This woman possesses every inch of me. Always has and always will.
I carefully lift Zahara from her arms, and Zilphia’s eyes snap open.
“What are you doing?” she murmurs, groggy but alert.
“She’s asleep,” I whisper, easing Zahara into her crib with a tenderness I never believed a man like me was capable of.
I steal a glance at Liliana and Zeppelin, both slumbering in their own cribs. Liliana may not share my blood, but she’s my daughter all the same.
I turn to face Zilphia, who regards me with the same icy disdain I’ve grown used to over the past few weeks.
“I’m sure that beating was well deserved.”
I ignore the jab. There are more pressing matters at hand. “It’s been six weeks.”
Her eyebrows knit in confusion, but the moment comprehension dawns, fury swiftly takes its place. “Go fuck one of your club groupies.”
I stalk toward her, and she scrambles out of the rocking chair, backpedaling until her back hits the wall. “I don’t want them. I want you.”
She yanks the robe closed, catching my gaze lingering on her cleavage. “I don’t give a damn what you want because you’ve made it crystal clear you don’t give a shit about what I want.”
“Spider had to die,” I growl, stepping into the last inch of space separating us. “There was no other option.”
“I wanted a chance to get to know him and any other family I might have,” she snaps, shoving at my chest. “You took that away from me.”
“We’re your family.” I glance toward the cribs, then settle my gaze back on her. “The Gods are your family.”
“I may be forced to stay here, but you will never touch me again.”
“Don’t fight me, Zilphia,” I snarl, fisting the velvet belt of her robe. “I’m going to have you, willingly or by force.”
Her fingers wrap around my wrist, her voice soft but resolute. “No.”
“You belong to me.” My hand encircles her throat, firm and possessive, but without pressure. “Forever and always. You don’t get to tell me no.”
“And when we die?” she asks defiantly. “You can’t follow me in death. We both know you’re going to Hell.”
“On the contrary, sweet Zilphia,” I rasp, my voice low and dark. “Not even the Almighty himself can protect you from me. I’d storm the pearly gates and drag your ass back to Hell with me.” My palm presses against her throat just enough to make her breath catch. “Nothing will ever keep us apart. No man, no deity, or any other divine force. We’ll fuck and burn together for eternity.”
“I’m going to fight you with everything in me,” she hisses, her eyes flashing angrily at me.
I brush a thumb over her plush bottom lip. “Okay.”
I seize her arm and drag her across the hall, flinging her into our bedroom. As promised, she scratches and throws punches along the way. I shut the door behind us and lock it with a definitive click. But I don’t pounce on her just yet. My gaze wanders over the woman who’s held me captivated since I was twelve years old.
Her perfectly round breasts rise and fall with each wild breath.So fucking beautiful.My cock doubles in size, needing to be inside her warmth.
“Stay back,” she commands, her frantic gaze darting to the bathroom.
I smirk. “You won’t make it two steps before I’m on you.”
Zilphia snatches my favorite cologne off the dresser and launches it at me before dashing toward the bathroom. The glass bottle slams into the bridge of my nose. I stumble backward from the impact, my eyes watering, feeling like a bomb exploded in my face. It hurts like a son of a bitch, but I recover quickly, capturing her around the waist when she tries to run past me.
Her teeth tear into my left pectoral, biting hard and deep.
“Fucking dammit,” I hiss, winding my fingers into her hair and yanking her head back until she releases me with a pained whimper. “Had enough?”
“No,” she snaps, the vivid red evidence of her attack smeared across her lips.
