Seduced by the Fae

by Laxmi Hariharan

  "What about you?" Her voice rises in tone. "I want you to take care of me Doc."

  "Not possible."

  "But—"

  "I need to focus on healing myself." I shift my weight from foot to foot. Nice one, play on her guilt. "Besides, I need to get to this briefing with Dante." Yeah, I am not above using her emotions to turn the conversation in my favor. I am not playing fair again, but fuck that.

  She swallows, then folds her arms over her chest. "You'll be back to see me?"

  "Maybe."

  She opens her mouth and I hold up a palm.

  She bites her lip, looks like she is going to keep talking, then subsides.

  Whew! Dodged that one again. I drum my fingers on my thigh. One chance. Give me one chance to follow through on my threats. One chance to spank your butt, to squeeze your flesh and mark it and suck it—Fuck. I gotta get out of here, "Stay." I stab a finger at her.

  Swiveling on my feet, I all but race out the door, and come face to face with Gabriel.

  43

  Alice

  "The fuck you doing here?"

  Doc's voice rumbles across the space. My scalp tingles and I shiver. Why does he have this effect on me?

  I just have to hear him or scent him and my insides twist, my emotions buzz around in my head, jolting up and down my spine, and I miss the other man's reply. Or perhaps all I have is eyes for the massive alpha male whose back is now turned on me. His very big, very broad shoulders fill the doorway, blocking off the sight of whoever stands outside.

  "I saved your life, or have you forgotten that already?"

  The other man's voice is pitched low.

  I stiffen. It can't be, can it? "Gabriel?"

  I breathe out and Doc's shoulders go solid. He slaps his arm across the doorway cutting off the other man's entry,

  Damn, that's not good, is it? I swing my legs over the bed and he snarls, "Don't move Red."

  I pause, then place my toes on the floor.

  "Get back into bed." There's an edge to his tone that threatens to rip through all of my defenses. I shiver. My nerve-endings fire. Why the hell does his protectiveness turn me on so?

  I fold my arms over my chest, "The man saved our lives so can you at least let him speak."

  He goes still. He's going to refuse me. He's probably going to challenge Gabriel to some half assed fight just to prove that he can protect what's his, yet when it comes to accepting I am his, the hard-nosed man simply refuses to accept it. A low growl tears out of my throat.

  Doc shoots me a look over his shoulder. "Hmm."

  "What?" I throw up my arms.

  His gaze rakes over me, then he nods toward the bed. "Under the covers."

  I frown.

  "If you think I am letting him enter when you are all but naked—"

  "I am wearing a hospital gown." I huff out a breath.

  "As I said, you are half dressed." His features close. Bet he wouldn’t hesitate to stand there blocking the entrance all day. Obstinate alphahole.

  So why am I picking this fight when the chances of my winning it are minimal? Sometimes you have to give in to get ahead... ya' know. I pull my legs under the sheets.

  He jerks his chin and I stare. "Now what?"

  He angles his head and I pull the covers up to my chin, "Happy?"

  He merely swivels around to face the other man. "How did you get in here?"

  "Security here isn't the best." Gabriel drawls. "Best you do something about it."

  "Motherfucker." Doc clenches his fists at his side. “What did you do to the guards outside the building? If you've killed them—"

  "Relax, I came to meet Dante. The guards were instructed to let me in." Gabe sounds like he's taking a stroll in the park.

  How does he manage to sound so casual, especially when faced with the nearly seven foot powerhouse of cut muscle that is Doc.

  Doc's shoulders bunch; he widens his stance.

  "If I'd wanted to kill you I'd have done that at the auction." Gabe lowers his tone. "I held the crowd back and gave you a chance to escape."

  "Which makes me distrust you even more." Doc thrusts his head forward, putting him right in Gabriel's face, and I wince. "No one does anything without wanting something in return."

  "You're right." Gabriel's voice sounds reasonable. "Ten minutes with both of you, that's all I ask."

  Doc cracks his knuckles, "You have five minutes and you say what you have from here."

  "Really?—" I huff out a breath.

  At the same time, Gabriel holds up his hand, "That's all I need."

  Doc's jaw firms. A pulse flares to life at his temple. Why does he look so angry, like he's going to strangle someone?

  Most likely Gabriel, who steps past him, Doc at his shoulder.

  "That's enough." Doc stalks up and angles his bulk between us.

  I huff. "You may as well pee a line around me to mark your territory."

  Doc's head comes up, and there's a gleam in his eyes.

  "Wait, I was joking."

  "I am not." Doc folds his arms over his chest.

  "You may have something there." Gabriel peers up at me from under hooded eyes.

  Is that a smile playing around his thin lips?

  "Never thought the day would come when my half-brother and my mate would unite on some stupid ass suggestion of mine—" Oh!

  I swivel my gaze to Doc's face to find...no surprise on his features. "You knew who he was?" I stab a finger at him.

  "I guessed."

  "So why couldn't you let him into the room so we could have a conversation?"

  Doc glares at me. "Half sibling or not, I am not letting a stranger in the same room with you." His features soften, "Your safety is my priority. I'll not compromise that."

  "Yeah." My shoulders slump.

  I mean how can I be angry with him when he only wants to protect me?

  "And you," Doc stabs a finger at Gabriel's suit-clad chest, "You haven't answered the question as to what you are doing here." His voice lowers and the hint of danger rolls through the room.

  I shiver. Doc all alpha and protective is so hot. Just something about this sexy man who is my mate. My mate. On cue the ball of heat in my chest stutters.

  Doc's shoulders bunch.

  Did he sense that?

  Nah, I mean I did consolidate the bond between us. Doc claimed so, at least, but I don’t feel any different. Not unless you count the fact that I can sense his every breath, the way the muscles of his shoulders ripple and the planes of his back flex under the remnants of the shirt. A tingling feeling fills my chest. It didn't mean anything. Didn't.

  "I met Dante about a possible treaty." Gabriel runs his fingers through his hair. He's not as composed as the front he is projecting.

  "A treaty?"

  "I need his help in taking on the Berserkers."

  I sit up in bed. "They attacked our city. Killed our mother."

  "They took me." Gabriel says it in a cold voice bereft of any feeling. He's lived with this...his reality. So different from mine.

  "You saved me." It comes to me in a rush. "You hid me in the cellar, so they couldn't find me."

  "It worked." His lips twist in a smile that lights up his eyes. For the first time I see a glimmer of something... life? Hope in them. "It was that thought that kept me going all these years. That you survived."

  "My adoptive Fae mother found me crying next to our mother's broken body." I swallow. "She took me in, gave me a home, a family."

  "You are happy?" His gaze narrows.

  I shoot Doc a glance.

  "I am."

  "He good to you?" Gabriel aims his thumb at Doc.

  "Umm." I run a finger under my collar. "I am trying to decide that."

  A low rumble rises from Doc's throat. It rolls over my skin and I shiver.

  "And you?" I twist my fingers around the cover. "What were you doing at the auction, Gabe?"

  "I am a trader."

  "You buy and sell women?" Doc snarls a
nd Gabriel holds up a hand. "It's a front."

  Doc's arm shoots out and he grabs Gabriel's collar. "The fuck you talking about?"

  Gabriel doesn't react.

  Not a flicker of change in expression. If I hadn't recognized the likeness in our features I'd have never recognized him as my half-brother. The boy who had wiped away my tears and bathed my knees when I had fallen down and skinned them is lost somewhere in the hard muscles that wrap around his arms, the corded chest, the leanly roped shoulders which are not as massive as Doc's but just as coiled with power.

  "The Berserkers took me to their stronghold." Gabriel's gaze holds mine. "They passed me around, used my body, kept me as their slave."

  "Oh, Gabriel." I swallow and tears surge into my eyes.

  Doc drops his arm but doesn't move away from his position at the door.

  "Then I discovered our mother had been keeping a secret from me." Gabe's features twist.

  "What do you mean?"

  "I turned eighteen and transformed."

  "What are you?" I angle my head.

  His lips thin. "I am Fae but also exhibit vampire traits."

  Doc snarls. "Hate those bloodsuckers." The scent of dragon smoke bleeds into the air, revealing just how close to losing his temper he is.

  Gabe's jaw tightens, "It’s served its purpose. Turned out I was the perfect weapon to slaughter those who'd kept me and my fellow prisoners captive."

  "So you freed yourself and now what?" Doc props his big arms on his hips, "You took on your captor's roles?"

  "Only because I mean to infiltrate the highest ranks of slave traders, those who organize the monthly virgin auctions. I mean to hunt them down and kill them all one by one." His voice grows hoarse.

  "So what are you doing here then?"

  "I need the Faes to help me in that."

  Doc's jaw clenches. "That's why you met with Dante?"

  "Yep, he is considering my proposal. Meanwhile I thought I'd visit with my half-sister." He angles his head at me.

  "You are her half-brother; there's enough resemblance there for me to believe it. But I don’t trust your suited ass."

  Doc thrusts his face in Gabriel's and I wince.

  The two of them going toe to toe is an awesome sight. Doc with that raw power, and ridiculously sculpted body that would shield me from anything, and Gabe with that leashed anger that crackles off of him and which he wouldn't hesitate to use to cleave through any resistance. Including Doc. "Stop."

  Neither man takes notice of me.

  "You may be her mate but you let her get into trouble. You allowed Boris to kidnap her and take her to the auction."

  Doc's fingers clench at his sides.

  What the—? Why is my half-brother inciting Doc?

  "Clearly you failed to protect her." Gabriel's lips flatten. "You are not fit to be her mate."

  Doc moves with that lithe speed that belies his massive bulk. He lifts Gabe up to the balls of his feet. Gabe's forearms tense, his muscles bunch, and I have had enough.

  I lurch up onto the bed with the stupid hospital gown flaring around me, put my fingers to my mouth and whistle. A piercing sound slashes through the room.

  Both men turn to look at me.

  Doc glares; his nostrils flare. Gabe merely looks amused. One eyebrow rises. His unspoken words imply, "Couldn't think of anything else, sis?"

  And something slots into space. He really is my half-brother. I mean, not that I'd questioned it. Yeah, okay I knew it, but I hadn't accepted it. He just looks so very different from the image of the half-brother in my head. But that slightly sarcastic, all kidding expression of his is so familiar. It leaves no doubt as to who he is.

  "Will the two of you ease up already?" I grab my hair and pull at it.

  "You don't tell me what to do, or have you forgotten, Red?" Doc frowns, then jerks his head at the bed, "And you are tiring yourself out by throwing a tantrum."

  "I am throwing a tantrum?" I raise my head heavenwards. "Of all the idiotic things to say—" My knees buckle under me, but I refuse to let on just how weak I still am.

  Doc leans forward on the balls of his feet. "Sit down before you collapse, Alice."

  I set my jaw, "No."

  A vein bulges at his temple and I am sure he is about to close the distance between us and put me over his knee, regardless of the fact that that my half-brother is watching us, when a new voice pipes up. "I have an idea."

  Gabriel tenses. He lifts his head and sniffs the air. Then he swivels around to stalk the girl who's just slipped in. "Who're you?"

  His voice is harsh, nowhere as controlled as it has been for the limited time that I have reacquainted myself with him.

  "Hey y'all, I'm Lily." The girl takes a step forward.

  Her blond hair hangs in straight thick clouds to her waist. She's skinny, and her skirt trails behind her. Her white cotton blouse brushes her waistband and falls loosely over her shoulders. Her ribs are visible in the V of her clavicle.

  "You're Charley's friend?" I recognize her from having seen her with Jess' sister. Also, Lily is human. So of course, I had stayed away from her. I'd wanted to blend in with the Fae. Go figure. I'd gone about this all wrong.

  Lily nods, her gaze connecting with mine and holding.

  "Gia sent me to ask if you needed anything." She swallows, but her voice doesn't waver. She has some spine holding her own in a room with two alpha males. Takes more than an overdose of testosterone to scare this one. Hmm.

  "I am here to make sure Alice is taken care of." Doc's tone brooks no argument.

  Gabe twists his shoulders and releases himself from Doc’s grip, only to angle his body between them, half blocking Lily from Doc's gaze.

  "What were you going to say?" He fixes all of his attention on her.

  Whoa. What? My head spins. Partly it's the adrenaline fading and the relief that I am no longer the cynosure of the attention of two angry dominants, but also because the chemistry between Gabe and Lily is like off. The. Charts. It reminds me of how it was when I first saw Doc.

  "She could do with feminine company about now." Lily tilts her head at Doc and a smile lights up her features.

  Gabe stiffens and takes a step forward.

  Lily turns her wide-eyed gaze on him. "I propose that you settle your differences with a Dare."

  "Predictable but effective." Gabe props his hands on his hips. "What's in it for you little girl?" He frowns.

  "A chance to watch two alpha Fae males clash. Hey, how could I pass up that opportunity?" She props a hand on her hip. "Besides Doc's gonna whip your ass." She shoots Doc a smile, "Right, Doc?"

  Doc bares his teeth at Gabe. "Can't. Wait."

  Gabe stalks toward Lily.

  She gulps, and her chest rises and falls.

  He pauses in front of her and color sweeps her cheeks.

  Lowering his knees he peers into her eyes, "Challenge accepted."

  The hell? Is he talking to her or to Doc?

  He snaps his teeth and she squeaks, then presses a hand to her chest.

  Gabe chuckles and the sound is so cruel, that if he was not my half-brother, honestly I'd have scuttled for cover behind Doc's protective presence. The signals these two are sending each other is like whoa! Just insane.

  Gabe straightens to his full height—which makes him tower over her—then shoots a glance over his shoulder at Doc, "I'll meet you out there."

  He swerves around her and strides to the exit.

  Lily's shoulders tremble and she draws in a breath. When she turns her eyes on me, her pupils are dilated. Yeah, I understand how she feels to be overwhelmed by the sheer dominance of a larger-than-life male, but honestly, I could have done without seeing how my half-brother eyeballed her. A half-brother who I don't know at all.

  Doc turns on me, "You." He fixes me with that glaring blue gaze. "You stay here and recover."

  "Of course." I plop back on the mattress and crawl under the cover.

  Doc rubs the back of his neck, "Why don't
I trust this sudden attack of your being docile?"

  44

  Alice

  I hate bossy alpha-holes. I hate dominant Fae males. I hate my mate...okay, not completely. Not always. But just at this instance, I'd give anything to scream in his face.

  He'd pointed his finger at me and told me to stay, then commanded Lily to stay with me and this despite the fact that Lily had wanted to watch them fight. Did I mention the man was bossy?

  Then he'd swiveled around and stalked over to Gabriel. He'd jerked his chin at the other man, and something had passed between them. One of those very male gestures where there is an unspoken alpha to alpha signal sent and received.

  They had marched out together, shoulder to shoulder, and he'd locked the door behind him.

  I had staggered to the door and pushed at it, and of course, it hadn't budged.

  My legs had shaken with the effort, and I knew it wasn't like I could have exactly torn out of there and followed him. Not when I didn't have any clothes to do so... not when my body still hurt like I had been trod upon and pulled apart. So I had stayed there curled against the door, then realized the stupidity of it all. I had almost given in to my fate, decided I had to simply take what he sent my way... not.

  I had come this far.

  I had survived the spankings, taken the edge of pain that he had subjected me too. I had enjoyed it. I gulp.

  I had learned so much about myself.

  Learned that I could withstand more than I had thought possible. I hadn't cracked under his ministrations.

  I hadn't allowed any of them at the auction to break my spirit. I had survived this far. And damn if I was going to stay back here and wait for my fate to seal itself. If I let him go...I'll never get him back. He'll find a way to reason out of whatever is between us. He'll deny that I am his mate. He'll find a way to break the mating bond. I don't think it's actually possible to do so, but Doc's stubborn enough to find a way. Something inside me shrivels. I sit up with my back flat against the door.

  Taking a deep breath, I steady myself.

  I have to find a way out of here. Using the door to support myself, I stagger to my feet, then bang on the door. "Let me out."