Page 11 of Paradise Bound (Pride of the Caribbean Book 4)

Fucking Incubus.

Dane paced Marcus’s small cabin, listening to the shower run. If he were any other Fae, he would be praising Nathan and thanking him for such an out of control, erotic experience with his soul mate. All the Fae on board raved about Nathan’s magic, even Kevin, though Kevin hated Nathan for repeatedly being turned down after a one-on-one encounter with the incubus. And Nathan hated Kevin, well? Because Kevin was Kevin—a big fat jerk-face!

But Dane supposed even Kevin was happy somewhere on the ship with a dick or two up his ass.

The other day, when the incubus magic had penetrated the bubble both he and Adam had made around their cabin to prevent Dane from rushing to Marcus’s side, it had not been enough to stop the horniness. Just now, being with his mate, with their blood-bound passion, the intensity and need had been all consuming.

Sure Dane came six times, and Marcus three—he’d felt that last one—but had Marcus actually enjoyed it? Or had he been doing Dane a favor? Or was he just the kind of guy who never turned down a chance to get laid?

Dane hoped it was the best sex of Marcus’s life, though it irritated him to be so worried about Marcus’s pleasure. He should feel guilty about taking advantage. No doubt the soul bond completion made the sex more intense, but did Marcus feel used?

Goddess, I hope not.

The shower in the small bathroom turned off, and he sucked in a breath waiting for his mate to return. He still didn’t know what to do, and he certainly hadn’t expected a sex marathon to interrupt an important conversation. Goddess, all that ogling of the video of Marcus singing and being all sexy had not prepared Dane for the real thing.

The way that man could move his hips... gah!

Nothing like it.

And the sultry notes of his voice, so begging and encouraging in Dane’s ear?

Fuck, it was sexier than the man singing!

The pocket door to the bathroom slid open and steam filled the room. Like stepping out of a dream, the shower fog parted as Marcus entered. He wore a towel around his waist, his glorious skin fully bare for Dane’s viewing pleasure. Though the incubus magic faded, Dane’s cock stirred with interest anyway.

Down boy, you’ve had enough, he scolded himself.

For decades sex hadn’t even been on his radar, but with his mate so close, and full intimate knowledge of his body, sex was suddenly all Dane could think about. His ass had been so tight, and his cock had filled Dane so perfectly. And the way he’d submitted to beautifully near the end. But those kisses?

Shit, that had been his favorite part!

Dane shook his head and turned away from Marcus.

“Shower’s all yours,” Marcus said. When he’d suggested they shower afterward, Dane had seen the hopeful gleam in Marcus’s eyes that maybe they would shower together.

Such intimacy was the last thing Dane needed right now.

He’d insisted Marcus go first and tried to ignore the disappointment in those rich brown eyes.

“I cleaned myself with magic. You could get dressed.” He hadn’t meant to sound so bitchy, but he didn’t apologize.

Marcus chuckled and Dane felt the sound deep in his stomach. “After what we just did??A little naked isn’t a big deal, don’t ya think?”

Dane turned back to him, guilt swamping him. “I can’t apologize enough.”

Closing his eyes, Marcus raised his hand. “Please don’t. That was... amazing.”

A stirring of pride and inexplicable happiness filled Dane. “Yeah, it was.”

Marcus sat on the bed in his wet towel, and the motion separated the fabric, exposing a hint of his soft cock. Dane licked his lips at the dark fur growing around his big balls. Marcus had another towel in his hand and he rubbed his hair with it until it stood up in all different directions.

He looked fucking hot, all sweet and content after being so thoroughly ravished.

Until he lowered the towel and froze, staring in confusion at his forearm.

Dane felt a twinge of guilt when his mate frantically ran his hand up the now ink-free skin. “What the...?” He glanced up at Dane, shock all over his face. “Where’s my wizard?”

Dane tried not to squirm. “My apologies. While we were caught up in the incubus magic, I may have gotten carried away.”

His brow furrowed. “Carried away?”

“I may have removed your tattoo.”

“What?”

“Two actually.”

Marcus jumped up from the bed, towering over Dane.

Shit, he sucked at this whole mate business. First ignoring him, then incubus sex, and now a gross miscalculation made in the heat of the moment.

Marcus lunged forward and Dane let out a squeak, recoiling.

He drew up short and eyed Dane’s flinching form. “I wasn’t going to hit you.”

If Dane wasn’t wrong, Marcus was hurt by his overreaction before he rushed into the bathroom, towel in hand. Flinching was stupid because Dane was very powerful and his once-broken magic was now intact and readily at his disposal.

He supposed it was telling his magic hadn’t predicted a threat from Marcus but his brain did.

My magic might be fixed but I’m not.

Meekly, Dane followed Marcus into the bathroom where the big guy had wiped away the steam on the mirror to stare at himself in abject horror.

“My wizard zombie,” he said in a tiny voice as he rubbed his naked forearm. “It’s gone.”

Dane reached out and pointed at another tiny patch of unmarked skin on his opposite shoulder. “And the skull.”

“Wh-what?” he all but whimpered. “I loved my Day of the Dead skull.”

Dane couldn’t tell how angry Marcus was, and he feared asking.

“Put them back,” Marcus ordered.

“I can’t.”

“Why the hell not?”

He winced. “I already dissolved the ink.”

“How could you?” Marcus accused.The shock and anger in his normally kind eyes made something snap inside Dane.

“Because I hate them!” he screamed. “I don’t want to look at them!”

With that, he stormed out of the bathroom.

This is all a mistake!

Dane didn’t need a mate. He’d known he shouldn’t have one. He sat on the edge of the bed, arms crossed and fighting tears.

Damn Lowery!

He wasn’t ready, his heart and his mind too broken. Yes, he was happy to have all of his magic, but the first thing he did was take something away from his mate. He was horrible and selfish, and worse, he didn’t even feel bad. That damn zombie tattoo looked like those wretched humans who’d tortured him.

Images assaulted him before he could stop them.

The “show” they called it... humans moments from death... an IV shoved mercilessly into his arm... dripping skin firming and drooping eyes becoming bright and savage... raping Dane’s soul, his very essence...

No!

He forced those memories back into the box. A box which once held hope when death and torture were his reality, but now became the place he locked away his past agonies.

I’m free. I’m safe. I’m free. I’m safe.

“Dane,” Marcus began.

He wiped at his face, angered by the wetness and his inability to block out the bad memories. And pissed he had been rocking back and forth, hugging himself like someone having a nervous breakdown. He hated being weak!

“What?” he growled, forcing his body to still and his hands to stop trembling as he set them to the side.

“Are you crying?” The bed behind him sank, and Marcus placed a big hand on his knee.

“No, I am not crying,” he snapped as he sniffed. “I’m a total failure as a mate. I shouldn’t have removed your tattoos. If you show me a photograph, I can recreate them.”

Selfishly he didn’t want to.

“That wizard was given to me at a tattoo convention in Amsterdam by a world-renowned artist. I sat in his chair and gave him free rein.”

“So you weren’t attached to it?”

Marcus shook his head, still naked beside him. “I thought it was fucking awesome, Dane. And the skull was awesome too. I like all my tats. That’s why I got them. They’re me. You had no right to take them away.”

“I’m sorry,” he said for what must be the hundredth time today. “I’ll put them back exactly as they were.” He stalled. “I’ll need photos though.”

Marcus sighed and Dane didn’t know him well enough to interpret his mood. “Okay, we’ll shelve that for the moment because I don’t know if I have photos on my phone. You said you can put them back, so I’ll believe you until you give me evidence I shouldn’t. Right now, I’m less interested in how you were able to dissolve ink than everything you told me before demon magic turned you into a sex machine. You were bombarding me with questions I didn’t understand. So, um... magic is real and so are... what did you call them? Paras?”

Dane glanced over at Marcus and nodded. He was far more gracious about the tattoos than Dane deserved.

Shit, I’ll have to put them back, won’t I?

Maybe he would forget?

Fat chance that!

With his glorious muscles glistening from the shower and his short hair a spiky mess, Marcus studied him with warm brown eyes, face earnest. “Tell me everything, please? I feel like I was tossed into the deep end of the pool without even knowing how to doggie paddle. I want to know about fairies and mermen and demons. Tell me why I’m drawing paras in their magical form, and who took me captive to get to you, and...” He paused and swallowed, his throat moving temptingly, “...why you keep calling us mates?”

Sighing, Dane shifted to face him, wondering about the danger of being on a bed with this man, all naked and warm from the shower, again so soon, but making sure he kept to his side. He still couldn’t believe he’d attacked his mate so savagely. Even now with the incubus magic gone, he tingled at the memory of fucking Marcus and Marcus sucking him off after.

“I’ll start at the beginning. As I said, I am a Fae Lord.” Dane felt a bit like Kevin, throwing around his royal status. Better to talk about things in a general fashion, however, not delve into his own past or acknowledge the feelings Marcus stirred inside him.

“What exactly does that mean?” Marcus laid the towel across his lap, as casually as if it were a napkin and he was in the dining hall. “Do you have subjects or something?”

Dane couldn’t stop the disappointment that his mate was covered, even a little. “No, it means I am one of the few Fae royals living in this realm. I serve on King Raoul’s Royal Court. I suppose I’m in some sort of advisory position, but seeing as there is no real royalty left because of an ancient war of dark versus light in 1680, it’s just a title. A title to let others know I have a lot more magic than they do. I am one of the most powerful beings in this realm now,” he added, not wanting to brag.

Okay, sue me! I totally want to brag.

How cool was it that after all these centuries of waiting, he was so incredibly strong? Like he could totally kick anybody’s ass. Not the King, and the Magus might give him a run for his money because he carried power from his extinct brethren. But no fucking warlock, gargoyle, or nasty human could ever capture him again.

That reality eased some of the tension he hadn’t even realized he still held on to.

“A war of dark versus light?” Marcus looked intrigued. “That sounds like a movie.”

“A horror movie perhaps. As Fae, I am born of neutral magic, and we are tasked by the Goddess to keep the balance of powers in this realm. A balance between dark magic users like demons and vampires, and light magic users like witches and druids. However, our previous Fae king, King Vandor, destroyed the balance. He secretly drafted the Magi—powerful wizards imbibed with Fae magic—to kill off the dark races. Magus Theron and his family were Magi under King Vandor.”

“What? 1680? Theron can’t be that old, can he?”

“Well, yes. Paras vastly outlive humans.”

“You said Magus? Penelope called Theron that yesterday. Is that a title?”

“Yes, and he is the last of his kind. But I’ll let the Magus and Lewis tell you their story.” Dane did not want to get distracted. “King Vandor’s secret mission to eliminate the dark races was all the gossip in the Royal Court, but I was young and didn’t care much for court intrigues. Until the war began and everyone started dying around me. Then I started paying attention.”

“I’m sorry,” he said sincerely. “What caused the war?”

“The dark races had grown tired of Vandor’s attacks, so they united and fought back. The fighting went on for many years, and both sides took immeasurable casualties, including the loss of King Vandor, the queen, and Prince Loren.”

His intelligent brown eyes light up. “Weren’t the Salem Witch hunts around that time? Is that connected?”

Dane liked that his mate was smart. “Yes and no, the war was over by the 1690s, our population already decimated. But the repercussions were felt throughout the realm, those trials were merely one of many incidents of further loss to magickind. With leadership all but lost and families destroyed, the humans thought to have the upper hand. For a time they did. Centuries after the Great War, Vandor’s only remaining heir, the now-Fae-King, His Majesty King Raoul, bartered a peace treaty between all magickind, restoring the balance. Now he’s gathered what few paras remain—neutral, dark, and light—to live here. Aboard the Pride we are safe from humans and rogue paras who wish to return to the old ways of war.”

Marcus’s brows scrunched. “Wow. And all that really happened?”

Dane remembered the words of the unicorn. “You must love and trust this human.”

He looked Marcus in the eye and placed both of his hands over his mate’s heart, a Fae vow he’d never made before, not even to the king. “From this moment forth, I will only speak the truth to you, Marcus. This I promise you.” He let the magic flow between them and Marcus flinched in surprise.

“Oh, um. Okay?” Marcus rubbed his chest when Dane released him.

They gazed at each other, and when the intensity of the moment grew too much to bear, Dane glanced away and cleared his throat. “Any other questions?”

“About a million,” he muttered. “You called me your mate more than once...”

If his voice trailed off because he of nerves or excitement, Dane didn’t have a clue. He took a fortifying breath and stared at his hands in his lap. “As I said earlier, the day I was created, a part of my soul and magic was kept in reserve until my other half was born. The Goddess decided that would be you.”

“Meaning?”

You vowed to tell him only truth!

“That you are the missing part of my soul, my magic. Upon the unification of our blood, we have become one. As a human, albeit an unusual one, you may not have ever felt any emptiness inside you, but my magic and soul have been waiting for you to complete them for hundreds of years. I am more powerful than I expected.”

After a long pause Marcus narrowed in on the point of it all with his next question. “If you have all your power, then our blood’s already been combined? Did that happen when I was unconscious?”

Well, at least his mate wasn’t stupid.

“Yes. I did this to save us back on the island. I apologize for not asking permission, but we were trapped, and you were on the cusp of death.”

“Death?” His caramel-colored skin blanched under all that ink.

“Yes,” he agreed as regret filled him.

The most important moment of his existence happened with little to no fanfare, other than Dane savagely damaging his own body for freedom once again. His mate had no chance to consent, and there had been no time for the sacred words. While Dane understood his power made an incantation unnecessary, he hated how dark circumstances had denied them so much.

Absently he rubbed his wrist which had healed as soon as he took his true form. “Our souls are bound. As a human you have gained my immortality, and my power has been fully realized. I can finally embrace my true form, which you have already seen. In fact, you saw it before I did.” Dane gestured to the book with drawings of a form he had not taken until today.

Marcus remained quiet for another long stretch. “I’m immortal now?”

“Barring someone severs your head, yes.”

His brow scrunched. “Okay, that’s disturbing imagery. We’ll shelve that topic for the moment. Who trapped us? And why was I on the cusp of death?”

“I promised to be truthful, but please, I cannot get into the exact who’s and why’s at the moment.” It was too soon for that much sharing, too intimate to confess all the torture Dane had endured. “Will you allow me that?”

Though he hated giving over power, or a decision to anyone, he reminded himself this was Marcus, his soul mate.

I’m supposed to be trusting him!

Marcus frowned. “Yeah, I guess everyone deserves their secrets.”

He hated the cowardly relief that swept through him. “Suffice it to say, in my long life, I’ve made an enemy or two. This particular person thought to use you to get to me. He shot you and I felt your injuries, so I was compelled to rescue you. I didn’t realize it was a trap. I bound our souls to awaken my power so we could escape. You would’ve died otherwise, and my magic would’ve remained stunted until your soul was reborn again. I apologize for not consulting with you.”

He was doing a lot of apologizing lately. Perhaps he could get a bulk discount on “Sorry I suck so much” greeting cards somewhere.

Marcus ran his large hands over his sculpted belly in a sensuous way that had Dane swallowing back sudden want that had nothing to do with incubi magic. “I was shot?”

Dane nodded. “Several times.”

“How-what? How am I healed? How long was I out?” He looked frantically toward the porthole window, as if he could judge the passing of time by the moonlight.

“Only a few hours, I swear it. After she healed you, you were unconscious. I returned us here. I thought you would prefer to awaken somewhere familiar.” Maybe he wasn’t a complete disaster with his mate.

“She?”

Dane pointed at his sketchbook, open on the desk. “The unicorn.”

Brown eyes blinked back at him. “The unicorn,” he deadpanned.

“Yes, the one you drew before we met her. After I bonded us, your body was still broken. You were dying. I teleported us to somewhere you could be healed. Unbeknownst to me, I teleported us to her. She saved you.”

And she’d used Dane’s true name to make him promise to devote himself to his soul bond.

I’m trying,he told her, though he already knew it would be harder said than done. But I really suck at it!

“I don’t remember any of that happening.”

“I suspect the memory of your near death and subsequent healing has to do with the unicorn. She has some sort of ability to erase the memory of her from the mind. I was held captive and tortured for many decades, and one day I escaped,” he admitted through a tight throat. I thought I was keeping some secrets? “I somehow teleported to her realm and she healed my injuries. After I left, I lost all memory of her. When you were dying, my magic seemed to know where to take you to be healed. I trusted it, and it took us to her, in the place with the blue sand and pink moon. I don’t know why she’s allowed me to keep my memory this time. Perhaps she knew you would need an explanation.”

Marcus stayed silent, staring down at the bed where not long ago they’d gotten to know each other more intimately than Dane imagined possible. He kept his mouth shut too, allowing Marcus the time to absorb everything.

When he finally looked back up at Dane, some clarity had returned to his eyes. “Okay, so now what?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, our souls are bound? What does that mean... for us?”

The hopefulness in Marcus’s dark eyes pulled at something deep inside Dane. Like a string connecting Marcus’s heart to the things Dane kept locked up inside him, it pulled on the lock to his secret box, threatening to expose everything Dane desperately wanted to keep hidden inside.

Dane forced the sensation away, hating his cowardice.

“Well,” he began in a diplomatic tone. “We won’t be able to be far apart. And you’re the only person I’ll ever be able to have sex with again.”

“Excuse me?”

Dane crossed his arms and legs, refusing to make eye contact with his beautiful human mate. “You’re human,” he said briskly. “No magic dictates your actions. You’re able to perform with anyone you please, but I am Fae. My magic, body, and soul are now bound to yours for eternity. So if you intend to spread your seed everywhere you go, I can’t stop you.”

Well he could, but telling his mate if he cheated Dane would turn him into a pig and lock him in a barn wouldn’t curry favor. Dane had screwed up enough already. Best to leave out threats.

“I don’t cheat if I’m in a committed relationship.” Marcus shook his head and raised both hands. “And if we’re being honest, I’ve had a healthy sex life, but I haven’t been with anyone for a while, if you must know.”

That piqued his interest. “Are you telling me you’ve chosen not to have a partner or things didn’t work when you tried to have a partner?”

Marcus’s deep skin darkened in a blush. “I think you know damn well everything’s in proper working order. Maybe I can’t get it up six times in twenty minutes, but I’d say two was a damn good showing.”

Dane couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped him. “Yes, it was a damn good showing,” he admitted. “But I believe you came three times.”

His face reddened to a bright scarlet. “Yeah, that last one was... different. But good. Real good. Thanks.”

His blush? Fucking gorgeous!

Dane couldn’t stop the smug grin. “You’re most welcome, but that’s not what I was asking.” He wanted to know if Marcus had been able to interact with another man sexually after they’d met, but wasn’t sure how to diplomatically demand if he could still get erections apart from Dane the way mated humans could. He’d already been rude beyond reason to the poor man.

“I don’t frankly know what you’re asking.” Marcus stood, letting the towel slide to the floor, bare ass on teasing display as he began rifling through one of the dresser drawers. Dane found it interesting how some vacationers unpacked as if this were home and others lived out of a suitcase. He didn’t want to contemplate why it made him happy Marcus had unpacked.

“The day I first saw you, I knew what you were to me,” Dane began, choosing his words carefully. Though they were virtual strangers, Dane had bound their souls and he’d vowed to be honest with him. “I knew you were my soul mate.”

“You did?” He didn’t turn around, the tension in his muscled back unmistakable.

“Yes,” Dane admitted, knowing his next words might not make this conversation as pleasant as it had been thus far. “In the dining room, at the captain’s table. I felt a powerful surge of arousal and I heard music like nothing I had ever heard before. My magic danced to it the instant I saw you. It knew you were mine.”

Those muscles softened. “That’s funny,” he whispered. “When I saw you, my heart skipped and I felt like the band was suddenly playing our song. There was no band, but I needed you in my arms.”

Thatshocked Dane.

Humans weren’t supposed to feel the soul connection until the actual blood bonding. “You heard the music and felt the draw of our soul bond?”

Just what was Marcus?

Marcus shrugged and pulled on a tight white tank top, his answer muffled by the cotton fabric. “Yeah, kinda. All I’ve been able to think about since that moment is you.”

Dane looked at his lap and studied his hands. “You have also been in my thoughts,” he admitted honestly. “When I didn’t want to think of you, I remembered that ugly creature on your arm.”

Movement had Dane glancing up in time to see Marcus stepping into a pair of snug white boxer-briefs, the kind with a pouch in front to hold the balls and dick at center stage. Dane swallowed back the sudden saliva pooling in his mouth. Even clothed, Marcus was too damn sexy for Dane’s own good, so he hastily turned away.

“Is that why you erased it?” Marcus wanted to know. “Because it was ugly?”

“Yes, no. I’m sorry,” he mumbled at his mate’s affront.“I’ll put them back.”

Marcus squirted some hair product into his hand and faced the mirror above the long table with the TV and coffeemaker on it. He began spiking up his short hair with the gel and a hair pick. “You said you needed a picture and I could look on my cell. I know I have detailed pictures at my parlor.”

Dane was glad he’d told that little lie before his vow.

Before guilt got the best of him and he did what he loathed to do, Marcus immediately returned to another question Dane didn’t want to answer. “So why did you avoid me if you knew?”

One thing Dane had not counted upon was how easy it would be to read his mate’s emotions once they were connected. But he didn’t need the soul bind to hear the hurt in Marcus’s voice.

He owed him the truth.

He’d promised the unicorn he would make this work.

“I do not... did not want to be mated with a human.”

Marcus flinched. “Why?”

Dane ground his teeth for a moment, keeping his mouth shut before he said something he couldn’t take back. Since he’d impulsively made an unbreakable vow of honestly—what the hell was I thinking?—and couldn’t lie now, he finally decided on, “I have not had the best experiences with humans.”

Marcus let out a bemused sniff. “Yeah, well? Neither have I.” He put his grooming supplies away and then stared at Dane sitting on the unmade bed that smelled of sex and passion. “I can read between the lines pretty well, Dane. You didn’t want to be bound to me, but if what you’ve said is true—and I don’t know if I 100% believe it—you’re stuck with me for what? Eternity, is it? So what do we do now?” Challenge and hurt were clear in his eyes.

Dane felt awful disappointing his mate.

Again.

“I suppose we should get to know each other,” he offered, chewing his lower lip. “Become friends? We hardly know anything about the other.”

“What do you want to know? Ask away,” Marcus said, spreading his big muscular arms.

Damn, that tight white tank and undies are so damn hot!

Focus,he scolded himself. Your mate is talking to you!

“I’d like to know how you’re able to draw the real identities of paras. And how you drew my true form before it was revealed.”

“You and me both.” Marcus removed a pair of cargo shorts in dark grey from the drawer, and—thank the Goddess!—slid them on over those sexy briefs. Zipping and buttoning as he walked over to the table, Marcus picked up his leather-bound sketchbook. He rifled back to his earlier drawings, spreading it open to the two pages with the unicorn and Dane’s true form. He seemed surprisingly calm for a human just exposed to the paranormal world.

“I drew this...” he paused and looked at something on the corner of the page, “...around Christmas last year. I hadn’t even seen you in this form, let alone that one. I planned to get a tattoo of it.” He chuckled bitterly and shook his head. “Maybe you wouldn’t have liked that tat either.”

He barely restrained himself from punching the bed in frustration. Instead he gritted out, “I said I was sorry and I will put them back.”

Shit, you can’t lie to him. You have to put them back now!

Idiot!

“Yeah, you will,” Marcus agreed firmly.

Dismissing that for now, Dane joined Marcus and studied the perfect rendition of his true Fae form, a reflection he’d only seen for the first time in this room. Dane pointed to the photo of the realm with the blue sand and green sky, where he’d teleported after escaping his prison. The unicorn was as beautiful in the drawing as in real life. “And when did you draw her?”

“Around the same time,” he began, then exhaled. “I like to date my drawings so I can track my progress. It also makes it easier to find things if I think maybe someone wants a tattoo of something I’ve already drawn.”

“Do you remember what made you draw her?”

“No. I just kinda saw her. She’s beautiful. And apparently, I owe her my life.” He palmed the back of his head, staring at the images, then back at Dane. “This is a lot to take in.”

“Indeed,” he agreed.

“If I’ve been drawing people’s true identities, I had no knowledge of it. Still don’t.”

Dane believed him. “Yet you are seeing the paranormal world with your hands if not with your mind. You said you have more drawings?”

“Yeah, when I was a teenager my... therapist told me to draw and keep track of shit.”

He seemed embarrassed to admit to seeing a therapist. Dane didn’t really understand humans and their ways, but with everything broken inside of himself, maybe speaking to a professional about one’s problems was helpful. Voicing the scant details of his past to Marcus had already lessened some of the burdens he carried.

“Can you show me these drawings? Perhaps there is something else hidden within their pages to help us understand.”

“Sure. I have plenty of drawings in my sketchbooks at home.”

“You will take me there.”

Marcus chuckled. “I’m gonna be on this ship for two weeks, but I guess we could look?when I get home. In the meantime, how about I see if I have any good pics on my phone of my tattoos so you can put them back?”

Feeling like a selfish asshole, Dane nodded. “If that’s what you want me to do.”

“Yes, Dane. Tattoos are very personal.” His tone brooked no leniency. “Each one is a part of me. You had no right and you will put them back. You said you needed a picture.” He looked around the cabin. “Where is my phone?”

“It seems I am destined to spend the rest of my days apologizing to you.” His shoulders slumped and he crossed his arms. “Could you commit some egregious error to my person so we can even the score a bit?”

He hadn’t meant to sound so petulant and bitchy, but Marcus only eyed him curiously. “Do you swear you can put them back exactly the way they were?”

Oh good, he’s not mad at my snippy tone. “I swear on the Goddess Herself.”

“Fine, then I forgive you. You said you’re sorry and you’re gonna fix it. I believe you.”

Dane was impressed by the wise and kind man the Goddess had given him. Especially when Dane had, thus far, been a less than stellar mate. And when he was secretly hoping to talk Marcus out of replacing the hideous ink.

Preferring to discuss the subject of Marcus’s identity, Dane reached out and touched Marcus’s hand. “I think our first priority should be finding out what you are. I’d like to see more of your drawings. If you think of what your home looks like, I can see it through our bond and take us there right now.”

“Now?”

“Yes.”

“Just think about it?”

Dane smiled. “Yes, and I’ll see it if I touch you. Then I can teleport us there.”

Marcus’s eyes widened and he blinked several times. “Teleport us there?”

“Yup.”

“Sure, why the hell not.”