Page 19

Chapter 19

W hen Dohal set her on Cisco’s desk, her gargoyle looked at her with one eyebrow raised.

“We had a run in with the Heavens outside. They got mad when I tapped Ashdei’s nexus and the one here at the same time.”

Cisco leaned back in his chair, his gaze sweeping over her. Once he had confirmed that she was unharmed, he pinned the demon with an annoyed stare. “That sounds complicated.”

“Not particularly,” Ashdei drawled. He stood leaning against the wall near the door with his arms crossed. “I gave her everything, the same way the rest of you did. Mine just included access to a nexus in the Hells.”

Cisco grumbled. “Which has now put her in more danger.”

Mari felt compelled to defend the demon. After all, he’d given her exactly what she’d asked for, and channeling through him had felt so right that she wasn’t convinced it was a mistake, rules be damned. “He didn’t do it intentionally.”

Ashdei waved a hand. “I assume it was a by-product of trying to protect you. I wanted to give you as much power as possible, and my magic interpreted that as opening a conduit for you.”

Cisco glanced toward Dohal. “Do you mind giving us the room?”

“Not at all.” Her dragon bent to give Mari a sweetly brief parting kiss. “If they can’t be civil with one another, you know how to call me.”

She smiled up at him, so grateful for his offering of aid without being overbearing about it. “I think it’ll be okay.”

Once the door was closed, Cisco sat back in his chair and aimed an irritable glare Ashdei’s way. “I don’t think it will come as a surprise when I say I’ve hated you for years.”

Ashdei’s face was impassive. “I saw it the night of the ritual, and considering the situation, I don’t hold it against you. Were our positions reversed, I would have felt the same.”

Cisco nodded slowly. “I know now that some of what I understood was incorrect.” He rested a warm hand on her thigh. “And while I’m not ready to embrace you as a brother, since Mariana has claimed you as one of hers, that means you will be a presence in our lives, and I will make an effort to accept you.”

“I appreciate the opportunity to change your mind.” Ashdei’s blue-flame eyes shifted her way. “I’m committed. And I’ll do anything to protect her.”

I’ll be whatever you need , he said into her head with a flash of his fangs. Even contrite.

She sent him a smile to let him know how grateful she was. I’ll figure out a way to make it up to you.

I can think of so many delicious options. The way his expression sharpened made her skin flush.

“While I’m not thrilled about the involvement of the Heavens on top of everything else, I respect the instinct.” Cisco’s all-black gaze took her in with a slow sweep that made her heart thump. “Come here, mami.”

Mari hopped from the desk and slid into her gargoyle’s lap, wrapping her arms around his neck. “Thank you for understanding.” She pulled him into a kiss, clutching his horns. He plundered her mouth with his tongue until arousal bloomed in her belly.

He pulled the straps of her dress down with impatient fingers until her tits were bared and then palmed them. She broke the kiss on a gasp, her back arching when he tugged her piercings. His lips ghosted down her neck to where his mark was set in her throat and sucked there.

“I’m going to fuck you on this desk just like I promised,” he said into her skin, voice filled with longing. “Would you like to suck his cock while I’m doing that?”

Groaning at the dirty image that conjured, she peeked over her shoulder to take in the form of her demon. Saints, he was so sexy—tall and imperious. He looked like he wanted to eat her up. She met his eyes, her stomach clenching at the simmering heat she saw there. “Yes.”

Cisco nipped her throat with his sharp fangs and rumbled with approval. “Ask him nicely.”

“Can I suck your cock while Cisco fucks me?” A blush burned her cheeks. “Please.”

His sultry smile made her magic churn. “Of course, duckling.” He shoved off the wall and started to cross the distance between them.

Cisco pushed to his feet and laid her on the cool surface of his desk. He covered her at once, his mouth searching out one hard and sensitive nipple and sucking it between his lips. She bent her legs to cradle him between them. He toyed with her nipple piercing with his tongue as Ashdei finally reached them.

The demon touched the side of her face gently and turned her toward him. His thumb brushed over her lower lip and pulled her mouth open. He pushed two fingers between her lips as Cisco switched sides. She sucked Ashdei’s long fingers deep into her mouth and moaned around them when Cisco bit down.

Cisco dropped one hand between her legs and pulled her frilly white panties aside to slide his fingers into her, spreading her wide to get her ready for his cock. Ashdei pressed on her tongue and held her mouth open at the same time.

She felt exposed and desperate under them as her back arched. Her gargoyle sucked on her nipple with enthusiasm, making her magic swell within her until she ached. She mewled in pleasure as he curled his fingers inside her.

Cisco lifted up, taking in her aroused state with a steamy glance. “Give it to her,” he growled. He reached to grab her jaw, holding her still as Ashdei unzipped in a hurry. She stared into Cisco’s endless black eyes as he pulled her mouth open. “I want to hear you moaning around his cock when I make you come all over my hand.”

Saints, he knew exactly what to say to make her burn for him. Her only response was the whimper of need that shivered through her.

Ashdei pushed the barbed head of his cock between her lips. He tasted smoky and decadent on her tongue. She inclined her head to take him deeper, murmuring when her lips stretched around him.

Pride glowed within her when her demon groaned, and she felt his desire spike.

“You’re so fucking beautiful like this.” Cisco rocked his hand to stroke over her g-spot, making her moan long and low. “So needy.”

Ashdei’s hand threaded through her hair and pulled her further onto his cock. He stared down at her and exhaled a harsh breath. “Fuck, your mouth is so good.”

Cisco let out a dirty chuckle. “Yeah, it is.” He eased his thumb over her clit in a gradual circle intended to tease her and nothing more. “Take him all the way, and I’ll make you come.”

She tilted her head back, relaxing her jaw and accepting everything Ashdei had to give her when he pushed into her throat. She felt every inch of him all the way down. Groaning, he held her still with a hand at the back of her head as he set to work with long thrusts.

Cisco flicked his thumb and matched the motion of his fingers inside her to Ashdei’s slow pace. She spluttered around the cock in her mouth as the magic tingled under her skin, setting her afire from the inside out.

She concentrated on her breathing, because that was the only thing about the experience that she could control as they held her and plied her body from both ends. Her rising desire was almost too much.

The sensations built and peaked. She couldn’t hold back the orgasm as it cascaded through her, relentless as a river overflowing its banks. She keened around Ashdei’s cock helplessly, tears running down her face. He backed off to let her breathe easier, his fingers caressing her cheek, but didn’t withdraw all the way.

A muffled whine rose from her, a plea for more, even as her body was still overrun by pleasure.

Cisco moved while she was still shuddering from her climax, pushing into her throbbing cunt with a groan. “Gods, that’s the best feeling in the world,” he said with relish, as he watched her writhing under him.

Her gargoyle began to fuck her with long, hard strokes before she’d even come down all the way, clutching her thighs with his claws to angle her hips to his liking. Dipping his head down, he spent a long while suckling her nipples while thrusting into her.

Ashdei placed a hand on her throat, his fingers stroking over her heated and sensitive skin as he fed his cock to her again. His scorching magic poured into her with each pump of his hips.

Between the two of them, she couldn’t move at all as they alternated fucking into her. She felt exposed, unable to do anything to speed her perilously close orgasm held on edge by the constant sensation and their rising desire for her.

Ashdei growled, his grip tightening as his hips churned faster. Sensing the urgency, Cisco reached between her legs to rub one knuckle over her clit. That small amount of additional stimulation was all Mari needed, and she shattered again, her entire body tensing at once. She barely held onto her magic as it flexed and swelled, making her skin feel tight as the pleasure raced through her.

Her cries were muffled when Ashdei plunged as deep as he could go, his cock swelling against her tongue as he poured into her. She did her best to swallow, but he was huge and the angle awkward, and some of his cum leaked from her lips. He pressed her cheeks to force more from her, sending it all over her and the desk with a throaty chuckle.

Moaning, Cisco drove in all the way and pinned her hips under him as he emptied into her still quivering body. He kept moving to extend her orgasm as he leaned over her, panting for breath. When she was motionless under him, he collapsed over her, his face nuzzling into her skin anywhere he could reach.

Ashdei recovered first, pulling a handkerchief from his pocket and wiping her face gently as he withdrew.

Cisco watched him for a few seconds, then shook his head. “Fine, I’m willing to say he’s a suitable partner. But it was right on the line before that ridiculously chivalrous bullshit.”

Mari bit her lower lip to stifle her laughter. “You’ve pulled exactly that move after you made a mess of me.”

Cisco smiled, showing his fangs. “Shh, he doesn’t know that.” He wrapped her up in his arms and lifted her from the desk. After a moment of indecision, he grumbled and glanced toward Ashdei. “I’m running late for a meeting. Can I trust you to escort her to the bathroom down the hall?”

Ashdei glared. “I’m insulted that you would even have to ask.”

Cisco picked up his suit coat and draped it around her shoulders before leveling a flat stare at the demon. “Nobody gets to see her this undone but us. It’s important to her, so it’s rule number one if you’re going to be part of this family.”

Ashdei looked surprised by the invitation into the inner circle but recovered quickly. “I understand.”

Mari blinked up at her gargoyle. That was something she’d never said out loud—hadn’t even consciously decided for that matter—and somehow he had known what was unspoken. She touched the side of his face, her heart full to bursting. “I love you.”

“Love you too.” Lowering his mouth to hers, he favored her with a soft and sweet kiss. “What you need comes first, always.” He waited for her to nod in acknowledgement and then handed her over to Ashdei.

Her demon was quiet as he carried her down the hall with a solemn expression.

“You okay?” she asked, after he placed her gently on the vanity.

He set a hand on either side of her and met her gaze. “I’ve never been in a position where I am responsible for someone’s well-being before, and the idea that I might let you down or hurt you somehow without knowing terrifies me.”

Mari wrapped her arms around his neck. “Well, lucky for you, I have four other boyfriends who are all very good at taking care of the soft parts of me.” She buried her hands in his hair, enjoying the texture of it flowing through her fingers. “You don’t have to take responsibility for my heart. Why don’t you let me take care of yours?”

His fiery blue eyes widened. “What?”

“I have so many people looking after me.” She pressed a gentle kiss to his jaw. “You don’t have anyone. You never have.”

His expression eased. “Every time I think I understand what’s happening between us, you say something like that and make me question everything.”

Mari smoothed her hands down through his silver hair and smiled. How was it always so soft and never tangled? She suspected some sort of devilry at the heart of it. “I understand. You’ve never let yourself be vulnerable in a relationship before, but you can with me.”

Ashdei looked away, obviously uncomfortable talking about his feelings. She let him go as he busied himself finding a washcloth and letting the water run to warm it. When he came back to her, she sat quietly while he wiped her face and neck, content to let him avoid the conversation in the caring of her, if that’s what made him feel safe.

He had trouble meeting her eyes again, but finally managed after he’d finished cleaning her and helped straighten her clothes. “I want you to know how much I appreciate you taking this chance on me, even though I didn’t give you much reason to trust me at first.”

She took his hand, interlacing her fingers with his. “I don’t think of it as taking a chance. I’m just waiting for you to realize that I’ve got you. No matter what.”

A long sigh escaped him, but he looked easier than he had before. “Trusting someone else is going to take some getting used to.”

Mari lifted his hand to her mouth. “I can wait as long as it takes.”