by Faith Gibson
“Will you tell us your part of the story now?” Monica asked.
“Yes. Why don’t you all fix a plate and begin eating. I need to talk to Zeke.” Sophia kissed Nik and left him to talk to her parents. She found Zeke leaned against the SUV studying the sky. It was a cool, overcast autumn day.
“What do you see up there?” she asked as she mimicked his position.
“Escape, Sophie girl. I spend my time alone so I don’t have to observe the love between Sam and Monica. Now I see that same love growing between you and Nikolas. Don’t get me wrong; I’m happy for you. He’s a good male. The fates chose well when they picked the two of you for one another. He comes from a strong Clan, and the more I’m around Julian, the more I realize you have been blessed beyond measure. I don’t know what I did to deserve the hand I was dealt, but it’s the only hand I have to play. I either continue bluffing my way through the game, or I fold. I don’t have it in me to quit, so I will go take care of Cyrus. After that?” Zeke shrugged. Sophia’s heart was breaking for him. It wasn’t fair.
“I’m so sorry, Uncle. Seeing the tombs and knowing the Egyptians believed so strongly in reincarnation got me to thinking. I’m going to pray to the gods and ask that they intervene on your part. I pray the soul of Nefertari, or some other great queen, finds its way into this life and into the body of your new mate.”
Zeke placed his arm around her shoulder and gave her a squeeze. “You do that. I won’t hold my breath waiting, but you pray for me. If the gods listen to anyone, it would be you.” He kissed her on top of her head and walked off. Sophia stood where she was until he was out of sight. The front door opened and Nik said, “Soph, Baby?”
She wiped the tears from her eyes and sent up that prayer. “Coming.”
Sophia returned to the kitchen where she explained to her parents everything that happened, from the time she received her note to the present. The only thing she left out was mating with Nik. They could imagine that part for themselves, if they were inclined to do so. Somehow, she doubted it.
The next morning, the Stone Society jet was waiting for them at the Luxor airport. Monica was still weak, but the more good food she ate, the stronger she got. Sam rebounded quickly; then again, he was part shifter. When they arrived at the villa, Zeke packed his bags and made arrangements to fly to Montana. Sophia was a little envious of her uncle. She had hoped to be the one to visit the wide open land where Cyrus had hundreds of acres.
Since Monica was still recovering, Sam asked Sophia to call Xenia and request she come visit the villa. While they were in Egypt, they wanted to come clean with their daughter. Their other daughter. While Sophia had her on the phone, she suggested Keene accompany her. She knew firsthand how important it was to have the strength of your mate when you are blindsided with such a revelation.
When it was time for Xenia to arrive, Sophia asked Nikolas if they could go sightseeing. She didn’t have to explain why. They had already talked at length about her having a sister and being kept in the dark all this time. Tessa piped up and said, “Gregor and I are coming with you. Might as well enjoy the city while we’re here. Julian, do you want to come with us?”
Julian rose from where he was studying something on his laptop. “Yes, it will do me good to see something besides a computer screen for a while.”
Monica stopped Sophia, “Don’t you want to stay and talk to your sister?”
“I’ve talked to Xenia. I practically spilled my guts to her, thinking she was my Aunt. You’ll have to forgive me if I leave you and Dad to explain the situation by yourselves. I won’t be a buffer for you.” Sophia understood why they’d given Xenia up for adoption; it still didn’t hurt any less that they kept it from her once she started training to be a watcher. “I came to Egypt to rescue the two of you. My work here is done. I’m pretty sure the threat is over; at least I hope it is. Now, I’m going to enjoy the sights while I can.”
The five of them piled into the SUV and headed toward downtown. “What would you like to do?” Julian asked from the driver’s seat.
Sophia answered, “I sure as hell don’t want to go to the zoo.” Everyone laughed including her. She could look back on the situation now that her parents were safe at the villa and Nik was by her side. “I would love to see the pyramids and the Sphynx while we’re here.”
“I’d like that, too,” Tessa said.
“More sand it is,” Gregor said. Both Sophia and Tessa had joked about carrying sand back to the States in their hair.
Sophia and Nik sat in the back seat of the vehicle, enjoying the banter between Tessa and Gregor. She knew her cousin was a handful, but spending so much time with the feisty redhead put a whole new perspective on the woman’s wit and demeanor. She was strong and hardheaded, but she loved her mate fiercely. Gregor Stone was one badass shapeshifter, but Tessa wouldn’t hesitate to put herself between him and someone or something who was trying to harm him. Sophia felt the same way about Nik; she just wasn’t quite the hellion her cousin was.
They spent the rest of the day exploring the Sphynx and touring the pyramids. Sophia and Nik walked with their fingers linked, always touching. Gregor and Tessa were just as bad. She didn’t miss the wistful look on Julian’s face when he watched couples together. He said he wasn’t going to pursue his own mate until everyone else’s was safe. Sophia had other plans, though. She was becoming quite fond of her new brother, and she was going to see to it he had the happiness he deserved.
Chapter Thirty
Nik was ready to go home. Having your mate’s parents sleeping down the hall put a damper on your sex life. He shouldn’t care considering Sophia was a grown woman, but they did tend to get a little on the loud side. He wouldn’t say he was content holding her while they slept. It was nice having her in his arms all night long, but his cock was aching to slide into the wet heat of his beautiful bunny. Sophia shifted, and her ass snuggled closer to his hard-on. She wiggled again, and Nik groaned. She was subconsciously trying to kill him. When she did it again, he slapped her on the ass, and she giggled.
“You naughty minx,” he hissed.
Sophia snaked her top leg over his thigh and pushed back into him. “Nikolas Stone, do I have to spell it out for you?”
“But your parents,” he reminded her.
“Are adults who may or may not remember what the mating pull felt like in the beginning. I really don’t care. What I do care about is I have an itch and I prefer that you scratch it.”
Well, allrighty then. Nik had been dying to get his face between her legs since he first saw her in the library, but he was going to wait until they were alone. When he assaulted her pussy with his mouth, he wasn’t going to let up until she was shattering the windows with his name. He whispered in her ear, “Let the scratching commence,” and bit her earlobe. Nik ran his hand down her leg and lifted it so he could reposition his cock at her entrance. He slid it through her slick folds. His woman was ready for him. With no warning, Nik thrust into her body, stopping when he was balls deep.
“Oh gods, Nik. Move, Gorgeous. Please move,” she begged.
He kept a tight grip on her leg as he slid in and out of her slick core. This position was nice, but he needed more control. Nik pushed her over to her stomach and pulled her onto her knees. He took a moment to admire her perfect heart-shaped ass while stroking his cock. When she wiggled that ass, he smacked her on the cheek before rubbing the sting away. He gave the other side equal treatment and kissed the pale skin that was now pink. One day, he was going to turn both of those cheeks red. That, too, would have to wait until they were alone. He grabbed his length and put it where they both wanted it.
Sophia met him stroke for stroke, her ass rising higher with each thrust. Her moans were muffled by the pillow her face was hiding in. When her claws came out, he knew she was ready to come. He kept his own claws sheathed, but he did grip her hips tighter. It took all his power to keep his wings from unfurling when her pussy gripped his dick and pulsed with her orgasm. He pum
ped his hips through his own orgasm and squeezed his eyes tight when the blackness started to take over. He had never busted a nut so hard that he saw stars before he met Sophia.
She collapsed onto the bed with him top of her. Nik had to move her messy hair so he could get to her face. He loved her long, wavy hair, even when it got in the way. “Good morning, Baby.”
“Morning, Gorgeous. I need a shower. And coffee. And food.”
“In that order?” Nik asked as he rolled to the side so he wouldn’t smash her. He wasn’t a large man but he had at least eighty pounds on his mate.
“Yes, in that order. I don’t want to walk through the villa smelling like sex. Not that everyone doesn’t know what we’re doing. They all have excellent hearing. Everyone except my mother.”
“Then let’s get to it. I’m ready to get back to the States. We accomplished what we came for, and now we can go home.”
They took a quick shower together, but Nik left Sophia in the bathroom so he could start breakfast. When he got to the kitchen, Julian was already at the stove. “You’re going to make someone a good wife,” he joked with his brother.
“If I had a female in my bed, I wouldn’t have reason to get up so early. Listening to you and Gregor go at it with your mates is not easy. Besides, Dante called and woke me up.”
Nik was pouring coffee when Gregor joined them. “Is everything okay back home?” he asked.
“I don’t know if things are ever going to be okay again. First off, Jasper and Trevor are mates. Jasper’s ex, Craig, was killed and the evidence is pointing to Jasper. We know it wasn’t him, because he was staking out Abbi’s house. Someone sent Trevor some compromising photos of Jasper, so Trevor, feeling betrayed, took off. While he was gone, someone started following him. You’ll never believe who it was.”
“Who?” Nik asked.
“Theron. It seems Jasper and Theron have a past together.”
“Theron’s gay?” Tessa asked as she came into the room.
“From what Dante could get out of Jasper, Theron’s a sadist. I doubt he has a preference of the gender he wants to inflict pain on. That’s not the worst of it.”
“The worst of what?” Sophia asked. She shooed Julian away from the stove and took over breakfast.
“Thank you. Remember I told you Frey’s mate had an abusive husband? Well, he grabbed her from the community center and was going to kill her, but not before he tortured and raped her.”
“What?”
“Oh, gods!”
“That motherfucker!” Everyone was talking at the same time.
Julian held up his hand, “Long story short… Frey found them right as Troy dumped Abbi over the bridge. Frey phased and caught her before she hit the ground. Jasper beat the hell out of Troy and was going to arrest him. Matthew confronted the man about abusing him and Abbi all these years. Troy shot at Matthew. Jasper phased, wrapping his wings around the boy. Trevor was there with Dante, and he ended up killing Troy. The good news in all that is Abbi’s going to be okay.”
“Holy shit. You were right, Julian. The fates are making it hard on all of you,” Tessa said.
“This is why I’m not in such a hurry to be with Katherine.” Julian filled them in on the rest of the story. Nik was seriously ready to go home so he could support Frey.
“All this happened while we were fighting the rebels. Frey and Abbi are getting married in a couple of days. If we leave today, we can make it to the wedding.”
“Wow, they didn’t waste any time, did they?” Sophia asked.
“When you know it’s right, why wait?” Nik asked her.
“Abbi is human, so Frey is honoring her way of doing things. I would marry her as quick as I could, too, if I were in his shoes. Honestly, I know how he feels. When you come that close to losing your mate, you do whatever it takes to bind them to you,” Gregor said as he pulled Tessa to him and held on tight.
“Such a romantic, Stone,” Tessa said, but Nik could see the tears misting her eyes.
“Good morning everyone,” Monica said quietly. “I overheard your conversation, and I think it’s wonderful you’re going home. However, I have something I need to tell you.”
Nik was glad to see his mate’s mother happy. She was more than happy, though. She was excited.
“Sophia, I told you I knew what the numbers were. After your father and I explained to Xenia that we’re her parents, we talked about Mercer. She forgave us, by the way. When we were reminiscing about my brother and his love for ciphers, she remembered another set of numbers she’d seen before. She went home and found a journal that she originally thought to be gibberish. Instead of it being nonsense, I explained to her what she had in her hands. It was the last code needed to decipher the numbers he left for her in the safety deposit box. Together, we cracked the code. Sophia, we know where Cleopatra and Antony are buried.”
Nik thought Sophia would have been more excited at the bomb her mother dropped on her. If Monica truly knew the location of the tomb, this would put them all in the history books. While everyone in the room was whooping it up and congratulating Monica, Sophia stopped cooking and walked over to Nik. He was becoming accustomed to her movements. As strong a female as his mate was, whenever her parents were around, she needed to have him close. At first he thought it was the mate pull, until he reached out to check her vitals. Whenever her mother shared a secret, or in this case, some exciting news, Sophia’s heart rate sped up and her shifter pushed for control.
Since Nik’s shifter had a line to Sophia’s, he pulled the beast forward and let it make the connection. All Nik had to do was hold his mate. Within seconds, she was calming down and back in control. He wanted to talk to Dante about how the calming effect worked. His cousin had a special ability none of the others seemed to have in that he could touch someone and ease their moods.
“This is great news, Mother. You and Xenia will be famous.”
Monica stepped closer to Sophia, but Sam stopped her. He took his mate’s hand and said, “No, sweetheart. Not only your mother and Xenia. This will include you, as well. You are the reason we were reunited. This is to be a family project. My three girls will make the discovery together.”
Nik knew his mate was torn. He started to tell her it was okay, but Julian stepped up to her and took her hands in his. If this was anyone else, Nik’s claws would be out. He knew whatever Julian had to say was important. “We all want to go home; no one more than me. Our big brother is getting married. He has been through a terrible ordeal, but he has come out the other side a victor. He is gaining a family. Not only does he have Matthew, but also a sweet little girl he’s going to adopt. But you know what? Sixx can set up a live video feed, and we can be there with them in spirit. This discovery of Cleopatra and Antony’s tomb will be nothing short of a miracle. This is history in the making, and as much as I want to be in New Atlanta with Geoffrey, I honestly want to be here just a little more.
“I want to be part of something that will go down in the history books. As Gargoyles, we have to hide our true natures, hide any good we do from the public. I have lived over five hundred years. The last fifty I’ve done so sitting back, looking at the world through a computer monitor. For once, I want to be part of something exciting. I want to be on the front lines when this discovery is made. I need to see it with my own eyes instead of going home and reading about it on a laptop. Sophia, think about it. You don’t have to take credit if you don’t want to, but if you miss out on this once in a six million lifetime chance, you’ll regret it.” Julian squeezed her hands before letting go.
“Six million, huh?” she asked.
Nik knew his brother had rounded the figure. Julian knew the exact percentage, but didn’t want to show off.
“Give or take three hundred seventy-four,” he added with a wink.
Sophia turned and looked up at Nik. “Are you okay with missing your brother’s wedding? You and I can fly home if Julian wants to stay here.”
“Baby, I think Frey
would kick all our asses if we passed up this opportunity. As soon as we get home we can visit him and his new family. Personally, I think you’ll kick your own ass later if you miss out on this.” Nik felt the same way Julian did. He wanted to be part of something extraordinary.
“If you’re okay with it, let’s do it.”
“Yes!” Tessa yelled. “Lara fucking Croft, get your digging clothes on.” Tessa had used the cover of being an archaeologist for years to travel the world visiting her cousins. Now, she was going to get to participate in a legitimate dig that could possibly change history.
Everyone laughed, including Sophia’s parents. Sam wiped the tears off Monica’s face and kissed her on the lips. Nik was glad Sophia agreed to stay. As badly as he wanted to be there for Frey, this was a story they could pass down for generations to come.
Chapter Thirty-One
Xenia arrived shortly after breakfast. Before the group began planning their expedition, Sophia asked to speak with her outside. Once alone, Sophia said, “I promise you I didn’t know.”
Xenia stepped closer and put her arm around Sophia’s shoulder. “I know you didn’t. Sam and Monica explained it all to me last night. Honestly? I’d rather have you as a sister than a niece.”
“So you’re not upset?”
“Oh, at first I was mad as hell, but what good is it going to do anyone? I could thumb my nose at them and cut them out of my life. Or, I can forgive them and have more family than only you, Keene, and Zeke. I might never call them mom and dad, especially considering I look old enough to be their parent.”
“Stop it, you do not. You’re beautiful.”
“Just like my sister. At first I balked at the idea until Monica started talking about her brother. Mercer and Sadie couldn’t have kids of their own. They tried for years. When Monica needed someone to take me in, she knew her brother was the one. It was a win-win for everyone.”
