by Ebony Olson
“It's her business, Gina,” Calin replied calmly.
“The boss is using her for sex. That's not the person she's going to confide in,” Cynthia chimed in. “You made friends with her, Gina, she saved your life. You should be the one to go talk to her.”
“Jesus! Would you both stay out of it,” Calin sighed, frustrated.
I stepped into the library, leaning against the doorjamb. Gina sat at her normal desk, her blonde hair half pulled up in a bun with a pencil stuck through to hold it. Calin sat on the desk next to her looking a little stressed. Cynthia stood naked, arms crossed as she stared Calin down.
“What are we staying out of?” I queried, and all three jumped. “Cyn, I thought you were on duty tonight?”
Cynthia met my eyes. “I am, but I heard something, and it worried me, so I came to report to Calin. I'll get back out there now, boss.”
“What worried you?” I asked before she could leave. I knew from the conversation I'd overheard that it related to Spectra.
Cynthia swallowed and looked back at Calin. Calin gave a small shake of his head.
Gina groaned in annoyance. “For fuck's sake, Cal!” She stood up to face me. “Spectra's crying her heart out up there. She was pulling so hard into herself when she arrived that she actually became insubstantial and walked right through me on the stairs.”
Calin glared at Gina. “Which I was just explaining is none of our business.”
“It's his business!” Gina pointed at me. “That makes it our business.”
I started to turn. “Your wife is right, Calin. It is my business.” I found Luke standing outside the door listening, concern all over his face. Annoyed as he pretended to be at Spectra's presence, he liked the girl.
I moved up the stairs and opened my bedroom door, expecting to find a broken heap on the floor. Instead, she stood by my reading chair laying a black pantsuit out so it wouldn't crease. She looked up, startled by my sudden entrance, then smiled as if she didn't have a care in the world. Everything about her lied, telling me she was perfectly fine and happy. Everything but her eyes. Her eyes were darker than I'd ever seen them, a deep ocean blue.
I closed the door, using the action to turn my back for a moment and compose myself. I could smell Alexander Williams all over her even from this distance, but it wasn't sex, just close contact.
“How was dinner?” she asked cheerily. I turned back to her and raised a brow. Spectra's eyes went wide when she realized what she'd just asked.
“Satisfying.” I stepped towards her. “But not what I was craving.”
I kissed her before she fell apart again. I wanted her to tell me what happened, but I understood she didn't want to talk about it. So I kissed her. It took several minutes of kissing before her tension leeched out enough to relax her body to mine. I kissed her slowly, letting my hands hold her. My thumb brushed the zip on her long skirt, so I slowly lowered the zip and let the skirt fall to the ground. As my hands pulled back up, I lifted her top over her head, forcing us to break from our kiss.
I kept her eyes locked with mine, watching them slowly lighten, moving my hands around her waist and up her back to unhook her bra. As it fell away revealing her beautiful breasts, I nearly broke eye contact to look at them but stayed with her as I dropped into a squat and slowly inched her panties down her long, slender legs. Her eyes were nearly midnight blue now as I rose to standing and I slipped my jacket from my shoulders.
“You don't ever have to hide from me, Spectra.” I stroked the side of her face. “You don't know how irresistible I find the naked beauty of your soul.”
For a moment she closed her eyes, and I thought she would let me see her pain. Instead, she rubbed her cheek against my hand, and when her eyes opened, they held danger. “You hide from me, Bay. You shield your power; you hide what you are about, your true intentions. Even naked, you wear a suit of armor.”
I swallowed as she started to undress me. “Pick one. The most important of those three. Pick one, and I will reveal it to you now.”
She pushed my shirt from my body and kissed me across my chest. My fingers tangled in her hair out of reflex as her mouth descended south, her hands pushing my pants down in unison. She dropped to kneeling, taking my firmness in her hand. Her eyes flicked up to mine. “Shield.”
My fingers gripped her head, stopping her mouth’s descent. “Are you sure? It could kill you, Spectra. At the very least, it would be very painful.”
“Give me this, Bay, and I will give you what I've never given any other.”
Her choice told me her state of mind. It was her life she was putting on the line by asking me to show her my true power. The reward she offered informed me that Alexander finally told her about the Nephilim bitch and Spectra finished whatever version of a relationship they'd been having. Her tongue flicked the tip of my cock before twirling around the smooth head. I loosened my grip on her hair, and she descended until her nose touched my abdomen. Her body rebelled the depth of my penetration, but she held herself for two breaths before pulling back.
I used her hair to stop her descent as I knelt in front of her, confusion clouding her features. I fisted her hair and kissed her hard, using my weight to force her to fold back to lie on the floor. She spread her thighs automatically, bidding me welcome as I lay between them and nudged my erection between her labia till I found her opening. She wasn't ready for me, but I wasn't going to wait in case she changed her mind.
Kissing her deeply, I pressed into her tightness. She gasped, her body resisted me, but I drew back a little and pushed forward again. She turned her head to the side, biting her lip. Her body resisted again, but I gained ground. Two more times I pulled back and thrust a little deeper. By the time her body surrendered, Spectra's nails were scraping down my arms, her back bowed, head hanging back.
Once I was buried deep within her, I dropped my shields enough to drown her in my desire for her. She moaned and pulled my mouth to hers, kissing me intensely as her legs wrapped around my hips. I started moving within her, pulling nearly all the way out of her slowly before thrusting deep into her as fast as I could. I let my shields drop even further. She gasped, but her body kept pressing up to meet my thrusts eagerly.
Lowering my shield, I watched her grimace, the pads of her fingers gripping my arms. Her body kept our rhythm, and after several minutes, any discomfort with my power burning around us was forgotten. I held my shield there a little longer, waiting until her moans rose in volume and her body started tightening around mine. I could barely move inside of her now.
“Are you sure?” I murmured before thrusting hard into her.
Spectra cried out with every thrust, her voice growing even louder as her body found the edge of pleasure. “Yes,” she gasped.
I moved my arms so I could take all my weight in the one hand. I caressed my free hand from her knee, over her hip, up her slender waist to encompass her pale breast. Her back arched, presenting her breasts to me, and I felt myself swell even larger inside her, my desire rising to meet her body’s response. I moved my mouth to her ear as my free hand caressed up her neck.
“Please be strong enough.” I dropped my shield entirely.
Spectra's back bowed higher, and she screamed, my hand quickly covering her mouth to muffle her. Her fingernails dug into my back as her body bucked beneath mine. I gritted my teeth, counting in my head. Thirty seconds. That's all I'd give her. If she was still screaming, I'd pull my shield back together and try and save her. As I reached fifteen, her scream changed to a sob. As my count hit twenty-five, I could move my hand away from her mouth. She let out small little whimpers.
I watched her eyes blink open, tears streaming free of them. She blinked a few more times, and then her beautiful eyes, once again their natural pale blue, focused on me. She gave me a weak smile, waited a moment longer till her breathing wasn't so labored, and then she wiggled her hips.
I kissed her hard, holding her hip with my free hand. I
thrust hard and fast into her. Her head fell back, and she moaned so beautifully I felt it deep within me. I throbbed and went inside her. Spectra's eyes grew wide with surprise. She mouthed that vulgar word I'd scolded her for using, and then she came with me. My magic swirled around us and tingled down my spine. It was so subtle I doubt she even felt it.
As we lay there, recovering, our bodies still connected as lovers, I smiled quietly to myself, my mouth hidden against her neck. She was mine now. I knew she wouldn't deny Mercury the same privilege eventually and he'd get her pregnant shortly after. But I was the first she'd let own her body completely.
Spectra started laughing. I pulled back to look at her.
“What?” I asked gently.
“I get it now. Why it's worth risking. That was so amazing!”
I smiled down at her. “Are you talking about me coming inside of you or risking death from my power?”
“Both.” She deflated and went limp underneath me. A smile played across her lips, her voice barely audible as her eyes started to shutter. “I was strong enough.”
I smiled gently. “More than.”
I removed myself from her, kneeling back to admire her sprawled and drifting on the edge of sleep. My eyes traveled down to her heat, and I ran my thumb between her labia, admiring the cream of my pleasure seeping out of her. “You're mine now, Spectra.”
“I know,” she sighed. “I think I always was.”
I cocked my head to the side, wondering if she truly did understand, but I decided she didn't. I doubt Alexander or his father would have warned her in the hope that she would bind herself to Alexander in her naiveté. I smiled, standing up and going to the shower, leaving her there to fall the rest of the way to sleep.
When I came out, she was rolled on her side, breathing deeply. I picked her up and carried her to the bed, tucking her in so she'd be warm. I stood back watching her sleep in my bed and thought how nice it'd be to have her there every night. I rubbed my hands over my face, frustrated that she'd come into my life at this point, and moved to my study.
An hour of reading reports later, Luke came in and sat down in his usual seat. “Is she okay?”
I looked up at him and sat back. “Alexander and her are over.”
“That doesn't change anything with you two.”
“Not outside of that room, it doesn't.” I frowned, hating I would have to keep her a secret just as much as he had.
Luke gave me a sympathetic look. “You're in love with her, aren't you?”
“It doesn't matter, Luke. She's better off with the Angelis.”
“But you will take her to your bed when she avails herself to you?”
“Of course.” I frowned. “She succeeded in her purpose in my life. My desires are reawakened, and I'm able to procure my own food without asking Calin to do my dirty work. Whatever I've come to feel for her is irrelevant.”
Luke blew out a breath, shaking his head as he stood and moved to the door.
“Where are you off to with that look?”
“To find out how hard it's going to be to get a priest to bless this house so your angel wants to live here.” Luke opened the door and looked back at me. “If the Angelis is going to live here too, then we should clear out the guest rooms on the second level. That way she can be in his bed when he's home, and your bed when he's not.”
“Her living here is not an option, Luke.” I wished it were possible though. “It would still put her in danger, and Alexander would find out eventually.”
Luke gave me a leveling look. “Fantôme wants to recruit her. Essence will take her if they even hear a whisper of her ability, and who knows who else will want her? Can you really think of a safer place for the girl?”
“That's not going to sell it to Alexander.”
“Then sell it to Henry, and he will order Alexander to accept it.” Luke took a step back into the office. “If either of those two groups gets their hands on her, she will be taken, brought into an eternity of preying on those she once protected. She detests our kind, Bay. She is looking past that for you because you call to her on a level above your condemnation, but while she tries to be amicable, her loathing is very obvious every time she looks at me. Could you imagine being forced to become what you hate more than anything else? What do you think that would do to her?”
I rested my forehead in my hands, knowing the answer already. “She'd beg L'Ordre and L'Paix to end her. And, if they refused, she'd commit a crime so heinous she would force their hands.”
“Exactly,” Luke smiled. “You love her. It's worth risking everything else to have her, isn't it?”
I sighed. “I'll discuss it with the Angelis and we'll go from there.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Spectra
The car ride back to the city Wednesday morning was silent. I sat in the back with Bay, Luke up front with Calin, who was driving. Bay woke me early to take his pleasure again, taking mine right along with it. He didn't even bother shielding with me, and he didn't need to now. Last night’s exposure finally stretched and sealed my shield to encompass me entirely now. When that seal formed last night, I felt something within me shift.
This morning, every one of my senses was more alive. Every little touch of Bay's fingers on my skin was intense in the way my receptors responded. As I watched the world pass by outside the windows, colors were richer, textures sharper. Breakfast was like an orgasm in my mouth as the taste of the bacon and eggs were taken to a whole new level. I felt like I'd been living in a bundle of cotton wool until this morning.
Bay's thumb rubbed against mine where he held my hand as we entered the city streets. “Are you nervous about your meeting?”
“No.”
“What was the recruiter like when you met them?”
“She kept talking up the company, telling me how there would be lots of room for advancement for someone with my skills.” I noticed Luke listening intently; his head was turned towards Calin, so he heard every word. I frowned, looking to Bay, who was watching me with the same intensity. “Is there something you two know about this meeting you want to tell me?”
Bay patted my hand. “There's nothing I can tell you yet. You said you have another interview tomorrow?”
“At Galaxy. I still have to figure out how I'm going to get out to Stokes. There isn't much in the way of public transport. And then I've got my formal interview at Baulkims on Friday.”
“Can you drive?” Calin asked.
“Of course,” I smirked. “I grew up in suburbia with an absentee mother. I was driving her car to the shops for food before I was even licensed.”
Calin nodded. “Stokes Business Park isn't even twenty minutes from the estate. Why don't you stay tonight at our place and borrow one of the cars in the morning?”
I looked to Bay, unsure how to word why I couldn't. “I am...”
“Meant to see your boyfriend tonight?” Bay finished for me. I swallowed and nodded. Bay's eyes drifted to Luke, who gave the slightest nod. “We'll bring him to you. Luke will arrange the guest room for your use.”
I narrowed my eyes and assessed all three of them. “Why?”
Bay raised a brow.
“Why would you be willing to allow me to sleep under your roof with my boyfriend and not you?”
Bay gave the tiniest smirk. “You chose shield, not intentions, Spectra. The offer gets you out of a bind; that's all that should matter for now.”
I couldn't trust there wasn't an ulterior motive. I turned my eyes to the back of Calin's head. “Thank you for the offer, but no. I'll find my own way. If I took the job, I'd have to make arrangements to get there anyway.”
Luke's smile disappeared, and he turned his face fully back to the front of the car. Bay just watched me, and I could see what he was thinking in his eyes.
I smiled. “You're only just working out how stubborn I can be?”
Bay's left eye squinted like he was concentrating. �
�You don't have any intention of taking this job today, do you?”
“No,” I answered straightforward.
“Why?”
“I've been aiming for Galaxy for two years. That was my goal.”
“Then why go in for the meeting at all?” Bay was highly suspicious of me now. His shoulders were tense, his body posture guarded.
“Galaxy isn't guaranteed. They are very particular about who they hire.”
“How are they different from the other companies?”
I looked around the car and noticed the other two were the same. “What am I walking into here, Bay?”
“Answer my question.”
“Look... I might be interested in the job at Pendant once I've seen the place, but if it's going to be like the NSIO, I'm not interested.” I met Bay's eyes.
He relaxed a little. “The recruiters at this place are trained profilers, they'll throw you out on your ear if they think for even a second you're not serious about being there.”
I nodded, and Calin pulled the car up to the curb outside a beautiful historic office building. “Good luck, Spectra,” Calin called. “Call me after you're finished, and we'll have lunch so you can get your bag back.” Calin's eyes drifted to the bag with my clothes at my feet. Bay's and Luke's eyes were on Calin, and surprise didn't even cover the look on their faces. It was a mix of surprise, disgust, possibly distrust. Whatever it was, it was hostile.
“Thanks, Calin. Text me so I have your number and I'll call you when I’m finished.” He handed me his phone, and I typed my phone number in. Bay's eyebrows shot up as he watched me hand the phone back, but he didn't say anything.
I leaned over to kiss him goodbye, and Luke coughed loudly, “Lipstick.”
I laughed, remembering that I was, in fact, wearing a rosy lip gloss just to give my lips some color. “I'll see you next week sometime.”
Bay caught my wrist. “This weekend.”
I shook my head. “I'm with Mercury until Sunday evening. He starts night shift again Sunday night. We need to work some stuff out between us, so we need this time.”