I didn’t realize it actually existed.”
He gazed upon me, primal need, tenderness, and possessiveness burning brightly in his eyes. He pulled me to him, carried me to the counter, and put my ass down on the cold marble, our flesh still joined.
I would never want to leave him, and from the look in his eyes, I knew he felt the same about me.
“Héctor,” I whispered his name.
“I’m here, lamb,” he said. “I’ll always be here for you. Anything you want, I’ll give it to you. Ask, and I’ll pluck the stars for you.”
His lips traced the column of my neck, sending a different kind of shivering pleasure all over me.
The Demigod of Death had never had a woman before me, yet his prowess was more than impressive.
He started to thrust into my aching flesh again, slowly at first, filling me and ravishing me. His obsidian wings emerged behind his back, and he caressed me with their soft feathers.
I wrapped my legs around his thighs, my lust already boiling again, as his thrusts drove me crazy with a new kind of raw need.
Héctor was making love to me.
His mouth found mine, and I kissed him back vehemently.
When I pulled away from his tender kiss, a whimper escaped me. “Héctor, I need to tell you something.”
“Yes, lamb?” he said, even his slow thrusts full of power.
“I—” I stopped, not sure where to begin.
I peered into his eyes, which brimmed with love for me, and swallowed the rest of the words about my dark secret, about the demon blood flowing in me, about how the part that needed to feed on him and the other demigods might come from my powerful demon heritage.
I couldn’t say it. I couldn’t bear to see his face change from love to aversion.
I was a selfish, lying bitch.
Let me keep him and all the demigods a little longer.
Just a little longer.
Even though my heart bled, I’d do anything in my power to make it up to them.
“Are you two done yet?” Paxton’s voice barked from outside the door.
I’d thought he’d been busy regenerating, but he must have been paying close attention to what Héctor and I were doing. He was monitoring my every move.
He’d thought I was going to leak the secret of my despicable origin to Héctor.
He’d warned me, “You won’t whisper a damn thing about what happened here to anyone, not even to your beloved Héctor.”
Irritation flashed in Héctor’s eyes, reflecting mine.
I hated that my former sworn enemy was now playing a new role as my “protector”—a role I had never asked him to take. I resented that of all people, he was the one who knew my secret.
I would lurk in the shadows and see how things played out. I didn’t trust Paxton one bit. If he ever thought he could blackmail me with my secret, then he hadn’t learned what I was. I’d once declared to him that I would never bend for him. On that, I hadn’t lied.
“Fuck off, Paxton,” Héctor growled, “if you don’t want another beating.”
I arched an eyebrow as he kept thrusting into me, savoring me despite the interruption.
“I broke his jaw and nose the other day for what he did to you in the training room,” he said.
I beamed at him. “Thank you for looking out for me.”
“Always, lamb.” Héctor smiled back, not slowing his thrusts. “I’ll go break his collarbone after this. Just so I can see you smile.”
“Next time I’ll hit back hard, fucker,” Paxton said coldly outside.
“Rosebud, Héctor,” Zak called outside the bedroom as well. “You two probably want to pause and get on with it another time. We all need to talk.”
Héctor grated his teeth as he pushed into my heated core.
“They must have finished regenerating,” I whispered.
“I hope next time it’ll take them a whole day to get back up,” Héctor said viciously.
Paxton snorted.
“The asshole rushed me while I spent quality time with my mate,” Axel shouted. He must have returned from patrolling the house. “And now he’s had her for over an hour. Let’s blow up the door.”
“Do a countdown?” Paxton asked.
Zak didn’t offer an objection, which meant he was on board with the plan.
“Halt,” I called.
“They dare not!” Héctor said, his wings spreading aggressively behind his back.
“I think they dare and they will,” I sighed. “You demigods are the most ruthless, reckless, and atrocious kind.”
He arched an eyebrow at me. “You put me in their ranks?”
I leaned in to kiss his lips hard.
“I need to check on them anyway,” I said as