Chapter Fourteen
When his phone rang, Aries answered right away knowing it was his Uncle. He hoped it was good news. He and Nina had arrived at his safe house only a couple hours previously. The trip had seemed to take a lot out of Nina so she was resting in the bedroom. “Hello, Uncle. I hope you have good news.”
There was a pause on the other end causing him anxiety. “Uncle?” he prompted.
“I’m sorry, Aries, it’s been a long day. And I fear that the news I have isn’t so great.”
Aries closed his eyes and grimaced. “So you haven’t found her?”
“No, but I feel that we’re close. In fact, Dante and I ran into a few hunters earlier. We were able to take two of them down, but one got away. These aren’t ordinary hunters. They’re stronger…but you already know that.”
Aries stiffened. “I do?”
“Yes. They were much like the hunters who attacked you and Calliope when you went to her house on the mainland.”
Aries had left out many details on his trip to the mainland and he’d left Calliope’s name out it.
“You’ve gotten quiet. Did you think I wouldn’t find out, Aries? There’s not a lot I don’t know about the goings on around my island or the mainland. I have spies everywhere. Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because Calliope made a mistake and I didn’t want to be the reason she was banished from the pack.”
“And you were so sure that it wasn’t some setup? She did after all nearly get you killed.”
“She almost died as well, so I doubt she set me up. It was poor judgment on her part but I don’t believe she thought she was in any real danger.”
“Hmm,” came Paris’s noncommittal response.
“I used my judgment to handle her the way I saw fit. If you don’t like what I did, then I’ll accept any punishment coming my way…just don’t banish her.”
There was a long pause on the other end of the phone before his uncle spoke again. “Even after what she did, you show mercy. Sometimes a situation calls for mercy and other times retribution. Without consequences there is chaos. You could have brought the downfall of our pack had she been up to anything nefarious.”
“So you don’t believe she intentionally tried to set me up?”
Paris sighed. “No. I think she’s a woman who made a foolish mistake. Matters of the heart can be tricky at times but you did the right thing in this case.”
Aries let out a soft sigh of release. “I feared you would view this as another Eleni situation.”
Eleni Kyriakis has been the sister of his Uncle’s former mate who had made a deal with the hunters in order to grab power. She also had her eyes set on being Paris’s never mate.
“The difference between Eleni and Calliope is that Eleni only had herself in mind. She didn’t care about me, she just wanted to the status and the power. Calliope...well, she actually believed herself to have feelings for you and maybe she does but I think she’s been punished enough for her mistake. She’ll have to live with what she did and that she won’t have you. Besides, I knew she was remorseful when she came to me.”
“What?”
“She was the one who told me what happened. I suppose the guilt was too much for her to hold in so she confessed. I would rather have heard it from you, however, but understand. Ever since you took over the role of Beta for this pack, you’ve proven time and time again that you care about its members and you’ve never shirked your duties. Where I have often been the harsh one, you’ve been the reasonable one. Sometimes, I believe that you’d probably make a better Alpha than me.”
Aries shook his head even though his Uncle couldn’t see it. “I wouldn’t presume that Uncle Paris. You’re a great Alpha. The pack looks up to you and they respect you.”
“But they respect and love you as well. And even with your various pack duties, you’ve managed to help out on Underground missions and helped run the business. If I haven’t told you, I appreciate you, Aries and you don’t have to be guilty for what your parents did.”
That last statement totally took Aries by surprise, so much so that he thought he’d misheard it. “Excuse me.”
“I think you heard me the first time. I know. I’ve always known.”
Aries had been holding the secret in for so long that he thought he’d carry this secret shame with him for as long as he lived. “Why didn’t you say anything?”
“At first I didn’t realize that you knew. Eros…was my brother and I loved him. He was always the serious one and honestly he probably was more suited to be Alpha than me. But he had the curse of being born the younger brother and I think it ate away at him until he eventually felt he had to do something about it. I was the one who put him down you know. It killed me to be the one to end my own brother. As his spirit slowly drifted away, I held him in my arms and I mind-linked with him. His thoughts were all over the place because of the Malum, but part of him was still there. And it was that part that reached out to me. He told me he was sorry and to look out for you. And then he was gone. I’m not sure what was worse, losing him or learning of his betrayal. In a way, I wish I’d never known because every day I think of what I could have done to change things so that he would still be alive today.”
Aries was at a loss for words but thankfully, Paris continued.
“I’ve carried this guilt with me for a very long time. I didn’t want you to know what your parents had done so I never said anything about it. I thought I was protecting you by withholding that information but it didn’t occur to me until a few years ago that you knew.”
“How did you figure it out?” Aries asked, finally finding his voice.
“It was something you said in passing. It was just a random conversation we’d had and you said something about trying not to allow our past to dictate our present. At first, I thought you were referring to me. But then it occurred to me that you might have known about what your parents did. After that, it didn’t take long for me to put two and two together. You’ve gone above and beyond what most Beta would do for their pack and every time I compliment you on a job well done, you simply say it’s your duty. I would often ask myself why you push yourself so hard but don’t accept the thanks. That was when I realized it was guilt. I should have recognized it right away because it’s the same burden I’ve carried all these years. I don’t want you to think that I hold what your parents did against you. Quite honestly, I’m not even mad at Eros. In his misguided sense of what’s right, he’d probably figured he make a better Alpha and that it was best for the pack. I have to believe that his motives were altruistic even though he went about it the wrong way. It’s how I can reconcile with the brother I grew up with and loved to the man who would perpetuate this evil against his own people. At the end of the day, he and your mother paid the ultimate price for their sins.”
“Aries, I might not say this often enough but you make me very proud. I couldn’t have a better Beta, a nephew or a son. You I love you and I just want you to know that it’s time for you to stop carrying around that guilt. You deserve to be happy. I’ve only been able to observe you with your mate briefly but I believe that you can find that happiness with her. If you allow yourself.”
Aries hadn’t cried since his parents had succumbed to Malum, but damn if there weren’t tears in his eyes right now. None of the Kyriakis men were big on sharing their emotions with each other so to hear his Uncle say this meant the world to him and it felt like a huge burden had been lifted off his shoulders. ‘I should have told you about it.”
“I understand why you didn’t. It’s the exact reason I never said anything either. Just know that no matter what, you can come to me for anything.”
“Thank you, Uncle Paris. That means a lot to me.”
“I’m getting another call which hopefully means we have some news on our search, but I’ll be checking in. In the meantime, keep your mate safe.”
“Thank you, again.”
“I love you, Aries.”
“I love you too.”
When Aries disconnected the call his tears flowed freely. He would allow himself this one cry to properly mourn for his parents like he never had before and then he could finally shut the door on that chapter forever.
“Are you all right?”
Aries jumped, surprised that he hadn’t heard Nina approach. He swiftly wiped the tears from his face, slightly embarrassed that she’d caught him at an emotional moment.
“I’m fine,” he answered quickly and pasted a smile on his face. “I thought you were resting.”
She raised a dark brow. “I couldn’t sleep. So are you going to tell me why you were crying if everything is fine?”
He sighed, seeing no point in keeping the truth from her. “I just got off the phone with my Uncle. They’re hitting a few roadblocks in their search for Sarah’s mother. But they think they may be on the right track because they ran into some hunters. Right now they’re waiting for reinforcement.”
“Hunters? I hope they’re okay.”
Aries nodded. “They are.”
“But that’s not the reason why you were crying. Even though I haven’t known you long, you don’t strike me as the type to randomly cry.”
“You’re right. Remember when I was telling you about my parents and the secret shame I carried because of them?”
She nodded slowly. “My Uncle already know. He thought he was the one protecting me by not saying anything. All this time if we’d only talked things would have been cleared up so much sooner.”
“Well, I’m glad you were able to get it resolved.” She moved closer and placed her arms around him.
She fit in his arms perfectly like she was always meant to be there and he didn’t want to let her go. He held her against him, inhaling her delicious scent. Even though it was the simple smell of soap, on her skin it was intoxicating. He placed a kiss on the top of her head.
To his surprise, she placed a kiss on his jawline, and then his neck. Before he realized what was happening, Nina had his shirt off and rained kisses all over his chest.
He growled deep in his throat. “Woman, do you know what you’re doing to me?”
She raised head briefly, her dark eyes locking with his. “I have an idea,” she murmured before returning to the task of undressing him. Aries helped her remove his pants and the next thing he knew, Nina was on her knees, eyeing his cock with a lascivious stare.
“I’ve wanted to do this to you the first time, I saw your magnificent body,” she moaned circling his length with her fingers. When Nina slid her tongue along his shaft, Aries nearly lost it. He gripped a handful of her raven tresses and thrust his hardness against her face.
“Don’t fucking tease me, woman. Suck it,” he commanded.
Nina opened her mouth wide and wrapped her lips around his dick, sliding her mouth along his shaft until the tip of his cock hit the back of her throat. She pulled back, but not completely and then she repeated the process, bobbing her head back and forth. Her mouth made his dick nice and wet as her lips created a tight seal.
Aries rolled his eyes to the back of his head as a wave of pure bliss rolled through his entire being. Her mouth was magic. “Feels so fucking good,” he moaned.
Unable to keep still, he guided her head as he thrust forward, moving it with each stroke. When she cupped and fondled his balls, Aries lost it. He shot his semen deep into her throat, and Nina greedily drank it up.
But even when he finished she still lapped and licked his dick like a lollipop. Finally, when she released him, she raised her head, dark eyes flashing. “Did I please you?”
He pulled Nina to her feet and lifted her into his arms before carrying her to the bed. Aries quickly undressed her before tossing Nina on the center of the bed and quickly fell on top of her. “You didn’t think you could do that to me and not get thoroughly fucked. You were just asking me to take this pussy weren’t you?”
She licked her lips. “I wanted to make you feel better?”
Aries chuckled as he positioned himself between her legs. “Oh, I felt better, and I’m about to feel even more so.”
She trembled as she slid his cockhead along her slit, teasing her entrance. “Aries, please,” she moaned, lifting her hips to press her cunt against him.
You’re already so wet and ready for me. But I want to hear the words. Tell me how much you want this.”
“I want this. So bad. Please take me. Fuck me, conquer me…make love to me.”
It was those last words that were his undoing. He couldn’t hold back any longer so he thrust into her so deep, his balls slapped the seat of her ass. She was so tight it was like she was squeezing the life out of his cock and he couldn’t get enough. “Fuck!” he grunted savoring the sensation of her pussy.
Nina wrapped her legs around his waist, forcing him to move. He had every intention to fuck her hard and fast but when he caught a glimpse of her biting her bottom lip, her dark eyes brimming with passion, he was struck by her beauty. He didn’t know how love worked, but in this short time of their acquaintance, Aries knew he was in love.
He placed his hands on either side of her head and moved slowly, reveling in the oneness of their bodies. “You’re so beautiful”
Her eyes gleamed with the suspicious sheen of tears as she pulled him to her. They moved together, as Nina met him thrust for thrust. Aries pressed his lips to hers, heightening the romance of the moment.
He raised his head just long enough to look her in his eyes and claim her. “Mine. You know I can never let you go after this, don’t you.”
She bit her bottom lip again as she released a moan. Nina had no idea how fucking sexy that looked.
His climax hit him hard and fast. He spilled his seed deep into her grasping pussy.
“Aries,” she screamed his name, signaling her own release.
He buried his face against her neck and held her tight, not wanting to let her go.
“Aries,” she whispered.
“I…nothing.”
He raised his head to look her in the eyes. “Are you sure?
“Yes, just hold me.”
He tightened his arms around her and as they lay together in each other’s arms, he felt moisture against his face. This time it was from Nina’s tears.