by K. F. Breene
“We need to know if he’s halvsies,” Charles said.
“And I get to take blood? Ohuuu, lovely.” Selene ran another hand up Paulie’s chest and hooked her arms around his neck. Almost as tall as him, she rose on her toes, leaned in and nibbled his lips while she pressed her body against his. His hands came around and rested at the small of her back. She swirled her hips in a circle, pressing firmly against him in slow gyrations. She wasn’t waiting—she planned to get started right then and there.
His hands shaking, Paulie drew her in harder before sliding his hold down to clutch her muscular butt. In a rapid loss of control, he deepened their kiss, opening her mouth with his in a deep, sensuous kiss. One hand slid over her round buttock and down between her cheeks, running his fingers against her gyrating sex.
“Good God, he’ll fit in just fine,” I said, breathless. My sexy systems raged to life as I stood, like a voyeur. I needed Stefan. I needed to be a participant.
“Thanks, Charles,” Selene purred as she ran her thigh up the outside of Paulie’s leg and hooked it around his hip.
Paulie used the increased access to his advantage. He dipped his fingers into the seam of her thong and felt up between her sex. One finger dipped into her body.
“Mmm, that’s right.” Selene’s head fell back and she worked her hips in time with the plunging of his finger.
“Oh holy moly,” I heard myself say. I was walking the next moment.
I didn’t think to call Tim. Or say goodbye to the guys. Or notice the people saying “Mage.” Or anything, really. I felt Stefan’s pull, and I felt my need. That was it.
I found my way up to our wing and burst into the room. The lights were turned down low and the shades were up, displaying the blanket of stars until they reached the horizon. Not a moment to lose, I followed that pull to the dining room where flames of two candles danced on a table set for two. Stefan waited at the head of the table, the blood link colored with an answering hunger. He felt my lust and was responding with his own.
He stood as I came into sight, his muscular body covered in expensive slacks and a button-down shirt that hugged his delicious body just right. He took a step toward me as I closed the three steps to him. I met him in a rush, climbing up his body and wrapping my legs around his middle. His hard bulge rubbed against my aching sex. His lips met mine, needy and passionate. I opened to him, delighted to be filled with his taste, wine and spice.
He spun me around and cleared his side of the table with a sweep of his arm. Crystal and china clinked or crashed to the side. A candle fell over, the wax dousing the flame. My butt hit the table a moment before my back did. I squeezed my legs, pulling his body in tighter, gyrating against that large bulge.
Stefan’s hand slid in between our bodies to tug at the buttons on my jeans. I loosened my hold so he could strip me from the waist down, and then pull his slacks out of the way. His large manhood sprang free, the velvety skin hitting off my warm wetness. My eyes fluttered and I turned into liquid as his shaft rubbed along my slipperiness. I moaned, clutching his shoulders, losing myself in his kiss. In the feel of him.
He backed off so he could strip my upper half. As the chilled air assaulted me, my nipples contracted. He bent, teasing one with his tongue, and then the other, before sucking it in. I moaned as he increased the suction to something bordering on exquisite pain. Slowly, as his mouth and fingers worked my nipples, pleasure and pain mingling together, his blunt head pushed into me. Spikes of pleasure burst through my body, arching me up to his mouth. Savoring the feel of him sliding into my body.
“Yes, Stefan,” I exalted.
His mouth trailed up my chest and to my neck. The sharp pain of teeth offset the exquisite pleasure of his manhood pushing all the way inside me. The draw of his mouth connected with the sensations of his hard length working. Without warning, a blast of orgasm stole my breath and rocked my body. I shivered beneath him; my body so hot it felt like it was burning up.
He took another slow draw as he penetrated me. My body immediately went back on the edge. Begging for more. Ready for another release.
He stood up, his hips against mine. He ripped off his shirt and stared down at me, letting me marvel at his perfectly sculpted body. His hips thrust forward and back. He grabbed my ankles and pulled them so my legs were against his chest. He pumped harder into me. Filling me in plunges. Hitting off my insides just right.
My body flashed hotter. Hotter still. Sweat broke out along my body. His, too. He glistened as he worked, his cut muscles perfect.
“Yes, Stefan,” I uttered, watching his perfect form.
He pushed harder as he dropped his hand between my legs and played. I sucked in a breath. My eyes rolled back in my head. I squeezed my eyes shut, focused on the pleasant violation. Feeling him deep inside me. My panting filled the room. My moans replaced those.
“I’m…I’m…I—” My eyes fluttered as I shivered again, harder this time. I felt Stefan quake over me in completion. He lowered his body between my legs and braced his elbows on the table.
His lips softly touched mine. “I like what this Mansion does to you.”
I couldn’t help but smile. “I like that you don’t mind when I ruin your dinner to get laid.”
“You didn’t ruin anything. You just brought your own hors d’oeuvres.”
I smiled into his lips. “Now that that’s off my chest, I have some things to tell you about tonight.”
Chapter Four
I got out of bed with my hair looking like a windstorm in progress. I was also completely naked, hunched, and not in the mood for chatter. Why? Because it was the middle of the day, four hours after I’d gone to bed, and I had to meet the witches for their club thing.
I really wished I hadn’t said I’d do it. Although, at the time, I hadn’t realized I was being stalked by some strange shape changer who was not afraid to steal my car and make me walk home.
After Stefan had sexed me up, I’d gone over all the events of the night before. When I got to the person hiding in the darkness, a lethal edge crept into his eyes, made worse when I told him what the note had said. He listened to Charles’ findings before pulling out his phone. It was dawn by then, but Tim had answered anyway.
“Stefan,” Tim said. The two never said hi to each other. They trusted each other, and would work together, but they wouldn’t consent to being overly civil about it.
Men were dumb.
“Are you aware of a fellow alpha in your territory?” Stefan asked in a matter-of-fact way.
Silence reigned. If the counter on the phone call wasn’t running, I would’ve thought he had hung up. After a few moments, Tim said, “What was that?”
Charles had been right. Tim didn’t like another alpha in his territory any more than Stefan did. This one was a stranger, too. And lurking. That had to be so much worse.
I explained the events of the night to Tim just as I had to Stefan, but focusing on the shifter elements. Tim waited until I was finished, not doing so much as clearing his throat while I talked. After I’d fallen silent, he said, “You think it was a cat, then?”
“I don’t know, but that fits, doesn’t it? Creeping around, silent, stalking, waiting and watching…”
“You’re sure it was a shifter who took your car?”
“Charles is. I am, personally, sure it was a shifter in that park. One I didn’t recognize.”
“And the scent—Charles said he didn’t recognize it, either?” Tim had confirmed.
“Right.”
The line fell silent again. After another minute, he said, “Did he tamper with your car? Break in?”
“Not at all. It was locked when I left it, and locked when I found it. He must’ve used a key to start it.”
“And you have your keys.”
“Yeah. That’s how I opened the door.”
“Who else has keys?” Tim asked.
“I have a spare set in the key bowl, and they are still there, and Ann has a set. There is no way a shifter would’ve
made it up a set of stairs without me or one of Stefan’s kind noticing.”
“Why does Ann have a set?” Tim asked.
I hesitated and looked at Stefan. Ann used my car when Tim had ordered her to stay put and had people monitoring the comings and goings of vehicles. She would still sneak out if she could, and do whatever she felt like doing with my wheels. I didn’t really want to blow her cover. “Just in case I lose mine. She runs fast.”
Tim let the silence reign again, hopefully not dissecting the omitted truth, before asking, “Does she still have those keys?”
It was a good question. One I should’ve thought of. “Um… I don’t know.”
“Hold on.” Tim was gone for a few minutes, apparently not taking his phone with him. When he came back, he said simply, “They’re gone.”
A shiver ran up my spine. “What do you mean they’re gone? Did she lose them? Did she give them to someone?”
“I woke her up to ask. She said she hasn’t used your car since visiting you directly after the council—when everyone was healing. She put the keys in her basket, and now they were gone. She remembers a strange smell in her room yesterday but figured it was someone new that had wandered into the wrong room. I don’t blame her for not looking into it further.”
“That didn’t need to be said.” I stared at Stefan who calmly stared back. “How would anyone have known those were mine?”
“He had to have been in the area for a while,” Stefan answered with an even voice. It was a dangerous voice, one prone to extreme acts of violence. One that would rip Tim’s command out from under him if I were in trouble in any way.
It wasn’t a healthy component to their new working relationship.
Tim must’ve heard it because he said, “He’s doing his homework, Stefan. But he didn’t realize we had someone of Sasha’s level, that’s obvious. I might’ve followed you and watched, like he did, if I wanted to learn more about you. You might sense me, but you wouldn’t know exactly who I was. But Sasha’s magic has a greater reach—something I learned at the Council facility and at the battle. She is way above the others in your clan, Stefan. This guy obviously doesn’t know that. Or at least he didn’t. I bet he does now. Did he mess up, or is this what he was trying to achieve? And whom is he working for? My shifters wouldn’t care about advanced magic, or know anything about it, if it wasn’t for you guys and Sasha. If this was his plan, he is reporting to someone. Someone of your kind, Stefan, I’d bet.”
“His next movements will determine the kind of man we’re dealing with,” Stefan said. “And his motives.”
“He is a shifter so I will deal with this, Stefan.” A hard edge had crept into Tim’s voice.
Stefan had leaned forward over the phone, his substantial muscles flexing dangerously. He’d rolled his neck and willed control. “For now. But if my mate is threatened or followed one more time, I will find this man and kill him if she or one of her guards don’t do it first. I will not be waiting for you and yours to play dominance games, is that clear?”
Silence had descended for a time before Tim said, “Understood. I can’t fault you—I’d do the same thing. Otherwise, leave this to me. I’ll need to work your territory, though. I need access to the whole area.”
“Done. My people will turn a blind eye.” Stefan had straightened up a fraction before saying, “If you need backup, you got it. If he tries to kill you and take over, or succeeds, I’ll probably kill him. I’ve resigned myself to you—I will not roll over and play nice with a stranger who hasn’t fought beside me. Plan for that eventuality.”
Again there was a pause. “Noted.”
The line had gone dead. The fact that Tim hadn’t argued was the same as saying, “Thanks.” These guys were idiots with each other, but at least they spoke the same language.
“So you don’t think I was really the target?” I asked Stefan.
“No, love. I think Tim was right—this shifter was doing his homework. He’s able to get into and out of Tim’s compound undetected, which means stealth. It also means he’s scouted that place heavily. Instead of acting, or challenging Tim for the throne, he starts to scout my people. Takes notes. He’s not afraid to let us know he’s in the area, either, which I find strange. His tactics are strange. Unless he wanted to observe away from here and thinks he’s too elusive to be found… That’s a possibility if the shifter is dense.”
I shook my head. Too many possibilities. I was no good at this kind of stuff.
And it had been so quiet the last few weeks without Andris.
I shrugged off the memory of the night before as I trudged toward the bathroom.
“Do you want me to get up?” Stefan asked from a heap on the other side of the bed.
“Why? So you can be miserable with me?”
He grunted and rolled over. Once everything had been made official on the mate front, Stefan had turned into a huge softy where it concerned me. He’d bring me breakfast in bed, leave meetings half way through to walk me down the hall, and touched me constantly, regardless of who saw. Charles called it the honeymoon period. Whatever it was, I loved it.
Except when I was cranky and tired.
I took a shower barely half awake then stared at myself in front of the mirror. A red-eyed monster stared back.
After I brushed my teeth, combed my hair, and dressed, I caught sight of my reflection once more and pondered makeup. The red-eyed monster grimaced.
The witches could see me ugly. It wouldn’t be the first time.
It was only after I reached into the medicine cabinet for some mouthwash, that a nagging fear shot through me. It was the Sunday after the week of sugar pills—I needed to start a new pack of pills at bedtime. A shot of panic raced through me—I did have another package, right? I wasn’t out yet? I knew I needed to visit the doctor soon to renew the prescription, but I was pretty sure I had a month left.
Lord help me if I didn’t—there was no way Stefan would use protection if there was a chance we could get pregnant. I could deny him sex but he was a cunning bastard. He’d woo me and beguile me and then wink at me and I’d roll over and spread my legs. The man was too hot for his own good. It was almost a problem.
I yanked a drawer open and rooted through my birth control pouch. There, waiting for me with a smile, was the last package. Oh thank God! I needed to get into the doctor this month, though. I had to get that end of things locked down. I had more than enough time in my life to get pregnant and go visit that weird pregnancy farm these people had. Stefan could wait.
Humming a tune to myself, which sounded like a bee buzzing in flight even to me, I snatched my satchel off the couch, and headed off to the front door of the Mansion. I’d decided to test my bodyguards’ reaction time to me leaving without alerting them first. I knew that they got updates on my movements, but they hadn’t really been tested yet. I’d hate them to get complacent.
Tee hee!
“Good afternoon, Mage,” Timmy, the guy hanging out in the front guarding the entrance, greeted me. He was a human with a tiny flare of magic that Birdie had met in her magical club. Timmy usually reached purple and occasionally, with my help, could reach green. That was mostly useless, as far as spell-working went, but great for when I needed to link for energy for a spell. He got the “front desk” duty firstly because he was human, and staying awake in daytime was a natural thing, and secondly, because humans and Mata stopped by the Mansion at all hours, and the Watch worried someone would notice people disappearing into thin air. That would bring the lookey-loos and self-guided tours. Timmy was in position to stop that.
I wasn’t fooled, of course. Timmy was there to keep an eye on my comings and goings. I’d left one time for a quick run to get fast food and suddenly I was no longer trusted.
“Hi, Timmy. Slow day?”
“Always is. But it pays okay and I get to read, so I don’t mind. Where ya headed?”
“Oh, just heading out for a walk.”
“Uh huh. Okay, see ya.”
I gave him a wave and lifted my phone in front of me as I passed, pretending to be enthralled with what was on it. Instead, I watched in the reflection as Timmy eyed me, and then brought up his own phone to make a call.
As I stepped outside I heard, “Yes, sir. The chicken is leaving the coop, sir. S-sorry, no sir, I don’t think it’s funny to wake you up talking about chickens. I meant Sasha is—“
I didn’t wait around for the rest of the conversation. Instead, I sprinted out the door and to my car. No time to lose, I ripped my door open and jammed my key in the ignition. I pulled out into the street with a still silent Mansion behind me and gassed it.
It belatedly occurred to me that I should’ve been more cautious about getting into my car. With keys missing, anything could’ve been waiting in there. My bad.
The wind rushed through the open window and licked my face. The chill of the air bit me as I reveled in the glorious fiery oranges and reds of the trees. I took a deep breath and let the steady hum of the motor lull me into a comfortable daze. Not strictly safe while driving, maybe, but without Charles constantly chattering in my ear, or Jonas grunting and lecturing, I felt free in a way I hadn’t in a long time.
A ten-minute drive had me arriving at a busy coffee shop on the outskirts of town. I parked in the lot in the back behind a giant truck so I couldn’t be seen from the road, and found Birdie and Delilah sipping coffee outside in the sunshine.
“Hi ladies,” I said as I walked up with a bounce in my step.
“Where’s your entourage?” Birdie asked, frowning at me. She was an aged woman with a large stature and larger voice.
“Delayed.”
“Huh. Look what Delilah went and did!” Birdie exclaimed as she plucked at Delilah’s sleeve.
Rolling her eyes, the younger woman lifted her sweatshirt to reveal a circle of runes around her forearm. The other arm had different symbols in the same location. For a tiny woman with large glasses, this was definitely a little out of character.
“It looks okay,” I hedged.
“I told her to get some runes that increased working with power. What does she need with throwing when she doesn’t have much to throw? No. That was definitely the wrong set for the first time. I chose these—“ Birdie lifted the arm of her sweater to reveal a string of angry characters that ran up the loose skin on her forearm until it wrapped around her flabby upper arm.
