“Well that’s not good,” Nick says, glancing over his shoulder at Eli. “It’s clearly protecting you, but do you have any idea if you can control him?”
“I’m trying. I have been driving out to the middle of nowhere, standing in the middle of a field, and holding out my arm, waiting for him to fly down. I have tried to figure out a way to train him, but I really don’t know where to start.”
“I would start with the part about not killing people,” Eli chimes in.
I roll my eyes. “Thanks Eli, that’s real helpful.” I look at the attentive, winged lizard and wonder if he is affecting me or if I am affecting him? “The worst part is that I feel like everything is heightened in some way. I feel my emotions so much more than usual, I can sense things around me even more than before. I’m having nightmares about Savage coming for me and then me becoming him.”
“Maybe you should stay here, Ryan. I don’t like this at all.”
“I don’t want to live my life hiding, Nick, and besides, I am not having any problems controlling my anger. It’s just a dream.”
“For now! What if it’s a foretelling of what’s to come? What if killing him somehow transferred that powerful anger of his to you, and it is slowly taking over?”
“I only told you because I want help figuring this out. I don’t want you controlling my life. Do you think if I stay within my brother’s protective barriers that it’s going to be any better? If it’s going to happen, then it’s going to happen, and I would prefer to be far away from here than in the house with the kids, Kayla, and you.”
Nick breathes in deep. “I’m going to figure this out if I have to go to Savage himself and force him to tell me.”
“You can do that?!” Eli asks.
“I can. No one else can. I have the power to pull him out for whatever reason I want and then send him right back. I don’t want to do it unless I have to though. He can’t be trusted, and I fear some of his people are still loyal to him. Pulling him out gives them reason to support him again. It could cause a war that none of us are prepared to deal with. If I do it, it has to be a last resort, and I have to do it alone. No one else can know about it, especially Rein. I have a feeling he would relish the idea of joining forces with his brother against me, especially since he would have the power over Savage for the first time ever. Rein, Lord of the eighth, and Savage, Lord of nothing, would have to bow down to him.”
“You know, Marius might know. He knows Savage’s dirty secrets as well as anyone. Galena told him everything. That’s the only reason he stayed with her as long as he did,” I remind him.
“We need to find him,” Nick agrees. “As far as your friend here, keep working with him, and I guess as long as he is not harming anyone, keep him free to fly above you. If anyone ever comes looking for him, they surely won’t think to look hidden in the clouds above you.”
That day seems so long ago now. Since then I have given him a name, which he seems to appreciate and responds eagerly to at my call for him. “Blade, come,” I demand of my winged friend. He does as asked and waits for me to give him a new command. Little by little, I’m figuring out how to handle him. When a rat runs by, Blade tenses and watches it closely. Maybe this is as good of a time as any to try out my control. “Blade go,” I command, watching the eagle-sized dragon take off and swoop down at a blazing speed, snatching up the rat before it has a chance to even realize something is chasing it. I am not sure where this thing came from or how, but I have a feeling Savage broke quite a few rules to get him here and then caged him up with hopes for immortality. He feeds infrequently, but when he does, his bite is a devilish poison. Only the strongest survive the toxin, like my brother. I wonder how strong one has to be to be in command of him? I keep Blade out of sight and away from our enemies. Marius has clearly joined forces with someone, and they are after Blade for all the wrong reasons. It was, at one time, that I felt he was here to protect me, but now I feel as if I am supposed to protect him, or maybe, we are here to protect each other.
I walk back into the house after spending most of the day with Blade and instantly Sky greets me with a troubled reaction. “Where have you been? You shouldn’t be out there alone. You could get hurt,” Skylar says to me before I can get all the way through the doorway. I laugh and kiss her on the cheek. “Don’t laugh at me.”
“Then don’t say silly things. I can handle myself, Sky, and you know it.”
“You are the most stubborn, full of yourself …”
“You look so sexy when you’re angry. Do you know that?” My words stun her. I have been thinking about her all day. She is perfectly healthy now and looks even more amazing. The longer I continue to look her up and down with a smile, the more awkward and nervous she becomes. “What’s wrong with you? Suddenly you’re shy? You were throwing yourself at me a few weeks ago.”
“I know, but that was before, when I was intent on hating you and not caring what you thought of me.”
“Oh, so you care what I think now? I can understand that.”
“You can understand what exactly?”
“That I am so irresistible you can’t help but fall for me, no matter how hard you tried to hate me.” I wink as she rolls her eyes. “Admit it.”
“No, I will admit nothing. Of course, you are somewhat good looking and you may have some great lips.”
I move in close, backing her up against a wall. “You like my lips, hmmm?” I lick my lips as she watches intently. Grazing her lips softly with mine, I hum my desire into her mouth. My erection presses hard against her, and by the way she moves her legs around mine, I know she is ready to welcome me in. Teasing her lips with a light touch and gentle sweeps of my tongue, I finally take hold of them and make them mine. My hands begin to wander up under her clothes until she rips -her shirt off, followed by mine. It’s been a long-building desire for us both, so we don’t bother going anywhere else. Tearing through buttons and zippers with a violent fury, I groan at her touch of my cock, rubbing it and letting it free from my pants. She licks her lips with a smile, leaning against the wall, away from me, admiring me as I do her. “Come here.” I wrap my arm around her and lift her up the wall …”
“Ryan, are you home!” Eli calls out.
“Son of a …” Skylar scrambles to find her clothes and get dressed as I do the same. Eli rounds the corner as we rush to get most of our clothes back on. I am missing my shoes and a sock, and we are not sure where her bra went, so Sky sits down with a magazine in front of her. “What do you want?!”
“Whoa, hey, what’s with all the hatred?” Eli looks towards Sky for some kind of explanation, and suddenly gets a big smile on his face. “Ohhh, I see. You two were about to do the dirty naked dance. I knew it. I knew you two would be on each other eventually.”
“Is there something you want?” I ask, mouthing horrible things to him if he doesn’t shut up.
“What’s that? Your dick is still hard? Well, do you want me to wait outside while you finish?” He looks at his phone. “Give you what? Two … three minutes?” With that comment, Skylar exits the room silently, managing to find her bra on the way out which only makes Eli laugh harder. I push him hard. “Oww! Oh, don’t be mad. You would have done the same thing to me.” I start to say something back but realize he’s right. I would have. Damn.
“What do you want, Eli?”
“I wanted to invite you to a party.” I look at him as if he has gone nuts. “Okay, not a party per se, but dinner with me and Cat and …” He mumbles some other people under his breath, I assume purposely.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa! You want me to be a buffer for Fagan? No way, Eli. I hate that guy. He is not exactly a big fan of my family, you know. We ruined all of his plans for his daughter and then introduced her to you. He never lets Nick forget that. He blames him for his daughter’s downfall.”
“Downfall? Since when am I a downfall? Come on, Ryan, you have to do this for me. Amery is going to be there and Fagan too. I might as well lie down on the tab
le and let them feast on the fresh meat. Please, I promise to make it up to you.”
“How?”
“I have a boat.”
“Good for you.” I shake my head.
“No, I mean I have a romantic getaway boat with a plush cabin and a really nice bed. With the full moon coming up in a couple days, that could be …”
“Alright, I get the boat for two nights, and you have to watch Shadow and …”
“And?”
“Yeah AND! And I want your car for a week.”
“Which car? Not my car.”
“Yeah, come on! You never let me drive it.”
“Get your own,” he snaps.
“You know how hard it is to find that car?”
“Yes, I do, and you can forget it. One scratch on my baby, and I would show the devil a true hell.”
“Alright, two days then?” He shakes his head. “A day? Come on, Eli, let me at least drive it around the block.” He ignores my request and folds his arms. “Okay. Have it your way, and have fun with your future father-in-law and your forever tagalong friend while you’re at it.”
I wait, watching as he sighs, fighting with himself on which he is more willing to put up with. “Fine, around the block. Do not even think of going over 20 mph, and that’s it. So help me if you get one scratch on her or get her …”
I place my hand on his shoulder. “Relax, I have been driving since I was thirteen and good news I just got my license back too.”
“Back? What do you mean back?” I walk away from him, laughing. “What did you do Ryan?! Don’t walk away from me. What did you do to get your license taken away?!”
CHAPTER 16
Catriona
“You know, I don’t understand the appeal of that guy to you. If you could only explain it to me in a way I could understand, then maybe I could support this relationship and help you with your father more,” Amery questions again.
“I told you, Amery. He makes my knees weak. Even now, when I spend every day with him, I see him, and butterflies start to form, and then he kisses me and my entire body melts.” Amery groans. “I am telling you, he is a wonderful man, and he loves me, and I know he doesn’t show it much, but he has a heart of gold. You should see him with kids and that baby of Nick’s, Jael. Eli held her and was so scared he would break her, he would barely breathe. I was going to take her from him, but then he said something …”
“Something smartass most likely.”
“It most certainly … well, it doesn’t matter what he said. What matters is Jael laughed at him and …shut up … and then Eli smiled this great big smile. I even took a picture.” I show him my phone to show him, and he sighs. “Isn’t he cute?”
“Seriously Cat, you need to stop and think about this marriage thing. You have never had a boyfriend before, and suddenly you do and you’re in love with him and going to marry him. Don’t you think that is a little fast? Maybe you should date a few others first before you go committing your life to someone. Your future husband obviously has been around quite a bit. Surely he would understand if you did the same.”
“Would you understand, Amery?”
“It doesn’t matter if he does or doesn’t. If he truly loves you, he should set you free to explore the world, and then if you come back to him, I will be all for you being with it.”
“He’s not an ‘it’, he is just not a realm child.”
“He’s a child for sure.”
“Amery, please, try to get along with him. If you would give him a chance, I bet you two would be good friends.”
“I think you’re living in a dream world, and at some point, you’re going to wake up and realize what a huge mistake you’re making. All I am asking you to do, Cat, is to take a step back and think about it all, take some time away from each other. Go on a trip. Go on a trip with me. I know this great little town away from it all where we …”
“Are you insane? Do you really think Eli would want me to go with you anywhere overnight? And before you say ‘I don’t care’, know I do. I refuse to do that to him.”
“Then have a girl’s night. Go out on the town and do something with someone other than him.”
“Like who Amery? I don’t exactly have a bunch of girlfriends to hang out with.”
He sinks into his seat, thinking. “So what time is dinner?” he finally asks.
I hate to do this to Eli again; he and my father aren’t even able to breathe in the same room together without tension, but we have to tell him eventually. Eli is so nervous about telling everyone we are engaged. Well, really, he is nervous about my father killing him on the spot. I want to make him feel better somehow, but after my conversation with Amery today, I’m kind of nervous too. When the doorbell rings, we both jump up and stare at each other as if we don’t know what to do.
“You know, at my last house, I had someone to answer my door for me,” he says.
“I know. They almost didn’t let me in the first time. I had to do some quick changes in order not to freak that man out. He saw his dead mother at first. I had to change from the person he loved the most to someone he would know.”
“Oh, that doesn’t say much for his wife.” I laugh, and so does he. “I’ll get the door.”
Eli opens the door to Ryan and Skylar who seem to be getting a long much better these days. “Finally. What the hell are you doing? I can’t believe you locked the door when you know people are coming over,” Ryan complains.
“Of course, you have to lock the door. You never know who will just walk in on you at the wrong time. I mean, what kind of idiot would do that?” Eli laughs, but Ryan glares in his direction. I assume an inside joke since Skylar actually laughs. I welcome them in as the bell rings again, Amery is kind enough to show up with my father. Terrence shows up right behind them with a date named Mia. I would assume that’s it until Echo walks up with a tuxedo printed on his t-shirt and somewhat normal shorts. Eli apparently invited, bribed, or blackmailed everyone he could, hoping a crowd would help to drown out my father. He even added an extra intimating witness with Nick and Kayla showing up with the kids. Why not? Little Nick, as Eli calls him, could put my father down with one finger. Eli must be really nervous about my father killing him when we tell him we are engaged without his consent. I am not feeling positive about it, but I know deep down my father really wants me to be happy and will eventually come around.
“Nice place, Eli. I like it even better than your last one,” Nick comments.
“Of course it’s better. There is actually artwork on the walls rather than beer signs and naked women.” Kayla smiles in his direction. “I assume you had help this time?”
“Hey, those naked women were art. I find the female body a symbol for … oh who am I kidding, they were hot and kept me motivated twenty-four, seven.” He smiles innocently in my direction while I shake my head.
I take the big goof by the hand. “Welcome everyone. Elijah and I are so happy to have you here tonight. Please join us in the dining room.” Dinner looks amazing. Eli hired a crew to make and serve the meal out on the sundeck so we can enjoy the view of the water. I love this house. The moment I walked in the door, I felt at home, and I could picture my whole life here with Eli. I know he felt it, too. We are so happy here, though I still get upset when I catch him sneaking in an extra late night drink and a cigar by the pool. It’s so hard to be mad at him when he flashes that I’m-too-cute-to-be-mad-at smile. I don’t know what’s better, his smile or the way he snuggles me close when he sleeps, completely wrapping himself around me so no one could ever get to me. Although, it took some time to get used to the sleeping arrangement since he likes to sleep naked and his monster unit seems to have a mind of its own, constantly finding a warm resting place between my legs, just in case sex may become available. I was so scared of it at first, but the more I handled it, the more I grew to appreciate it for all the wondrous things it could do to me. I didn’t think anything could be better than his tongue. That day I came home in a
bad mood after arguing with my father yet again about family issues, Eli tried to talk to me about it, but I was in no mood to chat. So, he picked me up, set me on the kitchen counter, and proceeded to rub between my legs, burying his face into my breasts.
“What are you doing?”
“Putting you in a better mood.” He doesn’t say anything else as he proceeds to strip me naked. He grasps my breasts as he moves in between my legs and leans down to lick me. I jolt backwards, but he pulls me forward again, and proceeds to indulge himself fully. I’ve never felt anything so wonderful, but then, he spreads me wider. I look down between my legs to watch his tongue move in, out, and around, sucking the tip of my clit and oh … his tongue. It’s hard to keep my eyes open to watch, but even harder to not collapse backwards and open my legs up to whatever he wants to do to me.
That was the day I learned the incredible skills of Elijah Stevens. I gripped the counter as my body swelled to unbelievable tension and hit with such a powerful surge of ecstasy that I don’t remember anything after that until I woke up in bed an hour later. He stayed right by me, waiting until I could kiss him and make a promise to give him a reason to pass out. He laughed, but he agreed to wait. It took a lot of courage to ask someone to help me learn how, but who better than Kayla? Nick gets an erection the moment she walks in the room. Hell, I accidentally heard them going at it when I showed up at their house one afternoon. The sounds coming out of Nick’s office made me so excited I had to leave and hide in my car to finger myself calm again. When I finally went back in, Nick was ready to talk, and Kayla greeted me with a sweet smile. I don’t know why I bothered to go in. All I could think about was where they might have been doing it or how. The possibilities that formed in my head forced me to fake an illness and run out of there before I couldn’t hold out any longer. I had fantasies for weeks after that, and then I begin to live them with Eli. Thanks to Kayla’s thorough direction, I no longer had to imagine what could happen if I could make him feel the way he made me feel. I lived it.