Chapter 23
Safely back at the D’Vaire mansion in Arizona, time seemed to speed up for several hours. Details of the day’s events were shared with those that had not traveled to Idris’s home, and Noirin supplied everyone with plenty of food to fill their stomachs. Gedeon had no idea spending part of his day watching over a kidnapped Renny could create such a voracious appetite, but somehow it had. But before Gedeon had filled his plate, he had gone to the bedroom he shared with his mate and gratefully changed back into the gray attire that had served him well over the past twenty-five years. Although he was not opposed to wearing clothing like the others in his family from time to time, a day would not come in the future when he would leave the house without the daggers that were so integral to being a sentinel.
From table to table in the large kitchen, the conversation remained zeroed in on all that had transpired. As promised, Chander had called the Prism Wizard and before Aleksander had sat down to eat, Vadimas had reached out to learn about Idris. The pair had decided Idris’s day had been eventful enough, and he could use a few days of relaxation at Court D’Vaire before they sent him to Vadimas to learn how to use his magic. Idris had readily agreed to the plan and was making a fast friend of Delaney.
The pair of teenage wizards were the same age, and Gedeon could already see that the two would likely remain in contact after Idris left Arizona. Their lives had enough similarities that they had a great deal in common. Edion had not been ignored either. Dra’Kaedan had wasted no time in casting a cleansing spell on the elf. Now that the filth had been removed, Gedeon could see his hair was a blond so pale it was nearly white. It hung almost to his waist and the last six inches or so of it was a soft lavender.
His face was disfigured and his ear broken. Despite the power of the warlock twins, they seemed unable to fix it or cure his blindness. It was a mystery why the magic flowed through the elf and fixed none of it. The Grand Warlock and the Grand Summoner were not the types of people to give up. Gedeon knew both men would exhaust every avenue to aid the elf who was overjoyed and grateful to be clean again.
The sassy orange-eyed Larissa had vowed to learn how to make the tunics and pants that made up the elven wardrobe, and Edion thanked her profusely. With the amount of care and consideration the D’Vaires had given Gedeon, he mused to himself that Edion would likely have a brimming closet in no time. As the voices of his family flowed around him Gedeon said little. Gavrael was quiet as well, but then his mate was always going to use as few words as possible. It was simply his way, Gedeon thought with a smile.
Gedeon lifted his fork and took the last bite of food from his plate. From the corner of his eye, he saw his mate stand and grab his dishes from the table. After he finished chewing and dropped his fork to his plate to carry them to the dishwasher, Gedeon realized he had moved too slowly. Gavrael had already snatched them and was halfway across the room before Gedeon had slid his chair back.
Once his task was complete, Gavrael walked back to where Gedeon now stood. “It has been a long day. Good night everyone,” Gavrael said to their family and then grabbed Gedeon’s hand. He led them both through the house and up to their bedroom.
“It is time for a bath,” Gavrael announced as soon as Gedeon had shut the door behind them. Smiling, Gedeon felt Gavrael’s need to care for him flow through their mind link.
“I did get very dirty sitting in that room,” Gedeon agreed. Gavrael gave him a nod and headed toward their bathroom to begin filling the tub. As for Gedeon, he sat down on the bed and began removing his boots. He was also concentrating on not thinking about the fact that he and Gavrael would soon be naked together. It was important he keep his baser needs at bay until he got the chance to talk to his mate about all that had transpired this day.
Boots and socks off, Gedeon pulled his T-shirt over his head and entered the bathroom to see Gavrael in a similar state of undress. When Gavrael spotted Gedeon walking into the room, he felt a rush of lust course through him. It was a mixture of both his own emotions and those of the man standing in front of him.
“I will make love to you, but first we must bathe.”
“I believe you promised me you’d be touching yourself and not me, but I’d like to talk to you before I watch you stroke that cock I love so much.”
Gavrael gave a slight nod as he reached over to stop the flow of water into their large tub. “I forgot. This day has been very long. I did make that promise, and if that is what you wish then I will do it. You wish to talk about today?”
“Yes,” Gedeon replied as he tried to ignore Gavrael lowering his pants to the floor. Mirroring his mate’s actions, Gedeon got rid of what was left of his clothing and climbed into the tub. Gavrael got in behind him and pulled Gedeon so his back was resting against his chest.
“You killed Latarian,” Gedeon said as he closed his eyes and enjoyed both the closeness of his mate and the warmth of the water.
“She stabbed Dra’Kaedan. Although I have been trained to act if my necromancer is injured or attacked, my instincts told me I should do the same for all members of our family.”
“It hurt a great deal to see Dra’Kaedan’s life begin to leave his body and to watch his mate’s heart break into pieces at the thought of losing him. I have asked myself what would happen if it were you fighting to take your last breaths,” Gedeon began as Gavrael wet a washcloth and dragged the soap across it. Laying his head back so it rested against his mate’s neck, Gedeon was soon being scrubbed clean. “I don’t think I would have handled your death with Brogan’s grace. Watching them. Seeing both the love and the pain of losing one another. It made me realize the depth of my feelings for you. My day is only a good one if you are close to me. The enjoyment I feel in life is amplified by your presence. It seems to me these feelings can only mean I love you. I love you, Gav.”
A strong wave of caring swept across Gedeon, and Gavrael turned his head to kiss the other sentinel’s temple. “I have had strong emotions for you since the day you were summoned here, Geddy. I did not truly know what the word love meant on that day, but I know that is what I felt. I know that I strive to be a better sentinel because I wish for you to speak of me with pride. I do not want to be a disappointment to you. I wish only to make your life better. Watching and seeing the love that can exist between two people spoke the same thoughts to me. I love you. I am helpless to do anything else.”
Gedeon closed his eyes and smiled as he felt the love Gavrael had just finished professing to him. Their matebond was such a miraculous thing to him. Had Blodwen not been so strong, so willing to overcome her fear of sentinels, the two of them would still be sitting in a cell in the dark gray prison. Although Gavrael did not believe he had adjusted well to life at Court D’Vaire, Gedeon believed his mate had come further than he realized.
“Gav, that was probably the most you’ve said at once.”
“I find it easier and easier to speak with you each day.”
“What about the others? Do you still feel tongue-tied around everyone else?”
“Yes, most of the time.”
“How about today? Today when everything was upside down and crazy, did you have any issues talking to our family? To the friends of our family or strangers you met today?”
The washcloth paused as his mate stopped to think about the questions Gedeon had posed. Gedeon took the opportunity to steal it and soap himself more quickly. At this rate, the water would grow cold long before their bath was finished.
“No, I did not,” Gavrael finally answered.
“Then I have discovered the root of your problem, and together we can fix it. I get that you are never going to be a chatterbox. I’m pretty fond of the strong, silent type. In fact, I love it. But I don’t want you to feel awkward or upset, so we are going to continue to work on this. Now we know why you get frustrated.”
“We do?” Gavrael asked as he stole back the cloth and rinsed the soap out of it. He then encouraged Gedeon to dunk his head in the water, and Gavrae
l began working on shampooing both of them.
“Yes. You think too much, and you are brutally hard on yourself. You overthink each word to the point of driving yourself crazy. You worry too much about which word is best. It doesn’t have to be that complicated, and it doesn’t have to be perfect. Just say whatever comes to mind,” Gedeon said before dunking to rinse his hair.
“I can only promise to try, Geddy.”
“We’ll work on it. You ready to get out of this tub now?”
“Yes.” The word had barely left his lips before Gedeon was dragging himself out of the tub. Because Gedeon’s reflexes were slowed down due to the lingering effects of the stones, he didn’t move quickly enough to beat Gavrael out. His towel was then in his hands thanks to his mate, and Gedeon dragged it haphazardly across himself before securing it at his waist. They had talked, and he was ready to move on to the second part of their plan.
“Go sit on the bed. I’ll get you some lube.”
“You seem very eager for this,” Gavrael said as he walked the expanse of their room with his towel around him in the same fashion as Gedeon’s. Gedeon wanted the piece of cloth hiding the part of Gavrael’s body—the part that brought him such pleasure—gone.
“I would say you have no idea how eager, but since you can feel my emotions you already know how incredibly impatient I am to watch you.” Gedeon was already hard just thinking about it. Grabbing the lube from the side table, he straightened and watched Gavrael make himself comfortable by leaning back against the headboard where he had stacked their pillows. He then loosened his towel so his half-hard cock was exposed, but Gedeon could feel his mate was feeling a bit embarrassed.
“I can do it for you if you prefer.” This was supposed to make them both feel hot and horny, not uncomfortable, Gedeon thought with a grimace.
“Sentinels keep their promises,” Gavrael replied as he used a bit of the lube in his hand and took hold of his dick. The embarrassment went away as soon as Gedeon threw his towel on the floor and his mate could see he was a lot more than half interested. Gedeon’s dick was so hard it was nearly resting on his stomach. Plopping down across from Gavrael on the bed, Gedeon let loose a moan when his mate began sliding his hand slowly up and down his own length.
Not for the first time today, Gedeon cursed his own impatience. Gavrael masturbating was all he thought it would be and more. He hadn’t counted on the way his mate would drag it out and take his time on each stroke. Gedeon had not anticipated how it would feel to look into Gavrael’s bronze eyes and see the lust in them and of course, he could not only see it but he could feel it too. But the moment when Gedeon knew he wasn’t going to be able to just sit here and watch was when Gavrael licked his lips.
He just swiped his tongue across those lips Gedeon loved to feel on his mouth and body, and he was helpless in his need to have a taste. Leaning forward, he captured Gavrael’s bottom lip between his own. Gavrael responded by reaching up with his free hand and grabbing a fistful of Gedeon’s wet hair. Biting down briefly, Gedeon then opened his mouth so he could explore Gavrael’s.
Never idle when lovemaking, Gavrael took charge of the kiss and almost savagely, he took what he wanted from Gedeon’s mouth. The grip of his fist in Gedeon’s hair never loosened, and Gedeon maneuvered as best he could to get his body as close to Gavrael as possible. He swung his left leg over the leg Gavrael had resting on the floor. His right was bent and thrust over the bent leg of his mate.
Their mouths remained mobile as their bodies heated up in close proximity. Gedeon could now feel Gavrael’s hand moving quicker over his cock. For a brief moment, Gedeon belied the fact that he couldn’t see it, but there was no way Gavrael was going to let him go. And while the view might have been nice, being kissed so voraciously was an unbeatable experience.
Gedeon decided it was past time he involved his own hands in this quest. That thought in mind, he patted down the bedding underneath them in search of the lube Gavrael had tossed aside. As soon as he had a hold of the bottle, he kissed Gavrael as Gedeon dumped way too much of it in his hand. Flinging the bottle aside, he used his clean hand to grasp Gavrael’s wet hair. Although he did not grip the damp tresses with the intensity of his mate’s hold on him, Gedeon was not about to let go. He moaned into Gavrael’s mouth as their tongues continued to battle. With his now over-lubed palm, Gedeon took a firm grip of his own sex and began stroking himself.
“I think you may be enjoying this,” Gavrael whispered through their mind link as he dragged Gedeon’s head back by his hair and somehow managed to deepen their greedy kisses.
“Fuck yes, I am. I won’t last.”
“I am close.”
As the words echoed through Gedeon’s brain he gave up trying to think about a reply. He was a slave to his body’s need to come. Gavrael’s mouth was attacking his with an intensity Gedeon had not thought possible. Always when they came together it was overwhelming and satisfying to the point of exhaustion. Tonight Gavrael, with his lethal combination of tongue and lips, was sending Gedeon into a maelstrom of desire. Almost astonishingly, Gavrael had barely touched him. His hand had not moved from where he clenched Gedeon’s hair tightly. And yet he was able to draw such intense desire inside Gedeon’s body that it was taking him to the edge already.
Gedeon worked his hand over his cock as he felt his mate do the same. Their hands knocked against one another as they frantically raced to completion. Since Gavrael had begun before him, Gedeon was doing his best to at least match him for time. Truly he would prefer to outlast him, but his spine was tingling and his body was on fire. And if that were not enough, he could feel how close Gavrael was to losing it, and it was driving him insane with need. A heartbeat later, Gavrael tore his mouth from Gedeon and guiding Gedeon’s head by the fist in his hair rested their foreheads together.
Their mouths were still close enough that Gedeon could feel the heavy breaths puffing out of his mate’s well-kissed lips. Chest heaving, Gavrael sucked in a deep breath and then held it as his body released its seed. Gedeon felt a moan rip from him before his breath caught, and with his hand flying over his cock in a blur, he came all over his fist. He slowed his hand until it came to a stop while he tried to catch his breath and slow his heart.
“I love you, Geddy.” The words melted Gedeon’s heart, and he lifted his head enough to plant a soft kiss on his mate.
“I love you too.”
“I enjoyed that,” Gavrael said against Gedeon’s mouth before pressing their lips together for maybe the thousandth time that night. Then he loosened his fist, and after running a hand through the tangled mess that was Gedeon’s hair, pulled away from him. Gedeon gave a sigh at the loss of his mate as Gavrael stood and snatched up their towels from the bed and floor.
“I kind of figured that out, Gav,” Gedeon said with a smile as he waved toward where their bodies were covered with the evidence of their passion.
“Good, I would not want that to be a mystery. Now have a rest; we still have to have sex properly tonight,” Gavrael said as he returned from the bathroom with a wet cloth to clean them both up.
Gedeon flopped back onto the mattress and let out a laugh. “Today the past was finally laid to rest for many in our family. So much mystery uncovered and problems solved. I do believe one more can be safely considered unraveled,” he said as Gavrael swiped him clean.
“What matter is that?” Gavrael asked as he retreated to the bathroom to take care of the rag in his hand.
“There is no doubt in my mind now about the flaw.”
“The sentinel flaw? I have come to the conclusion that it is unlikely to exist. It is no more plausible than the story of the sentinel that took the life of his necromancer. That goes against our very nature.”
“I agree with you about the whole necro-killing thing but the flaw has gotta be real.” Gedeon peered up at his naked mate who had come to stand over him. He reached out a hand and slid it up Gavrael’s heavily muscled thigh.
“How are we flawed?�
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“You remember I first joked it was that two sentinels together would fuck each other to death?”
“Yes.”
“Well, that is part of it.”
“Only part? This is turning out to be a large flaw.” Gavrael nudged Gedeon over and took a seat on the edge of the bed. Once he was settled, Gavrael leaned over Gedeon to kiss him.
“Not at all. But sentinels, we seem to do everything to excess and give us something we enjoy and I think we could definitely lose sight of everything else.”
“So you believe the flaw is wanting to have excessive sex with your mate.”
“Oh yeah, and to want to do nothing but be with your mate. The rest of the world can fuck right off.” Gedeon grinned. He could sense Gavrael was not in the slightest bit concerned about the conversation they were having. They both had seemingly come to the same conclusion. If sentinels were flawed, then it was a flaw only others perceived. Gedeon believed the reality was each race had their strengths and weaknesses, and the sentinels were no different than anyone else in the Council of Sorcery and Shifters.
Gavrael looked at him as he considered his reply. He then leaned forward and dragged his body onto the bed to cover Gedeon’s prone form. “I do my best to live up to everything that is expected of a sentinel. Therefore, I can do nothing less than to make love to you until we are both unable to stand.”
Letting his laughter have full reign, Gedeon held his man close and was grateful for him. Grateful Fate had brought them together and humbled to be loved by a sentinel so valiant. Together they would explore the love they shared, and Gedeon looked forward to the journey.
Chapter 24
Gavrael closed his eyes and shut off the link that connected him to his mate. He concentrated on feeling his own emotions and shielding his thoughts. Drawing in a breath, he rid himself of the tender feelings that came to mind when he thought of Gedeon and reached for the primitive part of him that yearned for the opportunity to strike out at his foes. The very same instinct that had served him so well yesterday when Latarian had dared to hurt someone who mattered to Gavrael.
Sentinel's Dagger (D'Vaire, Book 2) Page 25
