by C. M. Owens
His eyes dare me to seduce him, and I strut very confidently to accept the challenge.
"You like?" I smolder.
He sighs out with anguish as he grumbles, "I like it too much, and unfortunately the others will be joining us, including Kahl. I'm not sure how he's going to fare with the way that dress is going to make me act tonight."
I laugh a little, and then my lips beseech his. He responds without hesitance, and pulls me tighter to his body.
"Let's join the others," he mumbles very stiffly.
I giggle a little, and he pulls my hand into his before flashing down the stairs.
"You can pick a car," Persia offers to Devin as soon as we reach the main floor.
He smirks mischievously before responding, "Actually, I stowed something special on my jet. We'll just meet you there."
I tilt my head to question his vague remark, and he flashes with me outside to avoid answering. He drops my hand when we finally reach the jet, and holds one hand up to signal he needs a minute.
"I'll be right back," he says while smiling too big.
I almost giggle at his exciting behavior, and the back lowers to release a secret cargo hold.
I hear a roaring, and then I gasp when he drives off with a big, metallic blue motorcycle harnessed between his legs. He grins fiercely and uses his head to motion for me to climb on.
"Really? I think you're trying to get laid right now," I tease.
He laughs hard and props on the handle bars to seduce me further.
"I felt it warranted. I was going to use it to entice you when you were still fighting with me, but now I just want you to ride," he says with a menacing wink.
"I'll ride," I seduce.
"I'll drive," he smolders back.
I laugh a little at the dirty banter before climbing onto the back of the gorgeous beast blaring its power to our ears. The faint smell of gasoline intrudes momentarily before the thunderous roar erupts even louder.
A subtle jolt bobs my head when he peels out of the lot, and I breathe him in as my dress tries to stay in place.
I laugh ridiculously hard as he weaves playfully on the road and I gasp when he takes a sharp curve. My hands grip tightly around his waist and one of his hands reaches behind him to jerk my body closer.
He returns his hand to the handle bars as he rattles out, "That's better. That's kind of the whole point of this - keeping you as close as possible," he smolders.
I kiss his back through his shirt and snuggle up to him so my body is as close as it can possibly be. The wind whips my hair, and I still it so it doesn't completely undo the hard work I put into my style.
"That's cheating. You're robbing yourself of the full experience," he laughs.
"If we were mortal, we'd be wearing helmets. It's the same difference," I giggle back.
"We're not mortal. Just enjoy it," he dares, and I release the wind to let it do with me as it wishes.
The roar slows to a purr as we reach an island bar that looks exactly as tropical as I envisioned one to be.
The pineapple leaf decorations are displayed proudly as a live band plays music for a singer humming lyrics in a language I can't understand. The sweat drips from the mortals, and drunkenness joins the aroma.
I laugh a little as Devin takes my hand and swivels me in a twirl before leading me up the small steps to the outdoor party. Paper lanterns trim the edges and offer a light glow to illuminate the large space. Wild, drunken mortals dance and holler to the music, and I see our very crowded group taking up half the seating area.
Devin pulls me into his lap as he sits down in a chair beside Deacon. The waitress instantly brings over scotch as if he's already ordered, and she hands me a clear liquid that is filling the glass to the brim.
I smile as I sip the strong liquid that offers little burn.
"How did she know what we wanted?"
"I ordered before you got here," Deacon answers.
Camara's eyes are swirling wildly, and she stands to grab Deacon's hand.
"Dance with me," she commands.
"I don't dance, lass," he jokes.
"You do now, lad," she taunts, and she jerks his grumbling self to the dance floor.
Devin leans over to kiss the back of my neck, and I feel the air lightly stirring in response.
"Do you want to dance?" he smolders.
"I don't really know how to dance to this sort of music," I mumble out self-consciously.
"I do," he dares, and he lifts me to my feet before swirling me into his arms.
He slowly seduces my body as his eyes burn into mine, and I'm forced to endure the torture of his body heating me.
Please don't let my passion or my fire singe this dress. I'm not wearing anything underneath.
The slow, tantalizing song only adds ambience to our already sizzling bodies, and Devin's lips fold over mine to offer even more zest.
"I love having fun with you," he seduces.
"I love being with you in any sense," I murmur sincerely.
His lips find mine once more, until we're interrupted by a bar fight breaking out between two mortals. Devin's eyes instantly scold Deacon, but he holds his hands up innocently.
"It wasn't me," he defends.
I roll my eyes and part the skies for the rain to brew, and I throw a gust of wind to knock them outside. Devin smirks as the water sobers the men up a little, but then they just jump back into the fight.
"I'll break it up," Jace grumbles as he leaps over the railing.
He jerks the men apart, his light grip used to keep from breaking their fragile bodies. I stare at the scene until a girl walks over to stand beside Devin.
"I'm Simone," she bluntly offers. "And you are?" she continues.
"I'm engaged," he chuckles out as he glances down at the jealously fuming from my face.
The fucking nerve.
This bitch doesn't realize what I'm capable of, or she shouldn't be so bold.
Then I notice something. She's not sweating. The air is hot, thick, and muggier now. She should have some perspiration.
Before I can say anything, Kahl leaps between us.
"You don't have any reason to mess with her. You came for me, and here I am," he pleads.
"She's your daughter. I can see your blood in her veins. I want you both now," she threatens.
"Get the mortals out," Persia yells to the others.
Her eyes flicker, and Kahl quickly looks away as if he's deliberately avoiding her gaze. Devin does the same when her eyes turn to him, and I don't have a clue what's going on.
White floods my eyes, and I grab the bitch by the throat before I realize what's going on.
"Adisia, no! Don't look into her eyes!" Kahl screeches.
I throw her onto a table, and she smiles as I stare into her flickering eyes, but that smile fades when whatever she was expecting to happens fails.
"What the hell?" she gasps, and my grip tightens around her throat when she struggles to free herself.
"What's wrong?" my voice echoes. "Expecting me to fold to you? I fold to no one," my dark voice releases.
"Who… what are you?" she pleads.
"The last thing you'll ever see," I growl, but then several new faces flash into the room.
"Release her$, daughter of Kaos, or I swear I'll rip your unwavering eyes from their sockets," a man hisses.
I look up fearlessly, and then my blaring eyes threaten the surrounding mass of new threats. There are as many of them as there are of us now, and every one of our people steps up behind me.
"I'll let her go when she stops breathing," I eerily stream out.
"We've come for him this time, we'll let you go this once," the man hisses again as he points to Kahl. "He killed several of our people. He has to pay the price," the man continues.
"He killed them in self defense, in case you've forgotten. He had to get to me. This petty group only disgusts me, and I won't waste another second on your insolence," Asteria blares through me and in that mo
ment I lose the control completely.
I watch as the white exudes from my body for the first time, and screams erupt as the girl beneath my hand bursts into ashes from the cosmic flow.
The group charges me, but before anyone behind me can launch the first attack, the white expels itself from me once more, and it burns hotter than the fire I had felt earlier. Ashes splash around as the bodies combust from the intensity of the fire, and yells for retreat erupt from all around.
Devin spins the water to block their path of retreat, and then he corals them into one big huddle. The lightning surges from the sky, and they scatter to avoid the blasts.
I stalk toward them with predatory ambition, and fear spreads throughout the air as I near without falter.
One large guy blasts a blaze toward me, but I don't flinch as my body absorbs it like water. I breathe it in as if it's a refreshing gust of air, and their eyes panic that much more.
I feel invincible, and my smirk dares them to try something else.
Another girl steps up, and I see thorns flying at me from the ground. They stop midair, then turn and rush back into her body when I use the wind to deflect them.
I brush off the few strays that made it to me, but they have proven to be as harmless as mortal thorns.
I smile bigger as I let one last burst of the brilliant white burn escape from me, and they turn to complete ash just as the others had. The aqua corral slowly slinks back to the ocean, and the rain steadily slows to a halt.
The wind shifts to a gentle pace, and the thunder dully rolls until it completely retreats from the air.
Devin's arms wrap around me, but the white still stains my eyes. He's staring fearlessly, and his lips bring the sanity back to the surface. I sink into his arms, and he pulls me close to him as the white disappears.
"Holy fucking shit," Jace gasps. "Did she really just take down all of them? Most of them were stronger than some of ours."
"Yeah, and she stared into the eyes of a Medusa without turning to stone," Kahl murmurs in disbelief.
"She absorbed fire," Persia almost cries as she comes down from her adrenaline terror.
"She deflected the spikes of a Manticore," Hale sighs in complete stupefied wonder.
"Asteria took over again," I grumble.
"She didn't do anything wrong this time. She was protecting her son," Devin soothes.
"My mother wasn't that strong," Kahl interjects. "That was her channeling the power Adisia has, but it wasn't her the whole time," he finishes.
"No. Aphrodite jumped in somewhere along the way, and I'm the one who started the fight," I explain.
"You have no idea how much power you just exerted, do you?" Devin spouts in awe.
Suddenly, everyone kneels to one knee and bows their heads to me as if I'm royalty. Devin starts to do the same, but I grip his hand and glare at him.
"Don't even think about it," I scold. He lets a small smirk escape, and I turn to gripe at the rest of the room. "Stop that right now."
Hale and Deacon stifle a grin, and Camara covers her mouth when she's unable to do so successfully. Persia and Kahl continue to bow, and I scowl at them.
"You two had me. Get off your damn knees right now," I blare.
Devin finally lets a small chuckle escape, and Deidra scolds him.
"It's very improper to laugh at the Emperian, especially after showing such dominance."
"The only thing improper is the overreaction you're all giving me. I'm still Adisia. Don't act like that fact has changed. I still don't want to be the Emperian either," I gripe.
"Don't you see? You took control the moment trouble entered the picture. You assume the role of Emperian better than I ever did," Deidra pronounces.
"Feeling protective and being in charge are two different things," I exasperate. "I need more vodka."
I storm to the bar, and the bartender is cowering in the corner as I lean over to grab the bottle. I roll my eyes and turn back to face the group.
"Someone needs to erase that crap from his mind," I growl.
Theia walks past me to do as I ordered. Oh great. I ordered her around.
Devin walks up and hands me the only unbroken glass I see in the room. His eyes are swirling, and I know he's been thoroughly turned on by all of this.
"You're sick, you know?" I say with an insuppressible grin.
"I know, but you can't blame me," he boldly tempts.
I just roll my eyes, and he pulls me into his arms as I continue sipping my drink. Hale walks over and props his feet up on a trembling chair.
"Well, I feel better about our odds now," he gloats.
"Perhaps you can resurrect the power of the cosmos again without letting Asteria consume you," Theia theorizes.
"Right now, I'm going to see how much alcohol it takes to get an immortal drunk," I huff.
"Well, it appears we have the whole bar to ourselves, so it shouldn't be too difficult to lay the liquor to waste," Hale chirps.
"You going to join me on my venture?" I ask quizzically.
"Of course. I'll go see if there are anymore glasses in the back that haven't been shattered," he continues.
"Grab me one too," Devin chimes in while pulling me back into his lap.
"I'll help you," Jace murmurs while holding his head.
This has all been a lot to digest for everyone apparently, but Devin seems so amused by it all.
"Why are you grinning like that?" I muse.
"Because there hasn't been a dull moment since I've been with you. I'm tired of feeling the intensity of it all, and I want to enjoy the wins when they come along. Therefore, this is me enjoying my beautiful bride-to-be after an effortless victory. You almost made it look too easy," he says with such seeping adoration.
"So Medusa, eh?" I question as the name rattles back to my mind.
"Let me guess, you were expecting snakes for hair and the body of a serpent from the waist down," he chuckles out.
"Well, I wasn't expecting Simone," I grumble. "I was expecting less of a pretty face."
Devin chuckles a little at my obvious distaste which triggered my initial aggression toward the bitch I was all too happy to destroy. In fact, it almost scares me how much I enjoyed all of it.
I wanted there to be bloodshed, I almost craved it. Is that me, Asteria, Aphrodite, or Kaos?
I shrug off the unwanted thought just as Kahl's hand reaches for mine.
"I'd like to dance with my daughter if that's okay?" he says softly, and I hear the music being played slowly.
Devin nudges me to prompt a response, and I hesitantly take his hand. He pulls me out to the dance floor, and his eyes sadden as I stare into them.
"I want you to know how proud I am of the woman you've become. I promise I watched you grow up even though I couldn't be there," he murmurs emotionally.
I feel a tear trying to work its way out, but I suppress it. I lean my head against his chest, and I feel the relief spread through him. He hugs me like it's something he's wanted to do for years, and I just let him have his moment.
The music changes and I feel my hand sliding into a new one. I look up to see Devin smiling at me, and Kahl offers me an affectionate smile as he returns to Persia.
Devin's arms pull me against him, and he hands me the alcohol I've promised to fully obliterate before the night's end.
I guzzle down the glass, and Hale dances over to refill it as if he was waiting for that hasty consumption.
I chuckle at his ridiculous moves, and he chugs on to the next empty glass. I almost inhale the next glass, but I'm still not feeling the effect just yet.
Devin dips me playfully, and then I hear Deacon yelling as he hops on the table.
"Drinking game proposition. Every time someone kisses someone, a drink must be devoured," he laughs, and then he pulls Camara into his arms. "Kiss me, love," he murmurs without any seduction, but she laughs and does as he says.
Devin hands me another full glass, and we clink our glasses before guzzling it down. I
smile as he kisses my alcoholic breath, and then I hear Hale flashing by as my glass refills.
"Another kiss, another drink," Deacon urges.
I laugh harder as I gulp the next glass, and then I stare into Devin's eyes.
"I want to do it right now," I blurt out.
His eyes gape at my bold request, and he looks around as he blushes. I realize all eyes have suddenly crept to my brazen demand, and I also assess how it must have sounded out of context.
Considering the context was in my mind, obviously no one has a clue why I just popped that out.
“I mean I want to get married right now, here," I murmur with a touch of humiliation.
The embarrassed stain washes free from his eyes, and excited shock emerges in its place.
"What?"
"I want to get married right now. I love you, and I don't want to wait any longer. Let's do it," I repeat.
His lips rush mine, but no one is clinking glasses together as they stare at us in complete disbelief. He lifts me higher so he doesn't have to bend, and I wrap my arms around his neck to pull him closer. He draws back a little breathlessly, and then purses his lips.
"Our immortal bonding ceremony, or our mortal wedding?" he asks curiously.
"Both," I say with a shrug.
"We do have a priestess," Theia says softly.
Then Devin sighs gently as disappointment shadows his perfect eyes.
"You don't really want to do this right now. Your parents are still in a hideaway, Clara has just been moved to another one of Persia's homes, and it's not safe to bring any of them out of hiding. We can wait," he sighs. "I shouldn't have been so pushy. I don't want you feeling rushed."
"I don't feel rushed. Devin, you're immune to my powers, and that's all I needed to know. I can't hurt you, and I want to be with you right now. My parents and Clara don't have to attend. We can have a mock ceremony for them another time," I urge.
His lips rush mine again, and this time he scoops me up completely. I feel him walking with me tightly pressed to his chest, but I don't question where we're going. I've never trusted someone so completely in all my life, and it's so liberating.
"Tomorrow then," he breathes into my mouth.
"Why not now?" I murmur against his lips.
"Because I want you to be in a wedding dress of your choosing. My mother can send for anything you want right now, and with the amount of money I have, it can be here by evening tomorrow. I want you to feel as though some preparation went into this. I don't want you to feel as though you squandered your chance to enjoy our wedding," he explains, and he's so incredible when he's thoughtful like this.
