by Rush, Jaime
“She wrote ‘I’m pregnant! Must talk to Stein,’” Huff said.
“She came to me because she had no one else to confide in. She wasn’t going to terminate the pregnancy, but she didn’t want to lose you either. She’d already given up so much. Tara heard a powerful Caido might be able to change the fetus’s essence from Dragon to Deuce. The only way it could work was because the baby had Deuce DNA, too. Your DNA. When she disappeared, I thought she’d taken desperate measures.”
He gave Kirin and Lyra an apologetic look. “I swore to Tara that I would tell no one.” He addressed them all again. “Then last Friday, Jeremy comes to me and says he just did some magick that released locked memories of a meeting he and Tara had with Silva. Because Silva performed the memory lock on him, Jeremy suspected he might have kidnapped Tara. He spied on Silva and discovered a Dragon baby he thought might be Tara’s. He was going back to investigate, and he wanted me ready in case the baby needed my essence. That’s when the tulpa appeared. Jeremy fought it, then zapped us to his apartment. Soon after, this horrible snake popped out of the wall and took me to his mansion. Then Silva used his dark magick to bring Jeremy. Silva said Tara died trying to escape with the baby right after she was born.” He turned to Huff, then Ellie. “I’m sorry.”
Ellie let out a pained gasp, and Kirin pulled her close.
Lyra filled them in on what had happened on their end. She maneuvered the baby so that she faced Huff. “This is your daughter.”
Huff’s face drained of all color. He made no move to take the baby.
Ellie’s eyes glistened with tears as she stepped forward and cuddled the infant. She turned to her father. “Mom lost her life trying to conform to what you wanted. Are you willing to lose your daughter, too?” She leaned close to Kirin. “You have to accept all of us as we are.” When Huff still looked stunned, she added, “If you can’t, we’ll take her.” Emotions welled in her voice, poking at Archer. “She’s got Mom’s eyes and your nose, and she’s my family.”
Huff reached for the baby at last. He held her aloft, studying her face. She wriggled and started to fuss. Then he pulled her against his chest and squeezed his eyes shut.
All of those wonderful, warm feelings pounded Archer. He gripped his chest, wishing he could loosen the tightness. “You should all go now. Jeremy needs quiet. And I need to recover.” Lyra gave him a questioning look. He had to fight not to reach over and touch her cheek to smooth away the wetness. “Bye, Lyra.”
Her mouth trembled as she heard the finality of his good-bye. A wave of her frustration and sorrow smashed into him. It was she who took several steps back. To protect him. She turned to the group. “We have to get Pop home. And help set up a nursery. We need to get back to normal.” She gave Archer one last look before she ushered them out the door.
He stumbled to the living room. He didn’t even make it to the couch.
* * *
The following two weeks dragged for Lyra, despite how busy the bakery got. Unusually busy. Really unusual, because Caidos started coming in to buy pastries and donuts and gourmet breads. She had never seen a Caido in the bakeshop before, and now they were coming in every day. Oh, yeah, the employees noticed, swooning over the beautiful men with shimmering eyes. Lyra bit her lip and didn’t say anything. How could she explain that the most gorgeous man she’d ever met was no doubt sending them her way to boost business when that Caido wasn’t making an appearance himself?
She snarled at the thought. No, she got it. She couldn’t be in his life if she caused him pain. If he’d come in, or called, that would only prolong her agony, and possibly his. So complete separation was good.
She snarled again, making Catalina, one of the employees, give her a wide berth as she headed to ring up a customer. Lyra jerked an empty tray from the case and stalked into the kitchen to get a fresh tray of angel-wing cookies glittering with fairy dust sugar. Now that she had Caido customers, it was only fair to create a cookie for them. It hurt to look at those wings that reminded her of Archer.
She emerged from the kitchen and slid the full tray into the case.
“Nice wings.”
His voice washed over her like an ocean wave at the beach, nearly knocking her over. She jerked up, hitting her head on the top of the case. She hardly felt the pain as she extricated herself and rose to her full height. She’d been feeling enough of the emotional type of pain every time she thought about him or took a sip of that wretched absinthe that reminded her of how his mouth tasted. But looking at him, right there, in a white cotton shirt and jeans, she was feeling no pain.
“I’ll take a dozen,” he said.
Lyra stared at him for a second, until Catalina nudged her. “If you’re not going to help him, I will.”
“I’ve got him. It. The customer, I mean.” She snapped out of her spell and grabbed a white box. Her hands were shaking as she set the cookies gently inside. He was only there to, what, say hello? She fumbled until she got the stupid flaps into the slots and set the box on the counter. “On the house. Consider it a referral bonus.”
He smiled. “They’ve been coming? I told them how great the breads were, the cookies…” His gaze slid down to her mouth. “Everything.”
“Yeah, thanks.” She caught herself staring again. The Thrall.
Sure, if that’s what you want to think.
“How’s Jeremy?” See, that was a nice, logical question to ask.
“He’s having a hard time getting used to life without his wings, but Anika has been by his side. From what I’ve found after doing some asking around, his essence will return when the Caido who Stripped him dies or deigns to restore them. Which may mean Silva isn’t dead. The Guard can’t find anything about him, so we may never know who he is or why he did it.”
“I’m sorry.” She tamped down her sympathy for his situation.
He held her gaze for a moment. “Can we talk?”
“Sure. When? Now?” Could she sound more eager?
“If you can break away. I’ve got my car at the curb.”
She leaned across the counter, spotting the silver beauty out front. “How’d you manage to get that perfect spot…never mind, I think I know.” She turned to Catalina. “I’m taking a break.”
She waved her on with wagging fingers. “Go, leave for the day. You’ve been here since four this morning.” She gave her a wink.
Lyra whipped off her apron and tossed it into her office, grabbed her purse, and headed out. Archer held the passenger door open for her, closing it before getting in on his side.
The employees were all at the window watching. Oh, brother.
Archer seemed content as he wove through midday traffic. So, what, he’d moved on? Accepted their predicament? He didn’t look like a man who’d been suffering without her and was about to profess his…well, not love, not this soon.
“You know, it’s considered a tease to say you want to talk and then not talk,” Lyra said when she couldn’t stand the silence anymore.
He looked genuinely contrite. “Sorry. I don’t want to talk in the car. I thought we’d go somewhere quiet for a drink.”
“Someplace where they serve absinthe in that complicated way?”
He gave her a heart-stopping smile. “Exactly. I thought it would be the best place. You can’t beat the view.”
Then he settled back into an annoying silence that let her think too much.
“How is the baby?” he asked after a few more minutes. “See…talking.”
Damn, she was so in love with him. “Oh, she’s great. Huff named her Sarina. He is completely smitten, and I get to be a doting sort-of aunt.”
Now he was smiling. Had she said something funny? Dumb?
“Just enjoying your enthusiasm,” he said, as though he’d read her mind. Maybe he’d picked up her feelings.
“It doesn’t hurt?”
He shrugged. “Not much.”
A few minutes later, he pulled into the Raphael’s parking garage.
He p
ulled out his phone and texted someone, then slipped it back into his pocket. He looked at her, which made her stomach go all to jelly. “Shall we?”
Oh my, yes. “Sure.”
He ushered her toward the elevator. Walking through the garage gave her shivers, remembering those wraiths.
Archer’s condo seemed different. It still had cool undertones and clean lines, but there were touches of color here and there. Touches of…yellow. A huge canvas of it hung on one wall, nothing but a square of yellow. Yellow pillows on the white leather wraparound couch. A yellow vase filled with daisies on the counter. She searched his face, but he gave nothing away.
“You really want an absinthe?” he asked as he pulled down two glasses. “I seem to recall your reaction to the last one I made you. I don’t want you to think that I’m trying to get rid of you.”
“They’ve grown on me. Like you grew on me.”
He came around the bar to stand in front of her. “I wanted to see if you still felt the same. About me.”
She let out a sigh. “Yes, damn it. Of course, I’m sure you can feel it. We knew each other for, what, twelve hours? Sure, we went through a lot together, but still, to think about you every minute, to ache—”
Archer kissed her. She was lost, except for that tiny voice that echoed in her head: What does this mean? Because she could never be with him knowing it caused him pain.
He finished the kiss and stepped back. “Me too.”
Hope and trepidation twined in her stomach, making him wince. “Archer…”
The doorbell chimed. No, not now!
He didn’t look the least bit annoyed that someone was interrupting their moment. In fact, he didn’t seem surprised to see Kye standing there. He invited her in.
She was dressed in normal clothing, jeans and a black shirt, no spikes or jacket. “Hi, Lyra. Are you ready to do this?”
“Do what?”
Archer stepped closer. “I didn’t get to that part yet.” He took Lyra’s hand, twining their fingers as he had when they’d gone up the stairs to Silva’s. “I want to do the Cobra with you.”
Lyra’s heart jumped. “But it’s not stable. You could be overwhelmed. You will be overwhelmed.”
“I can handle it. If you can.”
Kye looked at Lyra. “There won’t be any risk for you.”
“I’m not worried about me.” Lyra turned to Archer. “Look what happened to Jeremy.”
“That was different,” Kye said, her expression shadowing at the mention of him. “What messed him up was the memories returning. How bad it will be for Archer, we won’t know.”
Seeing Lyra’s tense expression, he brushed her hair back from her face in a tender gesture. “Don’t worry about me. You can be my guardian Dragon.”
Kye said, “The only side effect for you, Lyra, might be that what you feel for him, the bond between you, will be forged in steel so strong that you may never be able to walk away from him.”
Archer looked serious. “In other words, you may be stuck with me.”
“And he will, in effect, be stuck with you. Bonded the same way. The Cobra inures Archer against your feelings. He’ll still feel them but they won't be painful. It will allow him to feel desire for you as well as your desire for him.”
Lyra arched one eyebrow. “Only me?”
Kye grinned. “You’ll never have to worry about him cheating.”
“That won’t be an issue anyway,” he said, rubbing the back of Lyra’s neck.
Kye met Lyra’s gaze. “It’s a big decision. You don’t have to decide now—”
“Yes.” Lyra leaned into his touch. “I want to do it. How does this work?”
“First, I stand between you.” Kye took each of their hands, becoming a link between them. “Lyra, you must give me some of your Dragon power. It’s like an Essex. Archer, you, too, must offer your power to me. I combine them, then send the mixed essence back to each of you. Like a blood transfusion. You’ll have some of his essence, Lyra, and he’ll have some of yours. That’s what enables him to tolerate your emotions. And you…you’ll likely feel a bond so powerful, no other man will be enough for you.”
Lyra shrugged. “That’s already the case. Until I met Archer, I never felt anything real.”
Kye took them both in. “Then this should work. Relax, close your eyes. You’ll feel pressure as your power leaves. You must release it without fear.”
Lyra closed her eyes. Her Dragon tingled with fear. Do this for me. She felt part of her essence pull away, leaving behind a void in her soul. Kye’s hand heated in her own, and she tightened her grip. Something punched her in the stomach, a force of heat and electricity and—her eyes welled up—Archer. She felt his beautiful energy intertwined with hers the way their hands had been just minutes ago. Felt what he felt for her, too, such affection and, dare she think, love?
She checked on him, his hand still linked with Kye’s, his body arched in pain. He slowly sank to his knees, and Kye released her hold on him. Lyra ran to him, putting her arms around his shoulders. They were rock-hard with tension, shivering with the tremors that moved through him like electrical currents.
“This is normal, right?” Lyra asked.
“Yes.” Kye put her hand on Lyra’s back. “Stay with him. He’ll be okay.”
Lyra leaned back enough to look at his face. Tears streamed down his cheeks. Gods, every feeling he’d repressed all coming out at once.
“It’s all right, Archer,” she whispered, sending him her affection and gratitude for what he was going through to be with her. It overwhelmed her, the bond now forged between them. He was inside her now.
He collapsed to the floor, releasing such a long breath that she wondered if he’d been holding it all this time. She watched his face as he processed everything, unaware of how much time had passed. Or even that Kye had quietly left some time ago. Lyra held his hand all through it, hoping it wouldn’t overwhelm him so much that he’d have to go into isolation like one Caido had. He had been gripping her hand back all along. When he released his hold on her, she watched as his eyes slowly opened.
“Archer?”
He never took his gaze from her as he managed to sit up. “I felt grief and anger and joy and…you. I felt so much for you.”
She laughed and reached for the hand he held out to her. “Me too. That was overwhelming, but in a good way.” She rubbed his palm with her thumb and let all of her feelings flow. “No pain?” she asked.
“Not even discomfort.”
Archer got to his feet, pulling Lyra up beside him. He scooped her up in his arms and took her to his bedroom. The moment he set her on her feet, she started unbuttoning his shirt. He tore hers off, yanked her close, and devoured her mouth. He let out the most amazing sounds, low moans and sighs, his hands sliding over her arms, her breasts, devouring her body, too.
He laughed while still kissing her. “No pain. I can feel all of it, desire, heat…you. All in full Technicolor.” He braced her face with his big hands, wonder in his beautiful eyes. “For the first time.” The enormity of it resounded in his voice.
And it was with her. Only with her. She ran her fingers across his face, finally able to touch him. “You’re not cold anymore.”
He shook his head, taking her thumb into his mouth. She tilted her head back, lost in the sensation of his tongue, something so simple and yet so erotic. His mouth moved across her palm, then down her wrist. He drew her other hand to his chest. “I’m on fire. Right here.” He dragged that hand lower, across his ridged stomach, over the rough material of his jeans and the thick ridge beneath. “Here.”
She flexed her fingers, and he groaned. “Definitely there.”
Archer anchored his fingers in her waistband and yanked her closer. He unbuttoned her pants, and she shimmied out of them. She freed him of his jeans, sliding them down his contoured legs. She ran her fingers back up his body as she stood again, feeling the golden, coarse hairs of his legs.
“It’s been a long time
,” he murmured, kissing her neck.
“How long?”
“Twenty, thirty years. Can’t remember exactly. And it was never with true desire, only a need for release. So, in effect, this is my first time.”
She gave him a coy smile. “Should I be gentle with you?”
He traced his finger along the edge of her panties, and with a flick of finger and thumb, broke the string. “I might not be gentle with you. The need for you is overwhelming.”
“Mmm, I think I can handle that.”
He pushed her back onto the bed and leaned down over her, holding his weight so he didn’t crush her. But his mouth did, taking her in with a ruthlessness that spoke of all those years of hunger he’d suppressed. She pulled him down all the way, reveling in his body pressing hers into the mattress. He jammed his hands beneath her, squeezing her butt and pulling her against his erection. As though he could pull her right inside him. She ground her pelvis against his, digging her fingers into his back.
He growled, nipping at the curve of her neck and working his way down. Her Dragon growled back, and she released a roar as Archer’s mouth closed over her nipple. His teeth skimmed her skin, both pleasure and pain. He worked his slow, tantalizing way to her other breast, sucking, nibbling, making her friggin’ crazy.
“You’re vibrating,” he murmured against her skin. “I think you’re about to combust.”
“I think I’m about to Catalyze. My Dragon loves you. I mean, it was turned on by you before, but now it loves you.” She had to catch her breath as his tongue traced lines down her stomach.
“Well, I have Dragon in me now, don’t I? At least a small part.”
“That explains why my beast is going so crazy,” she said on a laugh.
“And perhaps why I feel…hot.” She lifted her head to look at him on that word, spoken so heavily. His eyes were heated instead of glittering like ice. “But you heated me right from the beginning. Once I drew that heat into me, I was done for.”