Hearts Unleashed: A Limited Edition Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy Collection

by C. D. Gorri

  “Oh, yeah you did,” she chuckled. “That was the unmistakable look of…”

  “Don’t say that,” he quickly cut in. “Please, don’t jinx this. I’m pretty sure…”

  Once again called by the sweetest scent ever created, Creed was helpless but to follow. Ignoring his friends’ laughter, he was off the stool and heading towards the back door marked, FIRE EXIT.

  Out into the hot, Texas night, Creed marched towards the alley. Walking past the doors of the neighboring businesses, he got to the edge of the historic Southern Pacific Depot. Scanning the area, unable to believe that he might have actually lost touch with the one woman who’d ever touched his soul, the Paladin spun to the left as the sound of wings flowing forward and back in the warm breeze reached his ears. Head flying backward, his preternatural vision zeroed in on a beautifully elegant shadow flying in across the brilliant full moon.

  Focused on the glowing light that had just appeared in his soul, Creed whispered, “You can run, but you can’t hide, my beautiful Fairy.”

  Chapter Four

  “Why did you up and leave like that?” Maggie asked, the look on her face a mix between laughter and wonder.

  “Because he was staring at me like I was prime rib, and he was a starving man.”

  “Isn’t that what you wanted?”

  Taking a seat on the couch, Maggie patted the cushion beside her, but Alex was too wound up to sit. Pacing the length of the coffee table, she nodded. Yeah. No. I don’t know.” Running her hand through her hair, she growled, “Yes. Yes, it was – it is. I smiled and crossed my legs. I thought he would come over and at least say hi but nothing. He just kept staring, even when you and his friends were talking to him.”

  “Is he your Mate?”

  Wondering if she should say it aloud, Alex threw caution to the wind and her hands in the air as she admitted, “Yeah.” Nodding her head she added, “I’m pretty sure he is.”

  “Well, that’s good news, isn’t it?” Maggie nodded hopefully. “It’s what you wanted. Fate intervened and brought him right to you.”

  “Oh sure, it’s great news. Except I have an expiration date stamped on my ass.”

  “You do not.” Getting to her feet and coming around the coffee table, the She-Wolf stood in Alex’s path. Putting her hands on her shoulders, Maggie gently massaged, love and friendship flowing from the tips of her fingers. “I know the rules just like you do. ‘Cause you told me, remember?” Bopping her head from side-to-side, making a funny face, she went on,

  “Just think, if he’s the one. He’s a Paladin and everything. Y’all already have the whole justice thing in common.”

  “He’s a Paladin?” Alex yelped. “Not just a Dragon Guardsman, but a freakin’ Paladin. The best of the best. Holy shit! He’s never gonna be able to deal with my past.”

  Trying to turn out of Maggie’s grasp, Alex spun back towards her friend when the She-Wolf refused to let go. “I need to pace. I’ve got to think.”

  “You need to calm the hell down and think.”

  “Think about what?”

  “That yes, that man was born a Paladin. He’s one of the strongest Dragons I’ve ever known. Stop worrying, being a Commander for the Universe’s long arm of the law means he’d understand better than most what you’ve been tasked to do. What your job is and how important what you do is to the world, and for all of us.”

  “You think?”

  “Absolutely, he will,” Maggie adamantly growled, her eyes glowing with the Magic of her Wolf. “We’ve all heard the stories. Hell, I’ve heard them from the man himself. Paladins were called into being to become the embodiment of the Universe’s belief that justice will prevail.” Giving Alex a little shake, she added, “You both have the same job, just different departments.”

  “Well, that’s one way to look at it,” she groaned, letting Maggie lead her to the couch. Sitting down, she sarcastically chuckled, “He is one fine lookin’ man. Those blue eyes. That long curly hair with just the perfect amount of salt to pepper. That body – oh my Goddess, the muscles in his arms were miraculous.”

  “Yeah,” Maggie snickered. “Those Dragons are something else. Hard-headed, but damn fine to look at.”

  Remembering the funniest part of the evening, Alex laughed out loud, letting go of all the tension making her muscles ache. “I loved it when you whapped him upside the head with the towel.” Falling back in the cushions, she chuckled, “It was the best. Shame you didn’t take pictures.”

  “Yeah, I have my moments.”

  “You sure do.”

  Remembering that fine-looking Dragon, letting the image of him roll around her mind, the way he’d looked at her warm her heart and sink into her soul, Alex couldn’t stop thinking about the flames in his blue eyes and the way he made her feel. The scent of his arousal was like smoldering cherry. One whiff and it was hard for her to sit still.

  “And you didn’t,” Verity, the Fairy with whom she shared her soul snorted, suddenly making an appearance.

  “Well, you are in there, I was beginning to think…”

  “Now, you knew I was here. I’m the one who made with the wings and got you the hell outta Dodge.” Huffing out a sharp breath, she sighed, “I should’ve made you stay. Made you saunter up to that good-lookin’ Dragon and kiss him like you meant it.”

  “Well, thank the Great Goddess that didn’t happen.”

  “Why? Give me one good reason why waiting is better.”

  “Umm…”

  “Yep, that’s what I thought you got nuthin’. Sheez,” she grumped. “When have you ever been shy? About anything?”

  “Well, umm, never?”

  “Yep, never is the correct answer. Would you like one of those cookies Bonnie and Maggie make?”

  “No,” Alex snapped. “I do not. And another thing, the next time I see Creed, I’m gonna walk right up to him, introduce myself, and lay a kiss on him he’ll never forget.”

  “Hell yeah,” Bonnie whooped. “That’s what I’m talkin’ about.”

  “Oh shit,” Alex gasped, slapping her hand over her mouth. “Did I say that out loud?”

  “You did and I couldn’t be happier,” Mage beamed. “Now, I’m gonna get outta here and make sure they’ve got the bar all cleaned up. Amy should be here any minute.” Tapping her temple, she went on, “Ang just let me know they’re on their way. I told Amy she could stay the night, but she insisted on coming back to be with you.”

  “Yeah, I’m not surprised. We don’t get to see each other very much. She doesn’t get to leave the Mound very often, and I’m shit for keepin’ in touch.”

  “Yes, you are,” Maggie chuckled. “But we all love you so much, we overlook it.”

  “Thank goodness.”

  “Okay, Girlie,” Maggie waved with one hand as she opened the door with the other. “I’m outta here. I’ll see you…”

  “Alex. Alex Alex-Alex-Alex-ALEX!” Amy screamed running past Maggie, skidding to a stop in front of her sister, and shoving an iPad under her nose. “We gotta go to Dallas and we gotta go right now. You got a… a… a…”

  “A mark,” Alex deadpanned, rolling her shoulders and turning towards the bedroom. “It’s called a mark, Ames and unfortunately, I don’t get to decline the invitation.”

  Chapter Five

  “Please tell me we’re stopping for coffee,” Creed groaned, rubbing the back of his head. “I’m pretty sure I drank a case of scotch all my myself.”

  “Si, Jefe, Max snickered, the sound, no matter how smooth, beating at the Paladin’s head like a jackhammer. “You did drink quite a bit after returning from outside. What happened? Did you not meet the woman of your dreams?”

  “Meet her?” Kayne laughed out loud. “He lost her before he found her.”

  “Can you keep it down up there?” Creed grumbled, pushing his sunglasses tighter to his eyes and letting his head fall back. “I haven’t been drunk in…” Pausing to try to think through the hangover, he snorted, “…ever. I seriously
have never been drunk before.”

  “I didn’t know you knew how to get drunk,” Kayne frankly admitted. “You’ve always had a stick so far up your ass.”

  “Well, thanks, it’s always good to know what your friends think of you.”

  “No, no, no, you takin’ that wrong.”

  “And exactly how am I supposed to take it when one of my oldest friends says I’ve always had a stick up my ass? Please explain, because I’m pretty sure there’s only one to take that statement.”

  “If you’d have let me finish,” the Demi-God stressed. “I was about to add that you’ve always been the responsible one, the one who made your bed every morning and helped with the dishes.”

  “Mowed the lawn and picked the weeds from the garden,” Max chimed in. “It’s true Creed. You are the one all others look up to. The Dragon your men model themselves after.”

  “Yeah, you’re the one my dad always tells me to be more like.”

  “Seriously,” Creed marveled. “Lugh, the Celtic God of the Sun really told you to be more like me?”

  “Every frikkin’ time your name comes up,” Kayne grumbled. “It’s disgusting if you ask me.” Eyes flying to the rearview mirror, the Demi-God added with a grin, “But since I like ya’ so much, I put up with it. Even agree with him when push comes to shove.”

  “Well, thanks. That warms my heart,” Creed joked, his head still pounding but his mood infinitely better than it was a few seconds before.

  “Speaking of the beautiful woman you followed out of the bar last night,” Max insinuated. “Could she be your Mate?”

  “No doubt about it.”

  “Then why did you not follow her?”

  “I thought about it. Believe me, I thought about it real hard.”

  “I just bet you did,” Kayne snickered.

  “Get your mind out of the gutter, Old Man,” Creed groaned, thinking no truer words had ever been spoken but refusing to admit even to his closet friends. “I did actually think about following her, but when she took off like a shot and I thought about us having to leave for Dallas at the asscrack of dawn, well, I just came back in the bar.”

  “And drank yourself silly,” Max added.

  “And that was after I came out to get you and you acted like nothing happened,” Kayne chimed in.

  “Yes and yes,” Creed begrudgingly agreed. “And now that you’ve called me out for all my sins and are not stopping to get me coffee, I’m going to take a nap. Wake me when we get to Dallas.”

  Closing his eyes, something Kayne said suddenly ran back through his mind. Eyes flying open, he asked, “Do my men really use me as a role model? I’m pretty sure they think I’m a hard ass and curse my name every chance they get.”

  “Yes, you’re their role model,” Kayne reiterated. “They all want to be the Leader of their own Force one day and they all say they would run it just like you run the Paladins.”

  “Wow, that’s nice to hear.”

  “They also think you’re a hard ass and pretty much curse your name whenever you’re not around,” Kayne admitted with a shrug.

  “And that’s a good thing,” Max interjected. “I know my Cats all talk about me the very same way. They appreciate my leadership, my loyalty, my fight to keep them safe and rid our world of evil, but there are times they would kick my ass. I have heard the words taskmaster and asshole tossed around more than once. I wear it as a badge of honor.”

  “Yeah, what Max said,” Kayne nodded. “Think about it this way. Maddox is the grumpiest Dragon ever put on this earth, he’d rather yell at somebody than drink cold ale straight from the keg, but there’s not a soul that doesn’t respect him. Everybody goes to him for help with everything from battle strategy to weapons, to Mating, since Calysta whipped him into shape.”

  “True,” Creed nodded. “I never thought about it that way.”

  “Just like I’ve never heard you doubt anything in all the years I’ve known you.”

  “I blame the alcohol,” Creed groaned.

  “It might be the beautiful woman that caught your eye,” Max chuckled. “You know, the one you think is your Mate?”

  “Oh, yeah, I remember,” Creed sighed.

  “But do you remember her name?” Kayne snickered. “Maggie told you every time you asked. I’m pretty sure you were up to twenty-five times before we got you off that stool.”

  “I do,” Creed smiled. “Her name is Alex – Alessandra MacAskill.”

  “I am seriously impressed,” Kayne chuckled.

  “Yeah, me too,” The Paladin agreed with a grin. “Now, about that nap…”

  “Okay, Old Timer,” Max snorted with laughter. “You get your beauty sleep. We’ll wake you when we get there.”

  Letting his eyes slide shut behind the darkest pair of sunglasses he owned, Creed could think of nothing else but the beautiful Fairy, Alex. Never had he seen a more beautiful woman in all his days. She was the embodiment of grace as she walked across the bar like she owned the place.

  And there was something else. Something just under the surface that called to him even more than her amazing curves and gorgeous face. It was something he looked for in the Guardsmen he led but had never imagined finding so alluring in a Mate. It was her strength.

  Oh, yeah, it was alluring in every way possible. It meant that she could and would be his equal in all things. A true partner with the gumption to stand up to him when he was wrong and fight beside him if need be.

  “But it is our job to protect her from all harm,” Alastair objected. “How can you be thinking about our Mate in battle? That makes no sense.”

  “Oh, but that’s where you’re wrong, Old Man,” Creed disagreed. “Of course, I will always protect her with every fiber of my being, with my dying breath and my last drop of blood. But a woman, a Fairy with the strength, Magic, and power I could feel emanating from her soul will not stay at home. She won’t sit idly by while I run off to battle. Nope, I saw that the second I laid eyes on her. She’s a warrior who will not be tamed.”

  “I just hope you got this right, Lad,” the Dragon King huffed. “Cause this is the only chance you’re gonna get. Fate doesn’t mess around. She doesn’t give second chances, and she doesn’t play games.”

  “I’m aware.”

  “Sure, just like you were aware that your head would feel like it weighed a hundred pounds, and the whites of your eyes would look like maraschino cherries after drinking more scotch than an entire rugby team.”

  “There’s a first time for everything.”

  “Yeah, and it better be your last.”

  “Aye, aye, Cap’n. Aye, aye.”

  Chapter Six

  “Pull the damn trigger,” Amy growled through gritted teeth.

  “I can’t”

  “What the hell do you mean, ‘you can’t’?”

  “I mean, I’m squeezing the trigger like it’s a Pixie Pear and nothing’s happening. It will not…”

  “It will not what?” The younger Fairy fumed. “Squeeze, bang, dead Dragon and you get to ascend. Just fucking do it.”

  “It. Will. Not. Squeeze.” Swinging to the right, she dropped the barrel of the Barrett M82 semi-automatic, anti-material rifle, she’d had specially modified to fit her hand and only her hand and shoved it towards her sister. “Here. You try. Finish the job. Prove me wrong. I can’t make it work. The damn thing Will. Not. Shoot.”

  “When in the last thousand years have you not been able to use any weapon ever created?” Verity, the Onyx Fairy with whom Alex shared her soul insinuated. “Have you already lost the taste for it? Are you ready for an early retirement? Well, I’m damned sure not,” she snarled. “I want to squeeze out every last drop of living before I go on ice for the next millennia.”

  “Well, it always has been all about you.”

  “Oh, nice one,” the Fairy jabbed. “The little Assassin has claws. So, use them. Get this shit over with.”

  “I’m trying.”

  “My patience,” Verity scof
fed, her Scottish brogue returning with a vengeance. “How about you finish this job then go out there and find our Mate?”

  “I did find my Mate,” Alex snarled. “Back in Valentine, Texas, and I would be sitting in Rodeo waiting for him to come back if I hadn’t been called away to complete this rush job.”

  “Sure, you would,” Verity sassed. “Just like you did last night. Oh, wait, that wasn’t what happened. “What happened was…”

  “I got up and left because I’m a big chicken,” Alex ground out through gritted teeth. “There. I said it. Do you feel better now?’

  “No, not really. All I can think about is the fact that you need to get Mated so we don’t have to go bye-bye forever and ever amen.”

  “Maybe it won’t be so bad. Just knowing I’ll never have to listen to you bitch anymore is reason enough NOT to go back to Valentine and meet the one the Universe made for me.”

  “Oh, that’s just cold, Alex. Real cold.”

  “But true.” Almost smiling despite the situation, Alex added her deepest, darkest fear. “Besides, like I was telling Maggie, would a Dragon – a Paladin, nonetheless - want to be Mated to an Assassin, the Black Fairy of all things - the Morrígan’s hired gun? How could he ever…”

  “Trust you?” Vertie pfft’d. “I’m gonna tell you just like that sweet She-Wolf did, only I’m not gonna mince words. Why wouldn’t that sexy hunk of Dragon want you? After you complete this assignment, you’re done. It doesn’t matter than you’re not a thousand years old yet. This is it. Finito. Done. Finished. The End. There is no one more honest, upright, and decent than you. Any man – no matter who or what he shares his soul with – should be and will be happy to live forever by your side.”

  “Except for the fact that I’ve killed people on the Morrigan’s command for a thousand years.”

  “You killed criminals, the bad guys, those who would’ve hurt hundreds of thousands of millions of others. Those who were judged guilty and sentenced to die by the Celtic Goddess of War and the Jury of Others.” With her brogue getting so thick, Alex had to really focus not to miss the point of her tirade, Verity fumed, “You were simply the Executioner, not the judge or the jury. You were living your truth – your Destiny – just as our Ancestors have done since the world started turning round and round.”