Beyond The Veil: A Paranormal & Magical Romance Boxed Set

by Multiple Authors

  Lowering his head, he brought his mouth to her breast, stopping just short of covering her lace-covered nipple. His hot breath fanned over her puckered flesh. She tried to pull him the rest of the way down, but he was too strong. “Please, Jay.” She wasn’t above begging. When he finally took a slow lick around her nipple, then sucked it into his mouth, she couldn’t stop the small whimper from slipping past her lips. She arched her back, needing more.

  Before she knew what she was doing, she had a hold of the T-shirt at his back. Her nails lengthened and pointed. She dug them into the material then, with a strong tug of her own, the material gave way. The satisfying tearing sound pleased the daemon. It was a sensual creature, and Libbie had been holding out for far too long. But it was more than that. The chemistry between her and Jay drew the daemon to the forefront, and rather than snarling at him as it did when Libbie dared bring another man home, it filled her with lustful pulses of energy, driving her need higher and higher.

  Jay pulled back, his eyes registering his shock, but only for a moment as he tugged the rest of his shirt off and grinned down at her. “Like that, do you?” He didn’t wait for her answer before lowering his head to her other nipple and capturing it with his mouth. His teeth scraped at the taut flesh, making her moan.

  “God, yes. Don’t stop.” She gasped as he closed his teeth around the tight bud. Libbie forced her hands into fists at his back, not trusting herself not to score his skin with her sharp nails.

  Jay wrapped his arms around her back, and then in one quick move, flipped them, so she straddled him. His fingers immediately found the clasp of her bra, unhooking it, and letting it slide down her arms. She flung it to the side, relishing his gaze on her body. The throb in her clit intensified until she could hardly stand it. They’d barely even started, and she was on the edge of an orgasm. She slid her hips over the hard ridge of his cock, up and down the length. The friction had her trembling and a moan slipping past her lips. “I can’t wait, Jay. I just can’t.”

  She lifted her hips, but only enough to reach the snap of his jeans. Later she’d worship his hard, sculpted chest and abdomen. She’d taste him and touch every inch of his body, but right then, she needed him inside her so much it hurt.

  Jay didn’t say a word, just lifted off the mattress for her to tug his pants down his thighs. When she started pulling at the fastening of her pants, he covered her breasts with his large palms. She leaned into his touch, throwing her head back as he pinched both nipples at once, tugging on them.

  Careful not to remove his hands from her body, she rose and shimmied out of her pants, taking her underwear with them. Reaching between them, she took hold of his cock at the base, her fingers not quite reaching all the way around as she guided herself onto him.

  Libbie lowered herself a little, taking the head of his cock inside her, then stilled, allowing her body to stretch around him. Going down a little further, she threw her head back and moaned. If she went any faster, she’d come, and it would be over. She couldn’t let it be over—not so soon. Jay’s fingers dug into her hip, and then without warning, he thrust up, burying his cock another couple of inches inside her.

  Gasping, Libbie focused on keeping her body from shattering. She brought her hands up his chest, holding herself steady on top of him. “Don’t move. Not even a little,” she whispered. Her muscles trembled around him as waves of pleasure flooded her. The pulse in her clit throbbed in time with her heart.

  A long, rumbling growl vibrated in his chest. “I want you to come for me, Libbie. Don’t hold back.” Holding her hips steady, he thrust up again, this time burying himself all the way. Closing her eyes tight, Libbie tried to stop it, but already the waves of pleasure were sweeping through her. Jay reached between them, circling her clit with his thumb, once, twice, then she couldn’t hold off anymore. Her entire being pulsed in time with the contractions of her body around Jay’s cock. Tilting her pelvis back and forth, she let the sensations climb higher and higher until she shattered and cried out his name.

  She fell forward, aware of Jay’s arms circling her back, his hand stroking up and down her spine and his lips pressing soft kisses on her temple, but it was like a dream. She didn’t know how long she lay there, cradled in his arms, but he didn’t move, didn’t make demands, he just held her. She became aware of the hard chest beneath her cheek, and the soft touches on her skin first, then the hard length of his cock, still encased in her body. She moved against him, and his arms tightened around her.

  “Shh, just rest for a minute,” Jay whispered into her ear.

  “I’ve already rested.” She smiled and kissed his chest. “I’m okay. I promise. The daemon enjoyed that just a little too much, that’s all.”

  Jay chuckled. “I’m glad I didn’t disappoint, then.”

  Libbie pushed herself up, enjoying the fullness of him inside her when she caught sight of bright red welts with little beads of blood marring his glorious chest.

  Chapter Nine

  “Oh, my God, I’m so sorry.” Libbie’s eyes shone with the moisture pooling in them, and it took Jay a moment to figure out what had her so upset. She tried to pull away from him, but he held her hips in place, not letting her put any distance between them.

  “Don’t be. It was perfect. You were perfect.” He tilted his pelvis, sending her a little off balance, so she leaned forward.

  She looked at his chest again.

  “They’re already disappearing,” he reassured her before she could protest.

  “I usually have a lot more control over that side of me. I don’t know what happened.” She traced a line along one of the scratches with the tip of her finger.

  If only she knew he’d take anything she could give if it meant she would touch him with such tenderness afterward. “We’re mates, Libbie. That’s what happened. It’s natural that we might lose control.”

  “And hurt you? There’s nothing natural about that.”

  She was stiff in his arms, but she didn’t try to move away again. Her brows furrowed, and he was tempted to laugh, but the way she was glaring, he didn’t dare. “Does it help you to know that I enjoyed every second of it and that I look forward to a repeat performance?” He thrust up into her, showing her just how much.

  Her cheeks turned pink, and her mouth dropped open. “We… I never took care of you.”

  Try as he might, he couldn’t contain his smile. His mate was feisty and strong, but she was also tender and considerate. His grin widened. He had hit the mate jackpot. “We aren’t done yet,” he said as he thrust up into her once more.

  Her gaze fell to his chest again. Being a werewolf had its perks. The marks she had left on him would heal quickly and not leave a scar, but it wasn’t instantaneous. She would see soon enough that she hadn’t hurt him. “Here, give me your hands.” He sat up, keeping her perched right where she was with his cock deep inside her, a position that made him throb just thinking about it.

  When she put her small hands in his, he laced his fingers around hers. “See, now even if you lose control again, you won’t scratch me.” He leaned close, kissing her, needing more of her sweet cinnamon flavor.

  With gentle pressure on her hands, he pushed her back a little, making her rock against him. She fit around him like a hot, tight fist. He wanted to savor each second, every sensation, but the feel of her was driving him to the brink, and fast.

  Her lips parted a little, and she closed her eyes. “Oh, that’s nice.”

  He pulled her forward again. “It’s nice?” He repeated the back-and-forth motion again, grinding his pelvis up so that her clit brushed against him.

  “Very nice.”

  The breathiness of her voice made his cock harden even more. The next time he went to rock her back again, she went without his guidance, going up his shaft, and then sliding back down and grinding against him. Her breath caught in her throat, and she tightened the little muscles already squeezing him to the point of ecstasy. When she pulled away, he bent his head to
her breast, capturing her nipple in his mouth, sucking on it hard enough to pull a moan from her. Her fingers tightened around his, and she threw her head back, exposing the long column of her neck. His canines ached with wanting to elongate. More than anything, he wanted to bite her and claim her as his, but it was too soon. When he did it, he wanted her consent and her blessing. He wasn’t about to link them irrevocably until she was ready. The wolf wasn’t happy about it, but it could and would wait.

  Libbie started moving faster, taking him closer and closer to the edge with each upward sweep, and downward grind of her sweet body. Her soft little whimpers when she rubbed her clit against him had him throbbing, desperate for release. She leaned close, her nipples brushing against his chest, and looked into his eyes. Her blue eyes shone with little spark-like flecks, and he knew the daemon was close. He didn’t break her gaze, but captured her bottom lip between his, suckling it for a moment before giving it a little nip. The coppery taste of her blood on his tongue drove the wolf wild. It clamored for release, but there was no way he was letting go, not this time. Not when he wanted to bite her so bad.

  Letting go of her grip on his hands, she tunneled her fingers through his hair and pulled him in for a kiss. She lifted off him until only the tip of his cock remained, paused for half a beat, then slid all the way down again. He couldn’t keep from moaning. If she kept that up, he’d come, and as much as he wanted—needed—to do that, he wanted her squeezing every drop out of him with her orgasm.

  Her muscles trembled around his cock, making his balls draw up tight as streaks of pleasure rushed through him. Using his thumb, he circled her swollen clit, moaning again as she tightened around him.

  She pulled her lips away and threw her head back as she rode him faster, harder. Her moans grew louder and louder. He circled her clit once more, then pressed on the sensitive button, just as her muscles clenched around him, over and over. With a final thrust and a long moan, he came deep inside her. When she sagged against him, he tucked her into his side and wrapped his arms around her until her breaths slowed, and her body molded against him in sleep.

  Chapter Ten

  Snuggled into Jay’s side, with the sound of his heart thumping beneath her ear, Libbie had drifted off and didn’t rouse until her phone blasted April’s ringtone from her nightstand. She nestled deeper into his warmth until his chest shook and his chuckle reached her ears.

  “Aren’t you going to answer that?”

  He traced his finger down the length of her spine.

  “I wasn’t planning on it,” she replied, still half asleep. Stretching against him, she made no move toward her phone. It rang again once, and then went silent. “See, it stopped. Works every time.”

  “It could have been something important,” he chided as he slid his finger down the curve of her hip.

  Lifting her head, she leaned closer, stopping just shy of touching her lips to his. “Not as important as this.” Her breasts brushed against his chest as she brought her mouth the rest of the way. His kiss tasted of mint and something else. Something she couldn’t quite put her finger on. She could kiss him for hours and not get tired of it. Just as he pulled her tight against him and opened up to her, the phone shrilled again.

  Reaching out with one hand, she grabbed at the nightstand, knocking over a book and some loose change before finally finding her phone. It took a moment after she pulled away from Jay to form a coherent sentence. “This better be important, April,” she snapped into the phone. Libbie straddled his hips, then gasped when he brought his hands up to her breasts. How was she supposed to talk when he was doing that?

  “Libbie, I don’t know what’s going on, but some guy called me last night. He sounded drunk. He said you had given him my number. What gives?” The higher pitch of her voice had Libbie sitting up straighter.

  April was usually unflappable. Something was up. “What’s wrong?”

  Jay’s hands dropped to her hips and his brows furrowed.

  “I don’t know. I mean, I don’t think anything is wrong, but it could be. The guy told me he was looking for someone and needed my help. He said you told him that I’d help him, so when he started talking about goblins, I assumed he already knew.”

  “Oh God, what did you tell him?”

  “He asked me… damn it,” April cursed under her breath. “I told him how to summon the goblins.”

  “You what?” Libbie screeched. “April, you know humans can’t know about these things.”

  “He told me he wasn’t going to do it. He just wanted to know if it was possible. Shit. I messed up bad this time, didn’t I?” April’s voice tightened even more. “Jordan’s going to have my ass over this.”

  Libbie took a deep breath, then another. “If anyone’s ass is fried, it’s mine. I should have erased his memories yesterday, but I felt bad for the guy. I should have known better.”

  Jay got out of bed, a frown making him look fierce and sexy all at the same time. He pressed his lips to her forehead. “I’m going to grab a quick shower,” he whispered.

  Libbie just nodded and followed his naked ass with her gaze all the way into the bathroom, then just smiled at him when he caught her looking.

  “Who was that?” April asked, her voice brightening.

  “Jay. And yes, before you ask, he spent the night.” Libbie pulled the phone from her ear while April squealed.

  “Tell me—”

  “We’ll talk later. I promise, but I have to find Kurt.” Libbie wasn’t ready to start discussing her new relationship just yet, and she really did have to go. Like it or not, she had to do what she should have done yesterday before he did something unthinkable, like releasing a bunch of goblins into the earthly realm. It was bad enough that they found a way in once in a while, but open a gateway from the shadows and the city would be overrun.

  “I’m so sorry, Libs. I can help. I want to. Just tell me what you want me to do.”

  “Nothing for now. As long as he hasn’t tried to summon them yet, everything will be fine.”

  By the time she hung up, April had apologized another three times. She was still a new witch by witch standards and hadn’t seen enough mayhem to know better. Libbie, on the other hand, had. If she couldn’t fix this mess before anything horrible happened, they’d have her pushing papers in the shadow world for the next century. With Jay in the picture, just the idea of leaving for that long had her heart stuttering.

  Jay came out of the bathroom with one of her pink, fluffy towels wrapped around his waist. “What was that about?”

  “We have to find Kurt. April told him how to summon the goblins.”

  “Why would she do that? And why would he want to summon them? It doesn’t make sense,” Jay said.

  “Not to us, maybe. I bet he thinks that he can find Jennifer if he surrenders himself to the goblins.” Libbie bit her bottom lip.

  “That’s ridiculous. They’d never reunite his soul with hers even if they could.” Jay shook his head. “I’ll make the coffee while you get ready.” He kissed her, then strolled out of the room still wearing the towel.

  By the time she entered the kitchen, Jay had sat at the breakfast bar and was sipping on his coffee. He had poured it into one of her travel mugs and was munching on one of her leftover muffins. A second cup sat in front of the stool next to his. Rather than be annoyed at him scrounging around in her kitchen, her heart skipped a little beat at the domesticity of it.

  The jeans he wore were a shade darker than the ones he’d had on yesterday, and he had a striped button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up. “Where did you get the clothes?” She leaned down and planted a small kiss on his lips.

  He took another bite of muffin, shrugging as he chewed, then swallowed. “I got them out of my car. I had brought a bag with me, just in case.” He grinned at her.

  Libbie choked on her coffee. His clothes, the ones he’d had on yesterday when he’d arrived, were still stacked on the chair in her room. “Did you go out in the towel?”
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br />   His grin widened. “Mrs. Somersby said to say hi. Nice neighbor you have there.”

  “I’m surprised she didn’t try to take your towel. That old biddy is a horrible flirt.” As odd as the woman was, she was one of the kindest souls Libbie had ever had the chance to meet. Too bad Ethel would make Libbie suffer the Inquisition when she saw her again.

  Shaking his head, Jay wiped his mouth and crumpled up his napkin. “Well, she didn’t come close enough for that, but she sure didn’t turn and look the other way, either.”

  He waited until she finished her muffin, then took her napkin along with his own and tossed them in the trash. She could get used to having him around. She would get used to it, but first, they had to find Kurt.

  Chapter Eleven

  Where was he? Libbie knocked on Kurt’s door again, hoping against hope that he would answer. Maybe he had just gone on another bender and passed out. Jay rounded the corner of the house, shaking his head.

  “He’s not here. His scent is too faint. On the bright side, there’s nothing out back that makes me think a goblin has been this way, either.”

  “That’s good at least. Where would he have gone?” Libbie lifted her gaze to Jay’s.

  “The Witch’s Brew,” they both said at the same time.

  Jay drove, pushing through yellow lights and driving with a heavy foot. After the comment he’d made about her driving the day before, she was tempted to tease him, but the sooner they found Kurt, the better off they’d all be.

  They were a few blocks away when Libbie’s cell rang again. This time, she answered on the first ring. “April, what’s up?”