Destiny Forgiven (Shadows of Destiny) (24 page)

_{Maddox took a few steps back, pulling Felicity with him. The smoke twirled and twisted as a figure started to form. A few seconds later, the smoke disappeared and a man stood in its wake.}

_{Blond hair, strange yellow snake-like eyes. He grinned at them. It was an unsettling grin, reminding her of the Cheshire cat – mischievous and a bit mad.}

_{“What have we here?” he asked, appraising her with those creepy eyes.}

_{“Gethin,” James muttered, rubbing his forehead.}

_{The stranger set his gaze on their friend. “James, you weren’t really going to bring your friends into the Underworld without asking me, were you?”}

_{“I figured if they were with me –”}

_{“They still have to pay the price,” he cut in.}

_{“Right.” James shifted from foot to foot. “What do you want then?”}

_{Maddox tightened his grip around her shoulders until the spot where his finger dug in ached.}

_{“Let’s see,” he drawled, widening his grin. “A sorcerer and a…” His eyes lit up and glowed yellow when he looked at her. “A shifter. Excellent!”}

_{She felt Maddox stiffen beside her. He whispered in her ear, “Dragon.”}

_{Dragon? Shit. She’d heard of them and what she’d heard wasn’t reassuring. Power hungry and as old as the earth, they roamed the realms, looking to fuck with humans to end their boredom. Most of them would be considered borderline sociopaths, if they were human.}

_{“For passage into the Underworld,” he said, “I want a favor.”}

_{“What favor?” Maddox asked. His face might as well have been carved in stone as he glared at the dragon.}

_{Gethin shrugged. “A favor to be determined at the time of collection.”}

_“No.”

_{The dragon’s eyebrows shot to his hairline. “No?” Clearly he wasn’t accustomed to the word.}

_{Maddox shook his head. “Fuck off. I’m not promising an unnamed favor.”}

_{Gethin’s eyes narrowed and his grin faded. Maddox tried pushing Felicity behind him but she refused to budge.}

_{“Then I can’t grant you passage into the Underworld.”}

_{James cleared his throat. “Maddox, I’m sure Gethin won’t ask for anything unreasonable.”}

_{The dragon nodded and smiled again. “Of course not. I’ll ask nothing that harms you or your mate.” At the word “mate” his gaze flickered over Felicity and he licked his lips.}

_{Maddox stepped in front of her, shielding her with his body.}

_{She nudged him. “Just give him what he wants.” In a low whisper, she added, “He doesn’t seem entirely stable.”}

_{Gethin barked a laugh.}

_{“I don’t fucking care,” Maddox said. “The answer is no.”}

_{The dragon tilted his head. Through pursed lips, he hissed, “Then you’re not getting into the Underworld. You seek the Queen, correct? To end this little war with your people. Ah, a deserter.”}

_{Ignoring the dragon, he turned to James. “Will you get Sage and meet us Topside tomorrow?”}

_{James nodded.}

_{Gethin assessed them from under a furrowed brow. But then the lines in his forehead smoothed and he shrugged. “It’s a shame you refuse to help me. Each day I grow closer to my goal. I would’ve paid you with riches beyond compare.”}

_{Felicity glanced at Maddox. Riches? For one small favor that wouldn’t harm either of them? That didn’t sound so bad. “Maybe we should consider it.”}

_{Maddox gave her a squeeze. Glaring at the dragon, he said confidently, “Nothing is worth making a deal with a dragon.”}

_{She could tell by the look on his face that he wouldn’t budge on the matter. The idea of negotiating with a dragon wasn’t a comfortable one, and avoiding the Underworld was definitely a relief, but she’d always wonder about those riches.}

_{Oh well. Maddox had always been stubborn – a trait that seemed to have worsened with his time in
Marwolaeth Du
.}

_{They made plans to meet at James’s safe house the following day, hopefully with Sage in tow. James seemed confident enough that she would come. Maybe Maddox would tell her more about James’s mate. She sounded a little…unpredictable. Though so was Maddox and he had
the shifters’ best interests at heart. Maybe a little danger was what they needed to take down Saith. Hopefully, the rumors about the queen weren’t just hype and she really was as powerful as everyone said. For their sake, it’d better be true, or they were fucked.}

_{T
he guest room James had given them permission to use was small, but Felicity made any bedroom look inviting. She was probably tired after the long day, but if she thought she was going to have a nap now, she was sadly mistaken.}

_{After gazing at the bed for a moment, she
turned and looked up at him. She blinked, her blue eyes big and shy. “Are you taking a shower before we go to bed? I need one, but you can go first if you want.”}

_{“Yeah, I could use a shower. But you go first. It’ll take longer for your hair to dry.” He wound a tendril of her hair around his index finger, enjoying the way it slid off like silk when he let it go.}

_{She reached up and traced her finger over his lips, and deep in his body a hunger returned. “Do I have to go in there alone? The last bath I had, you helped me. It’ll feel lonely without you.”}

_{He chuckled. It was a sad excuse to get him to shower with her, not that he needed one, but he’d go with it.
“Well we wouldn’t want that. I’m just afraid that if I go in with you, you’re going to end up needing another shower.” He leaned in and kissed her gently. Under his mouth, hers opened, soft and sweet and threatening to make him forget he was a gentleman. He stepped back and drew her t-shirt off then traced his fingers over her smooth flesh.}

_{She
shivered at his light touches and leaned into him. The rest of her clothing he discarded on the floor, piece by piece.}

_{When she was entirely naked
, he stared at her, pleased that he didn’t have to feign disinterest anymore.}

_“What?”

_{“You’re very beautiful, Felicity. Have I told you that? Pretending I didn’t want you when we were back in the prison was one of the most difficult things I’ve ever done.”}

_{“Really?
” She arched a brow. “You didn’t seem that interested.”}

_{“Then my acting wa
s better than I thought. Turn around.”}

_{“
Why?” Her eyes narrowed and he reminded himself she wasn’t a meek woman. If he wanted her, he’d have to fight for her. That excited him more than easy dominance.}

_{“I want to look at you.”}

_{Redness crept into her cheeks and down her neck. She covered her breasts with her arms. “No! I’m not a supermodel. Let’s just go shower.”}

_{He wrestled her arms away from her body then placed them at her sides while she glared at him.
“I want to look at you first.” He put all his power behind the next two words. “Turn. Now.”}

_{She groaned and grimaced, but turned slowly, her natural grace overcoming her discomfort. When her back was to him, it was difficult not to shove her face down on the bed and take her hard and fast. There’d b
e time for finesse later, right?}

_{Tightening his jaw and ball
ing his fists helped contain the urge. The woman had a sweet ass, and the dip of her waist curving up to her straight back and long neck – and then there were her legs. He could write sonnets about those legs.}

_{The slide of subtle muscle under her skin wasn’t exactly a
turnoff, either. Felicity had never been an indoorsy girl when they were kids, and apparently things hadn’t changed – as long as some asshole didn’t have her locked up in a cell. The notion of keeping her as his little concubine had its appeal, though.}

_{When she was facing him again, her expression went from
embarrassed to a smug challenge. “Quit staring at me. It’s creeping me out.”}

_{“I have no intention of ever stopping, so you’d better get used to it.” He chuckled. “The gods gave me eyes to appreciate the beauty they’ve created. It’d be a sin not to gawk at you.”}

_{“Your piety is overwhelming, Maddi.” She rolled her eyes. “Let’s shower before the gods strike you down.” With a flip of her hair, she turned and led the way to the bathroom.}

_{He sat on the toilet lid and watched avidly as she leaned over to turn on the shower. When she turned back she caught him looking, and frowned.}

_{“Were you checking out my ass?”}

_{“I’m awake and breathing, aren’t I?
” He caught her wrist and drew her down into his lap. She fought him halfheartedly then gave in. Without any prompting, she snuggled against his chest and he wrapped his arms around her and inhaled the glorious scent of her hair. Although the shampoo she used was different now, under that, Felicity still smelled like Felicity.}

_{Memories of time they’d spent together when they were young flooded through him. The first time he’d been bold enough to hold her hand, their first kiss, the day she’d coaxed him
into making love.}

_{He tangled a gentle hand into her hair and tilted her head back until he had access to her mouth. They kissed, and he slid his free hand over her bare shoulder, brushing the
curve of her breast, then down her side to rest on her hip. He stroked the pad of his thumb over her hip bone and her breathing grew ragged. His cock strained at the fabric of his pants, wanting to get at her.}

_{“We should probably shower before the water gets cold,” she murmured. Damned practical woman.}

_{Nodding, he set Felicity on her feet. He stood and stripped off his clothing, then urged her in before him so he could watch her body react to the water. Her nipples tightened and goose bumps formed along her skin. Then she relaxed as steam seeped from the nozzle. Would she be offended if he fucked her up against the shower wall?}

_{Maddox took a steadying breath and closed his eyes for a moment, fighting for control before he stepped in. He was a gentleman in the shower, helping her wash wi
thout groping her too overtly. They kissed under the spray from the showerhead, and he washed and rinsed her long hair. When they were done, she turned the water off and he wrapped her in a big, fluffy towel from the linen closet. She looked fucking adorable. He squeezed the water from her hair then combed through it with gentle fingers, enjoying her contented sighs.}

_{When they made their way back into
the bedroom, impatience nipped at him. Roughly, he pulled the towel from her and pointed at the bed.}

_{“
What are you doing? I’m freezing.” She frowned at him and wrapped her arms around her waist. “And I don’t obey hand gestures. I’m not a dog.”}

_{He stalked closer and she backed away, smiling impishly.
There was something about her that put his testosterone into overdrive and he was tired of fighting it.}

_{“You have no idea the extent of the vile, evil things I want to do to you. Maybe
I should have kept you captive a little longer, until I’d done everything my twisted mind could come up with. Since you’re free, I guess there’s only one thing I can do.”}

_{“Lie back and take it like a man?”}

_{He snorted. “No.” He lunged and grabbed her arm and she shrieked and laughed, playfully trying to fight him off.}

_{He picked her up and threw
her onto the bed then leaned over her, pinning her there. She gasped, and he pressed a leg between hers, keeping her open to his toying fingers.}