COPYRIGHT

Wicked (Fallen Messengers Short Story Collection)

Copyright © 2024 by Ava Marie Salinger
All rights reserved.
Registered with the US Copyright Office.
Second eBook edition: 2024

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The right of Ava Marie Salinger to be identified as the author of this work has been
asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. No part
of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical
means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written
permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Your respect of the author’s rights and hard work is appreciated. This book is a
work of fiction. References to real people (living or dead), events, establishments,
organizations, or locations are intended only to provide a sense of authenticity, and
are used factitiously. All other characters, and all other incidents and dialogue, are
drawn from the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real.
 CONTENTS
Books by Ava Marie Salinger
Fallen Messengers Glossary
Unbound
Bewitch
Enchant
Mortis
Nightfall
Beloved
Afterstory
Afterword
Books by Ava Marie Salinger
About the Author
BOOKS BY AVA MARIE SALINGER
F ALLEN M ESSENGERS
Fractured Souls - 1
Spellbound - 2
Edge Lines - 3
Oathbreaker - 4
Harbinger - 5
Crimson Skies - 6
Wicked - Fallen Messengers Short Story Collection

T HE M AGE AND H IS B RUTE

Arcane Entanglement - 1

C ONTEMPORARY R OMANCE WRITTEN

AS A.M. S ALINGER

N IGHTS
One Night - 1
The Escort - 2
Tokyo Heat - 3
Sweet Obsession - 4
Sweet Possession - 5
The Proposition - 6
Undisclosed - 7
Hush - 8
One Day - 9
Nights Series Short Story Collection

T WILIGHT F ALLS
Alex - 1
Carter - 2
Hunter - 3
Wyatt - 4
Drake - 5
Tristan - 6
Miles - 7
 FALLEN MESSENGERS
GLOSSARY

Aerial: An angel or demon who can control wind.

Alchemist: A human who can create new matter or manipulate

existing matter into new forms. Emits a scent of powdered
iron.

Aqueous: An angel or demon who can control water.

Argent Lake: Home of the Naiads.

Argonaut Agency: Organization responsible for law and order

in the supernatural and magical communities. Headquarters in
New York. Agents include angels, demons, and magic users.

Astrea Sea: Home of the Nereids.

Black Fates: The Keres. Goddesses of Death. Tenebra, Kes,

and Orena.
Bloodsand: A black tree with red veins that grows in the Nine
Hells. Created by warlocks who made pacts with the
Underworld after the Fall. Can be used to summon war
demons from the Nine Hells.

Blossom Silver: A silver derivative that can heal injuries

caused by demonic weapons or black magic. Made by the
Naiads.

Cabalista: Demonic organization. Agents include demons only.

Headquarters in London.

Dark Blight: A powder black-magic users use in their rituals

and which is poisonous to angels and other magic users. Made
by Shadow Empire alchemists from the heart of a Dryad.

Demi: The offspring of a God of Heaven/God of the

Underworld and a human or a being possessing divine powers.
Can take on any appearance.

Electrum: Naturally occurring alloy of gold and silver, as well

as copper and other trace elements. Used extensively by
Argonaut in their weapons. Combined with steel, titanium, and
Rain Silver to make their bullets.

Empyreal: The highest order of angels or demons, with powers

equal to those of a Demigod.

Enchanter/Enchantress: A human who uses illusion magic.

Emits a scent of cedar.
 Fiery: An angel or a demon who can wield Heaven or Hell’s
Fire.

Fractured Soul: A human’s damaged soul core, extracted from

the body – a powerful source of magic.

Furies: The Erinyes. Goddesses of Vengeance. Tisiphone,

Megaera, and Alecto.

Ghoul: An evil spirit who consumes the flesh of humans.

Emits a scent of rotting meat.

Glitterfang: A pale powder white-magic users employ in their

rituals and which is poisonous to demons and black-magic
users. Made by Nereids.

Hesperides: Nymphs of the West. Goddesses of the Evening.

Guardians of the Sacred Tree. Erytheis, Hesperia, and
Arethusa.

Hexa: Guild of magic users. Agents include magic users only.

Headquarters in Seattle.

Incubus: A male demon who gains power from sleeping with

humans and divine entities.

Ivory Peaks: Home of the Dryads.

Khimer: A creature born of the fusion of a Reaper and a living

being.
Lucifugous: A heliophobic demon who abhors light and who
can control darkness.

Mage: A human who uses an arcane staff to focus their magic

powers. Emits a scent of Juniper.

Magic Levels: Classification of magic users based on their

abilities, with Level Six being the weakest and Level One the
strongest.

Messengers: Those belonging to the Third Sphere of Heaven

and Third Hierarchy of Demons.

Moirai: The Fates. Goddesses of Destiny. Clotho, Lachesis,

and Atropos.

Order of Rosen: Religious order affiliated with the Catholic

Church. Agents include angels only. Headquarters in Rome.

Potamos: A male Nymph.

Rain Silver: A liquid-silver derivative that can injure and kill

demons. Made by the Nymphs.

Rain Vale: Home of the Nymphs.

Reaper: A soul collector and guide of the dead. Emits a scent

of camphor.
 Reaper Seed: A drug that can intoxicate most beings and
which is fatal in high doses. Mined by Lucifugous demons in
the Shadow Empire. Potent hallucinogen for Lucifugous
demons.

Shadow Empire: Home of Ghouls, Lucifugous demons, and

Dark Alchemists.

Sorcerer/Sorceress: A human born with powerful soul core

magic. Uses the energies around them to manipulate magic.
Emits the scent of Valerian.

Soul Core: A living being’s life force. Red for demons, white
for angels, and dirty gray for humans.

Spirit Realm: Home of Pan, the Gods of the Underworld, and

lesser spirits.

Stark Steel: Strongest and most magic-resistant metal on

Earth. Found exclusively in the weapons and armor of the
Fallen.

Succubus: A female demon who gains power from sleeping

with humans and divine entities.

Terrene: An angel or demon who can control earth and its

derivative metals.

The Fall: An unexplained event five hundred years ago that

resulted in an army of angels and demons falling to Earth.
 The Fallen: Angels or demons who fell to Earth.

The Nether: The space between Heaven, Earth, and the Nine
Hells.

The Abyss: A forgotten realm beyond the Nether from where

there is no escape. Also know as the Eater of Souls.

War Demon: Demon soldiers created for battle. Remnants of

an ancient war between Heaven and Hell. Banished to the
deepest parts of the Hells.

Warlock: A human who draws power from demons and the

Hells and converts it to magic. Emits a scent of sulfur.

Wizard/Witch: A human who learns to use magic through spell

books, and who utilizes potions and rituals to access their soul-
core magic. Emits a scent of Frankincense.
 BLURB

A series of seductive short stories about your favorite couples

in the Fallen Messengers universe.

Unbound

When Victor Sloan, the most powerful demon on Earth, asks

Cassius Black out on a date, the fallen angel feared and
shunned by most isn’t quite sure what to expect. Will the
sizzling attraction between them lead to something more?

Bewitch

Suzie Myers is a witch who’s always gone after what she

wanted. But when Argonaut agent Zach Mooney catches her
eye, she realizes winning the demon over might prove to be
her biggest challenge yet.

Enchant

Charlie Lloyd is used to being the silent member of Morgan

King’s Argonaut team. So no one is more stunned than him
when angel Reuben Fletcher and his demon lover Jasper Cobb
make him a shocking offer. One that Charlie fears may very
well involve surrendering more than just his body and soul to
the powerful couple.

Mortis

Mortis always thought his love for the Reaper God would
forever remain unrequited. Until the day his master
confesses his affections. Will this innocent Khimer survive a
night in the arms of the God of Death?

Nightfall

Theophile Serrano is finally dating Victor Sloan. Only one

thing keeps troubling him. They still haven’t had sex. Can
Theo convince Victor he’s ready for the final step in their
relationship?

Beloved

Experience Cassius Black and Morgan King’s origin story as

Icarus and Ivmir. What happens when an arrogant demigod
makes it his mission to seduce the most powerful being in all
the realms?

Afterstory

Find out what happens after The End in this special

afterstory that explores the lives of your favorite couples years
after the final war with the dark God Elios.
 UNBOUND

C ASSIUS B LACK CLOCKED THE FOUR MEN SHADOWING HIM

minutes after he’d left the headquarters of Cabalista. He
pretended not to notice them as he headed east from Liverpool
Street Station, too weary to fathom the reason why he was
being tailed.
People rarely needed a motive to antagonize him these
days. Most had regarded his existence as a stain upon this
world even before the battle that had taken place three weeks
ago, in the tunnels beneath London. The one where he had had
to reveal his status as the most powerful angel on Earth in
order to save countless lives and kill the sorceress who had
terrorized England and Europe for a quarter of a century.
The fact that quite a few of the magic users and
otherwordly beings whose skin he’d saved that day were now
intent on making him out to be public enemy number one
hardly came as a surprise to Cassius. He’d been stabbed in the
back too many times in the past by his supposed allies to trust
they would ever change their ways.
Since they couldn’t justify picking a fight with him, they’d
found other methods to wear him down. Official ones he
couldn’t ignore. Like the almost daily interrogations he’d been
subjected to by the various supernatural agencies who
governed the Fallen ever since he killed Tania Lancaster and
ended her reign of terror.
The debrief session at Cabalista had been particular brutal
today. He’d found himself struggling to maintain his
composure as he was forced to stand before the demonic
council and its leader and answer their never-ending questions
for nearly three hours, his ire restrained by the thinnest of
threads.
Russell Gilmore, the current head of Cabalista, was an
otherworldly whose arrogance knew no bounds. His mistake in
the tunnels had almost cost them the battle, a fact Cassius
knew the demon would never acknowledge. Instead, Gilmore
had made it his mission to portray Cassius as the one
responsible for the deaths of the two Cabalista demons they
had lost to the clash with Tania and her sect.
A light rain started falling across London, peppering his
face with cool drops. Cassius frowned. He knew from the
vibes he’d gotten from the rest of the Cabalista council that
Gilmore would not get his own way. That the council members
were choosing to indulge the demon at Cassius’s expense was
something he was prepared to overlook for now.
Besides, there’s no way I’m going to let that asshole
conduct his fake witch hunt to a satisfactory conclusion.
He soon came in view of the towering white steeple of
Christ Church. The men kept trailing him, their presence a
warm spot on the back of his neck. He headed past Old
Spitalfields Market and entered a road lined with eighteenth-
century merchant buildings and Georgian townhouses.
They caught up with him in a narrow brick lane one street
over. The place was almost deserted at this time of day, the
few people who passed the mouth of the footpath hastening
their steps when they saw the men surrounding Cassius.
Cassius eyed his would-be attackers with a neutral
expression.
He knew two of them were demons from their sulfurous
scent. The other two, wizards whose soul cores reeked of
Frankincense, were Level Three magic users at best.
“Care to tell me exactly what I’ve done to deserve your
attention?” Cassius said quietly.
The men glanced at one another, as if they couldn’t quite
believe he’d had the audacity to ask the question.
“Do we need a reason to loathe you?” the first demon said
with a smirk.
Cassius prayed for patience. An afternoon spent indulging
Gilmore and the Cabalista council meant he didn’t have his
usual reserve of self-restraint. All his hard work these past few
weeks would be in vain if he lost his cool now.
The demon moved, as fast as light.
Cassius rocked back on his heels as the otherwordly’s fist
connected with his face, his jaw snapping to the side from the
force of the impact. He turned his head and met the demon’s
hateful gaze with narrowed eyes.
The guy had used enough force to kill a human.
The ground trembled beneath Cassius’s feet as the second
demon called forth his Terrene powers. The wizards started
murmuring spells under their breaths. Alarm shot through
Cassius when a faint crack split the asphalt next to him. The
air grew heavy with malice.
Are these guys stupid?!
 Cassius scowled. The demons and the wizards were acting
with reckless abandon.
I have to stop them before this goes too far!
Power pulsed through Cassius. He fisted his hands and let
enough of it slip through to brighten his skin and eyes, a
warning to the men preparing to attack him that he would not
hold back.
The demons and wizards stilled. Something shifted in their
gazes. Something that told Cassius things were about to get ten
times worse. He reached for the dagger strapped to the small
of his back, knowing he would have to be careful not to kill
them. The last thing he needed right now was to be accused of
murdering two magicians and a couple of demons. Never mind
that it would be an act of self-defense.
The hairs suddenly rose on his arms. Cassius blinked as he
sensed the presence of a powerful demon closing in on them.
A figure swooped down from the sky and landed lightly at
the end of the lane. He folded his gray wings and studied them
with a piercing stone blue gaze. Heat rippled through the air as
he headed their way.
“What are you doing?”
The demons and wizards startled. Cassius stared.
The man closing in on them now radiated a shimmering
haze that sparked with orange glows at the edges, the warm
waves ruffling his light blond hair. Cassius didn’t have to be a
genius to know he was looking at the barest hint of hellfire.
There was only one being on earth who could readily
access it.
 And that was Victor Sloan, the Fiery demon who fell to
Earth nearly five hundred years ago, when the Nether ripped
apart and brought an army of angels and demons down upon
the unsuspecting humans and their greatest cities.
“I said, what are you doing?” Victor repeated in the same
low, silken tone, his pupils flaring crimson with demonic
power.
Cassius knew this little demonstration was more for the
benefit of his attackers than his own. He’d known Victor for
several hundred years. Unlike the fools who’d ambushed him,
the Fiery wasn’t the kind of man who needed to put on a show
of force to command respect.
“We were just passing through when this asshole picked a
fight with us,” the first demon said, his tone defiant.
Victor looked at Cassius. “Is that correct?”
Cassius sighed. “No.” He tucked his dagger back in its
sheath, the energy throbbing through his soul core abating as
he curbed his powers.
“I didn’t think so either.” Victor’s gaze lingered on Cassius
before shifting to his attackers. “How about you make yourself
scarce before I decide to follow this up with your respective
agencies?”
The demons and wizards glanced uneasily at one other.
A wave of hot air blasted through the alley, warming
Cassius’s skin. Victor arched an eyebrow at the four men.
“Or would you rather I deal with you right now?”
The four men turned and disappeared hastily down the
footpath.
“Is your face okay?” Victor asked.
 Cassius gazed from his attackers’ fading figures to the
demon beside him.
“It’s fine,” he murmured dismissively. “It’ll heal in no
time.” He hesitated, wary. “How did you find me?”
A chagrined expression came over Victor.
“I saw Russell talking to those men after you left the
council chambers. I could tell they were up to no good when
they followed you out of the building.”
Cassius grimaced and rubbed the back of his neck. “Your
boss is a real jackass.”
Victor smiled faintly. “I know. And I’m sorry. I doubt he
realized they would go this far.”
Cassius wasn’t surprised by the apology. Victor was one of
the few people who had ever treated him civilly since the Fall.
Though their paths had crossed on many an occasion in the
last few centuries, they had been but passing acquaintances up
until two months ago, when Cabalista and the other agencies
called on Cassius to help them find Tania Lancaster.
Few people in the world knew that the organizations who
governed the Fallen and human magic users secretly relied on
Cassius to deal with their most challenging affairs, this despite
making no secret of their dislike for him publicly over the
years. Although Cassius was well within his rights to refuse to
assist them, he knew helping them out from time to time kept
them from persecuting him twenty-four seven. Besides, most
of the cases they hired him for were ones where human lives
were at risk. However much the world hated him, Cassius had
never been able to turn his back on it.
To Cassius’s surprise, working with the multi-agency task
force that had been put together to tackle Tania Lancaster and
her sect had been less of a chore than he’d expected it to be.
He knew he had Victor and a few key figures from the other
organizations to thank for that. Though he wouldn’t exactly
call them his friends, they weren’t his enemy either.
“Do you want to go for a drink?”
Victor’s question sent surprise shooting through Cassius.
He masked it behind a steady stare.
“You don’t owe me anything, Victor. On the contrary, I’m
grateful for your support these past few weeks. Especially
today.”
Victor was the only one who’d asked him if he’d wanted to
take a break during the endless questioning by the demonic
council that afternoon. The demon may have been Gilmore’s
second in command, but he didn’t bow to the Cabalista head
nor blindly follow his orders, unlike some of the other council
members.
Victor would have no trouble overpowering Russell in a
fight. Though Russell was a formidable Aerial demon in his
own right, a Fiery’s abilities could not be easily outdone by
any power on Earth. Any power except for the one Cassius
had recently demonstrated during his battle with Tania and her
sect. Strangely enough, Victor had been the least bothered out
of everyone who’d witnessed Cassius’s latent abilities that day.
It was almost as if he’d been expecting it.
Since Cassius had no interests in agency politics, he didn’t
know the reason why Victor wasn’t the current head of
Cabalista. The demon was more than capable of assuming the
role. Not only was Victor a born politician, he was level-
headed, pragmatic, and more attuned to the political
undercurrents in the various otherworldly and magical
societies than Gilmore would ever be. Cassius suspected the
other agencies would appreciate working with Victor rather
than the current Cabalista head. He was busy mulling over this
and debating whether to politely bid goodbye to Victor and
take his leave, when the demon spoke.
“I’m not asking you to go for a drink because of what just
nearly happened,” Victor said quietly. “I’m doing it because I
enjoy your company.”
Cassius’s pulse stuttered.
This time, there was no mistaking the interest in Victor’s
eyes.
The concept of angels and demons as asexual beings had
pretty much been shattered after the Fallen came to Earth. Not
only were the otherwordly keen patrons of the pleasures of the
flesh, they were also open to same sex relationships and
having multiple partners. None of the Fallen retained any
memories of their lives prior to the Fall and who their mates
had been, if they’d had any. Still, surprisingly few had ever
settled for a long-term engagement since their untimely arrival
on Earth, especially with humans. The weaker race’s lifespan
was too painfully short in the eyes of the quasi-immortals who
had fallen through the Nether; a relationship with a human
man or woman would only result in regret and heartache for
the otherwordly left behind.
Cassius would be lying if he said he wasn’t attracted to
Victor. Angels and demons were breathtakingly beautiful
creatures and had been the subject of much adulation by
mankind following the end of the Hundred Year War that had
seen human magic users battle the otherwordly who had
destroyed their cities.
 It had been some time since Cassius had been with anyone,
man, woman, or otherwordly. Once his partners found out he
was the Cursed Angel, they invariably turned their back on
him. He’d never imagined someone like Victor would be
interested in him.
Then again, we have spent quite a lot of time together
lately.
“Come, it’s not far from here.” Victor twisted on his heels
and headed back the way he’d come, his dark cashmere coat
flapping around his long legs.
Cassius hesitated before going after him, a little annoyed
the demon had presumed he would follow and equally thrilled
at the command.
The place Victor took him to was not what he’d expected.
Located in an old distillery at the edge of Spitalfields, the pub
boasted a soaring, vaulted ceiling crisscrossed with metal
beams and pretty arches spanning exposed red brick columns.
The floor was aged wood and the soft light of the overhead
chandeliers made the polished walnut and dark oak furniture
gleam with understated elegance.
Victor led Cassius to a secluded booth at the back of the
room. A waitress appeared moments after they sat down. She
placed two freshly drawn half pints of beer on the table,
flashed a smile at them, and slowly walked away, the swing of
her hips deliberately exaggerated.
“I think she’s hitting on you,” Cassius murmured.
Victor smiled faintly. “Anna was actually flirting with
you.”
“I doubt that.” Cassius hesitated. “Are you a regular here?”
 “Yes.” He indicated Cassius’s glass. “Try the beer. It’s the
best in the city.”
Cassius cast a dubious look at him before taking a sip of
the brew, conscious of the demon’s eyes on him.
“It’s nice,” he said, surprised.
“Do you want to take a look at the menu?” Victor handed
him one of the cards propped between the bottles of
condiments inside the basket on the table. “The food’s good
too.”
Thirty minutes later and Cassius found himself sitting in
front of a generous serving of steak and kidney pie and a
mountain of chips.
Victor tucked a napkin on his lap. “What’s wrong?”
“I thought this was just meant to be a drink,” Cassius said
warily.
Victor’s mouth tilted in a faint smile. “So?”
Cassius frowned. “We appear to be having dinner.”
Victor propped his elbows on the table and leaned in
slightly.
“Are you allergic to dinners?”
Cassius blinked at the blatant teasing light in the demon’s
eyes and his seductively low voice. Heat punched through his
gut. He swallowed, his pulse quickening at the spark of
attraction lighting the air between them.
“No,” he managed, surprised the word didn’t come out
strangled. “It’s just…this is kinda strange.”
Victor raised an eyebrow. “How so?”
 “Someone like you doesn’t hang out with someone like
me,” Cassius blurted out. “Especially somewhere like here.”
Faint lines marred Victor’s brow. “What’s wrong with this
place? Or you, for that matters?”
“There’s nothing wrong with the place,” Cassius mumbled.
“It’s just too…normal for you. You’re a Ritz kinda guy. And
I’m not somebody anyone in their right mind would want to be
seen with.”
Victor blinked, startled. “Pardon?”
Cassius blew out a heavy sigh. “I’m saying you’re too
sophisticated for this place.” He indicated the pub with a wave
of his hand. “I mean, you are the Victor Sloan, the strongest,
and quite likely nicest all-around guy on the planet.”
Victor stared. He burst out laughing in the next instant.
The deep, throaty sound sent a delicious shiver down
Cassius’s spine and drew admiring stares from several tables.
Victor was the single most attractive man in the place and
everyone knew it.
“I’m sorry,” Victor chuckled. “That was hilarious.”
Cassius bristled. “It wasn’t that funny.”
Victor grinned. “It kinda was. You seem to have a very
high opinion of me. That should work in my favor.”
“How so?” Cassius asked, puzzled.
The smile that stretched Victor’s mouth made Cassius’s
belly clench with a bolt of desire. The demon leaned in close
and brought his mouth to Cassius’s right ear.
“I’m not as virtuous or as nice as you seem to think I am,
Cassius,” he murmured.
 The hairs on Cassius’s body rose as Victor’s breath washed
across his skin. He shivered, his heartbeat accelerating. The
sultry wave of heat that pulsed off Victor told Cassius the
demon had sensed this and liked it. A lot.
“What you said just now, about you not being the kind of
person anyone would want to hang out with? You’re wrong.”
Victor drew back slightly.
Cassius’s breath locked in his throat.
Their lips were but a hairbreadth apart. This close up, he
could see the steel gray flecks in Victor’s irises and the
smoldering redness at the back of his pupils.
“I’ve been looking at you for a long time,” Victor admitted
quietly. “I know what brought you to London was not the
happiest of circumstances but still, I’m glad you’re here.
Because I finally get to do what I’d wanted to do since the first
time I ever laid eyes on you.”
“Which is what?” Cassius breathed.
“Ask you out.”
Cassius froze. “What?!”
Victor grinned at his outburst, sat back in his chair, and
took hold of his knife and fork.
“I’m asking you out, Cassius. As in, I want to date you.”
Cassius sucked in air.
“Have you lost your freaking mind?!” he hissed under his
breath, glancing around to see if anyone had overheard their
conversation.
“Nope,” Victor said cheerfully. “Now, eat.” He pointed at
Cassius’s plate.
 Cassius opened his mouth to argue, stopped, and blew out
a heavy sigh. He picked up his cutlery and dug into his meal,
Victor’s confession ringing in his ears.
To his surprise, the next few hours passed in a flash.
Victor’s charm was magnetic and his voice mesmerizing.
Cassius couldn’t help but fall under his spell as they wiled
away the time over more drinks and spoke about the past.
Talking with the demon was as easy as breathing and Cassius
felt utterly comfortable in his company.
It wasn’t long before he returned to the subject that had
been preoccupying him all evening.
“Were you serious? About what you said before?”
The pub had grown noisy in the last hour, people coming
in to have a drink and catch a meal with friends after work.
Despite the brouhaha around them, Victor’s attention remained
steadfastly focused on Cassius.
“Do you mean about asking you out?”
Cassius hesitated before nodding, his stomach twisting at
the thought of Victor laughing and telling him it had all been a
joke. For some reason, Cassius didn’t want that to happen. He
stiffened when Victor reached across the table and tipped his
chin up gently with his fingers.
“What are you—?”
The rest of Cassius’s words died in his throat as Victor
leaned over and pressed his mouth to his. The world faded
around him.
This kiss was heat. It was electric. It sparked and sizzled
and set him alight from the top of his head to the tips of his
toes. It was everything Cassius hadn’t realized he’d been
missing and more.
 Victor’s eyes darkened to azure as he explored Cassius’s
lips, gently molding and brushing their mouths together,
learning the shape of Cassius. Cassius found himself
unconsciously chasing his touch, his head angling to make the
most of Victor’s sensual kiss, his body leaning in to maintain
contact.
Cassius didn’t realize he’d been holding his breath until
Victor lifted his mouth off his. He stared dazedly at the demon
before touching his lips with his fingers, wondering if he’d
imagined it all. The hotness of his flesh told him otherwise.
“Don’t look at me like that,” Victor groaned.
Cassius blinked, the clamor around them finally registering
as awareness returned.
“Don’t look at you like what?”
Victor’s voice dropped an octave. “Like you want more.”
Cassius flushed, conscious of the fullness in his crotch. A
single kiss from the demon had gotten him hard.
Victor’s expression turned serious. “And the answer is yes,
just in case you still had doubts.”
Cassius sobered. “Why?”
Victor covered Cassius’s fisted hand with his own. “Why
not?”
Cassius frowned, unable to mask his frustration any longer.
“I’m the last person you should be hanging around with,
Victor,” he said bitterly. “You should stay away from me if
you want to become the head of Cabalista.”
The demon arched an eyebrow. “Why can’t I do both?”
 Cassius sucked in air. It was the first time he was hearing
Victor admit he aspired to the position currently held by
Gilmore. He swallowed at the other man’s unruffled
expression.
Damn. How the hell is he so confident?
“I want you.” Victor’s touch and gaze burned into Cassius.
“And I know you want me too. Go out with me.”

D USK WAS FALLING WHEN C ASSIUS PULLED UP IN FRONT OF A

pair of towering, black, cast-iron gates. The cream-gravel
driveway beyond them curved to the left, the foliage from the
thick trees lining it obscuring the property at the end.
A wry half smile stretched his mouth as he looked along
the secluded lane he’d just driven down. Somehow, he wasn’t
surprised Victor’s home was in Highgate. The epitome of
wealth for those who wanted to work in London while still
enjoying country style living, the former Victorian village
boasted some of the most expensive zip codes in the country.
It suited the demon.
The gates opened with a faint electronic whirr before he
had a chance to press the call button on the intercom. Cassius
glanced at the camera atop the wall to his left.
Guess he’s expecting me.
Butterflies swarmed his stomach as he rode his motorbike
up Victor’s drive.
It had been two weeks since Victor had asked him out.
They’d been on several dates since then, mostly in the City of
London. Though they’d shared many a torrid kiss during that
time, Victor never made a move to take him to bed. Cassius
knew the demon was biding his time, stoking the desire that
ignited between them whenever they touched.
Tonight was the first time Victor had invited him over to
his home. Even though he hadn’t made his intentions explicit,
Cassius was conscious the demon intended to have sex with
him.
Cassius would be lying through his teeth if he said he
wasn’t looking forward to it. Victor was always calm and
composed. Cassius’s instincts told him this attitude wouldn’t
extend to the bedroom; the way Victor sometimes looked at
him was so carnal he couldn’t help but shiver and yearn for the
promise in the demon’s eyes.
He was dying to see Victor lose control.
An impressive, gray stone Neo-Gothic Victorian mansion
loomed into view. Cassius parked next to Victor’s Jaguar and
switched the motorbike engine off. He was admiring the pretty
facade with its crenelated parapets and tall, leaded windows
when the front door opened.
Victor appeared on the porch.
Cassius’s mouth went dry.
The demon was wearing a long-sleeved, open neck black
silk shirt that highlighted his broad shoulders and champagne-
colored trousers that made his legs look like they went on for
miles. The familiar citrus scent of his aftershave teased
Cassius’s nostrils, the fragrance masking the faintest hint of
sulfur emanating from his soul core.
Hunger stirred inside Cassius.
Victor looked and smelled good enough to eat.
 The demon’s lips curved in a smile that made Cassius’s
stomach flip-flop.
“I’m glad you found the place okay.”
“I’d be hard pressed to miss it,” Cassius said, masking his
nerves behind a steady tone. “It’s the only property on this
road.”
He climbed off the motorbike and took out the bottle of
wine he’d brought from the storage compartment, conscious of
Victor’s gaze roaming his body. He’d opted for a dark blue
shirt and cream chinos for their dinner date tonight.
Victor pressed a light kiss to his mouth when Cassius
joined him on the porch.
“You look great.”
Cassius tried hard not to swallow convulsively when he
met the demon’s smoldering gaze. “So do you.”
“Come on in.”
The proprietary hand Victor laid on Cassius’s lower back
as he guided him inside his home had Cassius’s pulse
quickening. He relished the subtle ways Victor laid claim to
him since they started dating. Cassius wasn’t a clingy lover by
any means. It had just been a damn long time since he’d
experienced the kind of attention Victor so readily showed
him.
The inside of Victor’s home was even more impressive
than the exterior. The color tones were vivid blues, dark grays,
and gold, the elegant furnishings and soft lighting providing a
sophisticated contrast to the moody hues. It was a masculine
decor that oozed good taste and money.
 Cassius’s heart fluttered when he observed the ornate,
winding staircase dominating the main foyer. Victor’s
bedroom was undoubtedly upstairs. He wondered if he would
finally get to see what it looked like tonight.
“Let’s eat,” Victor murmured with a smile that told Cassius
he’d guessed his filthy thoughts. “I’ll show you around later.”
Cassius followed Victor down a hallway to the left, his
cheeks warm. Victor led him into a beautiful sun room that
overlooked the extensive, terraced gardens at the rear of the
property. Movement down on the lawn drew Cassius’s gaze.
He didn’t have to squint to see the two creatures walking
daintily across the immaculate grass, his otherworldly vision
piercing the gloom easily.
“Are those peacocks?”
“Yes.” Victor chuckled at Cassius’s expression. “Before
you let your imagination run wild about my extravagant
habits, they came with the property.”
Cassius pursed his lips. “I wasn’t going to say anything.”
Victor guided Cassius to his seat and drew the chair back.
“You didn’t have to.”
Cassius hesitated before sitting down. Victor’s
attentiveness was something he was still getting used to. He
stiffened when he felt Victor draw close.
“You’re right,” the demon murmured into his ear from
behind, his breath dancing hotly across Cassius’s skin. “My
bed is upstairs. And I fully intend to have you in it tonight.”
Cassius shivered, his dick thickening at the scorching
promise.
Victor straightened. “But first, dinner.”
 He took the bottle of wine Cassius had brought and
disappeared from the room, only to return with a butler’s tray
holding several serving dishes covered with silver cloches and
a bottle of champagne in an ice bucket.
“I hope you like venison.”
“I do.” Cassius’s eyes widened when Victor removed the
domes. “Did you make this?” He stared at the immaculately
presented food the demon had uncovered.
The meal looked good enough to be served in a Michelin-
starred restaurant.
“I did. I like cooking.”
Cassius bit his lip.
Victor smiled faintly. “Are you laughing at me?”
“I’m struggling to imagine you in an apron,” Cassius
confessed.
Victor chuckled. “I look pretty good in it if I say so
myself.”
“I bet you do.”
They gazed at each other, awareness rippling between
them. Cassius’s breathing accelerated as the air grew charged
with sexual tension. Victor broke eye contact first and turned
to open the bottle of champagne.
Cassius didn’t remember much about the meal. By the
time Victor tidied the dishes away and showed him to the
library for dessert and coffee, his body was so wired he knew a
single touch from Victor might make him explode.
He was standing at the bay windows and staring out into
the night to calm his nerves when Victor came inside the
room. The demon put their servings of cheesecake down on
the desk and brought the coffees over.
“Here.”
“Thanks,” Cassius murmured, accepting the drink.
A sigh left him when he took his first sip. Victor had made
the coffee just the way he liked it, black and sweet. They stood
in silence for a while, their gazes on the dark landscape
outside.
“This place is beautiful,” Cassius finally said.
“I was lucky,” Victor admitted with a wry half smile. “I
knew the previous owner. When he told me he was
contemplating selling it and moving to the States, I secured the
property before he could put it on the market.” The demon
grimaced. “I paid him way more than it was worth at the time,
but I really wanted to live here.”
“I can see why.”
Cassius finished his drink and turned to set the empty cup
down on the desk. He tensed when he sensed Victor’s presence
at his back. Victor’s breath ruffled his hair and tickled his skin.
Cassius shivered and sighed when he felt Victor’s lips brush
his nape.
Still, Victor didn’t lay his hands on him.
What’s he waiting for?
Victor stilled. Cassius flushed when he realized he’d said
the words out loud. He froze when Victor pressed his face in
his hair.
“I’m afraid to touch you.”
The demon’s tortured confession made Cassius tremble.
 “Why?” he mumbled.
“Because I don’t want to hurt you.”
Victor slipped strong arms around Cassius’s waist and
pulled him against his body. Cassius shuddered when he felt
the rigid length of Victor’s erection nudge his butt. A gasp
tumbled from his lips when Victor’s teeth found the sensitive
flesh of his nape.
“What I feel for you? This hunger?” the demon growled,
gently nipping at Cassius’s skin. “I fear it will consume us
both. That we will be scorched by it and never recover.”
Cassius closed his eyes and angled his head to the side,
inviting Victor’s kiss.
“Then so be it,” he breathed, shivers racing down his
spine. “Burn me, Victor. I want to feel your heat.”
The demon groaned, clasped Cassius’s chin in a punishing
grip, and twisted his head to the side so he could take his
mouth. Cassius welcomed the savage kiss, his lips parting
eagerly under Victor’s tongue.
He wanted this. Wanted everything Victor’s kiss heralded.
Craved it all so badly he feared he would lose his mind if
Victor didn’t deliver on his sinful promise.
Victor’s hands roamed Cassius’s chest and quivering abs in
possessive motions, fingers kneading and exploring the hot,
hard flesh they found. Goosebumps broke out all over
Cassius’s skin at the lust surging through his veins, his entire
being focused on the man who was wreaking sweet havoc on
his body.
A stifled moan rose up in his throat when Victor’s hand
found his raging erection. Cassius bucked his hips, pushing his
straining cock into Victor’s grasp. Victor responded by
palming him firmly through his chinos and stroking his
arousal.
Cassius dimly registered the sound of his belt being
undone and his zipper being pulled down, too enraptured by
Victor’s torrid kisses and his wicked touch to care much about
anything else. Then Victor’s fingers were on his naked cock,
one hand holding his throbbing length with aching tenderness
while the other pushed his chinos and briefs down his hips.
Victor broke their kiss, leaned across the table, and dipped
two fingers in one of the cheesecake slices. He brought the
thick cream to Cassius’s lips and tightened his grip slightly on
Cassius’s shaft.
“Suck them,” he ordered in a low gravelly voice.
Victor’s filthy demand had Cassius’s hole twitching. He
opened his mouth and swallowed Victor’s fingers to the
knuckles, his tongue wrapping sensuously around Victor’s
digits as he did exactly as he was told.
A feral sound left Victor as Cassius suckled him. He
crowded Cassius against the desk, probed his cleft with his
erection, and rolled his hips, his hand moving on Cassius’s
dick.
They gasped and groaned, pleasure dancing through them.
Cassius moaned and panted around Victor’s fingers as
Victor stroked his ardent flesh. Victor kissed and bit his nape,
the table rocking slightly as he thrust his dick against his ass,
mimicking the act of sex.
Sweat beaded Cassius’s upper lip as Victor took him
higher and higher. Tension tightened his body and pooled in
his belly, heralding his orgasm. Victor slipped his fingers out
of Cassius’s mouth and pulled away slightly.
 Cassius sucked in air when the demon dipped inside his
cleft and stroke the wet pads across his pucker.
“Ah!”
Victor’s hand clenched on Cassius’s erection, causing him
to hiss.
“Does that feel good?”
“Yes!” Cassius moaned. “That feels amazing! Don’t stop
—oh fuck!”
Cassius rose on his tip toes, a guttural rasp tumbling from
his lips. Victor had nudged his opening and pushed inside, his
fingers made slick from Cassius’s spit. Cassius’s passage
burned and throbbed at the penetration, body clamping down
tightly on the thick intruders.
Victor bit down on Cassius’s shoulder.
“Shit! You’re so tight,” he growled. “I can’t wait to feel
you around me!”
A buzzing sound filled Cassius’s ears as Victor finger
fucked him and rubbed his aching erection. He came on a loud
shout, his dick spurting hot cum all over Victor’s hand and the
table, his back passage spasming around Victor’s thrusting
fingers.
Victor waited until Cassius had stopped shuddering before
pulling out of his body and letting go of his spent cock. He
pressed a gentle kiss to Cassius’s sweat-slicked nape and
turned him around.
“Let’s go upstairs.” The demon’s gaze scorched Cassius as
he took his hand, his erection tenting his trousers.
Cassius nodded tremulously, electric aftershocks still
rippling through his body. He allowed himself to be led out of
the library and up the stairs.
Victor’s bedroom was at the end of the west hall. Cassius
caught a glimpse of an eggshell blue clawfoot tub and an
elegant bathroom through the double doors on his left as
Victor guided him to the super king-size bed dominating the
parquet floor.
Victor stripped him of his clothes with an urgency that
made Cassius quiver with anticipation, his hands dancing
across the flesh he exposed, as if he couldn’t quite believe
what he was seeing. He pushed Cassius down on the edge of
the bed.
Cassius gasped and bounced once, the dark blue satin
sheets rustling under him. Victor towered over him, the
demon’s sulfurous scent strong with arousal. He stripped off
his shirt and cast it on a chaise lounge. His hands were on the
zipper of his trousers when Cassius stayed his fingers.
“Let me,” Cassius murmured.
Victor swallowed and nodded.
Cassius leaned in and carefully undid the zipper with his
teeth.
Victor groaned and dropped his head back when Cassius
freed his swollen cock.
Cassius’s belly clenched as he explored Victor’s throbbing
length with his fingers, his touch light and teasing. Victor’s
cock was long and thick, the veins covering the silky surface
standing out tautly with his arousal, his trimmed pubes tickling
Cassius’s fingers.
Cassius licked a hot strip from the root of Victor’s cock all
the way to the glistening tip. Victor cursed, his right hand
finding Cassius’s hair, his fingers sinking in none too gently.
 Cassius repeated the motion over and over again, laving
Victor’s trembling flesh with his spit. Victor tolerated his
wicked ministrations for long seconds before taking hold of
his dick and guiding the tip to Cassius’s lips.
“Please,” the demon said roughly.
A thrill shot through Cassius at the crimson light blazing in
Victor’s pupils. He was right. Victor losing control was every
bit as hot and as filthy as he’d hoped it would be.
He stared at Victor from under his lashes, opened his lips,
and took him in.
An incoherent sound left Victor. His other hand found
Cassius’s head.
Cassius set the rhythm as he bobbed his head to and fro,
working Victor’s thick organ deeper inside his mouth. Victor’s
toes clenched on the floor. He steadied his stance and gave in
to his instincts, his hips moving in deep rolling motions that
sent his rigid shaft sliding slickly through Cassius’s hungry
lips.
Cassius lost himself in the moment, all his senses focused
on pleasuring the man in front of him. It wasn’t long before
Victor’s gasps grew more urgent. Cassius fondled the demon’s
tense balls and scraped the rugged skin lightly with his nails.
Victor stiffened, his head falling back, the tendons in his
neck cording. He exploded on Cassius’s tongue with his next
thrust, his salty seed flooding Cassius’s mouth and throat, his
savage grunts ripping across the bedroom.
Cassius swallowed greedily.
Victor panted as he came down from his high. He lowered
his head and met Cassius’s sultry stare, his own hot enough to
scald. Cassius slowly let go of Victor’s cock. He gasped when
Victor gripped his chin and leaned down to take his mouth in a
possessive kiss.
“I just sucked you,” he mumbled against the demon’s lips.
Victor smiled and stroked a thumb across Cassius’s mouth.
“I hope you’ll do that again before morning comes.”
Cassius’s cheeks grew warm. He nodded, feeling oddly
shy for some reason. Victor’s expression grew even more
heated. He got down on his knees and spread Cassius’s thighs
open.
“Victor, you don’t have to—” Cassius started.
He stopped abruptly, his eyes widening.
An immense, floor-to-ceiling, gilded mirror stood opposite
the end of the bed. Cassius hadn’t noticed it in the low
lighting. The soft reflection the chandelier cast on the silvered
surface made it almost glow in the gray blue room.
“That’s right,” Victor said huskily. “I want you to watch
me blow you. And later on, we’re both going to watch as I
fuck you over and over again.”
Cassius’s stomach clenched at the torrid scenes Victor
painted with his words. Then Victor’s mouth was on his dick
and Cassius lost himself to pleasure.
Watching their reflection in the mirror as Victor blew him
was every bit as salacious and titillating as the demon had
hinted it would be. It wasn’t long before Cassius came on a
loud shout, sweat beading his face and his hips pumping
furiously as he ejaculated. He shivered as Victor swallowed
his cum, the demon’s lips making his throbbing flesh twitch as
he sucked and slurped.
Victor finally let go of his spent dick with a wet pop.
 “Hmm,” he teased, drawing a moan from Cassius as he
took a final lick of the sensitive tip. “Thank you for dessert.”
Cassius covered his flushed face with his hands and
groaned.
“I can’t believe you just said that!”
Victor laughed softly, rose, and maneuvered Cassius up the
bed as he climbed onto the mattress.
“It’s the truth. You’re the finest sweet course I’ve ever
had.”
“Stop it!” Cassius mumbled, his ears flaming.
Victor kissed the hot tips gently. “How about we get back
to the main meal?”
The demon rained kisses across Cassius’s face and throat
before making his way slowly down his chest. Cassius
shivered and shuddered and moaned as Victor explored every
inch on his body. Victor rolled him over before continuing his
ardent inspection, his fingers, lips, and tongue dancing hotly
across Cassius’s quivering back and legs.
By the time Victor drew him up on all fours and shifted
him so they faced the mirror, Cassius was a whimpering mess.
Victor grabbed a bottle of lube and a strip of condoms from
the nightstand, dropped them on the bed, and moved in behind
Cassius.
Cassius stared dazedly at their reflection in the dimly lit
room, the shadows around them emphasizing their figures
where they knelt on the bed. His heart thundered in his chest
and his cock throbbed between his thighs as he registered the
lust in his own eyes and the color staining his cheeks, his
excitement at his submissive posture plain to see in the
shallow pants falling from his lips.
 Victor’s pupils glowed crimson behind him, his chest
heaving with his own ragged breathing. Cassius could tell
from his strained expression that he was holding himself back
by the thinnest of threads.
The demon coated his hand liberally with lube, parted
Cassius’s cleft, and pushed two fingers inside him. Cassius
sucked in air and bit his lip.
Victor held his gaze in the mirror as he slowly thrust in and
out, stretching Cassius’s passage, his face feral with hunger.
“Victor?” Cassius panted.
“Yeah?”
“Hurry!”
Victor gnashed his teeth, scissored his fingers, and pushed
a third finger inside Cassius’s hole. Cassius hummed and
danced back on Victor’s hand, the sting and burn fading as
Victor prepped him thoroughly. Victor pulled out a moment
later, sheathed his straining erection with a condom, and
coated the rubber with lube.
He crowded Cassius’s back, stretched his ass with his
hands, and pressed the thick tip to Cassius’s twitching
opening.
They both groaned as Victor punched inside, his dick
stretching Cassius’s passage oh so deliciously as he entered
him. Cassius breathed through his mouth and forced his body
to relax as Victor pumped his hips in a gentle motion, his eyes
on their reflection.
Seeing and experiencing Victor’s penetration at the same
time was sexy as fuck.
 Victor’s sweat splashed onto Cassius’s back when he was
finally seated fully inside his body. The demon closed his
eyes, a wave of heat pulsing from his core as he reined himself
in.
Cassius moaned when Victor’s cock grew even hotter and
thicker inside him.
“Move,” he begged. “Fuck me, Victor. Fuck me like you
want—Ah! YES! Just like that!”
Cassius’s shout echoed around the room as Victor did
exactly that, his fingers closing punishingly on Cassius’s hips,
his body rocking to and fro as he started pumping his dick in
and out of Cassius’s hole.
Bolts of electrifying pleasure shot through Cassius’s back
passage and spread through his body as Victor thrust
passionately inside him, Victor’s cock sliding tantalizingly
over his prostate. His mouth opened on lustful moans and
cries, his hand finding his oozing cock. He dropped his head as
he started stroking himself, dizzy with pleasure.
Victor fisted a hand in his hair and pulled his head back up.
“Keep looking in the mirror, Cassius,” the demon
commanded in a heated growl. “Look as I make you scream.”
Heat throbbed from the demon’s soul core as he fucked
Cassius slow and deep, pleasure painting red flags on his
cheekbones, his eyes dark but for his crimson pupils. Cassius
welcomed it all, his entire body growing hot as Victor’s
powers danced through him, his passage burning sweetly from
Victor’s lovemaking.
Victor rose slightly off the bed, braced his feet against the
mattress, and started fucking Cassius with savage grunts where
he crouched behind him, his movements growing forceful and
his hands biting into Cassius’s hips. The angle brought the
head of his cock flush against Cassius’s prostate, drawing even
louder cries from him as he punched his sweet spot with every
thrust. Dazzling spots of lights flashed across Cassius’s eyes.
He didn’t think he could take much more of this insane
pleasure.
“Can you see it?” Victor panted. “Can you see me fucking
you, Cassius?!”
Cassius focused on their reflection. He gasped lustfully
when he glimpsed Victor’s slick dick moving in and out of
him. Victor cursed when Cassius clenched his hole. He
accelerated his motions, the bed squeaking beneath them as he
rammed his cock in and out of Cassius’s passage.
Tension tightened Cassius’s spine and balls. He squeezed
his dick with his hand, wanting to prolong the ecstasy he was
experiencing.
“Come for me, Cassius,” Victor growled. The demon
leaned down, closed his teeth on Cassius’s back, and rolled his
hips in a hard thrust.
Cassius’s breath locked in his throat, the sweetly savage
bite finally sending him over the edge. He came on a vicious
shout, his vision flickering and his passage spasming violently
as he spurted cum all over the sheets.
Victor gnashed his teeth and went rigid behind him, body
taut and head thrown back as his own climax crashed through
him. His hips pistoned his ejaculating cock in and out of
Cassius’s trembling hole in the next instant, his movements
unrestrained and erratic, his mouth open on wild grunts and
gasps.
 Cassius rode the storm with Victor and watched it all, his
insides pulsing with violent pleasure, Victor’s dick massaging
his swollen prostate.
Their pants sounded loud in Cassius’s ears when Victor
finally stilled a moment later, his hands loosening slightly on
Cassius’s hips. He pulled out of Cassius, looped an arm around
Cassius’s chest, and drew him up against him.
Cassius moaned as Victor turned his head to the side and
took his mouth in a scalding kiss. Foil rustled. Cassius blinked.
Victor was still hard. Cassius’s mouth went dry as he
watched Victor discard the used condom and sheathe his rigid
cock again. Victor crowded Cassius’s back and guided his
erection to Cassius’s loose opening.
“Ready for round two?” The demon rained kisses on
Cassius’s nape and shoulders, his hot gaze meeting Cassius’s
eyes boldly in the mirror.
Cassius swallowed convulsively. The soreness of Victor’s
penetration was already fading, his seraphic powers swiftly
soothing his pleasantly used insides.
Victor snaked a hand around Cassius’s hip and stroked his
half-hard length. Cassius hummed and closed his eyes, body
thrusting automatically into Victor’s skillful touch.
Victor smiled. “I’ll take that as a yes.” He entered Cassius
in a single, slow thrust.
Cassius lost track of time as Victor made love to him over
and over again, the hours whiling away slowly while their
cries and grunts and moans echoed around the bedroom, the
desire filling their veins never ending. The demon’s heat
scorched Cassius just like he’d feared it would, his soul core
throbbing with intoxicating pulses of power where they were
physically connected, making their orgasms even more
intense. Cassius welcomed it all, his sweat-slicked body
trembling as Victor took him with possessive savagery,
relishing the passion burning them both. It wasn’t until the sky
lightened on the horizon that they finally collapsed on the bed,
Cassius’s head dropping heavily on Victor’s chest where he’d
been riding him.
Victor danced gentle fingers up and down Cassius’s back
as Cassius shuddered and shivered with aftershocks of
pleasure, his dick pulsing with echoes of his own climax deep
inside Cassius’s body.
“Thank you for the meal.”
Cassius narrowed his eyes and lifted his head to stare
down at the demon, his breathing ragged.
“Will you stop saying that?”
“Why?” Victor rose slightly and took Cassius’s mouth in a
light kiss. “Teasing you is such sweet fun.”
Cassius’s chest tightened at the warm light in Victor’s
eyes. He swallowed.
“I was wrong about you,” he mumbled. “You’re not the
all-around nice guy I thought you were.”
Victor laughed at that. They both sucked in air and groaned
when the motion made his spent cock shift inside Cassius.
Victor pulled out gently, took Cassius’s hand, and dragged him
off the bed.
“How about we clean up and have breakfast? I make a
mean Eggs Benedict.”
Cassius followed the demon into the bathroom, his heart
light and his soul at peace for the first time in years.
THE END
 BEWITCH

G REAT . J UST GREAT .

Suzie Myers narrowed her eyes slightly at the barrel of the

gun inches from her nose.
It was late Saturday night and she’d just been about to
close up Occulta. Dane Wilder, her head bartender, had left but
a moment ago with Gary Evaneski, their doorman. Though the
pair had gone to great pains to pretend they were headed their
separate ways, Suzie knew they would end up together at
Dane’s place in Japantown.
After eighteen months of stolen glances and circling one
another like two bears debating whether to fight or fuck, the
wizards had finally succumbed to their mutual attraction and
were now unofficially dating. Or, as Lisa Burnett, one of
Occulta’s other bartenders liked to put it, Gary was dipping his
wick in Dane’s honey pot with the aggressive enthusiasm of
someone who intended to make up for lost time.
We really need to expand Lisa’s vocabulary. Maybe I
should give her some books to read. Suzie swallowed a forlorn
sigh. And if someone doesn’t use my honey pot soon, I’m
gonna shrivel up like a dried prune.
Zach Mooney’s broodingly handsome features flashed
before her eyes then. She clenched her teeth.
 It had been a week since she’d last seen the Argonaut
demon. Seen being a metaphorical word. Her cheeks warmed
when she recalled the scalding kiss they’d shared in front of
the entire bar. He’d said he’d call but she hadn’t heard from
him since.
“Goddamn tease,” she muttered to herself.
An irate voice intruded upon her dismal thoughts.
“Hey, didn’t you hear us, bitch?! I said give us everything
in the cash register!”
Spit peppered her face. Cold metal pressed into her cheek,
leeching the warmth from her skin. Suzie ignored the weapon
digging into her flesh and focused on the guy holding it.
His pupils were large, black circles in sunken orbits set in
a pale, sweaty face. Though he was likely in his late twenties,
he looked two decades older and had the gaunt appearance of
someone who was sick. But it wasn’t an illness that was
making his hand shake and sending sporadic twitches coursing
through his skinny body. He was an addict. And, judging from
what Suzie could smell from him, his favorite poison was
Reaper Seed.
Though Bostrof Orzkal had purged San Francisco of the
devastating drug smuggled from the Shadow Empire, elements
of the underbelly of the city still had some supplies left over
and were selling them to the highest bidder, the scarcity
racking up prices to exorbitant levels. This had seen a rise in
crime in certain parts of town as those dependent on the drug
looked for alternative means to fund their addiction.
The gunman’s two companions looked no better, the rank
odor wafting from them carrying the chemical scents of a
cocktail of street drugs.
 They must have been staking the place, waiting for Dane
and Gary to leave.
Suzie chewed her lip as she considered her options. The
trio had barged through the front door of her bar presuming
she wouldn’t be able to put up much of a fight without her
staff around. After all, everyone in the city knew the
bartenders and doormen who worked at Occulta were wizards
and witches of a certain caliber.
In the end, she chose the least troublesome of her choices.
“How about I let you walk out of here? We’ll pretend none
of this ever happened and I won’t tell the cops on you.”
The man holding the gun stiffened at her calm tone. He
stared at her like she’d grown another head.
“Are you crazy?!” He dug the barrel deeper into her face
and let out a bark of deranged laughter before cocking his head
to address his friends. “Hey, did you hear what this whore just
said?!”
Suzie lowered her brows as the gun ground into her
cheekbone. “Watch the face, dipshit.”
The man froze.
Stars exploded in front of Suzie’s eyes as he backhanded
her across the face. Her head snapped to the side. She blinked,
stunned.
Fuck. Is it the drugs that made him so fast?!
She could tell he was no magic user. And he definitely was
not an otherwordly. Something hot trickled down her chin,
distracting her. Suzie wiped it and stared numbly at the blood
on her thumb. Heat bloomed in her belly.
“I said to watch the face, asshole!” she snapped.
 The man’s expression turned ugly. Movement flashed at
the corner of Suzie’s eyes. She caught his arm before he could
strike her again.
The guy cursed and jerked back. His eyes rounded when
he saw the faint radiance dancing across her fingers where
she’d grasped his wrist.
Suzie squeezed until she felt bone grind against bone.
He cried out, the gun tumbling from his suddenly limp
fingers. It clattered noisily onto the ground. Metal hissed as his
companions flicked open their switchblades. A predatory
gleam overcame their dull expressions as they closed in on
her, their gazes raking her denim shorts and T-shirt clad figure
with fresh interest.
Suzie shuddered in disgust. Fire licked her veins as she
drew on her magic. A bolt of anger tightened her stomach. The
last thing she needed was for her bar to be wrecked all over
again.
Dammit. Looks like I’m gonna have to go with the second
option after all.
“Need a hand?”
Suzie’s head whipped around, as did the three men’s.
A different kind of heat rippled through her when she saw
the Aqueous demon who’d just strolled inside Occulta. Her
gaze wandered over chocolate brown hair she wanted to sink
her fingers into, blue eyes that simmered with a hint of redness
and danger, a sexy smile that made her toes curl, and a body
she yearned to explore with her mouth and hands.
The man she hadn’t been able to get out of her mind for
the past two weeks was just as devastatingly hot as she
recalled. Suzie swallowed, the heat pooling low in her belly
having nothing to do with magic and everything to do with
desire.
The last time she and Zach Mooney had been in the same
space, their tongues had been glued together and there had
been nary a hairbreadth between their straining bodies.
The demon’s gaze stayed locked on hers as he exited the
foyer, the crimson glow that darted in the depths of his dark
pupils hinting at his otherwordly nature. He leaned a
nonchalant hip against a booth close to the entrance, ignored
the intruders gaping at him, and studied her broken lip with a
faint frown.
“You okay?”
Suzie shook herself out of the lustful daze she’d fallen
into. “Yeah. Give me a minute.”
The three men exchanged panicked glances. She had to
give them due credit. Despite the drugs coursing through their
systems, it was clear they could tell Zach wasn’t human.
Light flared across the bar, etching everything in sharp
relief and chasing the shadows away. The men cursed and
squinted. The little color they had left drained from their faces
when they saw the white orb that had exploded into existence
above her right palm.
The guy whose wrist she still held glared at her as if she’d
committed some ungodly sin. “You’re—you’re a witch?!”
Zach bit back a smile. Suzie wrinkled her nose.
Though she’d wished to keep her identity as a Level One
witch a secret from the agencies who governed the
otherworldly and magic wielders in the city, she’d had no
option but to reveal her powers a few weeks back, when
Cassius Black, the most feared and ostracized angel on all the
continents, had showed up at Occulta with his merry band of
Argonaut agents and practically destroyed her bar after they
were attacked by a group of black magic sorcerers.
Cassius’s own status as a legendary Empyreal had also
become public knowledge during the battle that had almost
cost him his life. Suzie’s mother had once told her about the
time she had witnessed Cassius’s true abilities, but she’d long
thought it hyperbole brought on by Stephanie Keller’s
dementia. A once powerful witch who’d helped Cassius bring
down Tania Lancaster, the sorceress and black magic
necromancer whose sect had terrorized Europe for a quarter of
a century, Stephanie had broken the pact pressed upon
everyone who had seen Cassius’s true form during one of her
less lucid spells when she’d revealed that particular secret to
Suzie.
If not for her mother’s achievements and the high regard in
which she was still held by her former companions in Hexa,
Suzie knew Stephanie might have ended up in trouble for
breaking the covenant all had taken on the fateful day Cassius
felled Tania Lancaster.
“Better grit your teeth,” Zach warned the men gawking at
Suzie as if she were a monster. “This is gonna hurt like a
bitch.”
“Wait!” the guy who’d been holding the gun mumbled.
“We’ll leave! Just don’t—aargh!”
The spell bomb struck him in the chest and carried him
straight across the bar. He crashed into the wall next to Zach
just as his companions charged Suzie. She ducked beneath
their blades, front kicked one of her attackers in the gut, and
elbowed the other one in the face. Bone crunched. The man
cried out and fell on his ass, blood gushing from his shattered
nose.
A hand closed around Suzie’s throat. Cold steel pressed
against her heart.
Zach straightened where he still stood near the entrance,
his expression darkening. Lassoes of water now bound the guy
who’d slid down to the floor next to him.
“It’s alright.” Suzie’s cool gaze never left the man holding
her captive. “I’m almost done.”
Magic crackled around her. Her attacker yelped and
released her, the sparks stinging him. His knife fell from his
hand when her hair lifted around her head in a halo. His mouth
rounded in horror.
Suzie scowled. “You picked the wrong bar to rob, fucker.”
She flicked her fingers.
The man screamed as an invisible power picked him up
and drove him to the tall, vaulted ceiling.
Zach winced when he smashed into a metal beam. “Easy,
tiger.”
The man’s horrified shout was cut off when Suzie shoved
him straight back down into the hardwood floor. Boards
splintered under the impact. She cursed.
The guy groaned and grew still.
Zach sighed. “I told you to go easy on him.” He stiffened
in the next instant.
His figure blurred.
Suzie jumped when gunfire shattered the fraught stillness.
Acid churned her stomach as the awful echo died down around
her.
The man whose nose she’d broken had lunged for the
weapon on the ground and fired a shot at her. Except it wasn’t
her the bullet had struck.
“Ouch.” Zach brushed away the flattened disc that was all
that was left of the slug that had slammed into his shoulder
when he’d moved at lightning speed to cover her. It clinked
onto the floor, the metal still steaming from its impact against
the demon’s hardened flesh.
Suzie sagged, the relief shuddering through her making her
legs weak. The only things on this Earth that could hurt an
otherworldly were Stark Steel, the divine metal making up the
Fallen’s armor and weapons, or devastatingly powerful magic.
Relief turned to anger.
She stormed out from behind Zach, her magic powering up
a blazing sphere.
“Maybe you should dial that down a bit,” the demon
suggested in a placatory tone. “You only just fixed up the
place.”
Suzie gritted her teeth and ignored him.
The guy with the smashed up nose screeched when magic
enveloped the gun he still held. Metal crumpled. So did two of
his fingers. His scream became an incoherent gurgle.
“Oh wow,” Zach observed leadenly. “You are pissed.”
“He shot you!” Suzie snarled where she stood above the
man writhing on the ground in agony.
She kicked him in the crotch for good measure. The guy’s
eyes rolled back in his head.
 “I’m fine. See, it didn’t even scratch me.” Zach indicated
the hole in his shirt and the unbroken skin beneath it.
Suzie’s nails dug into her palms when she clocked the
slight red mark the bullet had made. “That’s gonna bruise.”
“It’ll heal in no time,” Zach protested.
Irritation had Suzie rounding on the demon. “Why are you
defending these assholes?!”
Zach stared at her for a moment. Suzie blinked when
shackles of water secured the hands and feet of her two
remaining, senseless attackers, the cuffs forming so swiftly she
almost missed them.
“I’m not defending them per se.”
She wrinkled her brow at his hesitant tone.
The demon scratched the back of his head, his expression
growing sheepish. “How am I supposed to have my wicked
way with you if you end up in jail for aggravated assault?”
Suzie’s stomach flip-flopped. She opened and closed her
mouth soundlessly, too stunned to speak for a moment.
The guy she’d slammed into the ceiling groaned and
looked at them like they’d lost their freaking minds. “Dumb
fucks,” he mumbled.
Her eyes shrank to slits. She took a threatening step toward
him.
Zach closed a hand on her arm and took his cell out of the
rear pocket of his jeans. “How about you go make yourself a
drink while I call the cops?”
He cast a cold glance at the man who’d insulted them. The
guy squealed as the shackles holding him prisoner tightened,
drawing thin cuts into his flesh.
It was past midnight by the time Suzie was finally able to
lock up the bar.
“Thanks,” she told Zach ruefully as they strolled into the
main area. “Your friends made this easier than I thought it was
gonna be.”
“No problem,” the demon murmured.
The San Francisco PD guys who’d turned up had known
the Argonaut agent. They’d taken her deposition there and
then instead of insisting she go back to their precinct.
Suzie inspected the damage to the floorboards. They would
need replacing. Again.
“Dane is gonna kick my ass when he sees this on
Monday,” she muttered.
“It wasn’t exactly your fault,” Zach said.
She frowned at the demon’s slight emphasis on the word
‘exactly.’
His lips tilted in a faint smile when he clocked her
expression.
“Where’s your first aid kit?”
“Behind the bar.”
He found the box, wrapped some ice in a towel, and sat her
down in a booth. She hissed when he carefully cleaned her
broken lip.
Zach paused and arched an eyebrow. “Want me to kiss it
better?”
Suzie wrinkled her brow at his dry tone. It was bad enough
that they were sitting so close their knees were touching and
she could smell his cologne. Both were doing all kinds of
crazy things to her breathing.
“You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”
He smiled. “You have quite the temper.” He sobered, his
eyes darkening a little. “Although, I hate to think what would
have happened if I hadn’t been here tonight.”
Suzie blinked. A muscle was twitching in Zach’s cheek.
She raised a hand to his face, unable to stop herself. He stilled
at her touch. She flushed and made to snatch her fingers away.
“Sorry. I—”
Zach closed his hand over hers. “Don’t be.”
Suzie’s breath stuttered at his husky voice and the crimson
points of light in the depths of his pupils. His skin was hot. So
hot she feared he would burn her.
Zach’s lashes came down as he appeared to battle against
some inner instinct. The redness had faded from his eyes when
he opened them again.
Suzie couldn’t help the twinge of disappointment that
darted through her. The demon took a shallow breath and
pressed the makeshift ice pack to her lip.
“Why didn’t you call?” she blurted out.
Her pulse raced as she waited for his answer, the air
between them so thick with sexual tension she was finding it
hard to catch her breath.
“You didn’t give me your number.”
Suzie startled. “What?!”
Zach shrugged. “I mean, I could have found it out through
Argonaut but I didn’t think you’d appreciate that.” He gave
her a lopsided smile. “It would start our relationship on the
wrong footing.”
Suzie’s stomach lurched at his words. She stared into his
eyes and saw only the truth. She’d hoped this wild attraction
between them was more than just lust. Zach evidently wanted
the same thing.
She racked her brain for details of their last meeting and
grimaced. “Shit. I really didn’t give you my number.” She
searched his face. “Is that why you came here tonight?”
“A week is a long time to make a demon wait for a third
kiss.”
Suzie blinked. Their first kiss had happened in her
apartment, in front of Zach’s entire Argonaut team. Her cheeks
warmed at the memory. Her belly clenched in the next instant.
There was no mistaking what she was reading in Zach’s eyes.
He’d come here with more than just a kiss in mind.
“Looks like my honey pot won’t dry up after all,” she
mumbled under her breath.
“What?”
“Nothing.” Suzie chewed her lip out of habit and winced
when she reopened her wound. “Dammit. How are we
supposed to kiss now?”
Zach chuckled and continued icing her flesh. “There are
plenty other places I could kiss you.”
Suzie sucked in air as a slew of torrid images flashed
before her eyes. He grinned like he’d read her mind. Her pulse
quickened.
“You better deliver on that promise tonight,” she said
hoarsely.
 The demon grew still at her words. His smile faded.
Something else replaced the amusement in his gaze.
Something that made Suzie’s heart pound in anticipation and
her sex throb with a surge of heat and wetness. Her breath
hitched a little when he leaned in.
“Is that an invitation?”
His husky words washed across her lips, his eyes so close
she could count every gray speck in his blue irises. Redness
flared in his pupils. The faint smell of sulfur teased her nostrils
along with the scent of his arousal.
The little control Suzie possessed snapped with a sound
she swore she heard.
She grabbed Zach’s face and kissed him.
He froze for a heartbeat before dropping the ice pack and
raising his hands to sink his fingers in her hair. He angled her
head and swept his tongue past her teeth, his lashes lowering
over a gaze that simmered crimson with desire. Suzie groaned
and closed her eyes when she tasted a sliver of her own blood
on his tongue. Then he wrapped his thick, hot flesh around
hers and all her thoughts scattered to the winds.
Her nipples hardened and her pussy ached as they kissed
with barely controlled hunger. Suzie gasped when Zach
grabbed her waist, lifted her onto the edge of the table, and
filled the cradle of her thighs with his hips. She hooked her
arms around his neck and plastered her body against him, her
mouth as demanding as his. He groaned when the weight of
her full breasts pressed into his chest. A shudder shook her as
the solid ridge of his erection nudged her crotch.
Suzie’s heart thundered like a freight train when the demon
tugged her T-shirt out of her denim shorts, his movements as
frenzied as the hot gaze he raked her with, his tongue lashing
hers with strong, lustful strokes. Her breath froze when he
danced his hands up her rib cage. He skimmed the satin
covering her mounds and gently stroked his thumbs across her
nipples.
Suzie arched and cried out, heat stabbing her core from his
sensual touch. Zach swallowed the sound greedily and
repeated the motion again and again before pinching her
hardened nubs and tugging. She hissed at the pleasure pain,
her sex growing slick with arousal.
He lowered his head to her throat and inhaled deeply.
“Fuck, you smell divine.” He shivered. “I can’t wait to taste
your pussy.”
The fire in his pupils drew a needy moan from her lips and
had her knees clenching tightly around his thighs.
“Soon,” he growled against her mouth. He rocked his hips,
grinding his cock into her crotch. “Soon, I’m going to be
buried so deep inside you you won’t know where I begin and
you end.”
Suzie dropped a hand between them and palmed his meaty
rod. “You promise?!” she gasped, dizzy at the feel of him.
Zach cursed. “Don’t worry. I’m going to give you all of
me.”
Suzie’s heart fluttered at his ardent vow. She tugged his
lower lip between her teeth and gave him a playful bite. “I
can’t wait.”
Zach shuddered. “Let’s head over to your place.”
Suzie giggled when he lifted her off the table, grabbed her
waist, and walked her to the side exit, his touch hot and urgent.
They made for the private entrance to her second-floor
apartment, their hands all over one another, their lips meeting
in torrid kisses as they tumbled through her front door.
Choked off laughter left Suzie when Zach lifted her over
his shoulder in a fireman hold and practically ran up the stairs.
He crossed the open plan living area briskly, climbed the steps
to the mezzanine level and her bedroom, and put her down, his
fingers making the most of her flesh as he slid her along his
body.
“Shower,” Suzie murmured, glancing at the door to her en-
suite. “I need to wash those men’s touch off me.”
Zach hooked his fingers in the waistband of her shorts and
tugged her close. “I’ll help.” He walked her backward into the
bathroom, mouth busy kissing her and hands expertly stripping
her T-shirt up and over her head. He attacked his own next.
Suzie gulped at the hard planes and ridges of his muscular
torso, his sculptured six-pack, and the sharply defined V
highlighting the treasure trail dipping past the top of his jeans.
He flashed her a sexy smirk, balled his T-shirt, and
dropped it on the floor. “Like what you see?”
“Uh-huh,” she managed in a strangled voice.
“Good.” His tone turned husky and his gaze smoldering.
“Cause I like what I see too.” He hooked a finger under the
shoulder strap of her bra, slipped it down her arm, and freed
her left breast.
Suzie gasped when he palmed her hot flesh and carefully
rubbed a thumb across the dusky nipple.
“Pink,” Zach breathed. He stared at the hard nub as if it
were a treasure. “I knew they’d be pink.” He unhooked her
bra, dropped it on the floor, and weighed her breasts reverently
in his hands before lowering his head and sucking her left
nipple into his mouth, his fingers teasing and squeezing her
other mound and its proud crest.
Suzie clutched his shoulders and moaned, the pleasure
storming through her rendering her dizzy. Every lash of Zach’s
tongue against her nipple made her sex pulse and drew a shaky
sound from her throat, so much so she feared she would come
just from having him suck her breast.
He lowered his hands to her shorts, popped the top button,
and pulled the zipper down. Suzie shivered as he worked the
denim and her panties over her ass and down her hips. He let
go of her breast, peeled her clothes off her legs, and stepped
back, his chest heaving with his ragged breathing.
His pupils flared scarlet as he took in her naked form, his
heated gaze raking every inch of her flushed flesh.
“You’re beautiful.” Zach danced a finger down her throat
and breast.
Suzie panted and trembled as he grazed her quivering
belly. He stopped just shy of the ash blond curls covering her
sex and flashed her a wicked smile.
“Tease,” she whispered.
He chuckled and unbuckled his belt.
Suzie stared, her heart beating so fast she thought she
would faint. The sound of the shower filled the bathroom
when he reached behind her and turned it on, his chest
skimming her torso with tantalizing heat. He started lowering
his zipper, stopped, and gave her a grin that should have been
illegal in every state.
Suzie fisted her hands. “I swear to God, if you don’t pull
that zipper down right now and show me your dick, I’m not
letting you anywhere near me!”
 Zach laughed at her growl. Then he did exactly what she
wanted.
Suzie pressed her thighs together and tried not to squirm
when he freed his impressive erection, her pussy so sopping
wet it felt like she’d come already.
Oh sweet Jesus!
The demon was bigger and harder than she’d imagined he
would be, the skin over his shaft flushed and silky smooth
except for the sculptured ridges of his veins. His cock visibly
throbbed at her hungry stare. She licked her lips.
She wanted him inside her so bad she was willing to get
down on her knees and beg him to take her there and then.
Zach backed her under the hot spray, his gaze smoldering
as if he’d read her thoughts. He pinned her against the tiled
wall and crushed his mouth over hers. Suzie’s lips parted
eagerly under his tongue, the slight throbbing from her split
flesh all but forgotten.
He explored her mouth for a long, torrid moment, his chest
hard against her tingling nipples, his erection probing her belly
with an insistent pressure even as he pressed a thick thigh
between her legs.
Suzie moaned and wrenched her lips from his. “So, I
always wanted to know something!” she gasped.
He groaned and licked the corner of her mouth. “Really,
questions? Now?”
Suzie tugged his hair.
Zach sighed and drew back slightly. “This better not be a
quiz on astrophysics.”
Suzie chewed her lip and hesitated for a moment.
 “A demon’s tongue,” she finally blurted out.
Zach stilled. A lazy smile curved his lips, the teasing light
in his eyes telling her he knew where this was going and he
was going to enjoy every minute of seeing her squirm her way
through it.
“What about a demon’s tongue?”
“Is it—” Suzie faltered and swallowed, “is it true what
they say?”
He arched an eyebrow. She punched him lightly on the
arm.
“You’re gonna make me spell it out, aren’t you?” she
grumbled.
Zach chuckled. “You started this, cupcake.”
She glared and waved a hand vaguely. “What I mean is,
can you do stuff with your tongue a normal human can’t?”
Zach’s face crunched up. He bit his lip hard, shoulders
quaking with his mirth.
Suzie rolled her eyes and sighed heavily. “Well, can you or
can’t you?”
The smile he gave her was categorically criminal and had
her pulse rocketing into the stratosphere. “If you mean have I
got a snake’s tongue, the answer is no. If you’re asking if a
demon’s tongue is more…malleable than a human’s, then the
answer is yes.”
“Shit,” she mumbled hoarsely. Her sex throbbed, causing
her hips to twitch and ride his thigh.
Zach cursed at the sinful friction. He tipped her head back,
kissed her jawline, and worked his way hungrily down her
throat. His demonic power washed over her in a wave of
tantalizing sulfur.
Shackles of water formed out of thin air and bound her
wrists above her head.
“Wait!” Suzie protested. “I want to—ah!” She arched into
his touch as he palmed and kneaded and kissed her aching
breasts. “I want to touch you!”
“Later.” Zach flicked a nipple with his tongue and
wrenched a moan from her mouth. “If you touch me right now,
I won’t be responsible for my actions.”
Suzie shivered at the sensual threat lacing his thick words.
She couldn’t think of anything she wanted to see more than
this demon losing control.
Would he rut? Would he fuck me senseless everywhere I
can be fucked? Would he keep going even if I beg him to stop
and squeeze every drop of pleasure from my body?
Tension spiraled through her at the primal imagery playing
across her inner vision. Her pussy spasmed on the first wave
of her climax.
Zach shuddered and lowered a hand to cup her sex. “Your
scent. It just got stronger!” he growled.
She moaned at the intimate touch. He stroked her slick
folds with his palm before working his fingers between them
to her slit. She cried out when he thrust two digits inside her,
her orgasm so swift it took her by complete surprise.
Zach held her close as she rode his fingers, her hips jerking
and her body writhing with her convulsions. Her insides
spasmed again and again around him while her sultry cries and
gasps echoed across the bathroom.
 It was a while before she relaxed against him, the tension
oozing out of her until her limbs felt as thick as molasses. She
emerged from the sweet havoc he’d wreaked upon her body
and opened her eyes languidly, her thundering heart finally
slowing down.
The demon’s expression had her breath catching all over
again. He nuzzled her cheek and pressed a soft kiss to her lips.
“I think I’m gonna get addicted to your O face,” he
confessed huskily.
Suzie flushed. “Not fair.”
Heat flared deep inside her as she drew on her magic. She
broke the bands of water holding her prisoner, twisted a
startled Zach around, and slammed him against the wall.
“My turn.”
He grinned as she explored his throat and his shoulders
with her fingers and lips. Though the demon could easily
overpower her, he stayed a willing prisoner under her curious
touch. A shudder raced through him when she caressed his
chest and squeezed his nipples. Suzie closed her teeth on one
of his dark nubs and tugged.
Zach swore, hips jerking and thick cock stabbing her belly.
Suzie shivered when his sex pulsed against her skin. She
lavished his flesh with loving bites and sucks and worked her
way down his six pack. She danced her hands down his
treasure trail and finally grasped his straining erection.
Suzie stilled, full of wonder at his silken heat and the
defined map of veins under her fingertips.
“Fuck!” Zach hissed as she carefully explored him. He
dropped his head back against the tiles and swallowed heavily.
 The way he dug his nails into his palms told Suzie the
demon was hanging on to his self-control by the barest thread.
She probed his length and girth for a torturous minute, her
fingers dipping to cup and test his heavy balls. Zach panted
and groaned, precum pearling his flushed slit.
Suzie licked her lips as she stared at the musky evidence of
his pleasure, her pussy heavy and tingling and her heart racing
all over again.
“I want to taste you.” She dropped to her knees, opened
her mouth, and swallowed the head of his swollen cock
without waiting for his reply.
She might as well have let off a bomb the way Zach
reacted. His hands found her hair in a painful grasp, his neck
cording as tension rippled through him.
“I’m not gonna last long if you do that!” he said harshly.
She let go of his dick with a wet pop and scraped her nails
lightly up and down his turgid shaft.
“That’s the whole idea, Mr. Demon.”
Zach groaned when he met her sultry gaze. “I can tell I’m
going to have my hands full with you, Witch.”
Suzie smiled, flicked her tongue across his leaking slit, and
took him inside her mouth. The demon hissed and shuddered
as she started blowing him slow and deep, her tongue slicking
his throbbing flesh with her spit and his precum. He widened
his stance, held her head in strong hands that trembled, and
guided her to pleasure him just the way he liked it.
Suzie breathed through her nose and relaxed her jaw when
Zach finally gave in to his instincts and started fucking her
mouth with increasingly savage thrusts, his grip no longer
gentle where he clutched her face, his grunts guttural with
passion. She looked up and met his scorching gaze as she took
him deeper, his cock sliding into the tight confines of her
throat.
Zach’s pupils flared. His lips curled back on a feral
expression. “I’m gonna fill you with my seed, Witch!” he
growled.
Her fingers clenched on his thighs as he rutted with wild
abandon, her lips sucking his pulsing flesh with every forceful
push and pull of his hips. Zach threw his head back and
gnashed his teeth, his balls twitching. He stiffened a moment
later and exploded on her tongue and down her throat with a
guttural shout.
Suzie swallowed and gulped his hot cum greedily, close to
coming herself at his wondrous taste and his bewitching scent.
She moaned, spread her thighs, and cupped her sex. She
slicked her fingers with her juices and stroked the wet pads
across her swollen clit, eager to release the tension building
back up inside her body.
Zach pulled out of her mouth, yanked her to her feet, and
pressed her back to the wall, his eyes wild. He was still
ejaculating, his cock spurting out sticky strings of cum that
splashed against her thigh.
“What—?!” Susan mumbled.
“Sorry,” Zach said hoarsely. “I’ll be coming for a while!”
She gasped when he lowered himself to his knees, grabbed
the back of her thighs, and hooked her legs over his shoulders.
Then his hands were stretching her folds open, his face was in
her sex, and his mouth was on her clit.
She cried out as he sucked her throbbing flesh and ate her
pussy, his clever tongue lashing her sensitive nub and
throbbing opening with sensuous strokes that robbed her of her
sanity. She came once. Twice. Three times.
Still he pleasured her, his fingers digging into her thighs
and his pants full of hunger where he devoured her.
“Stop!” Suzie finally whimpered. Her toes clenched in
mid-air as an exquisite tingling spread through every inch of
her body, setting her nerve endings on fire. “I—I can’t
anymore!”
Zach paused and licked his lips. “Not enough.” His gaze
grew hooded as he traced her slit with his tongue, drawing a
broken moan from her. “I haven’t had enough of you yet!”
Suzie stiffened when he spread her open and pushed his
tongue inside her. Her mouth rounded on a shocked “Oh!”
She clutched his head and gasped when she felt him
thicken and lengthen.
Zach unleashed his demonic power and secured her wrists
above her head once more as he started thrusting in and out of
her sex.
“Oh God! That’s—! Yes! Yes!” Suzie panted.
She squeezed her eyes shut so she could focus her entire
being on where the demon was fucking her with his tongue.
Something hot and silky flicked her nipples and danced across
her quivering belly. She blinked her eyes open and shivered at
what she saw. Bands of water teased and aroused her aching
flesh, the manifestations morphing to translucent fingers and
hands that mimicked Zach’s touch.
Her eyes flared when his tongue grew stouter and longer
still, stretching her even wider. “Zach!”
 He met her startled gaze and carried on fucking her, his
pupils glowing a deep vermilion, his tongue repeatedly
scrapping her G-spot.
Tension coiled through Suzie, languorous waves of
pleasure that ebbed and flowed with every sinful movement of
his tongue deep inside her, so deep she felt him caress her
womb. Blood roared in her ears.
She lost track of time. Of space. Of self.
Her orgasm when it came shattered her into a million
pieces. The world went a blistering white, the only sounds
piercing the blinding haze her own thumping heartbeat and her
distant scream of ecstasy. She felt Zach withdraw from her
body at some point and whimpered when her insides clung
hungrily to him.
The next thing she knew he was washing her hair and
body, his touch tender and his lips raining soft kisses over her
face. She finally found her voice after he finished showering
and was patting them both dry with a towel, her racing pulse
now a steady thrum.
“I think I kinda had an out of body experience back there,”
Suzie mumbled.
Zach grinned. “You mean you came so hard you passed
out?”
She shook her head numbly. “Seriously, I heard angels
sing, saw the pearly gates, even got a whiff of ambrosia.”
The demon chuckled. “I would stay away from those
Greek gods if I were you. Besides, we only just got started.”
Her gaze found his thickening cock. She swallowed, her
interest perked once more. “I can see that. By the way, what
was that earlier?” She met his confused gaze and chewed her
lip. “You came for a long time.”
“I guess it’s not common knowledge among humans,”
Zach drawled, “but demons can ejaculate for over a minute
when they have strong orgasms.”
“Oh.” Suzie blinked. Somehow, this revelation was
making her sex throb all over again. “Wait. Does this mean I
rocked your world just now?”
“Yup, you did.” Zach tipped her chin with a knuckle and
dropped a kiss on her nose, still amused. “Want a snack?”
She stared. “Are you being literal or figurative?”
He laughed. “As much as I enjoyed having you eat me, I
actually meant food. You’re gonna need more energy before
we continue.”
Suzie flushed. She got the added bonus of seeing the
demon buck naked in her kitchen while he made them
pastrami sandwiches. They kissed, flirted, and retired to the
mezzanine with loaded plates and a bottle of beer each.
Sitting in her bed eating and chatting about
inconsequential things was never a scenario she’d ever have
envisaged when she’d thought about spending the night with
Zach. Suzie’s chest tightened a little at how easily their
conversation flowed and how natural it felt to have him lying
in her bed and feeding her chunks of meat and bread.
Desire soon thickened the air between them. Zach wiped a
trace of mustard from her lip, licked his thumb, and took her
plate from her hand. Her breath caught at the flash of crimson
in his pupils and his sulfurous scent when he turned to place
their plates on the floor. The sheet shifted on his groin,
revealing his straining erection. Her mouth went dry as she
scanned his thick length, not quite believing she’d taken him
in her mouth. Heat pooled between her thighs. Her sex
throbbed and grew heavy with an ache only he could assuage.
Zach grasped her ankles and tugged her down the bed until
she lay flat on her back. He braced her hips with his knees and
her shoulders with his hands before raking her body with a
torrid gaze. He closed his eyes and angled his head, his nostrils
flaring as he caught the scent of her arousal.
“So goddamn sweet.” His eyes pinned her to the bed when
he opened them once more, the hunger in the crimson depths
sending a shiver of need down her spine. “I could smell and
taste you for hours.”
Suzie’s pulse stuttered when he took a bottle of beer from
the nightstand and tipped it over her body. She gasped as cold
liquid splashed onto her chest and trickled down her belly. It
pooled in her navel before trailing farther south, soaking into
her soft fuzz and oozing through her silken folds. Zach leaned
down and carefully licked her breasts clean before laving her
nipples with his clever tongue.
The demon took his sweet time working his way along the
wet trail he’d created, his fingers steady as he touched and
caressed every inch of her, his attention one hundred percent
focused on driving her out of her mind.
By the time he laid face down on the bed and pushed her
thighs open, Suzie was a moaning, whimpering mess. Her
fingers clenched in the sheets above her head as he parted her
folds and traced her slit with his tongue. His breath danced
teasingly across her swollen clit.
He blew out a puff of hot air over her sensitive flesh.
 Suzie let out a guttural sound, heels digging into the bed
and hips jerking at the exquisite sensation. Zach growled in
approval and repeated his torturous ministration. It wasn’t
until she was begging and writhing fitfully beneath him that he
finally relented and gave her what she was asking for.
She came at the first flick of his tongue.
Zach pinned her hips with his strong hands and continued
sucking and licking her as she convulsed, her sex drenching
his lips with the evidence of her climax. He slipped three
fingers inside her spasming passage, ate her clit, and finger
fucked her pussy through a second then a third climax.
By the time he rose on his knees and slipped a condom
over his shuddering length, the bedroom was drenched in a
thick spoor of sulfur and the musky scent of her orgasms. A
sheen of sweat covered Suzie’s face and body as she met
Zach’s hooded gaze, her flesh tingling and her heart racing
faster still at what was still to come.
The demon sat back on his heels, grabbed her calves, and
tugged her close. He slipped a pillow under her back and
angled her hips so her slit was poised at the perfect angle to
take his cock. Suzie whimpered when he spread her legs and
lifted them high up in the air.
Zach leaned forward, braced the back of her calves with
his shoulders, and stretched her even wider. Her breaths
shuddered in and out of her lungs as he stilled and studied her
where she lay open and trembling beneath him, his gaze
simmering with a banked heat that would soon explode and
consume her.
She should have felt embarrassed at the vulnerable way
he’d positioned her, like a sacrificial virgin about to have her
body plundered by a hungry deity. Yet, she couldn’t help but
feel powerful beneath his torrid stare.
She was the reason he was so hot and hard.
She was the reason he was slowly losing his mind to lust.
She was the reason a demon as powerful as him was about
to let go of his iron self-control and rut to his heart’s content.
“Zach,” she whispered.
He shivered and leaned down to take her mouth in a
blistering kiss before nudging his cock through her opening.
Suzie gasped at the thickness of his penetration, his shaft
stretching her entrance with exquisite tension.
Zach froze and gnashed his teeth when she squeezed him
lightly.
“Fuck! If you do that—!” He groaned and dropped his
head.
A bead of sweat dripped off his nose and splashed onto the
base of her throat.
“I can’t help it,” Suzie whimpered, her heart slamming
against her ribs. She clenched again and drew another curse
from his lips. “More! I want more of you!”
A savage sound left the demon. He grabbed the back of her
ankles, stretched her legs straight and wide, and rolled his hips
in shallow thrusts, his gaze scorching her like she knew it
would as he sank into her body
Suzie hissed and fisted her hands in the sheets, her sex
throbbing and expanding to accommodate his impossible girth.
He entered her inch by rock solid inch until he was in to the
hilt and filling her to the brim.
 They stilled and gazed hotly at one another, their chests
heaving with their pants while their bodies savored this first
mating.
“You okay?” Zach asked huskily.
Suzie nodded tremulously.
“It doesn’t hurt?” the demon asked insistently. He rocked
his hips gently.
She swallowed, too overwhelmed to fully describe what it
felt like to be possessed by him. Though it seemed like he
would split her in two, her body had adapted to his size as if
she’d been made to fit him.
“It aches.”
A muscle jumped in his jawline. He frowned and started to
pull out. “I’m sorry, I’ll—”
Suzie grabbed his hips to still his motion and shook her
head vehemently. “It aches because I want more! Move, Zach!
I want to feel you even more!”
Zach’s nostrils flared. He growled and flexed his hips.
“Oh! Oh yes! Just like—” Suzie stiffened, her eyes
rounding in shock. “I’m gonna—oh God I’m gonna—!”
He swallowed her scream as she shattered around him, her
insides pulsing violently and sucking his flesh even deeper.
Suzie shivered and shuddered, her mind numb and her fingers
clenching on Zach’s hips until her knuckles blanched. He
thrust through her convulsions, his grunts warming her neck as
he buried his face in her throat.
“Suzie! Suzie!”
 She gasped when he suddenly straightened and pulled her
up with him. He sat back on his heels, hooked her arms across
his shoulders and locked her legs around his waist. His hands
found her ass as he pumped his cock hard and deep inside her,
his mouth blindly seeking her lips, his breaths coming in
labored pants.
Suzie melded their tongues together and felt the first wave
of yet another orgasm tickle her nerve endings. They fucked
with a carnal hunger that shook her to the core. A hunger that
would not be quenched.
She had never had sex like this. So raw. So primal. So…
animal.
She knew then that no man could ever satisfy her like Zach
could. That no one could teach her so much about her own
body in a single night like he was doing at this very minute.
Her passage grew tighter and slicker, her sex clinging to
his thick rod as he pounded her pussy, his flesh slapping wetly
against her aching flesh.
Zach’s fingers dug painfully into her ass cheeks as he
neared his climax. His movements grew uncontrolled. Coarse
grunts left him as he sank his teeth in her shoulder and rutted
wildly, his powerful hips lifting her off the bed with every
frenzied thrust.
He cursed and groaned before stiffening.
Suzie felt his cock swell and pulse deep inside her as he
twitched and ejaculated. She suddenly wished he hadn’t worn
a condom.
What would it feel like if he spilled his scalding seed
inside her sex just like he had done in her mouth?
 His release lasted a long time. Suzie shuddered when the
demon finally relaxed against her.
Zach was still hard.
He dropped his face in the crook of her neck. “Sorry, I
don’t think I can stop.”
He proved his words with a sinful roll of his hips.
She gasped as his cock plundered her tingling sex.
“Then don’t.” She grasped his face and kissed him.
Zach groaned. He pulled out carefully and discarded the
used condom. Suzie’s stomach clenched as he went to grab a
second foil from the nightstand. She took hold of his wrist. He
gave her a puzzled look.
“I’d rather you didn’t use that,” she said quietly.
His pupils flared. “What?”
She flushed. “I’m on the pill. And it’s the wrong time of
my cycle.”
Line furrowed Zach’s brow.
“I’m clean if that’s what you’re worried about.”
He shook his head. “It’s not that.” He cupped her chin and
pressed a soft kiss to her lips. “Demon seed can hurt a
human.”
Suzie stared. “Hurt? How?”
Zach grimaced. “Most women say the orgasm it gives
them is too strong.”
Her pussy pulsed a flood of hot wetness between her
thighs. “You’re kidding, right?!”
 “I am not,” Zach said solemnly. “And before you ask, it’s
different from a blow job,” he added just as she opened her
mouth to voice that very question.
“Why isn’t this common knowledge?” she mumbled.
He shrugged. “Because demons choose not to sleep with
human females if they can avoid it. And if they do, they
always use protection.”
Suzie swallowed, her pulse pounding. Her gaze dropped to
his erection. “What if I really want it?”
Zach narrowed his eyes. “Did you just drool a little?”
She wiped her mouth distractedly with the back of her
hand, her eyes locked on his dick as if it were the Holy Grail.
“What if I want it so bad I’m willing to beg?”
Zach groaned. “Are you listening to yourself right now?”
“Not really.” She traced the demon’s weeping slit with a
finger.
He cursed and jerked his hips.
Suzie licked the silken liquid she found there and grinned
salaciously. “Let’s do it.” She pushed Zach down on the bed
and mounted him.
“I really don’t think this is a good idea,” he said in a
strangled voice. “You passed out when I tongued you—”
She fixed him with a stern stare and deliberately rubbed
her slick slit along the back of his throbbing cock. “Dear Mr.
Demon, this witch demands to be filled to the brim with your
pleasurable seed.”
Zach shivered. Redness exploded in his pupils. Suzie
gasped when he grasped her hips and raised her above his
turgid cock. Her breath locked in her throat as he impaled her
in a single, savage thrust. She exhaled a guttural sound, her
sex pulsing and stretching around the demon’s impossibly hot,
bare shaft.
“Don’t say I didn’t warn you!” he growled.
Her only reply was to brace her hands on his chest and
rock her hips, her body moving instinctively into the
beginning of a dance that was as old as time. Zach hissed, his
belly clenching with tension as she started riding him. He
stroked her waist and raised his hands to knead her lush
breasts, his fingers teasing and tugging her nipples.
Suzie’s breath caught again and again as she danced up
and down Zach’s cock, every stab of his thick length eliciting
the most exquisite feeling inside her sex as she grasped him
with her heat.
“You feel so good,” Zach grunted. “Fuck! Your pussy is so
hot and tight!” He clenched his fingers on her ass and started
thrusting up while she rose and fell with wild abandon, her
breasts swaying and her lips parted on sensual cries.
The bed rocked as they rutted with increasing savagery, the
sounds they made feral. Pleasure sparked down Suzie’s spine.
The way Zach’s hips jerked and his neck corded told her he
was about to crest the same wave.
Tension tightened every muscle in Suzie’s body as she met
the demon’s scarlet gaze, the pulses of fire in his pupils
matching their sinful mating and the wild beat of their hearts.
A white haze filled Suzie’s world as she tumbled into an
oblivion filled with scalding pleasure, her sex clenching so
tight she feared she would strangle Zach’s shaft. She heard his
guttural cry a moment before his seed gushed against the
entrance of her womb.
Fire filled Suzie’s body, a violent eruption that began in
her convulsing passage and wreaked havoc upon her senses.
The ecstasy storming her insides robbed her of breath as it
deepened and stretched into a never-ending ocean of the most
exquisite sensations.
She wasn’t sure how long her orgasm lasted. All she knew
was that Zach held her tightly throughout it, his cock pulsing
strong and deep as he continued to ejaculate inside her.
Suzie came to sometime later and found Zach’s gently
stroking her damp cheeks with his fingers. She was lying in
his arms, her ribcage shuddering as she tried to draw oxygen
into her starving lungs.
“Did I pass out again?” she panted.
“You cried,” Zach murmured, his expression contrite.
Suzie grabbed his fingers and pressed a shaky kiss to his
palm. “In pleasure,” she said adamantly.
Zach frowned. “You looked like you were in pain.” He
grimaced. “I mean, at one point, I thought your pussy was
going to bite my dick off.”
She chewed her lip guiltily. “That was also in pleasure.”
“Are you sure?” the demon said suspiciously.
She nodded and snuggled closer to him. “Demon seed is
magic.”
Zach’s lips twitched.
“How about we go another round and I prove it to you?”
she said brazenly.
 Zach sobered. “You’re kidding right?”
He danced a hand down her body and dipped his fingers
inside her wet pussy. She moaned at the slight soreness.
“You’re still full of my cum.” His pupils reddened, his
voice growing heavy.
“Do that again,” she breathed.
Zach arched an eyebrow. “Like this?”
He thrust back inside.
“Whoa!” Suzie gasped. “I’m all tingly still!”
Zach groaned and pressed his forehead against hers.
“You’re gonna be the death of me, you know that, right?”
She squirmed encouragingly against his hand. “They do
call sex the little death.”
“I feel like I’m gonna need stamina pills,” Zach mumbled.
She grasped the solid rod of his erection where it dug into
her hip and gave it a playful tug. “Your stamina looks pretty
good to me, Mr. Demon.”
“How about I make us another sandwich?”
Suzie pursed her lips and grabbed Zach’s face. “Listen pal,
are you trying to distract me? Because, I assure you, the only
thing this witch is craving is one demon’s fabulous cock,
capiche?!”
She squeezed his fingers with her pussy.
He cursed and rolled her onto her back. “Surely, you mean
one fabulous demon’s dick, right?” He settled in the cradle of
her body, passion staining his cheekbones a dull pink.
 “Sure, whatever you say.” She angled her hips and hooked
her legs around his waist, her belly quaking in anticipation.
“I’m starting to feel like you just want me for my body,”
Zach said testily as he positioned the head of his cock against
her quivering slit.
“Your body. Your dick. Your tongue,” she mumbled. “I
like everything about you! Now hurry up and enter me!”
They both groaned as he did just that, his shaft sinking into
her slick sex with more ease than it had done before.
“How about my mind and my dazzling personality?” Zach
gasped. Sweat beaded his nose as he bowed his back and
started thrusting.
Suzie moaned and clenched around his rigid length. “I like
those too!”
She hooked her arms around his shoulders and sought his
mouth frantically, her pelvis tilting up and down to match his
pumping motion.
Zach obliged and fused their lips together. “And my heart
and soul?” he murmured after delivering a blistering kiss that
made her see stars.
Suzie’s chest tightened at what she read in his beautiful
eyes.
“I love those too,” she breathed.
He stilled and held her gaze for a moment, somewhat
stunned. “You do?”
She bit her lip and nodded tremulously.
Zach blinked. “Oh.” He gave her a goofy smile.
“Zach?” Suzie said after a breathless moment.
 “Yeah?”
“Move.” She sucked in air as he grinned and complied
with her request, his movements growing energetic. “Oh! Yes!
Just like that!”

THE END
 ENCHANT

J ASPER C OBB HISSED AS R EUBEN F LETCHER THRUST INSIDE

him, his ass stretching slickly to accommodate his lover’s
thick cock. Reuben’s fingers were locked tight on Jasper’s
head, grasping his hair in a punishing grip that had his neck
and spine arching at a delicious angle where they knelt on the
bed. Not that he minded the ruthless way the angel was
claiming him.
Despite his puritanical image and his lofty status as the
director of the San Francisco branch of the Order of Rosen, the
organization of angels allied with the Catholic Church, Reuben
was in no way a straitlaced creature when it came to the
bedroom. Theirs was a relationship based on mutual trust and
respect, and one hundred percent wicked sexual gratification.
Jasper wouldn’t have it any other way and he knew
Reuben wouldn’t either, regardless of the prudish outward
appearance the angel chose to project upon the world of man.
When Reuben called, Jasper came. And when Jasper
needed a savage fuck, Reuben delivered. Though they’d both
agreed they could date other people when they’d first become
sex friends, Jasper’s gaze had never strayed to another since
that time, just as he knew Reuben had remained true to him.
Which was saying something considering angels and demons
had no qualms having several bed partners at any one time.
Their races had never been one for serial monogamy, not even
before the Fall.
Jasper’s muddled thoughts scattered to the four winds as
Reuben possessed him the way he loved to be taken. Hard and
rough and fast, the exquisite ache that accompanied Reuben’s
ardent penetration only serving to heighten the mind-numbing
pleasure pooling in his belly. His hand found his aching cock
where it bobbed against his stomach, his body jerking with
every hard pump of the hips pistoning against his ass.
Reuben tightened his hold on his hair, a warning not to
touch himself. Jasper bit his lip and slowly lowered his hand to
the bed, knowing his orgasm would be all the more powerful if
he obeyed Reuben.
If I’d known this fucker was such a control freak, I would
have had second thoughts when he’d approached me.
“Focus, Jasper.” Reuben’s hand bit into the demon’s waist
where he held him steady. His thrusting hips slowed to a stop,
the savage pounding Jasper had been thoroughly enjoying
abating with a suddenness that had a whimper of protest
falling from his lips.
Make that third thoughts!
The demon gnashed his teeth in frustration, his hands
fisting in the satin sheets beneath them. His passage spasmed
around Reuben’s shaft, his climax so close he could taste it.
“Move!” Jasper bit out.
Reuben yanked his head back until his neck tendons
corded and ached.
“What’s the magic word?” the angel whispered in Jasper’s
ear before sinking his teeth in his lobe.
 Jasper cursed, cum shooting out of his dick at the
pleasurable sting. His hole clenched around Reuben where the
angel filled him to the brim. The way Reuben shuddered told
the demon he was close to losing his composure too.
“Say it, Jasper,” the angel ordered in a hard voice.
“I swear to the Nine Hells, I’m gonna kill you when we’re
done this time!” Jasper snarled.
Reuben ignored his threat. “I want the word, demon.” His
breath coasted his nape a second before he bit him with
enough strength to bruise his flesh.
Jasper gasped and jerked at the sharp prick of the angel’s
teeth. He inhaled raggedly, body close to exploding from
ramped up sexual tension. There was only one way he would
obtain the release he craved.
“Please,” he whispered.
He closed his eyes, hating how his voice sounded.
Like he couldn’t do without the angel. Like he needed him
so badly he was willing to beg for his pleasure.
Reuben stilled at Jasper’s softly spoken plea. “That’s a
good demon.”
For a second, Jasper thought he felt the angel’s lips ghost
lovingly across his back as he relaxed his commanding hold
on his hair. Then there was no more time to think. All he could
do was feel as Reuben clutched his hips, hitched his ass
higher, and resumed their fierce mating dance. His every thrust
ground the broad head of his dick against Jasper’s prostate and
sent pulses of red-hot ecstasy rocking through his soul core.
The pulses expanded. Merged. Became a sea of violent
sensations.
 The demon came on a guttural cry, his vision exploding
with bright sparks as he ejaculated with untamed force, his
belly clenching so tight he gasped at his twinging muscles.
Reuben rutted against him, mouth open on husky groans and
grunts, the bed rocking under his powerful thrusts. He reached
around Jasper’s body and clasped his pulsing cock.
Jasper moaned out a protest, head drooping forward. A
demon’s release was longer than any otherworldly’s when they
were overwhelmed by pleasure, their ejaculation sometimes
lasting well over a minute. He was at his most sensitive right
now and couldn’t endure being touched.
This asshole!
Sweat dripped from his face as he looked down the length
of his body to where Reuben’s fingers moved skillfully on his
aching flesh, the sight of his lover’s large hand stroking him to
a fresh erection almost too much to bear.
Reuben knew just how to touch Jasper to make him hard in
seconds.
The angel brought Jasper to another soul searing orgasm
before he finally climaxed, his cum flooding Jasper’s back
passage in sharp spurts until it spilled over and trickled down
his thighs in hot, sticky strings. The musky scent had Jasper’s
head spinning as they both twitched and jerked with
aftershocks of pleasure.
They collapsed on the bed a moment later, limbs tangled
and chests heaving with their ragged breathing, the angel’s
heavy weight a comforting pressure on Jasper’s back as he
stretched their arms above their heads.
Reuben pressed a soft kiss on Jasper’s left shoulder. “I
thought you said you were gonna kill me after we were done.”
 “I’m still thinking about it,” Jasper panted when he could
speak again, too sated to move.
Reuben chuckled, the vibrations shaking his chest where it
warmed Jasper’s back and causing his cock to shift enticingly
inside his ass.
“You realize you say that every time we fuck, right?”
“Shut up,” the demon grumbled.
He bit back a protest when Reuben pulled out of him and
climbed off the bed, secretly wishing the intimate moment
would last longer. Reuben returned with a couple of cool,
damp towels. He rolled Jasper on his back and proceeded to
clean him intimately.
Jasper stiffened a little before surrendering to the angel’s
attentive ministrations. Though they’d been together for two
years, it still surprised him when Reuben treated him so
warmly after the act of sex.
The angel was the first lover he’d had who’d ever acted
this way.
The demon’s face tightened, irritation shooting through
him. He hated the feelings Reuben evoked in him at times like
this. Hated the angel’s kindness. His tenderness. It made
Jasper feel weak and vulnerable, emotions he refused to assign
to himself.
They were both fierce warriors who had shed lakes of
blood in the millennia of their existences, Reuben in the
Heavens and Jasper in the Hells.
Love. Affection. Devotion.
Those words shouldn’t exist in their vocabulary.
 Jasper folded his arms behind his head and watched his
lover from hooded eyes, vexed still at the unwanted fondness
he felt for the angel.
“What?” Reuben’s touch raised sparks on Jasper’s skin as
he wiped his body clean of sweat. He arched an eyebrow. “You
like seeing me take care of you?”
A cruel smile twisted Jasper’s mouth. “I like seeing you at
my feet, where you belong.” He pressed his foot against
Reuben’s chest.
Reuben’s eyes darkened with a nameless emotion. He
danced a hand down Jasper’s thigh and around the back of his
calf, causing the demon to tense and twitch.
Jasper’s breath caught when Reuben took a hold of his
ankle and lifted his foot so he could kiss his toes. A hot feeling
tightened the demon’s chest. One he wished to deny. Words of
protest crowded the back of his throat.
The look Reuben gave him strangled them.
“Don’t.” Jasper tugged his foot from Reuben’s grasp, his
brow furrowing in a heavy frown.
Reuben held fast. “Don’t what?”
“Don’t say it!” Jasper growled.
Reuben sighed. “It’s been two years, Jas. You know how I
feel about you. When are you finally going to admit that you
love me too?”
Jasper’s heart stuttered at the angel’s confession and
question. It wasn’t the first time he’d said those words and it
wouldn’t be the last. Still, he couldn’t bear it when Reuben got
like this. All solemn and inflexible, like a Stark Steel blade
that would never yield. It wasn’t what he’d signed up for when
Reuben first approached him and asked him to come to his
place. He remained mute, knowing Reuben would take his
silence for what it was.
A rejection of his feelings.
The expression that flitted across the angel’s face as he
rose to go in the bathroom had Jasper’s stomach clenching on
a wave of self-loathing. Reuben looked resigned, like he
hadn’t actually expected an answer.
It made Jasper want to rage at him.
He knew he was being an asshole. He’d proven that
enough even before he became the director of the San
Francisco branch of Cabalista, his legendary temper and
tendency to shoot first and ask questions later earning him an
unsavory reputation over the last few hundred years.
Still, it was his skills as a warrior and his ability to lead the
men and women in his charge even under the most harrowing
of circumstances that had allowed him to climb the pecking
order of the organizations that had formed to govern the Fallen
and the human magic users who had flourished during the
Hundred Year War.
Despite his achievements, Jasper was aware he likely owed
his position as bureau director to Victor Sloan. The Fiery
demon and head of Cabalista was an old friend who had
always supported him over the centuries. Jasper wasn’t
anywhere as good at playing politics as Victor was. The few
times he’d attended formal functions to mingle with those in
power had ended with him sporting a hungover from the Nine
Hells and having to live with Victor’s teasing for days on end.
Still, he knew Victor had likely pulled some strings to get him
the job in San Francisco.
 Jasper’s heart twinged a little as Victor’s face swam before
his eyes, his unrequited affection for the powerful demon a
sore that had festered too long in his soul. To his surprise, the
pain and bitterness he always experienced when he thought of
the man he could never have had all but abated as of late.
He’d wondered if it was because Victor had finally broken
up with Cassius Black, the angel who had held the Fiery’s
attention ever since the Fall and the only man Victor had had a
long-term relationship with.
Shunned by humans and the Fallen alike for the ominous
color of his wings, Cassius was someone Jasper had loathed at
first sight. He’d known at their very first meeting that he’d
won Victor Sloan’s heart without even trying. Jasper could
only watch with helpless impotence as Victor fell deeper and
deeper in love and in lust with the beguiling angel over the
centuries that followed.
It didn’t help that Cassius’s quiet strength and calm
demeanor were the completely opposite of Jasper’s smart
mouth and brash attitude. They were like oil and water, never
meant to mix and best kept apart.
Still, Cassius was now technically his and Reuben’s ally.
The dark-winged angel had relocated to San Francisco a
couple of months back and had almost immediately become
embroiled in a battle with far reaching consequences for
humans and Fallen alike. Though Jasper still resented the
angel to some extent, Cassius had more than proven himself
when they’d fought alongside one another to handle a threat
that had almost ripped open the Nether once more.
Jasper and Cassius would never be best friends, but he
could at least tolerate the angel’s presence now.
“A penny for your thoughts?”
 Reuben’s voice stirred him from his gloomy ponderings.
His lover had finished showering and was getting dressed.
“It’s gonna cost you more than a penny for me to tell you
what I’m thinking about,” Jasper grumbled. He glanced at the
clock on the nightstand. “Aren’t you gonna be late for your
meeting?”
“No.” Reuben leaned across the bed and dropped a kiss on
Jasper’s mouth. “I’m never late for my meetings. And you
didn’t answer my question.”
Jasper narrowed his eyes a little.
He’s not thinking about flying over to his office, is he?
Even though he was the director of the Order of Rosen,
Reuben would still need special permission to use his wings in
the absence of an emergency.
The angel smiled, as if he’d read Jasper’s mind. “I’m a
good driver.”
Jasper grimaced. “I can’t believe you said that with a
straight face. You’re a menace behind the wheel.”
Reuben chuckled and pressed another kiss to his lips.
“I was thinking of Cassius,” the demon mumbled.
Reuben’s smile faded. “What about Cassius?” He
straightened and crossed his arms across his chest, his brow
furrowing.
Jasper stared, not quite sure what he was reading on his
lover’s face. His stomach flip-flopped. “Wait. Don’t tell me
you’re jealous?”
Reuben’s eyes shrank to slits. “I know he’s not your type,
so no.”
 Jasper raised an eyebrow, enjoying this game. “Who’s my
type?”
“I am.”
Jasper choked at the angel’s quiet arrogance. “Who the
heck said you were my type, asshole?!” he spluttered.
“Your body did,” Reuben said with a haughty smile.
“Multiple times. In fact, your mouth, your dick, and your hole
loudly proclaimed I was your type five times last night, never
mind the two orgasms I just gave you.” He headed into their
closet and came out with cufflinks and a tie. “Plus, you said
yes when I asked you to move in with me.”
Jasper scowled. “We moved into a new place. Don’t make
it sound like I crawled into your cage.” He watched Reuben
fumble the cufflinks and tsk-tsked. “Give it here.” He climbed
off the bed and padded over to the angel buck naked.
Reuben stilled and let him do up his cuffs. “You make a
good wife.”
Jasper punched him in the arm. “What the fuck do I see in
you?!”
“Ouch.” Reuben chuckled. “My dazzling smile and my
charming personality?” He cocked an eyebrow. “Plus, you
forget I have a dick that can satisfy your every need.” He did
his tie up and shrugged into his suit jacket while Jasper
grumbled under his breath. “By the way, Brianna messaged me
yesterday. She’s meeting up with Galliad and the others at
Occulta Saturday night. She said we should come.”
Jasper’s ill thoughts faded. “Everything got sorted with her
daughter?” he asked gruffly as he adjusted the knot in
Reuben’s tie.
 “Yeah. It’s a shame we weren’t around for the fight with
that mage, but it looks like Brianna got plenty of help from
Cassius and Morgan, as well as the Dryads.”
Morgan King was Cassius’s current lover and a powerful
Aerial angel in his own right. As for Brianna Monroe, the
director of the San Francisco Hexa bureau had been through a
turbulent time lately, after her daughter Eden ran away from
home and fell prey to a group of bloodcursed sorcerers led by
a powerful mage. Jasper and Reuben had been away on
business in Europe and had landed in San Francisco two days
after the battle ended.
“We should go to Occulta. There’s someone I want us to
check out when we’re there.”
Jasper wasn’t fooled by Reuben’s light tone. He frowned at
the angel’s broad back as he walked out of their bedroom.
This again?!

“Y OU REALIZE MY DAUGHTER IS STILL IN HIGH SCHOOL ,

right?” Brianna Monroe ground out.

Cedric Esteban bobbed his head respectfully. “Of course. I
am more than willing to wait until Eden is eighteen for us to
formally wed. We shall call it an engagement for now.”
Eden Monroe choked on air.
Charlie Lloyd smiled in his beer at their exchange.
It had been ten days since Argonaut and Hexa’s showdown
with Ouroboros and the Hartman sisters at an abandoned
amusement park on the Pacific coast. News of the epic battle
and the rumored rising of a new bloodcursed mage had already
begun to filter through the grapevine that connected the
agencies which governed the otherworldly and magic users in
San Francisco.
“Twenty!” Brianna barked.
“Twenty-five,” Malik Garcia snarled. “And after she
graduates from college.”
Eden spluttered, eyes rounding. The teenage bloodcursed
mage looked like she wanted to dig a hole and crawl right into
it. Charlie could sympathize. He had already had to stop
himself from rolling his eyes half a dozen times.
“Well, this is a surprise,” someone said coolly.
Charlie stiffened and looked over his shoulder.
Jasper Cobb and Reuben Fletcher stood next to their booth.
Jasper sneered at Morgan. “I heard you and Cassius got
your asses handed to you by a mage and her sister.”
“I see fake news spreads like wildfire,” Morgan retorted
nastily.
Reuben smiled. It didn’t quite reach his eyes. “So, it isn’t
true?”
Morgan lowered his brows.
Irritation quickened Charlie’s pulse. Though their paths
had only crossed sporadically since he’d started working for
Argonaut, Jasper and Reuben had always rubbed him the
wrong way. There was something about them that set off his
survival instincts, like prey in the presence of predators.
Besides, he’d heard enough unsavory rumors about the two
bureau directors to know he should steer clear of them.
 Reuben glanced at him. A mysterious smile flitted across
his face before his gaze shifted to Brianna.
Charlie stiffened. What the hell?!
Jasper and Reuben chatted briefly with the others before
heading for the bar.
“I still can’t believe those two are a couple,” Julia Chen
said.
“Reuben’s a saint,” Morgan muttered. His eyes found
Charlie. A resolute expression hardened his face.
Charlie’s stomach plummeted. He knew that look.
“Excuse me.” He rose and beat a hasty retreat in the
direction of the restroom before Morgan could speak.
Charlie knew the angel had been about to demand he take
the Argonaut promotion exam to level up his status as a magic
user. For reasons he couldn’t fathom, his team seemed hell
bent on him becoming a Level One enchanter.
They’d become even more zealous in their endeavors ever
since he mastered the Altered Mind box they’d seized from
Lucille Hartman and her black magic sorcerers. To Charlie’s
surprise, even Cassius had joined in their attempts to convince
him he was more than capable to rise up the ranks.
And there I thought he was the smartest one of all of us. He
sighed as he flushed the toilet. Why do they think they know my
own magic better than me?
He came out of the stall, washed and dried his hands, and
turned to find Reuben and Jasper blocking the exit. His pulse
spiked.
There was no one else in the restroom except the three of
them.
 Fuck. I didn’t hear them come in.
Charlie swallowed. He clenched his jaw in the next instant.
Wait. Why am I letting these assholes intimidate me?
“Could you move, please?” he said in a voice that came
out more steady than he thought it would.
Jasper cast an irate look at Reuben. “I really don’t know
what goes through your head at times. He’s not the solution to
our problems.”
Reuben’s gaze stayed riveted to Charlie’s face. “We don’t
have problems, Jasper. What we have is a unique situation.
One I believe he fits perfectly.”
Charlie’s heart started to race. His instincts were telling
him he should get the hell out of there.
“He’s just a scared little kid, Reuben,” Jasper grumbled.
“And I feel no attraction to him whatsoever.”
“That’s because you’ve never seen the real him,” Reuben
murmured. “Or been close enough to smell him.”
Charlie blinked. What the hell are they talking about?!
He lowered his brows. “I have no idea what’s happening
here, but I would appreciate it if you two would move your
sorry asses so I can be on my merry way. Feel free to indulge
into whatever this—” he waved a hand at them, “this is after
I’m gone.”
Jasper’s eyes darkened at his derogatory tone. A hint of
sulfur blasted out of him.
Heat bloomed in Charlie’s core as he instinctively drew on
his magic. He widened his stance and fisted his hands.
 “Word of warning,” he ground out. “I’m not as weak as
you think I am!”
He hoped they didn’t notice how hard his heart was
pounding or that he was clenching his knuckles to stop his
fingers from trembling.
Reuben’s astute gaze told the enchanter he’d noticed all
those things and more. “I don’t think you’re weak, Charlie. On
the contrary. And we’re not here to attack you. We have a…
proposition for you.”
“You mean, you have a proposition for him.” Jasper raked
Charlie with a disparaging gaze. “I have no interest in arrogant
boys still suckling at their mother’s tits.”
Ire tightened Charlie’s jawline. “Yeah, like I’m the
arrogant fucker here, dipshit!”
Jasper blinked, shocked. Reuben coughed discreetly and
masked a smile behind his hand.
Charlie cursed inwardly. Truth was, he wasn’t anywhere
the sweet, quiet guy Morgan and the rest of his team thought
he was. Sure, he got along well with all of them, but there was
one thing he tried real hard not to show them.
His true personality.
It pissed him to no end that Reuben and Jasper had
managed to provoke him enough to demonstrate what a
temperamental asshole he could be.
Reuben started toward Charlie.
Charlie stiffened and took a step back.
Reuben halted. “I’m not going to hurt you, Charlie.”
Charlie swallowed, annoyed with himself at his reaction.
 Though Reuben hadn’t done anything to earn his distrust,
he felt super self-conscious in his presence. His skin prickled
when Reuben stopped in front of him. The angel had a few
good inches on him and he had to tilt his head to meet his
gaze.
His breath stuttered.
He’d never been this close to Reuben before. The angel’s
eyes weren’t just blue. They were a stunning Aegean that
reminded him of a tumultuous sea. And they were boring into
him like they could see straight through his soul.
A slow heat coiled through Charlie’s veins. His gaze
dropped to Reuben’s mouth.
His mind screamed Danger!
His body ignored it.
The angel’s lips moved, forming words he barely heard
above the rush of blood in his ears.
Charlie blinked dazedly. “What?”
Reuben’s lips twitched in amusement. “I said, could I see
your phone?”
Charlie had to think for a second. He fished his cell out of
his back pocket, fumbled, and almost dropped it.
Jasper sneered. “Butter fingers.”
“No one’s talking to you, shithead,” Charlie snapped.
The demon scowled. Charlie resisted the urge to stick his
tongue out at him.
Reuben looked like he was enjoying their exchange. His
fingers touched Charlie’s when he took the device from him.
Electricity lit Charlie’s skin. A shiver of dread and excitement
skittered down his spine.
Reuben pretended not to notice his blatant response to his
touch and brought up his contact list. He typed in an address.
“Why don’t you come over for a chat tomorrow night? Say
six?”
He leaned in and slipped Charlie’s phone in his back
pocket, so close their chests brushed. Charlie’s breath hitched
as ozone and a smell he couldn’t fathom flooded his nostrils.
His cock twitched when Reuben’s fingers skimmed his ass.
He exhaled shakily, arousal slamming into him hard.
Reuben grew deathly still. Jasper straightened where he’d
been leaning against the far wall, his gaze fastening on Charlie
like a laser. Crimson flared in his dilating pupils.
Charlie froze.
He didn’t need to be a genius to realize he now held
Reuben and Jasper’s undivided attention. And that the angel
and the demon were staring at him like he was dessert.
His instincts screamed at him to run.
The air thickened with a delicious mix of ozone and sulfur.
The scent locked Charlie’s limbs in place and made his belly
spasm on a wave of lust. He fisted his hands.
What’s happening to me?!
Reuben lowered his head. His hot breath washed along
Charlie’s throat. Charlie trembled. He couldn’t stop himself
from tilting his chin to grant the angel access to his skin.
A low growl of approval rumbled from Reuben’s chest. He
inhaled deeply and shuddered. “Jesus, you smell divine!”
 He moved, his lips a hairbreadth from Charlie’s jawline.
Charlie’s heart thundered as he met the angel’s searing
gaze. All he had to do was turn his head and their mouths
would meet. His chest rose and fell heavily with his ragged
breathing.
This is crazy. I should push him away!
Reuben’s eyes darkened. “The feelings you have for
Morgan will never be returned.”
The angel’s words jolted Charlie out of the lustful spell
he’d fallen under as effectively as a bucket of icy water. He
recoiled, shock and anger rallying inside him. Reuben grasped
the back of his head with a hand and his hip with the other,
immobilizing him.
Charlie pressed his hands against the angel’s chest, his face
hot. “What the fuck do you mean?!”
He might as well have tried to move a mountain for all the
effect he had on Reuben.
“One only needs to watch the way you look at Morgan to
know you like him,” Reuben observed.
Though the angel’s words were cool, his touch was not.
And it wasn’t pity Charlie was reading in his eyes.
“Don’t worry,” Reuben murmured. “Only people who have
an…interest in you would notice.”
Charlie clenched his jaw. He couldn’t deny Reuben’s
words. Not when the angel could so easily read him.
His feelings for Morgan were…complicated. He’d blamed
them on a crush at first, certain the way his stomach fluttered
and his pulse quickened whenever he was around the beguiling
Aerial would soon be a thing of the past. Angels and demons
were stunning creatures after all and many a human had fallen
for their charms over the centuries since the Fall.
But when he started dreaming about Morgan. When he
woke up with his bedsheets drenched in cum and his cock hard
at the thought of the angel, he knew he was in trouble.
Because what he felt for Morgan wasn’t simple lust. His
desires were twisted. Dark. Perverse. They were so depraved
he knew he would shock Morgan if he described every
obscene sexual act he’d fantasized about over the years he’d
known him.
He didn’t just want Morgan to make love to him. He
wanted to be possessed. To be dominated. To experience total,
humbling submission. He wanted to be broken and made
whole again. To hurt and to come so hard his mind would
shatter and he wouldn’t be able to think for hours. He wanted
to be fucked raw and defiled in every way a man could
desecrate another man.
“What I can offer you.” Reuben glanced at Jasper. “What
we can offer you, is something different. It won’t be
conventional by any means. But I think it will satisfy all of our
mutual…needs.”
Charlie’s stomach fluttered at the banked heat in the
angel’s eyes. He stared, certain he knew what Reuben was
saying but wanting him to spell it out nonetheless.
“I—what do you mean?”
Reuben saw through his lie. He brought his lips to his ear.
“You know exactly what I mean, Charlie.”
Charlie shuddered as the angel’s hot breath skimmed his
flesh.
 Jasper approached. His nostrils flared and his head moved
like he was scenting Charlie. The light in his eyes deepened to
a rich vermillion. He walked around them, a predator stalking
his prey.
Charlie trembled when he felt the demon at his back, his
heat scorching him even though they weren’t touching.
Jasper’s breath ghosted his nape as he inhaled deeply. “Is
this what you meant by he fits us?”
Reuben dipped his chin at the demon’s low growl, his gaze
still locked on Charlie’s.
Confusion clouded Charlie’s mind, dampening the insane
hunger coursing through him. “What—what is he talking
about?!”
Reuben raised a hand and stroked Charlie’s lower lip with
his thumb.
“He means your scent.”
Charlie stilled, his attention captivated by Reuben’s touch.
His flesh tingled and throbbed, as if he’d stuck his finger in an
electric socket.
“Did you know animals can pick out compatible mates by
smell alone?” the angel said huskily.
Charlie blinked. Mates?!
“It’s how demons and angels select humans to share their
bed with.” Reuben smiled tightly. “Not just any human will
do, Charlie. So, how about I give you a taste of what could be
yours?”
Charlie’s eyes widened at his words. Then Reuben’s mouth
was on his.
 Need. It stormed Charlie’s senses, so sudden he shivered
and gasped. Reuben explored his lips thoroughly before
sweeping inside his mouth. Charlie moaned at the dizzying
sensation of the angel’s tongue lashing against his. His hands
found Reuben’s shoulders, his fingers digging in demandingly.
Jasper clasped Charlie’s hips and pulled him against his
body, chest to back, crotch to butt. Charlie panted when he felt
the thick ridge of the demon’s erection probe his cleft. Jasper
tilted Charlie’s neck to the side and went to town on the pulse
beating frantically there with his mouth, his fingers roaming
Charlie’s ass and hips in exploratory sweeps before working
their way up his sides to his chest.
Charlie’s cock jerked out a sliver of precum as the angel
and demon kissed and touched him with a possessiveness that
scorched his sanity.
The scent of his arousal seemed to drive them crazy.
Their kisses became desperate. Their touch rough.
It was as if they wanted to rip him apart and consume his
flesh.
And damn if Charlie didn’t want them to do just that.
The angel and the demon’s fingers met on his chest. His
abs. His ass. A ragged moan danced up his throat when they
pinched and tugged his nipples. Jasper worked his hardened
nubs while Reuben dropped his hands lower. The angel trailed
a finger down Charlie’s erection and swallowed his cry with a
passionate groan.
Then he was pushing them across the room to the wall.
Jasper grunted as he slammed back first in the tiled
surface. His hands never left Charlie’s body and neither did his
lips. The sound of a buckle being undone and a zipper yanked
down registered dimly on Charlie’s dazed mind as the demon
drove him out of his mind with his touch and mouth.
Cool air washed across his naked cock. It was replaced by
the scalding depths of Reuben’s mouth as the angel dropped to
his knees and swallowed his erection in one fell swoop, his
face taut with lust.
Charlie whimpered, overwhelmed by everything that was
happening to him. He wasn’t a virgin by any means. But this?
This right here?
This was straight out of his filthiest fantasies. And it felt
just as good as he’d thought it would.
No! His hips jerked as Reuben sucked his dick with
powerful contractions of his jaw, the first wave of his orgasm
dancing across his nerve endings. This feels—Oh God! It feels
ten times better!
He weaved his fingers in Reuben’s hair and started
thrusting, helpless to stop his body’s instincts to rut. The angel
made an approving sound and caressed his twitching balls.
Jasper cupped Charlie’s jaw and twisted his head to the
side so he could take his lips. Charlie expected him to be
rough. And he was, at the start. Then his mouth gentled.
Softened. Grew probing.
Charlie trembled when he tasted sulfur on Jasper’s tongue.
There was something else there. A flavor he couldn’t define.
One that had his hand rising to clasp Jasper’s hair so he could
lock their mouths together and explore it to his heart’s content.
The demon’s hooded eyes turned to crimson pools that
would devour him, just like his lips and tongue were
threatening to swallow him whole. Gone was the scornful man
who had insulted him earlier.
 This demon wanted to fuck him, just like the angel whose
mouth he was filling with his cock.
Sweat beaded Charlie’s face as a savage tension tightened
his spine. His thrusts became erratic, the slick sound of his
cock sliding through Reuben’s lips only serving to heighten his
pleasure.
Jasper swallowed his shout when he went rigid and
climaxed seconds later. Reuben gulped greedily, his tongue
and lips lashing Charlie’s dick hotly as he ejaculated in his
mouth.
It took a while for awareness to return. Charlie panted
heavily as he finally emerged from the blinding heights his
orgasm had taken him to, his body twitching with aftershocks
of pleasure.
Did that—did that just happen?!
One look at Reuben’s satisfied expression and the hungry
light in Jasper’s eyes told him he hadn’t imagined the mind
numbing act they’d just performed together.
Someone banged on the restroom door, startling him.
“Hey, everything okay in there?”
“Ye—yeah!” Charlie said in a strangled voice.
“Everything’s peachy!”
“That was more than just peachy, kid,” Jasper muttered
against his neck.
Reuben rose, tucked Charlie’s dick back in his pants, and
zipped him up.
“Six o’clock tomorrow. I’ll make dinner.”
 Then he and Jasper were gone. Charlie sagged against the
wall, his breathing still uneven. A couple of wizards came in,
their gazes trailing over their shoulders as they watched the
bureau directors leave. They halted when they saw Charlie.
One of them frowned. “You sure you’re okay, kid?”
Charlie swallowed and nodded jerkily, too overcome with
emotion to berate the man for calling him a kid. The wizard
glanced at his companion and shrugged.
Charlie looked at the mirror filling the width of the wall to
his right, wondering what it was about his expression that had
given them cause for concern. His stomach flip-flopped.
His cheeks were flushed and his eyes wild. Blood pounded
heavily in his veins and his tingling cock at the naked lust in
his gaze.
He had the look of a man who’d just been thoroughly
fucked.
Charlie raised a trembling hand to his swollen lips. He
shivered.
The heat of Reuben and Jasper’s kisses was still there.
It hadn’t been a dream after all.

I MUST BE CRAZY .

Charlie rested his forehead on his knuckles where he

clutched the steering wheel of his Volvo. The memory of last
night’s sensual encounter danced across his inner vision in
graphic technicolor detail once more, like it had done a
hundred times already since yesterday.
 He still couldn’t believe Reuben had blown him. Or that
Jasper would likely have fucked him senseless if they hadn’t
been interrupted. Somehow, he sensed the demon wouldn’t
have been half as gentle as Reuben had been with him.
And damn if that doesn’t turn me on.
Charlie looked accusingly at his erection.
He’d been in state of near permanent arousal since he’d
left Occulta last night. Even masturbating several times hadn’t
relieved the restless ache in his belly and balls.
Which was why he was parked in a private garage beneath
the exclusive Marina District apartment complex housing
Reuben and Jasper’s condo, about to walk in the lion’s den
like a meek, sacrificial lamb.
Well, not entirely meek.
He’d surmised from Reuben’s words that the angel and the
demon wanted to have a threesome with him. He was willing
to grant them their wish, if only for one night.
Charlie took a shaky breath, climbed out of his car, and
headed for the elevator before he could change his mind. He
came out on the tenth floor and checked out the thick expanse
of black carpet leading to the pair of imposing, gray double
doors at the far end.
A wry grimace twisted his lips as he made his way over to
them.
Of course, their apartment takes up the entire top two
floors of this building.
His pulse quickened when he stopped in front of the
condo. He wiped sweaty palms on his chinos and pressed the
bell.
 Jasper opened the door seconds later.
Charlie’s mouth went dry.
The demon was wearing a teal shirt that matched his eyes,
dark, faded jeans, and a scent that immediately sparked
Charlie’s nerve endings.
“What?” Jasper said suspiciously.
Charlie lowered his brows. “I was gonna tell you you look
nice, but I guess I won’t since you’re being a dick.” He barged
past him and shoved the bottle of wine he’d brought in the
startled demon’s hands.
Jasper blinked. “Oh.” He closed the door. “Er, thanks.” His
appreciative gaze skimmed Charlie’s black shirt and cream
chinos. “You scrub up nice yourself.”
Charlie blinked. He pinched his own arm. “Ow.”
Jasper stared at him like he’d lost his mind. “What the
heck did you do that for?”
Charlie wrinkled his nose. “I wanted to check I wasn’t
dreaming just now.”
Jasper’s brows met. “You’re a prickly little shit, aren’t
you?”
“Takes one to know one,” Charlie retorted.
“Well, wonders will never cease,” someone drawled.
Charlie looked around. Reuben was crossing the foyer
barefoot. He wore a gray dress shirt that highlighted his fair
hair and pale trousers that hugged long, powerful legs.
“I think that’s the second time I’ve ever heard Jasper
compliment someone,” the angel said with a smile that made
Charlie’s pulse quicken.
 The demon scowled at his lover. “Shut up.”
“Dinner will be ready in a bit,” Reuben said, unfazed.
“Why don’t you pour us some of that wine, Jas?”
Jasper grumbled and led the way through their condo, the
tips of his ears reddening slightly at the pet name. Charlie bit
his lip to stop himself from smiling. Somehow, dinner with the
angel and the demon didn’t seem half as daunting as it had
been minutes ago.
He looked around curiously as he followed them. He’d
imagined Reuben and Jasper’s place to be austere and
minimalistic. It was anything but. Though the apartment was
built along clean, modern lines, the furnishings were rich and
eclectic, the sophisticated color tones projecting a masculine
warmth that made it clear the condo wasn’t just a house but
very much a home for the two powerful otherwordly who
occupied it.
Charlie accepted the glass of wine Jasper offered him.
“When did you guys move in here?”
“A year ago.” Reuben cocked his head at Jasper. “It took
some time to convince him it was a good idea for us to live
together.”
“Yeah, well, you’re still on probation,” the demon
muttered, taking a sip of his wine.
Charlie couldn’t help but study the strong column of his
throat as he swallowed. He caught Reuben watching him and
shifted his gaze, embarrassed.
“You can look all you want, Charlie,” the angel said
quietly.
Charlie stiffened. Jasper shot Reuben an ambivalent look.
 Charlie became convinced then that this had all been
Reuben’s idea and that the demon was merely tagging along to
indulge his lover. A pang of disappointment darted through
him at that thought. He blinked, startled.
Since when do I want this jackass’s attention?
The jackass arched an eyebrow as Charlie stared at him.
“Like what you see, kid?” he taunted.
“Bar that sassy mouth of yours, yeah, I like what I see,
demon.”
Jasper stilled at his blunt riposte. His pupils expanded, the
dark depths filling with a crimson light.
The air thickened with sexual tension.
Reuben’s chuckle broke the fraught moment. “How about
we save that for after dessert?”
Charlie swallowed, able to breathe again.
Reuben’s presence made him hyper aware. But Jasper’s?
There was something about the demon that knotted his
insides and scraped his nerves raw. He’d thought it was
because he disliked him. But now, he wasn’t so sure.
The two of them were alike. Much more alike than he’d
ever care to admit.
“What are you making?” Charlie asked distractedly. He
joined Reuben at the range.
“We’re having foie gras with caramelized pears and a
balsamic sauce for appetizers, and seared duck breasts with a
cherry glaze and Belgian endives for our main course.”
Charlie’s mouth watered as he watched the angel put the
finishing touches to a meal worthy of a Michelin star
restaurant.
“Oh, and Jasper made chocolate truffle cake for dessert,”
Reuben added with a warm smile.
Charlie froze, his wine glass halfway to his lips. His wide-
eyed gaze found the demon where the latter rested his hip
against the counter next to Reuben.
“You bake?”
Jasper crossed his arms at Charlie’s shocked tone. “Yeah, I
bake. So what?”
Charlie bit his tongue.
Jasper scowled. “Are you laughing?”
“No,” Charlie choked out.
Reuben’s shoulders trembled.
“Stop it!” Jasper punched the angel lightly in the arm.
Charlie couldn’t help himself. He burst out laughing.
The angel and the demon stared, surprised. Their
expressions turned more heated as they watched him.
Charlie wiped his eyes. “What?”
Reuben cleared his throat. “Your scent. It seems it gets
stronger when you experience a strong emotion.”
Charlie sobered. “Oh.” He squinted at them warily. “We’re
still eating, right?”
“We’re not animals who can’t control ourselves,” Jasper
scoffed.
Charlie’s gaze dropped. He arched an eyebrow. “Your
erection says otherwise.”
 “Let’s eat,” Reuben said brightly as Jasper narrowed his
eyes.
The food was as delectable as Charlie thought it would be.
Though a hint of sensual tension still danced between the three
of them, they made light conversation as they ate. To his
surprise, Charlie found the topics stimulating and he ended up
talking far more than he normally would when in company.
It wasn’t until they’d finished dessert and retired to the
lounge with their coffees that Charlie finally remembered why
he was there in the first place. He walked over to the glass
wall spanning the length of the room and stared out at the bay
to calm his nerves.
“This is some view,” he muttered.
The Golden Gate Bridge rose to his left, its lights painting
an orange glow across the dark waters beneath.
“It is,” Reuben concurred.
The angel was sitting on a wine-red Chesterfield chair.
Jasper perched on the armrest, a hand draped possessively
across his lover’s shoulder as they both watched Charlie.
Charlie’s pulse quickened. He finished his drink, took the
seat opposite them, and put his empty cup on a side table. He
leaned his elbows on his knees and folded his hands together
before taking a shallow breath.
“One night.”
Reuben blinked. “Pardon?”
Charlie’s fingers clenched. He forced himself to meet their
stares unblinkingly. “If you want a threesome, I’ll give you
one night.”
 A strange look came over Jasper. He seemed almost…
disappointed.
Reuben cocked his head to the side. “I think you’re
misunderstanding something, Charlie. What we want isn’t just
one night with you.” He stroked Jasper’s thigh.
Charlie’s gaze focused on his long, strong fingers. He
couldn’t help but wonder how they would feel on his body.
It took a moment for the angel’s words to register.
“What?” He blinked, his confused gaze swinging between
the two men. “What do you mean?”
It was Reuben’s turn to rest his elbows on his knees. He
steepled his hands under his chin.
“We require something more…permanent.”
Charlie flinched. “But—why?!” he blurted. “The two of
you are perfect together. Why would you need a third person
in your relationship?!”
Reuben stilled. Jasper’s eyes widened.
“You think we’re perfect?” the demon asked stiltedly.
“Well, yeah.” Charlie waved a hand. “You’re the grumpy
asshole and he’s the saint. You’re salt, he’s sugar. You
complement one another, like a thorn does a rose.”
Jasper’s mouth thinned. “I don’t know whether to thank
you or smack you right now.”
Reuben stayed quiet, his eyes full of a nameless emotion.
“I love Jasper,” he finally admitted with a candidness that
shocked Charlie. “And he loves me, however much he may
deny it.”
 A muscle twitched in the demon’s jawline. The angel
ignored his vexed look.
“There’s something he needs that I can’t give him.”
Reuben paused. “Something we both need to make this
relationship…perfect, like you say. We want to see if you’re
the third piece of our puzzle.”
Charlie’s heart pounded heavily against his ribs as he
digested Reuben’s words. He couldn’t quite believe his ears.
After all, what could he possibly offer them?
He didn’t realize he’d said the words out loud until Reuben
replied.
“You’re someone who can tame Jasper’s rough edges.
Who can make him less scared of expressing the softer side of
him. And his dominance.”
Jasper recoiled as if he’d been slapped. “Wait! What do
you—?!”
“You know what I mean, Jas,” Reuben said in a tired
voice. “I told you you could fuck me but you still refuse. It
will take more than my mouth to satisfy your rut.”
The demon opened his lips to voice a protest. He faltered
and lapsed into a frustrated silence.
“As for me, I will gain pleasure from watching the two of
you together,” the angel told Charlie.
Charlie flushed. He was annoyed all of a sudden and he
didn’t even know why. “You mean, you won’t participate? You
just want to sit there like some kind of voyeur and look on as
Jasper fucks me?!”
His anger wasn’t lost on Reuben.
 The angel smiled tightly. “Oh, I’ll participate alright. In
fact, I would like both of us to take you.” He arched an
eyebrow. “At the same time.” He paused as Charlie drew a
sharp breath. “That’s if you’re up to it, of course. We would
never do anything without your consent.”
Charlie’s mouth dried. His hole clenched.
He’d never experienced a double penetration. The thought
to taking two cocks inside his ass, let alone that of the angel
and the demon before him, should have scared him senseless
and had him bolting out of their apartment.
Yet he found he couldn’t move. Didn’t want to move.
What Reuben was suggesting and Jasper seemed very
much on board with despite his wavering look from earlier
was exactly the kind of sexual fantasies he’d indulged in. He
knew instinctively that they would break him and satisfy him
in ways he’d only ever dreamt of. That the pleasure and pain
he would experience in their arms would soothe his hungry,
twisted soul.
Charlie swallowed and closed his eyes.
I must be certifiably insane to even be entertaining this—
this craziness!
He opened his eyes to find Reuben and Jasper watching
him, bodies as still as stone. What he read on their faces had
him voicing an answer he never thought he could give.
“Yes,” he breathed. “I would like that too.”
Reuben blew out a soft sigh. Jasper’s hand clenched on the
angel’s shoulder, his eyes darkening with what looked like
relief.
 Charlie blinked. He hadn’t realized they’d been so tense. It
gave him a taste of the power he had over them. A power that
made his cock throb and his ass ache.
“How about I start the show?” Reuben said.
Charlie stared, confused.
The angel raised a hand to the back of Jasper’s head and
brought him down for a kiss.
Charlie’s cock immediately hardened as he watched the
two men’s mouths meet hungrily. Their scents swirled around
him, mesmerizing currents that robbed him of the ability to
form a coherent thought.
Jasper stood and started to strip. Fire lit the depths of his
eyes as he locked gazes with Charlie.
Charlie’s breathing accelerated when the demon was
completely naked.
Jasper was beautiful. His golden skin was toned to
perfection and his every muscle sharply defined, as if a God
himself had sculpted his body into existence. The sight of his
cock had Charlie swallowing a curse.
He was long and thick, the silky surface of his shaft ridged
with veins that pulsed. Jasper flashed him a mocking smile,
like he’d read his mind. He climbed on Reuben’s lap and
kissed the angel.
Blood pounded in Charlie’s skull as he watched the two
make out. Reuben’s hands caressed and kneaded Jasper
everywhere. His chest. His nipples. His abs. His back. His taut
ass. His thighs. He knew exactly where to touch the demon to
make him shiver and groan.
 Reuben clasped Jasper’s cock and started rubbing him
briskly. Jasper cursed and dropped his face on his lover’s
shoulder, hips rolling powerfully to thrust his erection through
the fingers pleasuring him. Reuben flashed a heated look at
Charlie over Jasper’s shoulder.
“Remember all his good spots.”
Charlie swallowed and bobbed his head jerkily, his cock
doing press-ups behind his zipper.
This was hands down the hottest thing he’d ever seen.
He knew now why Reuben wanted to watch Jasper fuck
him. It was sexy and sinful and so titillating he could come
just from looking at them.
Reuben slicked his fingers with Jasper’s precum and
dipped them inside his cleft. Charlie shuddered as the angel
spread his lover’s ass open, exposing his hole. Jasper arched
and thrust his cock against Reuben’s abdomen, making a mess
of his shirt.
“Your fingers!” The demon clutched the back of the chair
with his hands. “I want them inside me!” he ground out.
Reuben complied, like he’d been waiting for the rough
command.
A buzzing sound filled Charlie’s ears as he watched
Reuben slip three fingers inside Jasper. The demon’s hole
swallowed the thick digits greedily. Shudders shook him as he
started riding the angel’s hand.
Reuben let him pleasure himself for a minute before taking
his fingers out.
Charlie felt Jasper’s moan of protest to his core.
 The demon climbed off Reuben, like he was used to this
game. The angel undid his zipper and freed his erection, color
high on his cheekbones.
Charlie almost swallowed his tongue.
Reuben was even bigger than the demon.
“Turn around, Jas,” he ordered silkily.
Jasper twisted on his heels. His pupils were scarlet pools of
lust as he met Charlie’s eyes, his lips parted on excited pants.
He gave himself a few brisk rubs, his engorged cock dripping
precum on the hardwood floor.
Reuben clasped Jasper’s waist and sat him back down on
his lap. He worked his large hands under the back of the
demon’s knees and lifted him over his dick.
An incoherent sound left Jasper as Reuben impaled him,
the angel’s thick shaft stretching his hole deliciously open until
he was in to the hilt. Reuben buried his face in the side of
Jasper’s neck, his cheeks flushed and his eyes bright with
desire. He sank his teeth in the demon’s flesh and started
thrusting.
Jasper clutched the arm rests with white-knuckled hands,
his erection jerking and slapping against his belly as Reuben
pounded his ass. His mouth opened on low, guttural grunts that
raised goosebumps on Charlie’s skin and sent a prickle of pure
need down his spine.
Charlie couldn’t look away from the wicked act being
performed before him. From Reuben’s hard length ramming
Jasper’s body. From the demon’s spasming entrance and his
proud, leaking erection. Lust twisted his belly.
He wanted it to be him. He wanted to be the one being
fucked right now.
 Jasper. Reuben. Both of them. He didn’t care.
He just yearned to be filled to the brim and taken hard and
fast until he screamed in pain and pleasure.
Charlie palmed his erection through his chinos and bit his
lip hard when he felt the slickness of his precum. He was
soaking wet.
Jasper’s glazed eyes found his. Even Reuben stared at
Charlie as he fucked the demon, the seraphic glow lighting his
pupils pulsing with every roll of his hips.
Charlie was on his feet before he realized what he was
doing. He closed the distance to the two men in a couple of
strides, clutched Jasper’s face, and leaned down to kiss him.
Jasper groaned. His gaze grew hooded as Charlie pushed
inside his mouth. He welcomed him with relish, his pants of
pleasure washing over Charlie’s tongue.
“Touch him,” Reuben ordered, voice thick and slurred with
passion.
Charlie ran his hands down Jasper’s throat to his chest. He
wrenched his mouth free, dropped to his knees, and sucked
Jasper’s right nipple in his mouth.
Jasper stiffened. His breath hitched and his head dropped
back against Reuben’s shoulder.
Charlie lavished the demon’s hard nubs with his fingers
and lips and tongue and teeth before working his way down
his six-pack and his quivering abs. The musky scent of
Jasper’s precum filled his nostrils as he drew level with his
throbbing cock. He trailed his nails up and down the demon’s
twitching shaft and flicked the leaking slit with the tip of his
tongue.
 Jasper jerked. “Fuck!”
Charlie took his time exploring his length before taking
him in his mouth. He wrapped his tongue along the demon’s
impossible girth and started sucking, his heart pounding and
his own dick so full and tight he felt he would explode at any
second.
Jasper moaned and gasped as he was thoroughly pleasured
front and back. Charlie’s jaws ached as he swallowed the
demon steadily into the velvety depths of his throat. Jasper
smelled like sin and tasted like Heaven, his precum so
intoxicating Charlie could happily suck him for days.
Reuben’s fingers bit into the demon’s thighs as he
accelerated his thrusts.
Charlie matched him beat for beat, his head bobbing
aggressively as he deep-throated Jasper.
Jasper grasped Charlie’s hair. “I’m gonna come!”
Charlie resisted the demon’s attempt to pull him off.
“He can take it, Jas.” Reuben’s gaze met Charlie’s. “Just
come.”
“But he doesn’t know—!” Jasper’s breath locked as
Charlie cupped his trembling balls and squeezed.
His mouth opened on a silent scream as he climaxed.
Charlie gulped and swallowed the hot cum flooding his
mouth and throat. Jasper groaned and hissed as he convulsed,
his dick throbbing with violent pulses. His seed soon spilled
out of Charlie’s overfull mouth. Charlie let go and cradled the
demon’s jerking shaft in a gentle hand as he continued
ejaculating, his pulse racing.
Is this what Jasper meant?!
 “A demon’s orgasm can last over a minute,” Reuben
confirmed. “That’s only if they’ve been pleasured well.” He
pressed soft kisses to Jasper’s nape.
Charlie did the same to Jasper’s mouth as his release
stormed through him. The demon finally relaxed in their arms.
He blinked sweat out of his eyes and looked at the cum filling
Charlie’s palm and spilling onto the floor.
“You should—you should clean your hand,” he mumbled.
“I will.” Charlie wiped a slick lock of hair from Jasper’s
brow and gazed into his beautiful eyes. “That was delicious.”
The demon’s pupils rounded, the fading redness in the dark
depths flaring to life once more.
“I could suck you for hours,” Charlie confessed, a little
shocked at his bluntness.
Somehow, it felt important that they be honest with one
another.
“Is that a promise?” Jasper said gruffly.
Charlie smirked. Reuben pulled out of Jasper and wiped
the demon intimately with some tissues before cleaning
Charlie’s hands.
Charlie stared, his heart thumping. The angel was still rock
hard.
Reuben smiled at his expression. “Let’s go to the
bedroom.”
They headed upstairs and down a corridor to a large,
masculine room with double aspect views over the bay and the
bridge. Charlie’s breathing accelerated when he saw the huge
bed dominating the hardwood floor. He spotted an elegant
closet and a luxurious bathroom to his right and eyed the tall
mirrors dotting the walls.
Reuben let Charlie go and headed over to an arm chair. He
stripped, dropped his clothes on the floor, and sat down. He
focused a heated stare upon them, his hand dropping to his
erection where it jutted proudly from his trimmed pubes.
Charlie dragged his hungry gaze from the angel’s stunning
body and watched Jasper approach, his pulse racing.

C HARLIE ’ S EYES WERE GUNMETAL GRAY POOLS OF LUST J ASPER

could easily drown into. Color painted his cheekbones a dull
pink and his lips were parted on shallow pants. Jasper didn’t
have to look down to see how turned on the enchanter was.
He could smell it.
The same intoxicating scent that had had his cock
hardening in an instant in the restroom in Occulta last night, to
his everlasting surprise. His belly clenched.
He could make out a faint waft of cedar that marked
Charlie as one possessing enchantment magic. But there was
something else. Something sweet and tart. Something that was
pure Charlie. And it had his blood boiling with desire all over
again despite the fact that he’d just been thoroughly serviced.
Having Reuben take him while Charlie watched was a
sensual experience that would live with him for a long time.
He wasn’t a stranger to the most perverse debauchery. There
were things he’d seen in the Hells that would make the most
hardened whore blush. Yet, the encounter just now still made
his ass twitch and his cock throb.
 It seems Reuben is truly far more discerning when it comes
to these things.
Jasper stopped in front of Charlie. The enchanter raised his
chin and met his gaze unflinchingly.
“Are you scared?” the demon asked gruffly.
Charlie blinked. “Should I be?”
Jasper bit back a smile. Sassy little thing.
Truth be told, he enjoyed their repartee. There were not
many people who could engage with him as wittily as Charlie
could. The enchanter clearly didn’t like backing down from a
challenge.
Jasper raised a hand and trailed a knuckle down Charlie’s
cheek to his mouth. “I could easily hurt you, you know.” He
pressed his thumb in Charlie’s lower lip, grinding the soft flesh
against his lower teeth.
“I don’t mind if you hurt me.” Though his words were
brazen, Charlie’s voice quavered a little.
Something loosened in Jasper’s chest at the hint of
vulnerability in the enchanter’s tone. A tightness he hadn’t
been aware of.
He blinked as a shocking truth resonated through him.
He didn’t just want to fuck the man in front of him.
Jasper wanted to protect Charlie. To cherish him.
He shivered when the enchanter’s tongue darted out to
taste him.
Then his hands were on Charlie’s face and he was crushing
their mouths together.
 Charlie responded immediately, his lips parting to
welcome Jasper’s demanding tongue. His gaze grew hooded.
He grabbed Jasper’s hips and pulled him closer. Pleasure
dilated his pupils as he ground their erections together.
Jasper hastily unbuttoned Charlie’s shirt and stripped it off
his shoulders and down his arms, his fingers trembling so
powerful was his need to take him. Charlie’s chinos and
boxers followed. He tumbled Charlie down on the cool satin
sheets, their mouths meeting again and again, lips and tongues
entangling messily.
Jasper grasped Charlie’s wrists and yanked his arms above
his head before lowering his full weight upon the enchanter.
Charlie groaned, clearly enjoying the sensation of their flesh
making contact even as he sank into the mattress. His thighs
dropped open, welcoming Jasper in the cradle of his body.
The hot stickiness of his precum slicked Jasper’s belly.
The demon shuddered, the enchanter’s beguiling scent
flooding his nostrils.
Shit! I want to enter him right now!
But he couldn’t do that just yet. Plus, they needed to give
Reuben a show.
Jasper glanced over at his lover and found him stroking the
solid length of his cock at a leisurely pace. Reuben’s hungry
gaze pierced him. The demon shuddered.
The angel had been right. They both needed this.
Charlie freed his wrists and clutched Jasper’s face. “Fuck
me!” He nipped at Jasper’s lip, his touch urgent.
Jasper gnashed his teeth. “Not yet.” He addressed Reuben.
“How about you tie him up?”
 Charlie gasped when Reuben unleashed his Aerial powers
and bound his wrists to the bed posts with fetters of wind. His
hot gaze moved from Jasper to the angel and back. His hips
jerked and his flushed cock throbbed out a jet of precum.
“I want to come!”
It took everything Jasper had to hang on to his self-control
then. He could tell how badly Charlie’s arousal was affecting
Reuben too from the way his breathing had turned fast and
shallow.
Jasper kissed Charlie before he could say something that
would make them both lose their composure. Charlie moaned
lustfully in his mouth.
The demon roamed his hands down the enchanter’s throat
and across his chest, exploring muscles and skin much
different from his own and Reuben’s. Charlie wasn’t skinny by
any means, nor was he brawny.
He was just…
Perfect.
Jasper’s lips and tongue followed the path his fingers had
taken, strangely humbled by that thought. He kissed, licked,
bit, and tugged Charlie’s nipples, relishing the way he
trembled and shuddered and groaned in his arms. By the time
he traced Charlie’s cock with teasing fingers, precum had
pooled on the enchanter’s tense belly and he looked like he
would detonate at any second.
“Hurry!” Charlie’s knuckles whitened as he fisted his
hands.
Jasper flashed him a savage smile, grabbed a couple of
objects from the nightstand, and lay face down on the bed. He
slicked his fingers with lube, hooked Charlie’s right thigh over
his shoulder, and swallowed one of his balls in his mouth.
Charlie cursed.
Jasper dipped his hand under his twitching sac and found
his pucker.
Charlie tensed and trembled. Jasper played with his taut
folds before slipping a finger inside, his lips and tongue
teasing the enchanter’s cock with powerful sucks and flicks.
“Ah! Yes!” Charlie started squirming and thrusting.
Soon. Soon, I’ll eat his hole and fuck his ass with my
tongue!
Jasper’s cock throbbed deliciously at that thought. He took
Charlie’s shaft inside his mouth and started blowing him at the
same time he pushed a second finger in him. Charlie’s
entrance spasmed around him. His hole slowly relaxed.
Jasper pushed a third finger inside.
“Oh!” Charlie clenched his passage hard. “That feels—that
feels good!”
Blood pounded in Jasper’s ears and his cock as he started
finger fucking the enchanter. He couldn’t wait to sink his dick
inside him.
Charlie’s pants and moans and cries filled the room as he
danced on the bed, hips undulating to drive his cock in
Jasper’s mouth at the same time he squeezed his fingers
greedily with his ass. His scent deepened as he neared his
climax.
“Coming!” He squeezed his eyes shut, his knuckles
whitening as he dug his nails in his palms where Reuben still
held him captive. “Oh God! I’m—!”
 A strangled sound left him when Jasper pulled off his cock
and removed his fingers from his ass.
“What—?!”
He blinked dazedly as Jasper slipped a rubber ring on his
erection and pushed the beaded stick attached to it inside his
engorged shaft.

C HARLIE ’ S BREATH LOCKED IN HIS THROAT AS FIRE LICKED HIS

cock inside and out. He stared at the toy as Jasper’s tongue
traced a slick path from his root to his plugged off tip.
The demon flashed him a dirty smile. “You’re not allowed
to ejaculate until we tell you to.”
Fuck!
A feverish excitement sent Charlie’s heart thundering in
his chest. He gasped when the shackles of wind holding him
prisoner maneuvered him on the bed. He found himself on his
hands and knees near the edge of the mattress.
His eyes rounded when Jasper crowded his back, parted
his ass, and pushed the head of his cock inside his hole.
“Ah!”
A buzzing sound filled Charlie’s ears as Jasper penetrated
him, the exquisite sting and burn making him bite his lip.
The demon was big.
He jerked and twitched when Jasper punched against his
swollen prostate. Pleasure stormed him in violent waves.
Charlie cried out as his erection throbbed and his ass
contracted with strong spasms.
 Jasper cursed when Charlie’s passage sucked him in to the
hilt. “Jesus, you’re tight! Your hole is gonna bite my dick off!”
It took the enchanter a moment to realize he’d just had a
dry orgasm. He panted heavily and blinked sweat out of his
eyes when he caught movement ahead.
Reuben had risen from the chair and was approaching the
bed, fingers busy on his slick rod and face taut with lust. He
stopped in front of Charlie, cupped his chin, and slipped a
thumb through his lips.
“Take my cock, Charlie.”
The angel pressed the broad head of his shaft to his mouth.
Charlie shivered and opened up. Tension stretched his jaw as
Reuben filled him.
Jasper slapped his ass hard, making him gasp and jerk.
Reuben slid inside farther. His fingers found Charlie’s hair, his
grip savage.
Charlie’s breath hitched, the sharp sting of pain and the
burn of pleasure coming from both ends of him making his
fingers clench on the bedsheets.
“You’re gonna have to do this yourself,” Reuben said
silkily.
Charlie blinked and met the angel’s smoldering eyes.
Jasper leaned down and skimmed his lips along Charlie’s
nape. “Fuck yourself on our cocks, Charlie,” he growled,
sinking his teeth in his tender skin.
Charlie shivered at the prick. He knew now why Jasper
still hadn’t moved.
Reuben’s dick punched the back of his throat when he
shifted forward. Jasper filled his hole when he moved back.
 Heat coiled through his body as he started rocking to and
fro just as they’d commanded, taking them in the scalding
depths of his mouth and ass.
This was the perfect game of push and pull. Of penetration
and submission.
It was wicked and filthy and felt so damn good he never
wanted it to end.
His stomach clenched when he caught their reflections in
one of the mirrors. He could see it all. The bulge of Reuben’s
cock stretching his cheeks and expanding his throat. His
trapped cock swaying and bobbing against his belly. Jasper’s
pale knuckles on his hips and his engorged dick slipping in
and out of his hole.
But it was the expression on his own face that had the most
delectable tension spooling through Charlie’s body. He looked
like a man who was being fucked raw and enjoying every
second of it.
Charlie groaned as another dry orgasm licked his nerve
endings. He stiffened and came on a guttural cry, the sound
muffled by Reuben’s thick organ.
His cock spasmed with sharp twinges, the ring and beads
preventing him from ejaculating. Reuben’s fingers tightened
punishingly in his hair. Jasper made a feral sound and slapped
his ass, his palm smacking hard enough to leave a handprint.
Charlie shuddered in pleasure pain and started moving
again.
It wasn’t until he came a second time that Reuben and
Jasper finally surrendered to their own instincts. They grasped
his body with a desperate touch and fucked him brutally just
like he’d secretly wished they would, their cocks threatening
to split him open at both ends as they rammed inside him.
The wet sounds of their blistering lovemaking filled
Charlie’s ears, the slick slaps of flesh inside flesh as
intoxicating as they were lewd. His heart hammered violently
against his ribs as his entire body tightened painfully. Tears
sprung to his eyes.
The next climax would wreck him, he was sure of it.
To his surprise, Reuben’s thumb found his lashes and
tenderly wiped the wetness away.
Jasper reached under Charlie’s body and removed the cock
ring and plug. The demon kissed his back. “Come, Charlie!”
They climaxed together, the angel and demon stiffening
and shouting out gutturally as they spilled their hot seed inside
him. Charlie convulsed and jerked, his spurting dick painting
the sheets with cum even as they filled his throat and hole with
their release. His head swam dizzily as he rode the violent
tides of the most incredible orgasm he’d ever experienced for
what felt like endless minutes. He lost track of time. Of self.
Charlie was vaguely aware of Reuben and Jasper pulling
out of him some time later while his hips jerked with intense
aftershocks of pleasure. They tumbled him on his side and
sandwiched him between their bodies, their hands skimming
his twitching flesh as they waited for him to come down from
his giddy high.
Charlie opened his eyes dazedly when Reuben kissed his
forehead.
“Did you enjoy that?” the angel murmured.
Charlie swallowed and nodded, too spent to speak. He
flushed when he felt Jasper touch his hole. The demon’s cum
was oozing out of him.
Reuben smiled. “Good.”
Jasper clasped Charlie’s jaw and turned his head around to
take his mouth in a sweet kiss, his pupils crimson pools of
desire. He moved Charlie onto his back and knelt above him,
his knees denting the mattress by his hips while his hands
pressed down next to his shoulders.
Charlie watched breathlessly as Reuben sat up and moved
behind the demon.
Both of them were hard again.
Reuben rained kisses down Jasper’s spine, parted his ass,
and punched his cock inside him. Jasper gasped and arched.
Charlie licked his lips as they started fucking above him,
their feral grunts quickening his pulse. His spent cock stirred.
His gaze found Jasper’s dick.
He raised a hand and touched the demon’s shaft.
“Oh!” Jasper hissed.
Charlie stroked his throbbing length and started rubbing
himself.
Jasper’s pupils dilated.
“I— I want to try something,” Charlie said breathlessly.
Reuben and Jasper slowed and stopped moving. They gave
him a puzzled look. Charlie took a deep breath. His soul core
pulsed with heat. Magic filled his veins.
The lush scent of a tropical forest exploded around them as
the dark enchantment weaved its spell. Reuben and Jasper’s
eyes widened when luxurious foliage covered in dew
shimmered into existence, their forms solid and real. Vines and
creepers multiplied rapidly across the floor and ceiling and
shot onto the bed. The calls of birds and wild beasts
surrounded them.
Warmth flooded Charlie’s face at Reuben and Jasper’s
surprised stares. “I’ve always wanted to fuck in the middle of
a jungle,” he mumbled.
“I like it,” the angel said, his sharp gaze lingering on the
realistic manifestations crowding the bedroom.
Jasper nodded.
Reuben gripped the demon’s hips and started pounding his
ass once more. Jasper swayed and moaned, his fingers
whitening on the bed sheets. Pleasure painted red flags on his
cheekbones.
His gaze locked on Charlie’s hand where he was rubbing
his own cock briskly. “I want to suck you!”
Charlie’s heart stuttered. He scooted up, knelt in front of
Jasper, and brought his cock to the demon’s eager lips.
Jasper swallowed him to the hilt.
Charlie cursed and grasped the demon’s head.
Reuben leaned across Jasper’s back and sought Charlie’s
mouth with his lips.
The three of them rutted with wild abandon amidst the
dazzling colors and smells of the jungle. It wasn’t long before
they came, Jasper greedily taking in Reuben and Charlie’s
seed while their shouts echoed against the trees and thick
canopy. The demon ejaculated long and hard before the three
of them collapsed on the bed in a tangle of limbs, chests
shuddering and breathing ragged.
 Reuben and Jasper started kissing and touching Charlie
again. Charlie reciprocated, his magic manipulating the vines
to stroke and tease Reuben and Jasper’s flesh. Their groans
and the way they twitched and shuddered under his
ministrations told the enchanter they enjoyed the novel
sensation.
Reuben palmed his cock to a fresh erection as Jasper
maneuvered Charlie onto his back and knelt above his head.
Charlie stared at Reuben as the angel spread his thighs
open and crowded the cradle of his body. He shivered when
Reuben hitched his legs around his hips and pressed the broad
head of his shaft against his hole.
Charlie licked his lips in anticipation.
Finally, he would get to experience the angel’s penetration.
Reuben’s mouth was a thin grimace of pleasure pain as he
pushed inside. Charlie gasped when his passage stretched
deliciously to accommodate the angel’s thick length, his hole
loosened by Jasper’s lovemaking and slick with the cum still
inside him. He shivered when Reuben slid in to the hilt.
The angel was even hotter and bigger than the demon.
Reuben growled and started rocking his hips, his fingers
digging painfully in Charlie’s waist as he stuffed his ass hard
and good. Charlie barely had time to draw breath before Jasper
grasped his jaw and pushed his cock inside his mouth where
he hovered above his face.
Charlie breathed through his nose as they started fucking
him slow and deep. His heart swelled with an indescribable
feeling when he met the angel’s and demon’s bright eyes.
He was the reason for their pleasure-glazed expressions.
For their lips parting on harsh breaths and broken grunts. For
their hands clinging to him with passionate strength. For their
cocks being so thick and full.
Charlie lost himself to their intense lovemaking once more.
He came once. Twice.
Still they thrust inside him, their movements growing
uncontrolled.
Their scents swamped his senses when they finally
climaxed on animal shouts, their cum gushing inside his throat
and hole. They barely gave him a moment to rest when they
pulled out of him and proceeded to claim him again and again
in every position Charlie could imagine.
On his back. Against the wall. Squatting and riding them.
Lying on his front, their hands driving his head into the
mattress as they crushed him with their weights and rutted
inside his well-used ass. They formed a fuck chain, Reuben
taking Jasper while Jasper pounded Charlie’s hole with him on
all fours then lying on his back.
They used toys on him. Made him moan and hiss in
pleasure pain. Made him tremble and beg for his release. Then
they rewarded him by eating his cock and hole and fucking
him with their tongues until he sobbed in pleasure.
And all the while their pale and crimson gazes scorched
him possessively.
Like he was theirs to claim. To dominate. To break. To
cherish.
Charlie found his gaze straying to their reflections again
and again, unable to tear his eyes from the sinful sight of his
own unmaking. His body grew sticky with sweat and cum as
they broke him in thoroughly, his hole growing so lax he knew
he was more than ready to take them both.
 “Do it!” he gasped a while later. He was lying on his back
while Reuben stood fucking Jasper on the edge of the bed. “I
want you both inside me!”
Reuben and Jasper froze.
Charlie spread his thighs, no longer shocked at his brazen
words and perverse desires. “I’m aching, deep inside. See?”
He rocked his hips and stretched his loose entrance with his
fingertips. “Fill me up!”
Reuben slipped out of Jasper, his expression as feral as the
demon’s. They lubed their cocks under Charlie’s hungry gaze.
The angel climbed on the bed, his movements predatory.
Charlie panted when he pushed his right thigh up past his ear
and slicked his ass liberally before thrusting three fingers
inside him. Reuben tested his passage thoroughly before
yanking him up and turning him around. He pressed his broad
chest to Charlie’s back and held him close as he laid down.
Charlie shivered when Reuben worked his hands under his
thighs, bent his knees, and spread him open, exposing every
intimate inch of him to Jasper’s hungry stare.
“Look in the mirror, Charlie,” Reuben whispered in his ear.
He nipped the shell with his teeth, drawing a gasp from
Charlie.
Charlie looked at the mirror at the end of the bed. He
moaned when Reuben tilted his hips and stroked the weeping
head of his cock up and down Charlie’s entrance.
“Watch as we take you,” Reuben grated out.
Charlie trembled when Reuben entered him, his insides
quivering with a hunger that would not be quenched. Jasper
waited until the angel was embedded to the hilt before
crowding Charlie’s ass.
 “Oh!” Charlie squeezed his eyes shut when the demon’s
cock pushed against his opening.
His rim stretched tautly. A sliver of fear darted through
him at the hot sting.
No! They’ll tear me open!
“Keep looking, Charlie.” Reuben kissed the side of
Charlie’s neck, his tone reverent.
Charlie swallowed, heart pounding and body quivering. He
opened his eyes and met Jasper’s crimson gaze. His fear faded
at the expression on the demon’s face.
Jasper was gazing at him with as much adoration as
Reuben’s words held. He leaned down and kissed him gently.
“I know you want this as much as we do,” he murmured
against Charlie’s lips. “Don’t be afraid.”
Charlie shuddered. He nodded jerkily.
Jasper smiled. Charlie’s heart lurched.
His gaze shifted to the mirror as Jasper kept pressing
against his entrance. He breathed in and out and forcibly
relaxed his body, willing himself to take the demon.
They all gasped when the head of Jasper’s dick finally
breached his hole.
Charlie panted shallowly as he watched Jasper slowly slide
home. His insides felt full to bursting and the ring of muscles
guarding his passage throbbed and burned with the most
exquisite pressure.
Jasper stilled when he was fully inside him. The demon
shuddered and closed his eyes. “You feel—” he faltered and
swallowed. “Jesus!”
 “You feel amazing,” Reuben breathed. His lips skimmed
Charlie’s neck.
The angel and the demon stayed motionless, giving his
body time to adapt to their girths. The sharp sting in his ass
receded. A slow ache replaced it.
Heat coiled inside Charlie’s belly. He licked his lips and
squeezed his passage slightly.
He might as well have set off a bomb the way Reuben and
Jasper reacted. The angel and demon gnashed their teeth, their
fingers biting in his flesh where they held him. Still they did
not move.
Goosebumps broke out across Charlie’s skin.
“Please,” he whispered. “Fuck me!”
A ragged moan left him as they obeyed his command, his
hole stretching oh so deliciously around their thrusting cocks.
Reuben and Jasper took turns kissing him, their tongues
lashing his with hot strokes, just as they lashed his insides with
their thick rods.
“Does it feel good?!” Charlie gasped.
Jasper pressed his forehead against Charlie’s. “Do you
even have to ask?!” he growled, nipping at his lips.
He rocked his hips and drew a groan from Charlie.
Reuben nibbled Charlie’s nape. “Your body is amazing,
Charlie.” His fingers flexed on Charlie’s thighs. “You are
amazing. You were made for us. For this.”
Tension stiffened Charlie’s spine at their words. His chest
swelled with emotion. “I’m glad! This—everything you do to
me—makes me feel more alive than I’ve ever felt!”
 The angel and the demon exchanged a heated look.
“I’m happy you feel that way,” Reuben said.
“Because we’re never letting you go,” Jasper growled.
Their thrusts accelerated.
Precum shot out of Charlie’s dick as pleasure knotted his
belly. He cursed when Reuben and Jasper started stroking his
straining erection. He came with explosive violence moments
later, his passage squeezing their cocks so hard they cursed.
They rocked their hips through his convulsions and soon had
him erect again.
Sobs of pleasure tumbled from his lips as they took him
over the edge once more, their powerful thrusts milking his
prostate dry.
Charlie’s consciousness flickered when the three of them
finally climaxed together. He screamed in ecstasy as Reuben
and Jasper ejaculated inside him, their shouts registering dimly
in his ringing ears while their hot cum flooded his passage.
They rode the devastating storm for what felt like hours,
bodies locked tight, arms clutching one another, lips blinding
seeking each other’s mouths.
Charlie shivered and blinked dazedly when Jasper and
Reuben carefully pulled out of him a timeless moment later.
He moaned, feeling bereft all of a sudden. Jasper kissed him
tenderly as Reuben lifted him in his arms and carried him into
the bathroom.
Steam swirled as Jasper drew the gigantic bath.
He joined Reuben and Charlie in the shower. They washed
Charlie’s hair and body before cleaning him out intimately.
Charlie gasped and sought their lips, quivers of pleasure
shooting through him at their probing fingers. The angel and
demon cleaned each other next before leading Charlie to the
bath.
Charlie sank into the hot water to his chin and leaned
against Jasper’s chest, his head falling languidly on his
shoulder.
“Stick a fork in me, I’m done,” he groaned.
Reuben chuckled and caressed Charlie’s legs under the
water where he sat opposite them. “I didn’t think you’d be
able to take both of us so soon.”
“Yeah, well, I’m not one to walk away from a challenge,”
Charlie murmured. The steady thrum of Jasper’s heart against
his back was making him pleasantly drowsy. He closed his
eyes.
The demon trailed a finger along his arm. “Really?”
“Uh-huh,” Charlie mumbled.
“Does that mean you’ll take Argonaut’s promotion exam
and become a Level One enchanter?” Reuben said.
“Whatever you say.” Charlie stiffened when he realized
what he’d just agreed to. His eyes slammed open. “Wait! I
didn’t mean—!”
“No backsies,” Jasper said tartly. “You’re taking the damn
exam.”
Charlie flushed at his confident voice. “But—but I’m not
good enough!”
Reuben sighed. “The enchantment you wielded tonight?
We can assure you that only a Level One enchanter could pull
off something like that.”
 “Stop holding yourself back, Charlie,” Jasper said quietly.
“You’re a genius.”
Heat flooded Charlie’s cheeks. He covered his face with
his hands and groaned.
“Are you blushing?” Jasper teased.
“No,” Charlie mumbled.
“He is,” Reuben said, self-assured.
“I am not!” Charlie protested.
Reuben peeled his hands from his face, chuckled at his
mortified expression, and pressed a loving kiss to his lips.
“Come on, let’s get you out of here before you melt into a
crimson puddle.”
Charlie grumbled about overbearing assholes as they
pulled him out of the bath. They dried him, changed the
sheets, and pulled him into their bed.
A contented sigh left Charlie as Reuben and Jasper tucked
him between them. “I really wish I didn’t have to go into work
tomorrow.”
“We already took care of that,” Jasper said.
Charlie raised his face from the demon’s chest and stared.
“What?”
Reuben kissed his back. “We messaged Morgan and told
him we needed you for an urgent mission.”
Charlie gaped at him over his shoulder. “And he agreed?!”
“We may have implied we knew a way to get you to take
the exam,” Jasper said guilelessly.
Charlie sucked in air, not sure if he felt incensed or
deliriously happy at their Machiavellian tactics. “You had this
all planned out, didn’t you?!”
Jasper nuzzled his nose. “We weren’t exactly sure how it
would pan out.”
“You’re not exactly predictable,” Reuben drawled.
Charlie shut up at that. He relaxed against them. “So, what
did you guys have planned for tomorrow?”
“We thought we’d make breakfast, then go for a long drive
and have a late lunch somewhere,” Reuben said.
Charlie pursed his lips. “I agree with the breakfast plan.
But the only things I’m intending to ride are your dicks.”
Reuben burst out laughing. Jasper groaned.
“You’re gonna be sore when you wake up,” the demon
said caustically.
“I don’t care,” Charlie said mutinously. “You can put some
Blossom Silver on my ass.”
Reuben started chortling.
“You’re a stubborn mutt, you know that?” Jasper growled
at Charlie.
Charlie grinned and kissed him. “Come, I need my beauty
sleep if I’m gonna spend my day ravishing you two.” He
reached across Jasper and switched the light off.
The demon grumbled for a while longer.
“Shut up, Jas.” Charlie grasped his lovers’ hands and
tucked them against his heart as he closed his eyes.
A singular truth resonated through him as they shifted
closer to his warmth.
 He wasn’t sure if what he was starting to feel for the
demon and the angel was love. But one thing he was certain
of. He needed them, just as much as they needed him.
And no one was more shocked by that fact than him.
Morgan’s gonna have a heart attack when he finds out
about us.
A satisfied smirk curved Charlie’s mouth at that thought.
He really was a temperamental asshole.

THE END
 MORTIS

F RAGRANT BUBBLES TICKLED M ORTIS ’ S NOSE AS HE SANK TO

his chin into the immense, obsidian clawfoot bath dominating
the bathroom. His gaze swept the opulent white and black
space.
With its marble floor and walls, dazzling crystal
chandeliers, and gold and silver-gilded monochrome
furnishings, it wasn’t the kind of place he’d normally choose
to visit. It was too lavish. Too decadent. Too…hedonistic.
Unease tightened Mortis’s belly.
Do I really belong here?
As the Right Hand of the God of Death, he was
accustomed to the stark ambience of the bone and ivory castle
he shared with his master, and the modest domain he inhabited
with his Reaper brethren. His gaze strayed to the door leading
to the rest of the hotel suite at the thought of the deity who
commanded him. Mortis’s face flushed with more than just the
heat wafting off the rose and jasmine scented water.
The Reaper God waited for him in the next room.
He squeezed his legs to his chest, acutely conscious of
what was about to unfold and still somewhat dazed by it all.
I can’t believe Master wants to—wants to do that with me!
 His groin stirred when the words the Reaper God had
uttered in Occulta just before they left the bar an hour ago
echoed through his skull once more.
“We are going to consummate our relationship. Pan has
given me careful instructions and a book on the subject.” His
master had directed a laser-like look his way when he’d taken
hold of his hand to guide him out of the place. “We are going
to try all the positions.”
Mortis bit his lip and dropped a hand to his cock. He
shivered at the prickly pleasure his own touch elicited when he
stroked his swelling shaft. The body the Gods Pan and Boreas
had granted him so he could navigate the earthly realm was a
little too sensitive.
Will Master touch me here? He swallowed. Will he—will
he put his inside me?
His ass twitched at that perverse thought. Mortis hesitated
before dipping his hand past his taint. He stopped shy of
touching the tight pucker that protected his passage, too self-
conscious to explore that part of his body yet.
Though he could not recall the details of his past life, he
was aware of what sex entailed, even between men. Reapers
sometimes recounted the various acts they’d caught the
humans whose souls they’d harvested engaging in over the
centuries that he’d lived among them. Their curiosity was
driven by pure academic interest, since there were
innumerable humans who crossed over from the world of the
living into that of the dead in flagrante delicto of the
enterprise. It caused Reapers to wonder whether such fleeting
pleasure was worth losing one’s life over.
But there was a reason they called an orgasm “La Petite
Mort.” Mortis had seen the evidence of this with his own eyes
when he and the Reaper God had walked in on Pan making
passionate love to Demetrius during a visit to the Spirit Realm.
From what Mortis had witnessed, the demigod of Spring had
thoroughly relished what was happening to him despite the
loud keens and tortured gasps that tumbled from his throat as
Pan held his hips in a white-knuckled grip and plundered his
body with savage thrusts where he’d bent him over a table.
Mortis had done his best to hide how flustered he’d been
by what he’d seen. The Reaper God on the other hand looked
like he’d been taking notes.
Mortis wasn’t sure when he’d started looking at his master
with more than just admiration and respect. He did not possess
a beating heart in his Khimer form, but he was certain that if
he did, his growing awareness of the Reaper God would have
caused his pulse to flutter in his presence.
There were many things he had learned about his master in
the time they’d spent together. Things that made it so he now
cherished the deity more than his own existence.
Though his role and his appearance instilled terror in most,
the Reaper God was kind and just. He liked thunderstorms,
cats, and, more recently, the lemon sherbet Pan served him on
his visits to the Spirit Realm. He rarely granted second
chances. He told terrible jokes. He was awful at just about any
game. And he often appeared lonely, to the point there were
days when all Mortis wished for was to erase the forlorn
expression that haunted his master’s face when he thought no
one was looking. When he wanted to take him in his arms,
press his head to his chest, and murmur words of comfort in
his ear.
Of course, Mortis would never dare do that in reality.
 It wasn’t until the Reaper God was taken captive by the
God of Darkness who invaded their domain that Mortis came
to know true fear and was finally forced to acknowledge the
depth of feelings he harbored for his master. Feelings he’d
hidden inside himself for too long.
He loved the Reaper God.
He would happily have kept his one-sided infatuation a
secret and continued to serve the deity in his best capacity as
his Right Hand until he was no longer needed. He had no right
to expect more and none knew this better than him.
Except the Reaper God had implied that he also
entertained some kind of affection for Mortis. His master had
not specified what his feelings for him were in so many words.
The only thing he had made clear tonight was that he wished
to have a physical relationship with Mortis.
It was a request Mortis could not refuse. Not that he would
have wanted to anyway. He lifted a handful of bubbles and
stared as they popped and vanished on his palm. Resolve had
him clenching his fist.
I shall do my best to satisfy Master!
With that thought firmly in mind, Mortis washed his body
thoroughly before rising and climbing out of the tub. He was
reaching for the towel on the standing rail when he caught
sight of his reflection in the floor-length mirror opposite him.
He paused, mesmerized by what he saw.
With high cheekbones, an elfin-like jaw, full lips, and a
broad forehead, his face was arresting, as was the lithe body he
now owned. Add to this hair and eyes the soft, rich brown of
chestnuts and flawless, honey-colored flesh that had taken on a
dewy sheen from the bath essences he had soaked in and
Mortis could not help but avoid his own gaze.
He still wasn’t used to the bewitchingly handsome form
Pan and Boreas had granted him. According to the two Gods,
his current appearance bore a close likeness to what he had
originally looked like, when he was still a human. Color
stained Mortis’s cheeks when his glance danced off his semi-
erection. He hastily dried himself and slipped into the black
velour robe hanging on the wall.
Awareness sent his heart thumping when he opened the
door and entered the bedroom. Like the rest of the luxurious
suite, this space was decorated in monochromes accentuated
with silver and gold tones. Unlike the bathroom however, the
lighting here was muted, the only illumination coming from a
floor-standing lamp in the corner and some dozen, glass candle
holders scattered atop a myriad surfaces.
The Reaper God stood at the far end of the room. He was
looking out through the terrace doors to the bay and the
dazzling bridge beyond the balcony. Ice clinked in a bucket
holding a bottle of champagne on a table beside him, the
candle light sparking off the drops of condensation coating the
dark glass. His robe stretched across his shoulders when he
lifted a flute of the drink to his lips.
An ache roused inside Mortis. Though the Reaper God was
built along the same willowy lines as him, he wasn’t gaunt by
any means. Mortis had only ever caught glimpses of his true
form through the cloak of shadows he normally wore. Heat
warmed his veins as he studied his master’s strong back and
the defined muscles of his arms and legs for the first time.
The Reaper God was like a ballet dancer, all grace and
supple limbs that still projected undeniable strength.
 It wasn’t just his master’s body that had Mortis entranced.
He itched to sink his fingers in the lustrous black hair flowing
down the deity’s back. He found himself wondering what it
would feel like against his skin. On his lips.
Draped all over his throbbing cock.
Mortis flushed at that illicit thought. He almost bit his
tongue when his master spoke.
“Your gaze is burning a hole into my back, Mortis.” The
Reaper God turned and met Mortis’s nervous stare, his own
inscrutable. He observed him for a silent moment before
reaching out a hand. “Come.”
Mortis padded barefoot across the parquet floor, powerless
to resist his master’s command. He stopped in front of the
Reaper God, his pulse racing with excitement and a degree of
trepidation even as he tilted his chin to maintain eye contact
with the deity.
He wasn’t sure what the Reaper God intended to do after
tonight. Whether he expected this to be a regular thing. Or
whether he would be content with sleeping with Mortis once
to satisfy his curiosity about the carnal aspect of being with a
human, and resume their working relationship the next day as
if nothing had happened.
As far as Mortis was concerned, he would never be able to
look at the deity in the same light again. Not after being
physically intimate with him. By the time morning came, the
Reaper God was going to own his heart, his soul, and his body
and damn if that didn’t make him tremble in anticipation.
His restless thoughts scattered to the winds when the
Reaper God raised a hand and caressed his face with gentle
fingers. Mortis shivered, his eyelids drooping as he
instinctively moved into the deity’s cool touch. His hooded
gaze dropped to his master’s pale, sculptured lips.
His belly clenched on a spasm of pure need.
I want his mouth on me.
A crimson light flared in the pupils opposite him, as if the
Reaper God had read the lewd wish that had just crossed his
mind. Mortis’s heart skipped a beat.
His master’s face was full of a dark emotion. One that
raised delicious goosebumps on Mortis’s skin.
“What are you thinking about?”
The question was so unexpected it made Mortis blink. He
stared blindly at the deity whose touch had bewitched him, too
stunned to formulate a reply.
The Reaper God traced his lower lip with a thumb, his
heated stare locking on Mortis’s mouth.
Sparks ignited across Mortis’s flesh.
The Reaper God leaned in and repeated the question.
“What are you thinking about, Mortis?”
His velvety voice and the faint scent of camphor wafting
off his body made Mortis’s cock spring to attention.
“I—” he stopped and swallowed, flustered. “I—I’m too
ashamed to tell you, Master,” he finished on a rushed whisper.
He could never lie to the Reaper God. But there was no
way in the Nine Hells he was going to admit to the deity
opposite him all the filthy things he wanted him to do to him.
His master sighed. Mortis squirmed, knowing his answer
had disappointed him.
 If the Reaper God noticed the pulse beating frantically at
the base of his throat, he gave no sign of it. He straightened
and handed Mortis the champagne glass on the table.
“Drink,” he said imperiously.
“Hmm.” Mortis stared from the flute to his master’s face.
“I—I’m not used to alcohol.”
“Good.” The Reaper God’s eyes flashed. “It should help
loosen your inhibitions a little.”
Mortis hesitated before taking the glass.
Is he trying to get me drunk?
He squinted at his master. The Reaper God met his
suspicious stare with a guileless look. Mortis tipped the flute
to his lips and guzzled down a mouthful of the champagne. He
realized his mistake when the bubbles tickled the back of his
throat, making him cough and splutter.
To his everlasting mortification, the Reaper God patted his
back as if he were a child.
“I’m—I’m sorry, Master!” Mortis choked out once the fit
had passed. Dismay had his stomach sinking. He’d spilled
some of his drink on his chest and robe. “I’ll go wash up
again.”
He put the glass down and whirled around, embarrassment
heating his face. A strong hand clasped his wrist.
“No,” the Reaper God said. “I shall take care of it myself.”
Incomprehension widened Mortis’s eyes as his master
turned him around.
Gold glittered in the Reaper God’s hooded gaze when he
saw his skittish expression. He put his own glass down and
leaned in, his hair a glossy curtain that hid half his face.
Air locked in Mortis’s throat when the Reaper God sniffed
the side of his neck.
“Did I mention that you smell utterly divine?”
Mortis’s legs almost gave out at the feel of his master’s
breath on his flesh. Unlike his fingers, it was hot. Then the
Reaper God carefully licked the golden liquid staining
Mortis’s exposed skin and Mortis lost his mind.
He bit his lip to stifle a cry, his teeth pressing in so deep he
almost drew blood. His hands found the Reaper God’s head,
his fingers sinking none too gently into hair so soft and glossy
he never wanted to let go.
His master did not seem to mind his rough touch.
Mortis twitched and panted as the Reaper God laved his
flesh with his tongue. It was even more scalding than his
breath. And his fingers were growing warm where he still held
Mortis’s wrist, as if his desire for him was heating him up
from the inside out.
Blood pounded heavily in Mortis’s skull. His body bowed
helplessly toward the one wreaking sweet havoc on his senses.
Is—is this really happening?!
But there was no way he was imagining the hot tongue
lapping sensuously at his skin. Mortis shuddered, dropped his
head back, and closed his eyes, light-headed at the forbidden
pleasure the sensations were evoking and the wicked thought
that immediately followed it.
He wanted his master to do that to the rest of his body,
especially at the juncture of his thighs, where his sex throbbed
with a hunger he had never known.
 His cock jerked at that mental image. A moan fell from his
lips.
The Reaper God shuddered at the sound. Mortis blinked
his eyes open when his master slowly straightened.
“Interesting.” The Reaper God’s voice had deepened to a
gravelly tone that quickened his already racing pulse. “It tastes
sweeter on your skin.” He met Mortis’s dazed stare, his own
glowing with a banked heat.
Mortis gulped, unsure how to respond.
It almost seemed as if his master was…trying to seduce
him.
“I—Master, I am yours,” he murmured. “You need not
concern yourself with foreplay. You can do with me as you
wish.”
The Reaper God stilled. Mortis’s mouth went dry.
Though his master’s expression hadn’t changed, he could
tell he was unhappy from the stiff line of his shoulders. Panic
made Mortis swallow convulsively.
Did I—did I do or say something wrong?!
“I’m sorry, Master,” he whispered wretchedly. Mortis
lowered his gaze. “I—I didn’t mean to ruin the—!”
The Reaper God gripped his chin, swooped down, and
swallowed the rest of his words with his mouth, the movement
almost angry.
Mortis went rigid at the first touch of his master’s lips. He
stared wide-eyed into the gold-laced, crimson gaze opposite
and trembled at what he read there.
 Irritation. Desire. Possessiveness. And…something else.
Something Mortis daren’t put a name to.
The Reaper God clasped Mortis’s face with both hands and
angled his head so as to deepen the kiss, his touch gentling.
Mortis moaned breathily as his master carefully learned the
shape of his lips before delving inside his mouth and exploring
the heated depths past his teeth.
His breathing fairly stopped when the Reaper God twined
their tongues together. Electricity sparked across Mortis’s
nerve endings. His entire body buzzed, as if he’d been struck
by lightning.
This kiss was madness.
It was fire. It was ice. It was a blaze that would wreck his
body. A storm that threatened to shatter his very sanity.
Mortis didn’t realize he’d looped his arms around his
master’s neck and was pressing his body wantonly against him
until he felt something hard poke his belly.
The Reaper God nipped at his tongue and lips with strong
white teeth before reluctantly ending the kiss. He touched their
foreheads together, the red flags on his cheekbones stark
against his pale skin, his breathing more labored than it had
been a minute ago.
“I do not wish you to lie with me because you believe it is
your duty, Mortis.”
Mortis gasped when the Reaper God took one of his hands
where he still clung to his nape and lowered it to the rock solid
length tenting the lower half of his robe.
“I want you to feel what I’m feeling. I want your body to
heat up and harden, just like mine is doing. I want you to want
this just as badly as I do. I want you to want me, Mortis.”
 Mortis’s heart thundered erratically at his master’s words
and the slight quiver in his strong voice. He never knew he
held such power over the deity he loved until this very
moment.
He didn’t realize he was crying until the Reaper God’s face
softened. The deity stooped to kiss the tear drops trembling on
his lashes.
“Do—do you really mean that, Master?” Mortis quavered.
“Do you—do you feel the same way I do?!”
The Reaper God’s pupils flared at his indirect confession.
“If by that you mean I want to worship you from the top of
your head all the way to the tips of your delectable toes, then
the answer is yes, Mortis.” His breath danced against the shell
of Mortis’s ear when he leaned down to kiss the side of his
neck. “I care for you deeply, Mortis. And I want you. I want to
kiss you and touch you all over. I want to explore every inch of
you, especially this part.”
Mortis sucked in air when the Reaper God slipped his arms
around his waist and caressed his butt.
“I want to be inside you.”
Mortis’s hole twitched and contracted hungrily, his body
reacting like it couldn’t wait for those words to come true. He
whimpered when his master worked a hand inside his robe and
trailed his knuckles along his straining erection.
“And I want to see this part of you weep for me and taste
your pleasure.” The Reaper God bit his ear lobe at the same
time he squeezed the head of his swollen shaft.
Mortis’s eyes rounded. “Oh!”
His dick jerked at the sharp prick of his master’s teeth and
the pinch of his fingers. He blinked when warm wetness oozed
out of his cock and filled the Reaper God’s palm. To his
horror, his master lifted his hand and stared at the sticky fluid
now coating his pale skin.
“So, this is precum,” the Reaper God said solemnly.
Mortis’s mouth rounded on an O of pure mortification.
“M—Master!”
He grabbed the Reaper God’s hand and wiped hurriedly at
the evidence of his disgraceful act with the edge of his robe,
his face flaming.
A low chuckle had his head snapping up.
Though the Reaper God was keeping a straight face, his
shoulders were quaking with mirth.
“You’re laughing,” Mortis said, stunned.
The Reaper God took his hands and kissed his knuckles,
looking mighty pleased with himself. His tone dropped to a
husky rasp that did all sorts of wicked things to Mortis’s pulse.
“I feel I will experience many firsts with you, Mortis.”
Mortis went weak at the knees. He’d never known his
master act like this before.
He blurted out the first thought that came to his mind.
“Pan—Pan has corrupted Master! He’s—he’s turned
Master into a Casanova!”
The Reaper God sobered. A frown puckered his brow. “I
find myself experiencing an unpleasant, prickly feeling at the
mention of that God’s name,” he told Mortis coolly. “In fact, I
would very much like it if you refrained from talking about
another male when we are being intimate. Or a female, for
that matters.”
 Mortis opened and closed his mouth soundlessly.
Wait. Is—is Master jealous?!
The Reaper God tipped Mortis’s chin with a knuckle, his
expression flinty. “Is that clear?”
Mortis nodded jerkily. Instead of feeling chastised, he
found himself experiencing a feverish thrill. The Reaper God
taking control of their love making was so titillating it was
filling his mind with dirty fantasies of dominance and
submission.
“Good,” the Reaper God murmured. He cocked his head to
the side. “Still, I should punish you for speaking his name.”
Butterflies swarmed Mortis’s stomach at his master’s
blistering gaze.
The Reaper God took a step back and folded his arms
across his chest. “Strip.”
Mortis’s breathing quickened at the terse order. His hands
trembled when he undid the knot at his waist, excitement
making his fingers clumsy. His cock throbbed painfully as he
allowed the robe to fall open.
He knew his master could see his naked arousal.
It should have made him feel awkward. But it didn’t.
The Reaper God looked on unblinkingly as he shrugged
out of the thick material. The robe pooled silently at Mortis’s
feet when he dropped it. He lowered his eyes, struggling to
keep still beneath his master’s heated stare.
A low growl brought his gaze right back up.
The Reaper God’s nostrils were flaring, the light in his
pupils predatory. Mortis shivered.
 “Lie on the bed.”
Mortis caught sight of the enormous erection denting his
master’s robe. His passage spasmed, eager for something he
had never experienced but that he wanted more than anything
right now.
He climbed onto the cool, obsidian sheets covering the
giant bed and lay on his back in the center. The mattress
dipped when the Reaper God followed and knelt above him.
Mortis’s heart pounded heavily as his master’s gold and
crimson eyes raked every inch of his quivering body.
The Reaper God was studying his slender form like he was
committing it to memory, his silken hair teasing Mortis’s
sensitive skin where it touched his flesh.
“Beautiful,” he said thickly. “You are beautiful, Mortis.”
Mortis barely had time to register his master’s reverent
tone before the Reaper God traced his twitching cock with a
finger.
“Ah!” Mortis gasped and thrust into his master’s touch.
He pressed his knuckles to his mouth, mortified at the
wanton sound he’d made and the way his body had
instinctively reacted.
The Reaper God leaned down and kissed his palm, the red
in his eyes so bright it scorched Mortis’s senses.
“Move your hand, Mortis. I want to taste what’s mine.”
Mortis shuddered, desire sending his pulse into the
stratosphere. He lowered his hand. Then his master’s lips were
on his and he forgot about everything else.
The Reaper God explored his mouth at a leisurely pace,
like they had all the time in the world. He kissed and sucked
and gently bit Mortis’s lips until they were pleasantly swollen.
Then he used his wicked tongue to drive him out of his mind
all over again. And all the while, he gently caressed Mortis’s
erection.
Mortis trembled as the Reaper God rained soft kisses on
his eyes. His cheeks. His ears. He nudged Mortis’s chin up
with his nose and worked his way down his neck, his hot
breath raising goosebumps on Mortis’s skin and sending
shivers down his spine even as his fingers wreaked havoc on
his sensitive organ.
Mortis moaned as the Reaper God feasted on the pulse
beating frantically at the base of his throat and stroked him
with a feather light touch. He could feel something building
deep inside his belly. A tension he’d never experienced before.
A hot pressure that begged to be released.
It gripped his balls. His cock. His spine.
It filled his ass with an ache that could not be assuaged and
had his hips jerking off the bed.
“Ah! Master! I feel—I feel strange!”
“How so?” the Reaper God murmured, his own breathing
unsteady where he nibbled on Mortis’s skin.
“It tingles. Everything—everything feels tight! Hmm!”
Mortis bucked against the hand torturing his swollen shaft
with exquisite tenderness. “My body feels like it’s gonna snap!
I want to—I want—Master, I don’t know what I want!” he
whimpered.
The Reaper God’s gaze seared his face when he raised his
head and looked at him. “You’re about to climax, Mortis. Don’t
fight it.” He pressed a hot kiss to Mortis’s lips. “Just listen to
your body.”
 Incoherent sounds left Mortis as he did just that. He heard
the slick friction of the Reaper God’s fingers on his aching
organ when he started rolling his hips. He took a peek at where
his master was touching him to distract himself from the
tightness gripping his entire body and nearly swallowed his
tongue.
His engorged cock had gone a deep, rosy hue where he
pumped it shamelessly through his master’s fist. Creamy
liquid pearled at the tip and oozed down his shaft. The Reaper
God used it to lubricate his grip.
The sight proved too much for Mortis.
Fire filled his veins and blinded his vision as he finally
crested the peak of pleasure the Reaper God had expertly
guided him to. He was barely aware of grabbing the Reaper
God’s shoulders and sinking his nails into his robe as he came
on a loud cry, his ejaculation so forceful his cum splashed into
his master’s hand. Mortis’s consciousness wavered as he
convulsed beneath the being who’d brought him such
devastating ecstasy, unable to control the erratic, thrusting
motion of his hips or the lustful sounds rising from his throat.
It was some time before his awareness returned.
Mortis blinked when he felt a tender touch upon his face,
his breaths still shuddering in and out of his heaving chest.
He’d collapsed on the bed at some point and lay pliant and
loose limbed beneath his master’s curious gaze.
The Reaper God moved aside a damp lock and gently
kissed his brow. “Was that good?”
Mortis nodded numbly, too sated to speak. Gone was the
tension that had possessed every inch of his body. He felt more
relaxed than he could ever recall being in his entire existence.
 “You know, I have to agree with Pan. Your O face is most
delectable.”
Mortis’s eyes rounded.
The Reaper God pursed his lips. “I wonder what Benjamin
would think if I have it immortalized in a painting and we put
it in the main entrance of the castle?”
Mortis sucked in air, horror vibrating from every line of
his body.
The Reaper God burst out laughing at his expression.
Mortis’s heart clenched at his dazzling smile and the faint
lines crinkling the corners of his eyes, his outrage all but
forgotten.
How could anyone be scared of him? He is just…lovely.
The Reaper God finally stopped chuckling. He glanced at
Mortis’s spent cock, his eyes gleaming. “Why don’t we get
started for real this time?”
“But—you just made me come!” Mortis blushed hard.
The Reaper God arched an eyebrow. “That was the hors
d’oeuvres. We haven’t even gotten to the starters yet.” He sat
back on his heels and shrugged out of his robe, exposing a
pale, toned chest and well-defined abs.
Mortis’s gaze dropped. His eyes bulged. “Master?”
“Yes?” The Reaper God cast his robe on the floor,
oblivious to the fresh apprehension underscoring Mortis’s
voice.
“That’s not gonna fit,” Mortis croaked.
The Reaper God looked down at his enormous erection.
“Pan’s is as big as mine and it appears to fit rather well inside
Demetrius.” He met Mortis’s dazed stare and arched an
arrogant eyebrow. “Besides, don’t you just love a challenge?”
“Not when it involves my butt, I don’t,” Mortis mumbled
before he could help himself.
He wasn’t going to ask his master under exactly what
circumstances he and the Wild God compared the size of their
dicks.
The Reaper God blinked at Mortis’s grumpy tone. Mortis
stiffened, realizing his blunder.
His master laughed again before he could apologize.
“I like that,” the Reaper God chuckled.
Mortis eyed him warily. “You like what, Master?”
The deity pressed down onto Mortis and trapped his wrists
above his head with one hand, the other falling to his hip so he
could align their frames. Mortis’s eyes nearly rolled into the
back of his skull at the full body contact.
He could feel every hard inch of the Reaper God’s body,
especially the thick rod nudging his own stirring cock. It made
him feel hot and cold, like he was in the grips of a fever.
“I like that you’re finally being honest with me. I want
more, Mortis. I want you to tell me everything you want me to
do to you. And everything you want to do to me.”
Mortis’s pulse stuttered at the expression on his master’s
face. Emotion squeezed his heart.
The Reaper God was looking at him as if he were the most
precious thing in the world.
“I want you to tell me what you like and what you don’t
like. I want to please you, Mortis. Just as you please me.”
 Then his master kissed him senseless and all Mortis could
do was hang on for dear life.
He shivered and arched as the Reaper God wreaked the
sweetest havoc upon his mouth before slowly working his way
down his throat and chest. The Reaper God worshipped every
inch of him just like he’d promised, his burning lips and
scorching tongue following the path his fingers had made upon
his trembling flesh.
The Reaper God rubbed and played with his chocolate
colored nipples when they crossed his path. Mortis squirmed,
not certain if he liked the feeling. Then his master pinched one
of his nubs between his thumb and forefinger and tugged on
the other with his teeth.
“Oh!” Mortis cried out, his eyes flying wide open and his
cock hardening in an instant.
The Reaper God laved his stinging flesh with his tongue
and observed him with a sultry look full of curiosity. “Did that
hurt?”
Mortis met his master’s gaze, dazed. “It did. But—but it
also felt good.” Heat flooded his face at this sinful confession.
A wicked smile stretched the Reaper God’s mouth.
“Want me to do it again?”
Mortis hesitated before nodding, his ears hot. “Yes.”
His master’s eyes flared with satisfaction. “Good boy.”
Mortis groaned as his master tortured his breasts for long
minutes. By the time the Reaper God reached down and
cupped his quivering sex, he’d made a mess of their stomachs
with his precum.
“You’re full again.”
 Mortis moaned when the deity squeezed the swollen sac
beneath his cock. The Reaper God dipped his fingers lower
and caressed his taint with a feather light touch all the way to
the rim of his twitching hole.
“This part of you must be hungry too.”
Mortis shuddered. It wasn’t just his master’s taut voice and
the crimson and gold blazing in his pupils that told him he was
deeply aroused. His skin was growing slick with his master’s
precum where his rock hard organ probed his thigh.
Mortis’s belly twitched and trembled when the Reaper God
kissed his abs before working his way south. He teased
Mortis’s belly button with his tongue, licked his faint treasure
trail, and pushed his thighs open. Mortis blinked when his
master finally settled in the cradle of his body.
Don’t tell me he’s planning to—?!
“Put your legs over my shoulders, Mortis.”
Mortis’s heart hammered a frantic tempo against his ribs
when he met his master’s hot gaze. The Reaper God’s
expression was feral with lust. Mortis knew what was about to
happen.
His master was going to fulfill one of his filthiest fantasies.
Never in his wildest of dreams could he have believed this
possible.
Mortis swallowed and did as he was told. His heels settled
against the Reaper God’s back, the new angle tilting his hips
forward so his cock jutted toward the deity’s face. The Reaper
God reached for a pillow and slipped it under Mortis’s butt,
raising his lower body even higher off the bed.
“Do you know what I’m going to do to you, Mortis?”
 Mortis nodded jerkily, his gaze locked unblinkingly on the
deity staring at him intently from between his legs.
“Tell me.”
Mortis panted, so turned on he felt he would explode at the
slightest touch. “You’re—you’re going to suck me.”
“Suck…what?”
Mortis whimpered when the Reaper God’s hot breath
teased his sensitive shaft. “Master, you’re being—you’re being
mean!”
The Reaper God ignored his protest. “Say it, Mortis,” he
ordered silkily.
Mortis’s fists clenched on the sheets. “My—my cock!
You’re going to suck my cock!”
Fire blazed in the Reaper God’s eyes at his hoarse reply.
“That’s right, Mortis. Now be a good boy and watch while I
eat you.”
A silent scream locked in Mortis’s throat at the first flick
of the Reaper God’s tongue on his quivering organ. He
released a guttural sound, one hand finding his master’s head
while the other grasped the silken hair draped over his thigh.
The feeling of the deity’s mouth on his sex was a hundred
times more pleasurable than he’d imagined it would be.
The Reaper God carefully licked him from the root of his
shaft all the way to his leaking tip before circling his slit. He
ignored the incoherent noises tumbling from Mortis’s lips and
repeated the motion again and again. His fingers soon came
into play, his touch made slick by his own spit and Mortis’s
precum.
 Mortis’s eyes rolled back into his head when the Reaper
God finally took him inside the velvety depths of his mouth.
The delicious tension he’d experienced before started building
up rapidly inside him. It was sharper this time, as if his body
had memorized the sensation and was keen to experience it all
over again.
“Master!” he mewled. He sank his nails into the Reaper
God’s scalp and tugged him closer.
But his master couldn’t reply, not when Mortis was filling
his cheeks so well. He dug his heels into the Reaper God’s
back as the latter started bobbing his head up and down and
sucked his dick with powerful contractions of his jaws, his
torrid gaze locked on Mortis’s face. Mortis’s hips rolled of
their own volition, soon matching the sinful rhythm his master
established.
Ecstasy overwhelmed him once more. He came on a
scream, his vision flickering, the loud buzzing in his ears
drowning out his desperate voice. And still the Reaper God ate
him. His cock soon hardened under his master’s skillful
ministrations, the pleasure overloading his senses so fierce it
was almost pain.
It was only after he’d climaxed a third time that his master
finally let go of his dripping cock.
Sweat drenched the sheets beneath Mortis as he collapsed
on the bed, so weak from the rapture that had been visited
upon his body he could hardly move. The Reaper God rose
and reached for a small, glass vial on the side table, his face
taut with lust and his erection raging. He knelt between
Mortis’s legs once more and poured some of the liquid in his
palm.
“What’s that?” Mortis mumbled.
 “It’s the nectar of the Fenoa flowers.” The Reaper God met
his curious stare as he placed the vial next to him. “It will help
with what we’re about to do.” He pressed Mortis’s left knee
open onto the bed, braced his right leg against his shoulder,
and stroked his hole with a slippery finger.
Mortis stiffened.
“Relax, Mortis,” the Reaper God murmured. “Keep
looking at me.”
Mortis shuddered and did as he was told. His ass tingled
and throbbed as he kept his gaze on his master. The Reaper
God rubbed the potion across the tight folds protecting his
entrance, his cheeks flushed with passion.
Mortis wriggled a little, not sure if he liked the sensation
or not.
The Reaper God leaned down and kissed him. Mortis
sighed, his body melting into the bed and his mouth opening
eagerly to welcome the tongue probing his lips.
His master pushed the tip of a finger inside him.
Mortis gasped and went rigid.
The Reaper God’s eyes blazed as he continued kissing
him. “You’re tight.”
He slipped his finger out and pushed it back inside
Mortis’s passage. Except this time he went deeper.
Mortis moaned, a different kind of tension seizing him.
Heat was spreading through his entire body from where his
master had entered him. He hooked his arms around the
Reaper God’s shoulders and wrenched his mouth from his lips.
“Master?”
 “Yes?”
“I—I like it.” Mortis flushed and buried his face in the
crook of the deity’s neck, too mortified to look at him. “M—
more! I want more!”
The Reaper God stilled. A low growl left him. He removed
his finger, spread Mortis’s thighs wide, and hitched him high
so he could lick his hole.
Mortis arched and cried out, his toes flexing in mid air. He
stared dazedly at the dark ceiling as the Reaper God flicked his
pucker with his scalding tongue.
He would be lying if he said he hadn’t fantasized about his
master performing this most wicked of acts on him.
It was everything he’d imagined it to be and more.
His entrance spasmed and unfurled as the Reaper God
rimmed him with lustful groans, the sounds almost drowning
out Mortis’s moans and pants. Then his master’s tongue was
inside his body and Mortis’s sanity scattered to the winds.
He couldn’t even begin to describe what it felt like to have
the deity he loved worship him so. He sobbed, overwhelmed
by the exquisite sensations assailing his virgin body.
His orgasm swept over him like a storm, as unexpected as
it was sudden. A guttural shout left Mortis as he crested the
peak he hadn’t even seen coming.
The Reaper God kissed and tongued his twitching folds
while he shuddered and ejaculated violently all over himself. It
wasn’t until Mortis had gone limp in his arms that he finally
straightened, his long dark hair cascading sensuously on
Mortis’s inner thighs.
 Mortis blinked sweat out of his eyes, his labored breaths
loud in his ears. He shivered when he saw his master’s face.
The Reaper God’s expression was raw with need.
Mortis whimpered when his master began thrusting two
fingers in and out of his hole. The Reaper God grabbed the
Fenoa nectar and poured some of the liquid directly onto
Mortis’s opening, lust making his movements awkward.
Mortis hissed when the cool liquid splashed across his
sensitive entrance. It was soon warmed by the fingers probing
him.
Mortis groaned and bowed his head back into the bed
when the Reaper God slipped a third digit inside him,
stretching him deliciously open. He licked his lips.
It felt good. Much better than he’d thought it would
considering this was his first time. He could feel himself
growing loose down there. Then the Reaper God did
something with his fingers and Mortis saw stars.
“Master!”
He grasped the Reaper God’s arms. The deity slowed his
thrusting and met Mortis’s stunned stare. He leaned down and
took his mouth in a sweet kiss.
“That was your sweet spot, Mortis.”
He hooked his fingertips and touched the exquisitely
sensitive bump inside Mortis once more.
Mortis’s passage spasmed violently around the hot
intruders within it. A guttural sob left his throat.
He didn’t realize he’d come until he felt the new stickiness
coating his belly. He blinked sweat and tears from his eyes
before meeting the Reaper God’s heated stare, his heart
thundering so rapidly he felt it would leap from his chest.
“More, Master!” he breathed. “I want you to do that
again!”
A savage expression twisted the Reaper God’s face at the
husky command. He gave Mortis exactly what he asked for,
plundering his ass with his fingers, stroking the place that
drove Mortis out of his mind over and over again until he
almost passed out from the ecstasy.
By the time the Reaper God removed his fingers from his
slack, quivering body, Mortis’s throat was hoarse from
screaming in pleasure. The Reaper God hooked Mortis’s legs
around his hips and leaned down to kiss him, his cheeks
flushed and his eyes burning bright. He linked their fingers
together and trapped Mortis’s hands on either side of his head.
Mortis stilled when he felt something hot and hard press
against his hole. He locked gaze with his master, his breath
freezing on his lips at this delicious overture of what was still
to come.
“I want to touch you.”
The words were out of his mouth before he could help
himself.
The Reaper God froze, surprise widening his eyes. He
licked his lips and carefully guided Mortis’s right hand to the
thick rod jutting from his groin.
Mortis shivered as he caressed the solid length about to
impale him. The Reaper God’s cock pulsed beneath his touch,
silky smooth but for the veins snaking beneath his hot skin.
Mortis didn’t know what possessed him to do what he did
next.
 He lifted his head off the bed and placed his mouth close
to his master’s ear.
“Master?”
“Yes?” the Reaper God said, his tone tight.
“I really want this inside me,” Mortis whispered. He
tugged on the broad head sitting against his loose pucker.
“Promise you’ll fuck me hard and good, Master.”
The Reaper God reared back, like he’d been struck by
lightning.
His nostrils dilated violently as he stared at Mortis, his
expression feral with lust. He grabbed Mortis’s wandering
fingers and laced their hands together again.
“I know I told you to be honest about your feelings, but I
fear you’re going to be the death of me,” he groaned.
Mortis grinned. “Wouldn’t that be something?” He leaned
up and nipped at his master’s jawline with his teeth. “By the
way, after you come inside my hole, I want you to come in my
mouth and in my hand.”
The Reaper God’s eyes rounded with shock and desire.
Then he growled and punched his hips forward.
Mortis gasped when his master’s cock breached his
entrance.
He could tell from the Reaper God’s taut expression that
he was teetering on the edge of losing his self-restraint.
The deity closed his eyes, his head drooping until his hair
formed a silken curtain around Mortis. A ragged breath shook
his body as he fought for control.
 Mortis danced his lips across the Reaper God’s brow. “It’s
okay. I’m ready.”
The Reaper God blinked and stared into his eyes. He
rocked his hips gently, sinking in inch by delicious inch, his
gaze roaming Mortis’s face like he was looking for any sign of
pain. Mortis swallowed at the burn of his first penetration.
They both hissed when the Reaper God reached the
tightest part of him.
His master stilled. “Are you okay? Should I stop?”
Sweat beaded Mortis’s brow. He shook his head and licked
his lips. “Just…just give me a minute.”
He inhaled and exhaled shallowly, forcing his body to
relax. A gasp shuddered out of him when the Reaper God
finally punched past the taut ring of muscles with a fierce
grunt.
Then his master was buried inside him to the hilt. The
deity froze before staring dazedly at the spot where their
bodies were fused together, looking fairly stunned.
Mortis bit his lip at the impossible fullness of the thick
cock stretching his passage. He ached and burned and tingled.
But it wasn’t just discomfort he was feeling.
There was a trace of something else there. A pleasure he
had yet to know awaited him still. He was sure of it.
Then there was no more time to think.
For the Reaper God had pulled out and pushed back in,
spine bowing and mouth stretching on a fierce grimace.
“Ah!” Mortis’s nails scored the back of the Reaper God’s
hands where they clasped each other’s fingers. “Master!”
 Sparks lit his insides as the Reaper God began plundering
his passage with powerful thrusts. Mortis rolled his hips,
instinctively matching the cadence he set, seeking the pleasure
he’d just tasted.
“Does it feel good, Mortis?”
Hot drops splashed onto Mortis’s chest. Sweat crowded the
Reaper God’s brow and snaked down his face. He gazed
intently at Mortis, the muscles of his thighs bunching
powerfully as he moved.
Mortis met the crimson gaze burning into his face and
nodded shakily, too overwhelmed to speak for a moment. The
slick sound of flesh entering flesh was making his cock throb.
“It feels—it feels good!” he finally gasped.
The Reaper God let go of one of his hands and grasped his
waist.
The new angle had the broad head of the deity’s cock
hitting Mortis’s sweet spot.
“Oh!” he cried out. “Yes! Right there!”
“Mortis!” the Reaper God groaned as he pounded him into
the bed.
Their harsh breathing and throaty sounds filled the suite as
their bodies fell into a rhythm as old as time.
The Reaper God’s pants grew labored, the points of color
on his cheekbones bright against his snow white skin. His face
glazed over with his growing pleasure. His grip tightened on
Mortis’s hand and waist. His movements gained in ardor,
rocking the bed frame even as they lifted Mortis’s body off the
sheets.
 Mortis welcomed it all, his heart swelling with so much
joy he felt it would burst. This sweetly savage mating was
everything he could have wished for and more. It was bliss. It
was rapture. It was a connection no one else could forge with
the deity who was possessing him with passionate strength, his
expression radiating a bone deep hunger that would consume
him.
A buzzing sound filled Mortis’s ears as the dizzying
pleasure he was experiencing neared its crest. He convulsed on
a guttural groan, back bowing and heels digging into the
Reaper God’s lower back. His cock pulsed violently, anointing
the Reaper God’s belly and his own stomach with sticky
streaks of musky cum.
The Reaper God hissed when the strong contractions
rippling through his passage squeezed and milked his erect
length. His motions grew erratic. Crimson bloomed in his
eyes.
Mortis could only watch in breathless wonder as the God
he loved finally went rigid above him. His master threw his
head back, his long hair swaying beautifully as it cascaded
down his spine. His neck corded and his mouth opened on an
animal noise that was almost pain.
Mortis’s passage swelled as the Reaper God climaxed
inside him. The deity’s hips jerked fitfully, ramming his
ejaculating cock deep within Mortis’s pleasantly used body.
He let go of Mortis’s hand and gripped his hip, fixing him to
the bed while he pumped out his pleasure with harsh grunts.
Mortis shivered. His master’s seed was hot. So hot it
scorched his insides and all his senses.
It was some time before the Reaper God stilled and sagged
above him. He blinked hazily, pupils constricting and dilating
as his awareness slowly returned. He stared at Mortis as if he
were seeing him for the first time.
“Mortis?”
“Yes, Master?”
The Reaper God leaned down and kissed him with aching
tenderness. “I love you.”
Mortis trembled. His vision blurred, his heart so full to
bursting he wanted to sob.
“I should have told you that before I touched you,” the
Reaper God confessed, his tone somewhat remorseful.
The deity looked at Mortis expectantly in the silence that
followed, a sliver of worry dancing in his eyes.
Mortis swallowed a smile, hooked his arms around his
master’s neck, and whispered the words he very much wanted
to hear against his lips. “I love you too, my one and only
Master.”
The Reaper God drew a sharp breath at his tremulous
confession. Something swelled inside Mortis. He blinked
before flushing.
His master was hard again.
The Reaper God shuddered and closed his eyes briefly.
“I’m sorry, Mortis. I’m afraid I cannot stop.” He rolled his
hips, his growing erection stretching Mortis’s passage as he
resumed their sensual mating dance.
“Master,” Mortis sighed. Tingles spread though his insides,
his body eagerly reacting to the fresh possession. He groaned
when the deity’s feverish gaze dropped to his own burgeoning
cock. “Touch me. Please!”
 The Reaper God did just as he asked, his fingers moving
expertly on Mortis’s aching flesh. Mortis gasped when he
lifted him up and sat back on his heels. He blinked as he found
himself riding his master’s sex, his arms looping instinctively
around the deity’s shoulders.
The new angle deepened the penetration and drew a lustful
groan from them both.
“I will never tire of this,” the Reaper God whispered
against his throat. “So, you better prepare yourself, my sweet
Mortis.” His pupils flared crimson and gold under his hooded
gaze as he grasped Mortis’s hips and moved him up and down
his hot length.
Mortis moaned and clung on for dear life, his erection
bobbing between their bellies as his master plundered his body
over and over again, as eager for the sinful act as the God who
held him was.
By the time dawn poked pale fingers on the horizon,
they’d mastered several of the positions in the sex manual Pan
had given the Reaper God. At the latter’s insistence, they
stayed five more days in the earthly realm so they could
explore all the others the Reaper God had been keen to try.
Mortis did not protest too much, especially since his
master let him touch him and eat him to his heart’s content.

THE END
 NIGHTFALL

T HEOPHILE S ERRANO STUDIED HIS REFLECTION NERVOUSLY AS

he adjusted the knot in his tie.

The man staring at him in the mirror with his curly,
chestnut hair slicked back and his green eyes sparkling above
a navy check suit with a rust-colored waistcoat looked like a
stranger.
A wry grimace tugged at Theo’s lips.
It’s amazing what a thousand dollar suit does to your
appearance.
His cell phone chimed on the dresser, reminding him of his
appointment. Not that he needed reminding.
He’d been counting down the days to his date with Victor
Sloan.
Theo headed out of the master bedroom and walked down
a hallway to an open plan living space. The setting sun painted
riotous colors across the sky filling the outlook of the glass
wall to the right, the fading light turning the River Thames and
the London skyline a flaming red. Theo stopped and stared, as
mesmerized by the sight as when he’d first seen it.
His new apartment was in the same converted granary in
Bermondsey where Cassius Black, his blood brother and
fellow Guardian of the Nether, owned a place. Theo had
moved into it three weeks ago, following the events that had
seen Inner London trapped in the Seventh Hell and his identity
as a newly awakened demigod revealed to the world.
There were days when Theo still had to pinch himself to
check if all of it had been a dream. He only had to sense the
soul of the demigod who’d reincarnated inside him and feel
the sacred connection that bound them to Victor Sloan to know
this was very much his new reality.
He took his car keys from the tray by the front door and
headed out of the apartment. A private lift took him down to
the underground garage.
The lights of his new Maserati flashed when he neared it.
Theo climbed nervously into the luxury car. Though his
recently appointed position in the Order of Rosen came with
an eye-watering salary and perks that were usually reserved
for diplomats and royalty, he still wasn’t used to his newfound
fame and glory or the lavish lifestyle that accompanied it. His
body may house the soul shard of the previous South Star, but
his human origins were a humble one.
Theo pursed his lips as he settled in the leather seat and
scanned the opulent interior of his ride. The car had been a gift
from Victor.
The demigod head of Cabalista had showered him with
plenty of expensive presents since they’d started going out, but
even Theo had protested when he’d given him the keys to the
custom-made Maserati on their third date.
“I can’t accept this, Victor,” Theo had objected where
they’d sat eating in an expensive hotel in the West End.
 “You need a new car,” Victor had replied with a dismissive
shrug before taking a sip of his wine.
“Who the hell buys his boyfriend a Maserati?” Theo had
groaned.
“I do,” Victor had said arrogantly. His expression had
softened at Theo’s scowl. He’d reached across the table and
taken Theo’s hand, his thumb caressing Theo’s knuckles.
“Besides, it’s to make up for missing our last date.”
The apology in his blue eyes had had Theo falling silent.
With the capital still recovering from the disaster that had
befallen it, the local bureaus of the agencies governing the
otherworldly had seen an unprecedented rise in requests for
assistance. Victor’s workload had more than doubled and he
often spent late hours at the Cabalista headquarters in
Finsbury. He’d ended up not just missing their second date,
but their fourth and fifth ones too.
Tonight was different though. Victor had promised he
would make their rendezvous come hell or high water. Theo
had been able to tell from the frustration lacing his voice when
they’d last spoken that he loathed not being able to see him.
Not least because it meant Victor couldn’t touch Theo.
Heat warmed Theo’s cheeks as he drove out of the garage
and headed west into London. Though he and Victor had
kissed and indulged in some heavy petting after their dates,
they hadn’t progressed beyond that. Victor had always taken
Theo home and bade him goodnight like a perfect gentleman
before leaving.
It was a state of affairs Theo found increasingly difficult to
fathom. He and Rohengar were Victor’s soulmates. That much
had become inherently clear when they’d battled the dark God
Elios and rescued London from the Seventh Hell. Yet Victor
didn’t appear as eager to consummate their relationship as
Theo was.
Which had led Theo to finally decide to take the bull by
the horns.
Tonight. I’ll make him make love to us tonight. Even if I
have to ambush him!
Though Rohengar harbored some misgivings about his
plan to seduce Victor, he’d not protested too strongly. If
anything, he seemed fascinated by Theo’s determination to get
his man.
Don’t worry Rohengar, Theo had promised. You’re finally
going to get your wish. I’ll make sure Coraos eats you tonight.
Rohengar had sighed heavily at this.
Theo’s pulse quickened when he crossed Westminster
Bridge.
Victor had booked a table for them at a swanky restaurant
in Soho.
He navigated the narrow streets of the West End and pulled
up outside an elegant building with a dark and gold frontage
moments later. A parking attendant came out and took his keys
when he stepped out of the Maserati.
Theo became aware of the curious stares of passersby as
he crossed the curb and headed for the entrance. Excited
murmurs sounded when several people recognized him. A
camera flashed.
Theo flushed and ducked his head.
Even the doorman couldn’t completely hide his awe as he
welcomed him inside the building and guided him to a private
lift. Theo emerged in a small, resplendent foyer on the third
floor a moment later. A maître d’hôtel stood behind a
mahogany reception desk. He brightened at the sight of Theo.
“Ah, the guest of honor is here.”
Theo gave him a puzzled half-smile. “Hi. My partner made
a reservation. His name is Victor Sloan.”
“Of course,” the man said effusively. “Follow me, Mr.
Serrano.”
Crystal chandeliers shed an artfully subdued lighting
around Theo as he headed through an arched doorway into the
restaurant. The place was the definition of opulence, the oak
paneling and gold-quartz speckled terrazzo floors
complementing the black leather chairs and marble tables, and
the rich colors of the Victorian furnishings.
It took Theo all of three seconds to clock that the place
was deserted. He glanced at his watch.
It was past seven o’clock on a Friday night. He’d expected
the place to be packed.
The maître d’hôtel spied his confused expression.
“Oh. Did Mr. Sloan not tell you? He reserved the entire
restaurant.”
Theo’s stomach dropped. “He did what?!”
The man smiled. “We don’t usually accept requests to
secure the whole place, especially on a Friday night, but we
couldn’t refuse a deity who helped save the city.”
Theo became aware of the not so subtle stares of the
handful of waiters and waitresses around him. Even the
bartender was trying his best not to ogle him as he pretended
to clean a glass.
 To his surprise, the maître d’hôtel led him to a private
dining room at the back of the restaurant. Theo’s eyes widened
when he saw the vases of flowers and glittering candelabras
crowding the sideboards. The scent of roses filled the space,
adding to the intimate mood.
His mouth dried.
The place looked like the perfect setting for a grand,
romantic gesture.
Excitement buzzed through Theo’s veins as he accepted
the glass of champagne the maître d’hôtel poured him. Tonight
was going to be special. He could feel it in his bones.
I’m glad it’s my birthday.
He’d deliberately not told Victor about the special date.
Knowing the demigod, he would probably give him an island.
Theo would rather just spend time with him.
That’s the best gift he could ever grant me.
The thrill Theo was feeling slowly died as an hour ticked
by and Victor failed to turn up. He checked his messages and
voicemail and even tried calling the demigod, to no avail. The
maître d’hôtel gave him an awkward glance when he served
him a second bread basket.
By ten o’clock, Theo was certain Victor wasn’t coming.
He apologized to the maître d’hôtel and the staff and left a
large tip for everyone before walking out of the restaurant with
his ears flaming.
I can’t believe he bailed on us!
Victor had always contacted Theo beforehand when he’d
been unable to make their date.
 Is he—is he bored with us?! Tears blurred Theo’s vision as
he got behind the wheel of his car. Or is it that we are of so
little importance to him that he couldn’t even be bothered to
grant us an excuse for standing us up this time?
The warm scent of summer flooded his senses as
Rohengar’s presence rose inside him, the demigod doing his
best to soothe him.
Don’t make excuses for him, Rohengar! Theo clenched his
jaw and wiped his eyes. His disappointment was turning to
fury. The only way he’s coming anywhere near us is if he gets
down on his hands and knees and begs us for our forgiveness!
His knuckles whitened on the steering wheel. No, make that
crawl on his belly like the mangy dog he is!
Theo gunned the engine and drove out of Soho. Instead of
heading across the river, he skirted the northern embankment
and turned east.
He didn’t want to go back to his empty apartment right
now.
Theo drove through Whitechapel and soon entered
Spitalfields. He pulled up outside an old, brown brick building
ringed on three sides by a park, turned off the engine, and
looked up at a dark window on the second floor.
He still had the keys to his old studio.
Theo quietly let himself inside the building. Silence
greeted him when he entered the place he’d rented when he’d
first come to the city. He flicked on a floor lamp next to a
couch.
The soft light revealed a practically bare room, the only
furniture beside the couch a metal bed and a small dining table
with two chairs. A door to the right opened onto a tiny
bathroom overlooking the street.
Theo’s shoulders drooped. The anger he’d felt on the drive
over had drained away, leaving him weary. Concern gnawed at
his insides.
Did something happen to Victor?
He suspected he and Rohengar would have felt it in their
soul core had the demigod been in a danger. And his newborn
instincts as the South Star would have warned him had Elios’s
dark forces invaded the city. Still, he’d checked the radio
channels for live news updates while he’d been driving and
had been relieved to find out nothing untoward had happened
in London that night.
Which only served to highlight the fact that Victor had
thoroughly dumped him and Rohengar.
Theo kicked off his shoes, climbed on the bed, and closed
his eyes, his throat tight and his chest hot.

R ELIEF MADE V ICTOR S LOAN WEAK WHEN HE SPOTTED THE

Maserati parked in the shadows of some trees on the road
below.
The maître d’hôtel had been about to lock up when he’d
arrived at the restaurant in Soho. The man told him Theo had
left an hour ago. Victor had immediately flown to Theo’s new
apartment in Bermondsey, only to find the place dark and
empty.
He’d been racking his brain trying to figure out where the
demigod could have gone when he’d remembered his old
studio in Spitalfields.
Victor was conscious he’d abused his authority as the head
of Cabalista by using his wings in a non-combat situation, but
he honestly couldn’t care less about that right now.
He pulled up sharply above the building housing Theo’s
old apartment and levitated to a window overlooking the park.
The soft light of a lamp washed over Theo where he lay
sleeping on a metal bed.
Victor closed his eyes and shuddered.
Thank Heaven he’s here!
He knew Theo was likely furious with him for standing
him up. Though Victor had a decent excuse for his absence, he
suspected the demigod would not forgive him easily this time
around. He hesitated before knocking on the window.
Theo stirred. He rose on an elbow and rubbed his eyes
blearily with the back of a hand. He froze when he spotted
Victor through the glass.
Fury darkened his face. He jumped off the bed, stormed
over to the window, and yanked the curtains closed in Victor’s
face.
Victor sagged, wings dipping. He knocked on the window
again.
“Let me in, Theo. We need to talk.”
“Go talk to yourself, asshole!” Theo yelled.
Lights were coming on in the rest of the building. A
window opened below Victor. He snapped his wings and rose.
There was an access door on the rooftop.
 He broke the lock, walked down a narrow flight of stairs,
and reached the front door of Theo’s studio seconds later.
“I’m not going away until you let me in, Theo,” Victor said
through the heavy wood.
His answer was a muffled curse.
A door opened farther along the passage. A woman peered
out, a frying pan in her hand.
“What—what’s going on?!”
Theo’s door opened abruptly. The scowling demigod
grabbed Victor’s wrist and tugged him across the threshold.
The woman gasped. “Oh! Aren’t you that Victor—?!”
Theo’s door slammed closed, shutting the world out.
Victor’s breath got knocked out of him when the furious
demigod grabbed him by the throat and slammed him up
against a wall.
“At least do me the fucking decency of leaving me alone
when I ask you to!” Theo hissed, his pupils flaring gold. “You
seemed to ignore me just fine these last couple of weeks so I
don’t get why—!” He froze in the next instant. The color
drained from his face. “Why is there blood on your clothes?”
he mumbled numbly.
Victor winced at the itching on his left shoulder and arm.
His injuries had almost finished healing.
“A maintenance team found a monster’s den in an
abandoned section of the underground,” he explained as Theo
let him go, the demigod’s green gaze locked on the crimson-
stained claw marks on his suit. “It looks like they’d been there
since London was in the Seventh Hell. I got the call when I
was on my way over to the restaurant.” Victor grimaced and
ran a hand through his hair. “I’m sorry, I should have called
you before I headed into the underground. I was confident it
wouldn’t take me and the Cabalista agents who were there
long to get rid of the creatures, but they were fire monsters. I
was the only one who could fight them. One of them crushed
my phone when it hit me.”
Theo shuddered.
Victor’s chest tightened at his ashen face.
“It looks worse than it feels, honestly,” he reassured. “The
wounds are nearly gone.” He faltered. “I’m truly sorry, Theo. I
—Argh!”
Theo’s fist had smashed into Victor’s gut. He wheezed,
shocked.
“You should have asked me to help you,” Theo grated out,
hands clenched tightly at his sides and chin trembling as he
glared at Victor. “Isn’t that what partners are for?! Isn’t that
what,” the demigod stopped and swallowed, “what soulmates
are for?!”
A tear overspilled Theo’s eye and trickled down his cheek.
Victor tugged him in his arms, guilt twisting his insides.
“Don’t. Don’t cry, please.” He burrowed his face in the crook
of Theo’s neck. “It breaks my heart to see your tears.”
Theo’s hands found his back, his fingers clenching tightly
on Victor’s suit. His voice came out in a quivering whisper.
“Does that mean you still love us?”
A heavy feeling pooled in the pit of Victor’s stomach. He
straightened and took hold of Theo’s shoulders as he stared
into his glistening eyes, his pulse pounding heavily in his
veins. “Why would you even say that?” He clenched his jaw.
“Does Rohengar feel the same way?”
Theo sniffed and shook his head. “He told me to be patient
but I—I thought you might be getting be bored with us.”
Victor took Theo’s hand and led him to the couch. He sat
him down, their knees touching as they faced one another.
“I love you, Theophile,” Victor said quietly. “And Coraos
loves Rohengar. Those two facts will never change for as long
as we have breath left in us.”
The way Theo searched his face made Victor feel like an
utter bastard.
“Do you—do you really mean that?”
“Yes.” Victor kissed Theo’s eyelids tenderly and pulled
him into his arms. “I swear it in the name of Heaven.”
“Then, why haven’t we had sex yet?” Theo mumbled
against his chest.
Victor flinched. He met Theo’s faintly accusing expression
guiltily as the demigod looked up at him.
“Are Rohengar and I not to your liking?”
Victor groaned. He is killing me.
Having Theo this close after so many days apart was sheer
torture. From the heaviness pooling in his dick, his body felt
the same.
“I want to take things slow,” he confessed stiffly.
Theo’s eyes widened when Victor straightened, clasped his
hand, and pressed a hot kiss to his knuckles.
“I want to woo you.”
 Theo blinked. “Woo be damned. I want sex.”
Victor choked on a bark of laughter.
Theo chewed his lip and cocked his head. “Is this because
you took Cassius to bed two weeks after your first date?”
Victor drew a sharp breath. “He told you that?”
Theo shrugged. “I was curious, so I asked him.”
Regret knotted Victor’s belly. “I should have treated him
better.” Determination hardened his voice. “I won’t make the
same mistake with you and Rohengar.”
Theo frowned. “Look, I get that you want to court us, but
Rohengar and I are about at the end of our patience. Me more
than Rohengar. I’m honestly surprised that guy didn’t jump
you before the Fall.” He paused and narrowed his eyes as he
listened to whatever it was Rohengar was telling him. “Oh,
please,” Theo scoffed. “You and I both know exactly what you
wanted Coraos to do to you.”
Victor’s lips twitched.
“What?” Theo said suspiciously.
“You guys are cute when you argue with one another.”
Theo bristled at his grin. “Look here, asshole. No one
wants to hear they’re cute. And I’m telling you we want you to
—hmph, hmph!”
Victor swallowed Theo’s recalcitrant words with his
mouth.
The demigod stiffened before melting in his hold. A moan
left him when Victor probed his lips with his tongue and
slipped inside. The fire that had been smoldering in Victor’s
gut for the past few weeks ignited at the way Theo responded
to him.
It took all his willpower to end their torrid kiss.
“Are you sure?” Victor whispered. “Because once we start
this, I won’t be able to stop, however much you or Rohengar
beg me to.”
Theo nodded tremulously. “Yes. It’s not midnight yet, so
it’s still my birthday. I want this as my gift.”
Victor froze. “What?”
Theo lowered his gaze sheepishly. “I knew you’d buy me
something ridiculous if I told you, so I kept quiet about it,” he
mumbled.
Victor inhaled raggedly. “That…makes me a little upset.”
Theo peeked at him hopefully from beneath his lashes.
“Upset enough to punish me?”
Victor groaned. Theo’s sparkling eyes made it clear the
demigod wouldn’t mind if Victor disciplined him in bed.
“Has anyone ever told you you have a one-track mind?”
“Most virgins do,” Theo confessed, not in the least bit
abashed.
He yelped as Victor slung him over his shoulder in a
lightning fast move and carried him across the room.
A gasp whooshed out of him when Victor dropped him on
the bed.
Victor climbed on the sheets and knelt above Theo. “This
isn’t exactly what I had in mind for your first time.” He
glanced around the spartan room.
Theo swallowed. “I don’t mind where we do it.”
 “I do.” Victor trailed a finger from the pulse beating
frantically at the base of Theo’s throat all the way down his
chest and quivering belly to the telltale bulge in his pants.
“You deserve satin sheets strewn with rose petals and
candlelight.” His voice dropped an octave, lust heating his
own flesh. “Every delectable inch of you merits to be wooed
and worshipped.”

I AM GOING TO LOSE MY FREAKING MIND .

Theo shivered when Victor traced a lazy pattern on his

rock-hard cock. He grabbed Victor’s face and tugged him
down to kiss him, his soul core throbbing as desire seared his
senses.
Victor made a low sound of approval when Theo melded
their tongues in a hungry, heady dance. Black flames flickered
into life around him, the haze warming Theo’s fingers where
he clasped the demigod’s hard jawline.
Victor straightened, sat back on his heels, and reached for
the knot in his tie, his erection tenting his trousers and his
cheekbones flushed with passion.
Theo’s mouth dried as he watched Victor undress.
The demigod’s body was even more spectacular than he’d
imagined it would be, his muscles sharply defined and toned to
perfection, every hard line and angle an ode to his devastating
masculinity.
Theo gulped when Victor’s manhood sprung free. It had
been a while since he’d seen that part of him.
I can’t wait to have him inside me.
 The heat suffusing his insides told him Rohengar was just
as enthralled by the sight of Victor’s thick cock.
Victor took Theo’s mouth in hot kisses as he stripped him
of his three-piece suit.
“By the way, I forgot to tell you how handsome you look
in that.”
Theo nodded distractedly, too focused on Victor’s hands
where he was undoing his belt buckle to pay attention to much
else.
“Are you listening to me?” Victor nibbled on the inside of
Theo’s left knee as he yanked his boxers and trousers down his
legs.
Theo shuddered at the love bite, his dick jutting proudly
from his groin.
“I want to suck you,” he told Victor bluntly.
Victor cursed. He grabbed their neckties from the bed and
secured Theo’s wrists to the metal bars making up the
headboard in the blink of an eye.
“Oh.”
Victor smiled smugly at Theo’s shocked look. “Bet you
weren’t expecting that.”
Theo licked his lips. “That was number three on my
fantasy list. Number four for Rohengar.”
Victor stared. He burst out laughing in the next instant.
Theo’s mouth pressed to a thin line.
“I’m sorry,” Victor snorted, his eyes crinkling at Theo’s
annoyed look. “It’s just—you never fail to surprise me. I really
love that about you. Both of you.”
 Theo’s stomach flip-flopped at his heartfelt words.
The air thickened with sexual tension as they looked at one
another.
Theo’s breath stuttered when Victor raked his body with a
heated gaze, his stare scorching his skin and leaving a trail of
fire in its wake.
“You are so beautiful.”
The demigod’s hoarse voice sent a shiver down Theo’s
spine.
Victor bent down and sucked Theo’s right nipple into his
mouth.
“Oh!” Theo bucked his hips, precum oozing on the tip of
his cock.
Victor’s nostrils flared at the musky scent. He straightened
and traced the stickiness trailing down Theo’s shaft with a
light finger.
“This part of you is especially pretty.” Gold flared in his
eyes. “Doubly so when it’s wet.”
Heat warmed Theo’s cheeks. His flesh tingled as Victor
caressed him with a featherlight touch. Victor wrapped his
hand around Theo’s cock and began stroking him in earnest.
Theo bit his lip on a sound of pure pleasure, the sweet
friction everything as thrilling as he remembered it.
A dangerous smile stretched Victor’s mouth as he watched
Theo squirm on the bed and punch his cock through his
fingers.
“This is your first punishment, Theophile.”
 Confusion shot through Theo. It wasn’t until Victor
worked him close to an orgasm and let go of his straining cock
so he could watch from hooded eyes as Theo rolled his hips
helplessly off the bed and sought his release that he
understood Victor’s meaning.
Blood thundered in Theo’s skull as he held Victor’s
scorching gaze.
He couldn’t have looked away from the demigod even if
he’d wanted to in that moment.
The feral expression on Victor’s face.
The naked lust burning in his glowing eyes.
All of it told Theo he was finally seeing Victor’s true
carnal self. A side of him he’d never shown to Theo for fear of
scaring him.
But Theo wasn’t scared. And neither was Rohengar.
They accepted Victor’s every caress as he teased and
edged them over and over again until a pool of precum formed
on their belly and their breathless pleas for release filled the
room.
“What were your number one and number two fantasies,
Theo?” Victor growled as he began rubbing his exquisitely
sensitive flesh again.
“I—I wanted you to make me come with your tongue in
my ass! Oh!” Theo squeezed his eyes shut and hissed at the
electrifying tingles throbbing through his cock and making his
passage clench. “And—and I wanted you to take me from
behind, doggy style! Ah!”
“And Rohengar?”
“Hmm!” Theo hummed. “That feels—argh!”
 Victor pinched the tip of his shaft with just enough
pressure to make him feel a sliver of pain but not enough to
hurt him.
“Tell me, Theophile,” the demigod demanded, his voice
rough with passion.
“He—he wanted you to touch and lick him all over!” Theo
whimpered and bit his lip so hard he almost broke the skin.
“Victor! Enough! We—we want to come!”
“That was just fantasy number one,” Victor said,
unrelenting.
Agonizing tension spiraled through every inch of Theo’s
body.
“Rohengar—Rohengar wanted you to take him hard,” he
gasped. “Hard enough to make him scream. And he wanted to
ride you!”
“Good boy,” Victor murmured.
He lowered his head and sucked Theo’s cock inside his
mouth.
A buzzing sound filled Theo’s world as he finally crested
the towering peak of ecstasy Victor had brought him to. Sound
and sight faded as he convulsed on the bed, his cock spurting
fitfully in the hot confines of Victor’s cheeks, his wrists
straining against the ties binding him.
He came to to find Victor licking his lips with a sinful
expression where he knelt between his legs. Victor gave his
own cock a few tugs before undoing Theo’s restraints. He
kissed Theo, flipped him on his front, and worked a pillow
under his belly.
 Theo’s pulse stuttered as Victor moved down the bed. He
gripped the sheets when Victor spread his butt cheeks and
gave the demigod a wild look over his shoulder.
“Here comes fantasy number one,” Victor promised
sultrily.
He ducked his head and flicked his tongue across Theo’s
tight folds.
“Aaah!” Theo squirmed, hips punching his stirring cock
into the bed.
Victor pinned him with a strong grip and spent several
torturous minutes lavishing his hole with teasing strokes of his
wicked tongue as he softened his entrance. He sucked his
pucker and blew air across his tingling nerve endings, making
him gasp and groan.
Theo’s eyes almost rolled back in his head when Victor
finally spread him open with his thumbs and speared his
tongue inside his body. His knuckles whitened, the incoherent
sounds falling from his lips echoing in his ears as he worked
his hard cock helplessly on the sheets, the beautiful tension
heralding his orgasm spiraling through his spine and limbs
once more.
Their soul cores resonated with a heat that drew a savage
growl from Victor and a tortured sob from Theo and Rohengar
both.
Victor hitched Theo’s hips higher and fucked him with his
tongue, each thrust driving him deeper inside his quivering
passage. He reached under Theo’s body and fondled his
dripping cock and trembling balls.
The dual stimulation tipped Theo over the edge, the sounds
he and Rohengar made as they came making his face grow
even hotter.
His hole twitched when Victor extracted his tongue from
his body. The demigod gave his convulsing pucker a final kiss
before letting him go.
“You can tick that fantasy off your wish list,” Victor
murmured. “Let’s move on to the next one, shall we?”
“Oh!” Theo’s eyes rounded as Victor spread the cum he’d
spilled in his palm across his loose opening.
Victor slipped a finger inside him and probed around until
he found the spot that made Theo see stars.
“There it is.”
Theo shivered, sweat beading his face as Victor worked his
passage open with steady thrusts. Victor slipped a second
finger inside him, then a third, making him hiss with pleasure.
Victor kissed Theo’s back. “Does that feel good?”
Theo hummed and nodded jerkily.
“I’m glad,” Victor said, his tone gruff with desire. “My
cock is going to feel ten times better.”
Theo bit his lip. He’d never imagined sex with Victor
would be this filthy or this sinfully good. The way Victor
played with his body was so erotic he knew having his cock
inside him would wreck him in ways that would practically
make him swoon with pleasure.
Victor scissored his fingers and spread Theo as wide as he
could.
Then he pulled Theo up on his hands and knees, crowded
his back, and parted his butt cheeks.
 “Here I come.” Victor took hold of Theo’s chin so he could
twist his head around and claim his mouth as he pressed his
cock to his opening.
Theo’s heart thundered violently as Victor entered him,
their gazes locked unblinkingly on one another.
He winced when Victor reached the tightest part of him.
“Breathe, Theophile.” Victor nibbled on his lower lip and
worked his hand around Theo’s front so he could stroke his
quivering cock.
Theo moaned and panted, forcing his body to relax. His
eyes flared when Victor breached the taut ring and filled him
to the hilt.
Victor stilled and closed his eyes. “Fuck! You’re so tight!”
He gnashed his teeth, his fingers sinking into Theo’s skin
where he gripped his waist.
He withdrew a little and nudged his cock back in, his
expression pained, like he was barely holding on to his self
control.
Theo gasped at the hot friction. He instinctively squeezed
his passage. The motion elicited a heartfelt curse from Victor.
Victor pulled out even more and plunged back in, his
thrusts slow and steady as he established a sensual rhythm that
fairly robbed Theo of his senses.
“The way your hole is squeezing my dick tells me you’re
really enjoying this,” Victor hissed.
“I am,” Theo confessed breathlessly. “You were right.
Your cock feels ten times better than your fingers!”
Victor groaned.
 The warm scent of summer filled the room as Rohengar
made his presence felt.
“Harder, Coraos!”
Victor growled and bit Theo’s shoulder as he gave in to the
demigod’s command. The bed creaked when his movements
grew more forceful.
Theo grabbed the metal headboard and rocked to and fro,
each slick motion of Victor’s cock inside his body making
bright spots burst across his vision.
Rohengar’s lustful moans merged with Theo’s throaty
gasps and cries as Victor fulfilled both their fantasies and
claimed their bodies with untamed passion, his grunts savage
and his grip painful where he clutched their waist.
Their climax when it came made their soul cores blaze and
scorched the room with dazzling beams as divine power
blazed from their eyes, their shouts of pleasure tortured and
wild.
Theo panted when Victor pulled out of his body, flipped
him on his back, and plunged back inside him, the black
flames simmering around him cocooning them in a sultry heat
that made every inch of Theo tingle.
Tension knotted Theo’s spine and belly as he and
Rohengar approached the crest of their next orgasm.
Victor’s features distorted on a feral expression, his climax
hitting him at the same time they convulsed around his
plundering cock. He withdrew a moment later, grabbed Theo’s
wrist, and tugged him up.
“Ride me!”
 Theo’s chest heaved with his breaths when Victor sat back
on his heels and guided him so he straddled his groin. His
every nerve ending sizzled and tingled from the overwhelming
pleasure he and Rohengar had experienced tonight.
But there was still plenty more to feel.
Because just as he and Rohengar hungered for the
devastating ecstasy they had found in Victor’s arms, so did
Victor’s desire for them seem unquenched.
Sweat dripped off Theo’s face as he took hold of Victor’s
hard cock and slowly impaled himself upon it. He let
Rohengar take over their fused souls as he rose and sank
sensuously, the demigod finally claiming the pleasure he had
only ever dreamed about in his past life.
Violent pulses of light throbbed from Victor’s eyes as
Coraos rode his soul and fucked Rohengar hard and deep, his
mouth ravishing Rohengar’s lips hungrily.
A wondrous expression washed across his flushed face as
he watched Rohengar explode in his arms. He pressed hot lips
to the column of Theo’s throat, his hips thrusting passionately
through the convulsions of the demigod quivering in his
embrace.
“Rohengar!”
Dawn was poking pale fingers across the night sky above
London when they finally succumbed to sleep in each other’s
arms, bodies limp and sated.
Theo woke up hours later to Victor’s lips dancing lightly
across his nape.
“Hmm.” He wriggled and sighed. “What time is it?”
“It’s two o’clock.”
 Theo’s eyes snapped open. He gasped and bolted upright.
“Shit! We’re late for work!”
Victor stared at him blankly before bursting out in a belly
laugh that filled the room.
“I—I wished I could claim I fucked you for three days
straight, but it’s still Saturday, Theo,” he wheezed.
Theo flushed and rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.
“Oh.”
Victor arched an eyebrow at his embarrassed expression
and trailed a finger down his back. “It was that good, huh?”
Theo narrowed his eyes a little. “You’re looking awfully
smug.”
Victor grinned and folded his arms behind his head.
“That’s because I’m confident about my skills. Besides, your
croaky voice is enough evidence of how splendidly I made
you and Rohengar—”
He groaned when Theo climbed on top of him and kissed
him.
“Yeah, yeah, your dick is a wonder of the world.”
Victor palmed his butt cheeks and rolled his hips.
Theo sucked in air as their stirring cocks brushed.
“Just this world?” Victor nibbled on Theo’s lower lip.
Theo gave him a pitying look. “Wow. So you’re saying
your dick is a wonder of all the realms?”
“I think I have a fighting chance of claiming that position,”
Victor declared arrogantly.
Theo laughed. Then he moaned and hissed and gasped as
Victor flipped him on his back and worked his wicked hands
and mouth down his body.

THE END
 BELOVED

T HE DULCET CORDS OF HARPS AND LYRES FILLED THE AIR , THE

harmonious sounds underscoring the clear, bright tones of
flutes rising from an invisible celestial orchestra. The soft
tinkling of water added to the beguiling melody, the jets
spouting from the hundred crystal fountains adorning the
open-roofed banquet hall and the gardens sparkling magically
under the shimmering constellations and swirling galaxies
stretched across an endless night sky.
Icarus observed the Gods and demigods circulating
through the reception over his glass of nectar where he sat in a
private arbor suspended above a small lake. It was the second
day of the week-long banquet all divine beings were required
to attend every one hundred years and was as much a social
gathering as it was an opportunity for new demigods to be
introduced and pay their respects to the Gods of Old.
It was Icarus’s fourth time attending the function since
he’d taken the seat of the North Star.
Not much has changed since we were last here.
He was not sure if this was a good thing in view of the
rumor that had been circulating of late.
Icarus became conscious of the avid stares he was drawing
from the busy crowd. It was the reason the Guardians had
requested a private pergola outside the main hall for the
duration of the festivities. Though he had long grown
accustomed to the naked longing with which many of the
guests who attended the banquet openly regarded him, it was
still uncomfortable to be the focus of such heated gazes.
He was distracted from his aggrieved thoughts by a low
grumble.
“Like peacocks showing off their plumes,” someone
groused under their breath.
Icarus glanced at the hulking, red-haired demigod leaning
against a marble column beside him. Archon, the West Star
and custodian of the war hammer Echo, was scowling at the
glittering figures below.
“Better not let our Heavenly fathers and mothers hear you
utter such blasphemy,” Icarus told his brother-in-arms drily.
“I shall give them blasphemy,” Archon scoffed. “Look at
them! Tarted up to the eyeballs and acting like they have nary
a concern in this world.” He narrowed his eyes, outrage
simmering in the tawny depths. “Of course they don’t, the
damn fools. We’re the ones working our armors off keeping
them safe from the dangers lurking outside the Nether.”
Icarus swallowed a sigh. Arguing with Archon when he
was in this mood was about as productive as trying to
convince war demons not to be the monsters they were born to
be.
“Why does Archon look like he’s about to eat someone?”
A beautiful, dark-haired demigod holding two platters
loaded with succulent fruits and fine meats had alighted onto
the arbor. Icarus smiled softly at his blood brother Rohengar,
the South Star and wielder of the Spear of Light.
 Nildar, the East Star and keeper of the divine bow Sky
Piercer, landed gracefully in Rohengar’s wake, not a drop
spilled from the drinks he carried. He gave one to Archon.
“Here, how about you down that and relax? Rohengar and
I could feel your murderous vibes from the other side of the
banquet hall. Even the Winter God was shuddering.”
Archon accepted the glass grudgingly. “Yes, well, maybe
Boreas should stop being a giant baby and help us out in the
Nether.”
“You’re the biggest baby here,” Nildar pointed out.
Archon sucked in air.
Translucent wings shimmered out of the corner of Icarus’s
eyes as Archon and Nildar launched into one of their caustic
exchanges. Several attendants hovered close by, their
expressions nervous as they peered at the four Stars. Though
they were meant to serve all the Gods and demigods at the
banquet equally, the reputation of the Guardians was such that
most weren’t sure how to behave around them.
Archon’s glares and Nildar’s icy stares hadn’t helped
matters thus far.
Rohengar sighed. “Stop fighting you two. You’re scaring
the servants.”
“We’re not scaring them,” Archon scoffed.
Nildar’s green eyes glinted with cold menace as he glanced
at the loitering figures. “If this is enough to frighten them, they
shouldn’t have signed up for the position.”
A Naiad overheard his remark. Her face crumpled. She
darted into some bushes, her wings trembling like jewels as
she sobbed. Her friends arrowed toward her to console her.
 Rohengar pinched the bridge of his nose. “Great. You
made her cry.”
“She’ll get over it,” Nildar said dismissively.
Archon smirked.
“Daphne won’t be pleased,” Rohengar warned.
Nildar and Archon sobered. Even the Guardians knew not
to cross the queen of the Naiads. Daphne might come across as
sweetness and light, but she was a Goddess who had
annihilated entire battlefields in the past and was fiercely loyal
to her kin.
“Maybe I should apologize,” Nildar muttered.
“By the way, where did you find that?” Archon indicated
the bottle the East Star had brought from the banquet hall.
“This?” Nildar’s lips tilted in a mocking smile as he waved
the bottle. “It’s a present. A specialty of the Spirit Realm. I’ve
been meaning to try it for a while.”
Archon’s eyes flashed. “You got that from that horned
bastard?!” he spat.
“If you mean the Wild God, then the answer is yes,” Nildar
replied blithely.
Rohengar studied the East Star with a trace of concern.
“Be careful, brother. Pan isn’t one to bestow gifts without
asking for something in return.”
“Indeed,” Archon groused. “That son of a goat loves
nothing more than forcing people into his service in exchange
for a favor.”
“You are correct.” Nildar shrugged. “I had to promise him
something.”
 Archon stiffened. He fisted his hands, brows lowering in a
fierce glare. “What kind of god-awful request did that brute
make of you?!”
“I owe him a sexual favor,” Nildar said nonchalantly.
Icarus choked on his drink. Rohengar dropped the piece of
fruit he had just pierced with a fork.
The glass in Archon’s hand exploded into glittering shards.
“You fool!” Nildar rushed over, grabbed Archon’s hand,
and used a napkin to dab at the cuts on the West Star’s palm.
Icarus leaned toward Rohengar.
“He knows Archon can just heal himself, right?” he
whispered sotto voce.
Rohengar hushed him.
“Did you—” Archon stopped and swallowed, unheeding of
his wounds. “Did you really tell Pan he could bed you?!” His
frozen gaze remained locked on Nildar.
Nildar scowled. “Of course not! I was only jesting.
Besides, you know as well as I do that becoming a Guardian
practically means taking a vow of celibacy.”
“Oh.” Archon sagged. “That’s—that’s right.” His cuts
began to mend as he came to his senses.
Silvery laughter drew Icarus’s gaze to the main banquet
hall. A group of Goddesses had just arrived. From the way the
crowd converged on them, their company was sought-after.
“It’s the Moirai and the Hesperides,” Rohengar observed, a
hint of surprise underscoring his voice.
Nildar and Archon wandered over to his side.
 Icarus studied the Goddesses greeting old friends and
acquaintances with bright voices and tactful smiles. Their
beauty was dazzling even for deities and their confident
bearing spoke of the power they wielded.
Nildar blinked. “Oh.”
Archon raised an eyebrow. “Now that’s one for the books.”
Icarus followed their stares.
A second group of Goddesses had entered the hall behind
the Moirai and the Hesperides. Though just as physically
stunning, their wings were as black as night and their austere
auras signaled the darker nature of their divine abilities.
Icarus knew without being told that he was looking at the
Furies and the Black Fates, blood sisters of the Moirai and the
Hesperides.
The reticent manner in which the dark winged Goddesses
were being welcomed was in sharp contrast to the reception
their bright-haired and white-winged siblings had earned.
Icarus frowned slightly.
Their presence may be daunting but still, it is rather rude
not to show them the same respect as their blood kin.
“It has been a good five hundred years since I last saw all
of Nyx’s daughters gathered under one roof,” Rohengar
murmured.
Icarus glanced curiously at his brother. Rohengar had left
Rain Vale and assumed the seat of the South Star long before
he himself was chosen to be a Guardian.
“I thought all deities were obliged to attend the centennial
banquet.”
 “They are, if their duties allow,” Rohengar replied. He
exchanged a troubled look with Nildar and Archon.
“It seems the daughters of Nyx have been busy behind the
scenes, just as we have been in the Nether,” Nildar said
broodingly.
Lines wrinkled Archon’s brow. “We should talk to them.
See if they have heard the same whispers that have reached
our ears.”
Unease prickled Icarus’s scalp as he probed the
Goddesses’ neutral expressions.
Could the reason that they have scarcely attended the
banquets of late have something to do with what we’ve heard?
That a God might be planning some kind of rebellion?
Movement behind the Black Fates captured his gaze.
Icarus’s eyes widened.
Rohengar drew a sharp breath beside him.
Two figures had alighted at the entrance of the banquet
hall. One was a handsome demigod with fair hair and dark
wings that sizzled with stygian flames. The other figure was
barely visible where he was wrapped in a storm of black wind.
Icarus’s belly tightened when the inky currents parted to
reveal the second demigod’s form.
Jet-black hair crowned the deity’s tall, imposing frame. His
eyes shone the color of purest cobalt and his sharply chiseled
features would challenge even the prettiest Moirai’s charms. A
shimmering tunic hugged his powerful body, the hem stopping
just short of his knees and hinting at the muscular thighs
beneath.
Icarus swallowed.
 He flinched when Archon spoke. Heat warmed his ears
when he realized he’d nearly been caught staring at the dark
demigod below like a lovestruck fool.
“Who’s that with Coraos?” Archon was frowning at the
new arrivals.
Icarus recognized the name he had uttered. Coraos was a
demigod son of Nyx.
He must be the one with the gold-spun hair and dark
flames.
“I believe that is Ivmir,” Rohengar replied.
Something in his brother’s voice had Icarus looking over at
him. The South Star was still watching Coraos. A faint flush of
color crept upon Rohengar’s cheeks.
Surprise swept through Icarus.
He had never seen that expression on his brother’s face
before.
Rohengar took a shallow breath and recovered his
composure.
Icarus hesitated before choosing to maintain his silence. It
was not his place to question what he had just glimpsed in
Rohengar’s bright, sapphire eyes.
Nildar pursed his lips. “So that’s the demigod Nyx sired
with Queen Atlanteia’s son,” he muttered, his focus on Ivmir.
“It explains the Dryad magic I can feel from him.” The East
Star brightened in the next instant, the glee in his green eyes
telling Icarus he had just recalled something that had tickled
his funny bone. “Wait. Wasn’t he the one who got banned from
attending the banquet when he was a child?”
Icarus blinked. “What?”
 Nildar flashed a grin his way. “You likely won’t know this
story. You were still in Rain Vale at the time.”
Rohengar sighed at Icarus’s questioning look. “Apparently,
there was an…incident when Ivmir was still a juvenile
demigod.”
“What kind of incident would warrant a ban from the
divine banquet?” Icarus asked, aghast.
“One in which a star got destroyed,” Rohengar replied
reluctantly.
Nildar chuckled.
Icarus’s secret esteem for the demigod he had been
admiring from afar faded a little.
“I don’t like him,” Archon stated bluntly.
They all turned to the West Star.
Archon was wearing a mutinous look.
“Not that this surprises me, considering your frequent
lapses in judgement in such matters,” Nildar said patiently,
“but why, pray tell, do you dislike Ivmir when you have not
even met him?”
Archon ignored Nildar’s unsubtle dig. “He looks like a
lady killer. There, see?” He pointed, peeved. “All the female
deities and attendants are already fawning over him.” His
mouth twisted in a moue of disgust. “Good Heavens, even the
males are trying to ingratiate themselves with him.”
Icarus looked over. Half the crowd had indeed peeled away
from the Moirai and their sisters and were busy trying to
engage the dark-winged demigod. From the tense looks on the
Furies and Black Fates’ faces, it looked like they had half-
expected this. The Moirai and the Hesperides joined the dark-
winged Goddesses as they approached their demigod brother,
the guests parting diffidently in their way.
A whispered exchange took place between the siblings.
Ivmir frowned. His annoyed voice reached Icarus’s ears.
“Why should I?”
Several of the Goddesses’ mouths flattened to thin lines.
More words were traded.
Ivmir listened for a moment before crossing his arms, his
expression growing even more irate. “And how is that my
problem exactly?” He glared at the deities lurking close by. “I
was born with this face. It’s not my fault these fools can’t stop
gawking at it.”
Icarus choked on an involuntary chuckle. He bit his lip and
smoothed his features into an impassive impression at
Rohengar’s curious glance.
Over on the banquet floor, the eldest Moira Atropos and
the Black Fate Tenebra were pinching the bridge of their
noses. One of the Furies muttered something under her breath
and looked beseechingly at the night sky. Coraos’s shoulders
drooped, like he’d heard all this before.
A Hesperis patted Ivmir’s back, a gentle yet determined
smile stretching her lips as she spoke quietly to him.
Ivmir brightened. “Really? You’ll let me fight Ladon?” His
voice rang across the banquet hall, his tone full of passionate
enthusiasm.
Hesperia scowled.
“I said I would let you ride him, not fight him!” she
snapped. She seemed to recall where she was and pasted a
demure expression across her face once more.
 Ivmir deflated a little. “Oh.” He rubbed his chin
thoughtfully. “I guess I can settle for that.” He bobbed his
head. “Alright, it’s a deal.”
Coraos and the Goddesses breathed sighs of relief.
“I wonder what they asked him to do,” Nildar mused as
Ivmir disappeared in the direction of the gardens.
“Judging from his temperament, they probably told him to
lie low,” Rohengar said in a resigned tone. He cast a pointed
look at Archon.
The West Star shrugged. “What?”
To Icarus’s surprise, the daughters of Nyx flew over to
their arbor a short while later.
“It is good to see you, Guardians,” Atropos greeted with a
graceful curtsy after she landed on the marble floor. Her sisters
followed suit, their wings dipping as a sign of due regard.
Rohengar rushed forward. “Please, Goddesses,” he said,
flustered. “It is us who must lower our heads to you.”
Icarus followed his brother and the other Guardians’ lead
as they bowed to the twelve Goddesses. He straightened to
find Atropos smiling kindly at him.
“It is a pleasure to meet you, North Star. The tales of your
accomplishments have already reached our ears.”
The corners of Icarus’s mouth tilted upwards. “The
pleasure is mine, Goddess.”
Atropos blinked. Interest sparked in the eyes of several of
her sisters.
“That smile of his is lethal,” Nildar muttered to Rohengar.
 Icarus glanced at them, confused. One of the Furies drew a
sharp breath.
Icarus followed her gaze. The hairs lifted on the back of
his neck.
A sudden stillness had come over Atropos. Her eyes flared
gold and her expression took on a far-away look.
Though he’d never witnessed the phenomenon, he could
tell the Goddess of Fate was receiving some kind of portent.
The brightness slowly faded from Atropos’s pupils. The
Goddesses beside her exchanged wary glances, as did
Rohengar and the other Guardians.
The eldest Moira observed Icarus for a silent moment, her
expression solemn. He stiffened when she closed the distance
to him and took his hands. Even her sisters looked surprised at
the act.
“I hope we shall become good friends, Awakener.” She
squeezed his fingers and peered into his eyes, as if hoping to
unravel a mystery. “I may be risking the wrath of the Gods of
Old by saying this, but I must be frank with you. Your fate and
those of myself and my siblings will be intertwined in the near
future.”
A fraught silence descended upon the arbor.
Apprehension clouded Rohengar’s eyes.
Atropos registered the South Star’s unease with an
apologetic half-smile. “Do not fret, Rohengar. I do not mean
your brother harm.”
Rohengar hesitated before dipping his head. “Thank you
for allaying my fears, Goddess.” He traded a cautious look
with Icarus, Nildar, and Archon before directing a guarded
stare upon Atropos and her sisters. “I think we should
converse further at your leisure.” He glanced at the deities
circulating through the banquet hall and the gardens. “Maybe
at a more opportune and private moment? We have…some
information that may be of interest to you.”
Atropos’s face tightened a little. Tisiphone, the eldest Fury,
narrowed her eyes.
“Then we shall look forward to our next meeting,
Guardians,” Atropos said quietly.
The Goddesses took their leave. Icarus blinked when one
of the Black Fates winked at him over her shoulder.
“What was that about?” Archon said gruffly.
“I have no idea,” Icarus murmured.
He had a feeling the words Atropos had spoken would
linger in his mind for some time to come.
“You need to tell him to dampen down his pheromones,”
Nildar told Rohengar. He cocked a thumb at Icarus. “I’m
pretty sure Alecto means to have her wicked way with him at
some point during this banquet.”
Icarus’s stomach dropped. Wait. Is that why she winked at
me?!
Rohengar’s expression grew resigned. “You know as well
as I do that Icarus cannot help it.”
“Cannot help what?” Icarus said, perplexed.
Rohengar, Nildar, and Archon all gave him the same
brooding, pitying look.
Nildar sighed and took hold of Icarus’s shoulders. “Just…
try not to get yourself eaten by a wolf.” He squinted at the
deities in the banquet hall. “There are many of them around.”
Icarus was still puzzling over the East Star’s warning as he
strolled through the gardens a couple of hours later. He’d
slipped away to get some fresh air when Pan had come over to
rile Archon.
To his relief, the section of the gardens he had come to was
as deserted as it had been during his last trip here. It was in a
remote part of the grounds, where only stars served to light up
hidden paths and secret places that could be unearthed by
meandering through gaps in the thick hedges and shrubbery.
To Icarus’s delight, he found yet another magical spot
when he ducked under some heavy, fruit-laden boughs. He
picked an apple from a tree and wandered over to a pretty
gazebo gracing the center of a pond covered in lotus flowers,
in the midst of a secluded glade.
The music from the banquet was a faint, pleasant melody
in his ears as he crossed the path of rocks floating on the water
to the open-aired pavilion. It wasn’t until he entered the
shadows of the structure that Icarus realized he wasn’t alone.
A lone figure was perched on a balustrade, his back against
a column and one arm propped lightly on a bent knee as he
gazed at the distant stars.
“Oh,” Icarus murmured. “My apologies. I did not know
someone was here.”
He was about to retrace his steps when the figure turned
his head and pinned him with a cobalt stare.
Awareness slammed into Icarus as he met Ivmir’s eyes.
His breath caught.
Ivmir slowly unfolded his long legs and swung them over
the edge of the railing, his curious gaze still locked on Icarus’s
face. The way the demigod scanned his body with slow
insolence made Icarus’s skin grow hot.
“I have not seen you before.” An impudent grin curved
Ivmir’s mouth. “This is good. I was starting to get bored. You
can stay and entertain me.”
Icarus’s pulse spiked at his sultry stare. Heat pooled low in
his belly, the sensation so alien he couldn’t help but inhale
sharply and press a hand to his body.
What—what is this?
Ivmir’s pupils flared, gold flashing in the dark depths. His
smile widened to a smirk brimming with arrogance.
“I see the attraction is mutual.” He chuckled as he rose to
his feet and strolled over. “This should make bedding you
easier.”
Icarus blinked, the tension sparking through the pavilion so
thick he was finding it difficult to draw air. The words Ivmir
had just uttered finally sank in. He straightened to his full
height, appalled.
“What in Heaven’s name do you mean?!” Icarus blurted
out angrily.
“Oh hush, now.” Ivmir slipped a hand behind Icarus’s neck
and took hold of his waist so he could tug him close. “I know
we have only just met, but I prefer my lovers quiet and
docile.”
Icarus gasped and shivered at his touch. He felt weak all of
a sudden, like his strength had been sapped out of him. In its
place was a smoldering fire that swept through his veins in an
uncontrolled blaze he feared would soon consume him.
 Ivmir leaned down until his lips were a scant hairbreadth
from Icarus’s mouth.
“Besides, if you’re here, it must mean you’re trying to
escape that infernal banquet too. So why don’t we enjoy each
other’s company for a while?”
This close, Icarus could see dazzling specks in Ivmir’s
eyes. He stared, too dazed to react.
They look like stars.
Rationality fled when Ivmir claimed his lips.
Icarus was faintly aware of dropping the apple he’d been
holding. He stared into Ivmir’s hooded eyes as it rolled by
their feet, unsure if this was reality or an absurd flight of
fancy. Then Ivmir suckled on his lower lip, angled his head,
and fused their mouths.
Icarus swayed, his sanity fading as new sensations
assaulted his body.
This is definitely not a dream!
He wasn’t aware he was clinging to Ivmir’s shoulders until
he felt the firm tension of his flesh beneath his fingers and
heard the demigod’s low sound of approval.
The softness and heat of Ivmir’s mouth. The intoxicating
scent of his breath and his skin. The strength in his hands as he
fixed Icarus in place and aligned their bodies until nary a space
was left between their straining frames.
All of it washed over Icarus in scalding waves that
drowned him in a sea of wanton feelings he had never known,
leaving him trembling.
Ivmir slipped a bold tongue inside Icarus’s mouth. His
fingers tightened on Icarus as he lashed their flesh together,
each sinful motion drawing a muffled gasp from Icarus’s
throat. A growl of pleasure escaped Ivmir at the sounds. He
dropped a hand to Icarus’s behind, pressed a solid thigh
between his legs, and molded their groins together.
Icarus stiffened when he felt the evidence of Ivmir’s
arousal. He shivered, not sure if it was disgust he was
experiencing or something else. Something he dared not put a
name to for fear it would expose the lewd fantasy playing
across his inner mind.
One where the demigod who held him did all sorts of
wicked things to him.
Ivmir shuddered and raised his head. He lifted a hand and
rubbed Icarus’s lips with a gentle thumb, his expression
hungry and a little glazed as he stared into his eyes.
“You taste divine,” he said, his tone gruff with desire. “Tell
me your name.”
Icarus’s heart thudded painfully against his ribs as he stood
frozen in Ivmir’s arms. He knew he should push the demigod
away and chastise him for his unseemly behavior. Yet he…
couldn’t.
Instead, Icarus found himself craving Ivmir’s touch and the
beguiling flames licking at his insides.
I must be losing my mind. This is—this is wrong!
Icarus took a shaky breath and was about to wriggle out of
Ivmir’s arms when a thunderous roar shook the trees around
the lake and sent ripples across the water, making the lotus
flowers dance.
Archon flew into the pavilion, his expression murderous.
“Unhand him, you vile beast!”
 Ivmir grunted as the West Star yanked him away from
Icarus and swung a fist back to punch him. He blocked the
blow with his forearms, snapped his wings open, and retreated
to a safe distance.
“What in the Hells is your problem?!” Ivmir barked at
Archon.
Rohengar and Nildar alighted beside Icarus, their
expressions tense.
“Are you unharmed?” the South Star asked Icarus stiffly.
His eyes flashed as he frowned at Ivmir.
Icarus nodded, his senses slowly returning. “Yes.” He
swallowed, his face warm. “I am—I am alright, brothers.”
He couldn’t very well admit to them that he had just been
ravished and had even contemplated giving in to Ivmir’s
ridiculous demand.
Was I really going to let him bed me?!
A shiver raced through Icarus. Apprehension tightened his
chest as he studied the dark-winged demigod scowling at
Archon.
What did he do to me? Is it—some kind of spell?!
Rohengar misunderstood his shudder. He wrapped a
comforting arm around Icarus’s shoulders, the soothing scent
of summer flowing from him.
“Brothers?” Ivmir sneered at the far end of the pavilion.
“How uncouth of you to interfere in your sibling’s love life.”
He observed the three Guardians mockingly before glancing at
Icarus. “He may be your brother, but he is not a child.”
“Wait.” Archon’s jaw dropped. “Does this buffoon not
know your identity?!” he asked Icarus with an appalled
expression, one finger pointed shakily at Ivmir.
Doubt clouded Ivmir’s face for the first time. “What do
you mean?” He cut his eyes to Icarus. “Who are you?”
Motion in the sky distracted them before anyone could
reply.
Coraos was winging his way over to the pavilion. The
demigod landed beside Ivmir. He took in Icarus’s flushed face
and the other Guardians’ angry expressions, and directed a
suspicious look at his brother.
“I only went to get us drinks.” Coraos placed the two
glasses of nectar he was carrying on a ledge. “What in
Heaven’s name happened?”
Ivmir crossed his arms. “A pretty little lamb wandered into
my enclosure,” he explained with a dismissive shrug. “I was
enjoying a taste when his harebrained brothers decided to turn
up and ruin things.”
Fury ignited Rohengar’s eyes. Sky Piercer appeared in
Nildar’s hands.
Icarus swallowed a mortified groan.
I can’t believe he just admitted that!
Coraos’s face darkened. “You little—” He stopped, jaw
clenched and fisted hand dropping to his side. He grabbed
Ivmir by the back of the neck and forced him into a half-bow.
“Apologize. Now!”
Ivmir struggled in his brother’s hold, a hurt expression
flashing in his eyes. “What? Why?!”
Golden light brightened the night behind them. Icarus
looked around. His stomach sank.
 Ivmir’s sisters were arrowing toward them at great speed.
Atropos alighted first. Her gaze swept the pavilion before
landing squarely on Ivmir.
“What did you do, brother?” she said icily, her eyes so
bright with power the radiance scorched black spots across
Icarus’s vision.
“Nothing that concerns you or anyone else here, sister,”
Ivmir snapped. He finally freed himself from Coraos’s grip
and indicated Icarus. “All I did was kiss him. Why is everyone
so up in arms about it?”
Atropos’s eyes bulged.
“Oh the divinity,” Coraos mumbled numbly.
“Was tongue involved?” someone asked in an innocent
voice. “Inquiring minds wish to know.”
Tisiphone hushed a bright-eyed Alecto.
“Of course tongue was involved,” Ivmir grunted.
The heated look he gave Icarus made his breath quicken.
Some of the color had drained from Rohengar’s face. He
cut his eyes to Icarus.
“Did he—did he force himself on you?!”
“What? No!” Icarus protested. He hesitated and glanced at
Ivmir. “I mean…he did take my lips without my express
permission.”
Atropos started quivering, jaws clenched and nails sinking
so hard into her palms Icarus feared she would cut her own
flesh.
Archon ground his teeth. “What else did he do?”
 Nildar was shooting daggers at Ivmir.
Icarus swallowed. There was no point shying from the
truth. Not when he was in the presence of the Goddesses of
Fate.
“He, er, touched my behind and said he wanted to bed
me,” he confessed reluctantly.
The silence that descended upon the pavilion was so
profound Icarus heard a leaf fall in the gardens.
Coraos groaned and dropped his face in his hands.
“Argh, that dimwit,” Lachesis moaned.
“He’s gone and done it now,” Tenebra said glumly.
“Was he born an idiot?” Hesperia asked Erytheis.
“Maybe it’s because of that time Tisiphone dropped him
on his head,” Megaera muttered.
Atropos marched across the pavilion, took Ivmir by the
shoulder, and forced him down until his knees hit the ground.
The floor cracked beneath the demigod under the force she
was exerting.
She bowed deeply to Icarus, her sisters and Coraos
following suit.
“I beg your forgiveness, Awakener,” the eldest Moira said
in a tone full of remorse. “My fool of a brother has caused you
great offense. I shall discipline him as you see fit.”
Ivmir paled. He raised his chin and leveled a stunned stare
at Icarus, his neck cording as he struggled against his sister’s
overwhelming strength.
“You are the Awakener?!”
“Shut up, you idiot!” Tenebra hissed.
 “Please,” Atropos ground out, her fingers sinking into
Ivmir’s flesh until he winced. “Tell me what punishment you
would like me to meter out, Awakener.”
Icarus chewed his lip worriedly. He could tell from the
Moira’s expression that Ivmir would be getting the walloping
of his life after this. Despite Ivmir’s outrageous transgression,
Icarus didn’t want him to get hurt. He took a deep breath,
crossed the floor, and stopped before the dark-winged
demigod.
“Do you know what you did wrong?” he said sternly.
“I kissed you without your permission,” Ivmir replied
promptly.
Icarus arched an eyebrow. “And?”
“And I was remiss in touching your behind.” A smirk
stretched Ivmir’s mouth. “Which, by the way, is the nicest
bottom I have ever—Ouch!”
Tisiphone had dinged him around the ear.
Icarus flushed as several of the Goddesses stared at that
part of his anatomy with renewed interest.
“Let me kill him,” Archon pleaded with Rohengar.
“Not if I kill him first,” Nildar growled.
Rohengar rubbed his forehead, his expression still pinched.
He gazed at Icarus.
“Is this really alright, brother?”
“Yes.” Icarus faltered at his anxious mien. “It was just a
mistake. I’m sure Ivmir has learned his lesson. I see no need to
punish him further.”
 “But,” Rohengar directed another irate look at Ivmir, “—
he stole your first kiss.”
Icarus suddenly wished the ground would open up and
swallow him.
The Goddesses watched with bated breath. Even Atropos
seemed fascinated.
Ivmir’s eyes widened. “That was your first kiss?!”
Irritation shot through Icarus. From the experienced way
Ivmir had claimed his mouth, he was willing to wager it hadn’t
been Ivmir’s first kiss. The smile that lit up the demigod’s face
in the next instant scattered Icarus’s thoughts and made his
soul core throb.
“Now I want to bed you even more,” Ivmir said fervently.
Archon punched him in the jaw.

“F OR THE HUNDREDTH TIME , I AM SORRY , ALRIGHT ?” I VMIR

pleaded in a beleaguered voice.
Icarus whirled around. “Stop following me,” he snapped.
He turned and resumed his walk, only to halt when Ivmir
took flight and landed in front of him. Cobalt blue eyes that
had haunted his sleep and his every waking moment for the
past week studied him in earnest hope.
“Not until you tell me you forgive me and agree to have a
drink with me.”
Icarus sighed and rubbed his forehead tiredly.
It was the penultimate day of the banquet. Ivmir had pretty
much stalked him since the night they’d first met. Though he
never approached Icarus when he was in the company of the
other Guardians, his brooding eyes had followed his
movements when Icarus had been obliged to mingle with the
other deities attending the celestial banquet.
Distance and the passage of time had made Icarus question
all he had felt when Ivmir had taken him in his arms. He’d
come to the conclusion that it had been a folly brought about
by strange circumstances. As a Guardian, his duty was to lead
an ascetic life and abandon all interest in the pleasures of the
flesh. It was not so much a written rule as it was an inevitable
consequence of possessing a Guardian soul core: the power it
bestowed overrode most base instincts and emotions, allowing
Guardians to ascend to a level of spirituality in keeping with
their roles.
Icarus was confident Rohengar was as chaste as he was.
Nildar and Archon on the other hand were much older than
them and had both had relationships before they were chosen
as Guardians. Icarus had never once heard them express regret
as not being able to experience physical love again. Whether
they privately lamented the loss he would never know without
asking them.
And that is not a conversation I am ever going to have.
Ivmir fidgeted restlessly as he waited for an answer.
Icarus’s lips twitched. “I forgive you. But I shall not have a
drink with you.”
“Why not?” Ivmir almost wailed.
Icarus swallowed a snort.
Ivmir stared. “Did you just laugh at me?”
The demigod looked so incensed Icarus couldn’t help but
burst out laughing.
 Ivmir crossed his arms and pouted.
Icarus doubled over.
“I’m sorry,” he chuckled once he got his breath back. He
straightened, wiped away his tears, and gave Ivmir an
apologetic look. “You looked like a child just now and I
remembered the story Nildar told me.”
Suspicion darkened Ivmir’s gaze. “What story?”
Icarus scratched his cheek. “About the time you got
yourself banned from the banquet.”
Ivmir drooped. “Oh. That story.”
Icarus smiled. Ivmir stilled, his gaze locking on Icarus’s
face as if he’d just unearthed the most wonderful treasure.
Icarus tried not to squirm under his heated stare.
“I need to make something clear. I cannot reciprocate your
feelings for me.”
Ivmir frowned. “Why not?”
“Because I’m a Guardian,” Icarus explained patiently. “We
are not allowed to engage in physical relations.”
Ivmir cocked his head to the side. “Who says I want to
have physical relations with you?”
Displeasure tightened Icarus’s jaw. Ivmir’s mouth
quivered.
Icarus squinted.
He is definitely teasing me. Well, two can play that game.
Icarus took a few bold steps and closed the distance to
Ivmir. The demigod had a couple of inches on him, which
meant Icarus had to raise his head to look him in the eye.
 “Do not lie, Ivmir,” he murmured. “This part of you is
more honest than your tongue.” He lifted a hand and trailed
lazy fingers down Ivmir’s rock hard chest and stomach.
Ivmir’s eyes flared. He grabbed Icarus’s wrist when he
reached the area under his belly button. His heat cocooned
Icarus when he leaned in and brought his lips to his ear.
“You’re dancing with fire, Awakener.”
Icarus shivered as Ivmir’s breath teased the delicate shell,
his pulse beating frantically under the demigod’s fingers.
What am I doing right now?! I just told him I couldn’t
respond to his desires.
But his body wasn’t listening to his mind. Icarus was
helpless against the instinct that made him tilt his neck to the
side, exposing the column of his throat.
Ivmir froze for a breathless moment at the silent invitation.
The kiss he pressed to Icarus’s skin was as tender as it was
hot.
Icarus moaned.
The sound galvanized Ivmir. He wrapped his arms around
Icarus, nosed his chin up, and took his mouth in a savage kiss.
Every inch of Icarus tingled and throbbed as Ivmir claimed his
lips with a passion that would not be quenched. It was only
when he felt Ivmir’s erection probe his belly that he realized
he’d looped his arms around Ivmir’s neck and was clinging to
him wantonly.
“IVMIR!”
They flinched and wrenched their mouths apart as a
Goddess’s roar swept through the gardens.
 Tenebra was winging her way through the sky toward
them, her expression dark.
“You little wretch! I am going to wring your neck!”
Ivmir groaned. “My sisters are going to be the death of my
libido.” He released Icarus, pressed a peck to his lips, and shot
up into the sky. “I’ll see you soon, Awakener!” he yelled over
his shoulder.
Icarus brought a trembling hand to his mouth, unaware that
the flames Ivmir had lit inside him would make him ache in
places he had never ached before for days to come.

I CARUS BLOCKED THE S PEAR OF L IGHT WITH HIS SWORD AND

darted out of the way of Nildar’s blade. It skimmed his
shoulder, causing him to lose his balance.
He froze when the Spear of Light stopped an inch from his
throat.
Rohengar straightened and lowered the weapon. “You are
distracted, brother.”
Nildar looked equally troubled beside him.
Icarus averted his gaze from their probing stares. “I’m just
a little tired.”
He wiped the sweat from his brow and looked around, his
chest heaving and his heart racing from their practice session.
The beauty of the Nether struck him once more, causing his
breath to catch all over again.
The star that graced the sky bathed the vast kingdom in a
sparkling, golden light. Verdant islands floated amidst soft,
white clouds all around them, the forests, mountains, rivers,
and lakes upon them full of life and resplendent with their
unique charms. Flocks of birds danced above the towering
trees and sailed across the firmament, their colorful wings
bright as they soared through the crystal clear air, their silvery
calls a sweet song Icarus would never tire of hearing.
He never expected the forbidden domain that few could
enter to be so majestic. It made him glad he had been chosen
as a Guardian, even though the role came with heavy duties.
“Is Ivmir the reason you cannot focus on your training?”
Nildar grunted. “I heard he was like a bull with a sore head
when his sisters banned him from saying his goodbyes to
you.”
Icarus swallowed a sigh. The East Star was too shrewd for
his own good.
It had been two weeks since they had returned from the
celestial banquet. Though Ivmir had promised Icarus they
would see each other again, he had not laid eyes on the
demigod since they’d kissed that second time in the gardens. It
was only afterward that Icarus had learned the demigod had
been ambushed by his sisters and practically gagged and
trussed up before being hauled off the grounds.
I can’t blame him for not keeping his promise. It’s not like
he can enter the Nether at will.
A figure appeared in the distance before Rohengar and
Nildar could question Icarus further. Archon approached, four
deer swung on a giant shoulder and a net full of freshly-picked
fruits in his hand.
He’d been out patrolling the Nether’s borders.
“Come, let us take a break, brothers.”
 Night was falling by the time Icarus returned to his island
and the pale palace that graced its center. Bright orbs darted
out from the building and appeared from between trees and
flower bushes when he landed in the gardens, the spirits who
served him assuming ethereal cherubic forms as they
converged on him.
“Master, you have returned!” they sang merrily.
Icarus smiled as they flitted and danced around him, their
touches soft and warm where they caressed his hair and face.
“I’m back, little ones.” He gave them the deer Archon had
gifted him. “This is a present from the West Star.”
“Let us prepare Master’s bath and meal!” the spirits
chanted animatedly to one another.
They zoomed toward the palace with the game Archon had
hunted, golden sparks trailing in their wake.
It wasn’t until he’d retired to the open-roofed observatory
that graced the north dome of his palace and his bed chambers
later that evening that Icarus’s thoughts turned to Ivmir once
more. He hesitated before tracing his mouth with a hesitant
finger. Heat warmed his cheeks and pooled in his belly when
he felt a stirring in his groin.
Icarus flushed and lowered his hand as the memory of the
torrid kisses they had shared danced through his mind for the
umpteenth time.
To his embarrassment, he’d woken up to an erection most
mornings since he’d returned from the banquet, the heat and
hardness of his flesh a direct consequence of the sordid dreams
that had filled his every night. Dreams where Ivmir delivered
on the wish he’d made to bed him.
 Icarus was aware of the practicalities of how two males
mated. He’d seen enough depictions in the books on sexual
arts his sister Kalliste used to sneak out of the royal library in
Rain Vale to make him blush. Though it had surprised him to
no end that males found such an act pleasurable, he’d never
envisaged himself in that position.
He was not a stranger to physical attraction. He had
sometimes felt a tightness in his chest and butterflies in his
stomach in the presence of certain Nymphs and Potamoi, back
when he was still a prince of Rain Vale. But none had tempted
him enough to want to explore those feelings further.
It was not frowned upon for male Gods and demigods to
enter into relationships. The practice was indeed widely
accepted in all the realms and had been from Heaven’s very
inception. As far as deities were concerned, the souls of their
partners carried more importance than the physical bodies they
inhabited.
A wry smile curved Icarus’s mouth then. The Wild God
was possibly the only exception to that edict. As Archon had
once declared, barring war demons, Pan could fornicate with
just about anything with a pulse.
Icarus took a sip of his honeyed tea and sighed as he
watched the stars twinkling far above.
I wonder if I will see Ivmir at the next banquet.
He was lost in contemplations when the hairs suddenly
lifted on his arms. Icarus stilled, his pulse quickening.
His gaze swung west and found the spot where he could
sense a disturbance in the sky. Something was coming.
Something that did not belong in the Nether.
 Brightness flashed high above his palace. Icarus’s stomach
twisted.
A portal had opened in the Nether’s wall.
Something fell through it as it closed. Something with dark
wings.
Icarus jumped to his feet.
Is that a war demon?!
Divine power flooded his veins, bringing with it Heaven’s
Light. It bloomed on his skin and hair and made the air crackle
as he prepared to unleash his armor and sword.
Icarus flinched when a distant expletive reached his ears.
“Oh, the Hells!”
The falling figure crash landed in a lake a short distance
from the palace. Icarus froze for an instant before spreading
his wings and darting in that direction, his heart slamming
against his ribs.
He knew that voice.
Spirits swarmed Icarus as he arrowed to where the figure
had emerged from the water and was swimming steadily for
the shoreline.
“No, Master! Run away!” the orbs pleaded. “We will take
care of the intruder!”
They shifted, their new forms no longer that of sweet
cherubs but the deadly warriors they had once been. For the
spirits who inhabited the Nether belonged to fallen soldiers
who had once served in a divine army.
“At ease, my old friends,” Icarus said soothingly. “I know
this demigod. He means me no harm.”
 The spirits traded anxious glances. Still, they obeyed his
command and fell back to a safe distance, their suspicious
stares swinging to the figure in the shallows of the lake.
Icarus landed in the shadows of a grove of trees in time to
see Ivmir rise from the water. Air locked in his throat.
“I’m going to murder that Wild God the next time I see
him,” the demigod grumbled under his breath, ripples sloshing
around him. He ran a hand through his wet hair and stepped
onto the bank, his sandals squelching under his feet.
Icarus barely heard Ivmir, his enthralled gaze raking every
inch of his sharply defined anatomy where his see-through
tunic clung to his flesh. He swallowed when he glimpsed the
shape and thickness of Ivmir’s manhood. The fire that had
been smoldering in his veins since the demigod last held and
kissed him ignited with a vengeance.
Ivmir stilled when he noticed Icarus’s presence. The smile
he gave Icarus lit up his face and made Icarus’s heart throb.
“I kept my promise.”

I VMIR ADJUSTED THE TOGA I CARUS ’ S SERVANTS HAD GIVEN HIM

awkwardly. Truth be told, he loathed wearing the things. Since
Icarus’s clothes would not fit his frame, it was the best they
had been able to offer him.
Judging from their mistrustful stares, Ivmir suspected they
would rather have seen him dressed in rags.
He followed one of the spirits as it led him from the guest
quarters to Icarus’s chambers in the north wing of the palace.
The spirit closed the door after him when he entered the suite.
Ivmir looked around curiously.
Icarus’s residence was nowhere near as lavish as it ought
to be, considering his status. Though the place was beautifully
furnished, the inherent simplicity of the decor spoke of
someone who cared not for appearances.
He spied a large, white bed through the archway to his
right as he crossed a sitting area and a dressing room. It was
covered with a gossamer canopy and strung with gauzy
curtains that added to its privacy.
Ivmir’s pulse quickened. He could smell Icarus’s scent the
strongest from that direction.
He stepped inside a circular, north-facing room. A star-
filled night sky spun above him, the light the celestial bodies
shed sparkling on the surfaces of the lakes and rivers that
dotted the island.
Books lay scattered on a desk to his left. A reclining seat
stood next to it, its surface similar laden with piles of texts and
scrolls.
Ivmir’s gaze skimmed the star-gazing instruments
gleaming in the half-gloom before landing on the figure to his
right. Icarus sat on a window seat loaded with soft cushions, a
glass of steaming tea in his hand.
Ivmir’s breath caught as the Awakener’s beauty struck him
all over again.
Icarus’s features were perfectly symmetrical and
exquisitely refined, the sharp lines of his cheekbones softened
by his jawline and his elegant nose. His long, fair hair
shimmered where it hung loosely past his shoulders, a pale
curtain that draped a solid physique which was not overly
muscular. His limbs were long and graceful, their form lissom
despite the strength Ivmir knew they possessed.
Every inch of him is breathtaking.
Icarus turned his head, as if he had read Ivmir’s mind. His
gray eyes rooted Ivmir’s feet to the ground, the emotion he
glimpsed in their silver depths masked behind a neutral stare
in a heartbeat.
“Come,” Icarus said quietly. He indicated the spot opposite
him. “Have a drink with me.”
Ivmir hesitated, feeling strangely nervous all of a sudden.
He crossed the floor and sat down. Icarus poured him a glass
of tea from a carafe. Ivmir accepted it with a wry grimace.
Icarus eyed him quizzically. “What is it?”
“This isn’t quite what I had in mind when I said I wanted
to share a drink with you.”
Icarus arched an eyebrow. “Don’t tell me you were
planning to get me intoxicated with liquor so you could take
advantage of me?”
“I was, actually,” Ivmir said bluntly.
Icarus’s eyes rounded. He burst out laughing in the next
instant.
Ivmir gave him a vexed look. Icarus laughed harder.
“I’m sorry,” he chortled. “It’s just, I didn’t think you’d be
so honest about it.”
“Yes, well, I would rather avoid any more
misunderstandings between us.”
Icarus’s eyes twinkled as he took a sip of his tea. “Your
faux pas was the talk of the banquet.”
 “Don’t remind me,” Ivmir groaned. “Coraos makes it a
point to tell me how much of a dolt I was every time we see
each other.”
Icarus chuckled. His breath stuttered when Ivmir leaned
over and gently fingered a lock of his hair.
“I’ve never seen you with your hair down before.”
Flags of color painted Icarus’s cheekbones a pretty pink. “I
—I only have it like this at night.”
Ivmir glanced in the direction of the archway. Icarus’s
blush grew.
“I like your bedroom by the way.” Ivmir brought the lock
of hair to his lips, his hooded gaze on Icarus’s flushed face.
The way Icarus shivered and his pupils dilated told Ivmir
he was just as aroused as he was.
Ivmir reluctantly let go of Icarus’s hair. He’d promised
himself he wouldn’t rush the Guardian.
Icarus blinked. Something that looked like disappointment
flitted in his gaze.
Ivmir hid a satisfied smile behind his glass as he took a sip
of his drink.
“How exactly did you get into the Nether?” Icarus asked.
Ivmir stiffened.
Drat. I thought he’d forgotten about that.
“I…would prefer not to reveal that detail.”
Icarus narrowed his eyes slightly. “Was Pan involved?”
Ivmir sucked in air. “How did you know?!”
 “You were grousing about him when you were coming out
of the lake.”
“Oh.” Ivmir lowered his glass to his lap and scratched his
cheek awkwardly. “I didn’t realize you’d overheard me.”
Icarus’s face tightened. “So, Pan has a way of getting in
and out of the Nether without the Guardians’ knowledge?”
Ivmir sighed. He had a feeling Icarus was not going to let
this go until he got an answer.
“Who do you think keeps giving the East Star liquor from
the Spirit Realm?”
Icarus flinched and gasped. “Nildar knows?!”
“From what Pan said, they’ve been in cahoots for
centuries,” Ivmir drawled.
A muscle jumped in Icarus’s cheek.
“Relax, Awakener,” Ivmir murmured. “Pan is not your
enemy.”
Icarus’s expression grew pinched. “Still, there are rules for
a reason.”
Ivmir couldn’t resist anymore. He put their glasses on a
side table, clasped Icarus’s cheeks, and kissed him.
Everything Icarus did. Each expression and gesture. How
his lips moved when he spoke and the corners of his eyes
crinkled when he smiled. All of it stoked his desire for the
Guardian.
The way Icarus responded made Ivmir want to drag him to
his bedroom and make a mess of him and the pristine sheets
he’d glimpsed a moment ago. Icarus’s lips parted eagerly to
welcome Ivmir’s probing tongue, the breathless little moan
Ivmir swallowed full of hunger and pleasure.
It took all of Ivmir’s willpower to end the kiss and lift his
mouth from Icarus.
Icarus’s fingers clenched on his shoulders. His chest
heaved with heavy pants as he stared dazedly into Ivmir’s
eyes.
“What have you done to me?” he whispered.
Ivmir traced his glistening lips with a finger, his belly tight
and his cock hard. “The same thing you have done to me. You
have bewitched me, Awakener.” He pressed his forehead to
Icarus’s brow, his flesh tingling where it met Icarus’s hot skin.
“You have beguiled me, body and soul, and I fear I never wish
to be rid of this spell.” Ivmir shuddered. “I want you, Icarus. I
want your everything.”
His heated confession filled the space between them.
Ivmir realized he had never been as honest with someone
he wished to bed as he was in that moment.
No. Not just to bed. He traced Icarus’s cheek with a
trembling hand as a shocking realization rocked him to the
core. This is not just about sex. I want to own this deity. I want
him to be mine forever more.
Icarus took a ragged breath and squeezed his eyes shut, as
if he found Ivmir’s gaze scorching. “I—”
Ivmir stayed his words with a finger. “You don’t need to
give me your answer right now. I do not wish to pressure you
into a decision you might regret.”
Icarus swallowed and nodded tremulously. “Alright,” he
breathed.
 “Good.” Ivmir smiled. “I’m going to woo you, Prince of
Rain Vale.” He tilted Icarus’s chin with a knuckle and kissed
the tip of his nose. “Look forward to it.”

“D ID SOMETHING HAPPEN ?” R OHENGAR QUIZZED I CARUS .

They’d just put away their weapons and were wiping their
faces with a cloth. Dull clashes rose from the island where
Nildar and Archon still sparred below them.
Guilty tightened Icarus’s throat. “Not particularly. Why do
you ask?”
“You are full of smiles these days.”
Icarus blinked. “I am?”
“Yes.” Rohengar patted his shoulder, his expression warm.
“Not that I mind in the least. It makes me happy to see you
happy, brother.”
The lie he’d just told the South Star burned Icarus’s
stomach. He knew he was going to have to tell the other
Guardians about Ivmir eventually.
It had been a month since Ivmir began sneaking into the
Nether to visit Icarus’s palace. So far, all they had done was
share drinks and meals and gone for walks on the island. The
spirits serving Icarus had finally warmed to the demigod and
even greeted him affably when he arrived for his night time
visits.
Ivmir hadn’t touched him since the first night he infiltrated
the realm of the Guardians. Icarus was conscious he was
waiting for an answer to his confession.
 The problem is me. Icarus frowned as he and Rohengar
flew down to the island where Nildar and Archon had just
finished their training session. I…don’t know what I want to
do.
His inner voice mocked him at that disingenuous thought.
Icarus bit his lip.
Truth be told, it wasn’t that he didn’t know the desires of
his own heart and soul. He just wasn’t sure he was allowed to
fulfill them.
The role of Awakener was a most sacred one. Only a few
were ever chosen for it. To wish for more seemed the very
definition of selfishness and arrogance.
Yet, Icarus couldn’t stop longing for Ivmir.
Is it a dereliction of my duty to crave him? To want a
relationship with him? One that will consume my very being?
Saying yes to Ivmir would mean giving his everything to
the demigod, just as he had articulated that night he’d first
come to him. Ivmir had made it clear how serious he was
about him during the long hours they’d gotten to know one
another since. And Icarus had never once doubted his
sincerity.
Once we cross that line, there will be no going back.
Still, there was one thing Icarus was confident about. Ivmir
would never become a liability to his role as Guardian and
Awakener. If anything, he would become a pillar of strength
that would support him, just as the other Guardians did.
The day ended faster than he’d expected, his tumultuous
thoughts making haste of the hours of training the Guardians
went through when they weren’t busy patrolling the borders of
the Nether. Nildar came over to him as they prepared to leave
for their respective domains.
“Can we talk?”
Icarus studied the East Star’s inscrutable expression before
glancing to where Rohengar and Archon were talking. “Sure.”
Nildar led the way to a willow tree dipping its branches
into a lake. It was far enough that Rohengar and Archon would
not overhear them.
“Here. This is for you.” He slipped something out of his
tunic and gave it to Icarus. “You only need a tiny amount of
it.”
Icarus stared at the glass vial. It contained a shimmering,
golden oil.
“What is this?”
“It’s the nectar of the Fenoa flowers. It comes from the
home of the Naiads.” Nildar sighed at Icarus’s puzzled
expression. “It makes penetration easier.” He made a graphic
gesture with his fingers.
Icarus gasped and almost dropped the vial.
“It has analgesic properties, so it should soothe the sting
and burn of having a giant manhood rammed into your hole,”
Nildar continued bluntly.
Icarus covered Nildar’s mouth with his hand and hushed
him, mortified.
“How,” he stopped and gulped, his face hot, “—how did
you know?!”
Nildar peeled Icarus’s fingers away from his lips. “The
Wild God blabbed.” He shrugged. “I swear, that horned
bastard almost burst an artery trying to keep the fact that Ivmir
was visiting you a secret from me.”
Icarus groaned and closed his eyes. He snapped them open
a second later and pierced Nildar with a frown. “I can’t believe
you taught Pan how to enter the Nether.”
“I lost a bet,” Nildar confessed glumly.
Icarus stared. His stomach plummeted. “Wait. He
didn’t—?!”
“Oh, please,” Nildar scoffed. “The only way that beast’s
cock is going anywhere near my behind is over my rotting
corpse. Since I’m pretty certain Pan isn’t into necrophilia, I
think I’m safe.”
Icarus breathed a sigh of relief. He pursed his lips as he
studied Nildar. “You know, in all the years we’ve known each
other, I never realized your mind and mouth were quite so
filthy.”
Nildar stared. His shoulders drooped.
“What?” Icarus said worriedly.
“Ivmir is going to eat you alive,” Nildar mumbled. “I sure
am going to miss that sweet innocence of yours.”
Icarus rolled his eyes and sighed. The thought that had
troubled him the past few weeks rose to the forefront of his
mind. He hesitated. “You do not find it wrong?”
Nildar tilted his head, puzzled. “Find what wrong?”
Icarus rubbed the back of his neck. “Ivmir and me? I…
can’t help but feel I’m being selfish even entertaining entering
into a relationship with him.”
 A soft smile stretched Nildar’s mouth. “There is no rule
that says you cannot be a Guardian and be happy, Icarus.”
The vial the East Star had given Icarus almost burned a
hole in his tunic as he flew to his palace. His spirits greeted
him with their usual ebullience when he landed in the gardens.
Heat flared through Icarus’s belly. He blinked.
“Is Ivmir here?”
“Yes,” the spirits sang. “He awaits your presence in your
chambers, Master.”
Icarus swallowed. He was still getting used to the strange
sensation in his soul core. The one he’d started experiencing
during Ivmir’s visits lately.
“Can you prepare my bath?” he requested breathlessly.
“As you wish, Master.”
Icarus headed slowly inside the palace, his mind spinning
at the decision he’d finally come to. By the time he reached
the open air bath that graced the center of a private courtyard,
the surface was already steaming and the fragrant scent of
herbs and flowers suffused the air. Icarus stripped and headed
down a set of shallow steps.
The water made his skin tingle when he sank into it. Icarus
submerged himself to his chin, his face hot. He was already
sporting a splendid erection and he hadn’t even seen Ivmir yet.
He counted stars until his aroused flesh settled and had nearly
finished washing himself when a voice came from somewhere
above him.
“I was wondering where you were.”
Icarus whirled around and looked up, the water sloshing
around his hips where he stood in the bath.
 Ivmir was leaning his elbows on the balustrade of the
second-floor gallery that encircled the courtyard. “I sensed
your presence.” He vaulted over the railing and landed lightly
on the terrace.
Icarus looked blankly at Ivmir, the demigod’s words
echoing in his mind.
Wait. Does that mean he feels the same thing I do in my
soul core?!
He didn’t realize he’d said the words out loud until Ivmir
drew a sharp breath.
“You can feel it too?”
Icarus dipped his head, his pulse racing.
“Oh.” A strange expression came over Ivmir.
Icarus realized he was staring at his body. More precisely,
he was studying Icarus’s revived erection where it broke the
surface of the water with the kind of rapt focus that indicated
he was immortalizing this moment in his mind.
Icarus gasped and spun around, mortified.
He squeezed his eyes shut when Ivmir’s footsteps came
closer.
There was a soft splash. Ripples washed against Icarus’s
skin.
Then Ivmir’s heat was all around him as he embraced him
from behind.
“Don’t hide from me,” Ivmir whispered in his hair. He
parted the damp strands clinging to Icarus’s nape and pressed
his lips to his skin. “You are the most beautiful thing I have
ever seen. Every inch of you takes my breath away. I could
look at you for hours, nay, days.”
Icarus shivered, the storm of emotions and physical
sensations sweeping through him so intense he had to bite his
tongue to contain a whimper.
Ivmir squeezed him with his arms. “Tell me, Icarus. Tell
me what I long to hear. Tell me you will be mine.” His husky
tone was laced with a desperation that tugged at Icarus’s heart
as he pressed his brow against Icarus’s quivering nape.
An ache built inside Icarus when he felt Ivmir’s erection
against his buttock. The only thing separating their naked flesh
was the tunic Ivmir wore. And Icarus wanted desperately to be
rid of it.
Icarus shuddered. He could no longer deny the wishes of
his heart.
He opened his eyes, twisted in Ivmir’s hold, and clasped
the demigod’s face with trembling fingers. He stared into his
sparkling, cobalt gaze and whispered,
“Yes. I will be yours.”
The heat that seared Icarus’s core in the next instant drew a
gasp from his throat and was reflected in Ivmir’s widening
pupils.
Icarus was confident then that their meeting had been
predestined.
That their connection would be something special.
Because he could feel a bond forming between their souls.
We are—
 “Soulmates,” Ivmir breathed reverently. His voice shook as
he beheld Icarus. Tears of joy and wonder pooled in his eyes.
“You are my soulmate.”
Icarus’s vision blurred and his breath hitched.
Ivmir lowered his head and gently kissed the silver tears
tumbling down Icarus’s cheeks. Icarus grasped the demigod’s
shoulders, rose on his toes, and fused their mouths in a
frenzied kiss.
“Make love to me!” he begged brokenly against Ivmir’s
lips. “I want to feel you!”
Ivmir flushed with desire. The hungry sound that left his
throat making Icarus weak at the knees. Then Ivmir’s tongue
was inside his mouth and his hands were on his naked body
and the world faded around Icarus on a sparkling, white wave.
Ivmir’s lips. His tongue. His fingers.
They ravaged Icarus and seared his nerves until he became
a being of pure sensation, at the mercy of his lover’s whim. He
moaned wantonly when Ivmir nosed his chin up and pressed a
hot trail down the column of his throat to the pulse beating
frantically at the base.
Icarus cried out when Ivmir sank his teeth into his skin.
Ivmir grazed his nipples with his nails, the contact so
electric Icarus couldn’t help flinching as his belly clenched
painfully.
“I knew they’d be pink,” Ivmir mumbled.
Icarus’s eyes rounded when Ivmir ducked his head and
sucked his left nipple into his mouth. His cock throbbed.
Something thick and sticky oozed from his body.
 Icarus pushed Ivmir away, stunned. “What—what was
that?!”
Ivmir’s gaze dropped. A smile stretched his lips. “That was
your pre-ejaculate.”
To Icarus’s everlasting shock, Ivmir traced the pearly drops
crowning his quivering manhood with a fingertip before
bringing to his mouth and sucking on it.
Ivmir grinned. “Sweet, like the finest nectar.”
Icarus dropped his hot face into his hands.
“My soulmate is a pervert,” he groaned.
Ivmir burst out laughing. He pulled Icarus into his arms
and kneaded his buttocks with his hands.
“We’ll be doing more perverted things than this before the
night is over,” he promised in a heartfelt voice.
A wanton shiver raced down Icarus’s spine when Ivmir’s
erection pressed into him.
Ivmir turned his attention to Icarus’s nipples once more,
his lips, tongue, and teeth teasing the stiff nubs until they were
swollen and exquisitely sensitive. All the while, he ground
their groins together, his hips mimicking the act of sex as he
slowly rocked his pelvis.
“More,” Icarus moaned. He tipped his head back, his blind
gaze lost in the night sky as Ivmir taught him pleasures he had
never known before.
A savage growl erupted from Ivmir. He ripped his tunic off
his body and cast it on the terrace before grabbing the back of
Icarus’s thighs and lifting him up so he could hook his legs
around his waist.
 “Oh!” Icarus’s eyes almost rolled into the back of his head
as their naked bodies kissed intimately from their chests to
their groins.
Ivmir’s manhood was hard and thick and hot where it
pressed against his trembling stomach.
“Icarus, my Icarus,” Ivmir chanted huskily. He worshipped
Icarus’s face and throat and chest with his lips.
Icarus’s hole twitched. An ache was growing inside him,
one that centered on his lower half and parts of him that had
never known another’s touch.
Ivmir carried Icarus across the open air bath, lifted him out
of the water, and sat him on the edge. Icarus gasped when the
cool marble ledge kissed his heated flesh.
Ivmir claimed his mouth hungrily before taking hold of his
erection and stroking him.
“Ah!” Icarus hissed at the electrifying friction. He looked
down and flushed at the sight of Ivmir working his stiff
member.
“Does it feel good?” Ivmir nipped at his chin.
“Yes.” Icarus’s body was growing hotter with every
beguiling motion of Ivmir’s hand. “I—I want to do that to you
too!”
“Later,” Ivmir said. “If you touch me right now, I’ll go off
like a shooting star.”
Icarus glanced at Ivmir’s erection. He gulped.
“Ivmir?”
Ivmir nibbled on his collarbone. “Yes?”
 “Hmm, Nildar gave me a vial of nectar from the Fenoa
flowers. I still don’t think that is going to fit inside me
though.”
Ivmir froze. “Where?”
Icarus blinked. “What?”
Ivmir raised his head and narrowed his eyes, his fingers
stilling on Icarus’s straining cock. “Where’s the vial?”
Icarus indicated his tunic where it lay at the side of the
bath. “It’s in my pocket.”
Ivmir lunged for his clothing and removed the item Nildar
had gifted Icarus. He clenched it tightly and squeezed his eyes
shut briefly.
“Thank you, East Star!” Ivmir met Icarus’s confused stare.
“I’ve been trying to get hold of some for ages,” he confessed.
“I’m in Daphne’s bad books at the moment, so it hasn’t been
easy finding this stuff.”
“Do I want to know why you are in her bad books?” Icarus
said in a resigned tone as Ivmir returned to his side.
“Not right now,” Ivmir admitted guiltily. He put the vial
next to Icarus and clasped his rock hard cock once more.
“Where were we?”
Icarus sighed as he surrendered to the wicked sensations
Ivmir was eliciting from his hot flesh. He flushed when his
member oozed more of the pearly evidence of his pleasure,
slicking Ivmir’s strokes.
A feverish tension ignited inside him. It stiffened his spine
and thighs and belly. Icarus moaned and started rocking his
hips, powerless to resist his body’s instinct.
 “Ivmir!” Icarus gasped. He met his demigod lover’s
intense stare, his fingers digging into his solid shoulders.
“You’re close.” Ivmir kissed him softly. “Come for me,
Icarus.”
Icarus’s body tightened like a bow as Ivmir quickened his
motions. Wanton sounds left him as he thrust his sensitive
manhood shamelessly through Ivmir’s firm grip, reaching for
something.
Something he knew would wreck him yet that he still
craved.
Fire blossomed in his soul core, the flickering flames
matching the tautness washing and ebbing through him. Icarus
whimpered as he neared the dizzying crest of what he’d been
seeking.
His hole contracted and his stomach knotted painfully
when he finally tumbled into an ocean of devastating pleasure.
Icarus was barely aware of his shout of ecstasy as the
pressure in his lower body exploded into streaky, pale jets that
spurted from his cock and anointed Ivmir’s fingers. His wings
snapped open, the feathers trembling violently as they reached
for the sky.
Icarus sobbed and gasped, his hips jerking fitfully and his
passage pulsing as he rode the endless waves of blinding
sensation, the world fading until all that was left was his body
and mind and soul drowning into a river of red, hot pleasure.
It was a while before Icarus’s awareness returned. He
roused to find Ivmir raining tender kisses down the side of his
neck. He was clinging to the demigod, his heels digging into
the back of his thighs, his arms and wings wrapped tightly
around his shoulders.
 Ivmir straightened and wiped Icarus’s sweat-soaked brow.
“Was that good?” he asked huskily.
Icarus nodded numbly. “It was so good I—I thought I was
going to die!”
Ivmir bit his lip. His shoulders trembled.
Icarus squinted. “Are you laughing at me right now?”
“No,” Ivmir denied in a strangled voice.
Icarus punched him lightly on the shoulder.
Ivmir grinned and collected the vial of nectar. “How about
we take this to the bedroom?”
Icarus’s breath caught when he swung him up into his arms
and walking out of the bath in all his naked glory.
“I can walk,” Icarus mumbled.
Ivmir kissed him tenderly as they entered the palace. “Your
legs are still shaking.”
Icarus flushed. Truth be told, he’d never felt so weak-
limbed and sated in his entire life.
He became aware of his spirits peering at them curiously
from behind columns and the corners of the hallways they
were navigating.
“Do not disturb us,” Icarus told them with flaming ears
before burrowing his hot face in Ivmir’s chest.
“Yes, Master,” they murmured glumly.
Icarus groaned when the spirits’ low whispers reached
him.
“Poor Master is going to get violated,” one mumbled
dispiritedly.
 “That’s one giant cock,” another said, sounding more than
a little impressed.
Ivmir swallowed a snort. He winced when Icarus pinched
his chest.
“I told you that demigod was up to no good,” another spirit
hissed. “Now look! He’s going to insert his enormous
manhood inside Master and wreck him.”
Icarus bit his lip. Being wrecked by Ivmir was exactly
what he wanted. Not that he’d ever admit that out loud.
“You know, I don’t think Master minds,” another spirit
observed shrewdly. “You heard the sounds he made just now.
He was definitely not in pain.”
Then Ivmir and Icarus were inside his chambers.
Ivmir kicked the door closed and burst out laughing.
“It’s not funny,” Icarus grumbled. “They are going to lose
all respect for me.”
“Yes, it is. And no, they won’t.” Ivmir grinned and put him
down on his feet. “They love you.” He walked Icarus
backward into the bedroom, his lips landing hotly on Icarus’s
eyelids and cheeks and lips.
Icarus gasped when Ivmir pushed him down on the bed
and dropped the vial of nectar next to him. Ivmir climbed atop
the sheets and studied Icarus broodingly where he knelt on all
fours above him.
“Touch me,” he commanded gruffly.
Icarus hesitated before raising his hands and stroking
Ivmir’s chest lightly. Pleasure painted red flags on Ivmir’s
cheekbones. He hissed when Icarus touched his nipples, his
pupils blowing until they were dark pools of desire.
 His reaction made Icarus grow bolder.
Icarus lifted his head off the pillow and kissed Ivmir’s
throat. He caressed his shoulders and arms and his wide,
strong back before working his way down the solid ridges of
his abdomen, his fingers tracing invisible patterns on Ivmir’s
twitching skin as he teased a path to his groin.
Ivmir jerked and hummed when Icarus cupped him. “By
the Gods, that feels good!”
Icarus swallowed at the weight and feel of Ivmir’s erect
manhood. Though he found it impossible to imagine how his
thick girth would fit inside his body, he very much wanted to
experience Ivmir’s possession.
Icarus explored the veins and silken skin of Ivmir’s shaft
for breathless moments, learning his shape and the way he
liked to be touched.
A lustful groan left Ivmir, his expression telling Icarus he
was reaching his limits. He kissed Icarus before clasping his
errant hand and pinning it above his head with his other wrist.
Icarus moaned when Ivmir lowered his frame and pressed
him into the bed. He discovered that he relished the feeling.
Being subjugated in this fashion, his arms trapped and his
pliant body crushed and exposed to his lover’s touch, felt
sublime.
And touch him Ivmir did.
Icarus gasped and trembled and whimpered as Ivmir
explored every inch of him with his fingers and mouth. The
demigod played with his nipples until Icarus begged him to
suck them, only for him to cry and dirty the sheets with his
pre-ejaculate when Ivmir gave in to his pleas.
 By the time Ivmir kissed a path down his quivering belly,
Icarus was a hot mess. His trembling cock had oozed a sticky,
pale pool that had gathered around the root of his shaft and
trickled down his balls and taint.
Ivmir’s hooded gaze locked on Icarus’s feverish stare as he
worked his hands under his knees and lifted them.
Icarus sucked in air when Ivmir parted his legs and kissed
the inside of his left thigh. Ivmir settled on his belly, propped
Icarus’s knees on his shoulders, and stretched him nice and
wide, exposing his most sinful part to his gaze.
Icarus licked his lips as Ivmir studied his hole with a
devout look.
“This part of you is so pretty I want to immortalize it in a
painting,” Ivmir declared in an impassioned voice.
Icarus dropped his head on the pillow and covered his eyes
with his hands.
“How in Heaven’s name can you say such things with a
straight face?” he groaned.
He stiffened in the next instant.
Ivmir’s breath had just danced across his erection.
“Ivmir? What are you—?! Ah!”
Icarus’s shout echoed across the bedroom as Ivmir licked a
scalding path from the root of his engorged cock to his
twitching tip. His hands found Ivmir’s hair and his gaze
Ivmir’s sultry stare.
Ivmir repeated the motion, heedless of Icarus’s fingers
digging into his scalp, his clever tongue tracing the veins on
the underside of Icarus’s shaft.
 Icarus had read of this practice. He’d just never imagined
anyone doing it to him.
It was filthy. Obscene. Wicked.
And Icarus loved it.
He hissed when Ivmir circled the head of his erection with
his tongue before flicking his oozing tip.
Then Ivmir swallowed him inside his mouth and Icarus
fairly lost his mind.
All he could do was feel as Ivmir worked his rigid member
with his lips and tongue and the most exquisite suction of his
powerful jaw and cheeks.
Icarus’s body soon fell into a rhythm as old as time as
Ivmir continued his ardent ministrations, his hips undulating
sensuously off the bed.
Pleasure soon blinded him. He gripped Ivmir’s hair and
began thrusting his cock wantonly inside his mouth. Fire
pooled in the pit of his belly, bringing with it a tension that
made Icarus’s every nerve ending tingle.
“Ivmir! Please, I beg of you!” he panted.
Ivmir reached for something as he continued eating him to
his heart’s content. Icarus heard the pop of a lid and gasped
when a few drops of a warm liquid anointed his hole.
The sweet scent of flowers assailed Icarus’s nostrils.
He stiffened, his eyes rounding.
Ivmir was stroking the slick pad of a finger across the tight
folds protecting his entrance.
Icarus bit his lip and shivered at the sinful sensation.
 His body tightened like a bow as Ivmir worked his front
and his back, the demigod sucking him lustfully while he
rubbed and circled his twitching hole.
Then Ivmir widened his jaw and swallowed Icarus’s
throbbing manhood all the way to the back of his throat at the
same time he pushed a finger past his softened folds and inside
his body.
Icarus’s core flashed as he detonated like a star.
He ejaculated violently inside Ivmir’s hungry mouth, his
guttural cry of pleasure echoing in his ears, his passage
clenching fiercely around the stiff intruder piercing him with
gentle thrusts. Ecstasy wreaked havoc upon Icarus’s senses as
he convulsed on the bed, his cock throbbing and jerking inside
the hot confines of Ivmir’s cheeks.
Ivmir gulped and swallowed his seed, his finger still
working Icarus’s entrance.
He finally let go of Icarus’s pleasantly spent cock and
straightened so he could sit back on his knees, his cheeks
flushed and his eyes dark with passion.
The look he gave Icarus as he poured more of the Fenoa
flower nectar on the place where he was penetrating him made
Icarus shudder as he lay panting on the bed, his legs propped
on Ivmir’s shoulders and his body weak with pleasure.
Then Ivmir stretched his opening with his thumbs and
ducked his head to flick his tongue across his quivering folds.
“Ivmir!” Icarus gasped, shocked.
Ivmir growled, a sound full of need. He grabbed Icarus’s
calves, spread him wide, and hitched his lower body off the
bed so he could feast on his hole.
 Sparks of electricity stabbed Icarus’s passage as Ivmir
rimmed him thoroughly. His cock swelled with fresh arousal,
his toes curling in mid-air at every sinful motion of Ivmir’s
wicked tongue.
Icarus whimpered when Ivmir lifted his head and lowered
him to the bed before pushing two fingers inside him. To his
surprise, they went in easily, his hole and insides slick with the
nectar of the Fenoa flowers and Ivmir’s spit. He met Ivmir’s
torrid stare as the demigod plundered his body, getting him
used to the feeling of being penetrated.
A hiss left Icarus as Ivmir scissored his fingers, spreading
him even more open.
“I’m coming in,” Ivmir said gruffly a moment later.
Icarus’s heart thudded violently as he watched Ivmir slick
his cock with a generous amount of nectar.
Then Ivmir crowded the cradle of Icarus’s body, spread his
thighs wide, and wrapped his legs around his hips. He leaned
down and took Icarus’s mouth in a scorching kiss as he
pressed the head of his cock to his entrance.
Icarus moaned when the rock hard intruder pierced his
body, his hole stretched impossibly wide. A burning sensation
scorched his rim. He winced.
“Breathe, Icarus,” Ivmir whispered against his lips. “I
promise, this gets better.”
Icarus panted and nodded tremulously. He gazed into
Ivmir’s breathtaking eyes and did as he instructed, focused on
loosening his body. His passage prickled when Ivmir finally
breached his entrance and sank inside an inch.
“Ivmir!” Icarus whimpered. His nails scored red lines on
Ivmir’s arms where he’d pressed them on either side of
Icarus’s body.
Ivmir groaned and squeezed his eyes shut as he stilled and
waited for Icarus’s body to adapt to his girth.
“It feels so good inside you,” he mumbled.
Sweat dripped from his face and splashed onto Icarus’s
belly.
Icarus’s heart clenched at Ivmir’s taut expression. He could
tell he was holding back so as not to cause him pain. Icarus
raised a hand and caressed Ivmir’s face.
“More,” he whispered. “Give me more, Ivmir.”
Ivmir opened his eyes. The fire smoldering in the blue
depths should have scared Icarus. Except it didn’t.
“Are you really alright?” Ivmir asked.
“I won’t lie to you,” Icarus said softly. “It hurts. But I still
want this.”
Ivmir swallowed. He clasped Icarus’s wrist and kissed his
palm as he nudged his hips forward. Icarus’s mouth opened on
harsh gasps as Ivmir slowly filled him, their gazes locked on
one another.
Then Ivmir was in to the hilt. The demigod took a
shuddering breath, his body quivering with tension.
Wonder danced through Icarus at the fullness inside him.
It felt alien and hot and a little painful still. He could feel
the Fenoa flower nectar working its magic as it soothed the
soreness.
There was something else there.
A banked heat that throbbed in tandem with his soul core.
 It expanded when Icarus tentatively squeezed Ivmir’s cock
with his passage.
“Icarus,” Ivmir groaned. A bone deep shudder shook him.
“Yes?”
“I’m trying to be gentle,” Ivmir pleaded, “so keep still.”
Icarus licked his lips. “I can’t.” He gripped Ivmir’s thick
member with his hole and was rewarded with a colorful curse.
The pain had faded. In its stead was a slow growing fire.
Then Ivmir pulled out and punched back inside Icarus in a
motion that stoked the blaze inside him and drew a shout from
his lips.
“Ah!” Icarus’s hands found the sheets above his head as
Ivmir began rocking his hips in a tempo that scorched his
senses and sent his mind spinning. “Oh! Hmm!”
Ivmir grunted and gnashed his teeth as he thrust in and out
of Icarus. Their heated gazes met.
“Tell me this feels as good for you as it does for me!”
Ivmir leaned down and sucked on Icarus’s lower lip. “Because
I have never experienced pleasure like this before!”
Icarus clasped Ivmir’s face and kissed him hard, his heart
thundering and his ears ringing with the sound of his pounding
blood as he lifted his hips and met Ivmir’s thrusts.
“It feels—it feels wonderful!” he panted. “I don’t want you
to stop! Ah! Fill me up, Ivmir!”
A wild look came over Ivmir. He fixed Icarus’s hips with
his hands, his thrusts growing increasingly savage as he
plunged his rigid manhood in and out of Icarus’s hungry body.
 Icarus matched him stroke for stroke, his heels digging
into Ivmir’s buttocks.
“Yessss!” he hissed. “Like that! Harder, Ivmir!”
“By the Gods, Awakener!” Ivmir growled. “You would
have me turn into a rutting beast!”
Icarus flushed and bit his lip as he beheld Ivmir’s untamed
expression. Seeing Ivmir lose control was the most singularly
arousing thing he had ever seen.
The flames licking Icarus’s insides set his nerve endings
ablaze as Ivmir claimed him with ruthless passion. His cries
and moans filled the bedroom at the exquisite pleasure pulsing
through his passage.
Gold flashed in Ivmir’s pupils, his own face growing taut
with ecstasy.
“Let’s come together!”
Icarus whimpered when his soul core throbbed with sweet
violence. From the way Ivmir gasped, so did his. The bed
rocked as their motions accelerated, their bodies bowing and
straining as they ascended the towering cliff of pleasure they’d
created with their lovemaking.
Ivmir’s animal shout underscored Icarus’s scream when
they peaked the heady crest and fell into an oblivion of wild
ecstasy. Heat flooded Icarus’s face as the scalding evidence of
Ivmir’s pleasure filled his insides. His own seed anointed
Ivmir’s belly in pearly jets, his manhood jerking as it throbbed
and emptied itself.
Icarus trembled at the powerful convulsions quaking
through him.
Ivmir continued moving.
 It took Icarus a moment to realize the demigod was still
hard.
“Ivmir?!” he mumbled.
Ivmir leaned down and kissed him, his expression
desperate.
“More! I need more of your sweet taste! I swear I will lose
my sanity if we stop doing this right now!”
Icarus shivered. He clung to Ivmir as he claimed him
again, drowning him in ecstasy so fierce his throat soon ached
from shouting.
Ivmir flipped Icarus onto his front and showed him the
pleasure of being taken from behind, his hand tugging Icarus’s
long hair until his back bowed beautifully where he knelt on
the bed. He plundered Icarus against the wall, in a chair, and
with him standing and leaning forward at the waist while he
gripped the footboard of the bed, the demigod rutting wildly as
he pierced him repeatedly from behind.
Time whiled away as they returned to the bed and mated
with wild abandon, the sheets growing damp with their sweat
and seed. Every time the waves dragged Icarus under, every
time his conscious flickered, Ivmir was there to bring him
back to life with a savage thrust.
Taking him. Wrecking him. Driving him senseless with
ecstasy.
Ivmir’s motions gentled when he finally appeased the
frenzied hunger that had come over him. His lovemaking grew
slow and sensual, his touches and kisses so tender Icarus could
not help but shiver. Ivmir’s eyes sparked gold as he danced
above him, his hips rolling at an unhurried pace, as if they had
all the time in the world. He stared in wonder as Icarus
shattered under him again and again, at times lowering his
head to swallow his sultry moans and gasps with his mouth.
It was a few hours before daybreak when they finally
collapsed onto the sheets, their limbs entangled and their
bodies heavy as they succumbed to a deep slumber.
Icarus stirred at first light. It took him a moment to register
who was in his bed.
Ivmir’s chest rose and fell softly with his breaths where he
dozed soundly beside him.
Icarus’s cheeks grew warm at the memory of the wicked
things they had done together. He shifted and winced.
An unfamiliar soreness throbbed through his nether half.
Even though they’d used over half the vial of nectar Nildar
had given him, he could still feel Ivmir’s shape inside him.
The demigod had done a splendid job of deflowering him,
showing him little mercy even though it had been his first
time.
Icarus pursed his lips. He pinched Ivmir’s nose lightly with
his fingers.
It took a moment for Ivmir to stir, his brow furrowing a
little in his sleep.
Icarus let go and propped his chin on his hands where he
lay on his front, his lips curving in a wry smile.
You wouldn’t think he was such a beast looking at him now.
He moved carefully so as not to wake Ivmir and braced
himself on an elbow so he could watch him sleep.
Dawn soon poked pale rays inside the bedroom. Bird song
sounded in the gardens as the light fell on Ivmir’s face.
 Icarus’s heart ached as he observed his handsome features.
He traced the hard line of Ivmir’s nose and the rigid angle of
his cheekbone with a featherlight touch before pressing his lips
tenderly to his mouth.
He was a storm that had blown into Icarus’s world. A fool
of a demigod who had changed his entire existence with a
single kiss. Loud, reckless, brazen. And yet so precious Icarus
could hardly breathe as he gazed upon his sleeping form.
“I make a promise to you,” Icarus whispered. “I shall love
you always, across the eons and through the ages. And I vow,
with my power as an Awakener, that I will protect you
whatever may come. That I will save you when you need me
the most.”
Icarus blinked. Wonderment resonated through him at the
heat that flared inside his belly.
He could feel a spell forming between his and Ivmir’s
cores.
Icarus took a shaky breath.
“None will break this bond,” he pledged. “Even if our
souls were to shatter, even if Heaven or Death were to tear us
apart, we will reunite, in another world and another life.”
Icarus kissed the spot over Ivmir’s heart, the love searing his
being so overpowering his breath hitched. “I am yours for
eternity, my beloved.”
The divine spark that bloomed into life inside Icarus’s core
was reflected by an answering flash deep within Ivmir.
Ivmir stirred. His eyelids fluttered open, exposing his
hauntingly beautiful irises.
A dazzling smile curved his mouth. “Good morning, my
love.”
THE END
 AFTERSTORY

A RCHON FLINCHED WHEN N ILDAR SLAMMED HIS HANDS ON

either side of his head, trapping him against the wall.

“We’re doing this, Archon,” the East Star growled.
“I—I don’t know what you mean,” Archon protested. His
gaze roamed the chamber frantically, seeking an escape route.
Nildar narrowed his jade green eyes. “I finally have my
hands on a vial of Fenoa flower nectar, so you can ditch your
excuses.”
The demigod grabbed Archon’s wrist, hauled him across
the suite to the bedroom, and pushed him down on the pale
sheets.
Archon nearly swallowed his tongue at the scorching look
Nildar gave him while he undressed. He’d known this day
would come since the time the East Star first kissed him, after
the war with Elios ended. But he’d never imagined he’d be so
nervous about the whole affair. He wasn’t a stranger to the
pleasures of the flesh, after all.
A particularly solid piece of flesh captured his attention.
Archon’s ass twitched as he beheld Nildar’s rock hard
member.
 Though Nildar was slender compared to Archon’s beast-
like physique, that part of him was anything but.
Archon swallowed and scooted up the bed. “I don’t think
this is gonna work.”
Nildar undid the silk tie holding his ponytail and shook out
his long, brown hair, his expression unrelenting. “It’ll fit.” He
climbed on the bed, tugged Archon toward him by the ankle,
and stripped him naked.
Archon’s pulse pounded as Nildar trapped his hands above
his head.
“Now, how about you behave and let me eat you?” the
East Star said with a wicked expression.
And eat Archon he did, from his head all the way to his
toes.
By the time Nildar pulled his fingers out of Archon’s
slicked-up hole, the demigod was a hot, trembling mess.
Nildar pushed a pillow under Archon’s lower body, locked
Archon’s thighs around his hips, and spread him nice and
open.
“Say it,” the East Star commanded. He teased the head of
his erection against Archon’s twitching pucker.
Archon whimpered and covered his face with an arm.
“Don’t hide from me.” Nildar tugged Archon’s wrist and
leaned forward to take his mouth in a scalding kiss. “Tell me
what you want, Archon.”
Archon’s belly knotted as he beheld Nildar’s smoldering
gaze.
 “I want—I want your cock inside me!” he admitted
breathlessly. “Pierce me with your thick stick, Nil—Ah!”

“— AND THAT ’ S HOW I IMAGINED THINGS WENT DOWN BETWEEN

you two,” Suzie Myers said with a wave of a hand as she
worked a cocktail shaker in Cassius and Morgan’s kitchen.
Archon’s mouth rounded on a gasp of horror.
“That’s—that’s not how it happened at all!” he protested.
Suzie arched an eyebrow. “Oh. So, you’re not denying it
did happen?”
Zach Mooney’s shoulders trembled where he’d poked his
head inside a cupboard in search of a salad bowl. Nildar hid a
smile behind the drink Suzie handed him.
Jasper Cobb sneered at Archon. “This guy’s an idiot.”
The West Star stared daggers at the demon as he mixed
batter for a cake.
Cassius scowled at Suzie, his hands still pressed to Noah’s
ears where the little boy sat on his lap.
“How could you?” he berated. “There are children
present!”
Noah wriggled out of Cassius’s hold.
“Is Aunty Suzie being a foul-mouthed witch again?” he
asked Cassius innocently.
Suzie’s expression fell. “Who told you I was a foul-
mouthed witch?”
“Dad did.” Noah pointed at Morgan.
 The demigod was rubbing the back of the fair-haired baby
girl he was bottle feeding. He arched an arrogant eyebrow at
Suzie’s frown. “It’s hardly a lie.”
“He’s right,” Reuben Fletcher murmured.
The angel passed Jasper a glass of wine before turning his
attention to the pots simmering on the stove.
Elisha Rose Atlanteia Black-King burped contentedly on
Morgan’s shoulder.
Loki returned from where he’d been changing Elisha’s
twin Isameine in the nursery. “What’d I miss?”
Phebei tugged Lilaia’s hands from her ears.
“Aunty Suzie was describing how Uncle Archon rode
Uncle Nildar like a wild—” she started excitedly before her
mother muzzled her.
The Nymph glared at her daughter while Loki rolled his
eyes and plopped Isameine down on her play mat.
“What did I say to you?” Lilaia asked Phebei sharply.
Phebei peeled her mother’s fingers from her mouth and
gave her a wise smile. “That it isn’t the size of their peepee
that matters, but what they do with—ouchie!”
Lilaia had boinked her on the head.
“Not that!” the Nymph snapped.
“Bibi’s in trouble again,” Noah muttered.
“When is she not in trouble?” Charlie Lloyd said drily. The
enchanter was helping Reuben cook.
Bostrof sighed wearily while Lilaia pinched Phebei’s
cheeks and stretched them wide. His and Lilaia’s son Orthelis
giggled on the Lucifugous demon’s knee.
 A portal opened on the terrace. Theo and Victor stepped
out and wandered inside the apartment through the sliding
doors.
“How’s my favorite nephew?” Theo ruffled Noah’s hair
and pressed a peck to his brow after greeting Cassius.
“I’m your only nephew, Uncle Theo,” Noah pointed out.
“Morgan’s personality is starting to rub off on your kid,”
Victor muttered, kissing Cassius’s cheek.
Cassius smiled. Morgan’s eyes shrank to slits.
Theo studied Archon curiously as he headed into the
kitchen and grabbed a couple of beers from the refrigerator.
“Why is your face bright red?”
Archon indicated Suzie belligerently. “Because that
woman is spreading vile lies about me!”
“To be fair, bar the bit about you asking me to pierce you
with my—” Nildar paused and glanced at Phebei, “you-know-
what, she was pretty much bang on the money.”
“Peepee,” Phebei contributed helpfully while Lilaia
continued pulling at her cheeks, except it came out as
“Pheephee.”
“Oh, that.” Theo grimaced and passed Victor a beer.
“Yeah, I heard the evidence when I was flying home one
night.”
Nildar gave the North and South Stars a jaundiced look.
“Why do you guys even have separate palaces? You’re at each
other’s place practically every night.”
“Because sometimes, a demigod needs his own space,”
Theo replied. “Especially when his boyfriend won’t leave his
ass alone,” he muttered into his drink.
 “This is unfair,” Phebei told Lilaia petulantly. “How come
Uncle Theo can say ass and I can’t say peepee?”
The doorbell rang before the Nymph could berate her
precocious daughter.
“It’s open!” Morgan called out.
Eden and Cedric Esteban appeared, a young boy at their
side. Eden’s younger half-brother Julián brightened at the sight
of Noah and Phebei. The kids moved over to the coffee table
and started playing the board game Kalliste had gifted Noah.
“How was the honeymoon?” Suzie asked Eden and Cedric
with a grin.
Eden refused to fall for the bait and graciously accepted
the cocktail the witch offered her. “It was great. We loved
Europe.”
“The hotel in Venice had the most amazing waterbed,”
Cedric said bluntly.
Eden choked on her drink. She flushed and pierced the
Dryad prince with a dark look.
“Everyone’s talking about peepees,” Noah observed at the
coffee table.
Isameine rolled toward him and bumped into his leg. He
picked his sister up absent-mindedly and sat her on his knees.
“Watch closely, Isie. This is how you annihilate war
demons.”
Isameine blew bubbles as a group of tiny war demons
perished on the game board in thin wisps of black smoke at a
flick of Noah’s fingers.
 “It’s peepee season,” Phebei said confidently. She moved
her army of Lucifugous demons opposite Julián’s mage troops,
the armored figures grumbling as they jostled one another and
waved clubs the size of toothpicks.
“What’s peepee season?” Julián asked curiously as he re-
arranged his magicians in a defensive formation.
Eden’s eyes bulged.
Adrianne and Bailey Green arrived before Phebei could
launch into an explanation guaranteed to give Eden a heart
attack. Bailey was holding a bright-eyed blond boy in his
arms.
“God, I feel like a balloon,” Adrianne groaned. She
lowered herself next to Cassius with some difficulty.
Bailey put their son Sylvester on the play mat with Elisha
before hovering close to his heavily pregnant wife. “Can I do
anything for you, honey?”
“You can pledge a vow of chastity,” Adrianne grumbled. “I
can’t believe you impregnated me twice in eighteen months.”
Bailey made a face. “Yeah, that one’s a no go, I’m afraid.”
Elisha started commando crawling toward a wide-eyed
Sylvester. Orthelis wriggled off Bostrof’s knee and tottered
over to them.
Julia Chen and Francis Strickland arrived just before the
Reaper God and Mortis. A haze of golden light heralded the
appearance of Morgan and Victor’s sisters just as the sun
started to sink toward the horizon, the dragon Ladon perched
on Hesperis’s shoulder in his lizard form.
Pan and Boreas were arguing about something as they
emerged from the portal behind the goddesses. Demetrius
followed in their wake, the demigod wearing the expression of
someone who wanted to smash the two deities’ heads together.
Warmth and laughter filled the apartment as they sat down
to eat.
Cassius’s heart constricted when he looked around the
table at the humans and otherworldly surrounding him. Seven
years had passed since his return from the Nether. And they
were the seven happiest years of his current life.
Bar Kalliste and Galatea, everyone he loved was in that
room.
It had taken over six years for the queen of the Nymphs to
fulfill her dream of falling pregnant. Now nearing the end of
her confinement, she wasn’t allowed to travel outside Rain
Vale.
To everyone’s surprise, the Tree of Esnant had born fruit
three times after Cassius and Morgan had spent their
honeymoon inside the sacred sanctuary it hid. Kalliste and
Galatea’s first attempt at producing a child had failed, so the
next fruit had gone to Cassius and Morgan.
Cassius’s cheeks warmed as he recalled their second time
in the sanctuary. It had only taken them a week to conceive the
twins.
Elisha stirred on the mat where she was sleeping with her
sister, Orthelis, and Sylvester. Atropos rose, picked up the
little girl, and stroked her back gently as she went into the
nursery to change her diaper.
Cassius’s eyes misted.
I will protect them. Even though I am no longer the
Awakener. I will do everything in my power to make sure this
happiness never ends.
 Noah tugged on his arm.
Cassius wiped his eyes and smiled at his son. “Yes,
Noah?”
Noah pulled Cassius down.
“Don’t worry, Papa,” Noah whispered in his ear. “My
sisters and I will protect you all.”

Ready to discover my next series?

Welcome to the world of The Mage and His Brute, where
magic and passion collide in an alternate Victorian London
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 AFTERWORD

I hoped you enjoyed the surprise Afterstory I included in this

short story collection. I really couldn’t leave you hanging! I
would be incredibly grateful if you could leave a review of
Wicked on the store where you purchased it or on Goodreads.
Reviews help readers like you find my books and I truly
appreciate your honest opinions about my stories.
BOOKS BY AVA MARIE SALINGER
F ALLEN M ESSENGERS
Fractured Souls - 1
Spellbound - 2
Edge Lines - 3
Oathbreaker - 4
Harbinger - 5
Crimson Skies - 6
Wicked - Fallen Messengers Short Story Collection

T HE M AGE AND H IS B RUTE

Arcane Entanglement - 1

C ONTEMPORARY R OMANCE WRITTEN

AS A.M. S ALINGER

N IGHTS
One Night - 1
The Escort - 2
Tokyo Heat - 3
Sweet Obsession - 4
Sweet Possession - 5
The Proposition - 6
Undisclosed - 7
Hush - 8
One Day - 9
Nights Series Short Story Collection

T WILIGHT F ALLS
Alex - 1
Carter - 2
Hunter - 3
Wyatt - 4
Drake - 5
Tristan - 6
Miles - 7
 ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Ava Marie Salinger is the pen name of an Amazon bestselling urban fantasy author
who has always wanted to write MM urban fantasy romance. When she’s not
dreaming up hotties to write about, you’ll find Ava creating kickass music playlists
to write to, spying on the wildlife in her garden, drooling over gadgets, and eating
Chinese food. She also writes contemporary MM romance as A.M. Salinger.

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