While Cian snorted in amusement, Cole pulled his laptop to him and began tapping away at the keyboard. “Bridgemont Center for Disturbed Teens and Young Adults,” he read after a moment. “It’s almost two hundred miles from where the cave is located. We didn’t
look that far away.”
“I’m on it,” Demitrius announced. Then he slipped out of the kitchen, digging his cell phone from his jeans as he went.
He didn’t want to get his hopes up, but this could very well be the break he’d been hoping for. If they could get a lead on this Bridgemont place, then just maybe he wouldn’t have to go on a wild goose chase with Zavion in tow.
“So,” Oscar said, interrupting Cian’s thoughts, “who is this Redway guy? I’ve heard his name several times, but no one will explain what he has to do with anything.”
Cian only knew parts of the story, so he didn’t feel he was qualified to explain the sordid tale. His attention turned to Blaise, and everyone else followed his lead, looking to the alpha from Cloud Peak for an answer to Oscar’s inquiry. Truth be known, Cian wouldn’t mind a bit more information on this mysterious bad guy, either.
“To cut to the chase,” Blaise began, “Cyrus Redway was the leader of this coven a few years ago before his death. He had two mates and at least two children, and one of those mates was obsessed
with finding a way for Cyrus and his children to walk in the sun.
46 Gabrielle Evans
That’s where the kidnapping, trading, and enslavement of paranormals we’ve been dealing with started.”
“It’s okay, Blaise.” A deep sigh fell from Cole’s lips, but when he lifted his head, there was determination burning in his eyes. “One of Cyrus’s mates was my father. He was the alpha of the Cloud Peak Pack before Blaise took over.”
“It’s kind of fucked up the things people do in the name of love.”
Cian couldn’t have agreed more with Blaise’s statement. There was very little he wouldn’t do for Zavion, but subjecting innocents to torture and enslavement was definitely a line he wasn’t willing to
cross.
“We’ve guessed for a while now that the slave trades started long before Cole’s dad began trying to find a cure for a vampire’s allergy to the sun.” Running a hand through his short dark hair, Blaise huffed and shook his head. “There are new victims coming in all the time, and it’s just too big for something that simplistic.”
“This lab we’re looking for furthers the suspicion that Cyrus Redway and my father were attempting something much larger,” Cole agreed. “We just don’t know what it is. The records we found only go back a couple of years, but I think we can safely assume this has been happening for decades, maybe even before Cyrus met my father.”
“So, where are they now?” Oscar asked as he chewed at his thumbnail nervously.
“Cyrus is dead,” Blaise answered. “He attempted to attack my mates during a Council meeting. It couldn’t be avoided.” He didn’t sound the least bit apologetic about the demise of the vampire, and Cian couldn’t say that he blamed him.
“My father,” Cole added with a sigh. “Well, let’s just say that he won’t be hurting anyone again. He also won’t be spilling any of his secrets anytime soon, either. The last time I saw him, he was just staring ahead blankly and babbling incoherent nonsense.”
From This Moment 47
“Why is that?” Flouncing into the room with his wet curls plastered to his forehead, Zavion wore a bright smile and not much else.
The T-shirt he’d donned was actually Cian’s, and while it swallowed him, it stopped just below mid-thigh, showing off his long, slender legs. His bare feet padded almost silently across the tiles as he crossed the kitchen and settled into Cian’s lap with a chaste kiss to his cheek.
“So,” he said, turning his attention back to Cole. “What happened
to your dad?”
“Talon happened.”
Cian hadn’t been there for the showdown between the former
alpha and the leopard shifter, so he was just as confused as his mate. “Maybe you’ll want to elaborate so the rest of us can follow.”
Cole shrugged. “My dad made some rather rude comments about Jackson that Talon took a little too personally. So he shifted and damn near ripped the man’s face off. Jackson talked him down, but it was too late.”
“Why was it too late?” Zavion’s head tilted to the side, and his nose wrinkled. “If Talon didn’t hurt him, what happened to him?”
Exchanging a glance with Blaise, Cole then turned to look at Cian and finally back to Zavion. “How much do you know about being a Moonlighter?”
“Well, I know we have white pelts, and people are a little weirded out about that. I guess it’s kind of a bad thing?” The lilt to his voice made the last part sound like a question, and his head tilted to the other side. “Xander and the others tried to explain it, and we’re supposed to make people crazy when we shift. I don’t know. It was all kind of confusing.”
Cian had grown up hearing the legends, and he’d been just as guilty of prejudice against the breed until he’d met his brother’ s mate, Boston. They weren’t the devils people had made them out to be over the centuries. He knew that now. While he didn’t fear his white-furred
48 Gabrielle Evans
brethren, there was still a healthy dose of respect there and for good
reason.
“Moonlighters have been feared and hunted for as long as anyone can remember,” Blaise explained in a calm, quiet voice. “There is only one born to a clan, coven, pack, or whatever per generation, except in cases of multiples.”
“Like me and Zuriel.”
“Or Logan and Talon,” Cian added as he skimmed his fingers over the silky smooth skin on his lover’s thighs in a calming manner. “I’d guess there are even triplets out there somewhere.”
“For whatever reason,” Blaise continued, “your magic is supercharged. Popular belief is that this magic is so powerful, in fact, that it will drive anyone to insanity within minutes if they are unlucky enough to be close by when a Moonlighter shifts.”
“Other Moonlighters are considered to be the exception,” Cole said, picking up where his mate had left off. “There was an incident a few years ago that made Blaise think that mates of Moonlighters were immune as well.”
“The more time I spent with Xander’s pack in Georgia, the more I saw. Things weren’t really adding up.” Easing Willow out of his lap, Blaise rose from his seat and began pacing, something he always did when he was gearing up for a lecture.
Cian just sighed and settled back in his chair. He’d seen it a dozen times and knew there was nothing to he could do to stop the alpha until Blaise was finished with what he wanted to say. He continued tracing circles on Zavion’s thighs, moving a little higher with each pass. The guy didn’t really seem to need comforting, but Cian didn’t really need an excuse to touch his mate, either. He just couldn’t keep his hands off him.
When he smoothed his palm up the inside of Zavion’s thigh under the hem of the oversized T-shirt, he almost swallowed his tongue
when his knuckles brushed against the man’s naked cock. His heart
From This Moment 49
beat a little faster, his breathing became just a bit shallower, and his
dick twitched inside his sweats with interest.
Scooting his chair closer to the table under the premise of readjusting in his seat, he made sure Zavion’s lower half was hidden under the tabletop before he reached between his lover’s legs again to fondle his soft, smooth sac. It didn’t really matter. Everyone in the room could smell the lust pouring off of them, but as long as Zavion wasn’t uncomfortable with them knowing, Cian didn’t care.
Zuriel gave a visual shudder, shook his head, and quickly left the room. Not that Cian could blame him. He had no doubt that he and
Zavion were both broadcasting louder than usual. All other eyes in the room were on them, all but Blaise who was still pacing t
he floor, waving his hands around, and talking a mile a minute.
Dipping his hand lower, he ran one finger over his mate’s perineum to his back entrance and smiled when he felt the tight ring slick, loosened, and quivering with anticipation. Zavion had known exactly what he was doing when he’d strutted into the kitchen dressed the way he was, and Cian aimed to make his dirty little fantasy come
true.
Slipping the tip of his middle finger into that tight tunnel, he used his other hand to fist Zavion’s rigid cock and pump lightly with only his wrist. They didn’t want to be too obvious, after all.
“Fuck,” Demitrius groaned as he reentered the kitchen, stopping just inside the doorway. His nostrils flared, and his eyes went heavy-lidded as they zeroed in on Oscar.
“Well, I’m bushed.” Jumping up from his chair, Oscar gave an ostentatious yawn, stretching his arms over his head and arching his back. “Good night, guys.” Then he practically ran from the room with Demitrius right on his heels.
Blaise, of course, didn’t notice anything, too lost in his
monologue.
50 Gabrielle Evans
Zavion’s back settled heavily against his chest as his head lolled on Cian’s shoulder. His legs spread minutely wider, and Cian could hear his teeth grinding together as he tried not to make any noise.
Pushing his finger in deeper, Cian sawed in and out of his mate’s clenching ass as he applied pressure to Zavion’s balls with his palm. Gods, the man was stunning. And when that mixture of pleasure and
pain washed over his face during orgasm, it was the most exquisite, most breathtaking thing Cian had ever witnessed.
The rock-hard length in his hand flexed and pulsed, and Zavion’s breathing accelerated into shallow pants through his nose. Keeping a loose grasp on his lover’s cock, he glided his hand along the shaft and tightened his fingers just under the swollen crown. When he traced the tip with the pad of his thumb, he couldn’t stop his grin when he found the slit dripping with pre-cum.
Playing was one thing, but Cian’s dick was hard and aching, bent in an unnatural position as Zavion’s sweet ass rubbed against him. He didn’t have a clue what Blaise was saying any longer, didn’t care that Cole and Willow were practically devouring each other’s mouths in the seat across from him.
All he wanted was Zavion, and as they’d already established, he really didn’t like to share. No one needed to see his mate naked or hear the beautiful sounds he made. Those things were just for Cian.
“Everyone out,” he ordered, still pumping his finger into Zavion’s opening.
“Excuse me?” Blaise finally stopped speaking and whirled around to face them. His lips fell open as though he meant to argue, but when he sucked in a deep breath, it rushed out on a strangled groan.
His eyes strayed to his two mates, and Cian thought the man would fall to the ground when a full body shudder rolled through him. “Out,” he repeated Cian’s order, fumbling with the button on his jeans as he ushered Cole and Willow from the kitchen.
“Now I have ya all to myself, my naughty fox.”
From This Moment 51
“What do you plan to do with me?” Zavion teased as he moved against him with a sensual roll of his hips.
“I’m thinkin’ you’re in need of some payback. A good teasin’ should teach ya better manners. Do you think so, darlin’?” He nipped at Zavion’s ear, and then swirled his tongue around the flesh to soothe the sting. “Then,” he rasped as he slid another finger into his lover’s velvety heat, “the real fun can begin.”
52 Gabrielle Evans
Chapter Six
Walking into the kitchen with nothing more than his lover’s faded yellow T-shirt on had been a risky move. He’d wanted to seduce Cian, and yes, a part of him thrilled at the idea of everyone watching them as they coveted what belonged to him. While it wasn’t rational, there was an even bigger part of him that wanted to lay claim to the Irishman, to ensure that everyone knew Cian was his.
Well, he’d certainly gotten his wish. Cian’s words teased him while his hands and mouth played him like a fiddle. Work-roughed fingertips ghosted across his chest and pulled at his erect nipples, eliciting soft gasps from Zavion’s parted lips.
Two digits continued working in and out of his stretched hole, making his cock jerk as his heart thundered loudly inside his chest. Soft, moist lips traveled along the column of his throat, and Cian arched his hips, grinding his hard cock over Zavion’s ass. It was delicious torture, and he loved every second of it. Surely the man didn’t mean what he’d said about all that teasing, though.
“Please, Cian,” he whispered as he reached one arm behind him to wrap around his mate’s neck. “Please.”
His cock was practically screaming for attention, but Cian continued to ignore the engorged length, choosing to insert another finger into Zavion’s greedy ass instead. A tormented groan rolled up from his chest, and his eyes closed of their own volition as he began rocking his hips, trying to take the digits deeper.
“You don’t need me at all, do ya?” There was amusement in Cian’s tone, and his lips stretched wide against Zavion’s nape. Lifting
From This Moment 53
his hips, he slid his gray sweats down his thighs and settled back into the chair to resume his assault against Zavion’s senses.
The soft cotton shirt was removed and tossed unceremoniously to the floor, leaving Zavion completely nude as he squirmed in his lover’s lap. The hot length of Cian’s cock pressed heavily against his back, slicking the skin with copious amounts of pre-cum.
The hand gliding up and down his chest pressed flat over his sternum, locking him in place and stilling his movements. “Mmm,” Cian purred as he skimmed his nose up the curve of Zavion’s throat. “You smell wonderful.”
Well, he hoped so. That had kind of been the point of his impromptu shower. He’d scrubbed every inch of his body with his favorite soap until he was red and glowing. Then he’d slicked his hole and played with one of his vibrators for extra preparedness.
The twinge of disappointment he’d felt when Cian had ordered everyone out of the room had dissolved under the skillful touch of his
mate. Plus, the possessiveness behind the order was extremely arousing. The exhibitionist in him still pouted a bit, but if a man like Cian wanted Zavion all to himself, who was he to complain?
The slippery digits eased out of his clenching channel, and Zavion had to bite his lip to keep from crying out in protest. When that strong, capable hand wrapped around his throbbing cock, however, there was no holding back his moan of pleasure.
Cian stroked him slowly at first, twisting his wrist at the tip so that his knuckles brushed under the flared helmet. “More,” he whispered,
trying to arch up into the too-light grip.
His attempts were in vain, however. Cian’s hand moved from his chest, and his arm encircled Zavion’s waist, holding him in a firm grip as he gradually increased his tempo. Growling in frustration, he fell back against his lover’s chest as his body vibrated with the need
to come.
“Please,” he begged, desperate for relief.
54 Gabrielle Evans
“Please what, darlin’?” Cian’s voice whispered into his ear,
throaty and hoarse.
“Please, let me come.”
“I’m not stoppin’ ya.”
“Fuck me,” Zavion pleaded, arching his head back as the grip on his cock tightened, and Cian’s hand sped over his length. “Please, Cian, fuck me.”
“Ah, but not yet, Zavion. I promise you’ll be well satisfied when I’m through with ya.”
A million tiny explosions detonated inside his body, and Zavion began to tremble in earnest, his upper body bucking wildly while Cian held his lower half motionless. The friction over his shaft felt so damn
good, too good, and the pressure in his balls built until he couldn’t hold out any longer.
With a long, garbled groan, Zavion went completely stif
f, pressing his shoulders hard into Cian’s chest as his cock spurted ropes of pearly cream from the slit that splashed over his lower abs and pooled in his navel. Scooping the semen from his skin, Cian lifted him with one arm while he coated his own long, thick cock with Zavion’s seed.
After his intense orgasm, everything felt overly sensitive, as though the slightest touch would shatter him into a million pieces. A loud cry ripped from his mouth when Cian angled him slightly sideways and encouraged him to lower back to his lover’s lap.
Gods, Cian was hung like a fucking horse. The huge cock invaded his depths, stretching him wide as his inner walls clamped around the swollen length. Zavion had never come so hard from nothing more than a hand job, and he wasn’t sure he’d survive another orgasm like
that.
“Shh, baby,” Cian murmured, petting the damp locks away from Zavion’s face before cradling his cheek tenderly. “Nice and easy, okay?” Then he pressed their lips together in a deep, searching kiss while his free hands stroked Zavion’s chest and belly in light caresses.
From This Moment 55
Their tongues tangled in an intimate glide, and Zavion wound his right arm around Cian’s shoulders, pulling him closer as he craned his neck, eager for more of his lover’s taste. Only Cian’s hands moved, mapping and exploring Zavion’s body. He didn’t thrust, didn’t rock, didn’t move his hips at all, seemingly content to kiss and touch while his cock remained sheathed to the root inside Zavion’s heated
channel.
There was no way for him to tell the passage of time, but before long, Zavion felt the familiar tightening in his loins, and his dick began to harden, swelling with arousal as he ached once again for release. Would the feeling ever go away? Would he always want Cian this much? He didn’t know the future, but he couldn’t foresee a time
he’d ever tire of the man’s touch.
Evans, Gabrielle - From This Moment [The Moonlight Breed 7] (Siren Publishing Everlasting Classic ManLove) Page 4