upper curve of his wings. His wings trembled and flared and he wrapped his arms around her and drew her off the ground, spiraling upward as their kiss deepened.

  When he lifted his mouth, she clung to him, laughing with delight. “Is it possible…?”

  She didn’t dare ask, but he read the question in the excitement glittering in her eyes. Octavius suppressed a grin. He’d never tell her she wasn’t the first woman he’d made love to while flying toward the clouds. Every experience with her felt like a first. “We’ll have plenty of time to find out. Many nights to experiment.” He brought them softly down and folded back his wings. “Are you ready?”

  She nodded and placed her hand inside his. Together they walked down the dark, narrow pathway toward the house. Whatever awaited them inside, they’d face it together. The weaves of their lives had blended their fates together. Forever.

  About the Author

  Until recently, award-winning erotica and romance author Delilah Devlin lived in South Texas at the intersection of two dry creeks, surrounded by sexy cowboys in Wranglers. These days, she's missing the wide-open skies and starry nights but loving her dark forest in Central Arkansas, with its eccentric characters and isolation—the better to feed her hungry muse! For Delilah, the greatest sin is driving between the lines, because it's comfortable and safe. Her personal journey has taken her through one war and many countries, cultures, jobs, and relationships to bring her to the place where she is now—writing sexy adventures that hold more than a kernel of autobiography and often share a common thread of self-discovery and transformation.

  To learn more about Delilah Devlin, please visit www.delilahdevlin.com. Send an email to delilah@delilahdevlin.com or join her Yahoo! group to enter in the fun with other readers as well as Delilah: DelilahsDiary@yahoogroups.com

  Look for these titles by Delilah Devlin

  Now Available:

  Saddled

  Love is the most dangerous enchantment…

  Dominique’s Release

  © 2009 Kimberly Kaye Terry

  Captive Souls, Book One

  All her life Dominique Fouche has chafed under her coven’s “protection”. It’s time she found out why she has never been allowed to explore the darker side of her nature. She ventures forth to get answers from the father she has never known, only to learn he is dead and she’s the new owner of his mansion.

  The house is as mysterious as her past, where just opening an ancient book releases the pent-up fury and lust of a handsome, larger-than-life creature. Her strange new lover leaves her weak, satiated—and deathly afraid.

  Bacclum, a mixed-blood angel, will not allow a mere witch stop him from finding his family and claiming his rightful heritage. Even if it means using every means at his disposal to siphon off Dominique’s power. Yet once deep inside her sinfully sweet body, he finds himself bound by a magic far stronger than any spell.

  There’s a reason her blood calls out to his—and it’s made her an unwitting target of the same deadly forces bent on denying Bacclum his birthright…

  Warning: Contains angel lovin’ hot enough to send you to confession for a month of Sundays—even if you’re not Catholic.

  Enjoy the following excerpt for Dominique’s Release:

  A long-legged, lushly naked woman was straddling Bacclum’s body.

  Coming to a hazy semi-awareness, he pushed the hair from his eyes and raised his upper torso, glancing down. The ends of the woman’s long, curly hair were wrapped like silken fingers around his hips, embracing him, caressing his skin, as surely as her soft lips caressed his erect shaft.

  Her warm breath blew across his aroused flesh, and her lips, warm, wet and soft, suckled the underside of his cock. Her slick tongue stroked around the base of his shaft and she licked the thick vein that ran the length of his shaft from stem to root.

  “Who…what are you?” He could only rasp the words. What she was doing to him, the short flicks of her tongue up and down his cock, made all rational thought fly from his already foggy mind.

  She didn’t say a word, simply continued to lick and caress him, her head slowly bobbing up and down his shaft in hot, wicked undulations.

  He felt his dick grow and knew it would grow too big for her mouth if she continued to torment him as she was. Bacclum shut his eyes tightly and clenched his jaw until it ached.

  One part of his mind nagged at him the closer he came to orgasm. A buzzing, insistent nagging that he was hell bent on ignoring.

  It had been too long since he’d felt a woman’s caress…too long since…

  He groaned, exhaled a harsh breath, and grasped both sides of her head.

  His intent, despite the exquisite feel of her warm silken mouth on his dick, was to push her away. It took a moment for his mind to orient, for him to understand that something or someone had pulled him out of the book. And that someone was the one between his legs suckling his cock.

  His eyes shot wide open. “Fuck!” The expletive was ripped from him.

  The last time it happened he hadn’t been ready, hadn’t known what was going on, but this time he was ready for it. He reached down, grasped her shoulders and yanked her to him, forcing her head to snap back, ready to force her to help him out of the book. He stopped cold after one look at her.

  Sexual energy vibrated from her, hallowing her body in a sensual glow of power that was tangible. Stimulating, electrifying…she was earthy, raw, woman.

  Her dark hair, lush with wild curls, tumbled to her shoulders and beyond, partially obscuring her face. He reached a hand out and pushed her hair away from her face. She turned her head to the side as he observed her, transfixed. To say she was beautiful was too mild of a way to describe her.

  Her complexion was the color of deep honey, her skin appeared soft, silky…he ran the tips of his fingers down the side of her face.

  “So smooth,” he whispered.

  She drew back as though startled, her hair moving away from her face, her eyes widening as she focused on him.

  And that’s when he noticed her eyes. Large, they were slanted mildly in the corners, with dark, dense lashes that framed them, and so unlike any he’d ever seen throughout his long life, he inhaled a swift, disbelieving breath.

  The iris of one was the color of liquid amber, dark brown with a tiny dark ring surrounding the pupil. The other was the same colored iris, but the matching dark ring surrounded a horizontal pupil, like that of a goat.

  When she reached a hand out to touch him, he flinched.

  “The eye of the demon,” he said, unknowingly aloud.

  Her expression shut down, instantly. Her earthy vibrancy seemed to dim, her body literally closed in on itself and she glanced away from him. But not before he caught the shine of unshed tears in her eyes.

  She sprang away and he put a hand on her arm, pulling her back to him.

  “No! Don’t leave. I didn’t mean…” He stopped. He didn’t know why he was trying to explain, or even what he was trying to explain. He only knew he didn’t want her to think he was rejecting her.

  The temporary spell holding them mesmerized vanished and with it, she pushed away from him, her strength surprising him, even as he lurched forward to grasp onto her.

  His hand closed around some type of medal suspended from around her neck, the medal searing hi
s flesh. The unexpected pain made him snatch his hand away.

  She stood and glanced at him over her shoulder, her eyes glistening. Before he could reach for her, her form began to shimmer, becoming nearly invisible.

  Bacclum fought against what he knew was coming next.

  He could feel it. Sweat poured from his body, dormant muscles screaming in agony as he concentrated all his will on just staying awake…aware.

  “Not this time,” he rasped.

  The first time it had happened, when he’d been drawn from that damnable book, he’d come close to getting out. He hadn’t known what or who had been the source of power that brought him to awareness, but in the end it hadn’t been enough.

  This time was different. He could feel it. This time he would fight like hell to stay aware.

  Before the woman could completely disappear, his jaw locked and he concentrated all of his considerable power into his hands.

  She gasped.

  “What are you doing?”

  He lurched forward with his last strength, grasped her around the waist, his hold on her unflinching, strong.

  “Say the words.”

  She struggled to pry him loose. “Wha…what words?” she gasped. “What are you talking about?”

  “Say the words, damn it!” Sweat poured from him, the amount of energy he was exerting was almost more than his body could take, caught between two worlds, not quite in the world of the book or the outer world. They were somewhere in-between, somewhere the witch had brought him.

  He didn’t know who she was, didn’t know if she knew where she was, but he was damned if he wasn’t going to hold on to her until she pulled him completely out.

  “Pe’, te ou, caw et me, pe’ te ou, caw et me… Say it!” he demanded, struggling to focus his waning power on maintaining his hold on her.

  Even as she struggled with him, he felt the power radiating from her body in hot waves, and the halo of power shrouding her fading form, vibrating, through the sweat obscuring his vision.

  “Please…” He closed his eyes and concentrated. With his mind reaching out to her through their physical connection, Bacclum felt strength flood his body, a renewed energy shoot through his veins.