Chapter Ten
Once Aries made it back to Circe with Calliope, the first place he headed was to his Uncle’s house. It was getting late but he’d already warned her that he was coming for her and he intended to keep his word. When he stepped inside, however, he heard a blood-curdling scream. His uncle had heard it as well because he came out of his office and followed Aries up the stairs to Nina’s room.
Aries had convinced his Uncle to let him handle it. When Paris reluctantly backed off, Aries went inside to see Nina thrashing on the bed screaming as if she was in a great deal of pain.
He grasped her by the shoulders and gave her a shake. “Nina! Nina! Wake up.”
Her eyes popped open and for a second she continued to scream in her disoriented stated but finally when her dark gaze focused on him, she started to cry as if her heart was breaking. He pulled her body against his and rocked her back and forth. Aries stroked her back to soothe her as she cried. He wasn’t sure how long they stayed like that but more than anything he wanted to take her pain away.
He wasn’t what the source of her agony was but he felt it as well. He supposed this was what having a mate meant. He may not have known this woman for long but the pull between the two of them was too strong to ignore. He wanted to take care of her and make her smile. He wanted to fight her demons and in that moment he cared for her mother and anyone he knew. And that scared the fuck out of him.
As she calmed down and her cries became soft sniffles, he pulled her into his lap and kissed her on the head. “It’s okay. I’m here now. Whatever it is, I’ll take care of it.”
She shook her head. “There’s nothing you can do. There’s nothing anyone can do.” It was as if saying those words out loud triggered her because she started to cry again.
All Aries could do was hold her close to him and be her support. Occasionally he would drop a kiss on the top of her head. Finally, she slumped against him as her tears subsided. Aries wanted to take care of her and the best place he could do that was at his place. He had a feeling that she might not be comfortable sharing her story while the house was occupied with other shifters. On the island, they usually didn’t require guards but there were a few guards lurking around the house because Paris wasn’t sure what bringing Nina here meant for the rest of the pack.
There was no one in his house so they would have privacy. Aries stood up and lifted her into his arms, cradling Nina against his chest. Thankfully she didn’t protest. She rested her head against his chest as he carried her out of the room and down the stairs where his Uncle was waiting for them.
“Where are you going? Aries?”
“To my house.”
Paris raised a brow but thankfully didn’t argue. “I trust I’ll see you in the morning with a full report.”
“Of course.”
“Then I bid you a goodnight.”
When they made it back to his house, Aries carried her up to his room and gently laid her on the bed. Nina immediately curled into a ball. She looks so vulnerable and lost, like a little girl. His heart went out to her. Deciding that a good soak in his oversized claw-foot bathtub might make her feel better, he ran some bath water and poured in some oils he’d gotten in Egypt. Constantine often teased Aries for his love of taking long baths but he didn’t care. It was one of his few indulgences. It usually relaxed him, especially when he came home from a grueling mission. It gave him a chance to unwind.
Once the tub was full he returned to Nina who was still in the same position. She didn’t protest as he undressed her. In fact she didn’t say a word, instead, she stared at him with those fathomless black eyes which held a sadness that broke his heart. Once she was completely naked, he removed his clothing and then carried her to the tub. Once she was seated in the water, he stepped in, positioning himself behind her.
Aries pulled her against his chest. They lay in hot water to soothe them. After a few moments, he felt Nina relax against him. He gripped the sponge next to the tub, wet it and ran it across her breasts in a gentle caress.
“You know, whatever it is that was bothering you, you can tell me about it. You can tell me anything.”
She didn’t speak right away and for a second he didn’t think she would. But finally, she sighed. “I haven’t cried like that before. Not even…not even when he died.”
“Who?”
“My Micco,” she whispered.
A sudden spurt of jealousy made his heart twinge but he tried to calm down. The last thing she needed was for him to say or do something stupid. The fact that she was opening up to him showed that she was starting to trust him. As calmly as he possibly could, he asked, “Who’s Micco?”
She paused before answering. “He…he was my son.”
This answer surprised him. The fact that she had a child meant that she’d had a mate or at least she was joined with someone. Immortals weren’t like humans who had children outside of a relationship. Although they were sensual beings, for the most part, they were essentially monogamous once they took a mate. “Your son? You were mated before?”
She nodded. “Yes. To a high ranking member in my pack. His name was Kuruk. I cared about him deeply but the pull with him wasn’t the same as what I feel with you.”
Her words eased his concerns. It wasn’t unheard of for an immortal to have another mate once the first had died, it was just rare. “What happened to him?”
“Gage happened. From the time I was born, I was revered because of what I was I was and my abilities. My pack members seemed to worship me like some deity and it was burdensome. Men fought to be mated with me because they believed by being with me it would add to their status and they would have use of my abilities. The Alpha was one of them but he was not a good man. Besides, he already had a mate but he was willing to cast her aside for me. I didn’t want that or him.
But then there was Kuruk. He was my childhood friends and he was one of the few people who didn’t treat me different. I think I fell in love with him a little because of that. So I chose him. And for a while we were happy. Micco was born from our union and I was happy. My life was simple but it was my life. Kuruk protected me from anyone in the pack who set out to use me for my abilities. And then the humans came. We stayed out of their way but then they came. We stayed out of their way and they stayed out of ours.
But one day a group of humans… or what we thought were humans attacked us. We soon learned they weren’t humans at all. They were hunters and they had abilities of the likes we hadn’t seen. Up until then we kept to ourselves. We had no contact with vampires or warlocks. Our little pack had been insolated. We fought back but the slaughter was brutal. Kuruk fought to give me and Micco a chance to get away. It was the last time I saw him. I know he died because Gage liked to taunt me about it. So as you can guess, even though Micco and I ran for days to put distance between us and the hunters, they found us. Thus began my descent into hell.”
Aries ran the sponge down Nina’s bronze arms as he waited for her to finish.
“They’d captured Micco when I went in search of some food for us. I made the mistake of overestimating the distance I’d put between us and the hunters. When I came back with the deer, Micco was gone. Gage’s men had captured him. I had no choice to go with them because they had my son. He was just a little boy at the time, about five summers old when we were taken. He kept us apart so I would only see Micco when it suited Gage. For the next few years, I was forced to do Gage’s bidding and if I didn’t he would torture my child and make me watch. And if I fought, they punishment would be worse. I felt like the worst mother in the world to let this happen to my child. But when I pleased him he allowed me to see Micco. You have no idea what it did to me to see my child broken and battered.
After a while. I could no longer take. I fought with all my might. I intended to die trying. I figured if I was killed in the process then perhaps they would have no more use for Micco. Or so I thought. My plan backfired and they killed him in front of me in the cruelest and mean-spirited way. The way they left his body before he dissipated haunts me. That’s what I was screaming about. I couldn’t protect my son and for that…that’s why I never tried to escape Gage all these years. It was my penance for letting Micco down. I see his face every night when I go to sleep. And even though it’s been well over a few centuries, it still feels fresh.”
“Did you say a few centuries?”
“Yes.”
Aries knew she was old but he didn’t realize she was that old. From the clues she’d already provided he figured she was a couple hundred years old but he didn’t realize Nina was centuries old. To know that she’d endured Gage’s torture for so long her mind was still intact was a testament to her strength.
“You can’t continue to blame yourself for something that Gage did. He’s an evil man and I promise we’ll make him pay for what he did to you.”
“I’d like to think that’s possible but he’s managed to foil any trap set for him. Pack Kyriakis hasn’t been the only one to come after him. He’s gone up against other immortals, vampires, shifters and he’s always managed to come up on top. And mainly because he seems to have a spell for everything. He has this book that he studies and…well, along with the book he has the power of persuasion. He has a way of convincing others to do his bidding, even shifters. It’s how he was able to attack my pack. There were traitors on the inside who led him to us.”
“Do you know who the traitors were?
“It was the Alpha and his sycophants. I didn’t choose him so to get back at me he made a deal with the hunters to take me but it backfired on him because Gage’s men basically wiped out our entire pack. Although the Alpha continued to work with Gage after that I don’t believe it was his intention for the entire pack to get slaughtered.”
“I never understood that aspect about hunters. They actually worked with shifters. I could never sell out my own people. And for what? Power? Absolute power corrupts absolutely. It was a lesson I learned from my parents. Their betrayal of this pack was their downfall.”
“Power is a seductive tool. From what I’ve observed, Gage promises unlimited access to powers he claims only he can provide but in the end, he just uses everyone around him until he has no more use for them.”
“Is that what happened to the Alpha from your former pack?”
Nina nodded. “It’s my understanding that he died at the hands of another shifter they’d set out to hunt. So in the end, he was just another one of Gage’s pawn.”
There was no mistaking the sadness in her voice and the more Aries learned about her the more his heart went out to her. These feelings that had developed out of the blue were something he could fight but he realized it would be a losing battle. She was his mate and he intended to keep her safe at any cost.
“Gage can’t hurt you now.” He dropped a kiss on top of her head.
His words didn’t have the effect he expected. Instead, Nina twisted around to face him. “You don’t understand. I can’t be on this island. I will bring harm to you all. I’m dangerous.”
“How?”
“This darkness…this thing inside of me. It’s not gone. It’s just dormant. Whatever Sarah did to me, it’s temporary. You have to let me go before I hurt you. Before I hurt everyone. I lost a part of me when Micco died and I couldn’t stand it if something were to happen to your pack…or to you all for the sake of protecting me.”
Aries raised a brow. “You actually sound like you care about me?”
“It’s probably the mate pull. Aries, I don’t fully understand what is happening between us but it can’t continue.”
A possessiveness that took him by surprise welled within Aries and he had the sudden need to claim Nina and make her his. “You belong to me. You’re not going anywhere without me Nina. I promised I would keep you safe and I meant it. Whatever this darkness is that you speak of, we’ll battle it together.”
“But—”
He cut her off by smashing his lips against hers. Nina stiffened at first and then she attempted to pull away but Aries placed his hand on either side of her face and head her steady. He pushed his tongue past her lips demanding entrance, in a kiss meant to claim and leave no doubt in her mind who she belonged to.
Her resistance slowly melted away as she moaned into his mouth. The softness of her body pressed against his was enough to send all of his senses reeling. Needing to explore every inch of her body, he broke off the frantic kiss. Aries stood up pulling her with him. Lifting her into his arms he stepped out of the tub and carried her to his bedroom not giving a single damn that they were both dripping wet. All he could think of was having her again and again. He’d already fucked her delectable body once but this time he wanted more.
As soon as he dropped her on the center of the bed, he fell on top of her and covered her mouth with a hungry kiss. The press of her breasts against his torso and the heat from her pussy was driving him insane. Nina dug her fingers through his hair returning his kiss with as much vigor as she received. Her tongue darted forward to meet his. His cock was so hard he could barely stop himself from sliding inside her slick folds but this moment was different. He wanted to take it slow and savor this moment. Sample every bit of her.
Her mouth was so sweet like an aphrodisiac he couldn’t get enough of but Aries needed more. Reluctantly he broke the kiss so that he could bury his face against her neck. She brought out something animalistic in him that he couldn’t contain. His canine teeth extended and he scraped them against her soft throat. He wanted to mark her to let the world know that she was claimed and there wasn’t a single thing anyone could do about it.
He bit into the flesh where her neck and shoulder met to do just that. Nina cried out in what sounded like a surprise.
“Aries! What are you doing?”
He lifted his head and stared into her passion-glazed eyes. “Making you mine,” he growled. He returned his attention to the mark he made on her beautiful skin. He lapped it with his tongue, healing the wound that slowly disappeared. Even though it was no longer visible, she now carried a piece of him and that was all that mattered.
Resuming his exploration of her body he moved to her breasts. They weren’t large but they were just enough to fill his mouth beautifully. Her nipples were dark and long, perfect for sucking which is exactly what he did. He pulled one taut nubbin in his mouth and frantically sucked.
“Aries, this feels so good.” She squirmed beneath him, moaning her pleasure. Those cute little noises that she made, drove him crazy with lust.
He released her nipple with one wet pop to smile at her. “And I fully intend to make you feel even better.” He nipped the hard little nub making her gasp.
“Do you like that?”
“Yes.”
He transferred his attention to her other nipple and bit down with a more force.
“Oh!” Nina didn’t pull away, however. Instead, she arched her back against the heat of his mouth.
Encouraged by her response, Aries moved lower, running a trail down the center of her body with his tongue. He didn’t stop until he came to a patch of dark curly hair nestled between her thighs. Her scent was intoxicating and he groaned in anticipation. His mouth watered as he thought of how her pussy tasted.
Unable to hold back any longer, he grasped her thighs and threw them over his shoulder before diving into her cunt face first. She was soaking wet and just as he suspected, her taste was heavenly.
Aries sucked on her clit until it was engorged from her arousal.
She gyrated, pushing herself against him, smearing her juices all over his face. That’s it, baby, fuck my face. Show me how much you love this.”
She grasped his hair and held him against her. He shoved his tongue deep into her cunt reveling in the smell and taste of her.
“Aries…oh, God…I never…feels so good,” she cried out.
He pulled away just enough to lick her from her clit to her tight anal ring. He circled her rosette, lapping at the forbidden hole until her thighs began to quiver.
“Aries!” she screamed. “So close”
He returned to her clit, nibbling and sucking.
Nina released the death grip she had on his hair and racked her nails from the center of his back to his shoulders. He was certain she’d broke skin because he subconsciously registered the pain but he was too caught up in the need to make her come in his mouth.
And that’s exactly what she did.
Nina released a loud howl as she squirted her climax. Aries greedily lapped her juices. But he wasn’t finished. He stayed between her legs, inserting two thick digits inside of her. It was his intention to make her come again to take her mind off of all her pain and suffering. At least that was part of the reason. The truth was, he simply couldn’t get enough of her.
When she hit her peak again she tore into his flesh making him inhale sharply but he didn’t stop.
“I can’t take it, Aries,” she cried in surrender.
He raised his head. “You’re going to take it. Just like when I get finished feasting on your tasty cunt, you’re going to take every single inch of my dick and love it.”