“But you have four?!” Her shock and awe were different from my anger and lust that was coursing through my veins when I thought about it.
“Yep, I got four, and before you ask, you don’t know them but I am hoping that you will get to meet them someday soon…especially since it’s, like, for forever.”
She gazed at me with knowing eyes. “Are you okay, Lils?”
I thought about it for a second. “Yes and no… but mainly yes. It’s just… going to be a big shift for me.”
“Do you love them?” she whispered out like it was a dirty secret, and for demons it usually was.
“Not yet… but if I’m honest with myself, once I get past my anger and I get to know them a little better… who knows.” Pity entered her eyes, and I won’t have any of that. “But their dicks are huge and they know how to use them so I really can’t complain.” Well, all of them but D. I haven’t had him yet, but if that kiss was any indication, he was going to be just as satisfying as his brothers.
I must have had a dopey look on my face, remembering all the hot sex, as she giggled at me. “Oh! Is Lillian crushing on her mates?” The taunt was there but not enough to make me take the bait so I shrugged again, not knowing what to say.
“They are entertaining and fun to be around…. I also like big dicks.” That was the best I could come up with. She laughed as she mumbled, “Don’t we all?”
We giggled about a couple of things before she let me go, saying I looked like I was going to collapse at a moment’s notice and I agreed. I needed to get some sleep.
I promised that I would call her as soon as all of this was done to figure out the future, but for right now, she was running the show.
She nodded and waved goodbye and I waved back. Peace settled inside of me as I finally felt like something was being taken care of.
I slumped against the back of the chair, exhaustion hitting me harder with each second. I somehow took off my pants and made my way over to my new bed and crashed onto it hard, hoping that Fame hadn't picked up on how Reginald covered for me.
Chapter 29
Thepasttwoweekshad been one crazy moment after another and it made me excited again. First, we had to capture the princess and drag her into Hell—the place she’d made it very well known that she didn't want to go. Then, she’d channeled all her anger and rage as we teamed up on her and pulled us into Hell with her. Then, BAM, we became her mates because Hell thought we would be a good match.
When we’d first arrived, I’d had this feeling like this was all some elaborate dream I’d made up, but after I’d seen the look of utter dread on her face as she’d looked at her mate marks and then looked at ours, I’d known it wasn’t a dream. I would never want my mate to look at her mark like that.
I also wouldn’t dream of the kind of pain it took to get a mate. As soon as I glanced up and saw her looking off into the distance of the Hellscape, I knew something was wrong. Then I saw magic whirl around her, lifting her hair and clothes before it entered her body. I would never forget her clenched up body and her mouth open in a silent scream of pain. At that moment, I’d tried to get up to go to her, trying to find out what was wrong, what was hurting her, then I’d felt the magic come into me.
Liquid fire had burned up and down my right arm, searing me from the tips of my fingers all the way up my arm to where it connected with my shoulder. It had felt like it was going in circles, up and down my arm, trying to find the right spot or something until it settled on my forearm. The smell of burning flesh had pierced my nose and I almost gagged. I’d bent over in pain, holding my forearm as I cracked my eyes open to see my brothers in the same position. Even War, who was no stranger to pain, had been curled into the fetal position.
Then it had all stopped, immediately retreating, and I’d gulped down some air. As soon as my mind had cleared, I’d realized that I had this feeling, this other connection to a being, directly connected to my heart. I’d looked up into Lillian's eyes, and I’d known before she’d even said anything that she was mine and I was hers.
If I were honest with myself, I knew that this was all a little fast. A little against the grain of a regular relationship that blossomed over time, but it wasn’t like any of us were regular beings. She was Lucifer's daughter, and we were the Four Horsemen. I felt like this was the only way beings like me would get hitched. Something outlandish that made it so we couldn't back out of it… and I was strangely okay with it. Even glad for it.
I knew that D was going to fight this whole thing, tooth and nail. It was just how he was. Nothing I could change about that, but eventually, he would get on board. It might take a couple of years, but who knew? Then there was Fame. He was the analytical one, but he would also give in eventually as he came to the understanding there was no other way out of this.
And I knew there wasn't. It was just something deep down inside of me that knew she was the one for me and my brothers. I looked down at my glowing mark of the lily flower and smiled. There was no way around this. No loophole to jump, no amount of power could disrupt. This was so permanent that I could feel it in my essence. With every cell in my body, I just knew.
Then there was War, the brother that I hated I agreed with because he was always a brute about things, but in this instance, I appreciated his clear decisions and steadfast determination to make this woman ours. He was like a dog with a bone when he dug in his heels. He would make her his with his last dying breath if it came to that.
His response had given me the ability to show my hand as well, to show our other brothers that it was a split vote and we wanted to make her realize that she wanted us too. Also, I had a feeling Fame was a lot closer to our side than D thought, which I'm sure just made it all that more appetizing to be on the opposing side.
She was perfect for us, and the fact that D was fighting it was ridiculous. Not only had she bested all of us individually, which was just plain hot, she could put up with all of our sexual preferences. My need for constant pleasure, War’s need for the chase, Fame’s need for control, and D… Well, he just needed someone to not die on him, which she’d proved she wouldn’t.
On top of all of that, she was a go-getter who could get dirty like a demon but had the heart of an angel. The fact that she was drop dead gorgeous and so sexy that it made a man want to drop to his knees and beg for her was just icing on the cake. D was so fucking stupid.
She was also incredibly powerful. I’d watched with curiosity when she’d closed her eyes and the room had started to shake. It was amazing to watch a house literally reshape itself to her will. It had surprised me even more when I heard giggles in the air as four doors with our mate marks above them showed up at the end. Each with its own direct entry way into her bedroom, and all of a sudden, I started to think about how much late night sneaking I was going to be doing. I knew we were mates and my brothers already knew we were all going to have sex with her, but that didn’t mean the thrill of sneaking wasn’t still exciting… There were just no negative consequences if we got caught. We may even be able to turn getting caught into a good thing.
All my naughty thoughts had flown out the window when I’d looked at my mate after she’d done some major Hell mojo, and I could tell that something was wrong. It wasn’t that she said anything, or I read her body language to know she wasn’t feeling too hot. No, it was this aching feeling I had underneath my heart, right where the bond connected us. I could feel it like it was my own, and it made me want to rub my chest to ease it a little.
I thought about going to her, stepping up to her side, asking what I could do to help her, but with the way she was holding herself, making sure she looked strong and capable on the outside, I knew she wasn’t ready to let me in. I could see that she wanted to show strength and courage at this moment, making sure we knew who she was before we talked about what happened.
I looked down at my wrist, visibly seeing the mate connection pulsing between us. I understood it, could see myself doing the same thing if I were in her position, but it didn't make my own hurt any less. As one of the few beings who’d gotten to see those real snippets of her, those vulnerable pieces that were so real and true it made my heart sag, I was disappointed. Those glimpses were so precious and invaluable. The carefree laugh, the casual touch, the look she got when she asked for your opinion or for your ideas… All of those things that were small snippets of trust she gave me were gone.
I wasn't stupid. I knew it was our own fault, but it wasn’t like we had a crap ton of options, but that didn't matter. The fact of the matter was that we’d lied to her first. Then we’d forced her into Hell, and then Hell trapped her to us against her will. When you laid it all out like that, we looked like shit mates… But I was having a hard time being mad at the outcome.
