“Argh! You are the most frustratingly stupid man. Yes, I love Amery. I have loved him since I was a kid, and I will always love him but not like … oh forget it. I don’t even know what it is I feel anymore.” I walk away from him, reaching for the door when he mumbles something from behind me. “What? What did you say?”
“I said, ‘I saw you’. When I held Ria down and looked at her, I saw you. I felt you. I believed she was you. She made me think I hurt you, and it scared me.” I smile wide as he begins to fidget. “Well, don’t make a big deal out of it. I mean, you still drive me crazy, and you are absolutely infuriating at times. And don’t think I forgot about that punch you gave me the other night. That shit hurt!” I approach him and nearly laugh when he backs away from me. Bracing himself just in case I punch him again, he tenses and steps forward.
“What’s wrong? You can’t decide what to do? Are you nervous to be around me now?”
“A little bit. I don’t understand what is happening?” he says anxiously.
“Who do you see right now, Eli?”
He looks down at my toes and moves up my body with a slow forming smile over his face. “You,” he says, moving his hand to cradle the back of my head and pressing his sweet, warm lips to mine. The feeling rushing through my body weakens me, but it seems to strengthen him. He reaches down and grips my ass with a satisfying groan. I wrap my arms around him as I find myself lifted up into his, and suddenly, I feel his excitement grow between us.
I push him back with a heavy breath, “Eli, I … I can’t right now.” He looks at me awkwardly. “I want to. I do, I really do, but I want to wait. I want to make sure that you …” I bite my bottom lip, searching for the right words, but I don’t know what to say to keep him from being angry with me.
Elijah puts me back on the floor, takes my hand, and pulls me into his bed with him. “Don’t be scared. I just want to hold your hand so I can sleep tonight, Short Stuff,” he says, taking in my lips again as I slide in next to him. “You are dressed a little more than I typically prefer, but I can wait. I hear incredible things come to those who wait.” He smiles, cradling me close, kissing me, and comforting me with his strong hands. We fall asleep in his bed, me on his chest listening to his heart beat steadily and him playing with my hair. He does his best not to let his hands wander too far. I didn’t know a man could smell this good. I always liked the way Amery smelled, but Elijah, mmm … he has this amazingly manly, desiring, spring-rain scent. Yeah, that’s it. I could sleep here forever.
Chapter 23
Elijah
I wake up for the first time in a long time with a fully-clothed woman curled up next to me. Cat has her hand placed securely in mine. I didn’t make it through the night with all my clothes on, but still, I am more clothed than usual. I hate clothes. I prefer to be naked. I’d prefer her to be naked. I kissed her all night as if we were teenagers. I wanted more, but she refuted my wishes with a smack on the top of my hand every few seconds. Now, here I am with an erection a mile high and her curled up tight against me. I need to adjust, but I am not sure how without waking her up.
I make my best attempt, but it’s of no use. “What are you doing?” she asks, ready to smack me again.
“I am trying to move my dick out from under your leg,” I say bluntly. She snickers, moving her leg for me and watching carefully as I adjust everything back into my underwear as best I can considering the state of things. “It’s not really fair that you get to see my dick, and I don’t get to see much of you.”
“What do you want to see?” she teases.
“Everything,” I reply, instantly earning a sigh. “What do you expect me to say? Your ankles?” I dive underneath the sheets and start kissing her ankles. “Oh Cat, your ankles are so sexy.” I move up as she giggles and twists, trying to get away from me, but suddenly, she stops. I look up at her and her serious expression and smile. I ease her shorts off, kissing her bare skin and rubbing her thighs all the while groaning at the thought of moving in between them. A warm kiss to her inner thigh is good, but the grip on my hair prevents me from going much further. “Sweetheart, I love the rough stuff too, but you need to let up a little on the hair, otherwise, I can’t move at all.” I release her grip from my hair and take her hand, kissing it as I place it sweetly away from me. “Are we good?” She nods. “Are you sure?” She looks incredibly tense. “Maybe this is a bad idea. I will just go get a shower.”
“Eli! No.” She grabs my arm and pulls me back to her. Cat quickly removes her shirt and tries to entice me with her full breasts that sit tight inside her bra. That’s all the argument I need. I move deep under her bra, but she takes hold of my hair again.
“Baby, I am going to shave my head if you keep doing that.”
“I’m sorry. I just don’t know what to do,” she says, fidgeting. “I mean, I want to I want you to but … well, what if you don’t like what you see?” I know enough about women to know that, no matter what I say next, it’s not going to help. I grab a pillow, pull off the pillowcase, and tie it around my eyes. “What are you doing?”
“Just lie back and relax. I won’t do anything you don’t want to do.” I take hold of her arms and push them back over her head and then feel down her body to her breasts. I remove her bra then feel down her stomach and to her panties, pausing only to find her lips, “Relax and trust me, please.” I slide her panties off with the pillowcase still tied in front my eyes. I can’t help but start laughing at her nervous giggles. I slide in next to her and trail my fingers up and down her body, kissing her cheek and letting her press her naked body against mine as she wants to. My hands freely wander for once, with no tension and no smacking of hands. Everything about her feels perfect, and I want nothing more than to be inside of her right now, but I know she’s not ready.
My underwear is no challenge for my erect cock right now, and I am getting more excited with every kiss and touch she makes on my body. “Eli. Oh, Eli …” she moans, wrapping her legs around me and reaching around to grab my bare ass. I quickly move away.
“Hey, what are you doing lady? I’m not that kind of guy,” I say, getting up and removing the sheet from my eyes. Cat smiles, covering herself up. I lean in, looking her in the eyes with a smile. “Not here, and not now. You deserve better.” I take hold of her sweet lips and try not to change my mind. Pulling away, I smile. “By the way, your body is smoking hot,” I say, running as her eyes grow wide.
“You could see? You ass,” she laughs, throwing a pillow at me. I step into the bathroom, shut the door behind me, and huff. Damn, that was the hardest thing I have ever done. I am pretty sure I am going to regret it. Adjusting my erection, I step into the shower, a very cold shower. Oh yeah… I am going to regret that decision.
By the time I finish my shower, Cat is gone, which is probably for best. I leave my room and run downstairs, hoping to run into her before I see anyone else, but no such luck. Amery meets me face to face with an expression that pisses me off before he says a word. “Really? Do you have no other place to be anymore?” I ask him.
“Calm down, Elijah,” he says with specific pronunciation of my name. I groan, rolling my eyes. “I am just here for Cat, to make sure she doesn’t get hurt. By the way, I don’t like you, and you are not good enough for her.”
“Good to know. Thank you. And to think, I was worried that I might not get the pleasure of knowing your opinions today,” I say, plopping down in a chair with a bright smile. “How silly of me.”
I have to admit, the roll of his eyes and the sound of his frustration always makes me happy. “Is everything a joke to you?”
“No, just you,” I say, turning away from him to review some messages on my phone.
“What do you think can happen between you two? You have nothing to offer her except pain, like when she will have to watch you die. And that’s exactly what is going to happen when it comes time for her to marry Nick. Savage won’t leave you around for her to desire. She will only be distracted away from her
duty as a wife to his grandson. Now, if she is with me, then he can’t touch her, and he can’t touch me. She will be safe, happy, and able to live her life how she wants and not how she is told. Are you really that selfish?” I jump out of my chair and lean in close to him.
“You mean like being told she has to get married to you, in order to be happy? I think I will let her choose what she wants to do,” I say with clenched fists.
Before I can say another word, Kayla comes in the house with an exotically beautiful woman. Amery and I both step back and look her over while Ryan walks in behind me. “Who’s that?” he says, letting his jaw fall open. I just shake my head, watching her as she looks over the house with curiosity.
“Kamini, this is Ryan and Elijah, and you know Amery,” Kayla says, pointing each of us out to the woman.
“Hello, and nice to see you again Amery,” she says with a voice that melts our manly poise. Amery nods in her direction while Kamini walks around us and intimately looks each of us up and down. I feel naked, exposed beyond what I have ever felt, as she looks me over. I want to say something, but I can’t. My tongue feels frozen, stuffed to the point of being immobile. “Okay, they seem decent. There are a few things that might need adjusting, but all in all, they are workable beings.” My tongue suddenly flexes again. What the fuck? I look at Ryan as he rotates his jaw around in a similar manner.
Kayla brings in Nicky and Brayden to meet the woman. “Hello, nice to meet you,” Nicky says, shaking her hand. Brayden waves quickly before burying his face back into Kayla’s shoulder.
Kamini laughs and wishes the boys her best as Cat comes in and seems shocked to see the woman here. “Hello, Catriona.”
“Kamini. Is there something wrong?” Cat asks with an intense expression and glancing my way for some reason.
Kamini laughs, “No sweetheart, not with any of the men here, I promise you. You can ease your mind.”
“So, why are you here, if not to punish?” Cat says. Punish? That doesn’t sound good.
“I heard you all needed to learn to fight,” Kamini says, looking us over again.
“Fight? I think we know how to fight,” Ryan says with a laugh.
“Be quiet.” Kamini waves her finger, and instantly, Ryan grips his mouth. I can’t help but curiously stare as he struggles to open his mouth.
“Are you alright Ry?” I ask, and he shakes his head, unable to speak. Fuck … I look back at the woman and quietly take a step back.
“You are going after the 9th, our dear Lord Savage? True?” Kayla nods. “I have wanted him for a long time, but have never been given the okay by the Council. Lords are always protected by the Council unless they are caught breaking a rule, which never happens anymore. Getting caught, that is. There are so many ways around it nowadays.”
“Kamini is one of the few, or rather the only one, Savage is actually scared of. She knows how to deal with him, and she knows how to fight his army without weapons,” Kayla says. Boldly, I step forward.
“Who said we were going to fight them without weapons?” I say before stepping back again when the woman looks my way.
“Your best chance for achieving your goals is at the Masquerade. You will all need to attend, and when you do, you will not be able to enter with weapons. This is why Savage will be at his most vulnerable to you. He will feel safe among his own. Surrounded by his army and his servants, he will have no reason to believe he is in danger. It will not be easy, and it still may end tragically for you all, but if you want any hope at beating our most powerful and malicious Lord, then this is your best opportunity.” Kamini begins telling us of her expertise and why we should listen to her. “I lure in and punish men to the depths of hell,” Kamini says and then laughs at our expressions. “My job is to locate rapists, child molesters, and the worst of the worst abusers of women and children. Once I find them, I attract them to me, lure them out of their comfort zone, and then I brand their penises with my symbol, dispose of their tongues, rip them of their self-respect and pleasure, and inject them with a pain as traumatizing and a thousand times worse than all the pain they, themselves, inflicted. Then, I set them ablaze until they are sentenced to their level of hell, and I have the privilege of watching their fall into the fiery depths of their eternal prison. It’s a rewarding career. I do admit though that, sometimes, I get carried away, and their penises come off during the branding or they rip it off themselves, trying to control the pain. Those, of course, are rare occasions. For the most part, everything works like clockwork. This is why I know of Kayla. We have met some of the same people.”
“Well, that is good to know.” Kayla smiles. “By the way, please be a little more discreet in front of my sons. I am afraid they might be a bit traumatized now,” Kayla says, kissing each of the boys to reassure them.
“Oh, no. Don’t worry. They didn’t hear any of that, neither were paying attention, and they were too busy talking with that strange dog over there.” Eey cocks head. “I know him from somewhere. I don’t know how or why, but …” She walks over to him and leans down to look at him more closely. “Yes, I know you but not in a bad way, which, I guess, is why you made it back as a dog and not as a cockroach.” She cocks her head, looking into the dogs eyes. “Oh yes, I know you. So, you have a mission too? Good luck to you, my friend.”
Kamini breathes in and then announces that she is here to teach and to teach only those who are interested in learning. Kayla has us call in everyone so Kamini can supposedly teach us how to fight with a skill we have never seen before. When I call Bo, our champion fighter, he finds the whole idea hilarious until he sees her. All of us guys watch her every move, with little interest in her fighting technique. Kamini turns to us with an easy smile. “I would pay attention to what I have to say; I don’t like for men to disrespect me.” We are quickly reminded that she can cause so much pain that we will rip our own dicks off just to try and stop it, so we all nod silently while protectively holding ourselves.
“You must first breathe, breathe deep and then fight … like this,” Kamini says before showing us a move that draws in the attacker and then quickly disables them. “Like that, but move faster and with precision. Every soldier of a Lord follows his words precisely and without hesitation. It is these men that will cause you the most harm because they won’t stop until someone is dead, whether it be you or them. No ordinary fight will do. A simple take down or knock-out will stall them, but only for a moment, and then they will come back, only stronger and more determined to accomplish their goal. Assassins, especially one like Ward, Savage’s special slayer, are the deadliest and the hardest to kill. An assassin’s only goal is to end your life as quickly as possible. You must end his without coming anywhere close to him. An assassin will search you for a weakness and then come at you, focusing only on that one weakness. Weapon or no weapon, they will turn that weakness into your death. I suggest dodging these men for as long as you can. You have to be extremely fast and effective because you will only get one chance to kill them. You, Ryan, you can do this, but you go at him when he least expects and aim straight for his throat with everything you have. If you miss … run. Now, let’s practice what you have learned.”
She pulls me out in front of everyone and places Cat in front of me. We both instantly smile at one another. She has her turn first, taking me down and with a gleeful expression. Not that I didn’t enjoy her rough handling of me, or her magnificent breasts hovering over my face. “Eli!” she snaps, realizing my eyes are less concerned about the training and more on the great angle her shirt dangles openly in front of my eyes.
“What? I’m dead, aren’t I? Give a man something before he goes off into the clouds.” I smile wide, slipping my hand across her ass and squeezing before turning her onto her back and taking her down. “Always make sure your attacker is down for good before letting down your guard.” I lean down close to her. “That is, unless you want to be taken down.” I kiss her cheek before helping her up with me.
“Clouds my
ass, more like the depths of hell. I have an opening in my realm if you like?” Amery says, stepping in front of Catriona and eyeing me down.
“Oh, be nice, tall unpleasant one. I will look at your breasts next if you want?” I say, rubbing his chest.
“I could beat you into a fine dust, so I wouldn’t touch me again,” Amery says, pushing me back away from him. I laugh for a second before punching him in the face. The fury that comes back at me is up close and personal. “I won’t hesitate to kill you if you don’t learn to stay away from Cat.”
“Oh I am learning a lot, but staying away from her is not in the plans,” I fire back in his face. Amery throws a hard hit against my jaw before Ryan pulls him off of me. I go back at him and blast him again, using my new knowledge against his kind. Cat starts towards us, but Kamini holds her back.
“Fuck!” He grimaces, feeling the acute pain to his ribs.
“What’s wrong? Not liking the idea that I can beat your ass now?” I smile happily.
“Eli, come on. Back off,” Kayla says, pulling me back away from him; however, Amery and I stay locked on each other. Kayla grabs my face and forces me to look down at her. “Calm down and remember what’s important. Fighting amongst ourselves isn’t going to help any of us, including Cat who you could lose completely if you don’t focus.” I glance over at Cat’s worried expression.
Sighing, I look back down at Kayla. “Okay, I’m good,” I say, nodding and stepping back to watch Bo and Ryan go at it.
Cat approaches soon after with an angry expression. “Eli, please do your best to get along with Amery. He is my best friend, and he always will be,” she says, turning to walk away.
I take hold of her arm and turn her back to me. “Cat, are you going to hold my hand tonight?”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea. Amery is very upset, and I think it is causing more frustration between you two,” she says while I roll my eyes.