The nephilim pulled back before sinking all the way to the hilt once again. Axis pushed back as he lunged forward, and the nearly violent strength of their joining only served to excite him more. They set a brutal pace. Erik’s power washed over them like electrical
pulses, and the entire space seemed to be filled with the energy of his lover, carried by the steam in the air. Axis loved that his nephilim lost control of his powers a bit whenever they made love. They’d actually scorched the sheets one night when Erik had been feeling particularly out of control.
“Gonna come, Axis,” Erik warned, his hips slamming against him. Axis just tilted up his hips to take him deeper. Keer pulled from Axis’s mouth as Jade dragged him backward a bit to push him down on all fours in front of Axis. It put Keer and Axis face-to-face with their lovers behind them, fucking them in sync. Keer kissed Axis’s lips, plunging his tongue into Axis’s mouth.
“Thank you, Commander,” Keer panted as he pulled back.
Axis couldn’t think of the proper words to reply so he just nodded, his eyes sliding shut as Erik changed his angle slightly to rub against the pleasure spot inside him.
“Fill me,” Axis managed as his cock swelled and his balls drew up even harder, signaling his impending orgasm. Erik thrust twice more before stilling and flooding Axis’s passage with his cream. The nephilim smacked Axis’s ass again, and it was all it took to send Axis hurtling headlong into pleasure. He came so hard he might’ve blacked out for a second, he wasn’t sure. All he knew was that when he came
back to Earth, his head was spinning and Erik was stroking his back in slow circles and murmuring his praises over and over again.
He watched as the speed of Jade’s fucking grew frantic and he shot his load inside Keer’s body. He and Erik must’ve put on a hell of a show, because it wasn’t long before the rest of their lovers followed suit. Levi screamed as he went over the edge for the third time since the beginning of their tangle, and Brax and Marius came in unison just a split second after as Marius fucked Brax into Levi to complete them.
“Fuck,” Brax said against Levi’s neck. “No more group gardening
for us.”
“Least not if we plan to get done,” Keer agreed. Axis didn’t know how they were talking that much. He felt like he’d just gotten his brains absolutely scrambled. And wasn’t that just great?
Chapter Two
Jade couldn’t remember seeing his commander this relaxed. He looked like he was floating on a cloud of does-not-give-a-fuck and thoroughly enjoying the ride. Jade was pretty sure he’d never expected Axis to want to have his ass spanked and fucked like that. It had been beautiful, though. Erik looked like he was the cat that ate the canary, the little minx. Their new mates were certainly teaching them a thing or two about pleasure.
Erik was perched on the counter of the kitchen with Axis standing in front of him, leaning against him. After they’d showered off from the shed’s round of lovemaking they’d all decided to grab a snack in the kitchen. There hadn’t really been all that many options to be had there, but a loaf of bread and a variety of jellies had provided an adequate solution. They’d used most of their remaining groceries on the massive breakfast they’d eaten only a couple of hours previously. The seven of them could definitely clean out a kitchen in no time flat.
A glance at the clock told him it was only noon. They had the rest of the day to relax, though at some point they were going to have to venture out to the grocery store. None of them were inclined to rise early most days, and today had been an exception for some reason. They’d dragged out of bed at nine and greeted the day.
He glanced at Levi, who sat at the bar sipping a glass of milk and eating a peanut butter sandwich while Marius petted his hair and talked about what kind of laptops to get for work with Brax. They called the angel IT for a reason. He was the smartest out of the bunch when it came to anything technological. Keer added his two cents to the conversation and started an argument with Brax. It was something
that happened frequently enough that no one even blinked at his interjection. A spirited debate ensued.
Jade added a few more items to his to-do list. He might’ve been only second-in-command to Axis, but he was the most detail oriented of the Elites. “I’m going to go ahead and head out to town to take care of our chores,” he said. As usual, no one heard him.
He knew he was quiet and his personality tended to get lost when it came to conversations with the six other personalities in the room. He mentally shrugged. He could probably leave and get back without anyone noticing.
He took out his PDA and opened up his list. He needed to go the automotive store as well and pick up some things for Dex. He was supposed to be coming by and looking at the car that Axis had bought on consignment last week. Jade was hoping that Dex would show him a few things while he was there, like how to change the oil and such. He liked being handy, and it was one of the ways that they could save a little money.
Things were going to be better when they got the training facility up and running and started getting regular paychecks from the city and their clients for the service. But until then they were living off the small stipend that the seraphim had given the Elites before they had left heaven and the last of Marius’s dwindling bank account. The formerly fallen had planned on getting a job at the corrections facility on the other end of the city before he’d become an Elite. Now he also got a small stipend from the higher ups, but it wasn’t the unlimited budget that Madigan and his guardians got from Madigan’s archangel father. They were required to live off the stipends they got every quarter. They were working men, not aristocrats.
Levi caught his eyes and hopped off the stool. “I’ll come with you,” he said.
Huh
. So someone had heard him. “I need some air, and I think you’d like some company.”
Jade really didn’t mind going on his own, but it warmed him to know that someone wanted to go with him. “Let’s grab our coats and
we’ll go. It should be fine for just the two of us since we’re in sanctuary.”
Levi nodded and went over to Axis and Erik and leaned up to whisper in Axis’s ear. When the commander looked over at Jade for confirmation, Jade nodded. Axis winked and went back to nuzzling Erik. Levi disappeared down one of the side halls and returned a second later with both their coats.
“You know, you’re very beautiful when you’re thinking about your duties. There is satisfaction there for completing a job. You like being part of a group, of having a function,” Levi said as he put his arms in his sleeves. Jade could’ve sworn he wasn’t looking at him but at the edges of his aura in that second. The moment passed however, and Jade wasn’t sure if he was imagining it or not.
“I do enjoy being part of the Elites. There is a certain satisfaction to be had in being a part of something larger than myself,” Jade agreed, putting on his own jacket. It was more of a windbreaker than anything else. The flaps in the back were Velcro and could be pulled off so he could let his wings out if he wanted to. The jackets were ideal for flying. “I love our family, and I love feeling like I contribute to it.”
Levi put a yellow scarf around his throat before lacing their fingers and practically dragging Jade toward the door. “It’s funny how you don’t feel overlooked despite the fact that people tend to take for granted that you are there.”
Jade blinked. “What?”
Levi looked up at him as they came into the garage. “I mean, you do a lot of things and never point out that you do them. For example, I know it’s you who keeps the closet color coordinated and hangs up all the laundry. You label the hangers so no one has to worry about getting their shirts mixed up. All the guys just seem to take it in stride and don’t even question who keeps their clothes in order. You don’t ever get a thank-you. If Keer did something like that, he’d put up a
banner or something.” The image was funny, and Jade and Levi shared a small laugh over it before Jade answered.
He hit the unlock button on the car keys, and Levi climbed into the passenger side of the black Range Rover before Jade ducked in the car after him. “I know they appreciate me, Levi. I don’t need them to tell me so every time I do something small.”
Levi pressed the button that would raise the garage door. “They never thank you for anything, Jade. I know you’re used to it, but maybe you should take credit every once and a while. There is nothing wrong with being recognized.”
Levi didn’t get it. Jade didn’t like making fusses over anything, and he was used to taking care of others. It was his job and something that drew him to taking up a position as a guardian to begin with. He thought of Melody with her pink-and-purple beaded hair. He smiled at the thought of his last human ward. She always loved when he put the crayons back in the rainbow. It was how Jade got the idea to color code the closet. She loved to color best and liked to know where all
her crayons were. He missed the little booger. How old would she be now? Fourteen? Fifteen? Wow. Time had passed.
“Who are you thinking about?” Levi asked. Jade blinked, coming back to the present. He put the car in gear.
“My last ward actually. I had her until she was seven.” As sad as it had been to lose her, he didn’t regret what he’d done for her. “Her father got involved with some bad people, and they came into his house when he was at work and tried to kill his family. Her mother died and so did her older brother. I stepped in between them and Melody when they took aim at her and used my powers to shield her from them.” He still recalled in excoriating detail the way the bullets had felt as they’d been pumped into his chest. To take on a mortal form made an angel mortal, able to be killed, and he’d followed that thought to its conclusion. He’d projected the image of the little girl onto himself so they would shoot him instead. By angelic law he was
forbidden to kill humans, even bad ones, but he could protect his wards with his life if necessary. It had been necessary in his mind.
“She was like a daughter to you,” Levi observed as they pulled onto the main road that led through their subdivision.
Jade nodded. “Yep. I love kids. Most guardians won’t watch over kids because it’s so stressful and we tend to get too attached, but I really enjoyed it.”
“So you’d get assigned babies and then watch them grow up?” Levi asked.
“Sort of. I had my wards until they were around thirteen or so. Once the scale tips between child and adult and they start reaching teenage territories, other angels are assigned. When a human is a child, they only have a single guardian. Around teen years they get two and continue to have two in the various stages of life until their death. The thought behind it is that the guardians of their parents are there as well to lend a hand if necessary. Humans can go through a half dozen guardians before they die. Archangel Gabriel’s guardians usually take the final shift since they’re angels of death,” Jade explained. He did love the way Levi was curious about angels and their duties. It was endearing, and Jade didn’t mind playing teacher.
Levi nodded like what he said made sense. “So why did you like watching over kids so much?”
Jade considered his question. Why had he liked it so much? When the answer came to him, he couldn’t help but grin. “There is a stage in every child’s life before their parents teach them how to ‘see’ the world. In that in-between stage they’re able to see most readily into our world. I think I liked watching over children best because, for a brief moment in time, I was able to speak with them, interact with them, be a real and active part of their lives. I think that’s also why a lot of guardians who watch over children have difficulty letting go. The humans become like family to us.”
“That’s nice,” Levi said softly. “So when a child says they have an imaginary friend…”
“Then they’re talking to their guardian more often than not,” Jade
finished.
Levi looked out the window as the world passed. They turned onto Main Street. The grocery store was less than a minute away. “I had an imaginary friend named Peter. I didn’t remember what he looked like, but he smelled like the ocean.” He looked over at Jade.
“Do you think he knew I was a nephilim?”
Jade shrugged, pain winding around his chest. There was such a need to be loved in Levi’s voice. “From personal experience, even if he did, it probably wouldn’t have mattered.” It wouldn’t have mattered to Jade one iota if the child he’d watched had been half-
angel or half-demon for that matter.
They fell silent after that, and Jade was grateful when he pulled the car into the shopping plaza. He wanted to distract Levi from anything that caused the nephilim distress. He wanted to build a life for their family that was full of nothing but happy memories. “How about you and I grab some Halloween candy to hand out?” The holiday was only a few days away. “And maybe some decorations?” A lot of their neighbors already had decorations out. Madigan’s wedding was at the end of November, so they’d have plenty of time to recoup the loss by the time it came around.