Piper: Queen’s Birds of Prey: Paranormal Shape Shifter Romance (Queen's Birds of Prey)

by Kathi S. Barton

  “No. I’m not. As I have said to you several times now, you’re trespassing.” The others started toward them. Piper had the feeling this man was the leader of this little group, and he’d bully whoever didn’t do things his way. “Do you have your will filled out, Mr. Curtain? Someone we can notify when this is over? Because no matter what you say to the contrary, you’re not going to be living here any longer.”

  “So says you.” The man looked at the others. Piper wasn’t sure they were thinking Curtain was in the right any longer. Each of them started away once they realized Grant wasn’t backing down. “Now look what you’ve done. You’ve scared off some of my fine neighbors. I’m afraid now I’m going to have to find me a whole other group of people to piss you off.”

  “Sorry, but I’m not pissed. I don’t get pissed. It’s not worth the effort.” Grant looked at her and winked. “You see, when you have one of the queen’s prey as your mate, you don’t have to worry about much of anything bothering you. So this is your final say, is it? You’re not moving on?”

  “Nope.” Curtain aimed his gun at her when she hopped in his direction. Grant told him that if he did that, he was only going to piss her off. “She ain’t real anyway.”

  The gun went off just as she drew in a breath to hit the tent behind the man. As soon as he realized it was flaming, he aimed the gun at Grant. Piper turned her flame to Curtain, and it hit him all at once. Her fire was hotter than anything manmade. Mr. Curtain didn’t even have time to scream.

  Chapter 6

  The castle was a mix of modern and old. There were places along the walls that would hold things such as books and collections. Grant knew that over the years, he’d collected a lot of both. Mostly books, but he did have a few things he thought would mix well with the things he was sure Piper had collected too. She met him in the office where he was looking around.

  “I’m not sure what is going on right now, but the kitchen changes every time I come out and go back into it. I don’t cook, you see. I could if pressed, but I don’t. So when I leave, it changes, I’m assuming, to your standards of kitchen work. With mine, it’s two microwaves, as well as lots of paper plates. I’m not sure I like that.” He asked her what was bothering her about it. “That this place is more in tune with me than I am. Do you cook?”

  “I do. And I love to. But I think we’ll still need someone here to cook all the time. With the projects we have going, we’ll need to do that. Have you heard from Benson about the children?” She told him what she’d heard. “I figured as much. Malnourished seems to be the way children of his sort wind up. Mercy has contacted their mother. She’s been looking for them for six months. He took them out of the state when he only had weekend visitation rights. Apparently, she’s more than grateful to have them back. The others have left as well. They even cleaned up their messes instead of leaving it for us. I believe you scared some sense into them.”

  “For the moment anyway.” He knew that sometime in the future, they were going to have to do the same again. Grant hoped the castle being occupied would deter some people, but he didn’t have much faith. “Baker went to find us some staff. The kitchen is going to be your domain, so you can interview someone for that. I’ll see about having the staff here in the morning. I want this night, our first night here, to be just about the two of us. How about we look over the rest of this place, and then we head up to what is going to be our bedroom and make it ours?”

  She wiggled her brows at him, and he laughed. Piper was as straight forward as anyone he’d ever met. When she wanted something, Piper didn’t have any trouble asking for it. He thought perhaps that was why he loved her so much. Before they went any further, he bent on one knee in front of her.

  “It’s about time.” He laughed again, telling her to behave herself. “I don’t know if you’ve realized this or not, but I don’t do behaving very well. I can, I suppose, but what the hell is the fun in all that? But I do love you.”

  “And I love you. Will you marry me?” Her laughter made him smile. She didn’t do ladylike laughter either. When laughing, Piper did so with her entire self. “Is that a yes, or do you have to think on it for a little while?”

  “It’s very much so a yes. Also, you should know that in all my life, I’ve never had as much fun as I’ve had with you these last few days. Thank you for that.” He asked her about Curtain. “He was trying to kill you. I know you’re immortal and that all he would have done was piss you off. However, he didn’t know that. My bird, she didn’t want him to harm anyone, and she ended him so we’d not have to watch over our shoulders for the rest of his life. Nor those that he convinced to come here with him. Are you going to put that on my finger, or do I have to do it by myself?”

  He pushed the beautiful ring up and over her knuckle. It looked good on her; the ruby was a beautiful gem against her skin. Watching it sparkle all around the room, he nearly missed what she was saying to him. She told him she had one for him as well. When she got down on her knees with him, she put the matching ring on his finger. The ruby was twice the size of hers and set in the same setting he loved on the one he’d given her.

  “I had an idea why Jude handed me this yesterday. She isn’t very sneaky, by the way. Don’t tell her anything you don’t want blabbed around.” Piper kissed him and continued. “The rings were a part of a larger set, she told me. There was a necklace, as well as several bracelets in the trunk. Since it had long since rotted, the jewelry had spread out all over the bottom of the sea. I guess Duncan found the rest of it buried under some of the debris that was part of the belly of the ship where the new bride was chained up.”

  “Such a sad story. I’m sorry.” Piper kissed him again, this time lingering a little longer. “You’re not upset to have this ring when you know it was for someone that lost everything?”

  “No. I mean, I am sorry for the woman that lost her entire family. But I believe you and I can make better, newer stories that go along with this set. We’ll be happy. Have children if you want them, as well as live out a long life we can be proud of.” She tisked as she continued. “I have a couple of shows coming up at the end of the year. One of them is in Paris, the other in Germany. We’ll make a long trip of them if you’d like.”

  “I would. I would love to see those places with you.” She nodded and put her arms over his shoulders. “Anything else before I take you up to our bedroom and ravage you?”

  “Yes. I want children with you. By you or not, I want to have little ones running around this place. Bring joy here. Make memories of our lives here that we can be proud of.” He told her he liked that idea. “Thank you. Also, I would very much enjoy seeing the world once again, before we get to the point where we’re only here all the time. I can see us doing that too. Being people that are so happy with their home, they never want to leave.”

  “Yes. However, I don’t think of you as a homebody. You’re more of the kind of woman that goes out and conquers the world one country at a time.” They both laughed, and Grant stood up. Scooping Piper up into his arms, he started for the stairs. “It doesn’t matter if we’re here or abroad; I want to spend my life with you, making you as happy as we can be together.”

  The bedroom was perfect for them. The bed looked like it was from when he was younger, the wood of it as old as he was. After putting Piper on her feet, he rubbed the post closest to him and could feel the wood speak to him. He turned to Piper when she said his name.

  “This is the bed that was in Dante’s castle. No one used it, as it was for guests of the household. After the king died, the room this was in was shut off and not used again. It despaired of ever having someone use it again.” She asked him if the bed spoke to him. “Not the bed. The wood. Everything has a story to tell. Whether it be old like this or newly cut.”

  “This is from the stash. I remember seeing it in the corner when we were there last. It called to me, and I remember touching my fingers
to the headboard and feeling something. At the time, I thought I had lost my mind. Perhaps it, like this place, knew we’d be here together. Make love to me, Grant. I so need for you to take me.” Grant pulled her into his arms and kissed her deeply. “I love you.”

  She left him there while she went to the bathroom. He wanted to tell her she didn’t need to dress up for him. That he wanted only to have her now. However, when she closed the door between them, he could feel his excitement to see what surprise she might have for him.

  Pulling the bottle of champagne out of the ice, he wondered where it had come from. Then he remembered Piper had told him she’d asked for something special for their room. He supposed this was their wedding night, and he should have thought of it too. When he heard the door open behind him, Grant turned slowly. Seeing her standing there made his entire body hard as stone.

  The glass in his hand shattered from his excitement. Champaign poured down his hand, along with blood from the glass, cutting deeply into his hand. Dropping the bottle to see to his other hand, it hit his bare foot and had him jumping up and down from the pain. He knew what he must look like, but right at that moment, he didn’t care. He was hurting. Just as he was getting his shit together and the pain leveling out, he kicked the bottle across the room and hit Piper in the shin. Falling forward to try and catch the projectile, he hit his head on the corner of the bed and laid there. Christ, he thought, I’m a fucking moron. He looked up at Piper when she started laughing.

  “Oh my God, Grant, that was by far the funniest thing I’ve ever witnessed. What the hell happened?” He didn’t even bother trying to get up, fearful of what else might befall him. “If I’d not seen this, I would never have believed it. Are you hurt?”

  “No. I’m humiliated. Why did you come out of the bathroom naked? Don’t you know I’m a man on edge?” He looked up at her again. “Can we start over? And never mention this again? Christ, my head hurts.”

  Piper got on the floor with him, and he kissed the large knot on her shin. She told him she was just fine but did look at his head. Grant wondered what would have happened had they had a tray of food here too. What sort of mess would he have made then? When she had him sit up, she examined not just his head that had a large knot on it, but also his hand and foot. She was still laughing when she told him he was going to be just fine. Grant pulled her over his lap and held her while she continued to laugh at him.

  “Anytime you want to stop laughing is going to be all right with me.” That, of course, made her laugh all the harder. “I swear to you, Piper, I’ve never felt as stupid or as clumsy as I have today. It was as if I’d never seen a naked woman before.”

  She put her hand over his mouth. “You haven’t.” He nodded and kissed the palm of her hand. “Also, just so you know, neither have I seen a naked man. We’re new to each other. All right?” She laughed a little more. “Of course, if you were to tell me you’d really not seen a naked woman before, I’d believe you, after that show of clumsiness.”

  “Yes, well, I wasn’t expecting you to be naked.” He kissed her neck, then her shoulder. “Perhaps we should stay on the floor, so I don’t toss you across the room when I enter you. You never know.”

  “I do know. I know you’re the best thing that has ever happened to me.” She turned on his lap, so she was facing him. Grant willed his clothing away, and she hummed at him. “Very nice, Mr. Coby. You have wonderfully warm skin.”

  They touched each other. Smoothed their fingers over their skin. Massaged muscles. Grant tasted her nipples, her entire breast. He even suckled on her ear lobes. Tasting each part of her that he could, Grant was getting a wonderful idea that his mate was as beautiful naked as she was in clothes.

  Lifting her up when she asked for help, Grant slid Piper down over his cock like she’d been made to be there. He didn’t move, didn’t touch her again while he held his breath and counted to ten. Then to twenty. As soon as she moved, her body adjusting to his, he put his hands on her arms and held her still. When she giggled, he looked into her face.

  “You’re very large.” He nodded, not sure he could speak over the large knot in his throat. “I love the way you feel inside of me, Grant. Like you’re now a part of me forever.”

  Rolling over, so she was under him, he cried out when her legs wrapped around his hips. Not in pain, but in pure pleasure. Again he didn’t move, trying his best not to come yet. He’d never been so close to coming even when he’d been with his first woman. Piper put her hands on his face and pulled him down for a long and very thorough kiss.

  “You’re very beautiful. Too much for me, almost.” She grinned at him and moved her hips. “Christ, do you have any idea what you’re doing to me?”

  “Yes.” She moved again, this time raising her hips up to meet his downward stroke. It was too much for him and not nearly enough. “Take me, Grant. Please? I need to have you fill me.”

  Wanting to take his time made him pause. When she moved again, he held her hips still as he looked into her eyes. Then, just like that, it occurred to him that he’d have the rest of his life with this woman. He’d be able to make love to her whenever he wanted. Have a quickie in the yard or even a long bath with her in the house. She was his. Forever and a day.

  “I love you, Piper. For the rest of my days, I will love you more and more.” He laid his head on her forehead and smiled. “You are the very best part of me.”

  Grant made love to her. He touched every inch of her that he could reach. Tasted parts of her body that were made for him. Even as he filled her over and over with his cock, he told her with words and actions how much he needed her in his life. How he wanted her there for him. But mostly just how much he loved her.

  Piper’s nipples were peaked, and he couldn’t resist suckling at them. Her fingers wove through his hair and massaged his scalp. It was strangely erotic the way she touched him there. Even when he held her tighter to his body, he could see places on her flesh that he’d missed. More places to explore. When she came, shouting out his name and her love for him, Grant joined her, coming down to earth with the only woman he’d ever love.

  ~*~

  Piper left their bedroom just as the sun was coming up. They’d made love several times throughout the night, and she was sore in places she’d never realized existed before. Moving down the steps, she had to smile. Getting the better of Grant had been more fun than she thought it might be.

  He’d gotten up to go to the bathroom. Time had ceased to mean anything to the two of them. For all she knew, it could well have been several days or only several minutes since they’d dragged themselves to bed. But she wanted him again and had followed him into the bathroom. He was washing his hands just as she entered.

  Sitting up on the counter, she spread her legs wide for him. Touching her fingers to her nipples made her hum with pleasure. That was all it took for him to attack her right then and there. He’d fucked her hard enough that the sink would never be the same. The floor had also suffered greatly.

  Now she had to get to work. The idea that had been playing around in her head all day yesterday had finally come to fruition. She knew not only what it would look like, but what she wanted to use—glass and metal. It was something she’d wanted to play with for a while, but the project for it had never been there. Now it was.

  “Mistress?” The little faerie was sitting atop one of her flames. It wasn’t on, thankfully, but she did warn him that should it have just been turned off, he’d still be hurt. “Thank you for that. I’ll warn the others. We have something to ask of you. Should you say no, we would continue to stay here in your domain. The master of the house, he said we were to ask you for whatever we wanted, as this is your place of peace.”

  “He’s correct. However, I don’t mind that any of you are here. For some reason, I have more peace when I know someone is in here with me.” She asked him what he wanted. “However, if you want heat or air, it�
�s coming soon. The furnace, as well as the air conditioner, is going to be installed next month. The insulation and the vents are already here, so it won’t take them long to install it.”

  “That is most excellent, my lady. Most excellent indeed. What we were wishing to ask you about is if you could please leave the water on for us. While we can go out and get it should we want, some of the others here, they’re breeding and do not wish to leave their young ones.” She told him she thought faeries were born in the flowers. “Most are. A great many of them are yearly. But these are our children. The ones that will take over the other jobs we have, such as the building of furniture. Some of the houses we use are needed for those couples.”

  “I didn’t know that. I thank you for the information. In addition to the water being left on for you, is there anything else that I can do for you? I noticed that you’ve found the sugar cubes I’ve left out for you, as well as the petals. I have to admit, I wouldn’t have thought of either of those without Grant telling me. I had no idea what I thought you’d do for food in here, but I’m sorry it took me so long to put them out for you.” The little man told her they had ways of getting in and out of the building. However, it was difficult. She heard the tone he had but chose to ignore it for now. “Is there anything else I can do for you?”

  “The scraps that you leave behind. We’ve been collecting them to use for things such as knives and the like. We were wondering if you’d show us how to use the sanding thing over there so that we might be able to make them sharper, or even bend them in a way to make other utensils.” She followed him across the room, terrified that he wanted to use her electric sander. All sorts of things jumbled around in her head until she thought of something else. She stopped in her tracks. “My lady?”

  “This wasn’t here yesterday. This building was...it’s just like the one I had at home, but attached to the house as—” She looked around. “It’s much bigger than the one I had at home. This is new too. I just realized that everything in here is brand new.” He nodded at her, looking at her like she was off her noddle. Perhaps she was. “You were in the other building I was using. I saw you there. Where did this come from?”