Chapter Eight
Sophia dropped to her knees beside Antonio. She’d been so elated that Corus was gone, but now her stomach plummeted.
“You’re hurt.” His arm was hanging limply at his side.
He grunted. “I’m fine, Sophia. The broken arm will heal in a few hours. I’m just tired.” He pushed into her, pressing his face to her hair. “I can’t believe Corus is finally gone.”
“You did it.”
His arm tightened on her. “We did it. I wouldn’t have made it without you.”
“I’m glad it’s over.”
She watched him lift his head and stare out over the glittering nightscape of Florence. “It’s not over yet. Two more Tempest Winds are still out there, spreading their darkness. We aren’t safe until my brothers hunt them down.”
“If your brothers are like you, I know they’ll succeed.”
Antonio sighed. “I hope my brothers are as lucky as I am, and find a gorgeous, sexy woman with Aurae blood to help them.”
She kissed him, drinking in the taste of him. Then she stilled, one hand drifting to her flat belly. “Is it really true?” She heard the faint tremor in her voice.
He gently laid his hand over hers. “Si, cara. It is very early, but our child rests inside you. I didn’t plan for this to happen and I’m—”
She pressed a finger to his lips, wonder filling her. “Shh. It feels like a miracle.”
“I know you lost a child before—”
She hugged him. “Yes. And I’ll always remember. But it’s time to move on and plan for the future. Us. Our child.”
He tangled his hand in her hair, and kissed her hard and deep. “Our child. Not made in lust, but in something that will grow deeper every day.”
She dropped her head to his shoulder. “We need to get out of here. I want to take a look at your arm and you need some rest.”
He dragged in a deep breath and together they pushed to their feet. “I think I have just enough left in me to get us home. Are you okay to travel as the wind?”
Her breath caught in her chest. “I didn’t have much of a chance to experience it before, when Corus took me. I was terrified.”
“It’s a strange sensation. I don’t want to scare you.”
“The baby?”
He smiled. “Will be fine.”
“Okay. Let’s do it. I just want to get home.”
He pulled her close and a wind swirled around them. For a second, Sophia felt like she was falling and she saw her hand blowing away on the wind.
Then they were flying.
Shock, wonder, and awe stormed through her. As they flew high above the city, delight washed through her and she felt his amusement. When he dipped them so low over the River Arno that water splashed them, she wanted to laugh.
But as they flew closer to his townhouse, she felt them drop suddenly. And she felt his strain.
God, he was running out of strength. Visions of them smashing into the ground filled her head.
All of a sudden, two strong gusts of wind blew up on either side of them. One was icy cold and the other was warmer. Antonio and Sophia were pushed higher, and moments later, they rematerialized on the balcony outside Antonio’s bedroom.
Two tall, broad, dark-haired men materialized on either side of them.
Both men wore dark trousers and white shirts. One emanated an air of authority, his hard, strong face dominated by intense ice-blue eyes. The other man was leaner and had a razor-sharp face, his gray eyes turbulent like a storm.
Antonio’s brothers.
“Are you okay, mio fratello?” the blue-eyed man asked.
“Yes, Luca. Just exhausted. Thanks for the ride.”
Luca nodded. “You’re injured.”
Antonio moved his arm. “It’s already healing.” He managed a tired smile. “Corus is gone.”
Luca gripped Antonio’s shoulder. “Well done.” Then that icy gaze swung to Sophia.
She automatically moved closer to Antonio. This might be Antonio’s brother, but something dark and angry lived in his eyes.
Antonio hauled her closer. “Luca, Soren, this is Sophia. She’s mine.”
Luca gave her a small nod. The still-silent Soren inclined his head.
“She is a talented art restorer and historian. A gorgeous, brave woman. An Aurae descendant who helped me defeat Corus.”
There were swift inhales from Antonio’s brothers.
“And the woman I’m falling in love with.” He smiled down at her. “And the mother of my child.”
The warm glow in his eyes made her heart swell. “I’m falling head over heels for you, too.”
“Child?” Soren said, his accent a little thicker than Antonio’s.
Antonio nodded. “It just happened.” He touched her belly. “A bambino.”
“Or bambina,” Sophia added.
Something close to wonder crossed Antonio’s face. God, she could picture him with a tiny, pig-tailed girl in his arms.
“That’s wonderful news.” Luca hugged his brother. Soren followed suit.
Sophia let the brothers have their moment. As she studied Antonio’s brothers more, her stomach tightened. Luca was tense. He reminded her of a caged predator, waiting for the right moment to pounce. Soren was quieter but his eyes spoke of stormy misery, and lines were etched on his face.
These men still had fights ahead of them, and she knew just how hard the Tempest Winds would make it for them.
“So, Sophia is Aurae,” Luca said.
She nodded. “I never knew. Although I’ve always been interested in the legends of the Warriors of the Wind.”
“She even called her breeze,” Antonio added.
“Once, and I wasn’t exactly in control of it. It was while Antonio and I…” she drifted off, feeling heat in her cheeks.
Luca’s lip quirked and Soren smiled.
“Thank you for helping my brother,” Luca said. His face darkened. “Soren and I have to go. Caecius and Apeliotus will work even harder to win now that they’ve lost the other two Tempest Winds.”
Sophia didn’t stop to think. She stepped between the men and grabbed their wrists. “Good luck and be careful.”
As she watched, the lines eased on Soren’s face and something warmed in Luca’s eyes.
“Dio, my head is quiet for the first time in weeks,” Luca muttered.
Soren’s gray eyes smoothed out, and he pulled in a breath. “Thank you, lovely Sophia.”
Then the men stepped back and with a nod, they turned into the wind and streamed into the night sky.
Antonio wrapped his arms around her. “Grazie, for giving them a moment of peace.”
“It was the least I could do.” Then she realized he was holding her with both arms. “Your arm!”
“It’s already healed.”
She released a breath. “Good.”
“Now, it’s time for a shower.”
She groaned. “That sounds so good.”
He nuzzled her throat. “Care to join me?” His body pushed against her and she felt the brush of his hard cock against her belly.
Sophia laughed. “Something tells me you really are feeling better.”
***
Antonio walked down the hall in the museum, nodding at a few employees that he passed.
It had been a week since he’d defeated Corus. A week since Florence had returned to normal.
A week since Sophia had moved into his home and become his.
He grinned and saw another passing employee eye him curiously. He didn’t care who knew how damn good he felt.
The only blot on his happiness was that Luca and Soren were still hunting. With each day, he heard the strain in their voices growing.
He quietly opened the door to Sophia’s workroom and then leaned against the doorway. Dio, he’d be happy to watch her for hours.
She was leaning over her worktable, her concentration on the painting she was restoring. Her dark hair was swept up in a neat twist, and she was wearing another of those fitted skirts that drove him crazy. This one was gray, topped with a pale pink shirt.
Silently, he moved up behind her, then he bent down and pressed a kiss to the back of her neck.
She jolted, then turned her head, a smile on her lips. “That must be my super-hot Italian boyfriend.” When he nipped her skin, she gasped. “You’d better not let my boss see you here.”
He pressed a hand to her belly. “How’s my bambino today?” An image of her swollen with their child flashed in his eyes.
“She or he is fine, I’m sure.”
Antonio leaned over her and picked up the painting. He swiveled and set it safely on the nearby shelf.
“What are you doing?” Sophia started to turn.
He stopped her, trapping her against her worktable. “I’ve imagined fucking you on this table so many times.”
Her breath hitched. “Really?”
Antonio’s cock hardened. It didn’t take much when he was around her. “But it won’t just be fucking.” He started peeling her skirt upward.
“What will it be?” she asked.
“I’ll love you. With everything I have, cara.” He bunched her skirt around her waist. “Have I told you how much I love these skirts?”
“A few times.” Her voice was breathy.
He slid her panties down, then delved his hand between her legs. He pushed her forward over the table, covering her so her spine was pressed against his chest. He ground his cock against her ass. “You are the most exquisite female I’ve ever known.”
“Hmm.” She pushed back against him, rubbing seductively. “Now say it in Italian.”
He laughed. He loved being with her. With Sophia, sex was never the same—sometimes fast and intense, sometimes slow and sensual, sometimes a rough, wild ride. And sometimes, like now, it was filled with love and laughter.
He ran his hands over her, whispering in Italian all the things he wanted to do to her. He flicked open her shirt and cupped her breasts, then he slid his hand down her belly, and dipped his fingers between her thighs. He eased a finger inside her, listening to her small breathy cries.
“You’re so wet, Sophia. Is this for me?”
When he found the little nub nestled in her folds, he thumbed it, and she jerked against him.
“Yes! Please, Antonio, I want you inside me—”
“Not yet, cara. Come for me first.”
One more flick on her clit and her release hit. Her back arched, her throaty cries echoing in the small room.
Need roared through him. He had to have her. He quickly opened his trousers, freeing his aching cock. He leaned forward, watching the blunt head rub through the crack of her ass. He clamped a hand on her hip and then sank his cock inside her warmth.
She moaned and he gritted his teeth to keep from coming there and then. She felt so good. His own private heaven.
He surged in and out of her, feeling her ripple around his cock. He watched her lovely profile, seeing all the emotions cross her face. A life spent watching that face, being able to wake up to it every day, would make him the luckiest man alive.
A small, flirty breeze caressed his face and ruffled his hair. He smiled. She was still learning her powers, and he loved teaching her. He felt the pressure building at the base of his spine. He wasn’t going to last much longer.
Suddenly she gasped, her body clamping down on him. As she moaned through another orgasm, his own climax rocketed through him like a hurricane.
He shouted, his fingers digging into her hips.
He collapsed over her, pinning her to her worktable. He pressed a kiss to her shoulder and was rewarded with a tiny moan.
“I love you, Sophia,” he murmured.
She turned her head and he saw her smile. Her cheeks were flushed. “Lucky, because I’m going to get big soon, and I expect you to cook for me and give me foot rubs. You know, spoil me rotten.” She ran a finger down his nose. “And I’m at least ninety-nine percent in love with you.”
He smiled. “I’d better get to work making you fall that last percent.
She pressed her lips to his. “I knew the moment I saw you that you’d seduce me.”
He kissed her back. “Into my bed, into my life, into my heart.”
Antonio held Sophia tight—his heart, his soul, his mate. With her by his side, he’d never be a victim to his vice again. He sent a silent prayer out for Luca and Soren. More than anything, he wanted the Tempest Winds defeated and his brothers free of their torment.
For now, all Antonio could do was focus on making his life together with Sophia. And ensuring their child would only know love.
---
I hope you enjoyed Antonio and Sophia’s story!
The stories of the Warriors of the Wind were some of the first stories I ever wrote and published. I wanted to mix action, mythology, and romance into sexy, short reads. I am so excited to have the chance to give them a little polish and release them again.
Warriors of the Wind continues with FURY & DARKNESS, which contains two novellas, one starring Luca Venti, Warrior of the North Wind, and the other starring Soren Venti, Warrior of the East Wind. Read on for a sneak peek of Luca’s story, Fury. FURY & DARKNESS is coming August 2017.
Don’t miss out! For updates about new releases, action romance info, free books, and other fun stuff, sign up for my VIP mailing list and get your free box set containing three action-packed romances.
Click here to get started: