by Setta Jay
Rain chuckled. She couldn’t help it. Her mellow, sweet friend looked positively bloodthirsty, and it surprised and amused her all at once.
Alyssa scowled at her.
“I know I shouldn’t laugh, but, Lis, I’ve never seen you so fierce. You’re definitely coming into your own now.”
Alyssa shook her head in frustration and blew out a breath before attempting a weak smile. “I just have a bad feeling about all these attacks, and I can’t seem to shake it.” She really looked tense and ready to teleport any minute, not to mention her face was flushed and she looked a little wild eyed.
“Is something else wrong?” Rain couldn’t help thinking that there was more.
Alyssa ran her hands through her hair, and Rain cringed at how out of sorts she looked.
“I’m fine. I’m sure it’s that I’m still getting used to the crazed emotions that come with a mating. Don’t worry about me.” Alyssa shook her head. “I’m sorry, Rain. We need to figure out what to do about your damn flounder.”
Rain let out a strained chuckle. “Nothing has changed, and he’s not mine.”
Alyssa closed her eyes and tilted her face to the sun. “Do you care if we just sit here for a bit? I need a break from my workroom, and I want to monitor the fight. It makes me feel better hearing all the chatter on the Guardians’ mental link.”
“That’s fine. I’ve been thinking about moving away for a bit. I’m selling my shop, so I can’t go there, but I guess I could stay with my parents.” She cringed. She loved her parents dearly, but the thought of crashing at their place went against every independent bone in her body. Her parents were very focused on their own lives and their shared passion for the research work they did. They were gone most of the time, but knowing she was there, they’d worry about what was wrong and try to help. No one was capable of fixing her problems at the moment. Sirena had nothing that worked to dull the arousal. She’d gotten groggy but had still been aroused.
Alyssa raised an eyebrow. “Drake might have a fit. Your safety is still a concern. Cyril might be dead, but his people are still out there somewhere, and you have an ability that makes you a target. If what I heard when they abducted us was correct, they’ll come after you.”
Shit. Alyssa was right. She hadn’t truly thought it out. How could she get out without putting herself in danger? She had no desire to get abducted again. Alyssa had heard the males saying that Cyril was looking for Mageia with rare offshoot abilities that were different than the usual, air, earth, fire and water varieties. Thank the Creators Alyssa had been with her last time, or they’d have likely never found her. The thought of being an experiment made her twitchy. She also wouldn’t be used against her friend if the enemy came, or bring danger to her parents’ home. She was stuck.
“You can always stay with us.”
“Thanks, but I’ll think of something. You two need your space. You just got mated.” No way was she staying with them. When she’d woken up on their couch after the abduction, she swore she heard them going at it in their loft bedroom.
She rolled her neck. She hated the arousal; it was embarrassing. Sirena kept running tests, but the healer didn’t have a lot of time to help her. The Guardians were in constant battle in one Realm or the other.
“Should we consider kidnapping him?” Alyssa said, and Rain knew she was talking about Dorian.
“Hell no. I would love to chew his ass, but I won’t tie him up and make things worse. My pride couldn’t take that. If he doesn’t want me, fine. He doesn’t get me. According to Sirena, eventually he won’t be able to control himself, but I will… I just want to know why he touched me and started this. Any one of the others could have carried me out of there. I also want to rip into him for not saying a damn word to me about what he’d done. Even a letter would have worked. I was going through symptoms with no clue, and he knew.” She was so angry. The whole thing sucked. All of the Guardians knew what was going on, and she felt like unwanted trash.
“Everyone’s been nice, but I can see the pity, and it’s mortifying. Sirena told me some of his issues, but not one word from him.” She was so damned frustrated.
Alyssa just nodded.
“He’s really pissing me off.” They just sat there for a long moment, soaking in the sunshine. She needed to go for another swim. Being in her element soothed her, and she was riled up.
“How is the fight going? The cities are still safe, right?” She was sure they were or Alyssa would have told her. She worried for her parents in Lofodes, but as long as the city’s shield was up, they’d be fine.
Alyssa stiffened before speaking. “The cities are still secure. The beasts were thinning until ofioeidis came. I don’t like it.” Alyssa’s jaw clenched, and her muscles were tense.
“Gregoire just assured me that they have it covered,” Alyssa said, and her features softened when talking about her big mate.
“I’m sure they do.” Though it seemed some of Alyssa’s anxiety was bleeding into her. She never would have doubted the Guardians, but her friend’s worry was making her question her own assumptions about their ability. Ofioeidis were the worst of all the hell creatures. They rarely made it to Tetartos Realm, and they could do some serious damage. They were scary as crap.
Alyssa looked off again, paying attention to the Guardian link even though Gregoire’s assurance seemed to soothe her.
They sat there silently for a while. Rain needed to come up with some sort of plan. What if Dorian never came for her? Never tried to court her or even attempt to make up for his asshole behavior, what would she do then? Her body wanted him. There was no help for that. Her pride wasn’t accepting anything less than an apology and some show that he wanted to be with her. Groveling would be good. A lot of groveling. It wasn’t like she had any choice in the matter either. She would theoretically be tied to him for eternity, without knowing a damn thing about him. When she was a child, it had all sounded exciting and romantic. Her mate would sweep her off her feet, and they would live happily ever after. She nearly snorted at that now.
They sat there looking toward the pool house, each lost in their own thoughts
“Anything else,” Rain asked, hoping there was a good update.
“It sounds like the beasts are mostly taken care of… They should be done soon.” Alyssa looked relieved, and Rain smiled at her. “Sorry I’ve been so distracted.”
“It’s fine. We’ve talked the Dorian thing to death. Nothing has changed. It’s all dependent on him now. I hate it, but I’m hoping Sirena will find something to help with the symptoms.”
A few minutes later Alyssa’s brows furrowed and she tensed up again. “Vane’s hurt. Sirena’s having Dorian bring him here. Sirena sent me a private message for you to come down to the infirmary in a few minutes.”
“Is Vane okay?” Rain’s stomach flipped. Not only with concern for Vane but thinking about finally having it out with that damned Nereid.
Alyssa looked off again before letting her know what was happening. “He was bitten by one of the ofioeidis. Gregoire says he’ll be unconscious for a while, but he’ll be fine.”
“Poor thing.” She couldn’t imagine the teeth on those creatures leaving a small hole.
Alyssa nodded her agreement.
Rain stood up and looked in the direction of the infirmary. She suddenly wasn’t sure if confronting him was the best idea. “I want to talk to him, but will getting near him take us further into the frenzy?” she asked Alyssa.
Her friend smiled sadly at her. She knew Alyssa wanted everything to work. She appreciated that her friend was pulling for her and the Nereid to get it together. Yes, Dorian was a Guardian. That meant the Creators themselves saw something worthy in him as a protector. That didn’t mean he wasn’t an asshole, it just meant that somewhere deep down—way deep down—he had some goodness in there.
“Rain, you’re strong and stubborn. You can fight the arousal if that’s what you want to do.”
She wanted answers, needed
to know what he was thinking. She looked down at her clothes. She had on her tiny purple bikini under the linen knit cover-up that Alyssa had made for her. The fitted tunic style hugged her body and dipped low, showing off a ton of cleavage. It was her favorite. Good. If she was going to see the ass, she was glad she at least looked sexy.
“I’m going to wait here for a bit in case you need me. Gregoire said cleanup was going to take a little longer. If you don’t come back, I’ll know you’ve got him by the balls.”
Rain smiled at Alyssa’s confidence in her ability to take no prisoners. She squared her shoulders and hoped to Hell something good would come out of seeing him. She wasn’t sure that would be the case, but she needed to try.
She was less than thrilled that fate was dictating such a huge part of her life.
She took the long way to the infirmary and finally came to the hallway she needed, more determined than ever to talk to him. He owed her an explanation. She almost tripped when she felt him. She braced a hand on the wall and took a deep breath. He was just behind the door to the infirmary. Emotion filtered inside her mind, anger, and it was building. It had to be coming from him. She stood glaring at the door that separated them. She wouldn’t go in and interrupt what was going on with Vane, but he had to come out sometime.
She smelled that same delicious scent. She knew it came from him, and she swore it was getting stronger. It was the sweet smell that filled the air right before a storm mixed with something else, something edible. Her nipples hardened inside the soft triangles of her bikini top, and she nearly groaned.
She heard talking through the thick door, but with her mortal hearing, she couldn’t make out the words. She chewed her lip, hoping Vane was okay. She really liked the male. He was sweet and funny. He might be miserable now, but he was Immortal and would heal fast. He’d likely have Brianne playing nurse for him. She shook her head and felt a small smile tilt her lips. It was amusing that they thought everyone was fooled, but in reality, everyone knew about the relationship.
It felt like eternity had gone by while many of the others left the infirmary and greeted her before getting the hell out of there as fast as they could. First was Uri, Alex and her brother, Erik, then Bastian before Drake left. It made for a highly uncomfortable and awkward wait.
Finally, the door flung open with a harsh bang. It hammered against the wall before it slammed back shut. A wet, half-naked Dorian came stalking out. His brows were drawn tight over bright aqua eyes as he glared at her. There was no surprise, just anger. He’d known she was there, just as she’d known he was in the room.
He inhaled as she looked at him. Her heart rate accelerated as she saw his bare chest for the first time. Both of his shoulders and biceps had swirling blue tattoos that tipped in points above his elbows. They were beautiful, and she had a visual of tracing them with her tongue. His chest was tanned and had drops of water glistening all over everything, including his small brown nipples. Her mouth went dry, and she swallowed, trying to shake off her body’s response. Her breathing was erratic, and she felt hot, as if her skin were burning up. She forced her eyes away from his muscled body. The pull to go to him was intense.
She made a mental note to berate Sirena later. A warning that he was going to be half naked would have been greatly appreciated.
Her nipples felt like they would cut through her bikini top at any moment. Her pussy ached. She blamed it on the amazing smell rolling off his skin. He was barefoot and wearing some low-slung flimsy pants. Her eyes roved to the vee of muscle that led under his pants and the hard erection pulling at the fabric. She lifted her eyes and caught a red and angry cut gouged into the ink on one bicep. She blinked and shot her gaze to his.
His eyes had been tracking her body too, and she felt it all over her skin, only his gaze seemed to get more and more angry as it moved. She’d truly underestimated the draw of the mating frenzy. Sirena had said it wouldn’t be as hard for her. Shit, if this was easy, how was he dealing with it and why was it making her insecure that he could so easily resist her? The thought was barely out when he started stalking toward her. Her heartbeat kicked up. She straightened her shoulders and cocked a brow at him. She was thankful as shit that she was already against the wall; she needed the stability.
She felt his heat as he moved closer. Her head tilted back. He was tall, and she knew he was trying to use his size to intimidate her. Fuck that. She set her jaw and stood as tall as she could.
He narrowed his eyes on her and growled, “Did you think that coming here in that slip of fabric would make me claim you? Tempting me with your hot little body won’t get you what you want.”
She glared up at him, wishing she had heels on. He was well over a foot taller than she, and she hated that she had to look up. Was that the point he was trying to make? That he was superior to her?
“I came here so that you could explain what the fuck you were thinking? If you didn’t want a mate, then why the hell did you touch me?” she ground out, fighting the need to lean in and touch his hot skin.
His eyes flashed. He obviously didn’t like to be called out, and she didn’t care. She felt his heat as if it were caressing her skin. She lifted to her tiptoes to get closer to his face, but it only brought her up so that her mouth was level with his tight brown nipples. If she leaned a little closer… What the hell was wrong with her? She bit the inside of her cheek to get through it.
She could almost hear his teeth grinding. “You’re really going to act as if you’re not thrilled at landing a Guardian for a mate.” His voice was harsh as he mocked her, completely avoiding the question and moving straight to defensive tactics. Other emotion was rolling off him, but it was hard to decipher with all the anger. Pain? Likely from his rock hard cock. She shook it off.
“You know what? You are an arrogant piece of shit,” she snapped. “I’m not so desperate for Immortality and a mate that I would want an asshole. Guardian or not.” She poked him in the chest as her anger boiled. The touch of his skin ignited her. It must have done the same to him as he pushed her up against the wall, trapping her between his skin and the hard plaster.
She wasn’t done railing at him, and she hated that her emotions and his were confusing her so damn much. She didn’t care that her pussy wept for him, and she closed her eyes against the feel of his hot shaft pushed against her stomach. He bent at the waist. She was grateful that his cock wasn’t touching her anymore. He leaned over until his lips were near hers. “Are you saying you don’t want me, nymph? Because your pussy is calling you a liar.”
“Oh, my body wants you,” she purred back before taking a nip at his lower lip. His eyes scorched her with so much heat she thought she’d ignite. “It’s my mind that wants nothing to do with you, my little guppy.” She would have smirked if she were capable.
His eyes flashed at the pet name before they narrowed dangerously. “Bullshit. You’re saying you want nothing to do with Immortality and the power of being my mate? You’re not lining up to be a willing hole like all the rest?” He scoffed and raised an eyebrow as if to challenge her. She felt the pang of pain and bitterness rolling from him. A hint of desperation flirted at the edge. It confused her.
His arrogance was pissing her off, making her a little sick. Almost but not quite killing her desire, that’s just how fucked up the mating frenzy was. She inched close to him. “I’m saying that you don’t know the first thing about me. You touched me, took away the option to ride this out slowly, and then swam off into the sunset. I had to find out I was mated from Sirena, who was concerned that I’d mated one of the enemy,” she bit out. Her cheeks were heated, and she had no idea if it was from excitement or anger—they were running neck and neck inside her. She saw something in his eyes, something that looked shockingly like regret. It was gone so fast she knew hope had caused her to imagine him softening toward her.
He narrowed his eyes and seemed to be assessing her words, looking for the lies he hoped to find. She took a deep breath, trying to control
the lust, feeding the anger instead. Big hands lifted her ass and pinned her to the wall. Her breath exhaled in a rush as she fought the desire to wrap her legs around him. If he thought to bully and intimidate her and then just expect her to fall all over him, he was sorely mistaken.
“I will not be your mate,” he said so strongly it felt as if the walls shook.
“Then you might want to get your hands off me. Again,” Rain snapped back at him. It felt good to unleash her anger, but she knew her body was trying to take her over. She wanted to spread her thighs and feel his big hard erection where she needed it. It was cradled hot and thick between them. Wanting him just pissed her off. The desire to lash out was intense, almost as strong as the heat between them. His hands were holding her, his pinkie fingers dipping into the crease of her thigh and ass, massaging as he pressed his weight and hot cock into her. “Put. Me. Down,” she said and then nipped at his lip again. That thick lip called to her, and she hated that it tempted her so damn much. She wanted to know what it felt like against her skin, over her lips, on her nipples. She glared at it as if the flesh itself were to blame for her torment.
Before she could do anything more, his lips were on hers. His mouth taking, demanding her surrender. She fought it, could have fought his rough tactics forever, but when he softened the kiss, she got lost. Caught off guard by the gentleness, her lips parted, and his tongue slipped inside, soft and seductive. Everything fell away as it delved in and mingled with hers. He gentled, tempting and tasting her until she was wild for more of him. Her hands went to his wet hair and over his rough jaw. He tasted of something addicting. She was getting drunk on it as his lips grew aggressive and demanding again.
“Spread your thighs.” He demanded harshly, his hands moving to her thighs. Her vision was getting hazy. She felt drugged and needed so much more of it. She groaned, unable to stop from parting her legs to make room for him against her pussy. His lips took hers again, his tongue sliding in, exploring, seducing. She moaned as he rubbed against her clit and massaged her thighs and ass with his palms. She needed… her mind and thoughts were gone as they moved together. He was intoxicating her on purpose, rolling his hips into her until she was whimpering into his questing mouth and soaking the fabric separating them. She was almost consumed with lust, never had she been kissed like he was kissing her.
