Page 34

Sierra

I settled deeper into Callum's lap, my stomach pleasantly full from our pancake feast. His fingers traced lazy patterns up and down my arm, the gentle touch both comforting and electric. The kitchen was quiet now, dishes stacked neatly in the sink. Rowen had insisted we'd deal with them later.

Archer sat across from us, his posture rigid despite the casual setting. Those ice-blue eyes of his kept darting to Callum's side where Lightsbane rested against the wall, never far from its master. Something about that sword troubled him deeply.

"You're thinking too loud," Callum murmured against my hair, his lips brushing my temple.

I sighed, leaning into his touch. "Can you blame me?"

The memory of the Shadow Beast crept back into my consciousness. That bone-deep chill that had settled into my marrow when it spoke to me. You will be mine. I shivered involuntarily, the phantom cold returning despite the warmth of Callum's body.

"Hey," Callum tightened his hold, pressing a kiss to my forehead. "Things will be alright. We're together in this."

I wanted to believe him. God, how I wanted to. But the darkness I'd felt in that realm wasn't something that could be banished with optimism alone.

"How long do we have?" I asked, my voice smaller than I intended. "Before it returns? And what's the plan when it does?"

Rowen's obsidian eyes flicked to Archer, whose jaw had tightened at my questions. The tension in the room thickened.

"Archer." I met his gaze directly. "Whatever's in that book your mother gave you. That's the key to everything, isn't it?"

He looked away, his fingers drumming against the table.

"Sierra—" he started, then stopped. Pain contorted his features as he closed his eyes. "Can we just... spend today enjoying each other? Please?" His voice broke slightly on the last word. "Let's just be together. The four of us."

The raw emotion in his plea sent a chill through me that had nothing to do with shadow realms. Whatever knowledge that book contained, it was crushing him.

I rose from Callum's lap, ignoring his soft sound of protest. Crossing to Archer, I took his hand in mine. His skin was unnaturally warm, it always was, but there was a tremor beneath the surface that betrayed his composure.

"Come with me," I said, tugging him gently to his feet.

He followed without resistance as I led him from the kitchen, through the hallway, and into the massive bathroom adjoining Rowen's bedroom. The space was ridiculous. All black marble and gold fixtures, with a shower large enough for at least four people. Which, I supposed, was precisely the point.

I closed the door behind us, then turned to face him.

"Talk to me," I said, reaching up to cup his face. "What's haunting you?"

Archer leaned into my touch, his eyes closing briefly. "The prophecy," he whispered. "It demands a sacrifice I'm not sure I can make."

I reached past him to turn on the shower, letting steam begin to fill the room. "Tell me."

He shook his head. "Not yet. Please."

"Then let me help you forget, just for a little while." I began unbuttoning his shirt, my fingers working the fabric apart to reveal the tanned skin beneath. "The way you all helped me forget last night."

His breath caught as I pushed the shirt from his shoulders. "Sierra..."

"Shh." I pressed my lips to his collarbone, tasting salt and that unique flavor that was purely Archer. "Let me take care of you for once."

Steam curled around us as I undressed him piece by piece, then allowed him to do the same for me. Under the spray of hot water, I traced the lines of his body. The hard planes of muscle, the few scattered scars that even his healing abilities hadn't erased completely.

"You're beautiful." I watched the water cascade down his chest, mesmerized.

A ghost of a smile touched his lips. "That's my line."

I reached for the soap, working it into a lather between my palms before spreading it across his shoulders and down his arms. "Not today. Today you let someone else carry the weight."

Something in him seemed to break at my words. He pulled me against him, burying his face in my neck as water pounded against his back. I held him, feeling the tremors that ran through his powerful frame.

"I can't lose you," he whispered against my skin. "Any of you."

"You won't," I promised, though I had no right to make such guarantees. "We're stronger together."

His hands slid down my back, cupping my ass and lifting me effortlessly. I wrapped my legs around his waist as he pressed me against the cool tile wall, the contrast of temperatures making me gasp.

"Show me," he said, his voice rough with need. "Show me we're unbreakable."

I tangled my fingers in his wet hair, pulling his mouth to mine. The kiss was desperate, all teeth and tongue and hunger. Water streamed down our joined bodies as he aligned himself with my entrance, pausing just long enough to meet my eyes.

"Please," I breathed.

He thrust upward, filling me completely in one smooth motion. I cried out, the sound echoing off the marble walls as he set a punishing pace. This wasn't like our previous encounters. This was raw, almost frantic, as if he was trying to lose himself in my body.

I matched his urgency, nails digging into his shoulders as I chased the building pressure. When the bathroom door opened, I wasn't surprised to see Callum and Rowen standing there, watching us with hungry eyes.

"Couldn't wait for us?" Callum asked, his voice husky as he began stripping off his clothes.

Archer didn't slow his pace, driving into me with single-minded focus. "Needed her," he grunted.

Rowen approached us, already naked, his obsidian eyes gleaming with desire. "And we need both of you."

What followed was a blur of sensation. Hands, mouths, bodies connecting in every possible configuration. At some point we moved from the shower to the bedroom, leaving puddles in our wake that no one cared about. Archer remained inside me the entire time, carrying me as if I weighed nothing.

On the massive bed, Callum positioned himself behind Archer, whispering something in his ear that made Archer shudder and thrust deeper into me. Rowen stretched out beside us, his hand between my legs, circling my clit with maddening precision.

"Let go," Rowen commanded, his voice like velvet-wrapped steel. "All of you."

The combined sensation of Archer filling me, Rowen's skilled fingers, and the knowledge that Callum was taking Archer from behind pushed me over the edge.

I came with a scream, my body clenching around Archer's length.

He followed immediately, his release triggering Callum's, the three of us locked in a chain reaction of pleasure.

Rowen watched with dark satisfaction before positioning himself at my mouth.

I took him willingly, tasting the salt-sweet essence of him as he thrust between my lips.

Archer, still joined with me and Callum, turned his attention to Rowen's body.

Our hands and mouths working in tandem until he too found his release.

We collapsed in a tangle of limbs, breathing hard, skin slick with sweat and other fluids. For a long moment, no one spoke. The weight of what awaited us outside this room seemed distant, held at bay by the fortress of our bodies.

Eventually, Archer shifted, pulling me against his chest while Callum spooned behind him and Rowen stretched out on my other side.

"We need to talk about the prophecy," Archer said quietly, his fingers tracing patterns on my hip. "About what my mother's book says."

I nodded against his chest, feeling the steady beat of his heart. "We're listening."

He took a deep breath. "The Shadow Beast can only be banished by Lightbringer. An ancient weapon that holds immense powers.”

"But there's more." Archer's voice tightened. "The prophecy states that 'one of dual blood must sacrifice what they hold most dear.' My mother believes that refers to me—half angel, half demon."

Callum's arm tightened around Archer's waist. "What does it mean by sacrifice?"

Archer was silent for a long moment. "It means I have to give up what I value most to power the spell that will allow Lightbringer to banish the Shadow Beast permanently."

"And what do you value most?" Rowen asked, his voice unnaturally calm.

Archer's eyes met mine, then shifted to include Callum and Rowen. "Isn't it obvious? The three of you. Our bond."

Ice formed in my veins. "The prophecy wants you to sacrifice us?"

"Not your lives," Archer clarified quickly. "But our connection. The bond we share. It would be severed completely."

The magnitude of what he was saying hit me like a physical blow. After everything we'd been through to find each other, to accept our fated bond. To lose it would be like losing a limb.

Or worse.

"There has to be another way," Callum said fiercely.

Archer shook his head. "My mother searched for centuries. This is the only known method to banish the Shadow Beast."

"And if we don't?" I asked, though I already knew the answer.

"It will continue to grow stronger, feeding on the darkness between realms until it can fully manifest. Then it will consume everything. Starting with you, Sierra. It's drawn to your power, your ability to bridge worlds. It grows more powerful by the hour."

Silence fell over us again, heavier this time. The afterglow of our lovemaking faded, replaced by the cold reality of our situation.

"How long do we have?" Rowen asked.

"A week, maybe less," Archer replied. "The barrier between realms is already weakening. You felt it, didn't you, Sierra? When it pulled you and Callum through?"

I nodded, remembering how easily we'd slipped into that cold, gray place. "It was like the walls between worlds had turned to tissue paper."

"So we have a choice," Callum summarized grimly. "Sacrifice our bond, or sacrifice everything."

"Some choice," I muttered.

Archer's arms tightened around me. "I'm sorry. I didn't want to tell you. I wanted one more day of this, of us, before..."

"Before we have to decide which parts of ourselves to cut away," Rowen finished, his voice uncharacteristically gentle.

I reached for his hand, then for Callum's, creating a linked chain of the four of us. "We decide together," I said firmly. "No one carries this alone."

Archer pressed his lips to my forehead. "Together," he agreed, though the word sounded like it pained him.

As I lay there, surrounded by the three men fate had bound me to, I wondered what would be worse.

Facing the Shadow Beast, or losing the connection that had become as essential as breathing.

Neither option seemed bearable.

But we had no choice. The clock was ticking, the shadow growing, and somewhere between worlds, an ancient darkness was gathering its strength to claim me.