Hook: Exiles of the Realm

by Adrienne Bell

  A second later, James leaned against the wall beside her.

  “You’re right,” she said. “It’s amazing.”

  “The best place in town I know for a drink,” he said, smoothly unwrapping the foil that covered the top of the champagne bottle and then popping the cork. He poured a glass for her, then one for himself.

  “Thanks,” she said, before closing her eyes and savoring her first sip. Mercy might have thrown more than her fair share of criticisms James Hook’s way, but there was no denying that the man knew his champagne.

  When she finally opened her eyes, he was gazing at her.

  “I remembered how much you like the good stuff,” he said.

  “Well, I don’t get to enjoy it often.” She shrugged, feeling more than a little self-conscious. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I don’t really live the champagne lifestyle.”

  “More’s the pity,” he said, taking a long sip. “It’s one of the finest treasures I’ve discovered in your world.”

  “And this view, of course,” she added, enjoying the night sky.

  “Of course.”

  “Not to mention penthouse apartments, and sparkling diamonds, and all the beautiful women that a guy can fit in his bed.”

  He cocked his hip against the craggy stone wall. “Why do I get the impression that you’re leading up to a point?”

  Mercy shot him a sideways glance. “All I’m saying is that Earth can’t possibly be as bad as you make it out to be.”

  “Maybe not,” he said. “But it’s not the Realm.”

  She could relate to that explanation. She didn’t know what she’d do if someone made her leave her city. She could only imagine how distraught she’d be if she was transplanted far away from everyone and everything she held dear.

  “You’re homesick,” she said.

  “I don’t know about that,” he said. “Usually people need a home before they can be homesick.”

  Mercy tilted her chin. “And you don’t have one?”

  “Not like yours.” He sipped his champagne. “In my profession a home base is a liability. I tend to move around a lot.”

  “But what about your family?”

  “I don’t have one.”

  “No mom or dad?”

  He shook his head. “No sisters or brothers either.”

  “What about friends?”

  “Well, let me put it this way,” James said with a laugh before raising his glass to his lips. “Before my exile, I considered John Flint my closest friend.”

  Mercy grimaced. “I take it close relationships have never really been your thing?”

  “The truth is, until recently, I never understood the appeal.” He raised his free hand and tucked a stray curl back behind her ear. His fingers lingered over the curve of her cheek. “Not when the most sublime pleasures are fleeting.”

  She let out a light laugh, even as another blush burned her cheeks.

  “You’re one smooth talker, James Hook,” she admitted. “I’ve got to give you that.”

  “I have no idea what you’re talking about,” he said, sliding even closer until his hip brushed against hers.

  “Sure you don’t,” she said with a wink. The smile he shot back at her was enough to make her knees wobble. Suddenly, she was grateful that she was holding on to the wall for support. She took a long sip of her drink, taking the moment to regain her composure…and no small amount of courage.

  “So, here’s what I don’t get,” she said, facing him full on. “Back in the Realm you’re a wanted criminal. You have no home, no family, no friends, nothing to look forward to. So, why are you trying so hard to get back there?”

  The corners of his lips quirked up as if it was the easiest answer in the world. “Because of magic.”

  “That’s it?” she asked.

  “It’s enough, trust me.”

  “Really?” Mercy asked, arching a brow. “Because, I have to tell you, my experience with the stuff has been less than stellar.”

  “Sure, some magic is dangerous,” he admitted. “But that power is part of its allure.”

  Mercy let out a breath and relaxed more fully against the stone support at her side. “And you’ve never found anything that you wanted more?”

  The light in his eyes changed, became darker, more seductive. He leaned closer. Mercy knew she should move away, but, damn it, she didn’t want to. The champagne was buzzing in her head. So was the powerful rush of that dangerous thrill James was talking about. That feeling of getting away with something forbidden. So she stood her ground as James slipped his arm around her waist and moved close.

  So close that she could feel the hard plane of his chest pressing against her breasts.

  “I wouldn’t say that,” he said, his voice dropping provocatively low.

  Her tongue flicked out to wet her lips. “We shouldn’t.”

  His smile only grew.

  “You’re probably right,” he said. He slipped the champagne flute from her hand before perching it on top of the stone wall. “We’ve been breaking the rules all night. Why stop now?”

  He dipped his head lower. His lips brushed against hers. Mercy’s breath hitched in her throat.

  He was right. That’s why she’d agreed to come out with him in the first place. In the back of her mind, she’d even been hoping the night would lead them here—someplace quiet, and hidden away. A place where she could drink in a few more of his kisses…and maybe a little more, while she still had the chance. Of course, not in a million years did she imagine that they’d end up here.

  “Because we’re out in full view,” she said.

  “Ahh,” he said, as he traced the back of his fingers down the side of her face. Despite her best intentions, Mercy arched into his touch. “But no one can see us.”

  “I bet that’s what you tell all the girls,” she teased.

  “I suppose I should be flattered that you’ve cast me as the seducer of thousands,” he whispered before placing a soft kiss against her cheek. Then another against her jaw. “But there are no other women, Mercy. It’s just you.”

  She shook her head. That couldn’t be true…no matter how sincere he sounded. “You’re telling me you’ve been here all this time—”

  “Seven months,” he broke in as his grip around her waist tightened.

  “—And you haven’t been with any women?”

  “It’s the truth.”

  Well, she knew that it wasn’t for lack of opportunity. So, that left one question. “Why?”

  He gave a low laugh. The rich sound rumbled through his chest into hers and she melted even deeper into his hold. “Same reason as you. I had more important concerns to deal with.”

  Mercy narrowed her eyes, still not quite believing. “And women would be a distraction?”

  He brought his head up just enough to look her straight in the eye. Honesty glistened in the depths of his sapphire gaze. “You’re the only creature in this world or any other that has the ability to distract me.”

  “Oh.” She had nothing else to say as the breath left her lungs in a rush. She understood exactly what he was saying. She felt it too.

  No one had crawled under her skin like James. Everyone else had been easy to pass by. But not him. Even during the times that he made her blood boil—and there were plenty of them—she still couldn’t seem to get him out of her system.

  There was something special about James. Something that called to her. Something that made it impossible for her to turn away.

  “There’s just you,” he whispered.

  Mercy let her head fall back, exposing the column of her neck to his lips. He didn’t pass up the invitation. He showered her with kisses, each one more urgent and powerful than the last, until her fingers clung to his shoulders and she struggled for breath.

  For a moment, she didn’t care if he was only feeding her the words she wanted to hear. She only knew how good they made her feel, how his touch lit a spark deep inside her, how his kisses m
ade every part of her come alive.

  Mercy wanted to feel alive. She needed to. She needed to feel something beyond the fear and worry. Something hopeful. Something wonderful.

  And that’s what James Hook’s touch was—wonderful. Like nothing else Mercy had ever experienced. Like nothing she’d ever known. And right now, she only wanted to dive headfirst into the delicious sensations his simple kisses offered.

  She tore at his coat, desperate to pull it off his shoulders. Once that was off, she attacked the buttons of his shirt. He growled in satisfaction as her palms slid against the taut, warm skin of his belly.

  “Yes,” he hissed against her ear. He twisted his fingers around the bottom hem of her shirt and yanked it above her head.

  Mercy sucked in a breath as the cold night air swept over her body, but the chill was quickly replaced with the searing heat of James’ flesh against hers. She let out a sigh at how right he felt.

  But that was nothing compared to the sensation when he unbuttoned her pants and slid his hand inside.

  The breath caught in Mercy’s throat as James’ fingers deftly slipped between her legs. Her head fell back. He held her tighter.

  He hadn’t been lying when he said he was good with his hands. His fingers seemed to know exactly what to do, how hard to press, what moves to make. Mercy closed her eyes and panted as pure pleasure coursed through her. She held on tighter, not wanting the moment to end.

  She bit her lower lip hard, desperate to trap the cries struggling to escape. But no matter how hard she tried, a few small ones slipped through. Fortunately, James was there, covering her mouth with his own.

  “Yes, Mercy,” he whispered against her lips. “Let go.”

  His touch intensified, rubbing her clit with mastery. She melted completely, leaving him to take her weight. He didn’t falter. He kept going, strong and steady, until she was overwhelmed by ecstasy.

  When she finally caught her breath and opened her eyes, James was busy stripping the pants from her legs. She had barely enough presence of mind to kick off her shoes to help. Once they were off she went to work undoing the front of his. She had just enough time to run her hand up the long shaft of his erection before he scooped her up off the ground and carried her to the chair in the corner.

  Mercy kissed him hard the whole way, breaking away only as he sat and settled her on his lap, her legs straddling his.

  She’d never known a more perfect moment. The city surrounded them. Moonlight shone brightly in his sapphire eyes. Even the wind calmed to nothing more than a soft caress against her bare back.

  She wrapped her hand around the nape of his neck as she tilted herself up…and then she paused.

  “This isn’t love,” she whispered, her voice lacking resolve.

  It didn’t matter how close she felt to him. How intimate. Her thundering heart. The heat in her blood. The deep, secret knowledge that she’d never come anywhere close to these feelings with another man. This couldn’t be love.

  It couldn’t be.

  A knowing grin lifted James’ lips. “Of course not.”

  He wrapped his hands over her hips and slowly guided her down. She sucked in a breath through her teeth as the head of his cock pressed against her. She was so wet that he slid in effortlessly, filling her completely in one long stroke.

  All the air left Mercy’s lungs in a rush as she settled against his legs. Mercy had never made love in the open air before, and never with a view even close to this magnificent, but in that instant the outside details didn’t matter. Their surroundings flew away, and there was only James. He was the only thing that was important—the pressure of him deep inside her, the touch of his hands on her body, the intensity in his eyes as he stared into hers.

  Damn, it was almost too much.

  His eyes didn’t leave hers—hell, he barely even blinked—as she started to move. She rose and fell, again and again, feeding the fire inside her with every stroke. He ran his fingers through her hair and increased the tempo. Tilted his hips back to increase the friction on her sweet spot. Tightened his jaw as the muscles in his body tensed. But he never stopped looking into her eyes.

  She tried to hold out, tried to make the moment last, but eventually pleasure threatened to engulf her. Her legs shook. Her core trembled. James took over, rocking her body back and forth against his as searing ecstasy consumed her.

  Every muscle in James’ body seemed to tense as he crushed her against his chest, his cock pulsing deep inside her. He held her tighter than any man ever had, his arms wrapped fully around her as if she was the most precious thing in the world.

  And for a moment, that’s exactly what she felt like.

  He didn’t let go. Not until their breathing slowed and their hearts stopped pounding. Only then did he finally ease his hold. Mercy gasped in surprise as he effortlessly lifted her up and spun her around on his lap so that she faced outward, looking out over the bay.

  “What are you doing?” she asked.

  “What do you think?” he answered, leaning her back against his chest so that every intimate part of her body was exposed to his touch. She let out a long breath as he entered her again, as hard as before. His lips brushed against her ear. “I don’t know how the men in your world make love, but all I can tell you, sweetheart, is that our night is far from over.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Mercy woke up the next morning feeling lighter, more relaxed, more vibrantly alive than she had in ages…as if she was just waking up from the most magnificent dream.

  What else could last night have been? She couldn’t have actually done any of the things she remembered so vividly. She couldn’t have broken into the museum, or snuck up to the tower, or made passionate love to James high above the city for hours. She wasn’t that reckless. She wasn’t that daring. She wasn’t that free.

  But with James she was.

  She cracked open a single eyelid and found him already awake on the opposite pillow gazing at her.

  “I was wondering when you were going to wake up,” he said, sliding closer to drape his arm over the deep curve of her waist.

  “Please don’t tell me you were watching me sleep,” she groaned.

  “And if I was?” he asked, a nearly illegal sexy smile spreading across his face.

  “Oh God, James,” she said, clutching the sheet to her chest as she sat up. “Nobody looks good when they’re sleeping.”

  Mercy turned around and glanced at her pillow. Sure enough there was a small drool spot right in the center. Well, that was enough to scrub the magnificent dream shine off the day.

  James bent his elbow and propped his head on his hand. “You looked cute.”

  She ran her fingers through the riot of curls jutting out at all angles. “Yeah, well, you must have downed a whole lot more of that champagne last night than I thought.”

  Mercy scooted to the edge of the bed and threw back the covers as James laughed.

  “And where do you think you’re going?” he asked.

  “To take a shower,” she answered. The clock on the wall read seven twenty-three. “I need to get ready for class.”

  “And here I was hoping you’d take a sick day,” he said, dropping his voice low as he rubbed a hand invitingly over the imprint she’d left on the mattress.

  Now it was her turn to laugh. “And I was hoping for another one of those sausage scrambles, but we can’t always get what we want now can we?”

  His smile grew as he climbed out of bed, and walked toward her in all his naked glory. “How about we compromise, and I join you in that shower before we swing by the café?”

  It took every bit of resolve Mercy had, but she managed not to melt into a puddle of desire before him. She tilted her chin to the side, and pretended to mull it over.

  “Well…all right,” she said, heading toward the bathroom. “But you’d better make it quick.”

  “Oh, sweetheart,” he said. “By now you should know this is the one thing in life I never do quick.”
/>
  Another quiet day passed. Well, quiet for him. Mercy still ran through her hectic school and work schedule as though there wasn’t a force in this world that could stop her. Who knew, maybe there wasn’t.

  She obviously believed that she was going to survive, not only Flint’s threats, but also the ravages of the wyvern magic burning in her veins. Why else would she insist on continuing with the details of her daily life? If she’d lost hope, she would have given up days ago.

  But, she pressed on, kept reaching for the future. James admired the hell out of her for it.

  No, admired wasn’t the right word, he mused as he rested his back against the alley wall next to Paradiso, waiting for Mercy’s shift to end. The emotion ran deeper, and wound around a part of his soul he hadn’t even known existed, binding his heart to hers.

  James shook his head at the nonsense clouding his mind. He obviously needed more sleep. He wasn’t thinking straight. Sure, he cared for Mercy. More than he cared for anyone in his life. But he wasn’t bound to her. He wasn’t bound to anyone.

  His gaze lifted as the side door of the restaurant opened, and Mercy stepped into the alleyway. She shot him a tired smile and something deep inside his chest clenched. He pushed himself off the wall, and went over to her.

  “How are you?” he asked.

  “Exhausted,” she answered. “Please don’t tell me that you have another big production planned tonight. I’d be dead asleep before you finished picking half the locks in the Federal Reserve.”

  He shot her a teasing smile. “Well, there go my Wednesday night plans.”

  “All I want to do is fall into bed and sleep straight through to morning.”

  “Really,” he asked, propping his arm on the wall above her and leaning close. “Is that all you want to do?”

  She looked at him with those beautiful dark eyes and ran the tip of her tongue over her lower lip.

  “Okay,” she admitted with a low, husky voice that stirred his cock. “Maybe not all.”

  “That’s what I thought,” he whispered, leaning down to take the kiss he’d been waiting the last six hours for.

  But right before their lips touched, a cold wind swirled through the alley, growing stronger with every second. The air crackled with electricity. Leaves and trash twisted and flew toward the mouth of the alley.