Ceric Read online

  “Not on your life, Wulf. I’m going to stay right here,” she says as she returns to where we are sitting. I see Draco place his hand on Wulf’s shoulder and squeeze. There seems to be some kind of silent communication between the two before Wulf huffs.

  “What’s going on?” I ask curiously. Aria explains about Katya’s past arrangement with Wulf, and her inability to recognize Wulf’s resistance.

  “Aria, are you okay listening in on her thoughts?” Draco asks, but his eyes are on Brandr, as if asking him too. I see Brandr nod slightly, before Aria confirms that she will be fine. Well, this will be interesting. At the way Wulf is scowling and Jasmine is biting her lip, I will see if what they were saying about the men only having eyes for their woman is true.

  A few minutes later, a sexy red-haired woman dressed in tight black leather pants and a low-cut top strides into the bar. She is accompanied by two guys. One must be in his forties, with a scar down one cheek, and the other in his early thirties, and both are quite muscular. All three look as if they ride motorcycles, as they are all carrying helmets. If I saw these three somewhere else, I would never say they work for the FBI.

  “Hello, boys,” she greets in a husky voice as she makes her way towards Draco and Wulf. I look over to see if Ceric is ogling her, but I find him scowling. Well, that’s definitely not a look of someone when they find somebody appealing. Maybe he just doesn’t like redheads.

  “What are you doing here, Katya? No one invited you, and you know we don’t like the FBI here,” Draco growls. “Who are your companions?”

  “Aww, don’t be like that. You are going to hurt my feelings. These here are Agent Swanson and Agent Doyle,” she explains. “We were in the area working on a case, and I thought I would come in and discuss with you the new friends you have made.”

  “What the fuck are you looking at?” Ceric growls from where he’s now leaning against the back wall. I follow his eyes and see he’s scowling at Agent Doyle, the youngest guy who arrived with Katya. “Keep your fucking eyes to yourself before I close them for you.”

  “What was he looking at?” I whisper to Jasmine, as I don’t want to interrupt Aria when she’s listening to the three of their thoughts.

  “Us,” she whispers back. “I told you, our guys don’t take it very well when other guys look or touch us.”

  “Ceric,” Draco calls warningly. Katya takes this opportunity to sit down at their table, moving her chair so she’s closer to Wulf. I feel Jasmine tense next to me, but she shouldn’t have worried, as Wulf pulls his chair back. “What friends are you talking about?” Draco asks her.

  “Come on, love, we know that you’ve been contacting Alexey the Bratva mob boss. What we want to know is why?” She simpers as her hand strokes Wulf’s hand that is holding his beer. He glares at her and then picks up his beer, bringing it to his lips. I notice he doesn’t place it back on the table.

  “Now how would you know that?” Draco asks, a bored look on his face.

  “You don’t expect me to tell you that, now do you, love?” she replies sweetly.

  “Well, then, Katya, you can’t expect us to tell you fuck, either, do you?” he answers.

  “I can make it worth your while; you see, I know where Merdor is,” she reveals, a teasing look on her face.

  “Get me a pen and paper,” Aria whispers. Where the hell am I going to get a pen and paper? I Look over at Jasmine, and she nods towards the bar. Getting up, I make my way around the bar. I don’t want to make what I’m doing obvious, so I get myself a bottle of water. In the corner, I see a pen and a notebook. Grabbing it, I make my way back. As I approach the table, I look over at the agents and see that both men are looking at me. When they see me looking, the younger one winks.

  “No fucking way,” I hear Ceric growl. Looking over my shoulder, I see him approach the agents with a furious look on his face. Before I can think about what I’m doing, I place myself before him, hugging his waist.

  “Really, you’re going to start a fight with an FBI agent?” I whisper angrily. His eyes are that sexy amber when he looks down at me. I can feel the tenseness in his body as he vibrates with anger. “Leave it alone. He’s a dick, and I can take care of their type if need be.” I wink up at him. He continues to look down at me for a few more seconds and then huffs. I feel his body start to relax, and then his arms surround me, bringing me closer to him.

  “I need to give this to Aria,” I whisper as I pull back, showing him the notebook and pen that I’m still holding. He nods, letting go of me completely, but I see he follows and then sits on the chair that Gabriela was sitting on earlier.

  Everyone is saying that I’m his mate; he’s acting as if I’m his woman, but I don’t remember agreeing to it. Silly man. He’s so sure of himself, but just his presence makes my heart race. I want to give in, but what if he’s a player? I’m not going to let what happened to my mom happen to me. Suddenly, I jump at Wulf’s roar.

  “For fuck sakes, stop touching me.” He knocks his chair back as he stands. I see that Katya is still sitting with a smile on her face. I wonder what she did.

  “Funny, that isn’t what you used to say before.” She smirks.

  “Katya, you are really pissing me off,” he growls. I don’t know if it’s because of his father or his mother’s agitation, but Orion wakes up with a wail. Jeepers, but the boy has a set of lungs on him. Jasmine lifts him up against her shoulder, but he continues to cry in agitation.

  “Here, let me take him,” Ceric says, already stretching his arms and picking Orion up against his chest. “Hey, little guy, it’s okay.” I don’t know if it’s because of his calming voice or the change from his mother, but Orion quietens. Laying his head on Ceric’s chest, he yawns and then closes his eyes once more. I must be sitting here with my mouth open in surprise, because when Ceric looks over at me, he raises his eyebrows in question and then grins.

  The asshole knows what he’s doing to me. How can anyone resist a sexy beast like him being so gentle and caring with a baby?

  “A baby?” Katya asks, surprised. “Is it one of yours? And is it also like you guys?” There is a calculating look in her eyes.

  “We aren’t here to talk about the baby; you say you’ve come here to ask about Alexey. Well, you did, and I have nothing to say,” Draco says with a sneer to his lips. “Therefore, you can all leave.” Looking back, he motions to Cassius. “Show them out.”

  “You know I can always come back with a search warrant, don’t you? I’m trying to keep our mutual relationship peaceful,” she says as she stands.

  “We will be asking for another agent. This is the last time you communicate with us,” Draco informs her. “And, Katya, leave Wulf alone or you’ll answer to me. He’s not interested.” With that, he waves his hand, letting Cassius know that he’s finished with this conversation. I see Cassius motion to the two agents now standing by the bar.

  “This isn’t over,” Katya sneers. First looking at Draco and then directly at Wulf, she calls, “See you lover,” as she turns and leaves.

  “What was she thinking?” I hear Jasmine question Aria, an angry look on her face. Aria looks over at the guys who are now together talking, and then back at Jasmine. Ceric is the only one still sitting next to us, holding the baby.

  “Ahh . . . she was thinking a lot of things,” Aria says uncomfortably. I can see she doesn’t want to tell Jasmine about it.

  “Aria, I want to know exactly what she was thinking about Wulf,” Jasmine says.

  “You know that’s unfair. I should never have told you that I can’t lie about what I hear,” Aria complains loudly. The noise from the men quietens at her words. “Well, you asked for it. Most of the time, she was thinking about Wulf. I can safely say she’s obsessed with him, going by what she was thinking.” Rubbing her forehead with her hand, she continues. “She thought a lot about the sex they had, and how she would like to do certain things to him. Do you want me to explain those things?” Aria asks crossly.

  “
No,” Wulf thunders.

  “Don’t fucking talk to her like that,” Brandr says as he makes his way towards Aria. Taking her fingers away from her forehead, he starts to massage her temples. I see her relax at his touch and close her eyes in pleasure.

  “I did get a location that she was thinking about when she spoke about knowing where Merdor is,” she reveals quietly. At her words, I see the guys tense. Draco approaches our table. Lifting the notepad, he looks down at the paper and then frowns.

  “Are you sure this is the location she was thinking, sweetheart?” Aria nods in confirmation. “Celmund, who’s on stakeout today?” Draco growls.

  “Bion and Caelius left just before Katya arrived. Burkhart and Gunner should be getting back anytime now.”

  “How’s this possible that the location Aria has here is the bar? Is Merdor in that fucking bar and we don’t know about it? Are we sure that there are no more entrances to that fucking place?” Draco growls angrily. “Ceric, Cassius, Wulf, and Celmund, you guys with me. We’re going to go over that whole fucking place again In twenty. Get whatever you need and meet me in the garage.” With that, he turns with the notepad in hand and leaves. Cassius and Celmund follow.

  Wulf moves towards Ceric and lifts his son into his arms. “Thanks, Brother.” With that, he turns towards Jasmine. She is already standing, so he moves to place his hand on her lower back, but she starts to walk away before he can. “Fuck,” he growls as he walks behind her.

  Ceric leans towards me. “We are going to be away for a while. Are you going to behave?” he asks quietly. The image of the guy evaporating shoots through my mind. The thought of anything happening to this man who is starting to mean more to me than I want feels like a vice squeezing my heart.

  Ignoring his question, I ask my own. “Are you going to be safe?”

  At my question, his lips shoot up in a smile. “Are you worried about me, Hellcat?”

  “Stop being such an asshole!” I huff as I start to stand, but he shoots out his hand and pulls me towards him. Losing my balance, I fall against him. I open my mouth to argue, but he takes the opportunity as his lips dip against mine. This kiss starts out gentle, as if he’s trying to assure me, but soon, he’s consuming me with his kiss, with his essence, with his very soul.

  CERIC 9

  “Now look at that. It looks as if he’s tamed his hellcat.” At Burkhart’s teasing comment, my chest feels as if it’s going to explode from happiness. My hellcat—yes, she’s mine, and if any fucker thinks that he’s going to touch or even look at her as that son of a bitch was doing earlier, they better think twice.

  As I lift my head, I see a dazed look in her eyes as she opens them to look at me. Her lips are swollen from our kiss, and her breath is uneven. All I want to do is dip my head again and keep kissing her, but we have company, and soon, I will have to go. “I will be safe, Hellcat, especially now that I have found you. I will hurry back, and when I do, we can continue with what we just started.” I see her cheeks fill with colour when she realises that we were practically devouring each other in front of the others.

  “Just be careful,” she says in her husky voice, her hands still clutching my T-shirt, her eyes vulnerable. My hellcat is all fire, but now she’s showing vulnerability that she hides from everyone. I am pleased that she is allowing me to see that side of her; something tells me that she doesn’t show this side of herself to many.

  “I promise. Now let me up. I need to go,” I say, swatting her ass with my hand. I hear her breath catch and see her cheeks flush. Darn, my girl likes that. My cock that’s already straining to be released hardens even more. Fuck, I swear, if I don’t bury myself deep in her heat soon, my cock will never be the same again. As she rises, her hand lands on my hardness as she pushes herself up. I groan loudly at the feel of her hand touching me.

  “Oh . . . Oh, I’m sorry.” Her cheeks are fiery red, but then a naughty smile spreads across her face. “Nice package,” she says in a sultry voice, and then starts to make her way inside. The imp. She’s not just a hellcat, but a tease too. Fuck, I can’t wait to get back. I’m going to bury myself so deep in her that she will never doubt who she belongs to.

  “Hey, Ceric, you better hurry up. The guys will be leaving soon. I will be here thinking about you, though, while I enjoy my woman,” Brandr says with a straight face, but there’s a twinkle in his eye. I lift my hand, showing him the finger, while with the other, I adjust myself. I nearly groan again at the ache. Fuck, I’m going to have major blue balls.

  “Make sure to keep your dick in your pants and your head in the game this time,” Burkhart teases with a grin. “No, wait. Maybe take your dick out of your pants. You might frighten them more with the poor weeping sod.” Burkhart and Brandr throw their heads back and roar with laughter. Aria giggles.

  “I will start now.” I start to loosen the buttons to my jeans. “And then the one weeping will be Brandr, once Aria sees what she’s missing.”

  “Wishful thinking, Brother. My girl knows what I can do with mine,” Brandr quips. “It leaves her with a smile every time.”

  “Brandr!” Aria gasps, slapping his hand with embarrassment, but she has a loving smile on her face as she looks up at her man. We are still all laughing as we make our way into the garage; I see Draco, Cassius, and Celmund are already on their bikes. I walk towards the hidden panel that is now open and take out my weapons of choice.

  Strapping them on, I ready myself in case of a fight. Now that I have a mate, I can’t take any chances. If anything happens to me, she will be lost, and I will never let that happen if I can help it. I’m nearly at my bike when Wulf walks in, a scowl on his face. I see that Jasmine’s not with him. That’s a first; usually when he goes out, she always comes out to say goodbye to all of us.

  “You okay, Brother?” Draco asks.

  “She’s fucking upset Jasmine,” Wulf growls. “If she ever comes near me again, I don’t care about the fucking consequences. She’s history.” His amethyst eyes blaze in anger as he mounts his bike.

  We all know no one messes with Jasmine; Wulf is overprotective of that woman. Before, I thought it was overkill on his part, but now that I have Nova, I understand where he comes from. All I want is to keep my woman happy. If anyone dares to upset her, I know that I will more than likely also react the same way Wulf is reacting.

  I can’t stand the thought of anyone being depressed or sad. I know it’s a flaw on my part the way I let it affect me, but after what happened to my mother, I can’t let that shit happen to anyone else. I was only a teenager when she died, but the pain I felt has never left me.

  My father died when I was only fourteen. In Elemental years, that’s extremely young. I tried to make up for his death by doing everything in my power to please my mother. My mother was a happy and caring woman before my father died. Once he died, she became a shell of herself. She lost all her will to live. Her sadness was so raw that anyone close to her could feel her desperation and anguish.

  I tried everything I could think of to make her happy again, but it was as if I wasn’t even there. She stopped eating and communicating, and eventually she stopped living. Four months after my father’s death, I left her for an hour to come back and find my mother dead. She was lying in the bath with her wrists slit, her life’s blood in the water of her bath.

  She left a note that I still have safely preserved away. I noticed she was crying when she wrote the note, as there were smudges in the ink. She apologised for what she was about to do, that she loved me dearly but couldn’t carry on without my father. She thanked me for being the wonderful son I was, and that I should carry on being the light in everyone’s lives as I was in hers.

  My heart is in agony as it always is when I think of the beautiful woman my mother was and how the death of my father turned her into a shadow of herself. I never want that to happen to Nova, but I know that as bonded mates, this is normal. When one dies, the other soon follows, as they can’t live with the emptiness they feel in thei
r souls.

  I come out of my morbid thoughts as we start to slow. Looking around, I see that we have arrived in the area where the bar is situated. “Celmund, you and Ceric ride around the area, feel the energy levels, see if you can find anything,” Draco suggests into our earpieces. “Cassius, go up to where Bion and Caelius are. Let them know what we’re looking for. Wulf and I are going into the bar. I want you and Bion as backup in case we find trouble.”

  We take off riding slowly as we try to capture anything we may have missed before. It’s difficult to feel any change in the normal energy of the earth, as the energy in the city has been disrupted to such an extent that we can never get a good reading. “I’m going to go on foot,” I call to Celmund. He looks over at me from where he’s riding and nods. We both pull up and park around the corner from where the bar is located. We start strolling down the street we parked on, slowly scanning every nuance that may have occurred, any energy disruption that we might feel, but there is nothing. As we reach the end of the block, we turn right and start to walk behind where the bar and the stores next to the bar are.

  We are two stores in when I feel a spike in energy below my feet. Looking over at Celmund, I see he felt it too. “There are still three stores until we reach the bar. Do you think they have all the underground space from these stores, or maybe it’s a tunnel leading somewhere?” Celmund states as he taps away at his phone.

  “Fuck, whatever it is, it’s a big area.” We continue scouting out the area until we’re back at our bikes. We make our way to where we stake out the bar, waiting for the others, only to find that they all arrived, plus some guy who is tied up and gagged.

  “What’s up?” I ask as I look at the Keres on the floor. I can see blood trickling from his lip and a cut above his eye.

  “We found this asshole coming out of the bar just as we were about to enter. Thought we would try to get info from him before making our presence known. As expected, he’s being stubborn, so we are thinking that maybe we can get Hellcat to persuade him to tell us what he knows. What do you think?” Draco asks as he leans against the wall, looking out the window that faces the bar.