Page 23 of Calling Chaos (Demon Bound #3)

22

Chaos

C haos burst into the hotel room, some of the wood of the doorjamb shattering around them with the force of his entrance.

“You could have used the key,” Cooper told him mildly, the words slightly muffled against Chaos’s neck.

Chaos sneered. “Human locks are inconsequential.”

But Cooper liked his privacy, so Chaos turned and shut the door behind them, sliding the dead bolt into place. It still fit where it should, so he hadn’t broken the door too badly, anyway. He managed it all without lowering Cooper to the floor.

He wasn’t willing to release him. Not yet. Not so soon.

Chaos had needed to walk many city blocks to find this place, and he’d held Cooper close to his chest the whole way. They’d gotten strange looks from some humans too stupid to realize their lives were in danger, but Cooper hadn’t noticed the attention, too busy tucking his face into Chaos’s neck. So Chaos had let the humans keep their snooping eyeballs in their heads.

For now.

He could acknowledge that the tether of his self-control was maybe a teensy bit frayed. He was just so angry . Angry at the man who lay dead on a cement floor some blocks away—his throat cut and his flesh charred, a fate too merciful by half—angry at this city for trying to keep Cooper from him with its traffic and its nonsense, and angry at himself for having let Cooper face an enemy all alone.

Normally Chaos would let that anger burn, dispensing it with a rush of power until he was settled again. But Cooper wouldn’t like the resulting carnage, so Chaos was trying his best to be good.

Cooper asked me not to kill everyone , he reminded himself for the hundredth time. He set a boundary, as he says. I will respect it.

It had been more difficult than Chaos would have guessed, to follow the tug of Cooper’s soul piece through such a busy city. The man who’d taken Cooper had brought him to a neighborhood far from Cooper’s home and Ivan’s apartment. Chaos had tried a taxi—threatening the driver with his talons when the man had asked for money—but the other cars had repeatedly trapped them in place on the street.

He, a great and powerful chaos demon, subjected to the mercy of traffic .

So Chaos had run. He’d run and run and run, faster than any human could. There were definitely human bystanders who’d seen something they shouldn’t have, but what did Chaos care? It was a good thing he’d pressed his limits, because when he’d gotten to the building where Cooper’s soul was waiting, there had been two large human men entering, and they’d been discussing something about a plane.

An aircraft. To take Cooper far, far away from him.

Chaos had seen red. He’d been moving before he’d known it, sliced through one’s neck, incinerated the other after he’d run, cutting off the man’s terrified scream. He’d raced down to Cooper only to see some weasel threatening his puppy with deadly human medicine. Cooper had been hurt and scared and—and—

And it’s all okay now , Chaos tried to tell himself before the anger could get away from him and he burned through the hotel room they’d only just found. He had to remember. Remember that he had his puppy safe in his arms. No one was going to part them now.

Cooper lifted his head, peering around the room, the skin of his face creased from where it had been pressing into Chaos’s sweatshirt for so long.

It was nowhere near as nice as the hotel they’d squirreled away in when they’d been hiding from Ivan, but it was private, and it was here, so it would have to do.

“Are we going to bond now?” Cooper asked after he’d made his perusal.

Chaos took a moment so that his words would come out soft and sweet and not in the harsh growl he could feel burning his throat. “After I bathe you. You have blood on you.” Weasel blood. It was all over Cooper’s neck and the back of his lovely tawny hair. “It smells disgusting.”

“I thought you liked the smell of blood.”

“Not on you.” Chaos considered, then amended, “Not unless it’s mine.”

Cooper scrunched his nose. “Gross.”

“Romantic,” Chaos corrected.

Cooper was always getting mixed up about that.

“A shower would be good,” Cooper said, ignoring Chaos’s correction. “I probably smell like flop sweat.”

“Mm,” Chaos agreed. Although, Cooper’s soul didn’t taste fearful anymore. It hadn’t emitted any fresh terror since Chaos had arrived in that basement doorway, flickering with flames. Even with a syringe of death held at his neck, Cooper had kept faith that Chaos would save him.

Chaos would make sure Cooper never regretted such faith in him. Never ever, ever .

He took Cooper into the bathroom. It was small, just a toilet and a bathtub/shower combination. But that was fine—neither of them was overly large.

Chaos set Cooper down gently on the floor and began removing his human’s clothes. The hooded sweatshirt Cooper was wearing had weasel blood on it, so Chaos incinerated it, then disappeared his own. He turned the knobs on the shower, feeling the water. The shower pressure was good, at least.

“Tell me if it’s too hot.”

Cooper held a hand under the spray, then yelped, jerking it back. “Fuck! It’s scalding.”

It had barely been warm to Chaos. He sparked out a flame before he could help it, annoyed with himself.

Stupid shower. Chaos would burn it down if he didn’t need it to wash off the weasel blood.

Cooper started patting Chaos’s back. “I’m fine. Let me try.” He fiddled with the knobs, waited a moment, and then tested it again, letting out a relieved sigh. “That’s better.”

It was still a stupid shower.

Chaos removed Cooper’s glasses and lifted him over the edge of the tub, then followed him in. He made a note of the temperature while he was in there so he wouldn’t accidentally scald his puppy again.

Cooper gave him a sweet, tired smile, tawny strands plastering to his face under the spray. “Are you going to wash my hair for me, menace?”

“Yes,” Chaos told him, reaching for the hotel’s miniature bottles of cleansing agents.

Cooper eyed him, not yet turning around to let Chaos get at his hair. “ Your hair’s black,” he said after a moment. “And so are your eyes. I can barely see the whites around them.”

“I’m having dark feelings,” Chaos admitted.

“Because I was hurt.”

“Because you were almost taken from me.”

“I’m sorry,” Cooper said softly, like it was his fault. He turned around, letting out a little groan when Chaos massaged shampoo into his hair.

It wasn’t Cooper’s fault, but Chaos didn’t mind a little bargaining power. “From now on, wherever you go, I go.” He tugged Cooper’s head until Cooper tilted it back for rinsing, then poured more shampoo on it.

“Won’t I be stronger after the bond? You won’t have to worry so much.”

“Don’t care,” Chaos said shortly.

Cooper let out a resigned sigh. “Okay, menace. Wherever I go, you follow.”

It was the exact opposite of what Chaos had wanted, back in the Void. It was essentially a leash of his own making, when all he’d wanted was to be free. And he didn’t care. Not at all. He’d take that leash and wrap it round and round and round himself until no one and nothing could ever take it off. He’d tie himself so tightly to Cooper no one could ever take him away.

Chaos washed Cooper’s hair and skin until his puppy no longer smelled like weasel blood. He now smelled like fake flowers instead, and it made Chaos’s nose itch, but it was better than the alternative. He turned Cooper to face him. “You’re shaking again.”

Cooper shrugged his trembling shoulders. “Shock, I guess. That was all a bit scary.”

“Are you—” Chaos tried to make himself say the words. They didn’t want to come out, but he made them. “Do you need to wait? To rest before bonding?” Despite his best efforts, the question still came out as a whine.

But really, how far did Chaos being gentle and patient have to go? He was a demon, not a saint. And he was ready now .

Before he could get too worked up about it, Cooper smiled softly, pressing a finger to Chaos’s lower lip, which had jutted out into a pout at some point. “No, Bracchus. I won’t make you wait. I’m ready now.”

“Good.” That was a relief—it was so tiring being good when he didn’t want to be.

Chaos lifted Cooper out of the shower, locating his glasses and pushing them onto Cooper’s nose. He dried him, sizzling the water off his own skin as he switched back to his demon form, and then took Cooper out to the bedroom, where the Book lay in its bag on the floor.

Cooper eyed the book-shaped bag. “Is that it? Can I see your mark again, the one I summoned you with?”

When Chaos nodded, Cooper removed the Book from the bag, turning it to Chaos’s page without having to search for it. He traced one of his lovely fingers over the yellow markings. “Your symbol is so beautiful,” he murmured. “So wild.”

Chaos turned for him, parting his wings to display the markings on his back. “It matches my tattoo. You see?”

Cooper grinned at him. “I know.”

“So you think my back is beautiful too,” Chaos pointed out, wanting them on the same page about this.

“I do.”

“Come, puppy.” Chaos bounded onto the bed and took a seat, cross-legged with his wings against the headboard. Cooper clambered a little more slowly after him, mirroring his position, with the Book between them.

They were both still naked, which was lovely but maybe not good for Cooper’s shivers. His shaking had quelled, but Chaos summoned his sweatshirt back anyway, draping it over Cooper’s shoulders before settling back into position.

“Okay, puppy. Turn the Book to the last page and repeat after me.”

Chaos said the bonding words, each one deliberate, and Cooper repeated them obediently. He didn’t ask what they meant—didn’t question any of it—but Chaos wanted him to know. He didn’t need to be tricky, not about this.

He gave Cooper his version of the binding spell’s human translation. “We bind ourselves together, form, spirit, and heart. To be taken from each other only by death, and even then only for a little, itty bit. My soul for my mate, and my mate’s soul all for me.”

Cooper grinned at him, and Chaos held a finger to his lips. “Hold out your hand now, puppy.”

Cooper held out his hand.

“Which one is the human marriage finger?” Chaos asked.

Cooper wiggled the fourth finger of his left hand, and Chaos grasped it oh so gently. He brought it to his lips and sucked it into his mouth, pressing sharp teeth at the base in a perfect ring. He bit down until blood filled his lips, then bit down a touch harder.

Cooper winced, but he didn’t draw back, and he didn’t start smelling of fear again.

Good puppy.

Chaos sucked the blood into his mouth, swallowed, and released the finger. Cooper drew his hand to his chest, cupping his fingers together to catch the remaining blood. Chaos could heal it, but he wouldn’t. It would scar.

Chaos wanted it to.

“I didn’t bite it off,” he told Cooper proudly.

Cooper arched his brows, still cupping his hand to his chest. “Was there a risk of that?”

“There’s always a risk of that. You have lovely hands.”

“Your version of cuteness aggression is alarming.”

But Cooper didn’t smell alarmed at all. He smelled peaceful. Happy. Safe.

Chaos bit his own finger—the fourth on his left hand—letting the blood well for a moment before he held it out to Cooper. Cooper winced again, but he took it obediently into his mouth, swallowing once.

“Good puppy.” Chaos withdrew his finger, shifting in position. He was getting hard now. He couldn’t help it. Cooper wasn’t—not yet—but that would change soon.

Sure enough, as the blood hit his system, Cooper immediately started shaking violently, the sweatshirt draping his shoulders sliding off onto the covers. Chaos was trembling now too, and yellow smoke began filling the room, until it looked like the bed they were sitting on was a boat in a river of golden fog.

“I f-feel weird,” Cooper stuttered, staring out at the smoke. His pretty penis was filling rapidly, rising out of his lap.

“Yes, puppy,” Chaos said. He started grasping his own cock, unable to resist. “It’s the bond magic.”

Cooper’s gaze fell to Chaos’s hand. “C-Consummation time?”

“Yes, puppy,” Chaos crooned. So smart, his Cooper.

“L-Lube?”

Chaos had been carrying some in his pants pocket, so he summoned them to the bed and dug it out. He ripped open the packet and coated his cock quickly. “Come here.”

Cooper shuffled over on his knees and clambered onto Chaos’s lap. Chaos swiped off some of the excess lube onto his fingers. He parted Cooper’s cheeks. “Let’s open you up.”

Cooper shook his head. “No fingers. It’s too—I need—” He laid his trembling hands on Chaos’s arms. “Just go slow.”

Chaos knew what Cooper meant. He needed too. It was the magic of the bond urging for them to be joined in body as their souls took root in each other. He lined his tapered tip up with Cooper’s entrance. Despite the near-painful urge to take , he left it at that for the moment, sliding his hands down Cooper’s shivery sides to soothe them both. He let Cooper shift himself down inch by inch until he was seated to the hilt, and their shaking instantly eased.

Cooper was filled with Chaos, and Chaos…Chaos was filled by Cooper. His human’s soul was no longer a little piece in Chaos’s chest. It filled his chest, expanding until there was room for nothing else. As if Chaos’s soul hadn’t just merged with Cooper’s but he’d given his away, given it all to his sweet summoner.

Chaos liked that idea. What did he need with his soul? It already belonged to Cooper.

“Oh my God.” Cooper leaned back, his rump resting on Chaos’s thighs, his beautiful mismatched eyes wide with wonder. “I can feel you.” He tapped his chest. “So wild. And joyful. Brave.”

Chaos lifted his fingers to Cooper’s cheeks. They were wet. “You’re crying.”

Cooper blinked, and more tears fell from beneath his glasses. “It feels so good, to have you here. I think—I think I missed you. I’ve been missing you my whole life, and I didn’t even know.”

Chaos shifted them, lowering Cooper onto his back on the bed without dislodging himself, Cooper’s knees bent and spread wide around Chaos’s own. Chaos pulled back his hips, then slid back into him in a tight, tortured thrust. “You’ll never be alone again,” he promised. “Never, ever.”

Cooper moaned and arched his back, encouraging Chaos to move again. “Love you.”

It was a silly, nonsense human word, but Chaos liked hearing it come from Cooper’s lips. It meant something to Cooper. It meant he’d missed Chaos’s soul, before he’d even known who Chaos was. Chaos felt that too. It made no sense at all, and that was a wonderful thing.

Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful.

Chaos wiggled and petted and cajoled until Cooper’s body was taking him easily, and then he bred his puppy with slow, smooth rolls of his hips, for once happy to be steady and contained. They had their whole existence for wild and unrestrained. Chaos had an eternity to tease Cooper now.

“Stroke yourself, puppy,” he murmured. “Slow for me.”

Cooper’s breath hitched, and his hand drifted to his weeping cock, stroking almost languidly as they rocked together. He wasn’t crying anymore, but his gaze never left Chaos’s eyes, even as his breaths grew ragged and his moans desperate.

“That’s it, puppy,” Chaos crooned when Cooper was right at his edge, his legs shaking desperately as Chaos drove into him. “Come for me. Only for me.”

Cooper’s hand stilled, cupping the head of his cock, and he hunched with a cry. Chaos bent his head, capturing Cooper’s mouth to drink in the sound. That cry was for him. Only for him.

He licked and nipped lazily at Cooper’s mouth as his mate whimpered and moaned, and then he let time stop and splinter around them, the fire that had pooled in his belly rushing out to flood his human with his spend.

He came back to himself to find that he was still sucking on Cooper’s tongue, his cock still nestled deep and warm within him. Chaos drew back slowly—regretfully—and his perfect Cooper grunted at the loss.

“It’s done,” Chaos told him, giddy and gleeful.

Cooper touched Chaos’s cheek with a smile. “I hope our imaginary hatchlings have your eyes.”

Chaos grinned. All the panic and rage of the day had been washed away, and there was only his Cooper, beautiful and generous and so much braver than he knew. “Half will have yours, and half will have mine. How does that sound?”

Cooper pressed a kiss to his lips. “It sounds perfect.”