“Hold on, Mads,” he growled. “I can’t go slow for you, love.”
I shook my head. “I don’t want slow,” I gasped, before tightening my hold on his broad shoulders. My head rocked against the wall as he fucked me even harder, but I didn’t care. Pain was not an issue. This felt like heaven.
The spirals of pleasure were not what I’d consider a slow build this time. They crashed into me with the same power that Asher was fucking me with, and I somehow managed to stifle my scream, even though I lost the ability to think as white light exploded behind my eyes.
Moments later, Asher slowed before he jerked inside of me, coming hard, his body firmly pressing mine into the tiles as we rode out our orgasms together. Our minds were still somewhat joined, and I could feel his pleasure and love for me. And the slightest concern he might have hurt me with his passion.
I kissed the only place I could reach … his neck. “You didn’t hurt me,” I whispered against his skin, pressing more kisses to the smooth strong lines of his throat. “I loved it.”
His tongue traced over my skin, licking the water droplets up as he tasted me. I was still feeling the aftershocks of sex, a delicious ache taking root in my body, reminding me of the pleasure. For a second, I wished we could stay like that. Forever. Just Asher and me, locked in our own world, without any of the drama and stress that was happening in real life.
I’ll keep you safe. No one will take you from me again.
A shiver of foreboding traced through my body.Don’t tempt fate like that,I told him, wrapping myself even tighter around him.
He shrugged, stupidly confident, as most powerful men were.
What if the thing you battle,I said slowly,is me?
He knew about the dreams, the nightmares that more often than not kept me awake, but what he didn’t know was that I’d recently remembered one small detail. The fire and red I felt, they were from me. My face, awash in flames, was the last thing I saw. When I awoke with fear in my heart, I knew I was the demon that might end it all.
“I will fight for you against anything,” he drawled, voice husky. “Even against yourself. If you’re trying to destroy the world, Maddison, I’ll either be destroying it with you, or I’ll figure out how to bring you back to me. There’s no other option.”
I laughed, even though I felt no real humor. “You’d destroy it with me?”
His laughter was more genuine. “Yes. Where you are, that’s where I am. We are two halves of the same soul. You’ll never be alone again.”
Using his powers, he switched the water off and stepped out of the shower. I was still wrapped around him, our bodies joined.
Actually…
Asher was definitely ready for round two, his rock-hard dick sliding against my sensitive core as he carried me to the bed. Bonus points for me … boy had stamina.
The second time, he made love to me like he wanted it to last for days. The pleasure was different. More intense. And when I finally fell asleep, the dreams stayed far away.
Not even they could take on Asher when he was determined to keep me safe.
Chapter 17
Two weeks later, the words I’d been dreading came down the line from Axl.
“They’ll be out by tomorrow or the next day.”
Louis was beside him in the video chat, and I could tell from the grim look on their faces, that this was the final, final countdown. The supernatural taskforce had managed to delay it as long as possible, and we were a few weeks over Mab’s original estimate … they’d done everything they could.
“We’ll head to the island straight away,” I said, leaning closer like I could see through the screen to the prison. “Any word from Jessa and Braxton?”
Louis shook his head. “Nothing. I’m worried, but I can’t leave to find them. The gods are powerful, maybe even more powerful than they were when they went in.”
Asher, at my side, remained silent. All of us took a second to let it absorb.
“If they’re even more powerful,” Louis continued, “we have no hope of stopping them. We barely had the power to buy time. Now, I’m not sure if we’ll do anything except die at their feet the moment they emerge.”
Axl shrugged, his eyes downcast. “I just wish I could do more. Apparently, it’s not easy to learn god powers in a month.”
Louis dropped a comforting hand on his shoulder. “You’ve done remarkably well. Don’t beat yourself up. The timing for all of this is terrible. We’re doing the best we can.”
A heavy sigh left me. “What if … once they’re free, I use my power to fly through the prison and see if I can track the Hellbringers? Might be too little too late, but it’s something.”
