by Joyee Flynn
“Actually, her baby’s bottoming for some killer, very rough sex if the rug burn on your back is anything to go by,” Virgil mumbled under his breath.
“Douche. Bag,” I growled before heading back into the sitting room with my mate. Riley was just finishing up, and Cyrus was awake now but seemed really out of it.
“He’s going to need to drink from you,” Riley said quietly as he sat back against Micah. I knew it wasn’t just the healing that had him so tired, but this whole fucked-up day in general.
“Right, okay,” I agreed hesitantly. My mate went kinda feral the moment he bit me and I was pretty sure we’d subjected my family to enough visuals for a lifetime.
“I want my amante,” Cyrus whimpered, his head lolling against his shoulders. I immediately rushed to him and straddled his lap, which Victor had used his shirt to cover.
“I’m right here, mi alma,” I said gently as I moved his face to my neck. “You need to drink, Cyrus.”
“Mine,” he growled, but not with the same strength as normal. He didn’t bite me though, simply licking the bites that had been there. “I was too rough with you. I am sorry.”
“Never,” I replied as I ran my fingers through his hair. “Never be sorry for the way you love me. Your intensity is part of your charm, Cyrus. I like how passionate and crazy you get when we’re together. It makes me never doubt that you’d want anyone else.”
“But I want to be gentle with you, too,” he whispered, sounding sad as he kept licking. His fingers trailed my back, moving under the lab coat.
“We’re not alone.” I reminded him, starting to pull away. His other arm clamped around my back like steel as he pushed two fingers in my hole.
“I do not care who knows the depths of my love and need for you. I’ve never needed you more, amante. My heart hurts, and I know only you can soothe it.”
“After you drink from me and heal then. I’m yours any way you want me as long as you take care of yourself.” I didn’t even lift my head, trying to wave everyone else out.
“Riley can’t be moved yet,” Micah grumbled. “Today’s been too much from him.”
“I get that but my mate, who saved him, needs me,” I replied, not sure what to do. “Riley saved him, too, but—” I gasped. Cyrus bit me as he pushed in another finger. “Just shut your eyes then.”
“No way, this is hot.” Riley snickered. Fine. Fuck it. They could watch. I didn’t give a damn right then.
“I love you,” I reminded my mate as my hips started to move of their own accord, riding his fingers. He growled and drank from me deeply. Before I even knew what was happening, he pulled his fingers out and lowered me onto his cock. I was glad the lab coat was still secured around my waist and hid some of this from view. I mean, there was no doubt to the people in the room what was going on, but they didn’t need to see it all.
“Show me,” he whispered, licking the bite closed. “Ride the man you love and show me the pleasure only I can give you.”
“Oh, he’s a smooth talker,” Riley mumbled off in the distance. I didn’t care. I didn’t care if we were in the middle of Times Square with all my family watching. Cyrus needed this, needed me, and I would deny him nothing.
I went slowly, taking Cyrus’s face in my hands, making sure he saw the pleasure on my face.
“So beautiful,” he whispered against my lips. “You own my heart, amante. Everything I am is yours. My heart beats only if it pleases you.”
“Then it will beat forever,” I said back, licking his plush lips. “Because I will always want you with me, Cyrus. I wouldn’t survive losing you. You have to promise never to leave me.” I felt my eyes burning, the idea that I could have lost him today too much to handle. If he had died, I would have followed him, unable to live without part of my soul.
Realizing this, it made me feel silly that I ever doubted that I loved him.
Chapter 8
Cyrus
It was music to my ears. Damian loved me and I finally started to feel worthy of him. He rode me slowly, drawing out our pleasure. I bit him again, knowing I needed the blood and Damian needed to feel as close to me as possible.
“Fuck,” he hissed, moving his body faster until he was bouncing on my lap. “It’s always so good.”
I wasn’t sure if he meant the biting, the sex, the time together, or just being with me in general, so I decided to think he meant all of it. I took a few more pulls of his blood before lifting my head and thrusting up into him. “Come for me now, Damian.”
His eyelashes fluttered as he gasped. I swallowed his cries with my mouth, relishing that he came all over me just from my command. My mate loved me. His body loved mine. We were perfectly in sync. I followed him right over, my cock overflowing his hole. Even as we rode our bliss together, I was grateful for the lab coat that shielded most of this from his brothers and Riley.
Why hadn’t they left again? Oh well. I didn’t care. I had the man of my dreams in my arms and that’s all that mattered to me.
“I love you,” Damian mumbled as he slumped against me, thoroughly sated.
“And I you, amante,” I whispered against his curls. I glanced up and saw Riley licking his lips while Victor and Micah were looking anywhere else.
“He comes on command,” Micah mumbled to Victor, trying for all us not to hear it… But we did.
“So do you sometimes,” Riley chastised. “So do we all when our bodies are in sync. Don’t judge, Mr. I’ve-never-been-with-a-man-before-I-met-my-mate.”
“Fair enough.” I could almost hear Micah’s blood rushing to his face as he blushed. I’d have to thank Riley for that one later and get Damian to tell me the story behind that.
“I’m horny now,” Riley whined, moving his ass against his mate’s groin. “It’s our turn.”
“I don’t like an audience,” Micah growled as he picked up his mate. “And you need more blood.”
“Fine, I’ll drink while you fuck me,” Riley purred. I wanted to laugh when Micah rolled his eyes and raced out of the room, his mate slung over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
“Is it safe to come in?” Elena called out from the other side of the door.
“No,” Victor and I shouted. He ran to the door and got some supplies, namely towels and clothes. He brought them over and I gave him a nod.
“Thank you.”
“No problem, brother,” he said with a smile. “You really love Damian. As much as I didn’t ever want to see something like that, I couldn’t miss the love between you both. I will never question you’re the right man for him again.”
My throat closed at the swarming emotions I was feeling. That might have been one of the nicest things anyone had ever said to me.
“I’m still punching you for getting involved before,” Damian said with a yawn. “Now quit checking out my fine ass so we can get dressed and get on with what we need to.”
“Right, like I’d want your twerp butt when my mate’s got a booty,” Victor replied, laughing as he stepped out of the room.
“Do not listen to him, amante. You have the best butt in the world,” I purred as I lifted him off my lap.
“I’m glad you think so, but I’m also glad Victor doesn’t. That would just be weird.” He made a gagging motion as he pulled on the sweatpants his brother had gotten him before cleaning us both up of the blood we’d had smeared on our shoulders and chests. I dressed in my scrubs as he yanked on a shirt, making sure we were decent before we opened the door.
“I think we need to open a window,” Elena said gently, not meeting either of our gazes as she went to do just that.
“Don’t even say it,” Damian growled at Stefan, who had a big evil smile on his face.
“What?” he asked, batting his eyelashes innocently at me.
“I’m just jealous,” Patrick said with a pout as he plopped on the couch. “Stefan doesn’t jump me anymore, ripping off my clothes no matter who’s around and giving me rug burn.”
“Okay, now my e
mbarrassment’s complete,” Damian groaned, shaking his head. I laughed and grabbed him around the waist, pulling him down onto my lap as we sat in one of the big chairs.
“Thank you for putting that aside and being there for me when I needed you. Whether I was acting appropriately or not,” I said, making sure everyone heard me take the blame. I didn’t want him to be so embarrassed, even if the teasing wasn’t mean.
“It was fun though,” he hissed in my ear so only I could hear. “I’d do anything for you, mi alma.”
“I hate to ruin the mood,” Desmond said as he sat down with Elena, looking older and tired suddenly. “But your brother isn’t talking besides demanding to see you.”
I swallowed past the large lump that was in my throat, nodding my head. “Okay, let me shower and change and I’ll go right over.”
“Not alone you’re not,” Damian said firmly. He turned in my lap and shot me a look that told me he wasn’t budging. That was fine with me. Now that I’d let him in, I didn’t think I could do this alone. It was just too much, and I’d not dealt with emotions for so long.
“Of course we’re all going. One of our family needs our support.” Elena agreed, giving me the same stern but kind look Damian was.
“Thank you. I–I’m not sure this is something I can shut off or umm, handle.” It was one of the hardest things I’d ever had to admit, but these were the people I could be most honest with in the world. It was not easy for me to do, but I figured once I started, it would be as easy as walking.
Or not. But I was going with that as my current plan.
“You know how this will end though, Cyrus. I’m hesitant to say you should go,” Desmond said kindly, his eyes shining. “He will be put to death for his crimes and no one should have to go interrogate their own brother.”
“I need answers,” I replied. My throat was dry with emotion, so my words came out as a croak. “He said my family is alive besides my mother. I need to know if they’re all demons or what happened.”
“Okay, then let’s get this done so we can start putting it behind us. The demons got into the warrior compound, during the day, without tripping any alarms. Someone got them in and there’s a lot of work ahead of us.” He stood, his hand in Elena’s as my mate’s family…my family all rallied around me for support.
It was a wonderful gesture, and I appreciated it. It didn’t make me feel any less as if I was about to walk in front of the firing squad.
* * * *
Damian
My mate was a mess. Granted, he wasn’t bawling in a corner or anything, but he was hurting bad, and I could tell his thoughts were all over the place. I think after so much time of shutting off his emotions, now that he turned them on, he didn’t have a clue as to how to control them. I mean, that was something we learned over time but if he never learned it… They were just running away with him.
Not that it wasn’t understandable under the circumstances. Hell, I’d be in the fetal position singing I’m an Oscar Mayer Weiner if the situation was reversed. I couldn’t even begin to fathom the pain I’d be in if I thought I’d lost Victor centuries ago, only to find out he was alive and a demon. I mean, talk about harsh.
“I love you,” I whispered in his ear, kissing his cheek. He gave me a soft smile before stepping into the cell with his brother, who was sitting on the floor, his arms above his head with his hands chained to the wall and his feet shackled to the floor. The expression on his face as he watched all of us approach was murderous.
It had taken us less than an hour to get our act together, cleaned up, and back to the Council’s compound. Cyrus has been a ball of nerves the whole ride and it had killed me that I couldn’t help him more.
“Cómo estás vivo?” Cyrus asked the moment he walked into the cell and the door was closed behind him. Victor had opted to go in as well, just in case Aemilio got out of his chains.
“I have a feeling this is going to need subtitles,” Patrick complained. Yeah, I was right there with him. I thought I knew, but when it involved my mate, I wanted to be damn sure.
“Elegí el lado derecho,” Aemilio replied.
“Cyrus asked how he’s alive,” Riley said quietly. “And Aemilio said he chose the right side.” He turned to Mother and shrugged. “I’ll translate for Aemilio if you want.”
“Okay, I will for Cyrus,” she replied with a nod. Then my mate started rattling off in Spanish faster than I could imagine anyone could keep up. “How could you say becoming a demon is the right side? You killed to be like this, Aemilio. The brother I loved would never have done that. Swear words, lots of cussing. Oh, that’s a creative one. Not sure I heard that before.”
“Mother,” I hissed, knowing she was trying to lighten the mood.
Riley started after Aemilio spoke again. “And the brother I loved wasn’t some fucking faggot. Bring your little bitch in here. We can kill him together. Drain him and rape him and I will know you’ve chosen your own family instead of these imposters. Join us, brother.” Cyrus moved faster than even my eyes could keep up with. All I saw was Aemilio’s head move backward violently and blood spray from his mouth as Cyrus pulled back his hand.
“Don’t you dare speak of my mate like that,” my mother translated as Cyrus shouted angrily, his chest heaving. “He is my family. Not the monster before me. You led me to believe you were dead! How could you? Twelve hundred years and you break into the warrior compound and try to take a friend like you were dropping by to say hi. Who is still alive? Father? Anyone else?”
“Who do you think got the demons to get organized?” Riley said for Aemilio. “They were all flailing about before Father took over. He slaughtered the demons who killed our coven after we agreed to join them and became their leader. I volunteered for this assignment when I heard you’d been relocated and were living with the doctor.”
“Why come for Riley? The weapons are already made.”
“We got word he was working on something new. And Father thought it would be a sign that playing with dangerous toys came with a price. Come on, Cyrus. We can still get out of here and take him. Father wants to make his torture very public before leaving him gutted—” Riley stopped, going pale as he leaned against the wall. He looked like a man who had just realized he’d escaped a fate worse than death.
“Your mate saved my life a thousand times over if they were going to do to me what Aemilio says,” he whispered, looking at me with tears in his eyes.
“How did you get into the compound?” Mother said for my mate. “And during the daylight no less?”
“These vampires are so proud, so arrogant. They didn’t think slime like demons would ever be so bold to dare attack them on their own turf.” My father took Riley’s place, wrapping an arm around Micah, who was holding his mate. “We got one of the kitchen staff and gave him a few bites and he was begging to tell all he knew.”
“Why are you confessing all of this?”
“Because there’s nothing your listening vampires can do. We’re everywhere and we’re growing. We will win this war and convert or destroy them all.”
My mother’s face became ashen at the news. Yeah, I wasn’t a fan of that either. “Who is still alive?”
Aemilio gave a toothy smile before slowly saying names. “Pablo, Eduardo, and Emelda, along with myself, all rule the demons with Father.”
“All of you besides Mother?” my mother said for Cyrus, who looked like he’d just been kicked in the sac. “Why?”
“Osvaldo Diaz just became public enemy number one,” my father said quietly before continuing to interpret. “It was better than death and when we saw how powerful the demons are, it was a no-brainer.”
“Who did you kill to become like this?”
“As many as I could,” Father translated for Aemilio, shivering at the idea.
“What’s your endgame?”
“We’re going to kill all the righteous vampires you so love and enslave the humans. They should bow and beg for mercy from the superior being
s that surround them.” I thought my father was going to vomit on that one.
Cyrus turned back to us, switching to English. “Is there anything else you need to know?”
“No, I think we’ve found out enough. The demons are organized now and attacking covens and compounds. We need to change our strategy. They aren’t waiting for us to hunt them down anymore,” Father said, looking tired and apprehensive. “He won’t tell you where they are. He’ll just send us on a wild-goose chase that could get people killed.”
“You may not be as stupid as we thought, but you will die anyway, Desmond,” Aemilio said in English. “All your family will. It will be so easy to get into your homes. It’s already begun and you don’t even know it. If I die today, another will rise and take my place. Just as you would avenge your son, my father’s wrath will be tremendous.”
“End this,” I hissed to my father, seeing how it was hurting my mate.
He nodded, letting go of Micah and grabbing his sword that Stefan handed to him. “Aemilio Diaz, for crimes against humanity, betraying your people and your soul, I sentence you to death.”
“I will do it,” Cyrus said quietly as Father opened the cell door. “He is my family and mine to deal with, clean up after. He has betrayed the Diaz name.”
“You are part of this family now,” Father replied gently, extending his hand and holding onto Cyrus’s shoulder. My mate nodded, meeting his gaze. “Then, as head of this family, I take the responsibility for myself, son. I will not allow you to carry this burden.”
“Thank you, Padre,” Cyrus whispered, his shoulders shaking. “I would—”
“Of course you would,” Father interrupted. “But you don’t have to. That’s what family is for.”
Cyrus stood there, bracing himself to watch. I darted in the cell and grabbed his arm. “Watching this won’t bring back your brother. The man there is not him anymore, Cyrus. Don’t torture yourself this way.”
“No, this time I must witness his demise as I will all of them. It’s the only way I can be sure and know there will be no more mind games,” he replied, pulling me into his arms. “My nightmares have been plagued with centuries of unanswered questions about how and when they died. Not witnessing this might be truly worse.”
