Atlantis Series Complete Collection

by Gena Showalter

  Once again, her mouth floundered open and closed.

  “There is no other I would bind myself for. Do you know why, Alyssa? You are my mate. I want no other but you. I would give my life for you. I…love you. Your wit, your smile, your determination, your stubbornness, the light in your eyes when you look at me. The way you move, the timbre of your voice, the curves of your body. Everything. I worship it all. Yes, I once hated vampires. Yes, I still hate demons. Yes, your family destroyed mine. But I’m here, offering myself to you, proof of my devotion.”

  Those tears free-fell down her cheeks now and she hugged her arms to her stomach.

  He’d hoped, been so sure of success…until now. “Am I too late? Is the hurt too great? I know I made you feel less than a woman. That will haunt me for the rest of my days. But I have found pleasure with you, love. That night in the cave, I had never experienced so much. I want to satisfy you now. I want—”

  She was in his arms a moment later, placing kisses all over his face. “I love you. I’ve always loved you.”

  Their lips met in a fierce, drugging kiss. Her hands were all over him: his chest, his neck, his arms, his erection. He banded his arms around her, lay down and rolled, tucking her securely underneath him.

  “Let me make you feel good.” He licked at her neck, careful not to wrap the chains around her delicate skin.

  She spread her legs, welcoming him into the curve of her body. “You are.”

  “I want to give you more. So much more.” Because of the chains he could not trail down her body as he wanted. “Scoot up for me, love. I need to lick between your legs. Don’t deny me the honor this time. Please.”

  She was pulling at his hair, trying to get his lips back to hers. “Kiss.”

  “Soon. If I don’t taste you, I’ll tumble straight into insanity.”

  Unsure, she inched upward. Her sweat-soaked skin slid, abraded deliciously against his own. And then her feminine core was right there, his to devour. He did. He licked the pink lips apart and sucked on the sweet little center.

  Her hips writhed, her knees dropped further apart and she moaned. “Shivawn.”

  “This is mine. All mine.”

  “Yours.”

  “This is what’s going to keep me alive from this day forward.” He pumped his tongue into and out of her tight little sheath, taking more of her sweetness down his throat. “And then you’re going to bite me and take what you need to live.”

  She gave a violent shake of her head. “You hate being bitten. I’ll find nourishment elsewhere.” Her muscles were tensing, gearing for release. “Shivawn! Don’t stop.”

  “This is heaven, sweet. This is heaven. And I will take great pleasure in giving you my blood. Great pleasure.” He sucked her, hard. “There’ll be no one else for you. It’s my blood for you. I want to give it to you.”

  She fell right over the edge, screaming in ecstasy, chanting his name. While she hung in the balance between satisfaction and a new flood of desire, he scooted her back under him and entered her, filling her up.

  “Mine,” he gritted out through teeth clenched in absolute abandon. “All mine.”

  Her arms wrapped around him as he began pumping. “You’re mine, too.”

  “Always. You feel so good,” he praised. “I never want to leave you.”

  “Don’t.” She pressed a kiss into his neck, where his pulse fluttered wildly. But she didn’t bite him.

  “Do it. Please.”

  “No. Not with you. Already this seems like a dream. I don’t want to awaken.”

  His strokes never slowed. “Do it. Please, love. Please. I’m desperate. I want those teeth inside me, sucking deep and hard.”

  “Are—are you sure?”

  “Beyond.”

  A moment passed. Her teeth scraped at his skin but didn’t penetrate. He increased the fervency of his thrusts, pounding, slamming. “Do it, love. I need those teeth in me. I need—”

  With a growl as fierce as any warrior’s, she bit him. Deep, hard. A cut that would mark him for eternity. On and on she drank, and the sensation of her hot tongue on his neck, her teeth in his vein, combined with the knowledge that they were joined in every possible way, sent him over.

  He shouted with his release, spurting his seed straight to her core.

  Her teeth pulled out abruptly as she, too, cried out in release. Their bodies strained together, shook. “Never leave me,” he gasped out, half-fearing she would bolt afterward. “Never.”

  “Never,” she swore.

  Shivawn collapsed on top of her, content and smiling.

  * * *

  VALERIAN STEPPED INTO the fire-lit hut and glanced around. It was bare except for a straw bed, which Shivawn lay upon. He was on his back, sleeping, naked. Chained. There were teeth marks all over his neck.

  Valerian frowned. The vampire, Alyssa, was curled into Shivawn’s side, her hand resting directly above his heart. She, too, was naked and asleep. And if Valerian wasn’t mistaken, there was a love bite or two darkening her neck, as well. Frown deepening, Valerian strode to the bed, boots thumping against the twig-laden ground.

  Shivawn’s eyes fluttered open, as did Alyssa’s. Shivawn growled, Alyssa screamed and scrambled backward as he raised his sword.

  “Valerian, stop! This—” Shivawn threw himself on top of the woman as best he could with the chains pulling at him.

  Valerian smiled but didn’t stop. As if he would have hurt the woman. He hit the chains, snapping the links in half. “I see you took my advice and apologized. Good man. Now I will offer an apology of my own for not being able to give you more time with your woman. The army waits outside. We have need of you.”

  Once, Shivawn would have jumped up and obeyed. Now he growled, “Turn your back. Now!”

  As king, Valerian wasn’t used to being ordered and did not like it now, but he obeyed instantly. He understood the need to keep a mate’s nudity all to oneself. If anyone were to look upon his Shaye in such a state, well, they would lose their eyes.

  There was a rustling, some cooing, and Valerian rolled his own eyes. Then there was even some kissing. “Sometime today,” he said.

  “You may turn.”

  He did. Shivawn was draped by a blanket and the pretty vampire was covered with a dirty yellow robe, only her face and hands visible.

  “We have news of the disappearance. Two of the warriors have been found. Rumor has it they are locked up at the Amazon camp.”

  “Who was found?”

  “A dragon and a vampire,” he said, flicking a glance to Alyssa.

  She squared her shoulders, plans to retrieve the warrior already swirling in her eyes. “Is my king—”

  “No. It is the other.” Valerian’s attention shifted back to Shivawn. “I want to talk to them and find out what happened, if they know where the others are. If the others are… I want to hear firsthand that Broderick and Jada are alive and well.”

  “The Amazons never allow armies near their holding,” Shivawn said, but he was gathering his weapons.

  Valerian smiled smugly. “As if they could turn a nymph away. As if any woman could.”

  “I’m going with you,” Alyssa said, standing.

  Shivawn pulled her to him for a deep kiss. “I wouldn’t have it any other way, love. We’re together, now and always.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  LAYEL FOUND A cave as far away from the unearthly growling as possible. Whatever creature was producing the eerie rumble, he wasn’t ready to approach. Only when Delilah had been well cared for would he even think of battle.

  Delilah.

  His chest ached for her. He laid her down gently, peering at her beautiful, expressionless face. Hestia had taken her emotions from her, and he hated the goddess for that. Yesterday he would have hated himself, too, for allowing it to happen. But he wasn’t that same man anymore. He refused to wallow in pain and pity.

  Today he was a man who took action, who kept his eye on the prize and did what was necessary to
win it. In this case, the prize was Delilah’s heart.

  “We should find and kill the beast,” she said, sitting up.

  He kissed her softly. Her skin was cold, and she did not respond as she once had. “I love you,” he told her, words he’d never thought to utter again.

  She opened her mouth—to rebuke him, he was sure, so he placed a finger over her lips. “Shh. Don’t waste your strength.”

  She shrugged as if she didn’t care one way or another, but there was something in her eyes…a spark of something hot. Was she feeling? Was it possible?

  “Close your eyes and rest, sweet.” He draped an arm around her, surprised when she obeyed. “You’re safe.”

  “I am tired,” she said with a sigh. Just like that, her body sagged into unconsciousness. There were no fears to keep her awake, no desire to cause her to ache. Only a void to tug her under, into nothingness, as if she had lost even her will to live. Had he imagined that spark?

  Layel swallowed the hard lump in his throat and stood. Darkness was thicker than a blanket as he strode forward, pushing through the trees, not noticing as the branches slapped and cut him.

  When he was far enough away that Delilah wouldn’t be able to hear him if she awoke, he dropped to his knees. He jerked the shirt from his torso and tossed it aside.

  Hestia, the bitch, clearly wanted Delilah to win. And though it angered Layel to agree with her, his wishes now aligned with her own. Layel had thought to win the competition himself, but now knew he couldn’t do it. If Delilah won, she would keep her life and could demand as her boon the return of her emotions, her will to live. But he would die. There had to be a way to save them both.

  “Hestia, goddess of hearth and home,” he cried. “I come before you as your humble servant, my heart heavy and my greatest wish to beg an audience.”

  A minute edged by, then another. There was nothing, no pickup in the wind, no dancing of the trees, no singing of insects.

  “Please,” Layel gritted out. He had hated the gods all these years. After Susan died, he had begged like this, pleaded for her life, and he had been ignored. Now he had Delilah and he intended to keep her for as long as he lived. As far as he was concerned, the gods owed him one. “Show yourself!” he shouted then, respect and decorum forgotten. “You want victory? Well, you will not get it. Not without my aid. You will lose. You will—”

  “I will not lose,” an angry voice said from behind him.

  Layel was on his feet and spinning in an instant. His heart hammered erratically when he saw that Hestia stood before him, draped in a white robe and holding a spear. The goddess glowed with the force of her power, obviously no longer content to hide behind a veil of secrecy. But though her might had never been more evident, Layel was encouraged by the fact that she had heeded his call.

  “Forgive me for my outburst.” He forced his head to bow. For Delilah. “I was desperate to reach you.”

  The goddess sighed and was suddenly right in front of him, her sandals pressed against his boots. She smelled of the sea. “What do you want from me, vampire king?” Though he never saw her move, she was behind him again when the last word was spoken.

  His jaw tightened. “I ask that you return Delilah’s emotions to her.”

  “Why would I be so foolish as to agree to that? With them as her guide, she chose you over victory. An intolerable decision.”

  “Yes, but without them, she chooses nothing. She is no use to you now. She doesn’t want victory. She wants only to sleep.”

  His knees were suddenly kicked from behind and he found himself kneeling again. He didn’t fight, didn’t complain. He simply ran his tongue over his teeth, the sharpness of them slicing. A pity it was his blood rather than Hestia’s, but he knew he could not hurt the goddess without severe consequences.

  “Better. I like you like this, vampire. Even a king should learn to show proper respect to the gods.”

  I hate you. What have you ever done to earn my respect? “Would you be willing to consider a trade?”

  A crackling pause that seemed to stretch into eternity. Then, “What are you offering?”

  “For the restoration of Delilah’s emotions, I will promise to lose this competition. Not only that, but I will do all I can to ensure that she wins.”

  Another bout of silence. “A novel idea, but you cannot assure me beyond any doubt that you can acquire the victory for her. The dragon or the nymph could swoop in and stop you both. What’s more, you cannot assure me that once her emotions are restored she will use them wisely to secure her own triumph. She could very well fight for you to win.”

  Very true. Stubborn as Delilah was, she just might try to aid him. “I’ll stop her.” Somehow, some way. “Upon my honor.”

  “You have no honor, vampire.” Her head tilted to the side as she considered him. “But your proposition intrigues me nonetheless. What if I agreed to return her emotions for a single night? You would have one night to convince her of the merits of winning, no matter the cost. Even though she will lose her emotions again in the morning, the logic you plant inside her mind will still remain. And victory will once again be her concern.” An excited laugh. “If I do this for you, you will not tell her about our bargain. Understand? You will tell no one.”

  A minute with Delilah’s love was better than a lifetime without. “I would agree. To all your terms.” Of course she wouldn’t wish the other gods to know of her intervention. Layel stored that information, to be pondered later. “And as winner, she will still be awarded the boon. For aiding her, would I be given one, as well?”

  “This is your boon. Now, have we reached an agreement? Will you help her solve our riddle?”

  A single word caused Layel’s mind to spin. Riddle. What kind of riddle? He racked his brain to remember what the gods had said earlier. You will find something the likes of which even the bravest of men would run from. He’d thought the answer a beast. His brow furrowed as he pondered further. If those words were indeed a riddle, could that mean there wasn’t really a beast in the mountain? But he’d heard the snarling, hadn’t he?

  “Killing me will cause more harm than good,” Layel said, forging ahead despite his confusion. “Surely you—”

  “Enough,” she interjected. “Answer. Now. Do we have an agreement?” Such sudden impatience. Either she’d realized she’d said more than she ought or she sensed his inner turmoil.

  “I agree to everything,” he said. “Return Delilah’s emotions for one night. In turn I will purposely lose while doing my best to ensure that she wins by whatever means necessary.” He wanted it spelled out, so there could be no question later what he had agreed to. “And I will not tell her or anyone what I’ve done.”

  Hestia was in front of him again, kneeling, placing them nose to nose. Her lips brushed his in a soft kiss that shot wave after wave of electricity through him. There was nothing sexual about it; this was just her way of proving her power, he supposed. “Then go. Your woman feels again.”

  Suddenly a scream echoed through the night. Delilah’s scream.

  Layel was on his feet in the next instant, running back to her, desperate to reach her, the goddess already forgotten. He broke through the final layer of trees. Saw her. She was curled in a ball, sobbing.

  “I’m here, I’m here.” He flew to her and gathered her in his arms, holding as tight as he was able without hurting her.

  She didn’t protest. No, she clung to him. “I feel… There’s so many… They’re so strong… Can’t process all of them. What’s wrong with me, Layel?”

  “You’ve been given back what was taken from you,” he said. He hadn’t broken the pact, either, though he knew he skirted a dangerous edge. “In the morning—” he said, then stopped himself. As he watched, her eyes began to grow cold again, as if her emotions were once more receding. Her sobs quieted. Hestia was watching, he realized, and subtly conveying to Layel that she would reclaim Delilah’s emotions if he broke his word. Layel clamped his lips together.

&
nbsp; As quickly as it had appeared, the coldness vanished and her sobs returned.

  “Shh, shh. I’ve got you now.” He ran his hands down her spine, then up, under her half-shirt. Her skin was blazing hot. “I love you. I love you so much.”

  “I—I—Layel, Nola was taken and I didn’t fight for her. You told me you loved me and I didn’t care. I should have fought. I should have told you I loved you, too, and would do anything to stay with you.”

  Joy burst through him, hearing that heartfelt proclamation, and he knew he’d lived these past two hundred years for this moment. This moment, and no other. Not revenge, and not to become worthy of Susan. Everything he’d done, everything he was, was for Delilah. All his torment had led him to her.

  Softly he brushed her trembling lips with his own. “There’s nothing we can do for your sister now. Once we leave the island—” no matter what the goddess said, Layel would not allow himself to be killed “—we will retrieve her.”

  “But you—you—”

  “I love you, warrior woman. I love you. I am only sorry it took me so long to realize it. I am sorry for hurting you, sweet. So sorry.”

  He pressed their lips together and thrust his tongue deep into her mouth, feeding her a kiss that scorched even him to the bone.

  “What of your mate?”

  “You are my mate now. But if you wish to know of Susan, I will tell you anything, everything.” He drew in a breath, slowly released it. “You know the gods used to exile unfavored humans to Atlantis, hoping we would annihilate them. Well, some of them survived and Susan was their descendant. As she grew they kept her hidden very well. But vampires sense human blood as no other can. We’re drawn to it. The taste, the sweetness. Though nothing compares to yours,” he hastened to assure her.

  She snuggled against him, listening intently, urging him on.

  “My men and I sniffed her out,” he said, pleased to discover that talking about the past was no longer like ripping open a wound. “I meant to keep her chained in my room, mine to drink from anytime I desired. Remember, those were much different, much harsher times. Anyway, I grew to love her smile, her gentle nature. She…softened me. After she finished scolding me for trying to hold her captive, that is. We had two wondrous years together before she conceived. The baby was due just after the dragons came, killing both Susan and my unborn daughter.”