by K.N. Lee
With that, she finally picked up the tray where it had fallen on the floor and made to leave.
The thought of the man with the melted face flashed across her mind. Could it really be true? It seemed too easy after all they had been through. None of it settled well with Anais, not least, the thought that they were bringing him here.
At some point in the not too distant future, she was going to have to confront the man who murdered her parents, who almost murdered Aethelu and herself.
“I’ll let you tell Aethelu the good news when she wakes up.” Winnie opened the surgery door and made her way out, although Anais, caught up in her own thoughts, hardly noticed.
She thought back to all the letters that Jago had sent to the house, trying to remember if any had been sent from Florence. She didn’t recall. She would go back and check the letters again when she was able to get out of bed. She knew she should be happy, but something was niggling at the back of her mind, something that didn’t quite add up.
She thought back for a few more minutes and gave up. It was probably hard to believe because of all the stress they had been under. It was silly to be looking for problems where there were none.
She then realised that there was no need for her and Aethelu to take a world trip to find all the pendants. It made her feel momentarily sad before she realised that they could still travel the world together, but now they could do it freely.
Free…
Anais realised that they were finally free. The fantasy of happily ever after had become a reality. She decided to stop worrying and look to the future. The future was right beside her.
Aethelu made a sound and opened her eyes. She smiled the most beautiful smile, glowing with the light from the sun. Winter was over. Spring had begun.
The End
The Power Here
Julie Morgan
Warning, this novel is recommended for those who are 18+ as it contains adult content and material, including sex, and violence.
This book is a work of fiction. All characters in this novel are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2016 by Julie Morgan
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher.
The author acknowledges the real people or places and copyrighted or trademarked statuses and trademark owners mentioned in this work of fiction.
ISBN-13:
ISBN-10:
Cover design: Ash Arceneaux
Edited by Chelly Peeler
Created with Vellum
To the voice inside all of us that asks why?
Why not?
Chapter 1
KAI
The night air felt thick with humidity during the summer in New Orleans, and tonight was no exception. The sun had just begun to set in the west, leaving the sky a rich hue of orange. Birds chirped their mating songs and locusts sounded in the trees.
Summer was coming to an end. Bring on the fall and winter weather, I thought to myself. Perspiration settled on my forehead. Taking a swipe, I glanced over to the door of the club. Music drifted outward as one of the club members stumbled out. He wore the club’s colors and emblem on his leather vest.
As much as I enjoyed riding my own Harley, I was not inclined to join. The club members were supernatural, like me, and they were all were-panthers.
“You’re nothing but a bunch of pussies,” I called out once…by mistake. An almost fight ignited, and my inner demon almost made an appearance. No one wants, or needs that.
My demon—I’m an Oni. I’m considered the deadliest of the deadly. I can wreak havoc like no one’s business when provoked…and the club knows it. They have an Oni on their good side, not the bad. The thought made me grin slightly.
The man turned toward me and nodded his head once. I recognized him but his name, hell, I forgot. Shoving my hands in my pocket, I thought of Jac. Hell, I missed her but she made her decision to be with Rowan. We could have made a perfect power couple, the three of us. She thought otherwise.
Now in Valhalla, I had serious doubts of ever seeing the two of them again. Had my heart recovered from her? Sure. We were together for the equivalent of a second in relationship standards, but she accepted me for me. She never hesitated.
That caused me to fall hard and fast for the woman. Rowan was another piece to her puzzle; one that I was open to. She loved him in her way, just as she loved me.
Shaking off the thoughts of what was, I looked ahead and knew I was ready for what would be. And tonight would be a night of drinking, a love-induced haze, and maybe a night with a hot woman…preferably Angelica.
“It’s time to get you laid, hard and good, my friend,” my best mate Felix told me one night. “Best way over one is to get under another.”
Real smooth, I thought. I longed for something more, something that I knew I wanted, but what and with who was the question. I made a pact with Felix that we would find a mate; someone who would complete us. Where I am more dominate, Felix is passive. We knew early on we both wanted the same things in life; the club, booze, and eventually, someone we both could call our own. Someone who would agree to be the center of our world; two men, one woman, one hell of a relationship experience.
Ours.
Mine.
I grinned and glanced up to the moon. Another week till the full moon, I thought. Making my way toward the club entrance, I grabbed the handle of the door and gave it a pull. The music surrounded me, as did the cigarette smoke. What was left of the sun’s descent followed my shadow inside, at least until the door closed.
My vision adjusted almost immediately and found Felix across the bar. I grinned and raised a brow. He sat on a sofa style chair with a woman straddling his lap, his hands on her ass. Sitting in this chair did nothing to take away from his height. Where I stood six foot, Felix was a good four inches taller, at least.
His tanned skin was a sharp contrast to the fitted white t-shirt he wore. The slender woman with bottle-blonde hair and plastic for tits was, without a doubt, Felix’s type. He liked them easy.
Felix grinned at the woman as she whispered something to him. His hazel eyes flashed, his shifter ready to pounce on the woman.
“You know I love you, baby,” Felix purred.
“Mmm,” she told him as she ground on his lap. “You love my doggy style.”
“Yeah, you love that ass!” someone called out. My brow lifted and I glanced across the bar to one of the club’s members, then found him. Felix chuckled then smacked the woman’s ass.
“Ooh baby, do it again,” the woman said.
I rolled my eyes and shook my head. Soon after Jac left, Felix took up most of my time, and that included spending most days at the motorcycle club bar. I enjoyed riding but I never felt like one of the guys. Most nights the club members left me be, but other nights…well, sometimes they enjoyed a good fight.
Tonight I was feeling feisty. It was time to play. “Felix!” I yelled out. “Did last night mean nothing to you?” I chuckled under my breath. Hearing laughter, then a cough, I glanced to the bar and found Angelica watching me. She had a smile on her lips that made me want to jump the bar and kiss her till she screamed my name.
“Are you fucking kidding me right now, bro?” Hearing Felix brought my attention back to him and I chuckled.
Plastic tits casually slipped off his lap and smiled sweetly. “Yeah, good for you and all, but I’m not into hide the stick in the puckered hole.”
“Get back here, woman. That there’s my best mate, Kai. He only wishes his cock was as large as mine!” Felix chuckled and pulled the woman back onto his lap. “Don’t worry about him, love. Kai only wants to harass. Ignore his ignorant arse. As for your arse, though, baby, I may want to play hide the stick in yours.”
She smiled at him then she glanced to me. Her eyes swept me over and I suddenly
felt naked…and loved it. “Well, if you’re into sharing…” I motioned with my hands toward her.
“Ahh, not tonight, brother, not tonight. This one here is not ready for the likes of you,” Felix winked.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” plastic tits asked as she adjusted herself on his lap. Her arms wrapped around his neck and it pushed her tits together even more.
Damn, she’ll pop out of her top before he gets a chance to get it off her, I thought.
“Means nothing, woman,” Felix told her. “Don’t worry about it. Maybe next time,” he grinned. “Angelica,” he called to the bartender, “shot of Fireball for me and Kai.”
Two shot glasses sat with a clang on the bar. I looked over to Angelica and smiled. She was a beautiful woman who had earned a nickname she sometimes went by: Cutter. The name meaning exactly that, cutting. If the enemy were captured, or someone came threatening the club, Angelica would come in with her exacto knife and cut in the club’s emblem into their body. “I’m branding them sons a bitches,” she mumbled during one of her ‘sessions.’
“You got it,” Angelica called back. She stood close to five foot five, but her size held nothing on the power within her. Her beauty ranked high on every chart out there and behind the bar, she knew it. She played it to her advantage. Angelica’s hair was long and dirty blonde, close to her mid-back. She had a toned body and damn, that ass of hers. I often thought of biting into one of her cheeks.
She filled the glasses with the whiskey. I offered her a nod with a smirk, then took my shot. I caught her gaze again and she smiled, playing coy as she glanced away.
Glancing over to Felix, I whistled to get his attention. As he looked over to me, I held up his glass and said, “Fuck you.” I took the second shot, sat the shot glass on the bar, then blew him a kiss.
Felix opened his mouth to retort as Angelica snorted. “Nicely done, fucker.” She refilled the first one and tapped the bar. “This one’s on me.”
“Hmm,” I paused, staring into her eyes. Fuck, she was gorgeous. “Maybe later I can take one off you in the physical sense, preferably with no clothes on.”
She grinned then shrugged. “Oh, I don’t know, Kai. I don’t think you can handle this pussy properly.” She winked and went to another patron.
I grinned and took the shot. Watching her as she moved across the bar, she bent over for bottles or glasses and occasionally, caught my gaze.
At one point, Angelica turned to face the back wall of the bar and peeked over her shoulder to me. Oh yes, she was definitely playing coy. I smirked as I watched her. She then completely surprised me. Angelica held up her index and middle finger, then licked between them.
I chuckled and shook my head. “You are something else, you know that?”
She grinned. “So they say. You want another shot?”
I shook my head no, “Not of the Fireball, maybe a bottle of Jack instead.”
“You got it, sweetheart.” Angelica sat the bottle on the bar with a drink glass. She put two cubes in then filled it halfway. “I’ll leave this here for you. Take as much as you need.”
Angelica was definitely amazing. As she tossed her hair over her shoulder, I found myself watching her, almost mesmerized. She glanced at me and I quickly cleared my throat.
Recovering, I asked, “Hey, pretty lady, come here a sec?”
She sidestepped back to me with her brows raised. “What’cha need, sugar?” She smiled and bent down just enough to press her tits on the bar.
I couldn’t help myself but to glance down, then raised my brow. “A back room to fondle those?”
She laughed. “Maybe later. Seriously, though, what’cha need?”
“Oh,” I shook my head and the thought of her luscious tits to the side, at least for now. “Listen, Angelica, I need to ask you something.”
She raised her brows. “Sure, anything.”
Taking in a deep breath, I let it go in a huff. “Would you be interested in, oh, I don’t know, having a drink with me?”
She blinked and did not say anything at first; at least until she smiled. “It’s about damn time you asked.”
I raised a brow. “Oh…I, umm…” I rubbed the back of my neck, “Sorry about that. I’ve been a little preoccupied.”
She nodded. “I know, but honestly? Self-pity makes you look like someone’s used bitch. It’s not a good look on you, just saying.” She shrugged, then looked to him through half-hooded lids. “I could knock that self-pity bitch right out of you. One night.”
I don’t think I breathed for a long moment, until I coughed. I had not expected that from her, yet I was pleasantly surprised. Standing from my stool, I ran a hand down my face, then lifted a brow. “Well, I’m going to take you up on that offer. Very soon.”
She laughed and winked at him. “You have my digits.” Angelica made her way to another patron when someone clapped my shoulder.
Startled, I turned to face the man who was outside earlier. Giving me the best impression of a death glare, the man had a bad eye that appeared to have been removed…forcefully. He smelled of stale smoke and had yellowed teeth. He took a step closer and leaned in. His fierceness quickly faded when he grinned. “You son of a bitch,” he chuckled. “Have fun taming that pussycat.”
I felt the threat of adrenaline settle and grinned. “Thanks, I think?”
“Ahh leave him be, will ya?”
I glanced around old smoky and grinned when the one I called Teach sidestepped us. His passion was teaching at the University. He loved animals and being a were-panther, well, it suited him. His hair grew out over the summer and it curled close to his shoulders. “He’s not doing anything I wouldn’t do!”
“Hey, I am right here, you fuckers!” Angelica called out.
Teach chuckled and offered a wink.
As I was about to say something to him, the door to the bar opened once more. We glanced over to a woman. I recognized her and immediately looked to Teach.
“She here for you?”
“Fuck my life,” Teach groaned.
“Right,” I mumbled and took a step toward the bar, then sat down. “Angelica, get ready for a show.”
She chuckled. “She so desperately wants to be someone’s old lady, Kai. Fucking your way around the club won’t earn you any points.” Unfortunately, Angelica was right. No one took to her obvious plays of attention. She was nice looking, maybe mid-thirties. Box-dyed hair that was black and it resonated blue hues. She wore too much eye make-up and most often, looked like a raccoon.
“Nice,” I whispered and waited. It did not take long.
Teach made his way over to one of the empty seats and as he sat down, he pulled one of the women in his lap. I shook my head and raised a brow.
She took a further step inside and found who she was looking for. “Tiger!”
“Tiger?” I repeated along with a few others.
“Who the fuck is Tiger?” Angelica asked me.
I chuckled, “Teach is Tiger, apparently.” I pointed toward him as the woman closed the distance. I glanced to Angelica with a nod. “You got your piece?”
She nodded. “Yeah,” she bent over slightly then as she stood, she readied her Glock.
“Tiger, what the FUCK is she doing in your lap?” She stomped up to the man and popped out her hip, hands on them. The woman had a heavy southern accent. “You said you loved me!”
‘Tiger chuckled. “Baby, you told me to tell you I loved you,” he spoke. “I don’t fucking love you. Now get the fuck out before we have your skank ass evicted.” Teach nestled the piece of ass in his lap closer and nibbled her ear.
Douche move. I shook my head.
The scorned woman shook visibly where she stood. Her hands fisted and before I had any idea of what was about to go down, I took a step back. Not being a member of the club, there’s only so much I could do. However, getting in the middle of one of their fights was not a good idea.
Some days, it was almost impossible to control my inner demo
n. Other days not so much. However, if my Oni were to be provoked to make an appearance, well, there would not be much left of the bar, nor of anyone in my way.
“You good?” Angelica asked.
I nodded. “Yeah, for now.”
Angelica knew of my demon and she knew what sort of trouble having HIM out in the open would cause. However, with this woman now in the bar, there was no telling who would fair in this fight; me forcing the demon at bay, or the woman scorned and hell-bent on making someone pay.
The woman took a step back and glanced around the bar. The other club members either looked down on her for showing her face, or laughed at the fact she’d been made a fool. She glanced to her left, then her right. She stumbled as she continued her back-step.
“You will pay, you will ALL pay!” she screamed.
“Get the fuck out of here!” Teach yelled. “You’re not welcome back here!”
She lifted a brow and grinned. “Oh, I’ll see myself out, but not before I have one word.” She tossed her hair back then lifted her hands before her.
“Oh shit,” I groaned and took another step back. “Is she a fucking witch?”
Angelica shook her head. “I don’t know. I can’t sense her.”
Side glancing her, I asked, “Should you be able to?”
“I…I don’t know. I’m still new to all this shit, Kai!”
I looked back to the woman and walked slowly toward the open part of the bartending station. Angelica had discovered her power as a supernatural when the veil lowered. She was still learning what she was, and what she did.
The woman smirked and looked to her left, then her right. “By the light of the moon, by your piercing growls, you will be further transformed into the beasts that howl. From your circle of life to the evolution of man, you shall remain in this form save full moon’s pan.”
