Everlasting (Descendants of Ra: Book 2)

by Tmonique Stephens

  “That’s enough,” he said close to her ear. She turned her head a fraction and saw him inches away. He grabbed her shoulders and turned her toward him. She tried to listen to him, but her tear ducts had decided to throw a pity party. The tears kept coming regardless of his order.

  “I just wanted to say goodbye.”

  He kissed her. Hard. He molded his lips to hers, his body to hers, until her tears, her mother, and her former life were the last thing on her mind. Desire replaced the hurt, leaving Reign with his calloused hands, wicked tongue, and sinful body. He blotted out everything, but him. Burned away the hurt until she burned for him alone. More than she could ever have guessed, she needed him. Just him to help her bury her past and move into their future. She reached for him, cupped the bulge in his pants, and slid the zipper down.

  He yanked away. She followed, desperate for his mouth on hers. Reign pushed her against the tree and held her there with one hand. She opened her mouth to question why.

  “No.” He shook his head. His chest heaved. Anguish lined his tight face. He wanted her, as she wanted him. Alexis grabbed a fistful of his crisp white shirt and pulled. He didn’t budge.

  “You will regret it later, when it’s over and your tears have dried.” His eyes were hard, his voice glacial.

  Regret? She shook her head. “I won’t regret us.”

  “You say that now,” he said, so low she almost missed it. “You only want me to temporarily soothe the pain. It will not work. Though I wish I could, I cannot fix this hurt.”

  She couldn’t deny what Reign said. Instead of breaking her, his un-sugarcoated truth strengthened her and clarified her resolve. Yeah, she needed him to soothe the hurt away. But not only for this moment.

  She wanted a lifetime.

  Oh…God. She inhaled a slow breath. “I want you. Hell, I seduced you.” She glanced at her upturned hands and then rolled them into fists. “I felt everything you were feeling. It was the most intimate, intense experience of my life.” He moved closer to her, his hand gripped her hip and tugged her to him. Every inch of him was hard. “I want to feel that again and not be afraid. I want to feel you again, moving inside me. To be a part of you.”

  She ripped off her gloves and the bracelet slipped off her wrist. She touched his abdomen. The muscles clenched beneath the crisp shirt. Alexis slid her hand up to his pecs, slipped her fingers along the open collar onto his warm skin and up the strong column of his neck. Yearning, abrupt and intense, stoked her. A corresponding echo built in her body and vibrated between them.

  Reign picked her up and covered her mouth with his. Her tongue thrust wildly into his mouth, mimicking exactly what she wanted him to do to her. She wrapped her legs around his waist and fit her core intimately against him. He palmed her ass and while his hips did a slow grind into her, his fingers slid beneath the edge of her mini. His hands were warm, just like his eager mouth. He squeezed the globes and one finger followed her thong.

  Through her panties, he traced her lips, making her crazy. Alexis nipped his lip, urging him to slide the slip of fabric to the side and touch her. His slow fingers toyed with the lacy edge until she growled. She pulled his shirt from his pants and dove her hand beneath. The hard muscles of his broad back became her scratching post.

  He hissed and then laughed when he yanked the lace to the side and delved into her liquid heat. Head thrown back, she rode his hand, crying out as he ground his palm against her clit.

  Pleasure rippled through her. Alexis dragged her fingernails from his back, around his waist to his abs and squeezed them between their straining bodies.

  One second they were dressed, and then they weren’t.

  “Reign,” she yelped. Though the lighting so near the rough was dim, a passerby could still spot them.

  “Shhh.” He stroked from her nape to her rear. “No one can hear or see us.”

  A shimmering aura enveloped them. The barrier muted the starry night and cold evening air. Alexis didn’t care about the hows, whys, or buts, only about the warm iron pressed against her.

  Her hand slid over and around, circling until he moaned, “Alexis.” Sensual words passed from his lips to hers, words that had no meaning to her ears, yet their sincerity touched her heart and opened her soul to him.

  Reign shifted, placed his broad back against the tree. Alexis leaned back, tipped her hips, and guided him into her wetness. He stretched her, filling her so completely she purred when he nudged her womb. She gripped his shoulders, let her head drop back, clenched, and released her muscles around his shaft.

  Reign’s eyes crossed. A guttural moan ripped from his throat. She dipped dangerously close to the ground before he recovered and banded his arms around her.

  “Don’t do that again.” He kissed her roughly.

  So—she did it again, this time accentuating each part of the move and felt him throb within her body. He lifted her until the head poised to slip free and a sense of loss enveloped her. Then plunged into her. A jolt of ecstasy swept through each cell in her body, leaving her aching.

  “More.” She demanded and licked a trail from his ear to his flat nipple. Her nails flicked over his sensitive tip, causing his body to jerk. Frustration and pleasure mixed together in his throaty groan. She tweaked and laved each nipple while tilting her hips back and forth, clenching and releasing her muscles around him. He closed his eyes. His head fell back. Palms flat on his hot skin, his overwhelming need flowed into her. The need to belong. To be loved. The same need driving her.

  Alexis braced her hands on Reign’s heaving chest as his breath whistled through his gritted teeth. Mercilessly, her hips rose and fell in a steady rhythm. She rocked her body into his, taking him to the edge. Then slowed and leaned back so she had better leverage to grind her pelvis into him.

  “Enough,” he pleaded and wrapped his arms around her, stilling her movements. Effortlessly, he held her while his chest heaved. Pleasure rolled through her in successive waves and left no room for thought or reason. She wiggled a little, but one hand slid down her back and cupped her rear. He kissed her slowly, exploring her mouth as if nothing else in the world mattered. Then he lifted her bottom.

  The loss of his thickness left her desperate until he eased her back down onto him again, and again. Faster, he thrust up into her body. Tiny orgasms racked her. Nothing had ever felt this good. A shock wave of ecstasy radiated from her core to every nail and hair follicle. She climaxed in a bright blaze of passion. Her cries, his shout, were for their ears only. Dazed, she felt Reign touch her womb and release a torrid stream, groaning her name in sweet relief.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

  Reign didn’t want to let her go, but she slid down his body as he slowly released her. She leaned against him, her softness stirring him again. She gave him a lazy, sated smile. He buried his emotions and smoothed the hair off her face, and then kissed her swollen lips goodbye.

  When they parted, they were dressed again; her hair and makeup were perfectly arrayed. No visible trace of the passion they’d shared lingered.

  Space. The more, the better. He moved a few feet away from his Achilles Heel, yet he couldn’t evade her gaze. Questions filled her coppery eyes. He had only one answer. Kill Alamut and return to Chemmis. That would please Roman and Nephythys, and safeguard Alexis.

  Simple. Then why couldn’t he tell her?

  She stretched out her hand and touched his cheek. He didn’t move. Her gaze stayed locked on his as she sifted through him. Thankfully, she didn’t dig deep like Mrs. Kelly, only skimming the surface of his emotional grid.

  He drew on his battle skills and submerged what his heart wanted, leaving the cold hatred of the Vanquished. A wave of fury surfed through him, banked by her palm and startled expression.

  Alexis jerked her hand away and stumbled back. Her eyes wide and confused.

  “Tonight hasn’t ended the way you planned. Your mother doesn’t deserve you.” The Vanquished urged him to find the bitch and gut her. Finally, he wanted to
comply with their wishes. “I know you want to bring Alamut to your kind of justice. Mine will have to suffice. I will take you back to your family and leave you in their care.”

  “You're leaving? Just like that? After…” Her eyes blazed with hurt and then darkened to a cold, flat glare. She marched away from him and snatched up her gloves and bracelet.

  Immediately, the protective aura surrounding them ended. Sounds of the night, cold air, and the scent of fresh cut grass assaulted them. She shivered and wrapped her arms tightly around herself.

  “Alexis.”

  Instead of stopping, she moved faster. He tried to flash and intercept her, but nothing happened. His atoms didn’t separate and flow through space and time. He was still in the same spot with Alexis striding further away from him. He tried to fade. Nothing. Nephythys’s vis’Ra was gone. Had she taken it back or had he used up his allotment? More importantly, did she know about Alexis?

  “Alexis!”

  She continued. He raced toward her, overtaking her quickly and grabbing her arm.

  “Don’t touch me.” She yanked her arm away. “I thought you were leaving.”

  “I am—”

  “Then leave!” she shouted and stepped close to him. “I don’t need you to take me back to the car. I can get there without your damn help.” Thin-lipped and tight-jawed, her body vibrated and her eyes buried daggers in his chest.

  “Why are you angry?”

  Her mouth dropped opened and her eyes narrowed dangerously before she growled, balled a hand, and struck him in the jaw. The surprise stung more than the blow.

  “You. Are. An. Ass,” she hissed. Toe to toe with him, her special scent mixed with his, filling his nostrils. He’d marked her. She stalked away, stumbled over her purse, and snatched it up. “You know, you almost had me fooled. But a man is a man, whether you’re fourteen or two thousand years old. So, go, flash, fade, shift, disappear, whatever. I really don’t care.”

  He tried again to shift and again, nothing happened. “I can’t leave you. I tried.”

  “Bullshit. You’re a god—wait, you’ve tried to leave already,” she whispered.

  “Yes, a moment ago.”

  She threw her purse. He caught it a second before she launched into him. Wrestling a woman wasn’t something a warrior ever prepared for, especially when she fought dirty. She scratched, pulled his hair, and elbowed his ribs. When she kneed him and missed, he flashed behind her and scooped her flailing body into his arms.

  “You lied!” she shrieked.

  “I didn’t lie. I don’t know why I was able to shift a moment ago.”

  “Put me down.” She pushed at his chest.

  “No, not while you continue to fight me. I will not allow our last moments together to end with bitterness.”

  She stilled and the anger drained out of her body. Her face turned into his chest and for a moment she clung, her arms embracing him. She murmured, “Please, put me down.”

  He released her and regretted the emptiness when she stepped away. Wisps of wayward hair fluttered in the chilly breeze. In the weak lighting, her eyes were chocolate pools. Any man would die to erase the pain wallowing in their depths.

  “Alexis.” His sigh matched his desperation. He cupped her cheek, hoping his touch would convey how deeply he loved her.

  “Don’t,” she pleaded, squaring her shoulders and stiffening her spine. “You told me you couldn’t leave. You’re tethered to me.”

  Her soft gaze threatened to unman him. “There is a way to break it.”

  Her shoulders slumped. “Why didn’t you use it before?”

  “I wanted to stay.”

  “And now you don’t?” Sarcasm dripped from each word. Her nostrils flared and she folded her arms beneath her breasts.

  “I cannot!” he yelled, frustrated at the universe.

  “Then go!” She pointed off in the distance toward the dim recesses of the golf course. “You’re not the first man to leave me and you probably won’t be the last.”

  The thought of her with another man, touching where he just touched, filling her as he just did, made his blood pound in his ears. His vision dimmed until all he saw was her, with a phantom lover, stroking her lush body, making her slick channel clench and release as she moaned his name. Vicious thoughts crowded out common sense and good intentions.

  “You are mine.” He captured her lips with a fierce kiss meant to brand her soul. Too bad it had the opposite effect.

  Alexis pushed away. Her face inscrutable, as her hair whipped about. “Then stay.”

  He drew her roughly into his arms and smoothed her wild tresses over her shoulders. “To save you, I must go,” he breathed against her cheek.

  “Save me? What do you have to save me from? What aren’t you telling me?”

  A thick fog gathered and rolled across the golf course. The Vanquished roared. Reign’s blood quickened. Quimaera were near. He sensed two, then five, then more. His battle instincts merged with the Vanquished, turning him into de Mortem, the Scourge. His jagged blade materialized in his palm, ready to taste the enemy’s blood.

  The fog shrouded their bodies, but not their existence. They came from the fringes of the course, past the fairways and roughs, leaving only one escape route, the path back to the party.

  “Run, Alexis. Get in your car and drive away.”

  Fright bled the color from her face. “They’re here, aren’t they?”

  He nodded once.

  “We led them here.” She accused, her eyes impossibly wide.

  “Get in your car and go.” He shoved her toward the path, away from the encroaching mist.

  “No!” She returned to his side. “My family is here. And I’m not leaving you.” Alexis pulled away from him and ran to her purse. She snatched the evening clutch up and pulled out a small gun.

  “That won’t stop them.” He studied the fog, aware of the danger to Alexis.

  Her gaze met his. In her eyes, he could see the worry and the unasked question. How many were out there and could his soul afford the tally?

  “It’s better than nothing,” she snapped.

  A throaty bark echoed in the fog. Alexis raced back to his side and her foot slipped. She went down to one knee.

  Reign knelt on the damp grass beside her. “Are you all right?”

  “Yes.” She pushed herself up. He grabbed her arm to steady her and caught a glint of gold in the mist.

  “What is that?” He pointed to the object.

  “My grandmother’s bracelet.” She picked it up and wrapped it around her wrist.

  “Damnation!” Reign swore. His blade, the only weapon that could kill the quimaera was gone.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

  Khuket streaked through the sky, leaving the city behind. Beneath her, open fields bracketed by small towns illuminating the night. Her direction didn’t waver as she zeroed in on her prey. With her traveled Alamut and more of her army. Anubis’s slave had served her well. Soon she’d have the means to secure her freedom. Never would she be imprisoned. Never would she be at the mercy of another. The next time she returned to Duat, it wouldn’t be as a slave, but as master. The end of the Egyptian Gods neared. Her pantheon would rule again. Neith had disappeared. Khuket’s would be friend had left her at the first opportunity. She would pay, with blood and flesh.

  The glow from Reign’s protective shields pinpointed his location. Khuket moved forward, floating over the field. SET's command came to her again. ‘Destroy him. Then bring him to me.’ ‘Make him love you’.

  It should have been easy, but she had miscalculated. After the battle at the club, she’d sought to infect Reign’s mind with chaos. His mental barriers offered no challenge; they tumbled, allowing her access to his dreams, nightmares, and guilt. She thought subtle manipulation, an infection of chaos into his already fractured mental processes, would push him over the edge. She didn’t count on the woman’s stabilizing presence. A counterweight to all Khuket’s plans, the woman was the key to hi
s fall.

  And as far as making him love her, from the moment she met Reign, she was too late. His heart already belonged to the woman. And though chaos could bring ruin to their union, once a soul bound itself to another, it would never truly be free to love again.

  Yards away, the object of the god’s wrath copulated with his woman. An interesting act they both seemed to enjoy. She studied them. The joining of two bodies. The sliding motion and the sounds of flesh meeting flesh. The grunts and groans, the long sighs. The lips.

  Strange. Parts of her tingled at the sight of them. Her species didn’t mate. They simply came into being. After the Egyptians arrived and conquered, they forced their new slaves to change. No longer could they roam the world. They trapped them in strange forms.

  The quimaera waited behind her, linked to her mind. She shrouded the field in fog, and then gave the command to attack. Her army loped across the field and vanished in the dense cloud. If possible she wanted them both alive. If not, SET would have to accept their carcasses. The need for delay was over. Her freedom waited.

  ***

  “Where’s your sword?” Alexis pointed to his empty hand.

  Reign shrugged and his shoulders lifted and seemed to drop a foot. He hauled her to her feet and swept her into his arms.

  “I can't see anything,” she said as he carried her through the mist.

  “I can. We’re almost there.”

  The faint glow of the lanterns hanging from the back veranda came into view. People milled about the wide glass doors and windows, staring out at the thick fog. Reign entered and sat her in the nearest chair. Her family swarmed when Reign stepped back and retreated.