The Darkest Pleasure (29 page)

H
OW AM
I
TO KEEP HER SAFE
when the king of gods, every demon in hell and all the Hunters want a piece of her?

Reyes had trouble sleeping that night. Not only because Legion’s words continued to echo through his mind, but also because Danika was mere feet away. All he had to do was roll from bed, open the door separating them, and he could sweep her into his arms.

He tried not to think of the first and could not help but wallow in the second. His wounds had mostly healed, so he had the strength to claim her.

One more time.

Too dangerous, he’d already decided.

Worth a chance
. She’s
worth a chance.

If you’re gentle, you minimize the risk.

Gods, he didn’t know where the thoughts originated. With himself or the demon. And did he care? Having Danika one last
time, holding her, feeling her warm breath, luxuriating in her soft body, glutting himself on her sweet taste…

Fisting the sheets, he ground his teeth together. These were hazardous thoughts. Hated thoughts.

Welcome thoughts.

She was so much a part of him, he didn’t like being without her. He needed her. Wasn’t complete otherwise.
For her own good. Better this way
.
Be selfless for the first time in your life.
How many times would he have to tell himself that? Her family hated him and had every right to do so. They would castigate her for staying with him. Guilt would bloom inside her, and hate would soon follow on its heels.

Distracted as he was, he didn’t sense the intruder until it was too late. A cold blade pressed into his neck.

He stiffened. His lashes lifted and his gaze landed on Danika. Had she been an enemy, he would have reacted less violently. As it was, his entire body shuddered and jolted. Moonlight bathed her, shining around her pale head like a halo. Her hair was loose and tumbling around her shoulders. She wore an oversize white T-shirt. His. A sense of possessiveness awoke every cell in his body.

He was rock hard.

Fight this.

“How did you escape?” he demanded.

“I’ve learned to pick locks since the last time I was here.”

Her stormy scent wafted to him and he couldn’t help but inhale deeply. “Go back to your family.”

“Nope. Sorry. I’m going to prove I can hurt you without suffering myself.”

He didn’t give her time to cut. Quick as a snap, he grabbed her wrist and held tight, preventing her from moving. With his other hand, he claimed the knife and tossed it to the floor. Her eyes widened as he next jerked her forward, right on top of him.

He rolled them over and pinned her into the mattress.
Fight
this. Fight
—her breath fanned over his cheek. Her breasts meshed into his chest. Her legs wound around his waist, placing her wet, bare core against his erection. She was liquid fire.

All thoughts of resisting her vanished.
One last time,
he found himself thinking again, the urge tempting him. Winning the battle. Not that he’d put up much of a battle. “You should have stayed with your family, tucked safely in bed.”

Her chin jutted stubbornly. “I missed you,” she admitted grudgingly.

He rubbed his erection against her sweet spot, unable to stop his hips from moving. She gasped, he moaned. So good. Always this good.

“You’re naked,” she said on a raspy breath. “Hmm, I’m glad.” Her arms wound around his neck and pulled him down for a white-hot kiss.

His tongue dueled with hers, wild, untamed. He arched back only long enough to rip her shirt over her head and toss it aside before diving back into her immediately. Her nipples stabbed at him, her hands clutched at his back, and her legs fell open, pressing them as close as they could be without penetration.

His cock throbbed, ready, so ready. “Once again, you’re not wearing any panties,” he managed to croak as he kneaded her breast.

She bit his lower lip. “Glad?”

“Dying from the pleasure.”

Smiling, she pushed him, rolling him over and straddling his waist. “Don’t enter. Not yet.”

“I won’t.” She rose above him, a siren he would have died to possess. Once, twice, she glided up and down his length, still without penetration. Her head fell back, hair a sunny halo around her.

“I want to suck you,” she said.

“You’re all over me.”

“I know.” Slowly she edged down him, not stopping until her
mouth hovered over his swollen shaft. Her teeth flashed white in the moonlight a split second before her mouth swallowed him.

His hips shot forward of their own accord, pushing his length all the way down her throat. He didn’t mean to, didn’t want to hurt her, but couldn’t stop the action.
More. Need more.
He and the demon were chanting the words together, and in the back of his mind, he realize that meant the demon was still with him, that Pain hadn’t been transported anywhere.
More, more, more.

His fingers tangled in her hair as her mouth rode him up and down, tongue licking at the head, sucking, then flicking against the base. He bit the inside of his cheek, drawing blood.

“Danika,” he panted.

She slammed down hard at the same time she reached behind her, fingers scrambling over the sheet…she paused…he moaned…she lifted her arm, mouth moving again…he writhed…then she sank a dagger right into his shoulder.

Shouting, he came on an explosion, spurting into her mouth over and over again. His entire body shook. Another roar parted his lips, the pleasure and pain an intoxicating blend he couldn’t fight. Didn’t want to fight.

She swallowed every drop he gave her. And when he finally quieted, when he finally stilled, she rose from his length, licking her lips and grinning like a contented cat. Blood poured from his shoulder, stinging so beautifully.

“You stabbed me,” he managed to work past the lump in his throat. He studied her intently, unsure what he would find in her expression. She didn’t appear drunk with bloodlust or even ready to hurt him again.

She appeared satisfied with herself.

“I thought you might take the first knife, so I strapped a second one to my ankle, hoping you would be too preoccupied with the north region to concern yourself with the far south.”

His lips twitched. “Tricky.”

“Necessary.” Still on her hands and knees, chin hovering over his navel, she glared over at him.

Gods, he loved this woman. He could see the desire swimming in the emerald depths of her eyes. His own desire returned, a blazing fire in his blood. His cock hardened anew, filling…filling…desperate for her all over again.

“You will not deny me my right anymore,” she said. “Hurting you will not change me, I swear it. I
like
knowing I’m doing something for you. I like knowing I’m pleasing you. I know you wanted gentle, I suspect that’s what you’ve dreamed about since being paired with your demon, but you had to know—
I
had to know—I could give you hard and painful if the need ever came upon you.”

“What right?” he demanded, those words snagging the bulk of his attention.

“I am yours and you are mine. I will see to
all
your needs. You will not turn to another woman. Ever.”

Her words echoed in his mind, the answer to a thousand prayers. “Danika—angel.” He grabbed her forearms and tugged her atop him. His hands settled on her waist and positioned her for penetration. So hot, so wet. “Wait. I need a condom.”

“I want to feel you this time. All of you.”

He went very still, his heart racing. “What if there’s a…baby?”

“Would you mind?” she asked softly.

“I once thought so. But now, with you…” He liked the idea. Craved it. Would love to watch Danika’s stomach swell with his child. “Would
you
mind?”

“I think—I think I would like it.”

“You do not think I would be a terrible father?”

“Are you kidding? No child would be more loved, more protected.”

He moaned, and it was a sound of pleasure. True pleasure, deep and inexorable.

“No more pushing me away. Ever.” Her eyes closed as she, too, uttered a pleasure-filled moan.

He was helpless to deny her. He would watch her, make sure she never developed bloodlust or if she did, that she never sated it with anyone but him. He would do anything necessary to win over her family. He would keep Aeron from her always, protect her from Hunters, demons—the gods themselves. Somehow. Someway.

“Are you sure you want me? Be very sure. After this, I will not let you go.”

Her features softened. “The future might be uncertain, but I’m sure about you. About us.”

More beautiful words had never been spoken. “No more pushing you away,” he vowed. “Mine. You are mine.”

“Yours.”

With a single arch, he was embedded deep, all the way in. His mind instantly quieted, the demon silent.
Gone?
he wondered. Was penetration, physical joining, needed to send the spirit away?

Reyes stopped thinking when Danika’s hands anchored on his chest, her nails digging, stinging. In all his life, he’d never imagined a moment so perfect. A moment where his heart beat for love rather than pain. She was his. He was hers.

He couldn’t give her up; he simply could not do it. She was more important to him than his lungs or his limbs. He was nothing without her. He would keep her. She’d inflicted pain, yet she was still his Danika, still his angel. Good and pure and right. Oh, yes, he would keep her.

The decision unleashed a torrent of joy inside him, so sweet he surged into her, his thumb finding and flicking against her clitoris. That’s all she needed to hurtle over the edge.

“Reyes!”

“Angel, my angel.” He came just as powerfully as before, rolling her over and fusing their mouths, his tongue thrust
ing deep. He stayed with her this time, and he suspected the bond between them was too strong to allow him through any portal.

Suddenly a blade sank into his back. Not put there by Danika, whose hands were tangled in his hair. He shouted in shock and jerked from the kiss, his head turning.

Aeron stood beside the bed, his wings spread, his eyes glowing crimson. That knife had been meant for Danika.

P
ARIS DROPPED TO HIS KNEES
.
He’d left the warriors in the entertainment room when a sense of urgency had filled him, the god king’s whisper of “Now” echoing in his mind. He’d strode to his bedroom, knowing he had to at last make a decision.

It was time. He couldn’t wait any longer. He felt torn apart, raw.

Now he raised his blade high in the air, shouting, “Cronus, Lord Titan, I am here as you bade me.” As he spoke, he slashed the knife over his chest. Deep, as deep as he could get it. Skin ripped, organs tore and blood gushed.

The pain was severe, and he nearly doubled over. But he had to prove his determination. He’d already slept with two women today. Two women he couldn’t even recall, and one he had bedded only an hour before. He was sick of it. So sick.

He had spent these last few days thinking. It’s all he ever did anymore. What a novelty that was for a man who had spent too many centuries to count giving in to his body and shutting down his mind. Now his mind was a constant swirl of questions and possibilities. Aeron or Sienna.

“Cronus, I beg you. Appear. One more audience, that’s all I need. I—”

“Am shouting unnecessarily,” the god king said behind him. The scent of stars instantly filled the room. A hum of power charged the air, raising the fine hairs on Paris’s arms.

Though he wanted to, he didn’t turn and look at his guest. He bowed his head reverently, assuming the position of a ser
vant. He hadn’t decided if this sovereign truly meant him ill or if Cronus was as confused about the Lords of the Underworld as they were about the gods.

He was unsure, tentative, but he planned to proceed as if the latter were true.

“Before I make my decision, I have questions for you,” he said. “If it would please you, I would ask them.”

“I have wondered about you many times, demon. You and your desires have presented a mystery I am determined to solve.” The thump of sandals, the swish of cloth, and then Cronus was standing in front of him. “Ask.”

“If I chose Sienna, would I merely receive her rotting corpse?”

A warm chuckle of true amusement echoed. “So suspicious. That is something the Greeks would have done, I am sure, wily bastards that they were. But I am a more generous soul. From me, you would receive her just as she once was. For you, she will look the same, speak the same. She will not simply be a talking dead body. She will have a heart, and it will beat.”

For you.

The words echoed through his mind and he frowned. Did those two little words have significance or was he simply looking for hidden meaning where there was none? The gods had been known throughout the ages for their tricky natures.
Wily bastards,
Cronus had said about the Greeks, but Paris would bet the Titans were no different.

Still, he pressed on. “Would she hate me as she did before?”

Another chuckle filled his ears as fingers stroked the back of his neck. They were gentle, yet emitted a strong pulse of energy that sped his heart into an erratic rumble. “Of course she would hate you. She is a Hunter. You are a Lord. But I am sure, Promiscuity, that you can charm her into love.”

Could he?

And was having her back worth the guilt he would feel at
not saving Aeron when he had the chance? Reyes seemed to think so, for he couldn’t keep his hands off the woman Aeron was desperate to destroy.

Paris slowly lifted his head, and his gaze met Cronus’s. The king’s expression was blank, seemingly uncaring. Damn it! What should he do?

D
ANIKA SCREAMED
as Reyes leapt away from her and tackled—Aeron, she realized, wide-eyed. Terror sprouted inside her and quickly spread its limbs. She scrambled backward on the bed, the cold headboard soon pressing into her back.
What the hell should I do?

The two men rolled on the floor, punching, tearing at each other’s skin, biting and snarling like animals. Aeron repeatedly slashed at Reyes’s neck, screaming that Reyes’s head would soon roll. Twice he made contact, causing the side of Reyes’s throat to bleed profusely.

Reyes was already weak. She’d stabbed him only minutes before, for God’s sake. Her knife. Yes. That’s what she needed. Where the hell was her knife?

Her gaze scanned…there, on the floor. So close, so far. Last time this had happened, Aeron had knocked her down and she’d stayed down. Reyes had saved her, but he’d taken a beating for his efforts. This time, she wouldn’t passively watch, wouldn’t run away. She would help. She’d
trained
to help.

She inched off the mattress as the two men sprang apart, circling each other, panting.

“She’s mine,” Reyes growled.

“Belongs to the gods,” Aeron snarled. He swung around, and the razor-sharp tip of his wing sliced Reyes’s cheek.

Reyes’s head whipped to the side. As he straightened, he smiled. “Not anymore. How did you escape the cell?”

“Cronus. Now was the time to act, he said. And when the gods speak, I obey.”

Legion peeked out from underneath the shadow of Aeron’s wing. “Don’t hurt.”

Aeron reached up to pet the top of the little demon’s head.

The creature purred, much as Danika had heard Reyes do when he was hurting. Just a little more, she thought, closing in on the weapon and doing her best to stay out of the warriors’ way. The silver blade continued to wink up at her, taunting.

“Pays to have friends,” Aeron said darkly.

“I’m your friend.”

“No.”

“Aeron, I love you.”

“Not Aeron. Wrath.”

“You’re Aeron. My brother of the box.”

“And yet you locked me away, even knowing how terrible such confinement is.”

“You begged it of me!”

“You should not have listened!”

Down she leaned. As her fingers curled around the hilt, she saw Reyes pale. Aeron’s words must have hit their target—Reyes’s guilt—and they must have cut as deeply as any sword. She straightened.

Reyes had chosen her over his friend, she realized, understanding for the first time how hard that must have been for him. These men had overcome the fires of hell together. Literally!

“I did what I had to do to protect you from yourself,” Reyes growled.

“No, you did what you had to do to protect
her!
” Aeron shouted, pounding a fist against his thigh. His nostrils flared, his hands clenched as he geared for another attack. “My enemy.”

Reyes was naked, weaponless, probably afraid to approach the bed, where the other dagger lay. Most likely he didn’t wish to draw attention to Danika. Again he was protecting her, no matter the danger to himself.

She licked her lips, watching as he slowly inched backward.
Tremors raked her. She wanted to call out, to toss the blade she held to Reyes so he had
something
to use. What if her voice broke his concentration? What if Aeron used that distraction to pounce on him and cut his throat?

She’d seen firsthand how Reyes recovered from his wounds, but she knew he wouldn’t be able to recover from decapitation.

Legion propped her scaled elbows on Aeron’s shoulders and gazed imploringly at Danika. “Ssstop them. No hurt Aeron.” Scaled hands stroked the warrior’s hair. “Calm, friend. Calm.”

“I’m trying,” Danika whispered. She inched forward, remaining in the shadows, blade poised and ready.
Go for his throat.

“I am the demon of Wrath.” The more Aeron spoke, the more his voice became multilayered, deep and raspy, lilting yet harsh. “You have harmed me grievously and you will suffer.”

His glowing red gaze finally turned to Danika. She stilled, unable to catch her breath.

Reyes roared and leapt forward, slamming into Aeron’s chest. The two men propelled backward, Aeron’s wings beating against the wall. Thump. Crack. They hit the door with so much force the hinges snapped and the wood toppled. Legion squealed and scampered from the men, hiding under the bed.

They rolled, their arms and legs slapping together. Danika could hear the chomp of teeth, the sound of cloth ripping as claws swiped through it. Bones snapping and grunts of pain. So many grunts.

If they would just part…Unconcerned by her nakedness, she kicked back into motion, closing in on the pair.
Come on. Separate, goddamn it!
She might never get close enough to them to slice, but she could still throw.

“You seek to lock me up forever,” Aeron growled. Punch.

Reyes’s head whipped to the side. “And if the bloodlust ever leaves you, you will thank me for it!”

Aeron jerked his wings into his back, where they folded underneath two slits. “Thank you? For burying me next to hell?”

“You met Legion, didn’t you? The new love of your life?”

Finally they stopped rolling, Aeron on top. He punched Reyes yet again. Having a clear shot, Danika tossed the dagger, end over end. Target: Aeron’s carotid artery. But when the tip reached the warrior, it embedded in his arm. He’d been in the process of reaching up, meaning to plunge his own dagger into Reyes’s throat.

Aeron paused, glanced in confusion at his arm. Frowned. From under the bed Legion cried out in alarm, drawing Aeron’s attention further from the fight. The distraction cost him. Reyes bucked and worked his legs between their bodies. His feet shoved Aeron backward in a powerful thrust. The warrior slammed into the wall. The impact didn’t slow him, though. Didn’t even rattle him.

He uncurled himself. Reyes rushed toward him, menace in every step. But Aeron didn’t seem to care. Grinning, he launched a dagger of his own. A dagger Legion had swiped up and rushed to him. As Reyes barreled into him—only then seeming to realize what had happened, a scream of denial ripping from him—that dagger found its target:
Danika.

“I
WILL NOT WAIT
much longer,” Cronus said, sounding bored. “Soon I will lose my curiosity over your choice and allow you neither Aeron nor Sienna.”

Paris began to sweat.
Do it. Just say a name.

But as he opened his mouth, Cronus’s head tilted to the side, his ears twitching as if he could hear something beyond the quiet of Paris’s bedroom. “Oh, yes,” the king said, and there was delight in his tone. “You must choose soon.”

Had something happened?

The pound of footsteps hit Paris’s ears a moment later. Then, a knock on his door. “Paris, are you in there?”

Sabin.

Paris glanced at Cronus—no, at empty space. The king of
gods was gone. Had he lost his chance? Scowling, he jackknifed to his feet and strode to the door. “Not now,” he said as the wood swung open.

Sabin eyed his bleeding chest with confusion. “You okay, man?”

“Fine. What’s going on?”

“Aeron escaped. He and Reyes are fighting.” As though to prove the words were true, a roar of agony sounded, followed quickly by an eerie laugh.

Cronus’s eagerness for an answer suddenly made sense. With the realization, there was dread. There was no more time to ponder or consider the ramifications of his choice.

Perhaps he should have left well enough alone.

Behind Sabin, Gideon and Cameo raced down the hall. Both were clutching guns. Sabin shot a look over his shoulder. “We don’t have a lot of time.”

“What’s the plan?” Paris demanded.

Sabin faced him again, already backing away. His gaze was grim. “Whatever’s necessary to finally end this.”

F
ROM THE CORNER OF HIS EYE
, Reyes had seen the glint of silver. But only when he heard Danika gasp, only when he saw the crimson stain spreading over her chest, did he realize what had happened.

Danika was hurt. Bleeding. She collapsed, now silent, barely breathing, unmoving.

No, no, no. Despite his vows, he had failed to protect her. She might…she might…No! He refused to believe anything other than that she would recover, totally, completely. And yet, fury rose inside him. Fury and hate, desperation and so much emotional pain that it radiated into his bones, hurting, strengthening him.

He was on his feet a moment later, rushing toward her. Aeron grabbed his arm, stopping him. Panic rushed him as he
toppled to the ground. His friend jumped on top of him and straddled his waist.

A fist flew at him. Contact. His nose cracked in the center.

Reyes bared his teeth in a snarl, twisted and grabbed Aeron by the forearms. He had his friend beneath him a moment later. Satisfaction burned in Aeron’s now-violet eyes, the red gone. Was that…surely that was not guilt blended with the satisfaction.

He hurt her. I must finish this, get to her. Help her.

He stared down at Aeron, hands already wrapped around his throat. Strong as Reyes was just then, Aeron could do nothing to buck him off or pry the shacklelike fingers from his neck.

Behind him, he could hear his friends gathering. Muttering.

“Don’t do this, Reyes.”

“Let him go.”

“There’s another way.”

He didn’t know who said what and he didn’t care. He squeezed harder, claws digging past skin, past veins. Warm blood was pooling between his fingers.

Legion suddenly slithered forward and jumped atop Aeron’s chest. Teardrops that looked very much like diamonds streamed down her ugly little face. “Ssstop, sstop. He mine.”

Reyes squeezed all the harder. Once Aeron was dead, Danika would be safe. From one threat, at least. She could be patched up. Healed.

With a cry of despair, Legion launched herself at Reyes. Biting him, scratching him. The creature’s saliva must have been laced with poison, because it stung like acid, rushing through Reyes’s veins, burning in a way that made his demon moan. Still, he didn’t let up.

“My warrior,” the demon cried. “Mine. No hurt.”

Aeron’s eyes were wide, blood vessels popping. His body was shaking, his skin becoming pale. Almost blue. His struggles were growing weaker and weaker. Soon he would still
completely and Reyes would release him, pick up one of the swords hanging on his wall and remove his head. Soon—

“Reyes,” a voice said weakly.

It was the only voice that managed to penetrate his rage and his hate, overshadowing them entirely. Reyes’s attention lashed to the side, to the floor where Danika lay, staring over at him.