Trickster’s Hunt

by Kel Carpenter

He brushed his thumb over my cheek and I realised he was wiping a tear. I sniffed and tried to smile. “Sorry. I’ll…you don’t have to…I’ll be okay in a minute.”

  His hair had fallen over his forehead in a messy cascade, and he flicked his head to the side to clear his vision. The movement revealed the worry in his eyes. They held mine for a moment, as though trying to detect any distress, and I broke my gaze away, looking at his mouth.

  He leaned in and kissed me gently. “I want to.”

  I took my hand, using it to brush his hair away from his face and smiled before pushing myself up on the bed. When our mouths met for the second time, he was not gentle.

  His lips crushed against mine, and when I opened my mouth to suck in a breath, he took the opportunity to explore. His tongue sought out mine as his body pressed me back down on the bed and I felt myself submit to him.

  He shifted his weight, resting on one elbow, but never once broke contact with my mouth. His fingers trailed down my exposed side as my hands pushed the hair back from his face, closing my eyes as he palmed a breast. I was still wearing the white cami he’d dressed me in that morning, with no bra beneath, and I gasped as he rolled my peaked nipple between his thumb and forefinger through the soft cotton. My back arched, tilting my head, a groan rising in my throat. He left my mouth, trailing kisses down my throat, my chest, down to the nipple he’d teased to aching stiffness. His hot breath through the fabric was agony, and I whimpered. He looked up at me, pursing his lips.

  “What?” I was panting. Aching. I needed him to touch me, not to raise that fucking eyebrow at me like that. “You waiting for permission?”

  His mouth twitched up at one side and the top was gone. The friction of his tongue on the hard tip was both agony and bliss. I tilted my head back again, resting it on the pillow and sighing as he took my other breast in his hand, teasing its taut peak. It didn’t last long before he was moving again, running his tongue down my body, his hands settling on my hips.

  His hands.

  Those masterful hands that had already explored me. The memory of that morning made my pulse race. I could feel my heart thundering in my chest, my breathing, already ragged, becoming shallow.

  I watched him as he moved and licked and kissed. I felt the moisture gathering, muscles clenching as my body screamed for him to keep going. I pushed a hand into his hair, urging him lower, rotating my hips, and silently begging him.

  And his mouth was back on mine. I was close to tears, I was so frustrated, but the taste of him, the way his scent overpowered my senses, the feel of his hands roving over me subdued the pulsing need.

  One hand moved lower and unclasped the fastening at my waist. I lifted my hips again, an invitation. A request. They vanished.

  He nudged my knees apart and sat back, tugging his shirt over his head. Bare before him, I allowed my eyes to rove over him. Over every defined muscle. Every peak and contour of his chest. Then to his face. He pushed his hair back with one hand and smiled reaching out to stroke his hand down my front.

  My skin ignited and chilled at once, sending a shiver of pleasure through me. He watched, trailing lower until his fingers brushed the small triangle of hair at the apex of my thighs. I ached, he was so close, but he didn’t move any closer. I gave a frustrated moan which seemed to be enough to spur him on, but he removed his hand and took mine instead.

  Guiding my fingers to where I needed him, he watched as I dipped them inside. I kept going, bringing my wet fingertips to my clit, and flicking just one over the hardened nub of nerves. My body tensed at the sensation and I looked at him, my eyes unwavering. I needed him badly, and I needed to take the edge off. I dipped my middle finger down, then dragged it up and back over. I shuddered again, then began to rub round in tiny circles. Slowly. Not allowing myself too much. Not wanting to come on my own.

  “Fuck, Maia. You’re beautiful like this.”

  I don’t know when he’d disposed of his pants, but when he gripped my hips and drove himself home, there wasn’t a damn thing in the way. I kept my hand where it was, matching his rhythm, pushing myself to the limit as he pounded into me.

  He watched me, never taking his eyes from mine. My orgasm tore through me and I heard an appreciative hum from him as my internal muscles gripped the rock-hard length of him. I trembled, pushing my fingers down to feel him. He pulled out, almost entirely, allowing me to stroke him before driving back inside. I could feel myself clenching around him, another orgasm building, and I moved my hand back down. He took my wrist unexpectedly and pushed my hand over my head. I frowned, but he winked and moved back in a fluid motion, replacing his cock with his mouth.

  The feel of his tongue running over me was too much. The way he flicked it over my already throbbing clit drove me insane. I could feel the ache building as he plunged two fingers inside, pushing them up and hooking them over the sensitive spot. Sucking my clit, pressing on my G-spot, he made short work of bringing me to another crashing orgasm. I was a trembling mess when he knelt before me and grinned, taking my hand and pulling me to my knees.

  His kiss was tender, his hands gentle as he ran them up my back. Then he lay back, guiding me to sit astride him. “I want to see you.”

  I don’t know if it was what he said or the way he said it, but I felt a twitch of my muscles and lowered myself onto him. God, he was perfect. Made for me. He filled me.

  I could feel the pressure building, and I moaned his name as I began to move. I wouldn’t last long. The feel of him deep inside me was enough to bring me to the edge again as I found my rhythm, and when he gripped my hips and forced me down as far as I could go, grinding into him, the ecstasy of pleasure and pain, I wailed my release. He was right behind me, pulsing as he rolled his hips beneath mine.

  Panting, I looked down at him and smiled. “That was unexpected.”

  Grinning, he grasped my waist and pulled me down beside him and kissed me deeply. “In what way?”

  I smiled as he rested his head in one palm and looked down at me. “Didn’t think you liked me.”

  “Really? Well you must think Rhett absolutely despises you then.”

  I snorted. “Rhett? He isn’t that keen. I know he didn’t turn me down, but he didn’t make a move either. Now Amos—”

  I stopped abruptly. I was still breathless from fucking him, and I was talking about two other blokes. What the fuck was wrong with me?

  “Sorry.”

  “For?”

  Aware of the fact that I was completely naked, I pulled a pillow down from behind my head and cuddled into it. Silas frowned and pulled it away, throwing it from the bed. It landed with a dull thud on the floor. “Why would you do that?”

  I blinked, not sure how to respond to the sudden change in his mood. He didn’t look angry, but he certainly sounded irritated.

  “I…I don’t know. I just felt…”

  “Don’t. Ever. Not with me.” His tone had softened, and he brushed a stray strand of hair from my cheek before brushing a gentle kiss there. “Promise me.”

  I nodded and smiled, and he kissed me again before kneeling at my side. “You must be hungry.”

  I was absolutely starving.

  Without thinking I rolled onto my back and raised my arm over my head to stretch, and he groaned. Glancing his way, I noticed he was sporting another proud erection. Something tugged deep within me, and I felt a flutter of excitement. Rather than react to it, I responded to his statement. “You know me so well. Can I have lunch now?”

  His laugh was infectious, and I admit that I felt completely relaxed for the first time. He was, by far, the most domineering of the three, but that intensity about him wasn’t necessarily a negative trait.

  Amos interrupted us by storming into the room, strangely using the door.

  It occurred to me that I was okay with them disappearing and reappearing at will, which was even stranger, but I ignored myself and looked to the clearly flustered Amos.

  Silas and I were stark naked.

  Th
en we weren’t.

  Shit. He’d caught us post fuck and naked.

  Awesome.

  21

  “Where is Rhett?”

  I flinched when Silas spoke. That tone was back. That dominant, pushy, aggressive tone that scared me a bit. But I saw the concern in his eyes as he rose to his feet and walked toward his friend. I understood his logic. They’d left together; they should have returned together.

  “He went to collect something from the… home.”

  Silas looked back to me and I saw his lips twitch up in one corner. “She knows. She knows everything. Almost. Why would he go there?”

  Amos strode further into the room and perched on the edge of my bed, apparently ignoring what he’d just seen, and I twisted to look at him from where I still sat on the bed.

  “We found Nicky.”

  Silas remained silent, still reclined behind me. He waited for Amos to continue, but I could feel the tension in his body at the very mention of the name.

  “Nicky?” I had to ask. I hate not being part of a conversation that’s happening over my head and I knew from experience that asking questions would bring me back into the fold.

  Yes, I’m that needy.

  “Lowlife scum. What did he know?”

  Amos looked at me and my stomach knotted. “He knew that Maia was here, in this hotel. Someone had him track her down the day she arrived, which suggests they’ve been waiting for her.”

  “Hang on, I have more stalkers?”

  Amos flashed his brows at me. “One more, from what we could decipher. Nicky is rarely forthcoming with information unless you’re paying. Seems someone is paying. He was asked about a blonde who was with us, before any of us had met you. Whoever this is, they know more than we do.”

  I looked over my shoulder at Silas. “I don’t know why everyone is so interested in me all of a sudden. I’m nothing special.”

  “I disagree.”

  Rhett had returned, and I jumped at his arrival between the two beds, blocking my view of Amos. He held two ancient looking books in one hand, the other held the cat. I groaned but said nothing. “Peregrine arrived at the shop shortly after I had. Nicky had been inside but the…everything was intact, and Mrs. Barnes was unharmed. If he had been instructed to find—”

  “I know about the lamp. Bloody cliché.”

  His eyes flicked up to Silas. I didn’t look around, but whatever Silas did in reply, he seemed happy with and continued. “If that is what he was looking for, then he did not find it on this occasion. Peregrine has relocated it, and it should remain well hidden for a while now.”

  “Why not just bring it here?”

  All three of them looked at me and I felt my cheeks heat. “What I mean, is if this Nicky guy knows it’s there, and you don’t want it found, why not hide it somewhere else?”

  “If it is found while we are absent, we run the risk of it being used to summon us back. My research on our kind is in here.” Rhett handed me one of the ancient books as he explained, and I opened it, scanning the pages.

  “I can’t read this, wish I could, but...”

  The strange images and letters became less complicated as I scanned over them, and on my third pass, they formed words I could read. Rhett kept talking as I read, none of them aware of the phenomenon of me suddenly reading in a language I couldn’t speak.

  The information there was incredible. What they were, what they could do, who they had helped, how they remained hidden. It was all there with timelines and locations they’d been moved to. One thing was clear: they had begun in Egypt. That place was old and massive and…

  I closed the book as Silas broke my concentration.

  “Maia? What is it?”

  I stared at the little monster. “Cat, who sent you?”

  The lazy thing was cradled in Rhett’s arm looking ready to fall asleep, but it raised its head enough to look at me. “The goddess, of course.”

  I frowned and opened the book again, scanning the pages for mention of any goddess. “Why are you telling them this now?”

  “Because the balance is no longer even. She sent me to guide you, to give you time. That advantage was taken when the other involved a human.”

  He spoke as though I had the first clue what any of that meant, but I nodded and closed the book, looking at Amos. “So where do we go from here?”

  He looked at me blankly.

  “You mean you guys still don’t know?”

  He shrugged. “We must keep you safe and uncover the answers. It’ll take time.”

  I dropped the book on the bed and thought for a moment. I know I come over as being a bit thick, but my brain does work. Sometimes. “Lord Peregrine, would the British Museum be a good place to start?”

  Sinking a claw into Rhett’s hand, he purred as he was dropped to the floor. “Perhaps. But be careful. Keep yourself safe. Your protectors haven’t exactly proven to be up to the task to date.”

  I scowled as he sauntered toward the door. Silas opened it for him and slammed it before his arse was fully out. Why he’d decided to head into the hotel I couldn’t fathom, but I didn’t want him back in my room, so I didn’t bother mentioning it.

  “Are you serious?”

  “Yes, Silas, I am serious.” I turned on the bed and looked him in the eye. “I was told I should visit it to pass the time. When I checked it out online, there was shit loads of ancient Egyptian stuff. There’s a whole exhibition. We’ll go there after lunch.”

  The little smirk I’d seen a few times that morning graced his lips and I grinned as he looked at the dressing table. Lunch was served. “Eat. We must leave by two.”

  Lunch was amazing. No idea what it was, but I was enjoying it so much I think I growled when Silas called an end to my meal at a quarter to two, and the dishes disappeared.

  “You will make yourself ill.”

  He clearly hadn’t bothered to learn much about me.

  “But the cake…”

  Rhett looked at me with his brows raised when he heard the whine in my voice and held out a hand. “The time. We cannot visit the museum when it is closed.”

  I looked at him with my brows pulled in. “Why not? You can just ‘magic’ us inside, can’t you?” I had a point. If they could, it meant I could also have my cake back.

  “Our presence would be noticed by security, Maia.” It was the first time I’d heard exasperation from any of them, especially Rhett. I wrinkled my nose as he chuckled, and I lay back on the bed. “Fine. I want more of that cake, though!”

  Silas sounded annoyed. “It’s not cake. It’s Baklava.”

  “It’s Egyptian? Thought it was Greek.”

  He shook his head but managed not to sigh. “Are you really so ignorant? Different cultures share their—”

  Ignorant? I was about sick of his hot-cold routine. Call me old fashioned, but I expected someone to be nice to me for at least a few hours after a fuck.

  “Spare me the history lesson. Are you going to make me walk all the way there, or are you making yourself useful?”

  Silas bristled and yanked the door open. “Walk.”

  Rhett held out a hand and helped me from the bed where I’d sat cross-legged to sample the many dishes Silas had provided, and I checked my clothes were all straight before heading toward the bathroom.

  “Wrong door, Maia.”

  “I need to pee, Silas. Two minutes.”

  I heard Amos mutter something as I closed the door and locked it. Pushy shits.

  I thought I’d been accommodating, all things considered, and didn’t think needing to empty my bladder before walking the streets of the city was a big ask.

  I sat on the toilet and was acutely aware of their presence on the other side of the door. Clenching every muscle I had control of, I held the deluge and stuffed a handful of tissue into the toilet before starting. I knew they’d be listening to make sure I didn’t drop dead, and Silas may have seen my “oh” face, but I didn’t want him hearing me pee.

&nb
sp; Okay, they’d been kind of helpful in terms of keeping me alive.

  And they were okay company.

  The catering was fantastic.

  Fit. They were fit. They were perfection with their large hands and toned abs and…

  I flushed the toilet and washed my hands. That was not the time to be listing their appealing physical attributes. There were so many between the three of them, the museum would be closed by the time we got there.

  I had no idea what I planned to find, but I knew there was a collection of Egyptian stuff. It was a start. Now I could read that language, I hoped I could piece something together. Not entirely sure I should mention that. There’s just too much weirdness and I really don’t want to add to it.

  Of course, I could be overestimating my intelligence. It was a distinct possibility.

  Hands dried I stepped back into the hotel room and straightened my top. “Okay. Now we can go.”

  Rhett smirked. Silas rolled his eyes. Amos reached out and took my hand. “Would you like something on your feet, or do you plan to walk barefoot?”

  “Oh, umm…” Rather than look for my shoes, I blinked up at him, distracted by the tingles running up my arm. “I need my flip flops.”

  Rhett bent to retrieve them and dropped them by my feet, glancing up at me as he did. When he winked at me, I felt my stomach turn over. I’d tried not to think of the compromising position we’d been caught in the night before, but then it all came rushing back.

  I looked down at my feet, tightened my grip on Amos’s hand and clumsily slipped on the flip flops before turning and heading out the door, only to crash into Silas’s chest.

  He was solid.

  And god, he smelled good.

  I was reminded of that little nugget as I took a deep breath to steady my nerves. With Rhett looking at me how I imagine I looked at ice cream, Amos’s massive hand sending tingles up my arm, and Silas’s solid chest and spicy scent knocking me sideways, I needed a second to compose myself.

  It didn’t help.

  My knees wobbled a bit and I think I must have swayed, because before I knew it, I had an arm around my waist and I was opening my eyes to Silas scanning my face. “Are you alright?”