by Honor James
“I trust you,” Lilly admitted honestly. “I really do. No matter what, I trust you. If you feel that someone else should help get me out of whatever this is, then I trust you in that. But I really and truly do believe that no matter what we will do what’s necessary because we really do both want the same things. Happiness and joy, right?”
“I do and yes, we will have happiness and joy, too.” He smiled down at her. Pressing a kiss to her cheek, Gavriel checked his watch. “Come on, darling, let’s get you a snack and some water, and then we need to get out of here. We’re heading over to Artaxias’s place for more sleep, and then the others will meet us there tomorrow after breakfast. Just a warning, they are a little…” Gav paused and seemed to be searching for a word. “Well, I’ll just say, they are a little weird.”
“Okay, what do you mean?” Now Lilly was very, very curious. She wanted to know just what he was thinking now, because he had said that. “I’m really not sure what you mean when you say that. I don’t think that I can handle more strangeness in life.” She had signed on for this, she really had, but seriously? She wasn’t certain just how this was going to work.
“Well”—he drew the word out, really drew it out—“Spirytes are eccentric to begin with. Something in our genetic makeup or maybe the magic, or a combination, who knows? But the older you are, the longer you’ve been around the magic, the weirder you tend to get. You know how people with ADD tend to get distracted or off topic or jump topic to topic? Yeah, they’re like that but so, so much more.”
“Wonderful,” Lilly said with a shrug. “So that’s what I have to look forward to?” she asked with a smile. “You becoming eccentric and strange?” Looking up at him, she smiled happily. “And you know, oddly enough, I don’t find anything wrong with that. I look forward to you becoming that way. I guess that makes me strange, too, huh?”
“I’m guessing yes, I’ll likely become like they are. Hopefully not as fast, as I’ll have a mate to take up some of the time I’d spend going nuts. That and you’ll be giving me balance, too,” he said softly. “I just pray it’s not too soon, or Ax will likely finally give into that primal urge of his and kill me.”
She rolled her eyes and grinned. “Oh, honey, believe me when I tell you that I will be right there with you. I’ve only just met you but I like you, a lot. I happen to very much adore being able to spend some time with you. I think that this is going to be a very good thing that we have going here.”
“Good.” He reached out and a second later passed her a bottle of water and a snack bar. “Eat and drink, and then we will head to his place.” Gavriel leaned back and gave her a little space to have her snack.
“On the other side of the Veil?” She swallowed, hard. “I’ve never been over there,” she admitted. “What if I freak out? What if whatever is wrong with me translates to something bad out there? Over there?”
“No love, his place here, he doesn’t…” Gav stopped dead in his tracks and thought of what to tell her. “Ah hell,” he muttered. “He doesn’t have a home on the other side. It’s one of the reasons he never returns, or I should say, rarely returns. When he does go back, it’s usually to visit an associate or check in with a contact. His home, the place he was born, was destroyed by the lord of those lands. He doesn’t even know what happened to the woman who gave him life. I’d say mother, but from what he’s shared, that bitch was no mother. Mine is a suffocating female that drives me insane, but she is the polar opposite of that female.”
“Oh God, seriously?” she asked softly. “That poor man,” she whispered. “Well he has us now, right? That’s what matters. What matters is that we will all be able to move on and we will be happy. Somehow and someway, we will give him the happiness and life that he deserves.”
“He has a good life here, he has roots here. As long as this world doesn’t erupt into another war, he’ll always have a home here, with you and I. He no longer needs to trade his skill set out to have a place to sleep or for food to fill his belly. Though, your people do have issues with his main dietary need, because of some moron that got it all wrong anyway.”
“Do you think that he will want to take from me?” She had never thought that she would be willing to be a donor, but for Artaxias she would. Gladly. “Or do you even think that he would ever ask me if I would be willing to do just that for him?”
“He will when we bond with you, complete the mating. It’s his way but other than that, I doubt he ever would ask. He doesn’t feed from the source anymore. He always drinks bagged blood, we have had that in the realms beyond the Veil for centuries before you did here. But you could suggest it to him,” Gavriel said with a grin. “Especially when he’s making love to you, when we make love to you.”
Lilly shivered and smiled. “And how do you know what would feel good to me?” Her tone was clear. That thought enticed her greatly. “And what about you? How will you bond with me? If he does so via blood, how will you?”
“Not entirely sure. It has to do with the magic, that much I know. I just don’t know exactly how it works,” he said, looking uncomfortable. “It’s not something discussed in my realm. Unlike the Vhampires and Luhpynes which is easy to determine, those of the Spirytes and Ahnjels don’t exactly discuss such things. Especially with their kids.” He made a face. “So not discussing sex with my mother.”
“Well, you are going to have to find out something from someone, Gav, so that we can bond. I’m not saying that it has to happen today, but I think that I would want that eventually. Right now, I want to get to know you. I have to tell you, however, that I’m already so drawn to both of you that it honestly kind of wigs me out a little bit.”
“Why?” He frowned at her. “I mean the wigging out part,” he said, waving a hand slightly. “What’s to wig out about, Lilly? You’re our destined mate, the one chosen for us and us for you in return. There should be no reason for you to wig, as you so quaintly put it. Is there?”
“Because I feel so very much so very soon. I’ve never had anything like this before in my life, and frankly, it’s a little terrifying. To feel so very much, to want so very much. Yes, I’ve felt attraction before, but never anything like this. Ever.”
“We’re fated to be, Lilly,” he said, like that was the answer to everything. Gavriel reached out and took her hand in his. “I know that this is all scary to you, little mate. Hell, it’s terrifying for me, too. I know, shouldn’t say that, but it’s the truth. This is the most important thing to ever happen to us, this mating. It should be scary, but it is also wondrous and exciting as well.”
“It is all of the above, but it’s also more than a little scary. I’ve been alone for a very long time. I never dreamed that I would have something as right as this, as perfect as a mating. Good lord, I didn’t even know about them until I met you guys. Well, I take that back. I knew the basics of it, of course, but it wasn’t until you guys explained it all to me that I got just how big this is.”
“It’s only as big as you make it. If it eases your mind in some way, think of it as a marriage. A multiple marriage, yes, but still a marriage. We will be completing our lives by including one another for all time. Mating sounds scary, though I have to say, your human vows do have it right in that whole ‘till death’ part.”
“Marriage terrifies me. I would rather think of the mating. It feels more loving than the coldness that can be found in so very many marriages.” It was clear in her tone of voice that marriage was something she had seen done and failed far more oftentimes than not.
“Well, mating is anything but cold.” He chuckled. Lifting her hand, he pressed a kiss to her palm. “It’s a melding of souls, three becoming one and yet still their own person. We will be joined on a level that only those who are mated can ever truly understand. We will know where one another is nearly at all times, the state of mind and emotion. It’s a joining that ensures we are never alone again.”
She would love that, to never be alone again. “I think we first need to figu
re out what is wrong with me, though.” With the fractured psyche that she had, she was certain that it would be very bad to try to join with these men. She was worried that her mental breaks would affect them and that was something she simply couldn’t have.
“We will figure out what was done to you, Lilly,” he said softly. His arm slid around her and drew her in close. “Then we will begin our lives together fresh and new. No burdens of the past allowed. Well, except for whatever Ax carries about, apparently that line doesn’t seem to work on tall, pale and toothy.”
That had her grinning and she shook her head. “You do know that he’s likely going to make you practice, or whatever it is that you call it, when the two of you go to the mats to work out, right? He’s going to really take exception to you calling him that,” she teased.
“Oh believe me, that one won’t even register on his radar,” he snorted. “I’ve called him a lot worse over the years, only some of it deserved. The rest not so much. Not that I’d admit that to him, of course, but I can share it with you.” Taking the wrapper from her snack bar, he tossed it away. “Let’s get going, we’ll head over to the house and see what we can figure out about your troubles.”
Troubles that she was bringing into their lives. Sighing deeply, she nodded. “I need to get my insulin and needles anyway if we are going to be anywhere but my home. I need to ensure that I have enough for however long we will be gone.” Looking up, her question was clear on her face, how long?
“Forever, sugar,” he said with a smile. “We’re not letting you go, ever.” Pressing a kiss to her lips, he stood up and pulled her to her feet. “We’ll grab whatever you need from your place, and we’ll get you settled in at the house. You can have your own room if you want. Until you are fully comfortable with us.”
“Thank you, I would really appreciate that.” It was clear from the look on her face that she wasn’t used to anyone being as kind to her, as gentle to her as these men were being. “I will call in for a larger supply of my insulin so that I can spend some time with you guys and not have to worry about it too awfully much.”
“Should probably keep a supply here, as well,” he commented, looking around the office. “We’ll pick up one of those little fridges and that way you’ll always have a supply around. The trucks all have coolers in them that are going constantly. They run off the batteries. We’ll stick some into the truck Artaxias always uses when he’s out running around, since most of the time you’ll be with him if you do field trips.”
“Why do you not go out on trips?” Lilly asked Gavriel. “And yeah, I should keep some close here as well as in a vehicle. I typically always forget my backpack that has an emergency supply in it, so yeah.” She hated needles and always had, but she was destined to give herself shots. “Once the sub-dermal patches are approved, I plan on using them, simply to get away from having to give myself shots.”
“I do on occasion, but I usually work in the office. Only when Artaxias needs backup do I go with him. Since he’s pretty indestructible in comparison to me, it’s pretty rare. My people are pretty much just like humans, except we have magic and weird eyes.” He grinned. “Other than that, genetically, we’re the closest match to a human.”
“Ah. Yeah, I don’t want you hurt, and I’m pretty breakable as well.” She had been broken. She had nearly paid with her life for the job she loved. “So when crap goes to hell I will hide behind the blond fangy man, ’cause I know that he won’t break, and you can cover my backside, deal?”
“Works for me. I prefer hiding being the fanged wonder, too.” He grinned. Chuckling, he grabbed his jacket and shrugged into it. “I like having all my parts attached and no holes in any of them. He heals so fast it’s like he never takes a hit. Though, that is apparently something that comes with age. The younger a Vhampire is, the longer it takes them to heal. The older, the faster. They gain a lot with age, though, like any of the races, I suppose.”
“Well as long as he doesn’t mind the being-hurt part, I guess.” It bothered her on a visceral level however, on a level that she simply didn’t understand. “I just don’t want you or him hurt. I would rather take a hit than you take one that you couldn’t come back from.”
“Oh, little mate.” He grinned at her. “You have much to learn about our long-of-tooth friend. He is very, very rarely injured. We’ll give you a little demo tonight,” he said, reaching out for her hand. “But we should get to your place, and then over to the house before Ax puts out a warrant for our asses.”
“He wouldn’t dare, would he?” she asked. “Crap, okay, then we should go ahead and do this. We should go so that he doesn’t get upset with us.” That was her only concern, that Ax wasn’t upset with her for any reason at all. “All right, let’s get out of here okay? Let’s go and track down the ‘long-of-tooth friend,’ as you called him.”
Chuckling, he shrugged. “With Ax, one never knows. I know he’d put one out on me, he’s done it before a couple of times. I wouldn’t put it past him to list you as my accomplice.” Grabbing her jacket, he held it open for her to slip into it. “‘Course, in this case he’d probably put it out that I kidnapped you for vile and devious things. Which, given his many years of life, I know he can be super creative with his ideas and thoughts.”
That had her shivering. “Oh, I like that idea,” she said honestly. “Because I’ve never been a creative person ever in my life. It’s all good though, we will make sure that we make it back before he starts hunting us down.”
“I also plan to call him. Knowing him, he doesn’t have a lot of food in the place. He doesn’t have to eat food and since I can’t cook, despite all my mother’s attempts”—Gav gave a shrug—“I eat out a lot or get prepared meals. Speaking of cooking”—he frowned as they walked for the elevator—“I wonder if Ax knows how to. Cook, that is. I’ve never asked and never even thought to inquire.”
“I do,” she admitted. “I actually went to culinary school for a short time. I was able to graduate because it was really good to be able to cook for myself, if you know what I mean,” she told him with a smile. “So as long as there is food there, I can totally cook for us.”
“Damn, how the hell did we get so lucky?” He shook his head. Stepping into the elevator with him, she leaned in closer for a moment. “I’ll give him a ring once we’re on the road and find out the state of things in the house. Because, knowing him, it’s his blood supply occupying the refrigerator right now and not food.”
“Well, I mean, I know he will want his blood as well, but yes, if he could spare room for us and our food as well, that would be great.” She leaned against the elevator and asked, “Does he only use blood? No food at all?”
“He eats at functions and parties we have to attend, which keeps people from getting all antsy around him. Makes him seem normal,” he told her, leaning against the opposite wall. “He doesn’t have to, though. He gets all he needs from the blood. I honestly haven’t ever seen him eat anything outside of those events we have to attend.”
“That’s something that I will have to get used to,” she admitted. “I’ve never seen anyone drinking blood. Does he drink from people, or is it from blood bags, or what?” She was seriously curious about both men, about her Vhampire mate as well as her Spiryte mate.
“Strictly bags, now,” he said, leading her out into the garage. “The only time it’s permissible in your realm to drink from a human is under extreme situations, life-and-death situations. Since there’s not a lot that can kill one of the Vhampire, it’s pretty nonexistent. Though, there are rogues, those that see your people as cattle to be used and tossed aside when finished.”
“What about during sex?” She wanted to know, really wanted to know. “Because I really would like to know what to expect then. I really like the idea, to be perfectly honest,” she admitted to him. “I know that’s weird and whatever, but I really do like that idea a great deal.”
“Mating only, as far as I know, though it’s something you’d have to
discuss with him. I’m not exactly up to date on Vhampire sexual rituals and antics.” Gavriel gave a shudder. “I think I just wigged myself out with that one,” he muttered. Stopping by a car, he pulled out keys and let her into the passenger seat. “In you go. We have places to be, after all.”
“But if we mate won’t you have to be a part of it all? Why wig yourself out over something that you will be a part of?” she asked curiously. “Because I have to tell you that I would like to be with both of you, very much so. Will you be able to handle that, then?”
“Mating is different,” he told her as he started the car and got them rolling toward the exit ramps. “Mating is all proper, by the book, and very strict. Or so I’ve heard. It’s all the after-the-mating sex that gets wild and kinky. Like I said, ask Ax about the whole Vhampire bit, I’ve never asked and I’m not entirely sure I’ll ever be old enough to know those answers.”
Lilly laughed and shook her head. “Oh God, but you and I both know that you are older than I am.” She giggled, couldn’t help herself. “And yet you aren’t old enough to know those answers? How are you going to be a mate if you aren’t going to be able to know those answers?”
“I’m a Spiryte, I don’t need to know the answers to Vhampire sexual antics. I figure I’ll worry about my performance and Artaxias can worry about his. No way am I going to get all up in his face in regards to sex. That’s a little too much like asking a brother or relative about their sex lives.”
“I really would like to find out about how this will all work. I really would. I very much want to be able to know about as much of everything as I possibly can before we get in the middle of all of this and well, you know,” she said softly.
“Well then, we will sit down at the house and talk, figure it all out. Speaking of which—” He hit a button on the steering wheel. “Call Artaxias,” he told the unit, and they waited as a ringing began. “Ax, I’m with Lilly on the way to her place. We’re going to get some of her insulin and such. After that, we’ll be at the house. Do we need to get any food, or is there enough there that she won’t starve?”
