Dangerous Lovers

by Becca Vincenza

  “I find you unimaginable. How can such a delicate, sweet creature as you be scarred, tortured, and still look at me like that.” With so much trust and hints of something more, I added silently. She leaned down, her whole body pushing on mine. I loved her weight, loved feeling her so close.

  “You make me feel like I am something more,” she whispered as she pulled away. I wanted to jerk away from her touch, wondering if she had heard me this morning. I remained still, my body tensed. I hoped that she wouldn’t notice.

  “I should go; I wouldn’t want your father to find me in here.” My eyes slid half way shut. I couldn’t help but think that I wanted to stay. I wanted her father to know that I spent the night with her. That she was mine.

  • • •

  The Valkyrie who we attacked in the cells knocked on my door an hour later and escorted me to the large conference room that was already filled with paranormals. My eyes immediately looked for my maroon haired beauty.

  When we were at the cabin, Audrey had stopped hiding behind a curtain of her hair. Now, as my eyes settled on her, she was hiding once again. She didn’t even hide from me last night, or this morning when I woke up. Watching Audrey conceal herself once more, made my gut tighten with dread and my skin feel itchy. It didn’t escape my attention either that she was placed between her father and York who sat at the head of the table.

  Nixie was a couple empty chairs away from York on the other side of Audrey. One of the cheetah-shifters from the day before was sitting next to her. Though she looked smug, I noticed a shining gleam coming from her wrist. When she jerked her hand up to wave at me, I saw she had been handcuffed to the cheetah next to her.

  The cheetah gave Nixie an annoyed glance then turned pleading eyes at York. I almost laughed at her situation when I heard the light giggle of Audrey. Nixie’s coral eyes turned to her friend and they softened as she watched her. I knew that Nixie cared for Audrey like a little sister and I could now see how Nixie noticed the change in Audrey. She was reverting back to the girl we had first met.

  I moved to sit next to Nixie, blocking her from York’s eyes. She visibly relaxed with me sitting between them. I looked at York from the corner of my eyes. He watched Drake, who in turn whispered something to Audrey. I couldn’t take my eyes off of her; I think I misinterpreted the look on her face earlier. While yes she was still hiding in her hair, her eyes showed a sign of defiance.

  The moment was broken when Elijah entered. He wasn’t being lead, but followed by the male Zana again.

  “Good, now that we are all here, I think it is time to get down to business.” York’s voice was booming in the small space and I saw Audrey flinch. Her father grabbed her hand and held on. But her eyes sought out mine. I wore a blank mask, but watching her look for me made me sit just a little taller.

  “How are we supposed to believe that these paranormals are coming back?” I demanded, tearing my eyes from Audrey. I wasn’t convinced by what York was saying about these rebirthed paranormals we thought to be dead. When I looked back at Drake, I could only wonder again what kind of paranormal he was. Gargoyles were built huge, and the only other paranormal I could think that still was in existence that was built like that was a Minotaur.

  “They are. You have already met Tom, you see Zeke right there, and Frea the Valkyrie who brought you in here today. You are no fool. You know all these were rare if not extinct races. Paranormals that we thought were killed in the last great battle have been hidden away, safely, until we could try and bring them out. The York clan has been keeping this a secret for more than a century. And with even more rare paranormals emerging, we have to get them before Cain finds out about them or Abram finds them first. Cain wants to destroy them while Abram would use them for his own gain. You need to be informed. The whole paranormal world should be.”

  “And what’s in it for you, York?” I growled, my eyes drifting to Audrey.

  “Nothing. You should know that even Gargoyle’s aren’t as abundant as we used to be. Most of us still in existence live under my care. I will take care of the rare and dying races, while other clans are joining to destroy them or to control them.” York was practically yelling at us.

  “Where is your proof?” Nixie demanded, sounding very defensive. I didn’t blame her, after all York was attacking our clan, our family.

  “There is proof enough siren.” He threw down a file and pushed it toward us. “If paper documents aren’t enough for you, you could always ask your wraith friend right there.” York’s purple eyes met Elijah’s and refused to move. All heads seemed to turn toward Elijah then, even Drake.

  “What the fin is he talking about Elijah?” Nixie demanded.

  “It was both parts weakening the Vedenin group and to further erase her kind.” It struck me as odd that no one, not even Audrey had mentioned to Nixie and I what she was. Now Elijah was watching Audrey who looked sick. I wanted to go to her but I remained in my seat. I turned back to Elijah.

  “You knew about this?” I demanded.

  “Of course. Jacobs wasn’t planning on killing her right away as she never showed any promise while captive with Abram. Jacobs was ordered by Cain Braden to have our team gain her trust to find out where her father was in hiding. We were right behind the Vedenin group all these years, but they arrived before our old team could at Audrey’s childhood home.” Elijah’s black eyes moved to Drake. “You were waiting for us and destroyed half the team. Then York arrived on the scene and took you away.”

  “My father died on that trip,” Nixie whispered, looking up at Drake who held no sympathy for her. She had tears in her eyes.

  “When Cain found out where they were keeping Audrey, he had Jacobs go in to find her. The real mission was always to retrieve Audrey. It was just a happy accident that you and Dallas found her first and decided to take her. When Jacobs realized that gaining her trust through you and Nixie wasn’t going to work, he decided to raise the bar a little. The next step was torture.”

  Audrey made a strangled noise and my eyes turned to her. She was looking at both Nixie and I like we were her torturers. She looked so betrayed. I think she wasn’t processing everything that Elijah was saying.

  “Oh no, little guppy! We weren’t in on this! We had no idea!” Nixie sounded desperate. Audrey looked at Nixie for a moment before turning her deep blue eyes on me.

  “Audrey…”

  She got up and left the room. I didn’t care what more Xavier had to say, I was done with this meeting. I transformed into a cheetah and dashed out of the door before it shut.

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Audrey

  I knew that Nixie and Gabriel weren’t lying, I knew that. I could see the confusion and the pain in their eyes. I could see it, I could practically feel it myself, but I couldn’t wrap my head around that idea. All I heard was that they betrayed me. I thought they cared about me. I had only so many good things left in my life. So little things I wanted to hold dear and hope they would never hurt me. My father tried to grab me before I ran off and I dodged his hold.

  “Audrey!” Stone’s voice was more gruff than usual.

  I didn’t stop though, I kept walking away, not sure where I was going, but knowing I wouldn’t be able to stand up to him. I was shocked to find out that his clan wanted to kill my father and myself just because of what we were. I thought of all people he understood. Stone who had held me so tightly last night. Who had told me the story of his mother without realizing that I was awake. I kept that to myself because I knew that he would tell me when he was ready. It was something that I could completely understand. Trusting someone was difficult; to give them a piece of your heart in such a way was dangerous. And yet I had.

  “Audrey, please!” He caught up to me, I don’t know if it was because I had started to slow down without realizing it, or he quickened his steps. Either way he had my arm in his hand now.

  “Audrey, look at me and tell me that I wasn’t telling you the truth. Tell me that I was lying when I sai
d that we had no idea. I would have never done that to you.” I looked up into his stormy grey eyes and saw regret, hatred, and obviously disappointment. I think the disappointment hurt the most. I wasn’t sure if it was directed at me or directed at his clan.

  “You promised you would never hurt me,” I whispered, looking away from his eyes. He had me pressed against a wall and I couldn’t struggle out from under him. He grabbed my chin gently and forced my eyes back to his.

  “And I meant that.” His voice was strong with conviction.

  “If you see me so innocent now, what was stopping you from seeing me as guilty as others. Can you tell me that you would have seen me as anything else but another guilty person unwilling to answer questions?” His eyes, turned a murky brown color. Total disgust. “You would have done to me what you would have done to all those people you told me about. To your clan, I am nothing more than a monster among beasts.”

  “No. Not to me. To me you are an angel among devils.” He pressed his forehead against mine; his eyes squeezed shut as he shook his head back and forth. “I don’t deserve you. I knew that. I knew that I would never get to keep you. But I don’t want you to ever think that I hate you. Gods how could I? You who survived so much and kept this.” His hand was on my heart. He opened his teal eyes to me “If I regret anything in my life, it was becoming so unfeeling that it took a scarred, broken girl who tried to save me to wake me up.”

  I didn’t know what to say to him. What could I say? That in that moment when I first saw him, I was saving myself as much as I was trying to save him? That I was being selfish and hoping all along he would take me with him? Instead of telling him the truth I gripped the back of his head and pulled him close.

  I pressed my lips against his. It was a painful kiss, one where I branded him and he branded me. For me, there was no going back after this kiss. How could there be anything better than this? He took over the kiss and his hands went to my hips, under my bum and lifted me up. Automatically my legs went around his waist. My hands ran through his hair as if I couldn’t get enough. His tongue invading my mouth while his hips… Gods his hips were moving in only a fashion that could be described as instinctual. My body responded.

  He moved, I don’t think he knew where he was going, but at this moment I didn’t care where we ended up. We still hadn’t really separated, one of our lips always touching the other, whether it was on the lips, cheek, neck, it didn’t matter, as long as I could touch him. Feel him. Everything else was forgotten. He fumbled for a doorknob with me still in his arms. I laughed lightly against his neck as I kissed it and a light feeling filled my heart. I had never felt so … free before.

  The door open and I recognized the room that I had been staying in. He shut the door with his foot and placed me gently on the bed. My body hummed with a whole new feeling. It was like I was floating, but completely grounded at the same time.

  When he crawled over me, I didn’t think my heart could race any faster. My breath caught in my throat. He gently pushed my legs apart and placed his body there. I bit my lip without realizing it. He groaned as he pressed his entire body onto mine and kissed me again with a ferocity that was shocking.

  I breathed him in.

  Taking all of these new emotions, I felt my body building to a whole new level. His hand skimmed the edge of my shirt; I knew that he was waiting for permission, to make sure that it was okay. I grabbed his hand and pushed it under my shirt. He groaned once more and I sighed. The heat of his skin burned into mine, leaving trails of heat behind. I never realized how cold my skin was until he touched me.

  As his hand moved up, I squirmed. He was coming close to more scars, scars he didn’t know about. Then he touched the edge of them.

  He didn’t pull away or look at me with disgust. Instead, his hand kept moving, touching the uglier parts. The parts that felt ugly. There was nothing there that was redeeming, but he pulled away from my lips and bent down to kiss the scars. He tasted them, letting his tongue run along the edges and ridges.

  I was breathing hard trying to keep up with the sensations running through me. His other hand had moved to my breast, and nothing felt as unnerving as having his hand there. It seemed like his entire hand covered it. He brushed over the most sensitive parts. My body jerked.

  “What-what are you doing to me?” I stuttered. My entire body was humming. A feeling I was quite enjoying. My voice came out breathy and barely even there. I felt his chest rumble with laughter and he placed my hand over his heart. It was beating at the pace of my own.

  “More like what are you doing to me?” he whispered, trailing kisses over my shirt back up to my face. “I don’t want you to feel like we have to go any farther than this right now. I hope you know that. I want to take things slow with you.” Understanding filled his eyes.

  While I didn’t exactly tell him what happened in the dark room, he knew of it. He coaxed many things out of me during our time at the cabin. While I hadn’t learned a lot about his early past, I knew about many stories and ticks of his own.

  I bit my lip looking away for a moment. Feeling his body on top of my own wasn’t the same as with those guards. They didn’t want to touch me like Stone did. He wouldn’t throw his weight into the first thrust. He wasn’t shoving, he was coaxing.

  “I am okay.” I whispered. I wasn’t okay, I was terrified. I was scared in a good way this time. This time felt different, it would be different. Stone looked down at me though and while I knew his eyes were a deep purple color of desire, I was hoping to see a different color. A color I was almost certain would be showing in my own eyes.

  “Audrey. I want this,” He looked at me when he said it, “More than anything. But I think that we should wait. I think there are still things that need to be discussed.” He left it open, almost as if there was something else he wanted to say. I wanted him to say more. Instead, he placed a lingering kiss on my lips and pulled off his own shirt that I hadn’t realized I was hiking up until now. I looked away from him feeling ashamed. But he quickly nudged my jaw so I faced him again.

  “Please don’t think that you should be ashamed. Because what would have happened here would have been beautiful, it would have been passionate, and it would have made you feel like you never have before.” I started to blush, and twist uncomfortably. “I would have not only had sex with you, but I would have made love to you. You wouldn’t remember the scars of the past ever again. You’d only think of me.”

  He placed a small kiss on my lips and pulled away, putting on his Stone face. The moments we had alone, the moments he made me feel like nothing else mattered, and that I was beautiful, he was Gabriel. He was open and loving. At times like now, he was Stone, unmoving and unfeeling. Though yes, he would joke around, there was still this distance between him and the others. He was so unlike Nixie, who was in the open, and willing to let people in with an easy smile and a kind heart.

  Stone grabbed my hand and we headed back to the conference room. I was surprised how easily he found it; I’d felt lost as soon as we left my room.

  When we got back in the meeting, Nixie was screaming at Elijah who sat unflinching, taking it. Xavier was sitting watching them, but his eyes flashed over to Stone and me. I could see the unpleased look in his eyes. I could still see the flux of colors, still read his feelings. My father was nowhere to be seen.

  “Good, you’re back. Your father went looking for you.” Xavier gave me a pointed look, but I didn’t shrink under it. I felt Stone’s hand tighten around mine. I didn’t think he even knew that he did it, but it gave me a bit of extra courage. I moved to sit with Stone instead of the seat that I had been sitting in, the seat I was expected to take. Stone sat me between him and Nixie who looked particularly proud and came to resume her seat. The guard that was handcuffed to her looked momentarily at ease since she looked almost calm. I tried to stifle a laugh knowing that it probably wasn’t the easiest thing to be chained with Nixie. She grabbed me into a hug pulling the guard with her. He looked an
noyed again but accepted it.

  “Oh my little guppy! I was so worried about you!” She kissed my cheek. She pulled away her coral eyes that were shining brightly. While this was happening Stone started to flip through the file that York had provided before.

  “Two of your team members, Anane and Cole, were sent on a mission to find a rumored Griffin-shifter. Something that we were sure had become extinct during the last battle. They were powerful creatures and it would only make sense to send a nephilim and a Dawon, who has the powers of a wizard, after him. Especially since your Cole is gifted with fore-sight.” Stone looked up at York with such a cold look that I thought York might actually have flinched a little. Instead he narrowed his eyes at Stone. “Yes, we are well aware of all the Bradens movements. What kind of enemy would we be if we didn’t know?”

  “If you know so much, please tell me more about how my clan is trying to destroy almost extinct creatures? What is the gain in it?” Stone asked.

  “Power, what else? Right now the York clan is at the head of the top families, closely followed by the Braden clan and Long clan. The Longs keep to their Asian countries, but the States are becoming a bit too crowded for the Braden clan. The Braden clan has always taken in the most…prejudiced of people. While the York family does not discriminate.”

  “What are you trying to say York? That we Braden’s are a bunch of stuck up racist paranormals? Because let me tell you something, my father…the man your friend Drake killed, was anything but. He loved all paranormals; he judged people based on their character.” Nixie’s voice was dangerously quiet, like a calm before the storm. I looked over at her and her face was completely guarded. She wasn’t looking at me, but digging holes into York.