Denying Ecstasy (The Guardians of the Realms Series)

by Setta Jay

  Both she and Sam looked at each other and chuckled.

  Her friend frowned at them. “What? You two have better ideas?” She actually snorted at their lack of enthusiasm, which only caused more laughter to erupt from them.

  “It’s really sweet of you to offer, but I wouldn’t know what to do with a needle and thread.”

  Alyssa’s mouth dropped open, appalled, which brought tears of mirth to Rain’s eyes. “Really? I’m not so backwards that I don’t have sewing machines.” She huffed. “Gregoire set me up with the most advanced equipment.” She puffed up talking about her sewing room and what her mate had done.

  In between fits of hysterics, Rain defended her friend. “I’ve seen it. He went crazy buying stuff. Half of it she doesn’t even know how to use.” She didn’t realize how much she needed to laugh. It felt good.

  “Of course I do. I read the damn instructions. I’ve decided that one machine is simply defective.”

  The three of them had a hard time stopping the laughter once it started. It relieved a lot of the anxiety she was feeling with Dorian on Earth. She knew she could still communicate with him, but she didn’t want to distract him in the middle of a fight. She didn’t like what they’d said about Cynthia using advanced weapons with the potential to do serious damage to an Immortal. They might even be able to sever his head, which meant death. Immortality wasn’t infallible.

  Chapter 25

  Guardian Manor, Tetartos Realm

  Brianne woke in a small bed that was definitely not hers. She scanned her surroundings before deciding it was fine to move. She was groggy as hell. What happened? Her muscles were stiff, and her ass was planted in the infirmary. That meant she’d been injured. Mentally taking stock, she knew that all her limbs were where they were supposed to be, and she didn’t feel anything wrong. She whipped the thin blanket off and scowled at the horrendous gown they’d put her in. Why not leave her naked? She wasn’t shy. Her brothers never helped Sirena with her healing, and those were the only ones she might be slightly skeevy about seeing her nude. Once her brain started working, she’d call her sister and bitch-slap her for putting her in the stupid getup.

  She shook her head, trying to clear the fog in her mind. She stretched and inhaled deeply, surprised at catching the one scent she’d grown to crave. It was dangerous to her, but so intoxicating. More now than ever before. Her heart stuttered, and she jumped from the bed, her muscles feeling the pull, but she didn’t give a shit. She whipped aside the curtain that obscured the top of the bed next to her. She knew what she’d find. Who. Her brain was so damned fuzzy. Had Sirena given her drugs?

  She tried to shake off the cobwebs as she searched Vane’s face and sheet-covered body for whatever injury had landed him in the bed next to hers. She didn’t find anything. Her stomach clenched as she listened to his steady breathing and tried to relax.

  He was sleeping and didn’t appear injured. He had to have already healed. What the hell were they doing there? She didn’t dare touch him, keeping her distance was a necessary precaution. The last thing she needed was him waking up to her pawing at him as if she cared. She scoffed at that thought, but the draw to touch him was stronger than it had ever been. Something was making his scent so much more intoxicating than before, and it was affecting her hormones.

  She frowned. His beautiful golden hair was splayed out on the pillow. His eyes were closed, and his jaw had a day’s worth of stubble. She balled her fists to stop from feeling what it was like. He was too fussy to allow whiskers. She really wanted to do more than touch that rough hair; she’d much rather hop in the bed right beside him and do wicked things to him as he slept. She grinned at such deviant thoughts. She stretched her arms over her head again and tried to think while working to shake off her weird reactions. Why were they there? The stubble meant Vane might not have been there long, right? Unless someone shaved him. Damn, that could have happened. Her aching muscles indicated that she’d been there well over a few days.

  Blips of memory started coming back to her. The fight, hell beasts, and then Vane there fighting alongside her. The rush, then irritation at being tossed out of danger. Him getting distracted, and the ofioeidis biting down, so close to his head. She’d panicked; the beasts hadn’t been the same as the ones she fought before, a new breed, so much stronger than the others. Blinding terror racked her as she and her brothers cut the beast’s head off and dislodged the venomous teeth from Vane’s flesh. She’d shouted at him, furious that he’d gotten hurt. The bastard wasn’t supposed to get injured, ever. She’d wanted to mutilate the beast for harming her male. No, not hers, never hers, but her mind hadn’t been rational. Obviously, or she would never have ripped his leather aside and sucked at the poison as quickly as she could. With venom, every fucking second counted. She’d split blood and venom over and over as her brothers watched. Now they knew. She’d been avoiding that. Never wanting them ever to know about the relationship, her weakness. It had all started out as something forbidden. She should have exiled him from Earth; instead she’d met and screwed him like a bitch in heat every damn chance she’d gotten in the last century. Damn! Damn. Drake and her brothers would know what she felt. They’d pity her. She’d been too demented to guard her emotions when trying to help him.

  She rubbed her face. Maybe it was better to face her brothers now while she looked pathetic and sick. There would be lectures, questions. She knew it was coming. She looked down at Vane again. When would he snap out of it? She still needed to kick his ass. The whole thing was his fault. First in thinking to fight beside her, as if she’d needed help, and then because he’d gotten hurt and scared her.

  Why didn’t that matter as much? She couldn’t take her eyes off of him, wanting to pull off the sheet covering him and see if his cock would respond to her lips. Shit. She just needed to get her heated response to the damn male under control. She didn’t want to have it out with her brethren while horny, but she was dying for confirmation from Sirena that Vane would be okay. They were both hit with the same damn venom; he would be fine. She obviously was, so he would be too. She believed that.

  He’d better be having sweet dreams, because when he woke up, his ass was hers.

  More memories struck. She sat back down to catch her breath, and closed her eyes. Had they been sharing dreams?

  Gods, she hoped that wasn’t real. If it was, so much more was on the line when he woke up. She heard her brothers on the Guardian link. She had to dress in case they needed her, but she really had to stretch out her muscles before she did anything.

  Chapter 26

  Cynthia’s Hideout, Earth Realm

  Conn and the others had done as much surveillance as they could after figuring out where Cynthia had been hiding. It was a fortress, under a new alias they hadn’t known about. It was in a corporation her maternal grandfather set up decades ago, and Cynthia had managed to hide it well. The property was miles of fenced and tree-lined acreage. They’d checked the place with all the electronics they could, and now they waited. They had as much footage as they could get in the few days since the meeting at the manor.

  He wore a spelled vest; they all did.

  Dorian wished he was back at the beach house with Rain. He knew she was holding back, not wanting to give anything more than her body, but his reasons for not wanting to blood bond had only grown stronger. He ran his hands through his hair. He fucking… cared for her. Shit, he wanted to protect her from his ugliness indefinitely.

  “Nothing’s changed in the last few days, still five guard stations with rocket launchers,” P said through the link. The last time they’d gone after Cynthia, they’d found out too late that she not only dealt in human drugs, but she was well fortified with military-grade weapons. The first round of raids went smoothly, but by their second round, her Mageia were waiting.

  “Guards in goggles, likely heat-seeking to know what they’re aiming at. Stay back until I signal,” Drake said, flying in the opposite direction of P. He’d partially transfor
med and had to fly higher because the green scales of his wings glinted in the moonlight, whereas P’s were pitch black. P and Drake wouldn’t normally change form on Earth, but Cynthia was just too good, and the best option was to strike from above. She’d managed to down eight Guardians last time. No easy feat. That was not happening again.

  “She’s spelled the building. It’ll take a minute to break through and then secure the guards with the long-range weapons. Don’t stay in one place long in case we don’t get them all. I have no doubt she’ll have even more safety precautions in place,” Drake growled through the link.

  They’d considered gassing them, but without having a good idea of the layout, it wasn’t a good idea. They didn’t want it obscuring their vision and senses if the crazy bitch ran again. Drake and P would have to subdue the Mageia with long-range weapons as quickly as possible and disable the missiles too. It was in no way the ideal situation, so they were prepared for anything.

  Blaring alarms sounded a second later. Dorian waited next to Bastian and Conn. Others were in groups around the entire perimeter, including Uri, Alex and her brother, Erik.

  You good, man? Conn asked.

  Yeah, I’ve got this. He wasn’t going to be left behind, and since feeding the frenzy, he wasn’t in the dangerous shape he was before. Yeah, he’d still fight with a semi, but not a full-on hard-on. It was doable.

  None of them wanted to take the chance that Cynthia would get away again. She was the only link they had to Elizabeth and whoever was in charge of Cyril’s people. They didn’t think anyone would follow Elizabeth. She was just too damn sadistic; she’d always been twisted. They could see someone using her for her ability, yes, but her as a leader, doubtful. That meant someone else was pulling the strings and having Cynthia find them test subjects. That had to stop.

  He, Conn and Bastian stood waiting for their cue to teleport in.

  Dorian wanted to check on Rain but stopped himself. He’d left her with Sam and Alyssa at the manor; she was fine. He really needed to get his shit together. He was fast becoming addicted to her sweet body and so much more. She was so damn perfect. Caring, strong and beautiful. Her power was beyond anything he’d ever seen from a Mageia. Even he couldn’t do what she was able to. Once they mated and their powers melded, she truly would be his sea goddess. Rain was everything he never imagined having in his life.

  He really needed to get a hold on it. The longer Sirena searched for a way around her seeing his memories, the bleaker the option seemed. The blood bonding had to be done. It was the final step that would lock in her Immortality. Sirena thought she might be able to come up with a drug to dull the memories she’d see, but who knew if and when that would happen. The longer he waited, the more he imagined ripping apart any Aletheia that touched her. He would have to share her, she wouldn’t gain Immortality without it, but fuck, she was his. He understood a little better why Hippeus were forced into chains when they mated a mortal. Gregoire’s race was fifty times more possessive than any of the others. Nereids weren’t known for even a little possessiveness, yet his was getting stronger every day.

  Conn seemed off. He kept looking into the trees away from the house and inhaling. Are you good? He frowned at the wolf.

  We’re in, Drake said.

  He and the others ported into the property. He chose to land in the trees, alert for any movement that would indicate Cynthia leaving. The alarms were blaring. Others were teleporting to the roof and into the second-floor windows. He felt, then heard an explosion to the left.

  Fuck, landmines under the fruit trees on the east side of the house. Sander is down. Getting him back, Jax said.

  Son of a bitch. He was glad the side he was on had mature trees to land in.

  On my way, Sirena sent, no doubt Jax had broadcast an image of where to meet. It would take too long to take Sander to the manor and through the spells to the infirmary. Sirena would teleport him there if she needed to.

  He ported to the side of the house. He, Conn and Bastian stealthily moved in, but no Mageia were coming out to meet them. Gunfire erupted from the other side of the home.

  Can someone cut that fucking alarm? He felt Jax’s annoyance. It was loud as shit and hard to discern anything else, which was the point.

  Working on it, Conn said as he slipped through a side entrance to the massive home.

  He watched and stole through the same door, rounding a corner as Bastian came in behind him.

  A Mageia appeared around the corner and shot just as Dorian teleported behind him, the asshole had skills, and the butt of the weapon nearly cracked back into his jaw. He dodged, and the bastard pulled the air from his lungs as Dorian grabbed his hands to cuff him. It was a decent attempt to fight, but the cuffs would drain that power. The room’s furniture crashed from the air currents the Mageia was trying to manipulate until the metal shut it down.

  Half the upstairs is cleared and no sign of the bitch, P said.

  I have her scent. Cynthia’s in here, Jax said, recognizing it from tracking her after the last battle.

  Dorian secured the Mageia’s feet in a long zip-tie in mere seconds and stuck him in the corner to retrieve later, then followed after Conn. Another bound guy was left in a corner. The blaring alarm was making it impossible to hear anything the male was saying, and he didn’t care. He and Bastian looked at each other, watchful of their surroundings. He slid into a hall and handled another asshole who charged through a door ahead of him. There were too many damn rooms and hallways in the place. The downstairs was easily twenty thousand square feet, which would have been much easier to search if there weren’t sitting rooms and hallways all over the damn place.

  Why aren’t hordes of Mageia on our asses? There were a few, but not like the last time. He caught up as Conn had one down and cuffed. An assault rifle was on the ground next to them.

  We took care of most of them before you got here, P said through the link.

  Asshole.

  P chuckled at the comment. His brother generally kept to himself, and Dorian understood why. The son of Hades had his own issues. He nearly snorted. Fuck, they all had their own issues.

  He spotted a Mageia slip out of a hidden door in the wall as Conn walked passed. Dorian was on him before the bastard could pull the trigger on the Glock he’d raised. Conn turned with a raised eyebrow as Dorian secured the bastard.

  There are hidden doors in the walls, he informed the others.

  No one’s found the alarm? Jax growled through the link.

  Obviously not, asshole. Keep bitching, though, cuz that’s making it so much better, Dorian responded. He was just as irritated.

  Fuck off.

  Shut up! Drake snapped.

  It reeked of perfume the further they went. Someone had to have broken a bottle of the sickening stuff.

  Another wall slid open, and three Mageia came out firing in both directions. The area was too damn small, and a bullet grazed his neck while another hit his vest. It burned like a bitch, but he gritted his teeth and knocked one weapon away and flipped the bastard to his stomach. He was hit with another fucking bullet to the thigh. He felt Rain’s panic through the link and was getting ready to reassure her when he felt her. Next to him. Everything happened so fast. Their eyes connected, and he saw his own horror reflected in hers. His heart stopped as everything moved in slow motion. He grabbed for her as two more Mageia filled the room. The bullet hit, and he instantly felt her pain, her fear. Her warm blood on his hands as he covered her small body with his. Her body went limp in his arms.

  Gregoire, Rain just teleported. What the hell’s going on? Alyssa’s voice was panicked through the link. He ignored all other chatter. He didn’t fucking care what the hell was going on other than getting Rain help.

  Fuck! Sirena, get the hell over here. Rain’s been shot! He gave Sirena the visual of his island on Earth and teleported them out. He needed her on his bed. Safe in his home. He needed her to be okay.

  He’d never felt so scared in his entire l
ife. He smelled her blood as he lay her down on the bed. She cringed in pain, but didn’t say a word. His own injuries long forgotten, he fought through the buzzing in his ears. The blending of their bodies still affected his damn dick, but his panic quickly killed it. “It’s going to be okay. I’ve got you. Sirena will fix this,” he said while using the blanket to put pressure on the wound. They were both bleeding all over the bed, but it didn’t matter. He kissed her head and shook as he waited for his sister.

  Just stay with me, he said in Rain’s mind.

  Damn it, Sirena! Where the fuck are you!

  Her breath was hissing out. It was a lung; he knew it. Better than her heart. Fuck. He kissed her lips, still putting pressure to the wound.

  Everyone out now, Jax’s voice came booming through the link. Fuck, that didn’t sound good, but all he could think of was her jerking attempts to breathe, and Sirena still wasn’t fucking there.

  Sirena came rushing through the door. “Let me see.”

  He moved but refused to leave her side, he just kept kissing her forehead. Shaking, he was fucking shaking so hard.

  “It punctured her lung.” He watched his sister work and saw the bullet fall away. Finally, Rain took in a deep breath, and he slowly relaxed.

  Sirena pulled the bullet from his leg. The neck wound was only a graze. It probably looked ugly, but it was already closed.

  “Go take care of Sander. I’ll heal,” he told Sirena when she moved to look at his neck.

  His sister’s gaze was hard. “No more. That was close to being deadly for her.”

  He nodded. He wouldn’t wait any longer. No fucking way was he taking another chance that she’d die on him.

  Sirena left, and he looked down at his little mate. So much terror had filled him when he’d seen her. “Does it still hurt?”

  She cleared her throat. “No.”

  His head touched hers, and his hand went to her heart. He was still trying to breathe through it all, and feeling her heart beat was the only thing loosening the vise around his lungs.