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

“You’d be bored if we didn’t cause some mayhem for you to put to rights. You’ve already packed, numbered and probably color coded all of your boxes.” Mia winked cheekily at her before tackling Zoe onto the couch. “We do this for you, love.” Zoe’s grunt signaled her impact into the soft cushions.

Dacia shook her head and walked to French doors that led to the covered back porch. Her eyes fell on the orchards leading back to the mountain behind them. The large home was comfortable, private, the actual town farther in the opposite direction. The best feature was the miles upon miles of undeveloped land that spanned the orchards and over the mountain. Perfect for changing form and letting their beasts free. It also had an unobstructed path to her new home. She’d taken the route for the first time weeks ago, and it confirmed that she’d picked the perfect location. Far enough to feel like she was on her own, yet still only a half-hour hard run if her sisters needed her. It was also much closer to the large private airport where they housed the corporate jet, so her investigations could be started very efficiently.

She wouldn’t have the nice upstairs loft, which provided a comfortable open office space with a view, or a basement that was big enough to house a nice-sized gym. No, her new home was an old Victorian that the owner was currently refurbishing for her. It sat on a tree-lined street with a big fenced backyard. She’d seen humans walking their dogs the last night she’d been there to trace her route. They’d nodded and smiled as they set off on their relaxed evening stroll toward the town, where the shops and restaurants lay. The sight left her feeling curious, interested in what it felt like to walk hand and hand with a male. The town was still small, but decidedly urban compared to the homes they normally chose. Everything about her new home and life interested her, not that any human male had ever enticed her. She’d never found them appealing, and her sisters felt the same. She preferred to take care of her own needs. Their cologne burned her nose, and she’d never found one her beast hadn’t rebelled against, but the interactions humans had with each other had always appealed to her curiosity.

She shrugged off thoughts of her new neighbors’ simple touches and shared lives, the love that was such a foreign concept. It was an odd eccentricity of hers to watch them, to try to understand. Her new house was smaller, but it would suit her needs. She got a tiny thrill at the thought of a place of her own. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d gotten excited about anything. It was another change in her that she wanted to explore. Thrill and excitement were rare for her. It just wasn’t in her makeup like it was with her sisters, but she felt it constantly in the last weeks and itched to get to her new home.

She heard another small thud and the childlike snickers that followed as her sisters continued playing. She looked over as they both abruptly got up and headed for the kitchen. They must have gotten bored or distracted. That was good news for her. No cleanup at the moment. She frowned; maybe Mia was right, a part of her was disappointed that she had nothing to do at the moment. She shook her head at the sheer ridiculousness of the thought. She took a deep breath and contemplated going for a run.

She looked toward the kitchen, listening to her sibling’s playful chatter about absolutely nothing of import. They liked living in one home, sharing hugs and affection; it comforted their beasts. Often they lounged all snuggled up together. She knew they wanted her to be like them, and she felt a small pang in her chest that she wasn’t. That she was so different… She did still enjoy the occasional cuddle; she just wasn’t comfortable doing it for more than a few moments. Not all of her siblings had been known for their soft cuddly sides, but those two had always snuggled her as a child. She’d grumbled even then, but secretly it always made her feel loved and maybe a little lost all at once. She’d never admit to liking it even a little, because they’d take advantage. Given any encouragement they’d pile on top of her.

She wondered if her sisters had always been that way or were they more like her when they were young. Somehow she didn’t believe they’d changed that drastically.

Many of their siblings had died in battles in the early centuries, before Dacia was born. She’d heard tales from Zoe. It was said that the ones with more explosive and wild temperaments were those who perished. It left a mark on some of the eldest of them. She knew it had marked Mia, the most sensitive of her three sisters. Dacia had seen it in her eyes whenever they spoke of ancient times. Had those times and their parents’ supposed paranoia shaped their personalities? She’d only been a few years old when they’d died in a fiery plane crash. Immortality was not truly as it was defined. Their family had learned the hard way that losing a head or burning to ash was permanent, but apparently most anything else could be recovered from.

She’d been told that her mother and father were adamant that they live quietly and protect themselves from discovery, from humans who’d love to experiment on them.

She didn’t have any true memories of her parents. Impressions, but she wasn’t sure her mind hadn’t made those up. She knew her parents, along with the Immortals her siblings were trying to find, had escaped the God Apollo’s twisted warrior camp millennia ago. Her parents, mainly her father, hadn’t fully trusted the others who’d escaped at their side. They’d separated from them sometime after attaining their freedom, never to have seen them again. It was a mystery as to where they were or if they were even still alive.

Through the centuries a few siblings had split off and searched for them, against their parents’ wishes. The last such attempt had been hundreds of years ago. Isa said they’d always come back empty-handed, or not at all. Now they all hunted for them, as cautiously as possible. They could communicate through their family mental link no matter what the physical distance was, so they were never truly alone. Their bond was strong, and they were not without abilities. If the Immortals, once they were found, proved dangerous, they could protect themselves.

They were used to hiding in plain sight. Their parents were right about one thing, humans would love to take them apart and imprison them. Survival and intelligence dictated that they move around. Technology had made it easier, and more difficult, all at the same time. It helped that they had a substantial amount of wealth. Through the years corporations were formed. Buildings and homes were mostly rented as needed around the world, but they kept a few locations permanently hidden. They’d been nomadic for so long, some behaviors were ingrained. They never grew attached to any one locale, and were cautious about getting too close to humans.

Dacia wasn’t convinced all humans were necessarily the enemy, but she didn’t care to get close enough to test that theory. She was not without a mind of her own, with the logical capacity for deriving her own conclusions from the actions of others. It wasn’t as if her family hadn’t been using the mortals for pleasure or profit for centuries.

At points in their lives her siblings had all attempted taking human lovers. For several millennia they’d coupled, but it never resulted in offspring. According to her sisters, it was not an overly pleasurable or pleasant experience, but they’d wanted children badly enough to fight their beasts to do it. Her brothers had never found it difficult, but her sisters explained that their beasts always rebelled at allowing human males to touch them. With the chances so low, Dacia hadn’t even attempted it. She figured she should probably try soon. Living in a more populated area, she might find a male worth the effort.

It wasn’t that they never interacted with humans, never left their homes. They’d gone out on occasion to small half-empty dive bars, where they’d dance. They also went shopping and to movies. In the bars she’d watched the humans interact and stare and sometimes approach her and her sisters. She smelled their musky arousal through the scent of alcohol and perfumes.

She had desires, and her body still wanted release, but no male seemed to fire her blood in any way. With some, the mere scent of them had turned her stomach.

“Steaks for dinner?” Mia announced.

“Okay.” They enjoyed mealtime, even though they rarely ate much of the food. They did it out of habit, not out of any need for human sustenance. The Earth’s energies were what kept them strong, and they always made sure to secure a nice cavern within the earth to refuel.

“Come in here with us,” Mia said, and Dacia stopped her mental ramblings and walked into the kitchen to see what her sisters were up to.

Zoe eyed her. “Do you really need to move?”

She sat on a bar stool and eyed them both. “Yes, I need to be on my own. Staring at a computer is not for me. I want to live the life Gunn does.” Their one brother in the US had his independence and a task that seemed much more suited to her liking and abilities.

Zoe grew serious. “I know, but trust me, the hunt is not all that entertaining. It’s mostly nasty-smelling hospitals that lead to nothing productive.” She eyed Dacia, assessing. “I know you’re set on doing this. I also know you’ll be going out with Gunn to see what he does, but that doesn’t mean we won’t worry.”

“I’m more than capable of taking care of myself,” she said without inflection, knowing they wouldn’t be able to refute that. She was powerful in her own right, not to mention smart. She wouldn’t take chances out there that could jeopardize her family. She would soothe them as much as possible, but she would follow her own chosen path whether they worried or not.

Mia was quiet as she grabbed a few bags of marinating steaks from the refrigerator. There were already vegetables cut and waiting on the counter.

“Sitting behind a computer and searching for blood-related anomalies or flags in hospital databases is not the right path for me. I know it’s important if we’re going to find the Immortals, and I know that Isa thought it was the perfect job to go with my temperament, but it’s not where my skills would be used to the best advantage.” She eyed her sisters. “I may like logic and order, but I feel confident I’d be better suited to chase down the leads. I need to find my own place in this.” She wanted freedom, that’s really what she craved. Not that she didn’t love her mischievous and loving sisters, she did, but at thirty, it was well past the time to come into her own purpose. Mia and Zoe could take shifts sifting through data to find things that needed investigating. There were plenty of oddities to check out, and only Gunn was out in the States and Canada checking them. He was likely missing a lot of potential opportunities when he didn’t get there within a timely manner. He was only one person for a big space.

Mia blew out a breath. Both she and Zoe knew there would be no dissuading her. Mia tried to lighten the mood. “We’ve decided to do Taco Tuesdays at your new place.” Dacia lifted a brow at her sister’s bright-eyed announcement. “Don’t pretend you wouldn’t miss us otherwise,” Mia slipped in with a hopeful, too cheesy grin. Taco Tuesday usually ended up being Margarita Tuesday. “You may want some peace and quiet occasionally, but you would grow lonely without our cheerful faces and mad cooking skills.”

She glared at her recalcitrant sisters for inviting themselves over before she’d even officially moved out. “After I get settled in, and pending my being home.”

Zoe and Mia frowned at each other and then turned their best overly dramatic and distinctly pathetic looks at her. She needed to hold her ground or they’d just move in with her. She’d known it would be difficult to keep them away for more than a week. She mentally shook her head, looking at Mia’s and Zoe’s bright amber eyes filled with the most imploring and manipulative puppy looks they could muster. Dacia stifled a groan. “One week! Then, only if I’m not hunting with Gunn, will we do Taco Tuesday.” They didn’t really care if it was Friday or Monday, they always called taco night Tuesday no matter what day they did it. She watched as identical triumphant looks appeared on her sisters’ beautiful faces.

Dacia cocked her head, wondering at the differences in all their appearances. Dark hair and some variation of amber or golden eyes was the common similarity between the siblings. Body shape and size ended up all over the board with the sisters. She was closest to Zoe in size and shape at five foot six and a half inches. Isa was six foot tall and curvy in a very fifties sex icon way. Mia was the shortest sister at five four, with a more round face, dimples and a porn star body without the plastic surgery. Zoe was on the willowy side, whereas Dacia was slightly more curved with her C cups.

She looked at the sisters she cared deeply for and knew she’d need to wean them a bit. They were sensitive, and she didn’t intend on hurting them.

She shook off those thoughts as Mia started singing something old and melodic. They always made a pleasant home, no matter where they lived. Zoe danced around and started making cocktails to go with dinner. Isa would come down soon to join them. Would she miss this? She doubted she’d ever have the chance to.

Chapter 3

Guardian Manor, Tetartos Realm

“Damn it, Sirena, don’t make me carry your ass out of here,” Drake snarled at her. His voice nearly echoed off the walls of the infirmary.

Sirena took a bracing breath and turned from the blood samples she’d been checking for what felt like the hundredth time. Her irritated gaze met the determined emerald green of the damn dragon that wouldn’t leave her be. He had blonde stubble on his cheeks and part of his shoulder-length blonde hair was pulled back in a band at the back of his head. He wasn’t taking much better care of himself than she was, which only fueled her irritation. She was on her last nerve, and she was two seconds from doing him bodily harm, she didn’t care that he was her leader. She’d been working nonstop for weeks. She knew damn well she needed energies, and she planned to get them when she was good and ready; she wasn’t stupid.

She stood to her full five-foot-nine height, in heels. “Do not snarl at me. I have work to do, and if you try to carry me out of here like a Neanderthal, you know you’ll regret it.” She may appear small and fragile, but it was a deception of her race. Her blonde hair, delicate features and slight frame were camouflage for the power she held.