The girls laughed. Donatus didn’t. He looked around and took in a deep breath, understanding who the woman must be—Ava’s close friend Chloe. “I get the sense that me stopping her from doing what she was born to do is going to be huge, Chloe. Don’t get me wrong. No part of me wants Ava doing this but why are you, her best friend, telling me to stop her from doing what she loves?”
“Because I’m excited about being an aunt and want my nephew to have time to develop in her. And I’m hoping her husband would want the same for his wife and child.”
Suddenly, it felt as though someone had sucked the air from his chest. Donatus stared at Ava and then turned to look at his friends. They looked as shocked as he felt. As Chloe’s words settled, Donatus let out a soft laugh and shook his head slightly. “It was real?”
“Yes, Donatus. It was real.”
His body tightened as a ripple of anger moved through him. “You did it. You had her call me. Why? You know what I am. There’s no way you could have given her that chant on the card without knowing that I’d come in demon form.”
“I didn’t know what or who you were, Donatus. Ava did.” Chloe paused for a moment. To Donatus it felt like an eternity. “Since we were little she’s been adamant that Host warriors turned on their own kind to protect us from harm. She is also convinced that you and the others who dared to defy Lucifer took us to Valhalla’s doorstep to assure that we’d be safe from the evil that tried to follow.”
Thinking back to the day he stormed into the tiny village, hell-bent on wiping out the remaining members of the cause, he shook his head. He killed things and carried out his master’s orders. Or at least that’s what he’d done until he pushed into that village and entered a tiny villa. He’d stepped over a man’s dead body and found a mother, near death, clutching her daughter to her. The little girl was just a baby really but when she looked up at him with eyes so blue that they seemed to look through him, no part of Donatus could harm her.
The child’s mother smiled when she saw him even though he was in full demon form. The woman’s response to him shocked him to the point that he shifted back into a man and stood before her. She willingly handed the child over, told him to take her to safety and follow his heart. He did. From that day forth, Donatus fought the evil within him and never returned to follow Lucifer’s orders. The strangest part of it all was how many other Host warriors had had a similar experience that day. They’d all stuck together, fighting evil and slowly, over the centuries, lay down roots around the university.
Donatus shook his head and laughed. “The odds of Ava being the child I took to Valhalla are so remote that it’s—”
“Is it that hard to believe you would sense your mate instantly and want to protect her at all costs, regardless of the fact that she was but a child, Donatus?”
Kal snorted. “Oh man, did you pick up the wrong kid. You picked one up that would strap a ball and chain to you. I’m glad the rugrat I grabbed isn’t my mate. The little blonde thing bit me.”
“You deserved it,” Chloe said sternly.
Donatus ignored her statement. “Ava was just a baby. How can she remember me?”
“That I’m not sure of now. But I can assure you that she has dreamed of you. Two months ago, she was mortally wounded. I sat by her side, seeing everything that ran through her mind. You were there, Donatus. Deep in her mind, she’d stored every detail about you. She even memorized your demon form. Ava had hinted that she had to find you from time to time to me but I wasn’t sure you really existed or if you were just some larger than life thing she created to rationalize how we came to be on Valhalla. But when I saw you, through her buried memories, I knew you and the rest of the Lost Warriors were not only real but good men. If I’d have known, I’d have had her summon you sooner. She wouldn’t have gone up against Lucifer on her own. She would have been home, swollen with your child and in the safety of your arms.”
Donatus stood there, soaking in all that Chloe had to tell him. He’d roamed the earth for so many years that he’d long since given up hope of ever finding true happiness and he never expected that if he had a mate, she’d be a warrior for the side of good. “She’s really mine? She’s really my wife?”
“Yes,” Chloe said, laughing softly. “She’s really yours, Donatus. So is the child that grows within her now. If kept safe, he will grow to be a defender of good—like his father and his mother.”
A chorus of gasps sounded behind him. He ignored them. “If kept safe? What aren’t you telling me?”
Chloe sighed. “When Lucifer attacked Ava, he knew the exact places to strike. He had his puppets…”
His chest tightened. “They ripped a hole through her reproductive organs, didn’t they?”
“Yes. I couldn’t believe that the two of you had managed to conceive. Ava needs to have time to adjust, as does your son. She’s in a vulnerable state and no part of me wants to see her lose the little one. She, as we all did, believes that the attack left her unable to have children.” Chloe released her magikal hold on him. “Go to her, Donatus. Show her that she’s not only safe now but loved as well.”
Donatus covered the distance between himself and Ava in a blink of an eye. He took her from her cradled safety and held her tight. Looking down at her sleeping peacefully in his arms, a flood of emotions tore through him. He bit back the tears that wanted desperately to flow and shook slightly. “Thank you.”
“No. Don’t thank me. It is all of us who owe all the lost ones a thank-you.” Chloe chucked. “Though in the end, it evens out.”
“Wait,” Effie cut in, “are you telling us that our mates are the Host who saved us?”
“It would appear so. Though I’m sure that there can and will be exceptions to that.”
Effie snorted. “Oh, like hell. I am not about to tie myself to some jackass ex-bad guy.”
“Don’t worry, sweetheart,” Gunter bit out. “I can’t think of one guy I know who’d willingly take you. He’d be crazy to sign up for an eternity of getting bitched at for things he didn’t even do. Sure, you’ve got everything and more right where it should be and can make any guy hard indefinitely but to put up with that temper just wouldn’t be worth it.”
“Oh, like you’d know how I am in bed.”
“I don’t need to know. That award-winning demeanor says it all.”
Yvonne snorted. “Would you two shut up? I’m so going to curse you both to be destined for one another if you don’t.”
Donatus brushed stray strands of dark hair from Ava’s olive-colored face, still not believing she was truly his. “She’ll hate me when she finds out, Chloe. She made jokes about Lucifer trying to stop our joining and how her demon husband would eat her young.”
“Yet she gave you a protective charm that had been her father’s. Do you think she’d hand it to just any man?”
The charm had been her father’s? He couldn’t accept it. He wasn’t even worthy of her let alone her loved ones’ keepsakes. “Come and get her.”
“What?” Gunter asked. “You’re kidding. That little bundle of energy in your arms is your wife, your future. I will not let you hand her over to anyone.”
“We’re marked men, Gunterius. She’s part angel, part Valkyrie. I don’t deserve her and she surely didn’t do anything bad enough to have to have me.”
“Donatus, take her for the gift she is and cherish her,” Chloe said, soothing his nerves a bit. “She won’t break. She won’t disappear if you blink. She thinks you’re human. Use the opportunity of slipping under her guard to let her see how much she loves you.”
“Sweet, you get to fuck an ultimate kick-ass chick.”
Growling, Donatus turned slightly and leveled a hard stare on Kallimoch. “Never speak of her that way again.”
“Donatus, loving her won’t harm her,” Chloe told him. “Having sex with her won’t hurt her either. In fact, your semen contains some of your power. Your power only helps her in carrying the child. Take her and go. I can’t keep her
out much longer, she’s already fighting it and I don’t want to see her hurt. More importantly, I don’t want to deal with her when she wakes up.”
Chapter Five
Ava opened her eyes slowly, not wanting to but knowing it was past time she did. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the light and her mind to register what she was seeing. Hunter green walls with white molding reached heights she’d only seen in the council chambers on Valhalla. An arched doorway allowed her to see a bit of a Regency dining room table and chairs. The cross-patterned wood floor pulled her eyes to the edges of what could only be a sitting room.
The ivory-colored Victorian chaise lounge that she found herself lying on was exquisite. The velvety fabric caressed her skin just so and the additional feel of the matching angora throw over her bare legs left her in an aroused state. The smell of sandalwood and vanilla surrounded Ava. Her brow crinkled as she tried to pinpoint where she was.
Ava glanced down at herself and noticed that she had on only her bikini-cut panties and a man’s white button-down shirt. Pulling the angora throw around her waist, she stood slowly. A large oil painting hanging on the wall behind the chaise lounge caught her attention. It showed a warrior and a demon locked in chains, bound together and fighting to be apart. The man was in the plane that appeared closest to the viewer, leaving Ava to believe the man would win. The pained look on the warrior’s face said the artist knew the man still struggled hard even though he was in the lead.
The warrior’s eyes were familiar. The deep emerald green reminded her of Donatus’. Long waves of blond hair spilled over the warrior’s broad shoulders. His shirt was torn open in front, showing a large gash near his right, lower abdomen. The demon that was bound to the man was deep red with horns on the side of its head and dark black fur on his lower half. It looked so much like the demon from her dream that she backed away with surprise. The warrior’s eyes held her close. Gasping, Ava reached out toward the wounded warrior as tears filled her eyes.
Instantly, her stomach twisted into a knot. She rubbed the back of her neck, trying to stop the rise in her body temperature as nausea washed over her. Ava held her hand to her abdomen and tried to take a deep breath. It didn’t help.
“Ava, what’s wrong?” a deep voice asked.
Glancing up, she found Donatus standing in the doorway, wearing a pair of loose-fitting light jeans and a white T-shirt. Seeing him dressed casually with no shoes on made her crave him even more. He looked like a hunky beach bum surrounded by old-world nuances.
He took hold her arm gently and heat surged through her. The nausea faded away only to be replaced by the need to touch him. “Ava, honey, what’s wrong?”
Honey?
“Nothing,” she whispered, taking another look around the room and landing her gaze back on the painting. “Where am I and why are you here too?” She glanced down at the white shirt she had on and froze with sudden realization. “Ohmygods, I slept with my boss. How?”
Donatus arched a brow as a sly grin spread over his face. “I’d like to think you understand how all of that works.”
Ava let him pull her all the way into his arms. She snuggled her face against his chest and couldn’t seem to stop her arms from sliding around his waist. “Care to tell me how it is I ended up in this place with you?”
Donatus chuckled and the warm sound ran over her skin. “This place is our home.”
“Our who? You don’t live with Kal and Gun, do you?” She couldn’t picture anyone living with Kal.
“Uh, no.” Donatus caressed her back lightly. “Do you like it?”
Ava nodded. “From what I’ve seen, it’s beautiful.”
“Hmm, sounds to me like someone here doesn’t remember much about last night.”
“No, I remember everything.” She bit her lower lip, hoping he wouldn’t ask her about it because she still had no clue how she’d ended up in his house. At the moment Ava remembered running into him and getting kissed by him but nothing beyond that.
Donatus lifted her off the ground and pressed his lips to hers. She gasped, allowing him access to her mouth. His warm tongue darted in and danced around hers, caressing it in a way that left her chest tight and pussy damp.
Pulling back slightly, Donatus’ hot gaze ran over her. “Remember doing that?”
“Yes,” she answered honestly. Ava ran her hands through Donatus’ shaggy blond hair and drew his bottom lip into her mouth. Sucking gently, she moaned and additional heat and moisture flooded her sex. He plunged his tongue into her mouth, invading it in the best possible way.
Donatus slid his hands down Ava’s back and cupped her ass, remembering how good his cock had felt buried deep in there. A low growl came from somewhere inside him. He almost drew back from Ava until he realized that he was the one making it. The tiny woman in his arms drove him that mad with need. She could make him forget anything. The taste of her sweet mouth was maddening and the intoxicating smell of her natural scent left him in a state of need.
When he’d brought her home with him, he’d originally gone straight to his room with her. Ava had tossed and turned, unable to get comfortable. He left long enough to get her a glass of water and had come back to find her missing. It was another moment when he and the demon within synced perfectly as fear took hold of them. He tracked Ava to the sitting room and found her on the chaise lounge where she was now resting. It wasn’t until Donatus noticed the demon within him receding quickly that he glanced at the painting one of the monks of Greoscierius had done for him hanging on the wall.
He’d been told the painting was blessed to ensure that he would always stay one step ahead of the demon he was tethered to. Ava had felt the negative energy in his office and had brought him the charm to counter it. It stood to reason that she sensed it in his room as well. Since Donatus cared little for his own safety he’d never gone so far as to worry about what he chose to surround himself with.
After watching his young wife struggle to find peace next to him, Donatus made mental note to handle the rest of the rooms of the house soon. He held Ava in his arms, smelling her arousal and desperately wanting to find his own peace within her silken depths. Unable to help himself, he slid her wet panties aside and pressed a finger into her tight core. She drew in a sharp breath. He smiled wickedly. “Mmm, remember that too?”
Ava jerked against him, driving his finger into her pussy. “Umm.”
“Umm?” He enjoyed teasing her too much to stop. They’d done nothing other than sleep last night. He inserted a second finger and Ava cried out as he spread her more. Thrusting his soaked fingers into her cunt, Donatus reveled in the scent of her cream that seemed to permeate the very air around him. “You’re so tight, Ava.”
She responded by moving up and down slowly, riding his fingers as she went. His insides clenched as he fought the demon within. Unable to wait another second, Donatus walked their bodies to the chaise lounge and laid Ava out on it. She looked so exotic. Glorious. Fuckable. His.
Carefully unbuttoning the white shirt she wore, Donatus couldn’t stop staring at her. He knew what his face must look like. Hell, she probably thought he was a virgin with his shocked expression but he couldn’t help himself. Ava was everything he had ever dreamed his wife could be—and so much more.
Donatus dropped his head down as he straddled the chaise lounge. He licked the edge of her nipple and smiled as she bucked under him. The smell of her arousal increased to the point that he wasn’t sure he’d even make it into her pussy before he came. Control had never been a problem for him before. Ava had turned his world upside down. That was one of the reasons he loved her.
Love her? The demon within laughed, knowing Donatus wasn’t ready to admit he loved anything or anyone. Staring down at Ava, licking her hard nipple, he fought back the demon and the feelings she stirred in him. He nipped playfully at her pebble-like nipple. Ava yelped and grabbed her breast, pushing his mouth away fast.
“I’m sorry, baby. I didn’t mean—”
Donatus’ chest tightened. Ava had no idea that he was her husband—or that she carried his child. She’d no doubt take that news badly but he couldn’t stop how he felt and for the first time in centuries he was happy.
Kissing her nipple lightly, Donatus locked eyes with Ava. “I promise to be gentle.”
He moved down the length of her body, planting tiny kisses on her olive skin as he went. When he reached her panties he couldn’t stop himself. Instantly, Donatus ripped them from her body. She drew in a ragged breath as he parted her slit. Staring at her pink pussy, he could think of nothing more than tasting her cream. He drew her clit into his mouth and rolled it gently with this his tongue.
“Donatus,” she panted.
He chuckled into her pussy as he continued to tweak her sweet clit, savoring the honey taste of her cream as he went. The odd angle he stood at made it hard to do what he wanted. Taking hold of her hips, Donatus moved back farther, pulling Ava with him. When he had her aligned with the end of the chaise lounge, he went to his knees on the floor and buried his face in her drenched folds.
He thrust a finger into Ava’s heat and sucked gently on her clit, causing tiny animalistic noises to flutter from her. Their eyes locked and for a moment, Donatus couldn’t breathe. Her beauty, her trust and her absolute abandonment were right there, leaving Ava stripped bare before him. He knew this wasn’t like her. She wasn’t one to hand a man everything, yet that was what she’d done with him.
A pang of guilt went through him as he thought about allowing her to believe they’d had sex the previous night. While they had been together, it had only been during what they’d both assumed was a dream. Donatus thought about telling her the truth but her body picked right then to tighten. Ava’s pussy quivered as she gasped and reached down to touch him. He kept going, sucking and tweaking her clit while he finger-fucked her. The taste of her cunt was divine.
Sizzling Hot Alpha Male Paranormal Romance Box Set Page 17