The witch smiled cruelly at Alaric and tilted her head as she examined him and said, “You don’t wish to go back there, do you?” She shrugged. “Well, I suppose I could send your human instead. He’ll last in there as long as you’re still kicking.”
Alaric screamed out, “No!” and a blast of icy energy left him. It was so cold, that even from behind him, I felt the freezing breeze. His icy energy poured out of him and straight at Claudette Rathmore. This time, the witch couldn’t simply knock it away because the stream was never-ending, so she threw up a shield instead.
Chapter 27
Alaric
As soon as she said she wanted to send Grady into the globe, something inside of me broke. The reserve magic I always kept locked away deep inside, the part I had never explored, burst to the forefront, and without a thought, I shot it out at her. She would not hurt Grady again. She would not take him away from me. She would not punish him for the sins of my father. She wasn’t going to lay one finger on him ever again!
The magic came out of me in an icy blast that was so cold, the temperature in the entire room dropped in a matter of seconds. Her shield was strong, but my love for Grady was stronger than anything else in the world.
Raphael yelled, “Add your magic, Izzy!” and a moment later, there were two more streams of magic hitting Claudette Rathmore’s shield along with mine.
Isiah’s magic was more earthy, and Raphael’s was hotter, like fire. Even though we were brothers, his was the opposite of mine, but even with his fire stream, the room remained chilled from the power of my magic.
It was filling me up inside and coming out at a speed and force I wasn’t used to, but no matter how tired I was, I knew I had to keep going. Nothing would stop me from saving my soul-pledged, not even that crazy, nasty, evil witch.
Her shield suddenly cracked, and for the first time since she’d shown up, I saw a sliver of fear cross the witch’s features. With that knowledge in mind, I stepped closer to her and gave my magic another push. The crack in her shield started to fissure out; I could see it fracturing quickly. The witch yelled out, but I gave my magic another push and kept at it until her shield burst open in a haze of black, glass-like smoke, and she was thrown backward to the ground.
Grady suddenly pressed his hand harder on my back, and having him there, having him so close, knowing I was doing this to protect him, to keep him safe, to protect our future together, gave me the strength to keep going.
I’d killed in the name of my father before, and it was a horrible thing I had to live with, but sometimes it came with the territory of being a warlock. So I stepped closer as she struggled to get a shield back up, and she started blasting magic and spells at me rapidly. Her magic was no match for my icy power that was protecting my soul-pledged. My destined. My love for him overpowered her hate easily, and my ice ate up every one of her spells until I was standing before her, staring down on her.
Raphael and Isiah stood shoulder to shoulder with me—their familiars with us—while Grady kept his hand on my back in silent support with Tiberius on his shoulder, all of them ready to end this once and for all. The three of us all pushed our magics out in a huge blast of energy so powerful I stumbled back a couple of steps—so did Izzy and Raphie, and Grady helped catch me.
When the smoke cleared a minute later, only ash remained of her body. We’d killed her, we’d burned her to a crisp. She could never harm anyone ever again.
She was gone. Forever. Grady was safe. I was safe. We were finally safe.
As soon as I caught my breath, I turned and pulled a stunned Grady into my arms, holding him as tightly as I could, burying my face in his neck.
He was trembling, but so was I as we clung to each other.
His breathing was raspy from her spell. I couldn’t believe I’d allowed her to get him for even a moment. Grabbing hold of my magic, I pushed it into him to heal his injuries. He shivered and melted into me more heavily until I was holding him up. Once he was healed, I let my magic dissipate and simply held my soul-pledged as tightly as he held me.
I didn’t know how long we stayed that way, but by the time I spoke, there were enforcers from the Conclave walking around inspecting the scene. “I’m so sorry.”
Grady squeezed me. “There’s nothing to be sorry for. You did nothing wrong.”
“I didn’t get here in time; I didn’t stop them—or her—from hurting you.”
“That wasn’t your fault, Ric.”
I shuddered and held him tighter.
He ran his hands soothingly down my back. “You didn’t do this to me.”
“I let her get to you.”
“You did no such thing, Alaric. You saved me.”
Taking a shaky breath, I whispered, “It’s my fault you got kidnapped.”
“No, it’s not. You’re not the one that did this to me, and honestly, I’m glad it was me they got and not you.”
“What? No… You could’ve been killed. Why would you say that?”
“Because it gave you time to get Raphie and Izzy here with you. We needed their help to take her and her people down.” He trembled again, so I didn’t speak, I simply pulled him into me and held on tight.
I held Grady in a vice grip on my lap on the way home as Raphie drove us back to the house. I didn’t say a word the whole way home, and even though I could tell that Grady was worried, he let me simply hold him with my face buried in his neck while my brother and Isiah spoke quietly up front. Tib sat on Grady’s lap, and Nadia and Jezebel were up front with their warlocks. Isiah’s car had been stolen from in front of that house, probably by Regan, though I didn’t really care at this point.
Isiah had used his magic to clean the blood and dirt off of Grady before we left, and I was grateful, but I could smell Izzy’s magic on my soul-pledge’s skin. I didn’t really like it.
When Raphie pulled in front of the house, we got out, and I kept my arm locked around Grady as we walked up to the porch and through the front door. I heard Grady thank my brother for the ride, but I didn’t bother, I was too shaken up to speak.
As soon as the door was shut and locked, Tib flew off and I pressed into Grady and captured his lips with mine. He grunted in surprise before melting into me and wrapping his arms around my neck. I deepened our kiss, using my tongue to invade his mouth and soak him up. My shaky hands gripped his hips tight as I pressed flat against him.
We stood in the doorway kissing for a long time, long enough that I stopped trembling from fear and started trembling with need. A need I wasn’t used to but one that seemed to take root around Grady often.
I broke the kiss and muttered, “I love you, Grady. I think I’ve loved you since the first time I saw you in your cabin in our dreams.”
He smiled and his fingers played with my hair. “I love you, too, Alaric.”
With a gasp of relief, I captured his lips again, eating him up and soaking up our love for one another. The longer I kissed him, the more the need for him grew deep in my belly. So I reached behind him and slowly slid my hands down to his backside, squeezing it tight. He groaned into my mouth and pressed his hips forward, rubbing his hard length against mine, and I answered with a moan.
Then I held him tight and began walking him toward the couch. When his legs hit it, I pushed against him until he lowered to sit, and I climbed on his lap. Grady’s hands ran up and down my sides and back, then slipped under my shirt so his fingertips grazed my skin and sent shivers through my body. He smiled against my lips at my reaction, then fisted my shirt in his hands and leaned back, silently asking if it was okay to remove my shirt. Nodding, I leaned back to help and threw my shirt on the ground.
Grady ran his hands up my chest and tweaked my nipples before burying his fingers in my hair and pulling me back down to capture my mouth. As his tongue found mine again, I moaned, and the fact that I was truly feeling him, that he was really here, safe in my arms, safe beneath me, safe in our home, hit me and a whimper escaped my throat.
G
rady whispered against my lips, “Shh, baby… we’re safe.”
I nodded against him, then slipped my hands under his shirt, feeling his soft skin. I tugged his shirt up for more access, but Grady broke our kiss to take it off and throw it to the floor. Upon seeing all that soft skin, I moaned in appreciation, then leaned down to kiss my way along his neck—paying special attention to where he’d been hurt—then down his collarbone and chest to his belly, and I slipped off the couch to my knees.
Pulling on his pants, I gazed into his bright blue eyes and whispered, “May I?”
He chuckled and nodded. “You can do anything you want to me, Ric. Anything at all.”
I smiled and almost thanked him, then thought better of it and focused on removing his pants instead. Once they and his underwear were out of the way, I pressed my face into his groin and breathed him in, then I kissed his thigh and ran my fingertips up and down his legs, slowly moving my mouth closer to his hard length.
Dragging my fingers lightly over his sac and up his length, I hummed as he moaned and fought for control. I knew he wanted to push my face toward him, but he held back. With a kiss to his thigh, I finally peeked my tongue out to lick the precum from his tip. He moaned loudly, and I smiled before taking the tip into my mouth. I worked him with my tongue for a few minutes before slowly lowering and taking as much of him into my mouth as I could. I used my hand with my mouth, moving up and down as my other hand caressed his sac, then his thighs and sides, then his nipples before starting over again.
The sounds escaping him were urging me on and filling me with a warm satisfaction knowing I could turn him into a whimpering, moaning mess.
When he was close, he pushed on my shoulder and moaned out, “Ric,” but I didn’t move away. He was mine, my destined, my soul-pledged, and I wanted all of him. So I sucked harder until his orgasm hit him, and he writhed and cried out as he filled my mouth.
After I drank every drop and cleaned him with my tongue, I climbed back on his lap, tucking my head into the crook of his neck, whispering, “You belong with me, Grady.”
He kissed the side of my head and muttered, “Yeah, I do. Nothing’s going to change that.”
I nodded against him and he wrapped his arms around me, holding me tight for a few minutes before he rolled me onto my back on the couch. He pressed his lips to mine in a searing kiss that had my already hard length jumping in anticipation. As he kissed down my neck, he palmed my erection and asked, “Let’s take care of this, shall we?”
With a nod, I pushed into his hand, and before I knew it, my pants were gone and he had swallowed me whole. I groaned and moaned and thrust my hips into him as he sucked and licked and swallowed around me. It only took a couple of minutes before I was releasing into him as bliss shot through my very veins. I swear I saw stars as my orgasm went on forever.
When I finally came down from my amazing high, Grady was lying over me, watching me with a smile on his face. He brushed his fingers through my hair and mumbled, “You’re beautiful, Alaric Galen Crane Bloodgood.” He pressed a kiss to the tip of my nose. “Thank you for letting me bond with you.”
I swallowed thickly and cupped his cheek. “You don’t regret it?”
Something flashed behind his eyes before he shook his head. “No.”
“Not even after today?”
“Not even.” He kissed my lips softly. “I’ve never wanted anything more than I want to spend the rest of eternity with you.”
My chest swelled with emotion, and I whispered, “I want that too.”
“Good. Then no more crazy witches.” He smiled, so I knew he was trying to lighten the mood, although his subject matter was questionable. But since it was Grady, I went with it.
“No more crazy witches.”
His smile grew a little, and he rested his forehead to mine. “Can I ask you a question?”
“Anything.”
“What’s a ‘destined’?”
I sucked in a breath. “It’s believed that we have soulmates, and that’s what my people call them… I never believed in those old stories, but I do now.”
“Why?”
“Because of you… I think you’re my destined.”
“You do?”
I nodded. “Yes, but it’s a moot point now.”
“Why?”
“Because you pledged your soul to mine, so regardless of whether we were destined to be together or not, you’re stuck with me for the rest of your very long life.”
He smiled at me. “Good.” After pressing his lips to mine, he said, “Now why don’t we get in the shower together, then lay in bed and cuddle for the rest of the day? We can watch movies in there if you want.” He knew I needed to be close to him, he knew I needed him in my arms. Maybe he needed me just as badly.
“I would like that.”
“Good because I feel like I’m squishing your tiny ass.”
I smiled. “You are.” His eyes widened and he started to climb off me, but I laughed and grabbed ahold of him so he couldn’t. “Don’t move.”
With a huff, he rested back on top of me. “Baby, if I stay here much longer, I’m going to fall asleep, and then I’ll really be squishing you.”
“One more minute.”
He kissed my throat. “Only one.”
We stayed there for three.
Chapter 28
Grady
In the weeks following my kidnapping, Alaric hadn’t left my side for more than maybe two minutes at a time. He wouldn’t even allow me to take the trash out by myself; he always insisted on doing it himself or at least coming with me. I didn’t mind too much, but I didn’t like how worried and anxious he was. Raphie and Izzy assured me it would get better with time, so we would have to wait it out. Alaric knew he was being unreasonable, but he said he couldn’t help it.
Leaning back on the stool behind the cashier counter, I watched as Alaric helped a customer pick out a new comic, and I couldn’t help but smile. He’d really taken an interest in working the comic shop with me, so much so that he’d been making his way through reading every comic series we carried. At this point, I’d say it was a toss-up of who was more into comics—me or him.
When he finished up, I checked the customer out, and as soon as the girl was through the door, I walked over to my soul-pledged where he was restocking a shelf. Slipping between the shelf and Alaric, I grabbed his hips and pressed my lips to his, then muttered, “You doing okay?”
He nodded. “Yeah, but I’m nervous about tomorrow.”
I cupped his cheek. “It’s going to be okay, baby.”
Looking away from me, he bit his cheek, licked his lips, and nodded before returning his focus. “What if I don’t know what to say to him?”
“You don’t have to say anything at all, Ric. If we get there and you change your mind, that’s okay too. We don’t have to go in, or we can just sit back and look at him, or we can go in and you can gag him and tie him up or something while you say your piece. And it’s okay if you don’t know what to say or do when we’re there.”
He blew out a long breath. “Okay.”
I smiled and kissed his cheek. “Come on, let’s get cleaned up here so we can head out the minute Lizzie gets here. We need to pick up Laz soon so we can get on the road before dinnertime.” I was going to drive to one of Raphie and Izzy’s homes that was near the warlock prison tonight since it was only about four hours away and we were only scheduled to work until three today. I was hoping that getting there tonight would give Alaric a chance to settle in before we saw his father tomorrow, although I wasn’t sure either of us would be getting any sleep at all.
He nodded and got back to work after I moved out of his way, then we both broke down the boxes from the shipment and Alaric ran the stuff out to the dumpster.
After my employee, Lizzie, arrived, we said our goodbyes and walked down to Laz’s shop. As soon as we walked in, he said, “Is it time?”
“Yep,” I replied as I reached over for Alaric’s hand. “Yo
u still want to come with us?”
Laz narrowed his eyes at me. “Yes.” He was still a little peeved that he’d been left at home when I was kidnapped. He thought one of the guys should’ve called him and brought him along. I wasn’t really sure what he thought he would’ve been able to do in a magical fight, but he’d been pissed. Not at me, and not at Alaric, surprisingly. He’d been beyond pissed at Raphael and Isiah. In fact, he’d refused to talk to either of them since he’d yelled at them right after.
And since he was upset about being excluded, Alaric and I decided to invite him along on this little field trip. After we visited Ric’s father tomorrow, we were going to spend a couple of days there and take Laz out to a few museums and things. I didn’t really know what we were doing; I let Alaric and Laz plan everything out since I didn’t care too much about where we were going.
What Laz didn’t know was that Raphie and Izzy were going to be home while we visited, and they’d asked to come along with us when we went sightseeing. Alaric and his brother talked about it, apparently. I was washing my hands of it because I had no clue why my best friend was acting crazy when it came to the two warlocks. He didn’t seem to want to talk about it, so I wasn’t pushing, but if they continued being weird toward each other, I’d have to get to the bottom of it.
I nodded at Laz and said, “I was just checking. You didn’t look very happy when we walked in here.”
Laz’s expression softened. “I’m sorry, it’s been a long week. And… I know they’re going to be there.”
My eyes widened, but Alaric sighed and said, “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. My brother made me promise.”
Laz rolled his eyes and muttered, “Whatever. Let’s get this over with.” He grabbed a bag from behind the counter and headed for the front door. “Just remember that it’s your fault for anything that happens on this trip.”
Sharing a glance with Alaric, the two of us followed Laz out the door and to our car.
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