by Mia Taylor
To his surprise, Luther began to laugh.
“Michael? You believe Michael would help you?” he snorted. “What has he done for you since you have arrived back here? Hell, what has he done for you since you arrived in the bright afterworld?”
Jayce had no response, but he could not shake the feeling that he was walking into a trap.
“Who are you?” he asked. “What do you want?”
The manager closed the door and shook his head.
“It is not what I want, Jayce, it is what you want,” he replied easily. “I have come to help you find your brother.”
A wave of dizziness overcame him, but Jayce forced himself to concentrate.
“If Michael has not sent you, why would you help me find Ashur?”
“Papi!” Mari called from the bedroom. “Come and look at this bed!”
Jayce ignored her, his attention fully on the man before him.
“Because Ashur and I have… an understanding,” Luther explained, but his words did not make anything clearer for Jayce.
“An understanding?” Jayce echoed. “What does that mean?”
Luther smiled again but suddenly the younger wolf recognized the leer in his expression.
“You do not know who I am, truly?” he asked, cocking his head to the side.
A cold chill passed through Jayce and suddenly Mari’s apprehension became clear. He stepped back, staring at the dark being, awe and fear sweeping through him.
“What do you want from me?” he whispered as the hooker called out to him again, poking her head back into the entryway.
“Go!” he yelled at her and she gaped at him, her face shocked.
“Leave us a moment, mami,” Luther encouraged her in Spanish. “We will not be a minute.”
Mari eyed them warily but obeyed the instructions.
“I want you to go to your brother as you intended,” he replied. “And stop him from making a terrible mistake.”
“What mistake?” Jayce asked, his voice rising an octave. “What understanding do you have?”
Luther sighed.
“Fine,” he relented. “It is not so much an understanding as it is a wager.”
None of what he said made sense and Jayce wondered if Michael was not playing some ridiculous joke on him, but he knew the chances were unlikely.
He would require a sense of humor to play a jest and he is not known for his good humor. This is the Commodore himself.
“You must go to Ashur and stop him from pursuing the woman he has found. You have one week to steal her from his spell.”
“His spell? What does that mean?”
“He has one week to capture her affections and you must intercede.”
“Why? How?” Jayce squeaked.
Luther shook his head.
“You truly are not the brains of the family, are you?” he asked. “Because if he succeeds in making this woman fall… in love with him, I will have lost the wager. And I do not lose wagers.”
The ruler seemed to stutter on the “L” word.
Jayce studied his face, swallowing the lump in his throat.
“And if I refuse?” he asked. As the words left his lips, he wondered why he would dare argue with such a beast. It could not fare well for him.
Luther’s face contorted into an ugly mask of anger and he suddenly assumed the beastly demeanor which Jayce had always envisioned of him. Almost filling the room, he became a wolf bigger than any Jayce had ever seen.
“You will not refuse, Jayce,” he hissed. “You do not think I know about you? You are only in the bright afterworld because you sold out your brother. You murdered that girl in a fit of anger and blamed Ashur. What do you think His Grace and Michael would have to say if they learned about that?”
Fear made Jayce weak in the knees. He was no match for the powers behind the onyx-eyed creature who threatened to overwhelm him.
“If you succeed, your secret will forever stay in the depths of the dark afterlife with me, but if you should fail, well, I am sure I do not need to tell you what will become of you. I will save you a seat at our biweekly poker game. You can sit beside your brother.”
Jayce gulped and nodded.
“I will do as you ask,” he promised. “But if she is in love with him…”
He, too, found himself balking at the notion of love. It was foreign to him, the idea of mates laughable. He had always pitied the beasts who fell so blindly without regard for consequences. Moreover, Jayce could not imagine spending his life with one single being.
Luther laughed jovially, his face returning to the nondescript manager.
“Oh, dear boy,” he chuckled. “I would not throw you in unarmed. I bequeath you with dark powers for the next week to get the job done. Ashur has been forbidden from using his so you will have the upper hand in this instance. Use them wisely.”
A spark of excitement flowed through Jayce.
Oh, what I would do with such an advantage, he thought, licking his lips with delight. The powers of darkness without being cast to the dark afterworld. Who else will ever receive such an opportunity? And for what? To send Ashur back into the pits of the dark afterlife where he belongs.
He found himself nodding eagerly.
“Yes!” he agreed, gooseflesh exploding over his skin. “But you must promise that when Ashur returns to the dark afterlife, he will remain there for eternity. I do not wish to worry about seeking him out every bi-century.”
Luther nodded.
“You have my word,” he replied solemnly, and Jayce exhaled.
“I will do this. It will be my great honor, My Lord,” he promised the evil ruler.
Luther chortled, nodding pleasantly.
“You may call me Commodore,” he replied. “I will not be lord of anything for much longer.”
Jayce did not question his meaning.
He was already plotting what to do with his newfound powers.
Soon I will forget that Ashur ever existed, he thought gleefully.
He could not wait to get started.
Chapter Seven
Making the Hard Choices
Serafina sat on the edge of the mattress, brushing her shoulder-length hair, the muscles in her naked back flexing with each stroke.
Ashur could not take his eyes off her lean frame, nor did he want to. He could have stared at her all day long if he’d had the time.
The artwork tattooed on her skin entranced him and he tried to memorize every detail of her body as he studied her frame with intensity.
“I can feel you staring at me,” she teased, turning her head to glance at him over her shoulder. “If I wasn’t already naked, I would think you were undressing me with your eyes.”
He answered her question with a crushing kiss to her parted lips and she giggled.
“Have mercy on me,” she gasped. “I can barely walk as it is!”
Ash did not care. His arousal knew no bounds with this woman and for the third time in two hours, he felt a surge of heat to his crotch. It was nothing he had known before, but he did not overthink it as he toppled her onto the bed, pinning her to the mattress as he straddled her with his own nude frame.
She squealed lightly, her lips parting as she stared at him with green, intelligent eyes, and for the first time, he sensed the wisdom in them.
The realization only aroused him more. She was more than just the most beautiful face he’d ever seen—she was intelligent and savvy.
“I’m not kidding,” she murmured but her tongue jutted out to meet his before his face sank into her silken neck, hands scooping beneath her to spread her cheeks apart as he slid himself between her legs.
“Hmm?”
“You’re going to break me,” she muttered but the argument lacked any conviction and his mouth traveled across her collarbone, tasting the lingering sweat on her body as he worked his way lower to meet her swelling breasts.
Serafina’s hands twined into his hair and she groaned softly, bucking her chest upward a
s he nipped at her teasingly, but there were no more protests from her mouth as she guided him across her belly toward the throbbing center of her thighs.
“Gods,” she sighed, and Ash spread her thighs apart, his nose nuzzling the sweetness of her core as his tongue lashed out to taste her in long, firm strokes.
She quivered beneath him, his fingers sliding along the crack of her rump to explore while his tongue moved deeper.
Instantly he was rewarded with her release while Sera tensed beneath him, her own hands tightening in his hair.
He barely noticed the grip, and his laps grew more intense, relishing the jerks of her body as he brought her toward yet another orgasm.
“Please take me,” she begged but he did not immediately obey. His tenacity conjured more spasms from Sera’s already taut body and a piercing, feral cry escaped Sera’s lips as she abruptly bucked upward.
“Please!” she whimpered and he finally agreed silently to give her what she yearned for.
He rose his body to lick at her parted lips, savoring the near-mad expression on her face as she silently begged him for more.
She gazed up at him with wide, awe-filled eyes as he slid inside her and she choked as if it was the first time, her legs locking around him to draw him nearer.
Ash grunted slightly, feeling himself become larger as he filled her entirely. Her eyes seemed enormous as he increased speed, her cries growing louder in his ears.
He didn’t want to stop, his pleasure mounting, but he knew his resolve would be short-lived after so many rounds, especially as Serafina’s body locked him in completely.
Her legs were encircled like a vice around his waist, her center holding him tight. He knew he could withstand no more and Ash felt them regress as he conceded his own climax.
Serafina’s nails dug into his muscular shoulders as their cries escalated, her hips rising to meet him, and together they soaked the other in yet another endless flood of sweat and lust.
He exhaled as she continued to tremble beneath him, her whimpers subsiding but still ringing in his ears.
“My gods,” she moaned as he reluctantly withdrew his shrinking shaft from her. Serafina did not seem to want to let him go. A small smile toyed on his lips as he propped himself up to stare into her face pensively.
“What are you grinning at?” she asked almost sullenly as her eyes met his. “You’re going to cripple me at this rate.”
He could tell she wasn’t genuinely angry but his mind was on something else entirely.
“Why are you not wed?”
The question made her laugh and she met his eyes, amusement overshadowing her frown.
“Because I’m only twenty-six,” she replied. “And the prospects suck. Have you tried dating lately? The internet is the worst. People think they can get away with saying anything! And Tinder… don’t get me started on Tinder…”
Again, Ash felt as though she were speaking a completely foreign language but he didn’t let on. He had more pressing questions to ask than what this “Tinder” was about.
“But you would like to marry?” he asked, and he could sense her grow tense.
“Not really,” she replied tightly, her green eyes narrowing slightly. “You’re not going to go all stage-five clinger on me, are you?”
Ash didn’t understand the inquiry but he suspected the correct answer was no and he said as much.
“I’m not looking for anything serious,” she continued, but there was a wistfulness in her voice which was undeniable.
“Why not?”
She fully turned, her dark red hair resting atop her perky breasts, and peered at him with curious eyes.
“I don’t do relationships well,” she answered slowly. “I’ve never had anyone teach me how to do them. My home life was shitty, my pack was all over the place, and honestly, I have always been better on my own. It makes it easier to move around when I don’t have a ball and chain around my ankle.”
She seemed embarrassed by the confession and her cheeks stained pink.
Quickly she turned her head and looked back toward the wall.
“That was TMI. Anyway…”
Ashur sat up and placed his hand on her shoulder.
“I could show you,” he said softly.
To his surprise, she jerked away, scowling with annoyance.
“Don’t get too attached,” she snapped, rising from the bed out of his reach. “You’re only going to leave disappointed.”
Ashur felt a stab of concern by her words. He did not want to leave and he didn’t understand why she was resisting. The way he remembered females was that they wanted to marry and have children. How could things have changed so much?
“I find that difficult to believe,” he told her tenderly. “And I do not think you think that is true either.”
Serafina’s mouth became a finer line and she shook her head.
“You have known me for all of three hours,” she scoffed. “You don’t know anything about me.”
“Then why do I feel like I know everything about you?” he asked gently.
The inquiry was sincere.
Even in life, he had never felt so drawn to another and he knew it had nothing to do with the wager he had made with the Commodore.
From the second he had seen her in the hospital, it was as if time had paused to allow them the opportunity to meet.
She is the one. I have never been more certain of anything.
He could not understand why she was giving such resistance when the emotion between them was so raw, so primitive.
A dinging noise filled his ears and he looked around in confusion.
“Ah, shit!” Serafina cursed as she picked up a device sitting on her vanity. “Shit!”
“What is the matter?” Ashur asked, still trying to determine from where the strange sound had come. She shook her head, hurrying her movements as she dressed.
“I have to get back to the hospital,” she announced. “My boss is texting me. He’s been texting me.”
“Why? Are you unwell? Did I do something to hurt you?”
She snorted and for the first time, Ash remembered that she’d been at the hospital too before they’d begun their hours of passionate fun.
“You’re good but it’s gonna take a few more rounds than that to break me,” she replied dryly. “No, I have work to do. I left before I did my job. I need to get back to Henry Ford.”
Ash eyed her.
“You work?” he asked, and her eyebrows almost went through her hairline.
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” she demanded. “Do I look like someone who can’t work? Are you suggesting that I’m working the system?”
Again, the meaning was lost on Ash, but he shook his head, hearing the defensiveness in her tone.
“I meant no offense,” he assured her. “I am—well, your father does not provide for you?”
Serafina gaped at him.
“What the hell are you talking about?” she asked, confusion coloring her face. She gestured around the tiny apartment. “Do I look like some kind of trust fund baby to you? Make up your mind; am I spoiled or mooching off the system?”
Her voice cut like small knives to his chest.
She is protective and fearsome. And very vulnerable.
“I only assumed that if you are unmarried, your father would tend to your comfort,” he explained, not understanding her disbelief.
The world has changed much since you have walked the soil. You must not give away your ignorance. Perhaps this is the way now; women have jobs and live apart from their fathers before they are married.
It was almost too much to process and Ash feared it was too late to stop his bewilderment from shining through. He felt as if he had managed thus far but it would be hard to hide his ignorance from Sera once they began to spend time together.
“That would be lovely… if I had a father,” she snorted. She gazed at him as if she wanted to say more but she stopped herself. “Where are you staying
? I’ll call an Uber for you.”
He stared at her as she dug through the pile of clothes on her floor, searching for an outfit.
“I am staying here,” he replied, brow knitting. He had thought that was implied.
Serafina’s head jerked up and she laughed.
“Cute,” she replied, slipping into a pair of pants, and he noted she wore no undergarments as she zipped up the front.
His face flushed and he realized he was aroused yet again, but he dared not try to entice her into more lovemaking. She seemed ready for battle, another aspect which made him eye her with awe and respect.
She is formidable, and she will be mine.
The jeans she wore accented her svelte frame in a way he had never noticed on another woman.
Certainly, in the dark otherworld, there were many females who donned modern clothing before the fires eventually burned them away, but Ash was sure no one had ever looked like her.
She is undeniably my mate. There is no other explanation for the reason I feel this way.
It was a heady realization. The idea that he would ever meet his mate had long since died with his immortal body. Perhaps he had accepted that even when he was in the bright afterworld.
But now, seeing Serafina, he knew he couldn’t go on without her.
“I have nowhere else to go,” he told her, and she paused, a grimace falling over her mouth.
“Where were you staying before?” she demanded. “You must have been staying somewhere.”
“I was traveling,” he offered evasively. Sera eyed him warily and shook her head.
“You can’t stay here,” she growled. “This is not a hotel.”
“Will you find me a hotel?”
Her jaw dropped open.
“Are you kidding me?” she demanded. “You really don’t have a place to stay?”
Ash shrugged and shook his head, causing Sera to grunt loudly.
“You know what, never mind. I have to go. My boss is going to fire my ass unless I bring a client in today. I’ll deal with you later.”
She finished dropping a sweater over her head and sighed deeply.
“I’ll be back in a couple hours. There’s a few beers in the fridge and I think a few pieces of pizza.”
She snatched her purse from the vanity and grabbed her coat.
