Carlos toyed with the tight curls of Belinda’s hair, marveling at the beauty in his arms. Her head rested in the crook of his shoulder, a soft smile on her face as she slept. Her body was like a furnace pressed up against his. Fae were able to regulate their own temperatures, to be able to adapt to any situation they found themselves in. He could have adjusted himself right now so that she didn’t feel so warm next to him – he tended to run a bit cool.

But he didn’t want to. He wanted to stay here, sweating with her skin stuck to him, listening to the soft, even sounds of her breath.

Oh, gods. He was in deep. So very, very deep. There was no way this could end well. For starters, she was human. Humans died. It wouldn’t take long. How old would she live?

With his blood to sustain her, her life could be extended. It would take longer, but in three hundred, four hundred years? He’d lose her. With the child being conceived so readily between them, she had to have some fae blood in her, blood that would be awakened if she drank enough of his. If she had a close enough genealogy to the fae, then she would become fae herself. If she had a close enough genealogy. Even then, it would be difficult to determine what she would become.

And there only was a chance for her to become fae if she wanted to be with him in the first place. Was willing to drink his blood on a regular basis. If she would be okay with watching the world change around her while she was stuck like a stick in a stream.

Carlos slipped out of bed, eyes darkening. She was pregnant. Would his child be human or fae? A vampire like him, or perhaps another sort of fae entirely? These things weren’t an exact science. The baby would appear to be a normal human until it hit puberty and its heritage would be revealed.

A knock on the door broke him from his thoughts. Carlos frowned, then left the bedroom to go to the main part of his apartment. Pan nodded a greeting to him, violet eyes tense with worry.

“A demon horde has opened up Mount Glenmore.”

The old volcano was extinct. Carlos had had plenty of his fae mages make sure of that. Glenmore was harmless now, but if demons were there, then Daye was there. Carlos’ nerves were instantly on edge, and he stiffened.

“Stay here and protect Belinda,” he ordered, then strode to the fireplace to snatch up his old iron ax. It had been centuries since it had seen the battle. “Daye will not see her quest fulfilled.”

Pan nodded and Carlos swept from the room. He quickly gathered his warriors and they started their hummers and bikes and tore through the streets to get to the mountain. He pushed all thoughts of Belinda away. His focus had to be on Daye and driving her back to the darkness she had been formed from.

Carlos hefted the ax in his hands when they came to the mountain. The spells ensuring its extinction had stripped it of all life, leaving it brown and black. It was crawling with demons in a variety of twisted, ugly shapes. White skin gleamed like pearls in the sunlight. As the vampires emerged from their vehicles and charged the horde, they screeched and rushed down the mountainside toward him.

“Where is she?” Carlos murmured, gaze tracing the top of the mountain, looking for his quarry.

There! At the very peak, arms lifted over her head. Carlos grinned as he charged forward. When the first demons met him, he swung his ax in a wide circle. It cleaved their bodies as though they were wet tissue paper. After all these years, it hadn’t lost its edge. The coppery scent that filled the air invigorated him, filled him with determination. He hacked through the demons as they rushed at him.

His muscles strained as the rest of his vampires fought around him. Carlos steadily moved upwards, the ground steep, rocks and loose dirt moving around under his feet. He didn’t slow. His gaze flickered to where Daye stood. She hadn’t moved from her perch, watching with her red eyes. Carlos’ lips curled back over his teeth as he chopped a demon in half, then retrieved its sword to give his ax a rest.

A demon leaped at his back and Carlos ducked, letting it fly over him. As it landed, he skewered it. A blow slapped him across the back and he stumbled. He whirled and sunk his ax into his attacker. It was only then that he realized that his guards had fallen behind him. He saw panic on their faces as they hewed at the demons that poured between them. More of the creatures came at him, wicked teeth bared.

Above him, Daye laughed.

Carlos ignored any sense of fear. He focused on the demons around him. Though they came at him from all sides, he was not going to give one inch of ground to them.

The blast of a trumpet filled the air. Carlos twisted as he blocked the sword of one demon and stabbed another. A troop of horses, with the winged fae mounted on their backs, flooded over the mountain. Golden armor gleamed as they raced through the ranks of demons, shooting them with arrows or cleaving them with spathas.

Carlos let out a furious shout and redoubled his efforts to fight to the top of the mountain.

But it was too late. Even as the fae rushed through the demon ranks, crushing them, Daye disappeared. Carlos killed the last few demons who were fighting him rather than running with the rest of them, then threw down the sword he’d taken and begun cursing fluently.

The leader of the winged fae trotted her horse up next to him and smiled down. “Well hello there, your majesty. Found yourself in a spot of trouble?”

Finley was one of the most beautiful faes to ever live. Skin the color of midnight, sparkling eyes, delicious lips and a figure unmatched. Her golden armor gleamed in scales over her body, the spatha in her hand splattered with demon blood. She was mounted upon an eight-legged horse that snorted and pawed the ground. She swung from the horse and swept a bow toward him.

Carlos glared at her. “If I wanted them frightened away, I would have done that. They were being led by Daye. Now you’ve frightened her off.”

Finley shrugged, brushing her hair back from her face. “This is my territory, not yours.”

It was true enough. Carlos scowled for a moment longer before nodding. “Thank you.”

“Anything for you, my dove.” Finley patted his cheek and sighed. “Anything for you.”

Finley’s palace was well-protected. Carlos’ frown deepened as he considered her. “Anything, huh? Well, then I must reluctantly ask for your assistance in a matter of great concern to me.”

***

The beautiful fae queen opened a door and gestured Belinda in. “This will be your home for the foreseeable future. Or at least until Carlos defeats the demon. Just so you know, it’s an honor to reside in my palace.”

Belinda didn’t reply. Her eyes were huge as she gazed around the lavish room. It was far from what she had expected. Instead of the Victorian English décor in Carlos’ palace, Finley’s was something out of a fantasy story. Instead of a bed, there was a huge hexagonal mattress sunken into the floor with mounds of pillows atop it. Gauzy curtains streamed from the ceiling around the mattress. The floor itself was carpeted in silk and the plentiful windows were all stained glass.

“Thank you,” Belinda managed to stutter. “It’s beautiful.”

Finley shrugged. “It’s a room. It used to be Carlos’ room when he loved me.”

She didn’t think her eyes could get any bigger but she was wrong. Belinda’s eyes bugged her head. “What do you mean?”

“We used to be lovers. He was never happy with me, though. Or perhaps he didn’t like having to share me. Which is ridiculous, since I shared him with many others as well.”

The cool, casual way she spoke shouldn’t have had Belinda’s blood starting to boil, but it did. She bit her lips tightly together, turning away from the fae queen. When it had just been Pan, Belinda could accept it just fine. It was clear that there was an emotional connection there but that neither of them were going to go there again. Finley, however . . . She was so beautiful and sensuous. She made Belinda feel like a potato.

Or maybe it was just sinking in how much Carlos actually had. He was thousands of years old. He must have had thousands of lovers.

Besides, it was completely ridiculous, considering that what she had with him wasn’t any sort of staked claim or . . . or any reason to be jealous. Still, she huffed as she walked further into the room. “Thank you.”

Finley giggled a high, girlish sound. “Humans. Your people are so small and petty. And pretty.” The queen ran a hand down Belinda’s arm. “I already said that Carlos didn’t love me. You have no reason to be jealous, little one. No reason at all. I do suggest you tell him that you love him sooner rather than later.”

“I don’t love him.” Belinda fought to keep her voice cool.

“You don’t?”

“No, I don’t.”

“Then why are you still here?”

“Because that demon is out there wanting to kill me and my unborn child.” Belinda sucked in a deep breath. Her hands were trembling. Seriously? If there was one thing she knew, it was how to control her emotions. Even with the pregnancy hormones, she shouldn’t be having these difficulties. “That’s all.”

Finley’s eyes lit up. “Well, then. Perhaps you’ll stay with me. I can give you anything you want. Mounds of gold. Beautiful dresses . . . or designer pantsuits if that’s what you’re into. Your dream car. A beautiful horse, purebred cats and dogs and chickens.”

“Chickens?”

Finley shrugged. “I don’t know you yet. For all I know, your dream is to have a little farm with half a dozen laying hens and a donkey. The point is, I can give you everything you want. If you want to be a queen, I’ll marry you and give you a crown.”

Belinda eyed her warily. What was she driving at?

“All you have to do,” Finley whispered, moving in closer to her, “is swear me your fealty and body. You’ll be given everything you desire. Just sleep in my bed and fantasize about no one else.”

Carlos flashed through her mind. Even if that was a promise she wanted to make, she wouldn’t be able to. “Hell no!”

She realized too late that it was a bad idea to insult the person whose protection she was under. Fae could be very temperamental. Finley, however, only laughed as she stepped away and clapped her hands lightly.

“See? I told you.”

Belinda frowned at her. “Just because I don’t want you doesn’t mean that I’m in love with Carlos. I’m just not into girls is all.”

“You put your hands on your belly as I was talking and as soon as I told you not to fantasize about anybody else, you thought of Carlos.”

“I am not in love with him.”

Finley only smirked.

Seconds later, Carlos entered the room. Belinda’s heart jumped into her throat. The tendrils of jealousy that had been wrapping around her heart dissipated in an instant. A worry overtook her. Had he heard what she said? She peered at him anxiously before she remembered that it didn’t matter. Yeah, they had fun, and maybe her feelings were more intense than they should be, but when it came down to it, Carlos was a vampire who was thousands of years old. He’d had lovers and it was doubtful that he’d be satisfied with one person for any length of time.

Still, she twisted her hands together and hoped that he hadn’t heard her comments.

Carlos smiled at her warmly, helping to ease the skittering of her heart before glancing at Finley. “Thank you for helping us out. I greatly appreciate it.”

“It’s no problem. That demon is a pain for all of us. It’s been a while since we’ve had a fae baby born – and to a human, no less.” Finley glanced up and down at Belinda. “She must have some fae blood in her. Usually, it would take years of specialized treatments for a human to be pregnant with a fae child.”

Belinda shrugged, unwilling to be drawn into the conversation.

Finley smiled at her again and turned back to Carlos. “I’m having an orgy at eight if you want to join.”

Belinda’s jaw dropped. It took everything in her power to stop from yelling out that he wasn’t interested. It wasn’t her place . . . As much as she’d like to scratch out the fae queen’s eyes at the moment, it wasn’t her place.

“Thank you for the invitation.” Carlos sounded annoyed. “But, as I told you before, I’m into monogamy.”

Belinda had to work hard to keep the triumphant smile on her face.

“Oh, well. What a waste.” Finley sighed. “I’ll leave you two alone, then. Toodles.”

She sashayed away. Belinda glared at her for a moment before turning to Carlos. “So . . . What now?”

“Finley is one of the most powerful faes in existence.” Carlos’ voice was low and firm. “Daye won’t stand a chance against her. It'd be like a mouse attacking a lion. I know she doesn’t look dangerous, but you know the stories about Sekhmet and Hathor? Egyptian goddesses, two sides of the same being? Sekhmet is the warrior goddess, the blood-thirsty lioness. Hathor is the goddess of love, a life-giving cow. Finley’s both of them. She’s Freya, Norse goddess of love, beauty and war. And I don’t mean that she’s like them. She was worshiped as a goddess by human and fae alike. You’ll be safe here.”

He put a gentle hand on her stomach, and for a moment, the jealousy rose again. Was Carlos more worried about her or the baby? She tried to push the feelings aside. Why should she be jealous of her own child?

“What about after you defeat Daye? What will be between you and I then?”

His hand dropped. “We’ll figure it out.”

“I don’t want to be a kept woman.”

Carlos’ head dropped for a moment. Then, he looked up at her with a smile that made her heart stutter. “Don’t worry about that right now. We’ll figure it out when the time comes. Right now, we just need to make sure that you’re safe while I go after the demon. Okay?”

It wasn’t a good answer, but Belinda nodded. “Okay. Let’s do that, then.”