Page 27

Airlie

Five years later

In most fairy tales, the villain doesn’t get the girl, at least not in the books that Ezekiel leaves on my nightstand for me to read each night before bed. There’s something about those stories that leaves me with more questions than answers.

What if the one who saves you, your champion, is part villain and hero? And the one you’re taught to believe is trustworthy and good for you is actually the most cruel one?

Because I’m surrounded by villains each day, and they aren’t a scratch on the true evil I’ve seen in this world.

I steady my gloved hand, the constant buzzing coming from the fluorescent light shining brightly above me fills the room. I focus on it. Attempting to drown out the whimpers and endless complaining coming from the large, muscular man who lies on the surgical table before me.

Gauze pinched between my sterile tweezers, I lightly dab the blood welling around the bullet wound, soaking through his skin. Billy-John, one of Ezekiel's men, drones on about some “ asshole” that shot him in a meeting that went wrong earlier this evening. He winces, hissing in pain as I dig for the bullet that’s lodged beneath a layer of ripped fat and flesh on his bottom.

I want to ask him why, of all places, he allowed himself to get shot in the backside, but think better of it.

I'd never hear the end of it.

Katia, mafia doctor and my teacher, strides into the room, takes one look at Billy, and laughs hysterically, her back hunched over, her hands placed on her thighs as she howls with laughter.

“How do you expect me to take any of you seriously if the only time I see you is when you’re all naked?” she says, almost breathless, as she walks over and stands at my left, watching over me as I successfully retrieve the bullet.

“You should see the other guy,” Billy says, a smirk pulling at the corner of his lips. Katia rolls her eyes. “What? I’m serious. The other guy is dead,” Billy says, but Katia isn’t impressed.

I drop the bullet in a petri dish and put it on the stainless steel worktable to my right.

“Airlie, why don’t you wash up? I can take over from here. The boss is waiting for you outside, ready to rip my head off for working you too hard,” she says, her full lips tilted into a broad smile.

My brows furrow.

Surely, she’s joking.

Ezekiel wouldn’t rip Katia’s head off, would he?

I’ll have to talk to him about it.

Ezekiel is possessive, and everybody in the city knows it. Since taking over as the don from my father, he’s made it known that I am his queen in every sense of the word, even if we are not officially married.

Marriage isn’t for us.

Our love is too pure to be regulated by laws like other sanctioned unions. Our souls do not need permission to be as one.

They just are.

It took a little while for my dad to come around to the idea of us not having a wedding. He said it’s non-traditional, and the families wouldn’t like it. But eventually, he supported us, wanting nothing more than for us to be happy, and it’s true, I couldn’t be happier.

I’m not fully ready to live in the outside world, so when Ezekiel suggested I work with Katia four years ago, I jumped at the opportunity.

He knows me.

He knows that I love to help people.

To fix what is broken.

And with how often Ezekiel’s men are in here, I get more than enough practice.

I see them more than I do him, and that explains why my heart is beating frantically inside my chest with excitement that I get to see him earlier than I had planned.

“No! Don’t leave me with Doc. She hurts me! Airlie, please . I’ll do anything,” Billy begs, and I squeeze my lips together, trying not to smile. He sounds like a petulant child, which is odd considering how big and scary he looks.

Katia isn’t afraid of him. In fact, it’s more like the other way around.

“Excuse me, Billy-John, but unless you want to experience the boss’s wrath, I suggest you buckle up and stop being a giant baby. Besides, I’m gentle,” Katia says with a wink in my direction.

“Airlie, I can confirm that she is not gentle. But neither is the boss, so you’re off the hook,” Billy says, burying his face into the bed as Katia slaps him up the back of his head.

I wash up, remove my scrub cap, and put on my jacket, intermittently listening to the back and forth between the two opposites behind me.

I wave goodbye, but they are not looking, so I turn and head out the door to the parking lot where Ezekiel will be waiting for me.

Closing the door behind me, the cool night air whips my hair and face, causing my nose to itch with the cold. I look over to see Ezekiel leaning against his blackout SUV, which he insists on driving when he's with me for extra protection.

He’s overprotective, but I love that he makes me feel safe.

“Hey there, Dr. Siren,” he says, and he's absolutely ridiculous.

“I'm not a doctor,” I correct him for the millionth time.

“Yet,” he says, wrapping his arms around me and pulling me into his warm body, gently pressing his lips to my now cold ones.

He pulls back, staring down at me. Street lights brighten the dark parking lot, and a cold, foggy, vapor-like mist escapes our mouths with each breath we take. His long, thick, black woolen coat looks delightfully warm, and all I want to do is snuggle up and hide beneath it, wrapped up in his warm arms.

“Come, I want to take you somewhere,” Ezekiel says, my hand now held in his as he opens the passenger door for me to step inside.

Once he's in the car, he turns up the heat, and I place my hands in front of the vents to warm them.

“Where are we going?” I ask, but he just smiles in answer.

I hate surprises, and of course he knows that, which is why he likes to surprise me all the time.

The city lights blur and twinkle in my side mirror as Ezekiel drives away from civilization, and into the darkness. Before too long, forest trees replace tall buildings, and there's nobody else but him and me on the highway. We start to slow, and he pulls off the highway and onto a dirt road, leading us further into the dark.

It's beautiful.

We haven't left the city in what feels like forever, and I didn’t realize how much I needed a break from it until now.

We pull to a stop, and he gets out, walking around to open my door. My skin immediately pricks with ice-like needles as I take his hand, stepping out of the vehicle and onto the crisp soil.

“It's freezing, Ezekiel!” I say, my teeth chattering behind my lips.

“You like the cold,” he teases, and it's true, I prefer this weather over the warm, tropical temperatures.

We slip through the cover of darkness, and I’m led through a dark forest. I look up at the tree canopy soaring above, and I catch glimpses of the night sky, peaking shyly through the leaves. The glow of the moon shines on the path ahead, and I already feel at home.

The sound of leaves and twigs crunch under our booted feet, causing the late-night wildlife to scatter. Their little patters are rampant as we weave through the forest. I see ahead the beginnings of a clearing, and as we approach the edge of it, my boots dig into pure white sand, luminous beneath the now clear moonlit sky.

Ocean.

The waves are gentle, the salt air fills my lungs, and I breathe in the familiar salted scent, stronger now the forest is behind us.

“This is where I want to be, right here beneath the night sky. No interruptions, just you and me,” Ezekiel says, and I can hear the smile in his voice.

I look further along the beach, noticing a campfire already ablaze, the flames reaching for the night sky as they dance with the cold air, beckoning me. Blankets and pillows lay haphazardly, and there's a large picnic basket open, showing its contents of wine, glasses, and a mountain of various snacks. My stomach growls in response, emotion takes over and I smile in delight at the thoughtfulness of Ezekiel.

A midnight picnic with him is just what I need.

“No clams?” I tease, raising an eyebrow and he laughs, a sound I could die listening to.

“No, Little Siren. God, I fucking hate clams.”

We say nothing for a while, listening to the roar of the waves that caress the shore.

“Ezekiel?” I say, my voice betraying just how nervous I am.

“Yeah, baby," he answers, his fingers brushing through my long hair, a little shorter these days, however, it's still a nuisance.

I look up, staring into his sky-blue eyes, the reflection of the flickering fire glowing brightly in them.

“I wanted to give you something,” I say, not sure what he will think about my gift because it's not at all what someone would call conventional. And somehow, that's what makes it perfect.

“Hey, I brought you here to give you something, not the other way around,” he smiles, rolling me onto my back, hovering above me in the firelight.

We're perfect like this.

Him and I.

My other puzzle piece.

“Oh, you first,” I say, as he presses kisses on my forehead and along my jaw, then down to my neck. His breaths, warm, sending a jolt of pleasure straight to my core. He pulls away, and I immediately miss his warmth as he reaches behind the picnic basket and retrieves a clear container. For a second, I'm not sure what it is that I'm looking at, but when he holds it out to me, I gasp.

A large, fluffy, black spider stares back at me, and my lips start to tremble.

“I know it was hard losing Seba and Flipper, but I thought this little guy would be perfect for you. Not to replace them or anything,” he says, a little unsure, and there's a tenderness in his tone that only I get to see.

“Ezekiel. He's perfect.”

Losing my spiders a couple of years ago was hard for me, and Ezekiel was there for me through all of it. I’m just glad I got to have them for as long as I did.

Ezekiel understands me better than I understand myself sometimes.

I reach into the pocket of my jacket and hold out the red velvet organza bag. I bite my bottom lip, even more nervous now because there's nothing I could give him that will top a pet spider.

“It's not much, but I thought you'd like it,” I say as I watch him untie the little red drawstring before opening it.

“Airlie, is this what I think it is?” he says, his eyes wide, the start of a smile forming across his sharp, handsome features. He twirls the pendant between his fingers, the gold chain glinting in the orange light.

“It's a vial of my blood. You know, because you love my blood so much,” I say, a little quieter now because I’m still learning about what is considered normal and what isn't when it comes to gift giving.

“Baby girl, this is the best damn thing, aside from you, that I've ever been given. I will wear this with pride. Everywhere.” He reaches for me, his lips landing on mine, and I gently place my spider safely back behind the basket.

My hands cup the sides of Ezekiel's face, pulling him into me more, wanting him closer as his tongue parts my lips and then smooths over mine. When we are like this, it's like the world around us stops spinning. There are no sounds but the sputtering flames and ocean waves as they fight to drown out our heavy breaths.

He removes his coat and then his suit jacket until he's wearing nothing but a white button down dress shirt, much like the one he wore the day that I first saw him. His huge, muscular body presses into me, my back against the soft blanket, the sand beneath it, like a pillow.

He keeps his beard trimmed nicely, but his hair is much longer now, always styled up beautifully in a bun that only makes him look wild and feral.

A dark knight, dressed in even darker finery.

Though, it doesn’t matter what Ezekiel wears, he always looks perfect.

He lifts my leg, removing my shoe, and then shifts to remove the other. Before I know it, I'm wearing nothing but skin beneath him. He runs his large, calloused hands along my calf muscles, spreading my thighs before his right hand inches higher, sending invisible shockwaves of pleasure along my skin before cupping my pussy.

A breath escapes me, arousal coursing through my body, as his blue eyes, wild in the amber light, gaze down at me with raw, animalistic hunger.

He leans in, sliding his wet tongue along my center, and I lurch forward with his touch. He grips my hips, his strong hands holding me tighter now as he sinks his tongue deeper into me. His mouth closes around my sensitive clit, licking and sucking, his wet tongue sliding up and down until my legs start to shudder.

“Oh no, baby. I don’t think so. I want you to come on my cock,” he says, pushing away from me to stand.

I want to hit him.

I shoot him a glare that tells him I’ll do it, not bothering to hide my impatience. I need him, achingly so, and he chuckles.

“Did you think that I was going to bring you all the way out here without my cum dripping down your thighs when we leave? You know I can't get enough of you,” he growls. His own need is like electricity skittering over his skin, his face flush, making my stomach flutter deliciously in anticipation. “Did you want that, Little Siren?”

“Y— yes ,” I whisper desperately. My body prickles with heat that has nothing to do with the fire, crackling, and fizzing beside our bodies.

“What was that?” he says, teasing , because I know that he heard me.

“Yes, Ezekiel.”

He leans back and gets to his feet, towering above me. He removes his shirt, exposing the scared contours of his mouth-watering chest to me, and then he undoes his pressed black slacks, the whole time, his eyes never leave mine as he undresses above me.

Dinner and a show, I decide, as his large, hard cock springs free, hitting his stomach.

My eyes widen.

I'm never going to get used to seeing him like this.

He kneels, towering over me, part villain, part hero, and his eyes flash with something dark, menacing even, and within seconds, his powerful body is all over me.

His large hands reach for mine, raising them above my head, pinning them in place as his mouth explores mine. I raise my hips, wrapping my legs around his torso, needing him to know just how desperate for him I am. He leans back slightly, glancing down into my eyes before they move to watch the place where our bodies connect. His eyes glaze as he watches while he slowly presses inside and then buries his entire length deep into me.

I want to feel him for days.

I want the world to know that he is mine as much as I am his.

Our mouths tangle in an open mouthed kiss that I feel all over my body. My pussy convulses with each of his thrusts, now faster, greedier, as I clamp harder around his solid cock and chase my release.

“Airlie,” he cries out before capturing my bottom lip between his teeth and moving his hand to cup my breast. He pinches a nipple between his fingers as his thrusts become more forceful, hitting me deeper until I see stars.

“Baby,” I gasp, incoherent to the words that I’m saying as he pounds into me. “More,” I beg.

He growls something unintelligible in my ear as he pistons into me faster. My vision blurs, my body quivering beneath him as tension coils in my stomach before I completely come undone beneath him.

“You feel fucking incredible, baby. The way your tight cunt grips my cock. You’re such a good girl for me,” he praises, and I dig my nails deep into the skin on his back, marking him. I know It’s not enough to replace the scars that mar his body, but right now, It’s me that he’s feeling, not the wicked people who hurt him all those years before.

I hold onto him like this, not wanting this to be over, as he thrusts once more before spilling inside me, coating my inner walls with his cum. I spasm around him, a satisfied, low groan ripping from his throat, and then he crashes his mouth to mine, both of us riding the wave of euphoria together.

* * *

We lay in each other's arms for a long moment, nestled beneath the blankets, the fire dwindling, losing the battle with the cold night air. Ezekiel’s tired eyes gaze into mine as the sound of the waves crashing gently against the shore surrounds us. The moon, now half hidden beneath clouds, shines muted, silver hues, highlighting the contours of his face.

“Airlie, I don’t know if I’ve ever thanked you for saving me. Not just that day, but every day since,” he says, raw emotion clogging his throat. “Baby, I love you with everything I am.” I hold my finger to his lips because we don’t need words.

From where we came to where we are now has been a journey for us both.

And through it all, we saved each other, and I will never let him go.

The darkness in him calls to the darkness in me, and together, we are one. There is no separation between us, not for all eternity.

He is my solace.

My sacred promise.

Our souls are bound eternally.

Dark heart and dark soul.

Ghost and Phantom.

Tangled within shadows forevermore.

The End