Obsidian shrugged. “No idea, but I’d prefer not to get down to the wire and realize she does, and we’ve got no one here.”
Damn fine point. However, Eclipse didn’t know any angel midwives, and all the healers resided in Heaven since they rarely needed treatment down here.
“You ask Michael?”
His brother shrugged. “Not yet.”
“Well, if you want me to tug someone’s ear, just let me know.”
Obsidian’s gaze lifted, met his. “Thanks.”
With a quick wave, Eclipse strolled toward the back staircase, took them two at a time to the third floor. He was making tracks to his private quarters when soft whispers drew him up short, had him pivoting on his heel and heading in the opposite direction. He found Penelope and Orianna sitting in the conference room, their heads together.
“Well, doesn’t this look like trouble.”
Both heads popped up, mirroring smiles on the females’ faces.
“Hey,” Orianna greeted.
“What’s going on?” he asked, walking around to stand behind her so he could see the computer screen they’d been looking at.
“We were just tossing around a few ideas,” Penelope explained, lifting a hand to point at the screen. “We were thinking maybe we should do some remodeling.”
Eclipse leaned in, scanned the screen. “I think you mean construction, because that sure looks like you’re changing the floor plan.”
Penelope giggled. “Just a little.”
“To what?” he asked, gently squeezing Orianna’s shoulders. “That looks like a living room. Don’t we already have one of those up here?”
“We don’t,” Penelope said. “Y’all do. We were thinking maybe we could have a space of our own.”
“Ah.” Eclipse grinned. “So, that’s a girly space?”
“We prefer to think of it as a male-free zone. Once all the amsouelots are in residence, we girls are going to need our own space. Not to mention, you boys’ll be taking over when you’re all back together.”
Eclipse was about to offer up his rebuttal when Orianna’s shoulders tensed beneath his hands.
“Well, I think that’s my cue!” Penelope said, popping up from her chair and smiling. “I’ll catch up with you in a bit.”
Orianna chuckled. “Yeah. Okay.”
By the time the door closed, Eclipse was gearing up to make fine use of the conference room table.
Obsidian figured this was payback.
After all, he had found it amusing that the gathenya had affected Taayin back when Obsidian and Penelope had first gotten together.
Granted, amusing wasn’t quite the word he would use to describe it now. Despite the inconvenience, it was still a pleasurable experience. At least times like this when his ereswa sought him out beforehand. When Penelope had texted him and requested he come to their mated bed, he’d hightailed it upstairs, confused and more than a little concerned only to learn she was planning ahead because Eclipse and Orianna had just locked themselves in the third-floor conference room.
It hadn’t taken long before he realized why.
The energy that swept through the mansion would’ve leveled him if he hadn’t already been on his back. Even then, he’d had to grip the comforter to keep from tossing his ereswa to the mattress and mounting her like an animal.
“Ayreme … fuck,” he groaned as she stroked his cock with both hands, her gold eyes glowing brightly as she watched him. “I need … in you. Now.”
Her mouth fell open, her back bowing as though his words alone had set her off.
Unable to resist, Obsidian reached up, palming her heavy breasts, admiring her beauty as she continued to tease and torment. He loved her like this, naked and available, demanding.
Truth was, if Penelope hadn’t insisted he sate her urges, Obsidian would’ve held out until after the baby was born. As it was, he was terrified that he would hurt her or do something to harm their unborn child. Though she swore that wouldn’t happen, he wasn’t sure how she knew. Everything she’d read about pregnancy and childbirth was for humans, something that didn’t apply to them. Considering there was no record of an angel birth ever taking place on Earth, no one knew what might happen.
Penelope moaned, dragging him out of his thoughts and back to the moment.
“Put me inside you,” he growled, kneading her breasts and tugging her toward him.
Her soft moan was the signal he was waiting for. She always did that right before she gave in to his gruff demands.
“Ride me, ayreme. Let me watch you.”
A rumbling growl escaped him when she pressed the head of his cock against the wet juncture between her thighs. And when she sank down on him, Obsidian groaned loud and long, his cock jerking and twitching with the need to come inside her, to claim her a million times over.
Penelope reached for his hands and Obsidian obliged, allowing her to twine her fingers with his as she used him to steady herself, her hips doing that delicious rock-and-grind.
“Beautiful,” he whispered, watching her breasts sway as she did. “Come for me, ayreme. Let me feel you come.”
His beautiful ereswa whimpered softly, her hips beginning to rock faster. Obsidian assisted, releasing her hands so he could guide her hips, pushing up inside her as he held her above him. He didn’t stop until she cried out his name, her sex clenching around him, dragging his orgasm out of him in a rush.
When her body went limp, Obsidian shifted, gently laying her on the bed as he curled up behind her, his hand covering the swell of her belly, his lips pressing to the back of her head.
“I love you, ayreme. Now and forever.”
She muttered something that sounded similar, making him smile.
Bijou was minding her own business, as was usually the case, when she felt that sweltering energy plow through the mansion.
Luckily, she was in the game room this time. The last time she’d been down in the kitchen, and it had been hell getting to the second floor and hiding herself away as the rest of the mansion succumbed to what sounded like a heated orgy.
Straightening her spine and gritting her teeth, Bijou put one foot in front of the other and made a hasty retreat for her bedroom. It was only three doors down on the right. It should take no time whatsoever to get there. Once inside, she could shut the door and ride out this heat wave with the help of her trusty vibrator. Heaven knew there was no one else here she wanted to help her assuage this overwhelming ache.
Okay, that wasn’t entirely true. There was one person. Oliver. However, she got the feeling he was quite content with the status of their friendship. And that was exactly what they’d established during the few weeks she’d been here. The two of them spent quite a bit of time together watching movies, playing pool, swimming, sharing meals, more movies, more pool, more swimming.
And fine, it had been her idea to be friends. It was what she’d wanted. In the beginning. But she had to admit, she had a slight crush on the human.
A soft moan escaped her as her core clenched tightly. She paused with her hand on the wall as she continued her trek to her room.
If it weren’t for what the angels called gathenya, Bijou figured she would be fine and dandy with her friendship with Oliver as he was. But this … whatever stoked these damn flames made it nearly impossible to not want something a bit more … beneficial. Yes. That was a good word for it. Friends with benefits. That was a thing, right? She was sure plenty of people did it. Humans, vampires, didn’t matter. The angels and Fae certainly had a good thing going for them. They alternated hookups the way Bijou changed socks, a different pair every day.
Someone’s deep groan had Bijou pausing, glancing over her shoulder to ensure no one was behind her. The hallway was clear in both directions, thank God.
Swallowing, she continued toward her bedroom, but just as her feet were finally getting with the program, she drew up short when she noticed the door to Oliver’s bedroom was partially open.
Don’t look in
side. Don’t you dare look inside.
She looked.
Damn it.
Through the crack in the door, she could see Oliver on his bed, head propped up on navy-blue pillows, shoulders and chest bare, the rest of him covered by a navy-blue sheet. But it wasn’t the linens that caught her attention. No, that was credited to the way Oliver’s hand was moving beneath that thin fabric. There was no disguising what he was doing, either.
Another groan drifted from his mouth to her ears, and Bijou swallowed a moan of her own.
“Fuck,” Oliver hissed, kicking the sheet off.
Bijou’s eyes widened when she got a look-see at the thick flesh between his legs, the firm hand that glided up and down it.
It was so very wrong of her to be watching him, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t look away. She was mesmerized by the way he touched himself. His hand firmly gripping the rigid flesh, stroking up, down, up, down, a steady rhythm that matched the race of his breaths in his lungs.
She’d never been a voyeur, but Bijou wanted to see this male pleasure himself, to watch as his body kicked and twitched as the pleasure of his own touch consumed him. Having never been intimate with a male, Bijou wasn’t familiar with what it took to bring one pleasure, but based on the way Oliver roughly tugged on his flesh, she had to believe even humans could handle the dark urges she’d been plagued with since she’d hit puberty. She remembered Reve, the way that male had wanted her to save herself for him. They had to be mated, he’d told her many times. Bijou had never believed in that. For one, she was a bastard. Living proof that two did not need to be mated in order to be intimate.
It had been a romantic gesture, sure. But who needed romance? That was for idiots, just look at her. She’d gotten caught up in all Reve’s sweet promises only for the male to walk away as though he had never cared for her at all.
“Oh, fuck,” Oliver groaned loudly, his back arching, his erection punching through his fist.
Bijou held her breath, willed him to let himself go.
When he finally did, she felt an echo of pleasure shoot through her lower extremities. Not wanting him to know she’d seen him, Bijou hurried to her bedroom, closing the door behind her.
And as she brought herself to orgasm with her trusty pink vibrator, she closed her eyes and thought of Oliver, wondering…
What if?
Chapter Thirty-Four
Sunday, November 17, 2019
Eclipse awoke to the sound of a phone ringing.
Knowing it wasn’t his, he rolled over, reached for Orianna, nudged her shoulder. “Sezari.”
“Hmm?”
“Your phone’s ringing.”
She bolted upright like he’d taken an electrical wire to her skin. He sensed her panic, smelled her fear, and it had sleep crumbling away as he pushed himself upright, leaning against the headboard. The wood was cold against his back, and he peered over to see the flames from the fire had subsided while they were asleep. He was tempted to get it going again but held off when Orianna answered the call.
“Mom? Are you all right?”
Eclipse couldn’t help it, his hearing was too acute not to catch the words coming through the phone. The panic in Orianna’s mother’s voice was evident when she requested Orianna come home immediately. Apparently, Orianna’s father was threatening to have her committed to a hospital for treatment—drugs, he surmised, based on the slur in her mother’s words—and Elizabeth feared he was trying to take the house.
“Mom, it’ll take me some time to get there, but I’m on my way.” Orianna paused, listened. “I know, Mom. I’ll hurry. It’s a nine-hour drive.”
Eclipse knew from the sound of Orianna’s voice, she wasn’t going to listen to reason. Despite the danger that resided outside the walls of the mansion, she was going to see her mother, with or without him. Which meant Eclipse was going with her.
He immediately thought of Asmia, of the mission they were on to locate the Fae and bring her home. It had been their sole focus since the day Perfidious had pulled his shit-tastic snatch and grab. But while he wanted to dedicate all his attention to Asmia, he couldn’t put her above Orianna. It wasn’t the way he was programed, no matter how shitty it seemed.
Eclipse waited patiently for her to finish the conversation, to disconnect, to set the phone down.
“I’ll take you,” he said softly, his mind whirling with things he needed to take care of before they hit the road.
Orianna twisted, peered back at him over her shoulder. “You’ve got so much going on here.”
There was fear and anguish in her eyes, and it broke his heart to see her in pain.
“You’re my priority, sezari. Where you go, I go.”
Orianna shook her head. “Eclipse … I can get there faster if you stay here. I can’t afford to stop for the daylight and since…”
“Your argument won’t change my mind,” he told her, his voice firm.
Eclipse saw the relief on her face, and warmth spread through him. It humbled him to know she wanted him at her side. Despite this whirlwind they’d been spinning in for the past month, they were growing closer. Minute by minute, hour by hour, day by day. Having Orianna at his side made it easier to breathe, to exist, even if neither of them knew what the next night would bring.
“I need to talk to Obsidian,” he told her as he dropped his legs over the side of the bed. “Why don’t you shower and get ready.”
She nodded and wasted no time heading to the bathroom.
Eclipse dragged on his jeans from that morning and snagged his T-shirt. He pulled it on as he stepped out into the hallway. He could hear voices coming from the third-floor living area. He padded barefoot down the hall, turned the corner, and found Obsidian and Stygian reclined on the sofas, staring at the television.
He figured ripping the Band-Aid clean off was the best approach. “I’m taking Orianna to Oklahoma. Something’s up with her mother and she wants to go.”
Obsidian sat up, worry instantly pulling his face tight.
“I know the dangers,” he assured his brother. “I’ll protect her.”
Of course, that was so fucking easy to say, not nearly as simple to do, but Eclipse would keep her safe at all costs.
“Take Miklós and Magnar with you,” Obsidian ordered.
Figuring it would be ignorant to refuse additional protection for his amsouelot, Eclipse nodded.
“I’ll have Kandarie assigned to you from here,” his brother continued. “I’ll have him monitoring your movements and keeping an eye out for demons.”
Eclipse could only nod. He knew Obsidian would do what he wanted when it came to protecting them. Now that Penelope was with him, their oldest brother was on a mission to ensure they were not in harm’s way, their amsouelots located, their souls safe and secure and out of Lucifer’s nasty clutches. It never failed, Obsidian was the one who kept them together, the leader, some might say.
He let Obsidian worry over them for a few more minutes with his be carefuls and keep me informeds. When he returned to his private quarters, Eclipse found Orianna already dressed, her wet hair hanging down her back.
“It’s cold out. You need to dry your hair,” he insisted. “By the time you’re finished, I’ll be ready to go.”
Though she harrumphed at his request, Orianna made her way to the bathroom while he made a quick pass through the shower. As promised, he was dressed and tossing a few things into a bag when she emerged from the bathroom.
“I don’t plan to stay,” she told him. “So you don’t need to pack much.”
Eclipse grinned. In lieu of socks and underwear, he was packing weapons. An arsenal, in fact. He was taking no chances with Orianna’s safety, and he seriously doubted the vampires had lost her scent. He still imagined them hovering on the perimeter of Darkness, waiting for her to emerge so they could get their nasty little claws in her. No doubt, the fact they hadn’t encountered any on their last two trips out made his decision to take her easier. He could onl
y pray if those bastards did catch up to them, they could outrun them at the very least, because he could feel the determination coming off Orianna in waves. She was hell-bent on coming to her mother’s rescue, and no demon was going to get in her way.
Roughly twenty minutes later, armed to the teeth and weighed down with a care package hand-prepared by Phillip, Eclipse was steering his Bugatti out of the garage while Miklós followed in the Range Rover, Magnar riding shotgun. Neither his lieterra nor his ladeare had batted an eyelash when they’d learned of their new assignment. If he had to guess, they were eager to get out from under the weight of the mansion and the doom and gloom that lingered heavily throughout.
The silence in the car was the equivalent of a drop in cabin pressure at thirty thousand feet. When it got to be too much, Eclipse flipped on the radio, “Crooked Halo” by Stitched Up Heart choking out the hush-hush. Relaxing evidently wasn’t an option, because no matter how hard he tried, Eclipse’s senses were hypervigilant, tracking everything within a mile radius. Not an easy feat when they were averaging speeds around ninety miles per hour.
Orianna’s frustrated exhale pulled his full attention back into the vehicle. “I can’t believe Erik’s doing this.”
“You refer to your father by name?”
She peered over at him. “I figure he hasn’t earned Dad, so yeah. When I refer to him at all.” Orianna sighed, shifted her gaze out the window. “He must’ve hit rock bottom. That’s the only reason I can figure he’d go after my mother. She told me a few days ago he’d stopped by. Probably realized she was low on funds, figured shipping her off would allow him to sell the house.”
“He wants to hospitalize her?”
“Yeah.” Orianna leaned into the seat, stared straight ahead. “I’m not oblivious. I know my mother’s addicted to painkillers. But the doctor keeps prescribing them, so who am I to intervene? And who the hell made Erik her boss? I always figured he’d use her weakness against her, but this is lower than low.” Her voice grew more tense with her agitation. “He’s never given a shit about her. He’s too selfish for that. And now he’s going to what? Upend her world, ship her off? Fuck that.”
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