by Lara Adrian
“You’ll be leaving now,” the leader said.
Canaan smiled coldly as he pushed off the wall. “I make my own decisions.”
“Who are you?” asked the third of the group who had been looking as if he recognized Canaan. “Shit. You’re Canaan Romerac.”
Canaan didn’t wait for the others’ reaction. He attacked, ramming his shoulder into the gut of the leader, knocking him off his feet before he grabbed Blondie’s head and broke his neck.
He dropped the body and turned when a bullet slammed into his chest, the silver spreading like wildfire. Canaan let out a roar and raced for the leader who managed to get off two shots from his gun before Canaan reached him.
With every bullet, Canaan’s rage grew. He was focused on killing the two Incubi, making it easy to push aside the pain of the silver.
~ ~ ~
Rayna rushed out into the alley even as she knew the danger that awaited her. As soon as the three Incubi walked into the bar she realized they had come for Canaan.
She looked skyward at the rumble of clouds that seemed to form right over her as if someone had called to them. Thunder rolled an instant before lightning split the sky. She stumbled to a halt, her mouth open as she watched in helpless awe as Canaan left carnage in his wake. His strength was incredible, his speed inconceivable, but it was his blinding fury that held her immobile.
Blood coated the ground and walls of the buildings. Two lifeless bodies lay nearly torn apart, the savagery making her stomach turn.
The retort of a gun made her jump and look to Canaan. He stood over the last Incubus who had just fired the pistol. Canaan swatted the gun out of the weakened hand of the Incubus just as another bolt of lightning hit. Canaan reared back his hand and sent a killing punch to his jaw.
Over and over Canaan hit the dead man. With each punch the lightning became more extreme, the thunder deafening. Rayna debated what to do. She had seen men lose themselves in anger before, but what she witnessed with Canaan was different. He was untamed, fierce, and ferocious in his attack.
She took a step around one of the dead bodies toward Canaan and saw the front of his white tee covered with blood and...was that silver?
He was kneeling on the dead Incubus now, and his punches made the face unrecognizable. Someone was going to have to step in, and since she was the only one out there, it was left up to her.
Rayna called out his name, but her voice was carried away by the growing wind. She drew closer. “Canaan? It’s over. They’re dead. Can you hear me, Canaan?”
When she reached him, she tentatively touched his shoulder, ready for him to turn and strike her. Instead, his hand that was lifted and ready for another hit dropped to his side.
He turned his head to her and she saw the rage begin to fade from his blue-green eyes. Blood was all over him, and his hands looked like he had hit bricks instead of flesh.
The wind began to die down. She glanced at the sky to see the clouds begin to disperse. No longer was there thunder and lightning.
“It’s over, Canaan,” she repeated.
He gave a shake of his head and got to his feet. “It’s just beginning.”
“Easy,” Rayna said when he staggered, and she slid against his side to take some of his weight. “You’re wounded.”
“Just need...to rest,” he said, his words slurring.
She glanced at the three dead men and continued walking Canaan to her car. Once he was inside, she got behind the wheel and started the car. It never entered her mind to leave Canaan there.
As she pulled out onto the road, she dialed Leo to let him know that she was on her way home because she was ill. It wasn’t a total lie. She had lost her mind. What other explanation was there for helping an Incubus?
CHAPTER FOUR
Canaan was being tortured again. There was a beautiful woman, her sensual voice stirring him, her touch tempting him as she wiped a cool cloth over his face and chest.
His strength was completely drained. If Incubi came for him now, he was no better than an infant. They would either kill him outright if they caught him, or toss him back into the Oubliette.
He was on fire, his body in turns raging and so cold he thought he might break into a million pieces. Canaan had no idea how long he suffered before blessed sleep began to finally claim him. He tried to turn, to reach for the siren beside him.
“Easy,” the woman whispered. “You need to rest, Canaan.”
It was the use of his name that made him recognize Rayna. Why was she helping him?
That was the very question in his mind when he woke. He lay still, listening for...anything. When only silence met him, he chanced to move his head and look around the room. He was in an upper floor of some kind, based on the slanting roof.
Shutters were closed over the windows but light still filtered through, allowing him to see the dust swirling in the sun. The house was old, but in good order. More than he could say for himself.
Canaan clenched his teeth as he sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed. He raised a brow when he saw he had been divested of his clothes. Had the lovely Rayna been the one to strip him?
His body stirred just thinking about it. It was too bad he hadn’t been aware of it. He’d have liked to see her face as she bared his body.
“You shouldn’t be sitting up,” Rayna said as she walked through a doorway, a tray in her hands. She looked tired, weary.
A part of him wanted to comfort her since he knew it was Rayna who had remained up with him most of the night. Had she sat by his bed while he slept?
Canaan glanced down at his chest to see his wounds had stopped bleeding, but until he fed, the silver would remain inside him, thereby weakening him. “I’m better.”
“Better perhaps, but certainly not well.” She set the tray down and moved her hair out of her face to tuck it behind her ear.
He liked it when she wore her hair down. It was longer than he remembered though. Then again, it hadn’t been her hair he had been focused on when they had shared their kiss.
“You’re staring.”
And he had no intention of stopping. “Did you alert someone that I was here?”
Her lips parted, an affronted look hardening her face. “No. Before you ask again, let me be clear. I walked away from that world eight years ago. I don’t have contact with my family or any Nephilim or Incubi.”
“That’s not entirely true, now is it? You’ve had contact with me.”
She crossed her arms over her chest and regarded him with a chilly look. “I told no one that you were an Incubus. I’ve no one to tell.”
Canaan didn’t exactly believe her, but at the moment his choices were limited. He would keep a close watch on her. He had learned the hard way that he could never trust anyone.
“Why did you help me?”
Her gaze shifted away as she shrugged. “I’ve been asking myself that same question since I put you in my car.”
“For that I’m thankful.”
“So,” she said into the quiet. “Silver, huh?”
He frowned. It was a secret the Incubi kept from the Nephilim specifically so they could never use it against them.
Rayna threw up her hands, her eyes wide. “Hey. Didn’t you hear me a second ago? I don’t have contact with that world anymore.”
“Someone knew I was in town.” He paused as he thought over his exchange with the Incubi who attacked. “Actually, they didn’t know who I was at first. They thought I was just a lower level Incubus.”
“And you’re not?”
Damn. He really was going to have to remember to keep his mouth shut around her. Canaan ran a hand down his face before he braced both hands on either side of him. “It’s better if you don’t know who I am. I’ll be leaving soon anyway.”
“I assumed as much. Last night you wanted to talk. I’m not sure I can tell you anything more than you already know.”
Canaan grunted. “Ah, but I’m sure you can.”
“How long hav
e you been gone?” Her gaze was focused, as if gauging his response.
How much did he tell her? He needed information, information that she had. In order to get it, he might have to tell her a bit about himself. There was nothing wrong with that. She would never know exactly who he was.
“Five centuries.”
She blinked and took a step back. “You’ve been gone for five hundred years?” Her gaze swung away as she rubbed her jaw. A moment later she faced him again. “Where were you?”
“Kept against my will.”
“That’s all you’re going to tell me?” She rolled her eyes and let her hands slap against her thighs. “I should’ve known.”
“It’s all you need to know. In the end, it might very well save your life.” Canaan motioned to a chair. “Sit, Rayna, and eat some of the food you brought up.”
“I brought it for you,” she mumbled, but she pulled out the chair and sat. “What do you want to know?”
“Everything. Who is in power in the Nephilim world?”
“The powerful families are still, well, powerful. Nephilim are still being chosen by the Three to be taken to the Harem.”
She fairly vibrated with anger as she said the last part. Canaan kept the sheet covering his nakedness as he leaned back against the iron headboard. “I take that to mean you know someone chosen? It’s a great honor, Rayna. They are immortal while on that sacred land.”
“With no choice about going,” she argued. “And yes, I know someone. My twin was taken.”
Ah. So much made sense now. No longer did he need to ask why she had left her world behind. “I take it she didn’t want to go?”
“No. Anya wanted to go. She was so happy.”
“Then you should be happy for her.”
“Happy that she’ll be there for God only knows how long, producing babies for whatever Incubus comes in and chooses her? Happy that she’ll give her children for the good of our people and yours?” She shook her head. “I can’t.”
“She’s only required to give one child. After that, she can leave. It’s up to them whether they wish to remain and produce more children for us.”
For long moments Rayna stared at the floor silently. “This wasn’t the first place I went when I left my family. For two years I was on Long Island. Silly me thought I could remain close but distanced from them. They found me. My mother sent a letter, elated, to announce that Anya had given birth to a little girl who would be given to us in a few weeks. My mother wanted me to take my niece and raise her as my own.”
“It’s always been the way, Rayna. The female offspring of a Nephilim and Incubus goes to the Nephilim, while the male offspring remain with the Incubi. That arrangement was set up long ago to help both of our kind survive.”
“The Three are supposed to step down in the next five years as their three-hundred-year time as priestesses has come to an end. The entire Nephilim world is in a frenzy because the Three have yet to find their replacements.”
Canaan let the abrupt change in topic go as he realized the implications of what she was saying. “The next priestesses should have been chosen already to begin their training.”
“I know. This is a first, from what I understand. No one knows what will happen if the Three don’t find more priestesses.”
“There is a temple where Nephilim would go to be trained and considered as priestesses,” Canaan said, a niggle of worry beginning.
Rayna met his gaze and shook her head. “That really exists? I thought it was something else that was made up.”
Canaan was beginning to comprehend that the goings-on in the Incubi and Nephilim world were much worse than he first thought. “What about the Incubi? What do you know of us?”
“I know the Sovereign sitting on the Obsidian Throne is still from the House of Marakel. I also know that he has no heirs to be considered when it comes time for him to step aside.”
“And the other nine Houses?”
“House Akana is no longer. Something about him unable to father a child.”
That was impossible. Incubi had never had a problem fathering children. “What about the other Houses?”
“All is fine, as far as I last heard.”
“What about the Sovereign? You said his House has no heirs to be considered as next in line.”
Rayna shrugged and rose to hand him a mug of coffee. “He’s done nothing. Before I left my family, I remember that everyone expected him to visit the Harem, but he chose not to.”
“Were women brought to him?”
“Maybe,” she said with a shrug.
The mug he was holding cracked as he squeezed it in anger. If he was at full strength it would have shattered. It was just another reminder that he was in no condition to move forward with his plans.
Canaan set the mug on the table next to the bed and put his feet on the floor. Then he stood, letting the sheet fall away. “Where are my clothes?”
“Unwearable. I did find you some more,” Rayna said, looking anywhere but him. “What do you think you’re doing?”
“I need to gain my strength. The only way to do that is by having sex. Are you offering?”
There was a beat of silence, and to his delight, Rayna glanced at him twice before she closed her eyes. “No.”
As he thought. “A pity. I liked the way you tasted.”
Rayna swallowed and quickly rose so that she faced the doorway. The entire night and most of the day that she had stood over him she had been admiring his body. He was impeccably built, his muscles solid and his skin warm. “I’ll just go get your clothes then.”
She wasn’t entirely sure he was fit to go out. He moved well enough, but the strength she had witnessed the night before was gone. The fire within him, however, burned brighter than ever. He was looking to start something.
“Or finish it,” she said to herself as she raced down the stairs and grabbed the pile of clothes at the bottom before she went back up.
As she came through the doorway she saw him with his hands braced on the windowsill with his chin to his chest. He looked so lonely, and she could relate to that.
If she didn’t know how his kiss could turn her inside out, or how hard his body was, she might have been able to look away, to ignore the splendid, glorious sight before her.
Canaan was perfectly formed, in every way. From his wide shoulders to his tapering torso, down to his trim waist and narrow hips. Thick sinew corded every inch of him from neck to ankle.
He shifted, bringing her gaze to his butt. She had no idea an ass could look that good or be that tight with muscle. His dark good looks combined with his olive skin and body honed out of her wildest dreams was an intoxicating combination.
If only she was brave enough to give in. For the rest of her days her lips would never forget the feel of his kiss, how he expertly took her, giving her a glimpse of the bliss that could be found in his arms.
“Do you give a women only pleasure?” She wasn’t sure where the words had come from, or why she kept wanting to help him.
His head swung to her as his blue-green eyes seemed to pierce her very soul. “Only pleasure. Don’t you know? As a Nephilim you’ll have been with at least one Incubus.”
“I’ve refused every Incubus who tried. Not that there were that many. Just a handful over the years. At first I saved myself to be considered for the Harem, because that was what we were taught. After, it was because I wanted no part of that world.”
“There is only pleasure, Rayna. We feed off the energy created by sex. If we don’t feed, we grow weak. If we continue without sex, we die.”
She held out the clothes to him, unable to have him walk around nude any longer and not touch him. “Then I’ll bring a woman to you.”
CHAPTER FIVE
Canaan looked at her with surprise he didn’t try to hide. What was it about Rayna that caught his interest – and held it? She had touched him when he was in full rage, battling his attackers. With just a hand on his shoulder, his fury had ab
ated.
No one had ever been able to do that to him. Though to be fair, few got close when he was in such a state. Still, Rayna had not only dared it, but remained with him.
He hated the weakness of his body. If he had his full strength, she wouldn’t have had to watch over him all night. It was his pride that brought him to this. He hadn’t fed off the humans in the Oubliette because he had already slept with each of them once.
That choice had left him weakened. It was the silver, however, that was taking the last of his strength. It was all he could do to remain standing. Yet he refused to let Rayna know just how vulnerable he was.
“You’re bleeding again,” Rayna said as she set aside the clothes and moved to him.
Canaan bit back a hiss at the feel of her hands on his chest. Being this close to her was too much. He craved the pleasure he knew could be between them, longed to hear her scream in release and see her body flushed with satisfaction.
He looked down at her hands to see her trying in vain to stop the trickle of blood. She had no idea how her touch set his blood aflame.
How having her so close made him ache to pull her into his arms.
How he longed to push her against the wall and ravage her mouth until she clung to him.
It was no surprise that his cock answered by growing hard, straining between them. Rayna, for her part, tried to ignore his arousal. It was the shaking of her hands and the rapid beat of her pulse at her throat that gave her away.
“You’ve lost too much blood,” she said in a breathless, husky whisper.
Canaan couldn’t hold back his moan. Her voice sent his body into overdrive, his heated blood beginning to boil with need. He was a sex demon, and yet it was a Nephilim who stimulated him beyond anything he could imagine.
Time stood still when she raised her brown gaze to him. Her large eyes were wide and dilated, her lips parted, and her breathing harsh. She had no idea of her appeal or how she could have him on his knees, begging for another taste of her.
