Tempting Ecstasy (The Guardians of the Realms Book 4) (3 page)

He looked back to the right one more time, to the other side of the rubble that was left of Cynthia’s compound. His sight was exceptional, but trees blocked all but that small corner, the corner he’d been standing in before they’d gone after Cynthia… The wind had to have carried her scent down to him from this perch, but not his to her. Downwind. His lips tilted with the knowledge that she likely had no idea what was coming for her. Anticipation had him primed for weeks. He smiled. The fact that she’d hidden her tracks and identity so damned well indicated she was smart, and he liked that. Every rare mated pair he’d seen were perfectly matched, and he hoped to hell that was the case for him.

He felt the moment Jax ported next to him, and he turned his head and cocked a pierced brow at his brother Guardian. He knew his amber eyes were bright with excited anticipation, it didn’t matter that he’d never seen her. Her scent alone was enough to keep his wolf on edge, waiting for her, wanting her no matter what.

He’d gone without a female for weeks. His hand giving him the only release he’d take until he claimed his female. It took the edge off, even if it wasn’t overly satisfying and left him with a semi.

Jax answered his silent question. “I drew the short straw. Though in my defense, Gregoire’s moody ass wouldn’t draw at all. He’s out of his fucking mind now that Alyssa’s knocked up.” Jax’s blue eyes lit with amusement and mild irritation. The dark-haired Guardian was the most wild and restless of the bunch. He was a couple of inches taller than Conn, and smelled of sex from the harem he kept in the Immortal Realm.

Conn laughed a little.

“Gotta love how Alyssa started off all smiles and indulging, and now she’s snapping at the bastard. Fucking hilarious.” Jax snorted out a laugh, and Conn shook his head. Their brother’s mate may be tiny compared to him, but she held her own against Gregoire’s possessiveness, and since finding out she was pregnant, she’d been forced to. They all knew Gregoire was a dick because he was scared for her. Gregoire was one of the largest Guardians at nearly seven foot, with larger muscle mass than any, other than Drake, their leader. Alyssa wasn’t more than a few inches over five foot, small everywhere but her tits, and Gregoire was trying to wrap her in cotton and carry her everywhere, literally.

“She’ll be fine,” Conn said. Alyssa was strong, powerful and only getting more so as she and Gregoire’s abilities melded with their mating. “It still blows me away that she got pregnant so fast. It should have been years before that was possible. If it was something to do with Gregoire being a Guardian, then Alex should have been the first.” It was a mystery how things were going to work in the Guardians’ matings. Uri had been the first Guardian to find his, only a few short months ago, and so far no pregnancy for Alex.

He and his brethren had spent millennia fighting together as the Guardians over the four Realms. When the Creators had appointed the twelve to their duties after sending the Gods to sleep for their sins, Conn had always thought those added gifts would make it impossible. Mated Immortals gained power, and the Guardians were near Gods in their abilities as it was.

Now they all wondered what bad shit was coming, because he couldn’t imagine them getting more power unless they’d need it. That knowledge didn’t sit well with any of them.

“Alex and Uri seem twitchy every time they see Alyssa.” Jax’s laughter at their brother’s stress was real, though somewhat strained.

His brothers’ suffering might be more amusing to him if he wasn’t next. Soon he’d be in the same boat, wondering if his mate would be the next to get pregnant. He couldn’t say the idea of having a mate round with his young didn’t fucking get to him. In a big way. One that would send most females running in the opposite direction of his rock-hard dick. The beast inside howled at the idea of getting his female with child. The lack of any real sexual satisfaction probably wasn’t helping curb those thoughts.

He and Jax both stood on the ledge, peering down at the lights a good mile away, avoiding the topic that had all the Guardians edgy.

“Everything still the same with Vane and Brianne?” Conn asked the question knowing the answer, but unable to stop from checking. He knew Jax would have gone to check on Brianne before coming to see if he’d found his mate.

Conn had checked his sister Guardian a few hours ago. He did it every day before handling only the minimum of his duties and then leaving to continue his hunt. He’d check on Brianne again before resting and then start the process all over again the next day. They’d formed a bond before becoming Guardians. Both had served as Hades’ Immortal attendants when the God was a damned child, and Conn refused to believe he might lose her now.

Jax instantly sobered. “Yeah, I checked before heading here. Sirena said they’re doing the same.” Jax rolled his shoulders. They’d found the two lovers unconscious in Brianne’s home weeks ago. They’d all stood there, not quite believing what was happening. Drake’s fury nearly lit the place on fire as they’d taken their sister and Vane to the infirmary. Later they’d moved them to one of the private rooms. All the Guardians were worried. “Sirena says she’s still not sure when the transition will be complete.”

“Drake worries they’ll have to be put down.” Conn rubbed the back of his neck. Everything inside him rejected the possibility that she wouldn’t come through it. Brianne had fucked up, but he couldn’t begrudge her the right to find happiness where she could. She’d always hid her loneliness behind a smart mouth and humor. It only bothered him that, of all people, she’d hidden a century-long affair from him. They’d obviously lost the old closeness they’d once had, and he’d never realized it. He felt like a bastard, and the guilt was eating at him.

“She’s fucking tough as shit, and if any Immortal could house two beasts, it would be a Guardian.” Jax stood taller, a hard, serious glint to his eyes that didn’t match his usual playboy character. Of the twelve Guardians, only three were female, and though they were every bit as powerful as the males, they were still their sisters. The three may have viciously objected to any of their brothers’ protectiveness in the early centuries, but that didn’t mean the nine males let go of the instinct. Their sisters were ruthless in battle and held the males’ respect there, but this was fucking different.

“Vane shouldn’t have been fucking her,” Jax nearly growled. They all liked Vane, but what was happening was screwed. Vane was a strong male, fought well by the Guardians’ sides since his sister, Alex, mated Uri. He would likely lose his life alongside Brianne if they couldn’t make it through the changes. Conn’s jaw tightened.

Brianne was wild and reckless, entertaining with her smartass comments and hard exterior, but she would do anything for her brethren, or even the beings they fought to protect. Her heart was soft, and he knew the female she truly was, and refused to lose a sister that was closer than any blood sibling could be. He’d fucked up by not paying attention to her life as much as he should have been.

“Sirena thinks Brianne’s link to us is her only hope of maintaining her human form.” Their healer sister hoped that somehow the combined Guardian power and mental links would keep Brianne from losing herself to the beasts trying to take her over. They all hoped to fuck she was right. Sirena had been trying everything to stop the progression, getting little to no rest with everything that was vying for her time and skill. So much had happened in the last few weeks. Mostly shit only Sirena could deal with, though they all tried to help.

He knew everything was slowly wearing his healer sister down. He’d talked to Drake about it. She was stubborn as shit, though, and neither he nor Drake had been able to really get her to rest much. Their sister may have the face of a sweet fucking pixie, but she had power and ruthless determination. She’d faced off with Drake and his dragon attitude more than once through the years when Conn’s cajoling hadn’t gotten her to take care of herself.

Tensions were running high.

“Sirena gave Erik and Alex the same instructions on trying to use their family bond with Vane to keep him from being lost to griffin form.” The races with beasts had never mixed. Apollo could only get an Immortal to house one beast, when he’d tried creating combinations the two beasts always took over. The Immortals never returned to their human form. The griffins were the most feral and vicious of the pairings, and that was exactly what the Guardians were worried Brianne’s bird and Vane’s lion forms would create. “That was Apollo playing Creator. I’ll be damned if Brianne falls to that fate. We’ll hold her.” There was a hard-edged finality to his tone that had Jax staring.

They wouldn’t lose her. Between the eleven of them, they’d find a way to keep her to her human form. Alex and Erik would do what they could for their brother, and the Guardians would make sure they didn’t lose a sister. He and Jax turned their sights to the town below and stood for tense minutes as Conn forced his relaxed calm to settle in.

“Does Sirena have any idea how long we have?” Brianne’s and Vane’s cells had been mutating for weeks, and through all the monitoring she’d never been sure when it would come to an end. They continued to patrol the Realms, or in Conn’s case, search for his mate, the wait was killing them all.

“Months, maybe.” Jax rubbed a hand over his short spiked hair and blew out a breath before changing the subject. “You need help finding your mate?”

“I found where she’ll be. She’s done a damned good job hiding in the Realm.” He was impressed by how well. “I found a rental house. All of the background information she gave was bogus. Past addresses incorrect. I’m not sure if she paid the landlord off, but all the leads on the application I found went nowhere. Even the phone numbers for references were bad.” She’d left no way for him to track her. It was only that he scented her in and around the home, weeks ago, that he even knew to dig for information there. The landlord was making improvements on the small Victorian house. The refurnished wood floors were just finished today.

Jax moved closer to the ledge to look out, and Conn shook his head. His brothers had been popping in periodically to check his progress. They wanted to help with his search or, in Jax’s case, were curious. He drew some amusement from their interest. Mates had always been rare. Most Immortals had never found one. Yet, within a few short months, three of his brothers had found theirs, along with Uri’s brother-in-law Erik.

Sirena also reported that a few other Immortals in Tetartos’ cities had found theirs.

After so damned long it was exciting to think he had a female of his own. One that he’d never thought to have. It was a fucking gift he couldn’t wait to unwrap. He grinned.

“Well, it’s about time you found little red riding hood.” The smile in Jax’s voice made Conn shake his head before he sent a burst of power at his brother, knocking him off the cliff’s edge. A loud “fuck” echoed for a split second before his brother ported back next to him with a scowl. “What the fuck?” Jax flipped him off.

Conn just laughed and cocked a brow at his brother’s little-red-riding-hood shit. He wanted to take another look at the house. Conn blew out a breath. His cock was still pushing into his zipper. He inhaled the cool night air. It was cloudy, darker than normal, perfect to hide a huge wolf, and he could use a run instead of porting to the town.

“I’m outta here. I’ve got shit that needs my expertise,” his brother said.

“What expertise?” Conn drawled as if he needed to ask.

“I have hot pussies and asses that need my attention and several females that pout when I don’t show.” With a one-fingered salute, Jax was gone, and Conn was rolling his neck and on the move. He had a while before he could go home and ease his aching dick.

Chapter 2

Earth Realm

Dacia pinched the bridge of her nose. The annoyances never ceased in their home. She couldn’t move out soon enough. She loved her sisters and their craziness, but she knew she’d love them so much more in smaller doses. She’d had enough of their messes and rowdy behavior. She was ready to set out on her new purpose. Her intuition was good, and she felt in her bones that the chase was a better fit for her abilities than sitting at a desk.

Mia’s body came rolling in her direction, and Dacia bared her teeth at Zoe for wrestling their sister right into her way. Dacia’s beast was just as irritated with the interruption of her thoughts. She was sure her eyes were flashing gold as her sisters both shot her mischievous glances from the floor. She let out a puff of air.

“You know you’ll miss us,” Mia said with an overlarge grin before flipping Zoe over a chair. Most of their older siblings, thank the Creators, currently lived in the mountains of northern Italy with their eldest brother, but Dacia had lived in the States her entire life. After her parents’ death, Isa, her eldest sister, and the irritating duo rolling on the floor had taken over her care and stayed there. Only their brother Gunn lived in the States with them, always traveling, investigating clues to finding other Immortals their parents had said were out there.

Their parents, when they were alive, had been against it, but at their death, their eldest brother had decreed they search for the other Immortals. Their parents were sure the others were dangerous, but her siblings were tired of the nomadic existence, the loneliness that came with long lives and the inability to have children. They hoped the other Immortals might provide answers.

“No, she won’t miss this.” Zoe chuckled, a warm smile on her beautiful face. She knew that Dacia needed her space. Understood that Dacia wanted to find her true place in the world.

Zoe flipped Mia over the couch, and there was barely a thud from Mia’s light feet.

Dacia shook her head. She was the youngest, the last of the Immortals, it seemed, yet her sisters, both centuries older, acted like children.

“Why do you two need to wrestle in here? That’s why we have the gym,” she said through gritted teeth. She would be the one to take care of the mess, because the two of them just didn’t care if the plaster or furniture ended up destroyed in their play. They knew she’d deal with it. She was a damned housekeeper to them. She put her hands on her hips and considered leaving whatever mess they made. They sparred beautifully, more of a graceful dance around the living area. They always started out that way, but given enough time, they’d become more wild and reckless in their wrestling, and when something was broken, she’d hear their sweet gales of laughter filtering through the room. She only had two days before she could get into her new place. Could she live with whatever mess they made? Damn them! No. She wouldn’t be able to do it, and they knew it. Two sets of sparkling amber eyes focused in her direction; she knew they saw her inner debate as sly grins started forming on their lips.