by Elise Jae
It's an invitation. I can feel that through the bond.
And when I hesitate, she raises both brows.
A logical man would move her, work her into a position where he could pull those panties off. But I’m not thinking logically.
All it takes is a quick hook of my thumb, and I slide the scrap of lace to the side, lifting my hips as I pull her down onto me.
Her eyes go round, and she draws in a sharp breath. I have to stop too. My brain is too overloaded by the shock of pleasure bouncing back and forth between us.
It’s a moment before her lips part on another laughing smile. “That bad, huh?”
She doesn’t let me answer. She kisses me so flagrantly, I can’t tell her the dance was too much, the bond is still too new. I’m too close.
She works herself over me, and I know she knows. Know she’s doing this because of how close I am.
Fingers digging into her hips, I hold her down. But I don’t still her in time, as with every time since the bonding, I pour into her, body and soul, and lose all touch with the world around us.
When I come back to myself, head dropped back to the cushions, Kimba’s fingers swirl over my chest.
“Fuck, D. You look so sexy when you come.”
I didn’t realize I’d be able to feel how close she is, or that it would drive me crazy all over again.
I don’t know how I manage it, but flip her onto her back, barely hearing the shriek she lets free. Only feeling the laughter that comes with it.
She’s everything I want, and as she squirms beneath me, I grip her hips tighter, kiss her as her moans fill my mouth. The way she tastes is too delicious. A delight I couldn’t begin to describe if I wanted to, and one I never plan to share with anyone else.
I fuck her like our lives depend on it, rough and dirty.
The need to push her over that edge, to return that favor is consuming.
She’s slick with my come and we’ve done this enough, that I’m no longer worried about hurting her. So, I take her.
I take everything she’ll give me.
She drags her face away from mine, every panting breath driving me to find her completion.
“Yes,” the word is a whisper on an inhale. She repeats it again and again with each thrust.
“I’m going fill you with my child.” I say, not sure whether the words are in my mind, or against her skin. “You don’t get to drink any more of my come until my baby is growing inside you.”
It's the flash of heat from her that lets me know she heard every word, lets me know how much she wants that child too. That drive and desire. That need… pushes me over the edge.
When she tightens around me, the sounds she makes fracture, not words anymore, and this time, her orgasm doesn’t creep up on me, it punches me in the gut.
We come apart together.
Pouring myself into her is like being home.
My whole being seizes. The world stops.
And when it starts again, I have to haul in a huge breath.
We are a complete mess, and as I lift myself over her, arms shaking, I can’t help but laugh at the state of us.
Boneless, sunk into the cushions, Kimba looks up at me with a lazy smile.
“I love that you want me to be the mother of your children.” She kisses me, but when I pull back, she keeps hold of my chin, keeps me from moving more than an inch from her. “But if I want to drink every last drop of your come, I will.”
I don’t have to tell her I know, don’t have to pretend like either of us is truly worried about either’s threats.
Scooping her up, I throw her over my shoulder and she slaps my ass as I carry her to the bedroom and drop her onto the bed.
When I collapse beside her, it’s a miracle I am not asleep the instant my head hits the pillow.
She is everything to me now. The first thought on my mind when I wake. The last before I drift off. She’s the only one I want to tell my secrets to. The only one I care to share my troubles with.
And if there was no one else in this world but her, I could be content, simply because she was there.
That’s why I have to protect her. No matter what. And I have to figure out who wants to frame her for my murder.
“Hey,” she says, rolling over so that she’s on her side. The length of her body pressed to mine. Skin to skin.
“What are those thoughts buzzing around in your head?”
I could say anything…. “I can’t begin to explain how happy I am to have you.”
KIMBA
Sex with D provides a sort of clarity.
Each time he pours into me, my ability to focus narrows down to pinpoint precision.
I’ve sorted through so much data, at this point, I might know more about the Caldera than D does, and I’m starting to think I’m the one who’s put him in danger, not the other way around.
If it’s not related to my time at Margot’s….
“Could it be something related to your bondmate’s murder?”
That prickling at the base of my neck starts again, and I shift, even though I know it’s not going to help.
“If they knew you killed once, we might want to start thinking about how they figured it out.”
“The records were sealed. As far as I know, only the people on the scene and the judge who pardoned me know.”
“Who was there?”
“Um… the police, EMTs….”
It was four years ago. I mostly remembered the blur and the blood, and flashing lights.
People were just shapes and sounds at that point, except—
“Oh…. He had a brother. The man I killed.” I look up, meeting his eyes. “Maybe it’s him.”
Kylan hadn’t been told it was me. But he’d raced to the scene. He’d seen me bloody.
He knew that his brother was dead
Knew that my bondmate was dead.
When three people enter a house, and only one comes out…. the conclusion isn’t difficult to draw.
“He probably suspects, if he doesn’t outright know.”
“Then let’s see if we can’t check him off the list.”
ELEVEN
DRIFT
Kimba had looked at me askance when I’d said I was only calling in Trench and Arc. Their sibling turmoil aside, they are the two whose time I have the least guilt impinging on.
Arc never seems to want to go home, and Trench jumps at any distraction I give him.
And while they might say they’d like to see each other dead, they manage to work together better than most.
So, they’re who I call.
Kimba is downstairs packing, but I know she can feel how unsettled I am when they arrive.
The silence from them is more startling than their jabs, but I don’t have time to worry about what might have been said in the garage.
“We’re going to Gongii province and won’t be back until tomorrow. I need you two to take point on any incursions.
Trench flinches and turns to me. “You’re going out of town.”
“It’s just for a day.”
“You’ve never been gone that long.”
“I know, but you guys can handle it. Just don’t burn the caldera down.”
Arc posts up behind the counter, back to the refrigerator he’s just closed, hands wrapped around a bottle of the black soda he prefers. “You could have given us more notice you were going on honeymoon.”
“We’re tracking down a lead.”
“Are you sure you don’t need back up?”
“No. Neither of us are particularly concerned about this guy. It’s a long shot, but one we have to take.”
I feel Kimba join us a moment before their attention shifts behind me.
Arc straightens and dips his head in a greeting, while Trench smiles brightly. She knows it’s fake, but she doesn’t bring it up.
“You two going to be okay while we’re gone.”
They exchange a glance, and it’s Arc who speaks. “We promise
we won’t throw a party and trash the house, mom.”
If he’d said it a different way, one—or both—of us might have made him pay for it. But for once he wasn’t being a smart ass.
“Have fun.” Trench says heading to the board, still cluttered with Kimba’s notes.
We leave them, but when the garage door closes behind us, Kimba pauses before she gets into the car. “Do they all have access to the house?”
“Yeah, but they don’t come unless called, and they never go downstairs.”
Something low and suspicious coils inside her, but she shakes her head and gets in the car, tossing the bag into the back.
The drive out of the mountains is quiet. Neither of us say a word until we’re through town and on the long, wide, road to Gongii.
Her eyes are closed, her head tipped back against the seat. “Next time we head out of town, it had better be to a secluded love nest. Not the home of a man whose brother I killed.”
“Since there aren’t any others, I think I can promise that.”
She drops her head toward her shoulder and gives me a weak smile.
“I can promise that the next time I take you away, I will spend ninety percent of the trip inside you… one way or another.”
“Can we just skip to that trip instead?” She twisted in her seat, her skirt bunching. “I can take off my panties and we can start right now.”
“We’ve got to figure out what’s going on first, so we can both live to make it to a second trip.” I keep my eyes on the road, but ask, “What was bothering you back there?”
“I just wondered… the brotherhood seems pretty tightly knit, but what if one of them wanted your position?”
“You think one of them might have tried to take me out to take over the brotherhood?”
She shrugs. “My partner, back when I was a cop, wanted the promotion I was most likely going to get… he sabotaged me. Was willing to play dirty to get what he wanted. Money, drugs… murder. I’m not sure where he would have drawn the line.”
I’m not sure how to explain without saying more than others might wish but… “I hesitate to say that it’s impossible, but the likelihood is low.”
She doesn’t argue with me. I can feel her waiting. Patience tastes like butter.
“Trench and Arc might be the only ones bonded by blood, but a different kind of monster made us to hunt the ones in the caldera. When you live through what he did to us….”
She shivers. “You don’t have to tell me about that now. If you say they’re good, I believe you.”
Sliding her arm through mine, she snuggles against me, holding tight to my bicep as she drops her head to my shoulder.
The worry is still there, floating like a fog at the bottom of our bond, but contentment hangs above it, and what anxiety I’d started to feel at the possibility of talking about that time diminishes.
KIMBA
It’s not too late when we get to Gongii province, and I don’t want to put this off. So, we go directly to his house.
As I step out of the car, looking up at yet another overly large home, I let out a long breath.
“I feel like we’ve done this before.”
D smiles, and a faint trace of laughter bubbles through the bond.
Where Luther’s house was enormous, this one is just big. It’s clear Kylan wound up with money, but there’s nothing overt in its display here. It’s almost innocuous.
“What does Kylan do?”
“I don’t know. He used to be with an advocacy group of some kind, but I don’t remember which one.” I pause in front of the door. “He floated in the same circles as we did… but he wasn’t a politician, I don’t think he had the stomach for it.”
What little I knew of him, Kylan had never been one to suffer through legislative hearings.
With a deep breath, I ring the bell.
And wait.
After the deep tones fade, I hear him coming. Whatever he yells back to the other person in the house, I don’t know, but it’s a happy sound.
And he’s smiling when he drags the door open.
That smile vanishes in a flash, replaced by blank astonishment.
“Kimba?”
D shifts, and I know what he’s thinking. But I don’t need protection right now. Linking hands with him, I focus on keeping him still.
“Hi Kylan.” I squeeze D’s hand harder, even knowing I won’t move him unless he wants to be moved.
Drift looks down at me, and I raise both brows, hoping he’ll understand that he needs to back off.
Hoping he understands exactly what emotion I’m trying to send through this new link.
“I…” Kylan stammers before pulling his door open. “Please, come in, I’m sorry, you surprised me. I didn’t mean to be rude.”
I’d seen this sort of tidy clutter before. Whatever happened in the four years since I’d last seen him, Kylan now had children. And those tiny tornadoes invariably left their mark on a home, no matter how expensive.
The realization makes me seize, but I shove those thoughts aside, focusing on the here and now.
Something oddly soft rolls through our bond, and when I turn back, I see what’s made him stop.
There’s a picture of me and Edan on Kylan’s wall. It only takes a moment to scan the photos: a bondmate, children… others I don’t know.
His brother isn’t on his walls.
Ahead of us, Kylan quickly clears away space on a long couch. Toys and clothes and clutter are piled on a chair in the corner.
Motioning toward the couch, he asks, “Can I get you anything to drink?”
D sits first, and I shake my head. “No, we’re fine.”
He glances between us, and I realize how telling that simple statement was.
His smile returns as he sits across from us. “I’m really glad to see you.”
I believe him.
We didn’t need to make this trip.
“It’s been a long time.” I look to D for half a second before I turn back. “Kylan, this is Drift, head of the Shadow Zone Brotherhood.”
“I know you by reputation, I’ve worked with the council before, but not you directly.”
D is polite, but he doesn't remember Kylan.
He has, relaxed. And I know he’s as sure as I am that Kylan had nothing to do with the contract.
“So,” Kylan says, “This can’t be a social call… what has brought you all the way to Gongii?”
The idea of telling him the truth makes me hesitate, but D shifts, lounging back, trying to look non-threatening. “Do you know why your brother killed Edan?”
Kylan straightened, no doubt uncomfortable with the question, but he didn’t try to avoid the question. “Yes.”
There was a moment of silence before he turned to me, his brow creasing. “Don’t you?”
“A political disagreement gone wrong is what I was told. I wasn’t there for the argument, only the aftermath.”
Wincing, Kylan shifts, uncomfortable with what he’s about to say.
“Sian men have been fighting over you since you got here. Jax wanted you. He knew he couldn’t have you. But instead of moving on, getting over it. He stayed and he let it fester. And then he found out Edan couldn’t have kids.”
I don’t know why Kylan knowing made me feel so uncomfortable.
He was dead, it was over.
“He thought he’d found his way in. Margot’s was already around. Bonded mates had already proved that a second man joining in on the fun was socially acceptable, so he thought… why not. The idiot thought he’d come up with a great plan. He’d offer to do what Edan couldn’t.” The distaste on his face is echoed in D’s feelings across the bond.
“Jax made his pitch about a month before…. When he told me about it then, I thought he was insane. Not for offering. Up to that point, I thought the two of them were better friends than they actually were.”
“But he didn’t give up.” Drift had relaxed into the couch beside me. It was possib
ly his posture—and the fact that Kylan no longer felt like a threat—that kept me from fidgeting.
I didn’t want to hear any more. But I had to.
“He left some rambling message for me that night. I didn’t get it until after I’d come home, after the police had called me and I’d already been to your house.” Swallowing, Kylan stood and dragged a hand through his hair as he paced to the window. “He went to your home to talk Edan into it. He said you would be his, one way or another. He actually thought you’d leave Edan for him.”
For a moment, my brain stopped functioning. Every piece of me, everything that I was, froze in disbelief. “I barely knew him.”
“I don’t know what he thought would happen.”
Drift slipped his fingers into mine, eyes still on Kylan’s back. “But you think he went, intending to kill Edan.”
“I think it was an option he’d already planned for.
“He’d never been bonded before. He didn’t know what it would do to you. Edan had sold the idea of a bondmate, using you as the example of the perfect human woman. And Jax wanted to buy.”
D’s anger prickles across the bond, but he keeps his thoughts to himself.
“You know what happened to him.”
“I do. I am not going to lie to you. I wouldn’t want to insult your intelligence. I was furious. My brother was gone. And you did it. It didn’t matter that it was his fault. Anger clouds rationale.” He turns back to us, disgust curling his lip. “I couldn’t understand why. Why he’d gone to your house. Why he would have killed Edan. I couldn’t understand why you, someone I knew to be so gentle, could do something like...that.”
He looks over his shoulder, toward the back of the house. “And then…. Rose came into my life.”
“Congratulations,” D said, actually meaning it.
“Thank you. But I suddenly understood. If someone killed her… I could see myself doing what you did… or worse.”
“I sincerely hope you never have to feel that pain, or that rage.” I hate the sharpness of those memories, and how I know they’re translating across the bond to D.
“We should go. We need to head back to the caldera first thing tomorrow morning.”
