by Honor James
“At least it’s a healthy addiction. Could be worse, I suppose,” he said. Shaking his head in bemusement, or likely as close as he got, he slid out of the vehicle. Walking around to her side, he gave her a hand down before they headed toward the front door. “You should likely call now, since they will be a while before getting here with that delivery.”
“Good point.” Pulling up her coms unit, Lilly quickly made the order, ensuring that she would have leftovers for Gavriel if he wanted anything as well. Once that was done, she simply leaned back and sighed. “Have you ever just stopped, tipped your head back, and inhaled the scents of the night that surrounds us? It’s sometimes truly wonderful.” Sometimes not so much, but she was trying to be an optimist.
“She asks of one of the not-so-natural predators on this world,” he muttered at her back. “It’s one of my stronger senses and instinct to sniff for trouble,” he said. “I inhale every single time I exit a building, get out of a vehicle, or go somewhere I’m worried about unwelcome company. The scents on the wind tell me everything from how many humans near, what animals were here or are close, the weather to within a ninety percent accuracy and, if the wind is just right, if trouble is coming.”
Well that certainly wasn’t what she meant, so she just grinned at him. Shaking her head, she said, “It’s the night. Sometimes you simply have to let go and scent the air for the beauty that you can smell. For instance, I smell jasmine and roses, likely because there is a patch of flowers close. I smell the slightest hint of rain on the air as well. It’s a wonderful scent when they are all combined. No, not all scents are good, but when you can catch those good ones it just makes the world a little better place. If only for that one moment.”
“Well then, you are lucky,” he commented, wrinkling up his nose. “I can’t breathe in without it all assaulting me. Only strong scents or ones I’m tracking can override others, and even then it’s a tricky thing. My motivation in doing the tracking helps, otherwise”—he shrugged—“everything goes in.”
“As long as you can smell me and always find me, that’s all that I will worry about, then. How does that sound? I just want to be able to have this life with you, with Gav. I want the happily ever after that all girls dream of, if you don’t mind?”
“I don’t think any of your fairy tales growing up had Vhampires in them, sweetheart. But I get your gist, mostly,” he muttered. Pressing a kiss to her hair, he gave her a squeeze. “Come on, let’s go see if Gavriel is awake and he can join you for pizza while I have a pint.”
“Sounds good to me. And no.” She laughed, she couldn’t seem to help herself. “However, some of the best romance stories well before the Veil fell had Vampires in them. Different spelling, of course,” she teased.
“I’ve seen some information on that from the old Internet, hardly realistic in nature,” he said. Opening the door, he let her inside and then followed on her heels. After removing his shoes and jacket, he went up the stairs two at a time. She could hear both his and Gavriel’s voices drifting down, no actual words, but it sounded like Gav was indeed up and about.
A point that was proven when he came jogging down the stairs a few minutes later. “Hello, darling.” He grinned. Scooping her up in a hug, he pressed kisses on her cheeks and nuzzled at her throat. “I missed not having your sexy body next to me when I woke up earlier. Was rather disappointed, actually, that you hadn’t ditched out on Ax and come home to wake me properly.”
“Well you know how it is,” she teased him with a grin. She hugged him tighter and nuzzled her cheek to his. “I am happy to have you holding me. Besides, you needed sleep, babe, admit it,” she murmured softly and squeezed him once more. “Did you dream of me?” she teased the man with a laugh.
“I did,” he said, cupping her ass and squeezing. “I dreamed of you sliding in with me and waking me up with that sexy mouth of yours doing naughty, naughty things. I, of course, was properly appreciative of the wake-up and thanked you, repeatedly and in various ways.” Kissing her, he smiled and chuckled. “So, what did you do today, dear?”
“Went into the office for a bit, had sex with Ax, a lot.” She grinned. “And don’t worry, darling, later I will show you just how much appreciation I have for you. Later I will make your dream come true because you make all of mine come true,” she promised him.
Laughing, he kissed her gently and set her back on her feet. “I’ll hold you to that. But for now, I need to get something to eat and then head in to work. Gods only know what mess I’m going to find there tonight to take on.” Grinning, he spun her to toward the kitchen and then, hands on her hips, pushed her forward.
“Yeah, good point. I’m sure that there will be messes, but you aren’t to believe anyone when they tell you that we were bad and naughty or whatever else they will come up with. Just because I couldn’t keep my hands to myself, that means nothing. Nothing, I tell you.”
“Uh, sure,” he said, drawing the word out nice and long. “You are so full of it. I am totally going to be asking everyone there just what you two got up to. Maybe I can talk security out of the tapes, too. That would be helpful.”
Lilly grinned. “Well, I’m sure that you won’t have tapes to get out of them. Ax was supposed to ensure that they got erased.” She gave a look to her lover and winked. “Did you take care of that for us?” she asked softly.
“Of course,” he said as he came into the kitchen. Stopping next to them, he cocked a brow. “Why would you ever doubt me? Besides, they were most willing to give them up when I asked them very nicely.”
“Uh-huh.” Gavriel grinned. “Somehow I’m not getting the impression that you either asked or did so nicely. That’s just not you.”
Shooting him a wounded look, one that actually looked real until she saw his eyes and the humor, Artaxias clicked his tongue. “You wound me, kid, you wound me.”
“Well, I know that you took care of it, but I mean, did you ensure that they wouldn’t remember as well? Because knowing those asshats, they likely watched what we did. That’s all I was asking. And don’t say that you can’t do that, because I’ve felt the power inside of you when, well, you were inside of me,” Lilly added with a blush. “So yeah.”
They both leaned in slightly and squinted. “I think she’s blushing,” Artaxias said.
“Yup, she is most definitely blushing,” Gavriel agreed. “Though I can’t believe it, considering some of what we’ve done with her and to her. Really, shouldn’t she be beyond that already?”
She knew they were giving her a moment to regain her composure. The fact they were also poking fun at her, though, didn’t get missed. “Probably not yet, but in another few months, I doubt anything will make her blush like that. Yes, they will not remember anything about anything of that stuff that we did that they had on tape. Though”—he grinned evilly—“I do have a copy hidden somewhere in the house.”
She looked up at Ax and then laughed. “Oh, that’s very bad. Lemme guess, you are going to make Gav look for it? If he wants to see what we were up to, and all that happy jazz?” She couldn’t help but smile, though. God she was happy, crazy, insanely happy.
“Nah, I’d never deny him some of the bonus features of the film. I sent it to his phone.” Ax gave a shrug.
“Hey, thanks man.” Gavriel grinned. Digging out his phone, he fiddled around and gave the Vhampire a high five. Humming, he pulled it up and his eyes went huge. “Holy shit,” he said before busting out laughing.
Lilly growled at Gavriel, there was no other word for the sound that escaped her lips. “What the hell did you just send to him? And just how sore am I going to be when he’s through with me?” Even as she spoke about being sore, neither man could miss the fact that her body’s arousal went up a notch, that her pussy began to cream and her need grew.
Artaxias just shrugged as Gav’s eyes got bigger and, she was pretty sure, bulged a little. His mouth was hanging open and he was slowly shaking his head. But his eyes never once left the screen. “Damn, I
so wish there was sound.”
“All right, I have to see,” she grumbled and moved closer. When Gav lifted his phone just a bit more, she looked to Ax. “I want to know what you sent him. Hell, I need to know.” Mostly because she was getting hotter and hotter with the thoughts of what they had shared during the day. “Damn. Might just have to relive those moments,” she whispered aloud, and covered her mouth in shock. She so hadn’t meant to say that aloud, at all.
“Hell yeah!” Gavriel teased with a grin. Pulling her closer, he kissed her hard on the lips before letting her up for air a time later, his phone nowhere in sight. “I think you and I should work on some recreation of those epic events. Though, and this is just my preference, not in front of a camera.”
“You know, I wouldn’t have it any other way. I just need you. Both of you.” Which was the honest-to-god truth. Yes, she loved being able to be an exhibitionist with Ax, because she knew he would erase anyone and everything that caught their interludes, but she loved just plain being with them as well.
“Mm, you saucy little thing.” He grinned at her. Then his eyes flicked past her and he pouted. “But I have to go to work,” he whispered, whimpering ever so slightly. He looked to her, then past her, to a point beyond her, and leaned in pressing his forehead to hers. “It’s just not fucking fair.”
“You will be okay.” She patted his chest. Lifting her face, she brushed her lips to his chin. “I love you, Gav.” She stroked her thumb over his cheek and nodded. “Now, get to work before your ass gets chewed, and not in a good way, either.”
Growling at her, he sounded a lot like Ax when he did the same thing. “Not helping the tightness in my pants, woman. Damned female,” he muttered. Cupping her face, he kissed her deeply before letting her go. “I will see you in the morning and you’d better damn well be naked.”
“I plan on it.” Lilly licked her lips and winked. “Now, get the hell out of here.” She moved back away from him so that he could actually leave and so she didn’t throw herself at him again. She sighed when Ax wrapped his arms around her, and all but melted into him. She was a very, very lucky woman, that much was for sure.
Gavriel gave a groan, adjusted himself in his pants, and huffed out a breath. Grabbing up a wrapped sandwich from the fridge and a bottle of water, he muttered under his breath. “I’ll see you in the morning, woman,” he said. It sounded like one hell of a sensual threat, the look in his eyes all hot promise before he headed out.
Artaxias rested his chin on her head and gave her a squeeze. “You should stick around here tomorrow with him. Until we get the office cleaned out of all that crap causing you issues, it’s best anyway. Plus you need time with him, too.”
“That’s kind of what I was thinking as well.” She loved Gav just as much as she did Artaxias. “Besides, he will never let anything get to me either, will he?” She knew that he wouldn’t. He might not be as old or as powerful as Ax, but he was a hell of a powerful Spiryte and she knew without a shadow of a doubt that Gavriel would never let her be harmed. “I do love my alone time with the both of you.”
“Of course he’d never let anything get to you,” he snorted. “While he might be young still, in comparison to me, for example, I’ve taught him things that no one outside the Vhampire realm has ever been taught. Truthfully, that could get me in serious shit now that I think on it. But, whatever.” He waved a hand. “Gavriel is quite effective when he needs to be and, when protecting his mate, a man will do anything. So, too, will a woman. Get off your high horse,” he muttered. Obviously he’d caught her expression, and that made her grin.
“I know that he will.” Lilly just grinned at the look on his face and smirked.“It’s a very good thing that I love you as much as I do. That I know what you are doing.” He was trying to get her to smile, to make her happy, and that made her happy. Very much so.
Looking down at her, he frowned at her. “Whatever are you meaning, woman?” he asked. Lifting a brow, he stared at her. “What is it that I’m doing? Hmm, do tell, please.” He smiled slightly at her. Oh, he knew well enough, and was just playing with her.
“Well you see, here’s the thing. You are an amazing man and I love you more than I could ever possibly tell you. You are making me smile because you know I feel a little guilty about being so pleasured today without Gav being around. I’ve seemed to lean on you far more than anyone else, and you are just making sure that I realize that is okay.”
“Oh, that.” He waved a hand and made a scoffing sound. “It’s nothing, nothing at all. Besides, it is completely all right, Lilly. We will both have our alone time with you over the years to come. And we will always have you between us when we are together. There is no reason to feel even a little guilty about something that is natural. We’re bonded, love. That means discovering everything there is to know about each other, and the best way to do that, normally, is a little one-on-one time. Tomorrow, you will spend some one-on-one time with Gav while I raise bloody hell and threaten dismemberment and bloody deaths to those at the office. We’ll both have good days tomorrow.”
“This is very true,” she said with a grin, a grin which faded as quickly as it rose. “Damn, that’s right, we do have to figure out just how the hell they are able to still affect me with their poison or mental triggers.” It wasn’t poison. It was mental triggers that had her freaking out and hurting.
“The carpets were today, but the Gods only know what else they did around the office. That’s why I got you out of there as fast as I did. I’ll have to tell the captain, and he’ll need to suspend all janitorial services for the time being. We need to find out who in that section has been doing it, and on whose authority. Because we both know that he’d never put your, or any agent’s, life in danger like that.”
“Oh boy. People are seriously going to love me. No janitorial services for a time. Yep, they are gonna be ever so happy about that one. But whatever, they will get over it,” she said with a shrug. “And you are right, he would never put any of us in danger. He’s gruff and everything, but overall a decent man.”
“Especially once Zhubin let him off his suspect list,” he muttered. “We’ll have to hire in from a different firm for a short period of time. But they’ll need to be watched by security, so there will be some overtime hours there. Not sure how the captain will swing it, but it needs to be done.”
“Yeah, no kidding.” She sighed and shook her head. “I feel like such an ass. I really do. I feel as if this is all my fault. I mean, I know that it’s not, but that doesn’t mean that I’m not feeling that way. If that makes any kind of sense at all?” she asked quietly.
“You rarely do when you are babbling, my love. But I adore you anyway, so that’s really all that matters. I sort of got your point, though,” he said, kissing her neck gently. “It’s not your fault, this has never been your fault and you need to stop blaming yourself. You need to get mad, and then we need to get even.”
She sighed and nodded. “I know that it’s not my fault, but I still can’t help but feel like a complete and utter tool. And on the ‘getting mad’ part…” She shrugged and grinned up at him. “I’m there, and I want my revenge. I want these fuckers to pay for hurting us.”
“Good, now come up with creative ways to dismember them with the most amount of pain,” he advised. Dropping a kiss to her lips, he drew back. “Let’s get you fed, and then we’ll go for a run or something before collapsing for the evening. Which, I have to tell you, really runs counterintuitive for me. This whole working-the-day thing really ruins a Vhampire’s reputation for slinking around in the dark, stalking innocents and all that other stuff.”
“Sounds like a plan to me.” He was being sweet, getting her to think of ways to kill the bastards in the most painful of ways possible. “Yes. I am starving, and a run would be nice, but I think that perhaps I would do better with laps in the pool and then a hot tub or steam room for a short time?” To loosen her muscles.
“Well, then you can swim and I’ll h
it the treadmill. I need to burn off some excess energy, I think, before we do anything tonight. But give me a shout when you jump in the hot tub or wherever and I’ll come keep you company.”
That had Lilly grinning like a cat. “I would love that. To have you joining me in an already nice and steamy place.” She sighed happily. “Yep, totally have to do that. I want that. I need that. I am going to do laps for an hour, so if I don’t get out of the pool before your timer goes off, come get me?”
Nodding, he leaned over to kiss her. “Go, do your laps and I’ll go get sweaty for a while.” Another kiss to her lips and he headed for the stairs. “But after all that, you are damn well eating a meal,” he called over his shoulder, just as he hit the steps and raced up them.
“Yes sir,” she called out to him with a giggle. Stripping out of her clothes at the edge of the pool, she didn’t bother with a suit, just dove in and began to swim. Lilly loved swimming. It calmed her, centered her, and eased her mind a great deal.
She didn’t have a concept of time in the pool, but suddenly Artaxias was there, tossing floatation items into her path. “About time, geez,” he muttered. “Your hour is up. Out of the pool, you little fish.” Crouching on the edge, he held out his hands to her and waited.
She put her hands into his and laughed. “I told you that I likely would lose time,” she said when he pulled her up and out of the pool. Wrapping her arms around him, she laughed. “You are all sweaty and I’m all wet.” Her look that she shot him was one born of greed and need. “In all ways.”
“Oh really.” His smile was interested, very interested. His hands slid down her back to her ass and squeezed. “Are you hot and wet?” he asked, his voice down a full octave as he licked his lips slowly in that way that made her want to groan with lust.
“Very.” She purred the singular word. Looking up to him, she licked her lips. “How about we go to the sauna or the hot tub so that you can help me with this ache and pain that I am in from being so wet and hot?”