One Mark: Steamy Friends to Lovers Paranormal Romance (Blackwell Djinn)

by Nikki Kardnov

He would do anything for her.

  Invoked or not.

  “I, Lola St. James, wish to invoke my first wish. My wish is that I want Thorin Blackwell to heal me from the inside to the outside. And then I want him to fuck me.”

  He could feel the magic echoing in his eyes as he said, “Lola St. James, your wish is granted.”

  The magic bloomed around them in a glittering haze and Thorin drove himself inside of her.

  Chapter 29

  LOLA

  Lola felt high as a kite. Like she’d transcended to another reality.

  How could she feel like she was floating away from herself and also more rooted in her body than she ever had been?

  She was alive.

  So fucking alive in her skin.

  Dripping wet and buzzing from head to toe.

  The pleasure washed through her in rolling, building waves as Thorin unleashed all of his pent-up arousal.

  His thrusts were merciless and animalistic, every grunt raw and vibrating in his chest.

  A high-pitched moan escaped Lola as Thorin rammed her into the wall again. His cock filled her up in the most painful, delicious way. His hands at the curve of her ass dug into her skin nearly piercing her flesh.

  He was rough and unceremonious about it and Lola fucking reveled in it.

  She wasn’t a delicate flower. A dainty girl.

  She was a goddamn woman and she wanted to be treated like one.

  Most of the men she’d been with had been too afraid to bend her over and pull her hair. Or too quick to get themselves off, their thrusts almost mechanical.

  Not Thorin.

  Not this glorious man.

  He was equal parts wild animal and hungry man. Both wanting to plow inside of her as much as connect them in this most intimate of ways.

  Because he needed her as much as she needed him and that need, that trust they had in one another, allowed them to sink to their most basal of desires.

  Hard, fast fucking.

  Lola panted into his neck as he grabbed at her ass harder and brutally pumped into her at a pace that had her tits jouncing between them.

  Thorin groaned, and slammed her against the wall again, the muscles in his shoulders flexing with his thrusts.

  Lola opened her eyes and caught their reflection in the vanity mirror. She looked high as a bird. Blitzed out on ecstasy. She threaded her hand through Thorin’s hair and gave it a sharp tug. He growled and punished her pussy for it with a deeper thrust of his cock.

  His cock grew harder and his head grazed her at just the right spot.

  “Ohhhhh fuck. Oh God. There.” She whined. “Like that.” He’d found her G-spot. The holy fucking grail. Most men needed a map and a 12-slide PowerPoint.

  Thorin hoisted her ass higher and pulled away from the wall. He took on all of her weight easily as he angled himself in just a way that when he pushed back into her, all of her bells were ringing.

  “Oh…fuck. Oh yes.” She gasped as the head of his cock raked her hard inner ridge. Pressure built inside of her like a storm wave against a dam and then suddenly she was crashing over, crashing and gasping and quivering as his cock hammered into her.

  The orgasm spread through her body like a starburst.

  Was she glowing?

  She felt like she was.

  “I’m not done with you quite yet,” he said against her ear and then nipped at her lobe.

  Her sex throbbed around him. She didn’t think she could do more.

  But the heat between her legs hadn’t lessened and maybe…maybe…

  Thorin pulled out of her and dumped her on the vanity.

  “I want to see,” he said darkly.

  Goosebumps spread over her arms. “Okay.”

  Hands on her knees, he spread her wide and slowly pushed inside of her again. Lola collapsed against the mirror and bucked into him, drawing him deeper.

  “Fuck woman,” he said. “You feel so fucking good.”

  The pressure built again in her mound. She sunk her hand to her clit and circled it with two needy fingers.

  Could she…could she really come again?

  The wet sound of his cock entering her made her grow wetter still.

  Had she ever been so fucking overwhelmed with desire?

  It wasn’t just the sex and the orgasm…it was something else. Something deeper.

  She wanted to be claimed.

  She wanted to know that she was his, that he could get rough and hungry with her in bed, and giving and kind and gentle outside of the bedroom. She wanted to know that when they put their clothes back on and walked out that door, Lola would still have her freedom. She would still be herself.

  And he would always be there. No matter what.

  And when she looked up and met Thorin’s gaze—she had her answer.

  He was claiming her.

  But he was also loving her. Who she was. What she needed. What she wanted.

  She would never lose herself in Thorin because he respected and loved all of her intricacies, her eccentricities.

  “Come for me,” he said. “I want to hear you.”

  She put more pressure on her clit as his speed picked up again.

  “Fuck,” he said. “Fuck, Lo.”

  He grabbed her breast and captured her nipple between his thumb and forefinger.

  As the heat built in her clit, he pinched harder, fucked her harder.

  “You gonna come for me?” he said.

  “Yeah. Yes. Oh God.”

  She cried out as the pleasure lanced through her again and Thorin rammed into her with enough force to jolt her upright.

  The wave crested and her inner walls tightened as the orgasm washed through her body and buzzed through her limbs. Every muscle tensed and pulled taut as she rode the wave and Thorin roared as his pumping stuttered and he spurt hot cum inside of her.

  The vestiges of her pleasure spread through her veins like honey warming her, every nerve tingling.

  As Thorin leaned over her, shoulders heaving, breath fanning down her naked body, Lola looked up.

  And…the air glittered with golden magic. Not just around Thorin, but in every corner of the bathroom as if they were swimming in the cosmos.

  This wasn’t just her freaky new sight.

  This was different.

  Ashley had told her what it was to see Dae’s magic.

  And Lola…

  Lola could see Thorin’s magic.

  Holy.

  Fucking.

  Shit.

  Not only had she just fucked Thorin Blackwell.

  But she, Lola St. James, was his caeli.

  Chapter 30

  LOLA

  Lola and Thorin slept off and on throughout the night waking only to revel in the freedom they now had to do whatever they wanted to each other. Thorin did delicious things to her body. For someone who had been celibate for several hundred years, he knew all of the buttons to push to make her writhe and moan.

  And though his cock was the biggest she’d ever come in contact with, Lola somehow managed to go so deep on it with her mouth, his eyes nearly rolled back in his head.

  Not once throughout the night did Lola believe she had made a mistake.

  Because she could see his magic.

  Which meant they were destined to be together.

  They were fucking soul mates.

  It all made sense now why he was so unlike any of the other men in her life. It explained why she could actually picture a future with him.

  Some cosmic force had decided they were the perfect match and who was Lola to flip the bird to the cosmos?

  But before she could tell him, she needed to speak to Ashley. Ashley had experience with this kind of thing. She’d know how to reveal it to Thorin and what to do after. She could prepare Lola for what it would feel like and how it might change her life.

  Because everything was seriously about to change.

  Would she have to move into Blackwell House? She didn’t want to. She loved her loft. Th
en again, Ashley and Dae lived somewhere far outside of the city (Dae swore Ashley to secrecy about its exact location because he was a super private weirdo). Probably Lola and Thorin could live in Lola’s loft. If Thorin wanted to. Would he want to?

  There were so many questions!

  Lola rolled to her side so she could stare at Thorin just a little longer before he woke.

  He lay on his stomach, arms tucked beneath the pillow. Early morning light spilled in through the window behind her highlighting the swell of his bicep and the dimpling of muscle and bone in his shoulders.

  Untied, his blond hair fanned over his shoulders in waves.

  She could stare at him all day.

  Could he really be hers? And she his?

  Could they be so lucky?

  As if feeling her gaze, Thorin opened his eyes.

  He smiled into the pillow. “Hi,” he murmured.

  “Hi.” She snuggled into her own pillow so they were face to face. “Good morning.”

  “That’s an understatement. It is the best of mornings.”

  She giggled. “The only thing that could top it would be breakfast in bed.”

  Propping himself up on his elbows, he raised a dark brow. “Oh? And what would you wish for?”

  “I’m not wasting a wish on eggs and bacon.”

  “No need.” He snapped his fingers and a breakfast tray appeared between them.

  “What the—no way.” Lola sat up to get a better look. There were two plates on the tray. Freshly scrambled eggs and crisp bacon and fried tomatoes and baked beans.

  “Beans for breakfast?”

  “It’s a British fry up,” he said and propped himself against the headboard. “I used to make it for Poe and Dae so many years ago when they were nursing a hangover of Double Gins.”

  “Gin is disgusting. Why would you want to double it?”

  “Ginger and gin. Because a djinn can only—”

  “Right. Ginger gets you tipsy.”

  “Precisely. They just called them Double Gins.”

  “They were partiers back then?”

  “Of the worst kind.” He lay his head against the bed and his hair spilled down his shoulders. “Poe continued right up until a few weeks ago when he found out Willa was his caeli. She’s been good for him. Ashley too for Dae. He was always so sullen before her.”

  Caeli.

  Lola’s heart fluttered like a bird in her chest.

  Thorin heard. A frown deepened the line of his brow. “What is it?”

  “Oh. It’s just…I’m just so damn excited for this British fry thing.” She nabbed a slice of bacon and bit into it. “Ohhhhh that’s good. I don’t know how you can make a piping hot piece of bacon appear out of thin air, but I’m never one to question a good thing.”

  Thorin chuckled. “It’s ether magic. Manifestation. I merely ask for what I want and the universe creates it.”

  “Bananas.”

  “You want bananas?”

  “What? No! It’s an expression. Like that’s crazy. It’s bananas.”

  “I haven’t heard that one.”

  “That’s because you live beneath rocks.”

  He laughed again. Lola loved the sound of it. His voice was deep and smooth, like a rock canyon cut from years of wind and water.

  She could listen to him laugh and talk all day.

  She could spend eternity with him in this bed.

  Lola busied herself by mixing cream into a coffee mug, then two heaping scoops of sugar. She wanted to tell Thorin so badly. He had a right to know and since she was the only one who could tell him…well, it was her duty to share it.

  Where was Ashley?

  She needed to talk to her ASAP.

  What would Thorin’s family think of them?

  Hell, who cared? They couldn’t doubt the Fates!

  Could they?

  Lola didn’t know enough about their world to know.

  But she’d learn.

  “You make me happy,” Thorin said suddenly. “I know you have your rules and we just technically broke them…but…” He trailed off and frowned as if he was still searching for the right words. “I could see myself being a better man for you. The kind of man I’ve always wanted to be.”

  Lola held tightly to her coffee, the steam rising between them.

  His admission was huge. She could see how much it took for him to get it out.

  She owed him something just as big.

  “Thor,” she said and set the mug down. “There’s something—”

  The bedroom door burst open.

  Lola yelped realizing she was still naked. She was already so comfortable around Thorin that she’d forgotten.

  She yanked at the bedsheet and pulled it around herself. Coffee sloshed over the rim of the mug soaking her eggs.

  “Mad, for Christ sake,” Thorin said. “This isn’t even my room!”

  They were still in Lola’s room. Mad hadn’t even knocked.

  “We have bigger problems than your modesty,” Mad said.

  Lola might not be a mind reader, but she could tell what Mad really meant was Lola’s modesty since Thorin had made no move to cover himself.

  With a grumble, Thorin snapped his fingers and clothing appeared on his body. Lola inwardly pouted. Did real life have to break the spell already?

  Thorin did the same for her, clothing her in an outfit he’d seen her in many times before—olive green linen overalls and a white tank top beneath.

  “I’ll be back,” he said to her. He hovered at the bedside like he meant to kiss her and then thought better of it with Mad still standing in the doorway.

  Thorin stepped around his older brother and Mad said, “We’re meeting in the War Room.”

  Thorin hesitated for a split second and then nodded and was gone.

  Lola slid from the bed and came around it. The interruption was annoying but she had a to-do list too and the first thing on the list was to find Ashley.

  Mad crossed his arms over his chest as she neared.

  “What?” she said.

  “We could all hear you.”

  “What do you—Oh.”

  Mortification burned through her cheeks.

  “Supernatural hearing,” he said. “If you wish not to be heard, you gotta find a better place to do it. Somewhere discreet.”

  “I’m sorry.” She couldn’t look him in the eyes now that…how much had he heard? How detailed was their hearing? Like had Mad heard every single word she’d uttered to Thorin? She couldn’t even remember all the things she’d said. There had definitely been a lot of Oh God Thorin. Fuck me harder, Thorin.

  She would be red-faced forever and—no. No, she wouldn’t be ashamed for wanting pleasure and she sure as hell wouldn’t let him get beneath her skin.

  “Thanks for the warning.”

  “You have no idea what you’ve stepped in the middle of.”

  Lola frowned.

  “Thorin can’t deal with heightened emotions.” Mad took a step closer and lowered his voice. Probably so Thorin wouldn’t hear his brother talking shit about him. “Relationships are a risk for him. You must see that.”

  “Uhhh …”

  She didn’t know what to say!

  I’m his caeli, is what she almost said. But it would be a dick move to tell Mad before Thorin.

  “Again, thanks for the warning, but we know what we’re doing.”

  “Do you?” His eyes tightened. His jaw flexed. “Because I don’t think you do. I don’t like outsiders knowing our dirty misdeeds, but I can’t stand by and watch another woman destroy my baby brother and—”

  “Excuse me but—”

  “—you should know the truth. Look up Walwick village. Northumberland. 1644. Then tell me you know what you’re doing.” He finally turned and left.

  There were so many retorts primed and ready on the tip of her tongue, but Mad didn’t let her get any of them out.

  She was Thorin’s caeli.

  She could see men exactly as th
ey were and Thorin didn’t have any of the darkness she’d seen on other men.

  But maybe Lola’s DNA was fighting back and clouding her newfound vision?

  Hadn’t Thorin said whatever incident came between him and Rose had happened in 1644? The same incident that led to him needing the magical disc to keep him in line.

  Maybe when it came to Thorin, Lola only saw what she wanted to see? Maybe Rose had further twisted the wish to make Lola blind to the men she wanted to be good.

  Was she going to take the bait and look up the village?

  A thread of doubt wound its way in. She didn’t want to know the truth, but she had never been one to leave a loose tooth. She was the type to poke at it until it was out.

  And she knew better than anyone how a lie could slither in slow like a serpent for years and years and then strike suddenly from the shadows.

  Her father had lied to her for most of her life. He’d let her think he loved her, he’d let her believe he’d always take care of her. Look how that turned out.

  As much as the truth sucked, Lola believed it always, always needed to come out.

  Chapter 31

  THORIN

  When Mad came to fetch him, Thorin thought there was a family meeting in the conservatory where they conducted all of their family business. The conservatory in the last half-century had become Red’s favorite room. The closer he came to death, the closer he seemed to prefer the past. The conservatory was in honor of his late wife Adelaide and on rainy days, Thorin thought it smelled like her, like roses and lemons.

  The War Room was a place Thorin rarely entered.

  For one, it was just off Red’s personal rooms. And two, they rarely had a need for plotting war these days.

  An uneasy feeling curled in his gut.

  When Thorin reached the door to Red’s rooms, he stilled. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been invited here. His relationship with his grandfather had been tenuous at best and often fraught with friction.

  For most of his life, Thorin told himself that it was just the way Red was, that he had become legendary in the supernatural world only because he was cold and indifferent. In fact, it wasn’t that long ago that Thorin had told Poe that Red loved them in his own special way. But truth be told, Thorin often suspected that Red only loved his older brothers. He only tolerated Thorin because he had to.