She stared at the ring. Just when she thought she knew this man he went and threw a curve ball.
“If you don’t li—” Rem began.
“I love it,” she whispered, her voice tight from the tears she held back. “I love it so much.”
Rem reached out and slid the ring onto her left hand. It fit perfectly, which meant either her great grandmother had exactly the same size hands or Rem had done his research.
Jenna reached up and cupped either side of his face. “I love you.”
Rem placed his forehead against hers. “You are my everything.”
He placed a hand against her stomach. She covered it with her own.
This time when they kissed, it wasn’t at the fevered pace it was before. It was slow. They took their time one trying to savor the other and vice versa. Jenna wrapped her hands around the back of his neck to pull Rem closer to her. Instead he only pulled away.
She frowned as he stepped back.
“I do owe you,” he said with a grin.
With a gentle hand, he laid her back against the table. The rain still came down in sheets, constantly tapping against the greenhouse glass while also making the outside world look like some sort of dreamy haze.
Rem slipped off Jenna’s shoes and unbuttoned her pants. She tried to lift her legs to help, but Rem hurried to do all the work himself.
She tried to look down her body to where he was but couldn’t see him. Instead she felt his hot breath against her panties and shivered. It was almost more erotic not knowing what he was doing. The anticipation was killing her.
Rem rubbed his face against her panties. She could hear the rumble of his growl, and it only turned her on more. She gasped when she felt his wet tongue through the fabric as it pressed against her clit. Warmth spread from her center.
“I can already taste you,” he groaned.
Jenna grasped the end of the table and stared up into the dark sky above her. His finger inched inside the edge of her panties, and she knew he could hear how hard she was breathing. They had just done it earlier, and yet here she was, hot and ready for him all over again.
She bit her lip as Rem bunched her panties in the front, pulling as it slipped between her lips. He was certainly taking his time driving her crazy. He repeated the action a few more times before letting go. This time she felt him hook his hand on either side of her panties and slide them down her legs.
When he came back to her, she shivered as he spread her wide before him. She couldn’t remember a time when she’d ever been so exposed or vulnerable to him. Or a time she liked it so much.
Rem planted soft kisses on the inside of her thighs, occasionally taking the time to nibble or lick the skin there. His rough stubble only added to the whole sensation.
When he at last reached her center, Jenna knew she was wet. She could feel her own juices as they dripped down the crack of her ass.
Rem leaned forward and swiped across her center. She shivered. She wanted more. Needed it. Craved it.
As if she’d spoken it out loud, Rem leaned forward and thrust his tongue deep inside her. She writhed as he moved it around. Oh, how she longed to run her fingers through his hair as she pressed ever more into him.
Again, it was as if he read her mind. Rem pressed himself harder into her, rubbing his mouth against her now sensitive clit. She could already feel the rise of her orgasm.
“No, not yet,” she mumbled.
Rem pulled back. “Come for me, baby.”
Jenna shook her hand. “This is special,” she said as she held up her left hand to marvel at the ring. “I want to see you. I want to look into your eyes.”
Rem pulled away, and she was glad when he came back to stand over her. His thick member was all ready for her.
“I need to be in you,” he growled.
Jenna reached out to him. “I need you, too.”
She sighed as he leaned over her and slipped deep inside. Their movements built back to a frenzied pace. Each of them was desperate to envelop the other. Within moments, they both cried out their release.
Rem pulled back and reached out a hand to help Jenna sit. He helped her back into her clothes before helping himself.
The rain was still coming down outside as the two of them sat in comfortable silence listening as the storm ebbed with the passing minutes. The thunder grew distant, and the howl of the wind quieted.
“So are we married now?” Rem asked.
Jenna laughed. It wouldn’t surprise her if that was what the hybrids had taken out of the whole marriage thing. They got a honeymoon where you had lots of sex.
She reached out and took his hand, placing it on her stomach. “We already were in my eyes.”
Rem leaned down to kiss her. “Wife,” he whispered.
“Husband.”
Chapter Ten
The next day, the water wasn’t dropping from the sky like a flood. Instead, it’d become a persistent dreary rainfall that never seemed to let up. It didn’t matter. The joint wedding ceremony was amazing despite the trouble the night before and the continued rain.
Even though they’d only participated in the audience, Rem noticed that Jenna held his hand the entire ceremony, occasionally looking down at the ring on her finger and sighing. When he thought of the idea, he had hoped it might make her happy but had no idea how much it would matter. To the hybrids, all the pomp and ritual wasn’t important. He lacked the instincts that pointed him toward such things. It was all about being a pair and the knowledge mates were made for one another. Destiny was the only word for it, really.
The Vestals might be destined for the hybrids, but they grew up in the human world with different expectations. She might not have needed the ring, but it made her happier, and that’s all Rem ever wanted to do, make her as happy as possible.
As the wedded couples kissed to solidify their new lives together, Rem looked over to find Jenna smiling at him. He leaned down and placed a soft kiss against her lips.
“Wife,” he whispered.
She blushed but gave his hand a squeeze in return, looking away for a brief moment before turning back to him with a warm, loving smile.
They watched as the couples made their way out of the main room and into the hall. Everyone would move right from the ceremony into the reception. They had figured out they just needed to move the tables and rearrange the chairs.
Rem stood to help but stopped when Jenna gave a tug on his hand.
“I’m going to get the flowers and vases to set on the table,” she said with a smile.
Despite the happy day, there was still a worry deep inside. Erebus was out there, and that didn’t even include the added threat of Lapis.
“I’m only going to the greenhouse,” Jenna whispered. “It’s just outside. Plus, the others will be around to help carry things in. I won’t push myself.”
Rem nodded. Their whole community was there. If something even remotely set off alarms, they were all there to respond. No one would hurt anyone that day.
“Don’t be gone too long, or I might have to meet you in the greenhouse again.” Rem winked.
He relished the blush that spread across her face. The baby would keep them busy at night for a while. They should get their fun in before their forced break.
“Don’t you have some tables to set up?” Jenna asked.
Rem laughed but noticed the look she gave him as she walked away. He was definitely reliving their greenhouse moment that evening.
* * *
Jenna sighed inside the greenhouse. Although she was so happy for all her friends and wanted nothing but the best for them, the ceremonies had all been far more exhausting than she expected. Being ready to pop meant she always had to pee, and there wasn’t a chair around that made her feel comfortable.
Despite her best efforts, sleep had been elusive. Some of it had been from her little man doing acrobatics all night. Maybe he’d felt the spike in adrenaline and was reacting.
Jenna breathed in the eart
hy smell permeating the greenhouse. The only sound was her breathing, and it just felt so peaceful. Something about the place made her feel so grounded, like she wasn’t just living but was one with the Earth. As corny as it sounded, it was the truth.
A slow ache stretched around her stomach, likely more Braxton Hicks contractions, her body practicing for the big day. She knew little sleep and too much excitement could cause them. No need to worry or get everyone spun up.
Jenna placed her hand on the table next to her to steady herself. It was the same table where Rem had blown her mind in more than one way.
The sparkle of the ring caught her eye. She hadn’t been expecting that from him. It wasn’t as if she didn’t think Rem could be sweet. Hell, out of anyone, she knew the true him and how amazingly sweet he could be. But knowing he had gone to such trouble despite everything that had been going on warmed her more than any ceremony. It was more proof how she was always in his thoughts.
Jenna was a practical woman. They had been together for some time now and had a child on the way. She didn’t need someone else to tell her they were bound together and meant for each other. She had known that from the moment she first met him, whether or not she had wanted to accept it.
She chuckled a little. She had made Rem jump through so many hoops trying to convince herself he wasn’t what her heart said he was. It was one of the few times she was glad to be so totally wrong.
Jenna rubbed her belly. Life with Rem was perfect, even when the world around them wasn’t. Times had been tough and might be in the future, but she had no doubts that they’d get through it.
She grabbed some clippers and walked around the greenhouse, gathering all the fresh flowers she could. She held them to her nose and breathed in the soft floral scent. These would work nicely.
She laid out the flowers on the long table near the door and went to work sorting them into the vases. It had taken a little more time than she expected, but no one had come out yet so likely they were still setting up for the reception inside. She was glad no one was in a rush.
Just as she placed the last flower, Jenna froze, her heart kicking up.
A chill ran down her spine all the way to her toes. She could feel the hairs on the back of her neck rise.
She stared out into the dusk around her. The sun was still dipping below the horizon. Normally, she wasn’t one to react based on a mere feeling, but Jenna had come to learn with the hybrids that sometimes that was the best thing to do. She’d gotten so used to her life that sometimes she forgot paranormal was the only way to describe some of what they’d been through together.
The door to the kitchen from the greenhouse wasn’t more than twenty feet, but for a pregnant woman, it might as well have been a thousand.
Swallowing, Jenna peered into the now dark woods. The sun might still be in the sky, but the dense foliage always made the woods dark.
Nothing.
She continued to look, her heart slowing. Maybe she had been wrong. All this talk of Erebus and how strange Rem had been recently was just freaking her out. Just because strange things were possible didn’t mean they were occurring.
Jenna turned toward the door and found a handsome man waiting there. That wasn’t unusual with so many hybrids around, but she didn’t recognize him. She tried to tell herself he was someone from town, but there were so few left that she knew them all on sight, and she certainly hadn’t seen a man like this in town.
His long black hair shifted in the breeze outside. He was tall and pale but not sickly. His hair provided a stark contrast to his complexion. He stepped forward and moved his hand toward the doorknob. Jenna backed up into the shelf behind her. Her back pressed hard against the wood.
Bright white light sizzled in the air around his hand, and the man jerked it back. He tilted his head and stared at his hand. Jenna couldn’t tell if the light had hurt the man, but whatever it was, it was clearly keeping him from entering.
“Lapis,” he mumbled.
Their eyes met through the glass, and for the first time, she noticed how pale blue they were. Almost like glass. They were stunning, and Jenna found herself staring in fascination.
As strange as it was, she didn’t feel threatened. She should be shouting and getting every hybrid in the area rushing toward her, but instead, she watched quietly.
“You’re Erebus,” she said more than asked.
A small smile reached the corner of his mouth. He placed his hands behind his back and walked the outside edge of the greenhouse until a mere couple of yards and the thin greenhouse walls were the only thing separating them.
Her breathing and heart kicked up again, some of her new-found calm disappearing. The dense air of the greenhouse wasn’t helping.
“And you are my bride,” he said.
She took short, ragged breaths. Before she’d not yelled because she was fascinated, but now terror held her back.
As if he was appraising her, Erebus moved toward the glass but didn’t touch it.
“What do you want?” Jenna asked.
“Life.”
His gaze moved down her body and paused on her growing stomach. Instinctively, Jenna placed her arms over her belly.
“Our fate is linked,” he said softly, his voice far more comforting than she would have liked, but that didn’t bring her heart or breathing under control.
As Erebus moved closer to the glass, Jenna’s own body moved with each of his steps, resisting her efforts to stop. She was still herself but yet not in control of herself.
“Fuck fate,” she said defiantly. She wouldn’t let this bastard intimidate her.
Erebus chuckled. She was now right in front of him. There was nothing protecting her but inches of glass and whatever the light was.
“I like your spirit,” he said. “I can see why my child was drawn to you.”
“Your… child?” Jenna shuddered.
“The pathetic creature you’ve chosen as a mate. They are all my children ultimately.”
She’d had enough. She tried to yell for help, but for some reason the sound wouldn’t come out. Before she could even process what was happening, Jenna felt her left hand being drawn to the glass. It pressed hard against the pane. On the other side, Erebus kept his eyes locked with hers, and with a low growl, he pushed through the white light now surrounding the greenhouse.
“You are my bride,” Erebus said. “And I will use your child as my vessel.”
Chapter Eleven
Rem growled. Something was wrong. He wasn’t the only one who sensed it. Every hybrid looked up, all feeling the crackle of something in the air, something far more dangerous than a storm. The Vestals and townsfolk looked just as concerned. The crackle turned from mere feeling to audible noise.
“Erebus?” Magnus asked, his voice low.
Rem’s heart began to hammer in his chest. He scanned the room but couldn’t see Jenna. She was just supposed to get some flowers. The fact she still wasn’t back only made him worry more.
He’d been an idiot. He’d made the wrong assumption at the worst time. Of course Erebus would choose that day of days.
Rem raced from the room. The heavy footsteps of other hybrids sounded from behind him as they all charged through the kitchen.
There was no sign of Jenna there. Rem growled and knocked a plate over. It shattered on the ground, but he ignored the mess and burst out of the kitchen, heading toward the door leading to the outer wall and the greenhouse. The sound of the crackling grew louder with each step.
He threw open the door and froze. Jenna stood inside the greenhouse, her eyes glazed over, and her hand pressed to the glass. A dark-haired man stood there, his hand pressed against the glass if trying to touch her.
Rem gritted his teeth, unsure about what he was seeing. As his mind took it in, he hadn’t continued his charge, unsure about the risk to Jenna. The man turned toward him and gave a smug smile. Rem hated him. Whoever he was, he had gotten to Jenna somehow. He’d pay for that, probably with his
life unless he had the world’s most convincing story in the next minute.
With a loud growl, Rem took two steps forward but stopped as the air filled with a blinding blue light. He squinted, but that didn’t help, the light sweeping over everyone and everything. Something was happening, and for all he knew, this asshole was using the light to cover hurting Jenna. The crackle grew louder, almost overwhelming.
There was no time left to hesitate or figure things out. It was time for action. Rem tried to guess the direction based on what he’d seen before the light and charged forward. His steps were heavy, like pushing through thick mud all around him. It was almost like the light was repelling him. He couldn’t see if the other hybrids had followed him, but he assumed they had. Everyone understood what was at stake.
“Jenna!” Rem shouted over the crackle. “Can you hear me?”
A white light surrounded him. It felt familiar, reminding him of Lapis, and he wondered why it was there, but he didn’t have time to think. His steps became freer, and he moved faster until he could finally make out Jenna’s outline inside the greenhouse. The blinding blue light dimmed.
Jenna turned toward him, her eyes no longer glazed over, her face pale and scared. Her hand remained pressed firmly against the glass with the man on the other side.
The glass cracked, and a blue light enveloped Jenna. Rem roared and charged, helpless, as she tossed her head back in a silent scream. Blood dripped down the window. The difficulty moving returned, each inch taking all his strength. Rem turned toward the man. He was the source of all of this, and there was only one explanation now for who they were dealing with. This force was like nothing Rem had ever encountered.
He opened his mouth to shout out again when a loud crack ripped through the air. A blue lightning bolt streaked through the sky above them, but it didn’t disappear. It lingered, a crack in the sky itself. Monsters fell through, twisted aberrations that made Glycons seem no more threatening than babies at a picnic. They turned into black smoke and flowed in different directions before reforming in the far distance near the front of the compound, their bare outlines visible.
Rem: #12 (Luna Lodge: Hunters of Atlas) Page 6
