Rhodack let his head roll back against his chair as his cock disappeared inside Avalena’s mouth. She expertly sucked him deep within her throat, and a growl vibrated in his chest. The tension of needing to come built inside him.

It had been a few days since his last release. She was one of his favorites who resided in his harem. As clan leader, he was rewarded with certain perks, and having his pick and choosing of willing women from his harem was a bonus.

Gargoyles were a race who held a healthy sexual appetite that usually wasn’t quenched with just one partner. Multiple partners were common—until their destined mate was found.

Children were only produced between mates, allowing them to be extremely cherished as gargoyle children should be. They were creatures that needed to be bonded to their life mates, but that didn’t mean their mates controlled them.

No, a gargoyle’s mate was a partner in everything.

Rhodack had lived for centuries and hadn’t found his. Not that he’d been looking for her. Protecting the Terra realm had been his top priority for the past four centuries. He couldn’t afford to believe in mating and searching for his happy forever after.

His stone heart believed whenever his mate showed herself he would know and would honor his duties as a mate. But until that time, he’d enjoy the pleasures of his harem.

He released a hiss. Avalena swallowed his cock, taking it to the back of her throat again. She pulled back, leaving the tip in her mouth, then paused. He stared down at her, finding her attention on him. She was waiting for his praise.

His only praise was to tighten his grip on her hair and thrust his cock farther into her mouth. His nostrils flared—the familiar signs of his release approached.

Her moans of pleasure muffled by his cock being thrust deep in her throat while she knelt naked on the floor in front of him, he let loose a roar, shooting his seed into her greedy mouth. Without a word, she knew to swallow what he offered her.

To a member of a harem, it was a reward to bring their clan leader to completion. She smiled after easing his cock out of her mouth and cleaned it with her tongue.

“Are you satisfied?” she asked.

The spark in her eyes told him what she wanted. Members of the harem never knew when they were to be called upon. Once accepted into the elite group, they were only to please the clan leader and who he chose. He currently kept around seven females in his harem, and each of them were always completely satisfied with belonging to him.

His cock grew hard again.

“This mouth always leaves me satisfied,” he murmured, running a finger along her plump bottom lip.

Satisfaction flared in her eyes as she stood proud. “Come. Let me give you pleasure.”

She quickly tossed her leg over his waist. He guided the blunt tip of his cock and nestled it between her slick folds. Her generous breasts swayed before him. She shifted her body, ready to impale herself on him.

Someone banged against the door, and they paused.

A growl escaped Avalena’s lips.

His lips curled up into a grimace at the intrusion. The sun should be rising soon, which meant gargoyles tended to sleep during the day.

“Who is it?” he snapped, his cock pulsing, ready to slide home inside Avalena.

“Vikuth.”

“Please, Rhodack. Can’t he wait?” she whispered, her hand coming up to rest on the edge of his jaw.

He narrowed his eyes at her before he ripped her hands from his face. He released a snarl, tossing her to the floor. He stood from his chair, still narrowing his eyes at her.

She immediately scrambled away from him, fear etched on her face.

“You forget your place, Avalena.” He quickly righted his clothing.

Vikuth rapped on the door again. Rhodack knew if he was banging on the door this hard, something was wrong.

“I’m so sorry. Please forgive me,” she cried out, kneeling at his feet. Her body trembled, and she held her head low. “It’s just been so many days, and we finally had time to ourselves.”

“Go back to your compound,” he snapped, not wanting to hear any excuses.

Avalena silently nodded. Tears marred her face as she stood from her kneeling place. She slipped on her robe and tied it around herself then headed to the door and turned to him again.

Her eyes widened at the look on his face. She must have changed her mind about whatever she was going to say and opened the door.

Vikuth stood outside his office with a little bundle of a human in his arms. He strode through the door in his natural form, gently cradling the woman to his chest.

Rhodack took a step back, feeling like he’d been hit in the chest by a powerful entity. He shakily moved forward with his gaze clamped on the blonde hair displayed against Vikuth’s dark skin.

“Who is that?” His voice cracked. He cleared his throat and slowly walked over to Vikuth.

“I’m not sure. She passed out before I could get her name,” Vikuth admitted. His black eyes met Rhodack’s. “This is where the energy is coming from. It’s her.”

Rhodack released a curse and leaned closer to get a look at the beauty. Her blonde locks appeared to be soft as silk. Her smooth skin was flawless, and he found himself aching to caress every inch of her body. Her black dress had his cock lengthening in his pants. He wanted to see more. He wanted to taste her. Feel her surround his cock as she took him deep within her body.

He jumped back.

What the fuck was that?

He tried to regain control of himself. He glanced back at Vikuth and found curiosity in his friend’s eyes.

“What do you want me to do with her?” Vikuth asked, waiting for orders. “You told me to bring her to you.”

Rhodack swallowed a few gulps of air. For the first time in his long life, he was rendered speechless. His focus had yet to move from the small female in Vikuth’s arms.

“Take her to my chambers.”

A slight gasp caught his attention at the door. Avalena stood there, frozen.

“Didn’t I tell you to leave?” he snapped, moving to stand in front of her line of sight, shielding the blonde beauty.

She nodded and scurried from the room.

“Your chambers, Rho?” Vikuth echoed. Confusion lined his face.

“Did I stutter?” Rhodack turned to meet the shocked gaze of his right-hand man.

Vikuth using Rhodack’s childhood nickname let him know it was his friend questioning his decision, not his head of security.

This little wisp of a woman wouldn’t be leaving his sight. Gargoyles only mated with the strongest of their kind or other paranormals.

This woman in front of them wasn’t a gargoyle.

And she certainly wasn’t human.

But for some odd reason, Rhodack knew without a doubt that she was his mate.

Rina buried down farther into the soft pillows. She inhaled deeply, taking in the fresh aroma and paused. She frowned, not recognizing the smell.

It certainly wasn’t the fabric softener she used. She rolled on her side and paused again, cracking open her eyes. She gasped and flew to a sitting position.

She frantically took in her surroundings, finding herself in a strange, masculine bedroom. The bed she was in was large enough to hold at least five adults.

“Where am I?” she whispered. She glanced down at herself. The black dress Chelsey had bought her had been replaced with an oversized man’s t-shirt. The scent of whomever the shirt belonged to seemed embedded in her pores.

She looked around the strange bedroom. A man slept in a large chair in the corner. Her hand flew to her mouth to hold her scream in. Her heart slammed against her chest as she sat, frozen.

She studied him and, God, he was sexy as sin. Her nipples pushed against the soft cotton material of her borrowed shirt. His dark hair was long enough for a woman to run her fingers through it. He was tall with broad shoulders, every inch of his body lined with muscles. She bit her lip and finished assessing him.

She gazed around—no windows for her to escape through. She slid to the edge of the bed, unsure of where she could run. There were a couple of doors in the room she could try and see where they led.

She just had to be quiet. She eased off the bed, pulling the shirt down from bunching around her.

“Where do you think you’re going, little one?” a deep baritone voice questioned.

Her scream finally erupted as she spun around and found the stranger with his eyes on her. He straightened in his chair and relaxed back in it as if he just watched strangers sleep in his bed all the time.

She paused, her eyes connecting with his. She didn’t know why, but she felt a strange pull to him.

“Who are you? Where am I?” she asked. She cursed silently, hearing her voice tremble. She hung on to the bed, her legs weak, like wet noodles.

“If anyone should be rattling off questions, it should be me,” he murmured, pushing off from the chair.

She widened her eyes at the sheer size of him. He had to be one of the largest men she’d ever seen. His dark hair was rustled as if he’d run his fingers through it all night. The air around him screamed power. She swallowed hard from the way his dark eyes pierced her—a predator hunting his prey.

Her nipples pushed against the soft material of the shirt again, reacting to his stare.

Have I lost my mind?

She was his prisoner.

She flickered her gaze around the room. There wasn’t anywhere for her to run. “Yeah? Well, considering I’m the one who was kidnapped, I beg to differ.”

The corner of his mouth lifted up in what she was sure he thought was a smile. It didn’t comfort her any. She dropped her attention down to his chest and arms and held back a whimper. His muscular frame was perfection, but she refused to let him know how much he affected her.

“Who kidnapped you? My man could let you go with the mystic being, if you like.”

Memories of her escaping the nightclub surfaced. Her demonic hero had saved her from the swirling cloud that had morphed into a shadow of a man.

“Who are you?” she whispered. She glanced at him again. He wasn’t her hero. He didn’t seem like the demon who’d saved her. He was all human male. One that had her heart jumping with just one look. She swallowed hard and pushed her hair from her face and returned his stare. “Why am I here?”

“My name is Rhodack,” he answered. The slight tick in his jaw let on that he was not used to being questioned.

She could tell he was a man who was used to being in charge. He took a step toward her, and she held her hand up.

“I will not harm you,” he said. “Now tell me your name.”

“Don’t come any closer,” she cried out, backing up.

He paused. His jaw clenched as he glared at her.

“How do I know you won’t hurt me?” she asked.

“I give you my word as Rhodack Gahnoth.”

“What is that supposed to mean to me? Where is the demon who saved me? I want him.”

“Vikuth is not a demon.” A growl released from him, and he narrowed his eyes at her. A dark cloud of anger rolled onto his face as he stood in the middle of the room staring at her. “We are not demons. We are gargoyles.”

She noticed his wording of ‘we’.

“Gargoyles?” she uttered, roaming her gaze over his body.

He appeared human to her. His perfect physique caught her attention. She tried to block how his cotton shirt molded to his abdomen, highlighting the perfect ridges of his stomach.

Had she not witnessed what she thought was a flying demon, she’d question the existence of gargoyles or any mystical being. But after last night, her mind was wide open to the possibility of other beings out there. “But you look human.”

“As do you.”

She shook her head at his words. What the hell was that supposed to mean?

“But I am human,” she whispered. She would know if she wasn’t human. Why would he assume that she wasn’t? “My name is Rina Smith, and I’m human. I have a mother who raised me. I would know if I wasn’t human.”

“No.” He shook his head. “You’re most certainly not human.”

“I want Vikuth.”