by I. T. Lucas
Great. Prince Charming was starting to show his true colors.
“Don’t be angry at me just because you did as you promised and gave Arwel the island’s location. It had nothing to do with me.”
“I know, and I’m not angry at you. I’m angry at myself. I shouldn’t have given it up so easily.”
She snorted. “Would you have preferred to get tortured first?”
He put his fork down. “At least I would have felt like less of a spineless traitor.”
For a smart guy, Lokan was really dense, and he was talking out of his ass.
“Have you ever been tortured?”
“I’ve gotten beaten up pretty bad, but I don’t know if that counts as torture.”
“How badly? Were you in excruciating pain, bleeding from multiple wounds? Did the torment continue the next day, and the day after that, and the next, and the next, until you prayed for death to release you from your suffering?”
“No.”
“Then you have no freaking clue what you’re talking about. Thank the merciful Fates that you were spared that, and that Kian convinced you to talk instead of torturing it out of you. Besides, it was the right thing to do if you ever want to find out whether your mother is still alive.”
Raising his hands, Lokan pressed his palms to his temples. “You’re right, and I’m sorry for snapping at you. I just feel like such a failure right now. And I’m not at all convinced that I did the right thing.”
Carol sighed. “Life is full of compromises, and things are seldom black and white. Stop agonizing about your decision and learn to live with it because there is no going back. What’s done, is done.”
“Precisely. That’s why it’s eating at me. The word traitor is playing on a loop in my head.”
Carol pushed her plate away and got up. “I have a cure for that.” She offered him a hand up. “Let’s go to bed.”
He shook his head. “I can’t believe I’m saying it, but sex is not a cure-all.”
“No, it’s not. But I guarantee that it will make you feel better.”
6
Lokan
Lokan took Carol’s hand, but he didn’t get up. Instead, he kissed the back of it. “Can you go ahead without me? I need a moment to gather my thoughts.”
She arched a brow but then nodded. “Don’t take too long. I might take a nap.” The teasing tone didn’t match her apprehensive scent.
“I won’t.” He forced a smile. “I just need a moment.”
The woman had healthy instincts.
He was angry, mostly at himself but also at Carol, and Lokan had a rule against getting in bed with a woman unless he was in full control of his emotions.
Aggression ran in his veins, and reining it in required effort even when he was in the best of moods. When angry, he was dangerous.
But then, Carol wasn’t human, and he couldn’t accidentally break her. He might hurt her, though, or scare her. A nasty voice in the back of his head whispered that it didn’t matter. After all, he was her fated mate, so it wasn’t like she was going to leave him because he’d gotten too rough with her.
Perhaps she would even like it.
They still had a lot to learn about each other, and testing limits was part of that exploration.
Pushing to his feet, Lokan walked over to the bar and poured himself a shot of whiskey.
Carol was right. Disclosing the island’s location was a done deal, but at least he could justify it by getting her into the harem and finding once and for all who Navuh was holding there.
This could be his only ticket to freedom.
If Areana was indeed his mother, then he was Annani’s direct nephew, and the goddess would not let her son keep him imprisoned forever. Especially if they somehow managed to get Areana out.
The problem was his overwhelming need to shield Carol from danger, and there was no way to reconcile these two contradicting needs.
He tried to reason with himself that Carol wanted to do it, but every fucking instinct he had was rebelling against letting her out of his sight, let alone leave on a dangerous mission.
Shaking his head, Lokan emptied the drink down his throat and then poured himself another shot.
It wasn’t like him to be so concerned with another person. He was an opportunist who had never had qualms about using others to further his agenda. What had happened to him? Why couldn’t he get himself under control and think with his brain instead of his gut?
Damn. He hated the compulsory component of the whole fated mate thing. As a compeller, he was supposed to be immune to that. His entire life had been about being in control, and he hated that this thing, whatever it was, controlled him to such an extent.
How could he even be sure of his feelings for Carol?
What if the intense need to be with her was chemically induced?
And the thing was, he could not help but blame Carol for this even though she was a victim of this crazy compulsion as much as he was.
The irony wasn’t lost on him. The fucking Fates were paying him back and giving him a taste of his own medicine.
Except, he didn’t believe in that nonsense. So, where did it leave him?
Pouring the second shot of whiskey down his throat, he forced himself to think logically. What could be responsible for the inexplicable change in him?
Getting captured and imprisoned was the simplest explanation, but he knew that was not it. Something else was involved, and it wasn’t the fucking Fates.
The clan had always invested in the latest cutting-edge technologies, so it was possible that they had access to advanced medicine as well. What if Carol had been putting some kind of drug in those tasty dishes of hers, a type of aphrodisiac or some other substance that was making him addicted to her?
Because that was how it felt. Like an addiction.
That made much more sense than the nonsense she’d fed him about the Fates and true-love mates.
Clever. Coming up with a story that explained his sudden bonding with her was a smart move. Had she come up with it on her own or had she been coached?
The puzzle pieces suddenly fell into place.
Carol showing up in his prison cell and claiming that she was there to see to his needs, bringing him gourmet meals that he now suspected hadn’t even been prepared by her, getting him addicted to her, and explaining it away with a story he had no way of proving or disproving because he knew nothing about immortal matings.
The problem was that the only way to test his hypothesis was to stop eating the meals Carol brought him, but if he did that, she would get suspicious.
Besides, he couldn’t go hungry. He needed to stay sharp.
But why keep up the charade after he’d given Kian the island’s location?
Well, that was obvious.
The goddess wanted to get her sister out of there, but they couldn’t do it without Lokan’s help, and the only way to ensure his cooperation and keep Carol safe was to make him believe that he was protecting his fated mate.
Those stories about Dalhu and the other Brother had been meant to brainwash him into believing that his mate was more important than anything else he valued in his life, and that defecting for love was perfectly acceptable.
There was only one hiccup with this theory. What could they possibly gain by pretending that Kian was against the plan?
Well, that was quite obvious too.
If Kian had agreed right away to free him and send him with Carol to the island, Lokan would have suspected something wasn’t right.
Carol was a great actress, he had to give her that. The way she’d pretended to come up with the idea herself, and then pretending that Kian had refused and trying to find a different solution.
It was the perfect setup.
In a few days, Kian would pretend to succumb to pressure from his mother and agree to Carol’s plan.
The big question was what Lokan was going to do with the information. Despite all the underhanded subterfuge, his goals aligned w
ith the clan’s in the matter of possibly freeing his mother, whether she was Annani’s sister or not.
And then there was his gut, refusing to believe even one word of the perfectly logical conspiracy theory his brain had devised.
7
Carol
Naked under the blanket, Carol waited for Lokan with an uneasy feeling churning in her gut.
She could understand his agitation and his guilt over revealing the island’s location, even though it was illogical, but not why he was directing his anger at her. Lokan hadn’t said anything offensive, and he’d tried to be polite, but she could sense the turmoil simmering just under the surface.
It upset her.
He was supposed to be her fated mate, putting her above everything and everyone, but obviously, he didn't. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have cooled toward her like that. Lokan was distraught over his decision, and for some reason, he was blaming it on her.
Perhaps she should get dressed and leave?
With her gone, he would have time to process what he had done and hopefully make peace with it.
Throwing the comforter off, she was about to get out of bed as he entered the room.
He leveled a hard stare at her. “Where are you going?”
“Home. I think you need some time alone.”
He rubbed a hand over his jaw. “Please stay.”
Despite the please, it had sounded more like a command than a request.
“I’d better go.” She pushed to her feet and padded to the bathroom.
He followed. “Am I scaring you?”
She cast him a glance over her shoulder. “No. But you need time alone to think things through, and your anger makes me uncomfortable.”
“Please, don’t go.”
That still sounded like a command, but it had a pleading undertone, and Carol wasn’t looking forward to spending the night alone. She’d gotten used to sleeping in Lokan’s arms, and going back to an empty bed was a depressing prospect.
Turning around, she sauntered up to him and wrapped her arms around his neck. “Do you promise to be nice?”
He smiled, but it was forced. “I can’t promise that, but I can promise to make it good for you.” Cupping her bare bottom, he lifted her and pressed her against his erection. “I’ll never be all sunshine and cheer, baby doll. Do you want me to put on a mask for you or promise you falsehoods?”
She shook her head.
“I didn’t think so. If we are indeed fated to be together, you should get to know me in all my forms, the sunny and the stormy, the playful and the combative. What I can promise you, however, is that I’ll never hurt you.” His protruding fangs made him look evil as he slowly leaned and nipped her earlobe, sending a zing of arousal straight to her core. “At least not more than you want me to,” he whispered into her ear.
Ugh, he was such a sexy devil, knowing precisely what to say to get her all hot and bothered.
“Okay,” she murmured.
Lifting his head, Lokan regarded her with his nearly black eyes, the red embers glowing inside them making him look dangerous.
But Carol believed his promise.
On a visceral level she’d known all along that she was in no danger from him. He might get a little rough, but she wasn’t averse to rough play as long as she was a willing participant and he didn’t cross the line.
Still holding her up by her bottom, Lokan carried her back to the bedroom and dropped her unceremoniously on the bed.
She scooted back, propping herself on her forearms to watch him take off his clothes. Her eyes remained riveted on his handsome face, though, his dark almost menacing expression and glowing eyes tantalizing even more than his muscular body.
His smile was conceited, his fully elongated fangs and the red glow in his eyes making him look vampiric. “You like what you see, don’t you, baby doll?”
“You know that I do. You’re gorgeous.” She smirked. “I now know how the vampire myth started. It was because of you.”
Lokan hissed, getting into the role play and raising goosebumps on her arms. Fully nude and very aroused, he put his knees on the bed and palmed his erection. His eyes never leaving hers, he pumped his fist up and down the rigid length as if contemplating his next move.
She could help him with that.
Leaning up, Carol dipped her head and licked the very tip, just an experimental swipe of her tongue.
With another hiss, Lokan cupped the back of her head and pulled her closer, then brushed the head of his shaft over the lips, gently teasing them apart.
But as he threaded his fingers through her hair and fisted it, Carol knew that the teasing part was over and opened her mouth, ready to take him.
“Hands behind your back,” he hissed out a command.
If she’d had any doubts where this was going, they were gone now. It was going to be a taking, and Lokan wanted complete control.
It didn’t scare her. It excited her.
She’d always had a thing for commanding men, and she was an expert on fellatio.
With a nod, he cupped her jaw, locking her in place for his pleasure, and thrust his length into her welcoming mouth.
Relaxing her throat muscles, she looked up at his lust-suffused face, hoping he could read the challenge in her expression.
Except, Lokan didn’t take her up on it. Instead of surging all the way in, he started with short, shallow thrusts, making sure she could take it before going deeper a fraction of an inch at a time.
When his fist tightened in her hair, she groaned around the thick length, and he thrust all the way in, reaching the back of her throat and pausing. He was blocking her air supply, but it lasted only for a second. Then he withdrew, letting her suck in a breath, and followed with several shallow thrusts before once again surging in all the way to the back of her throat.
Adjusting to the rhythm Lokan dictated, Carol ached to touch herself, but he’d told her to keep her hands behind her back, and she didn’t want to disobey.
With everything else in his life spiraling out of control, Lokan needed her to yield to him. She could hold off her own gratification for a little longer, knowing that he would reward her for it later.
8
Lokan
His mate was incredible. A beautiful, lustful angel. His gut hadn’t lied. His brain had. To realize that, all Lokan had to do was gaze into Carol’s eyes and see the adoring way she looked at him. A look like that couldn’t be faked.
Except, Lokan found it difficult to trust anyone beyond a shadow of a doubt, especially given how quickly he had gotten attached to her. As much as he struggled against it, her hold over him was unbreakable.
As he rhythmically thrust in and out of her mouth, hitting the end of her throat and then withdrawing nearly all the way, he was keenly aware of how misleading the scene looked.
Seemingly, he was in the driver’s seat, having his way with Carol and using her as he pleased, but it was an illusion.
She was yielding to him physically, but she was choosing to do so, and her eyes, which had never left his, were challenging him to let go of his restraint and take everything she had to offer.
Except, he was not going to accept her challenge.
First of all, because it wasn’t in him to just take from a woman without giving anything in return, and secondly, because every instinct in his immortal body demanded that he pleasure his mate first.
Carol might not be aware of that, but he was struggling to keep this going and not push her back onto the mattress and dive between her legs. Given the strong scent of her arousal, she was soaking wet, and he hungered for a taste.
Except, her intensifying aroma and the sounds she was making made it obvious that she was enjoying this. Seemingly under his complete control, Carol was nevertheless running the show. He was so attuned to her, his body so responsive to her cues that he felt as if she was directly connected to his nervous system and manipulating it as she pleased.
Elation warred with despondency as
Lokan realized Carol had won, and that he was utterly ensnared by her. His will and his body were no longer his own, and it didn’t even matter whether this was the work of some chemicals she might have been feeding him or the machinations of the mythical Fates. The result was the same.
Like a conjoined twin, his life was irrevocably entwined with hers, and if the connection was ever severed, he wouldn’t survive on his own.
The question was whether Carol felt the same.
Unable to wait any longer, he pulled out and leaned down, replacing his shaft with his tongue and devouring her mouth. It was just a quick stop on the way to his desired target, but then Carol wound her arms around his neck and kissed him back with just as much fervor.
As she pulled him on top of her with surprising strength, Lokan hesitated for a brief moment, wondering if she would let him feast on her nectar first, but then she licked at his fang, wresting the decision away from him. He penetrated her with one swift thrust, gliding into her moist heat.
“Yes!” Carol murmured into his mouth. “Show me what you’ve got.”
Responding to her challenge, he captured her wrists and pulled her arms over her head, pinning both with one hand while fisting her hair with the other and tilting her head back to expose her neck.
Carol shuddered, the muscles in her sheath contracting around his shaft and urging him to up the heat. He knew what she wanted, but he wasn’t going to bite her yet.
Instead, he licked and sucked the spot he’d chosen, while driving into her forcefully, daring her to retract her request to give her all that he’d got.
The bed rattled and shook, banging against the concrete wall and threatening to fall apart, but Carol’s excitement only climbed higher.
She was taking everything he was dishing out and begging him for more.
Her moans and groans spurring him on, Lokan let loose. The last of his restraint snapping, he erupted inside her and sank his fangs into the soft flesh of her neck.
