Heir of Night by Emily Goodwin
Chapter 29
Ilook at the fire in my hand, trying to get a better read on the energy. It’s familiar yet not and has a cold, distant feel to it.
“Where else has fire like this?” I ask.
“A few places.” Julian tips his head to the side, watching the flames dance around my fingers. “I have to go check something.” He flies away, and I’m left standing there in the living room, holding fire in my bare hand. Waiting a few minutes, I don’t move and hope he’ll come right back.
Sighing, I put out the flames and sit where Julian had been sitting, looking at the books. Most are still open, and I don’t want to close any up or turn any pages in case he needs to come back to this. I’ve looked through most of these books before, and a few are in different languages that I don’t know. I pause on a book about Greek mythology. It’s the same book Lucas got out before when he suggested I’m summoning hellfire from a different hell dimension.
I run my finger over the faded ink drawing of Hades standing in the Underworld. Lucas was right to say it’s presumptuous for us to assume Lucifer is the only one who punishes those who did bad things on earth. Hell and demons were a thing before he got cast down to the pit, anyway.
“Callie?” Lucas calls from somewhere inside the house.
“In the library,” I say, not bothering to raise my voice. Lucas can hear me anyway.
Lucas speeds in. “Where’s Julian?”
I turn and shrug. “He said he had to go check something. Help me up?” I hold out a hand, and Lucas pulls me to my feet. “This whole gain-a-few-weeks-overnight thing is really throwing me off balance,” I admit. “When you slowly get bigger, you don’t notice as much.”
“Good thing you’re taking it easy.” His hands land on my stomach, waiting to see if he can feel the baby move.
“I think she’s sleeping,” I tell him and put a hand over his. “You’re the only person who can touch my stomach without asking. And the only one who doesn’t annoy me when you do.”
“No one else should ever touch you. You are mine.” He slides his hands from my stomach to my butt, pulling me against his firm body.
“I don’t think you need to worry when Betty or some students at the Academy ask to feel for kicks.”
“Betty, fine. Students…I don’t like it.”
I shake my head and loop my arms around his neck. “What are you going to do about it?”
“I’ll fuck you at the Academy again, without the soundproof spell, so everyone knows without a doubt I’m the only one who gets to touch you.”
Shifting my gaze to my stomach, I say, “I don’t think we need to have loud sex for anyone to know you’re the only one who gets to touch and fuck me.”
He moves my hair off my neck and presses his fangs to my skin. “You have no idea how much restraint I’ve shown when it comes to letting the world know you are mine.” He puts his fangs against my skin again but doesn’t bite down. The sharp points hurt, and my whole body begs to feel my skin rupture and have warm blood pool on the surface for a few seconds before Lucas puts his mouth back on me and sucks out a mouthful.
“How so?” I ask, shuddering from the sudden intense twist of desire for him.
“You walk around unmarked. You go out in the daylight. You have human friends. You’re still part of your coven.”
“Wait,” I say and pull back. Vampires are jealous and possessive by nature. I always knew that, and Lucas is by far the most possessive person I’ve ever been with. If I’m being honest, I like it. Everyone wants to feel wanted and desired, though being controlled is so not my thing. “I’d basically be your slave then.”
“Yes,” Lucas says with no shame. “I’m over five hundred years old. Any human companion should be held spellbound.”
“What you’re saying is the only reason I’m not your human blood bag who never sees the light of day is because you can’t hold me spellbound since I’m a witch.”
“No.” He picks me up, and being carried feels weird with this giant baby belly. “Well, maybe in the beginning, though not knowing what to expect when we were together was appealing.” He sits us on the couch, with me between his legs so my back is to his chest. “I never wanted to control you, Callie. Though now I do wish I could be more persuasive in getting you to forgo hunting demons until after you’ve given birth.”
I look over my shoulder, narrowing my eyes. “You’d hold me spellbound if you could?”
“No,” he says again, and I believe him. “You know vampires see themselves as superior to humans and other supernatural creatures. Even witches,” he adds ruefully. “And for sixteen hundred years, I believed that. Until I met you.” He runs his fingers up and down my arm. “You are the first human I ever saw as an equal. I didn’t want to control you then, and as much I thought it was impossible, I fell in love with you. I would never control you, Callie. Your happiness is more important to me. And,” he goes on, wrapping his arms around me, “I trust you. Completely and totally. I don’t need to control you because you are mine by your own choice.”
I close my eyes and rest my head against him. “I love you, Lucas. There is no one else in this dimension or any other I’d rather be with.” I try to gracefully spin in his arms, but my pregnant belly is cumbersome, and I almost fall off the couch. Thankfully, Lucas has superhuman strength and easily holds me up with one arm. He lays us down so we’re facing each other, and I’m still able to get close to him. Hooking my leg over his, I kiss him. Desperation floods through me, and I kiss him harder.
“I love you,” I pant between kisses. “I don’t ever want to be without you.”
“You won’t,” he promises and sweeps his hand down, rubbing me through my leggings. I feel so much for him right now it’s enough to make me come. My breath hitches, and Lucas stops, moving back so he can strip me of my leggings and underwear. He moves me so I’m sitting up and then gets to his knees, pulling me to the edge of the couch.
His head goes between my legs, and I lean back, eyes falling shut. I blindly reach out, taking a tangle of his hair between my fingers. I’m already wound up, emotions and hormones enhancing my sexual desire. Pair that with Lucas’s skill, and I’m coming hard against his face only minutes later. I cry out from the pleasure, body shuddering. Lucas holds me to him, not stopping until I come again.
Then he gets to his feet, taking his pants off and urging me up and onto my knees, bent over the couch. He enters from behind, bringing one hand around and between my legs. He rubs me as he thrusts in and out. Everything is so sensitive, I push his hand away and toss my head back. Lucas gathers my hair into his fist and pulls my head to the side. He puts his mouth on my neck again, fangs digging into my skin hard enough to make a small amount of blood rush to the surface. He licks it off but doesn’t suck out any more, not wanting to take any blood away from me or Elena.
He speeds up his movements, and I lower myself a bit so I can grip onto the back of the couch. Pushing his big cock in balls deep, he reaches around again, fingers making a V around my entrance.
“You’re so fucking wet,” he growls, fangs lashing against me again.
“You make me so fucking wet,” I say back, not as natural at the dirty talk as Lucas is. He slowly slides his hand up, finger gently circling my clit. He’s had years and years of experience in bed, and being able to hear my heart speed up and slow down makes everything better since he can get a perfect read on what I need more or less of. Keeping his touch gentle while thrusting in and out harder and faster, my body goes into overdrive, and I come for the third time, fingers digging into the cushions on the couch. Lucas takes his hand back and grips my waist, fucking me hard. He leans in, kissing my neck right as he comes, cock pulsing inside me.
I’m panting, heart racing and blood pumping. Lucas grabs my underwear from the cushion next to me and holds it between my legs as he pulls out. I wipe myself up and fold my underwear in half, keeping the mess in, and heavily sit on the couch.
“I’m ready for bed now,” I tell him with a lazy smile, extending my hand and reaching for him. He takes a folded blanket off one of the armchairs and spreads it over my legs before sitting next to me, wrapping an arm around my shoulders.
“You should go to bed now.” He kisses me. “I’ll carry you up.”
“I’ll take you up on that offer.” The world is still on the verge of burning, but things feel okay right now. Being with Lucas calms my soul in ways I never knew possible. Lucas takes his arm from my shoulders, about to get up, when the air shifts.
“Wait,” I tell him right as Julian appears in the same spot he had been standing. Talk about cutting things close. “You’re back already.”
“Yes. I had to follow up on my theory and ran into Alona. I have news, Callie.”
“I feel like this is a conversation that requires pants.”
Julian looks confused for a second. “Why aren’t you wearing pants?”
I pull the corner of the small throw blanket over Lucas. “We, um,” I start and shake my head.
“Oh, right. Sex.” Julian bobs his head up and down. “It’s a thing humans enjoy and requires you to remove your pants.”
Lucas, who has absolutely no shame over anyone seeing him naked, laughs. “Give her a minute to get dressed.”
“Okay,” Julian says and steps back.
“In another room.” Lucas motions with his hand for Julian to leave the library.
“That was close,” I grumble, pulling my leggings on. I’ll have to go up to our room for clean undies once my butt is covered.
“I thought you told him to knock in some sense.” Lucas stands, not in a rush to put his own pants back on.
“I did set some ground rules, mostly don’t appear in our bedroom. We’re in the library, which is kind of like a public space.”
“This is our house. I’ll fuck you whenever, wherever I want.” He picks his pants up off the floor. “At least it wasn’t your father.”
I let out a short of laughter paired with a shudder. “Having family that can literally just appear wherever can make for some interesting reunions.” I pull my leggings on and get up. “I have to pee. I’ll meet you guys in the kitchen.”
I hurry upstairs, grab PJs to put on after using the bathroom, and go down the back stairs. Lucas hands me a glass of water and my prenatal vitamins, which I didn’t take this morning since I was at the hospital.
“What’s going on?” I ask and down the vitamins.
“Those of us who have been concerned about the Horsemen have been tracking them,” Julian starts. “As you know, War had been in the Midwest up until now.”
“Up until now?” I repeat in question. “What does that mean?”
“We’re not sure. Chamuel and three of her subordinate angels were tracking Famine, concerned about the aftermath of starving children, but now he’s gone.”
“Isn’t that good?” I wrinkle my nose. “He’s gone?”
“Not gone in that sense.” Julian looks out the window, surveying the dark backyard. “Gone in the sense that they have cloaked themselves.”
“War is cloaked now too?”
“Yes,” he says gravely. “Which we fear means they’ve gathered enough strength to make their move.”