Forgotten Elements

Starling didn’t give us a chance to ask about the baby that none of us could sense yet, pointing out we should get home before someone else we thought we could trust attacked us. Before we left, Ander and Reed looked for all the blood we spilled and dealt with it. Reed set it on fire, making sure it was unusable. It was better to have him do this, rather than Starling or Koa since he had better control of his fire and could make it so he only burned the blood. Not only did we not want to hurt nature, but it was best to leave as little evidence of what happened here as possible.

The advice came from Caspian, who showed up a couple of minutes after Emmy left. His gaze landed on Seth’s body, and to my surprise, he mentioned he’d never met the man. Caspian’s lack of familiarity with him made me realize Seth had been careful who he met. Looking back at past events, I remembered how he missed the meeting with all the rulers months ago because he was “too injured” to attend the meeting. He’d also been injured when we prevented the rift from forming on the bridge. If I had to guess, I would say it was because he was afraid someone might notice the difference between him and the real Seth.

Just like how Magnus was confident Neven’s energy signature had changed. Oh shit.

Before I could share my revelation, Caspian spoke again, telling us he’d take care of the body and that we should keep this to ourselves. Sharing the news about the possessions would only create panic and a witch hunt. There were many who’d take this as an opportunity to accuse those they didn’t like of being possessed.

Jade pulled out of Koa’s hold, crossing her arms over her chest. “Oh, and we’re just supposed to trust you?”

“You don’t have to trust me, but I can tell you this—” Caspian glanced up at her from where he squatted next to the body, careful not to touch him. “I’m far more trustworthy than the woman who killed this man.”

When Caspian didn’t say anything else or answer any of Jade’s questions about how he knew who killed Seth, we took our leave. Ari, thankfully, woke up before we got home. She was still pretty out of it. Most of her words were incoherent, other than when she called Seth a bitch of a son. Her screw-up would’ve been funny had we not been worried about her.

Rather than head to bed right away like my body was begging me to do or shower, we hovered in the living room as Ari was checked over. Ander confirmed he didn’t sense any residual blood magic on her as did Gemini—a relief since we didn’t see half of what Seth did to her.

“You guys look like shit,” Ari whispered, glancing around at the rest of us.

“You all should get some rest. I can watch over her and tell you if anything changes,” Alora said, taking a seat on a nearby chair.

With how the blood made my clothes stick to my body and how my limbs shook and ached, I didn’t have it in me to argue. Parker wrapped an arm around my waist and guided me to my bedroom. His touch was a comfort I didn’t want to be rid of any time soon.

While I may have been exhausted and barely able to stand on my own, there was no way in hell I was sleeping covered in blood and grime. During my time in the Land of plenty, I promised myself a nice hot shower or bath as soon as I got home, and I wasn’t about to break it.

I turned the water of the shower and spun around to face Parker. Rather than pull my shirt off, I tugged at his and pulled it over his head with his assistance. A grin tugged at his lips as I traced the muscles in his abs. “Can’t wait to get me naked?” His words turned into a chuckle when I ignored his comment, going straight for the zipper of his jeans.

His hands dropped over mine, pausing my hurried movements and drawing my gaze to his. “I swear, if you try to make me beg again, I’ll hit you,” I practically growled, glaring up at him when his laugh deepened as he threw his head back.

He pulled my hands away, and before I could protest, he quickly stripped the clothes from my body, leaving me standing naked before him. His eyes heated as his gaze slowly trailed down my body and had me buzzing with anticipation. I could almost feel his gaze as if he were trailing a finger over me, and I couldn’t help but squirm.

This time, when I reached for his zipper to pull it down, he let me. I yanked his jeans and underwear down in one go, his hard cock springing free, and my mouth went dry as my pussy throbbed with the desperate need to have it inside me.

Using one finger under my chin, he tipped my head back so my gaze clashed with his as he backed me into the shower until the warm water began spraying my back and then my head. His body crowded mine as he moved me so my back was pressed against the shower wall. A whimper slipped free when his cock pressed against my belly. I wrapped my hand around the hard length, grinning when he groaned and dropped his forehead to mine. His hold on my hips tightened when I moved my hand up and down his shaft, my focus never leaving his face as his eyes drifted shut.

He squeezed my hip again while his other hand moved so it was pressed against the tile next to my head. I figured he’d stop me right away, but he let me continue pumping my hand up his length for nearly a minute before he captured my hand and stilled my movements. His lips came down on mine, silencing my complaints.

He had given me multiple orgasms in the elemental lake and blinding pleasure; I wanted to return the favor, especially when I had made him wait for so long. Based on how he pulled my hand away and threaded his fingers through mine, it wouldn’t be happening today.

Kissing Parker was something I didn’t think I could ever grow tired of. The way his tongue expertly stroked against mine had me softening against him and forgetting about my need to give him pleasure. All too soon, Parker was pulling away, and I made my complaints known.

Parker’s expression had become serious as he stared down at me, cupping my face as his thumbs stroked my cheeks. “Before we do this, I want you to know what you’re getting into, and I want you to be sure you want this.”

“I want this,” I whispered, tugging at the back of his neck, trying to reclaim the distance between us. The bond buzzed in my chest, sending warmth throughout my body and adding to the insistent need throbbing in my core.

He shook his head as he traced my lips with his thumb. “This time is different than the last time. If I fuck you now, that’s it. There will never be another for you. You will never be able to get rid of me. If you say yes to this, you are saying yes to the bond and everything it entails. You’re saying yes to me. So, I’ll ask again: do you want this?”

“Try as I might, there hasn’t been another for me since you first opened that stupid mouth of yours,” I said with a light chuckle as I traced his sharp jaw that was now dusted with stubble. He still didn’t say anything, his gaze boring into mine, waiting for me to say the words that’ll make all of this real. “Yes.”

Parker’s lips sealed over mine, the kiss hungry and frantic as he grabbed my hips and lifted me off the ground. I hooked my legs around his waist, bringing his cock against my pussy. I couldn’t help myself and rubbed against him so the head of his cock brushed my clit and my core clenched.

His hold on my hips tightened as he shifted my hips and eased his cock inside me. My nails dug into his shoulders as I dropped my head back against the shower wall at the fullness and how perfectly we seemed to fit together. His movements ceased once he was fully inside of me, our chests pressed against each other as we held eye contact, Parker’s forehead pressed against mine. He was right. This time was different than the last. The buzzing warmth in my chest had grown more intense as the cord felt tangible, and I could feel my connection to Parker. I could feel desire, his and mine, melding together, driving him to begin moving again.

He tried to keep his movements slow and controlled and managed to do so the first few times he slid out and back in—both torturing the hell out of me and having the coiling pressure in my core building. But it didn’t take long for his thrusts to become faster and harder. As he moved in and out of me, one of his hands moved from my hips up to my breast, where he began rolling my nipple between his fingers, never losing a beat.

I never should’ve doubted his skills—even if I’d only been doing so to rile him up. He seemed to know exactly how to work my nipple and breasts to have me writhing against him, clawing at his back as I screamed his name. I swear he must’ve had a magic cock or something because I was soon unraveling as I came.

“I can’t wait to learn everything about your body,” he murmured against my neck. His hand slid from my breast and down to my clit where he pressed down with his thumb. “Learn what has your breathing picking up.” My hips jerked against him as he pinched my clit and nipped at my neck. His lips curled into a smirk as he repeated the action. “Know every little sound you make.”

As if on cue, he rubbed circles on my clit, making me gasp and whimper, and his smirk only grew.

The pressure quickly built once again and had me clamping against him as I continued clawing at his back. “We won’t get to see how many times I can make you come today—next time.” His pace picked up, and I held on for dear life as my orgasm approached.

It only took a couple more thrusts, and I was shattering, my screams echoing throughout the shower as stars danced in my vision. Parker soon followed, dropping his forehead against mine as he stilled inside me.

My breaths were ragged, as were his. My body tingled with the aftershocks of my orgasm, and it took me nearly a minute to recover, a sly grin pulling at my lips as I tsked and shook my head. “Only two orgasms?”

His chuckle was rich and had a lightness filling my chest as he dropped a lingering kiss on my lips that had me craving more. “Oh, don’t you worry; next time when I fuck you, I’ll have you coming so many times, you’ll be begging me to stop.”

“I’ll believe it when I see it,” I shot back, knowing full well he’d fulfill his promise.