His eyebrows rose and he actually had the nerve to smile. “You’d feel it if I’d fucked you. You’re dainty, Jill. I’m not.” He stood and reached for the front of his pants.
“What are you doing?”
It shocked her when he opened them, shoving the black material down. The sight of his straining, thick cock freed wasn’t something she could unsee. He was really big and really hard.
He yanked his pants up, adjusting his hard-on, and sat back down. “You’d know it with certainty if I’d been inside you.”
She recovered, glaring at him. “That was crude.”
“Effective though.” He sighed, breaking eye contact momentarily but quickly looking back at her. “I’m trying to get you to trust and like me, goddamn it. What happened was detrimental to gaining that goal. All I can do is apologize and tell you the truth. I didn’t know that would happen. When it did, I tended to you in the least traumatizing way I could.”
“You think going down on me wasn’t traumatizing?” She knew her cheeks were burning. It was embarrassing to remember how much she’d enjoyed it. “You put your face where it shouldn’t have been!”
He glanced down her body. “You would have suffered if I hadn’t done that.” His gaze returned to hers. “It was either pain or pleasure. I never want to see you hurting, Jill.”
“So that was you doing me a favor?”
He stood and rounded the counter. “I don’t want to fight with you. It was an accident. You don’t seem willing to believe me but I did my best to get you through the end result.” He bent, taking something out of the oven.
She noticed his hands turning gray before he lifted a glass dish and set it on the stovetop. She wondered if that was his version of pot holders, partially shelling.
He turned to face her. “Please eat.”
She was hungry. “Fine, but it better not be drugged.”
He got out plates and a large spoon, dishing what she assumed was some kind of breakfast casserole. It smelled good. He put both of them down on the counter by the barstools, then gathered silverware. “I would never purposely hurt you in any way.”
He looked so defeated and, despite her anger, his voice bothered her. He was usually confident but now he seemed defeated. Even…sad.
What if he was telling the truth? It didn’t excuse what happened. Though she was a little more open to listening and asking questions.
“So you’re telling me that you didn’t know us kissing could drug me?”
He held her gaze. “I did not. I swear on my life.”
“How is that possible?”
He took a seat beside her. “GarLycans and VampLycans are a young race, Jill. There was never any recorded history of our races breeding until after VampLycans came to be. We still are learning what we’re capable of and don’t have answers for everything, like lifespans. For example, will a VampLycan die of old age the way a Lycan would after so many hundreds of years, or will they endure agelessness the way Vampires do, as long as they drink blood? It’s the same for GarLycans, although we do tend to inherit most of our traits from our Gargoyle blood. I can’t tell you what my lifespan will be with certainty. I can guess it will be thousands of years, but who really knows? We don’t. I can do things Gargoyles can’t because I’m not a full-blood. What happened when I kissed you wasn’t planned, nor did I suspect it was a possibility. It’s never happened to me before, or been reported by any other GarLycan.”
She took a bite of the casserole. It was good but slightly odd tasting. She refused to ask him what meat was inside it. With her luck, it might be sheep or maybe even a rabbit. She thought both animals were cute. It was best not to know. His words replayed in her head as she considered everything he’d said.
“I won’t risk kissing you again, Jill. I’m afraid to. I never want a repeat of what happened and the fear I saw in your eyes. You must hate me.”
She glanced over at him and discovered his shoulders slumped, his focus on the food in front of him. He looked depressed, and his tone sounded the same. It made her feel bad…and a little guilty. He certainly seemed sincere.
But her anger returned. It was possible he was telling the truth, but it was still really screwed up that her body had been out of control because of some freaky hormone thing going on with him.
She decided to stay silent and just eat.
They finished their meal and Aveoth stood, carrying their dishes to the sink. “I am going to leave soon and deal with some problems in the clan. A guard will be assigned outside the door but it will be for your protection. I don’t trust Winalin or anyone like her to not try to harm you while I’m gone.”
That surprised her. “You’re actually going to leave me alone and not drag me with you this time?”
He faced her, and the normal sparks of color in his eyes remained absent. “Yes. I believe you’ve had enough of my company recently. I am truly sorry, Jill. I never meant for that to happen.”
Damn. She felt really guilty. He’d been nice to her since they’d met. She couldn’t deny it. The possibility of him telling her the truth about that kiss seemed more likely than not. It might suck that he wouldn’t allow her to go home, but he’d sworn to keep her safe. He also could have nailed her while she was drugged out of her head, but he hadn’t. She believed that too. The guy was hung. She’d have felt that afterward if he’d fucked her.
“I’ll leave you now. I have calls to make to two trusted GarLycans I wish to guard you, and I have the head of the Gargoyle Council to confront. He’s an asshole who loves to cause trouble.”
“Because I’m here?” She’d heard everything that Winalin had said.
“Kado needs no real excuse to be a thorn in my side. He hates me and every other GarLycan, including one of his own sons. I’m not even certain he likes his other three, since they’re GarLycans, but he at least didn’t give them away to that bastard Abotorus. He is cruel.”
“He gave away his own kid? Like, put him up for adoption?”
Aveoth shook his head. “Are you familiar with an indentured servant? Kado signed away his son’s life for a certain amount of years to work for the clan right after his birth. Abotorus allowed it. I never would have. There have been a few times when clan members offered one of their sons to me in that way. I refused.”
She remembered her history. “So this guy is like a slave?” It horrified her. “Can you set him free?”
“It’s a fucked-up tradition I inherited when I became a lord.” He reached up and scrubbed his face with his hand. “I can’t dishonor Creed that way by outright giving him his freedom until the time expires. It would embarrass him and injure his pride.” He dropped his hand, staring at her. “I did, however, assign him a job he wanted that is far from here, so he’s not under the command of the Gargoyle Council. They abused him as a youth with harsh assignments.”
She felt sorry for whoever this Creed was.
The silver flared in his eyes but he looked furious. “I must leave. I hope you will forgive me at some point, Jill.” He bowed and walked toward the hallway.
She stood and reached out as he passed, touching his arm. He froze, his head swiveling to stare at her hand lightly gripping his forearm. His gaze lifted to hers.
“I believe that you didn’t mean to drug me but I can’t say I’m happy about what happened, either.”
Relief showed on his face. “Thank you.”
“Be careful.”
“Always. I have something to protect now.” He pulled away, walking down the hallway and out of sight to his bedroom.
She sighed and closed her eyes. Why does he have to be so damn hot? And sweet? The memory of his face between her thighs—and what he could do with his tongue—had her opening her eyes and taking a seat on the barstool again.
She wanted him, even if he wasn’t human, but they’d be a train wreck. “Damn. I’m in trouble.”
Chapter Ten
Aveoth closely watched Chaz and Fray. “You do not enter my home unless you f
eel someone has broken in. Jill is under my protection. She’s mine. Keep her safe at all costs. I don’t give a fuck who you have to kill, but no one harms her.”
Fray grinned. “She must be super-hot. Good for you, my lord. We won’t let anything happen to your woman.”
Chaz growled. “Respect, brother. Chill your ass out.”
Aveoth fought a smile. He liked and trusted the two GarLycans. The older twin, Chaz, tended to be more serious. Fray constantly said what was on his mind, even if it wasn’t appropriate. They amused him with their laid-back personalities. He’d read a lot of complaints about both until he’d put them under Kelzeb’s sole command. His best friend encouraged them, and Aveoth understood why. They were a breath of fresh air in the mostly stagnant attitudes at the cliffs.
“I’m totally being respectful.” Fray grinned wider. “Lord Aveoth has a woman and he wants to keep her. I’m down with that. Plus, he just said we have permission to slay any assholes who would attack her. Only snobby Gargoyles are butt hurt right now about her being here. They treat us like shit most of the time, so we have a license to kill. That’s high-five time.” He lifted one of his palms up.
Chaz shook his head. “Knock it off. I apologize, my lord. My younger brother must have missed out on some oxygen at birth since he was in the womb longer.”
“You’re like one minute older.”
Aveoth chuckled. “Enough. Protect Jill. No one is to visit her, especially Winalin.” That killed his humor. “She’s a threat.”
“I bet.” Fray snorted. “She’s been after you forever and thinks her shit doesn’t stink. The fact that you’d pick someone with human blood must sting her stuck-up ass big time.”
“Goddamn it,” Chaz rasped. “I apologize again, my lord. Perhaps I hit him in the head too hard while we were sparring this morning.”
“I’ll be back soon. Make certain nothing happens to Jill.” Aveoth strode off, but heard Chaz hissing at his brother as he went down the corridor away from his home.
“You’re such a dumbass, Fray. I can’t take you anywhere.”
“Lord Aveoth is cool. He wasn’t pissed. He knows Winalin is a snobby bitch. Who doesn’t?”
Aveoth grinned, turning the corner. He masked his features fast though, and found Kelzeb waiting for him at the top of the stairs. His best friend arched an eyebrow.
“The twins,” Aveoth whispered.
Kelzeb winked. “My favorite guys. Good choice for protection duty. They’ll defend her with their lives and both of them are excellent fighters.”
“I’m aware. Let’s go see Kado.”
“How much of a pain in the ass was he when you demanded to speak to him?”
“He’s predictable. I’ll give him that.”
“So he whined like an infant?”
“Pretty much.”
Aveoth’s phone buzzed and he took it out of his pocket. He cursed, coming to a halt. A female voice began to speak as soon as he accepted the call.
“Why is it that I had to hear you have a woman from Renna? She overheard it being spoken about.”
Kelzeb turned, giving him a curious look.
“I would have called you but I’ve been busy, Mother. Right now isn’t a good time. I’ll return your call soon.”
“I want to meet her.”
“You will. I have a meeting to attend.”
“You always have meetings. Are you dragging that poor girl with you? It’s cruel, Aveoth. That’s why I rarely leave my quarters. I heard she is human. The poor dear must be terrified. Bring her to me and I’ll entertain her.”
“I left her in my home with guards.”
“She’s trying to escape? I can’t say I blame her.”
He gritted his teeth. “Thank you.”
“I didn’t mean it that way. I know you’d be on your best behavior, but she must be terrified as a human here. You never planned to introduce her to me, did you?”
“That’s not true. I meant to ask Renna to fit her for a wardrobe. You would have come along with her. Perhaps tomorrow would be a good time for that.”
“The poor girl doesn’t have any clothing? Are you keeping her chained naked to your bed?” Her voice became cold, and he heard her rage.
“Of course not! She has nothing appropriate for the cliffs. It’s a long story. I really need to go.” He lowered his voice. “Kado is making waves. I have to deal with him.”
She growled. “Of course he is. Call me later.”
He disconnected and shoved his phone back inside his pocket.
Kelzeb resumed walking down the stairs. “Are her feelings hurt?”
“Probably. I’ll deal with that later.”
They reached the council floor and Kelzeb stepped ahead of him, one hand gripping his sword. Aveoth did the same as they paused, preparing for a confrontation. He didn’t trust Kado or any of the council members. It was possible they’d attack without warning.
“I’ll apologize in advance for whatever Domb says,” Kelzeb muttered.
Aveoth held his friend’s gaze. “You are nothing like your father, nor are you close to him. We’ve been over this.”
“The bastard is an embarrassment.”
“So was Lord Abotorus while he lived. I will never hold you accountable for Domb or his actions.”
“Let’s do this.” Kelzeb sighed. “I’m ready for the dirty looks from the old bastard.”
“I’m ready for a fight if they demand one.”
“Me too.” Kelzeb took the lead, striding down the hallway once more.
The double doors were open, copious amounts of candles lit in the chambers, and it came as no surprise that every chair around the squared table was taken when they stepped inside. The four-member council had assembled.
“You may enter,” Kado called out.
Aveoth noticed the way Kelzeb’s shoulders stiffened as he stopped. He stepped next to him and glared at Kado. “As if I need your permission. You’d be amusing to me if you weren’t so offensive. Bow—now.” He cut his angry gaze to every face around the table, daring them to refuse.
The four rose quickly, Kado the last to stand, and lowered their heads. Kado glanced up first, his eyes unable to hide his outrage. He opened his mouth to speak but Aveoth cut him off.
“I’ve warned you before that I won’t stand for any plotting you do together outside of the scheduled meetings I’m notified of in advance. I’m aware you gathered today in private.” He stepped forward, pulling his sword. “Does anyone wish to challenge me? I’m prepared.”
Heads lowered and remained there. Kado wouldn’t meet his gaze anymore.
Long minutes passed. Aveoth wanted them to be uncomfortable and worried. The bastards were up to something, and he wasn’t about to pretend otherwise.
“I had planned to discuss the breach of protocol with Kado, but I’m glad he overextended his authority once again by calling you together. I won’t have to trust him to twist my words. I’ll say it directly to you. Look at me.”
Their heads rose, and he saw that none of them could avoid showing emotion. It ranged from anger, to resentment, to fear. Domb shot hateful glances at Kelzeb but his friend seemed to ignore them. Aveoth despised that Kelzeb had to suffer those looks from his own father. It pissed him off more though.
He glared at each of them, settling on Kado last.
“I am your lord, and I do not answer to you. Whatever you discussed today is irrelevant. Your duties do not include gossiping about why I brought a woman into my home. I’ll assume that’s what caused you to secretly hold a session today. Don’t let it happen again—or prepare to raise your swords to the death.”
“You are our lord,” Kado ground out. “It is our duty to think of the clan’s future. There is talk that you have a human breeding vessel. With all respect, we would like to discuss the possibility of you breeding with a Gargoyle instead.”
Milgo glanced up. “Elco has offered Winalin in the human’s place. It would be more appropriate. Your youngling wou
ld be a fine, strong addition to our clan.”
Domb jumped on that. “She’s fitting of a lord. Not some human breeder.”
Aveoth was done. “Elco craves power, yet has never lifted his sword or performed duties to earn a place in our clan. He is here only because he was born at the cliffs, leaching off us like an infant at his mother’s teat. That was acceptable until he became old enough to act like a responsible clansman. I refuse to promise him favors or status in exchange for the use of his sister’s body.” He glared at each of them. “It’s disgraceful for him to barter his own flesh and blood in that manner.
“Precious daughters and sisters, rare they may be, are to be mated to men who are excellent protectors and who will value their worth. They will not be bred and passed around to many, the way it was done in the old clan you fled from. That’s why so few women survived in the old times. And it’s a shame I have to explain this to the council. You better think long and hard about where you lost your honor—and try to find it once again. I’m done here. No more secret meetings. You’re adjourned. Get your asses up and out of this room within thirty seconds of my exit.”
He spun, storming out.
Kelzeb followed on his heels. They went up two flights of stairs before his friend whispered, “Would you like me to go back and make certain they emptied the chamber?”
“Fuck them. I made my point.” He was furious. “I hope they challenge me or outright disregard my decree. I’m in the mood to make some heads roll.”
“Sexual frustration will do that.”
Aveoth growled.
Kelzeb quickened his steps and joined him at his side as they moved through the corridors. “Why are we heading toward one of the scout tunnels?”
“I need fresh air to clear my head before I return to Jill.”
“I’ll stick with you. Are you thinking about finding a VampLycan to kiss to see if she reacts the way Jill did?”
Aveoth halted, stunned by the question. “No.”
“It might be a good idea. You need to discover if this is something new you’re experiencing or if it’s just a Jill thing.”
“I don’t want anyone else.”