Katie's Hellion (Rhyn Trilogy, Book One) (23 page)

"Aisha wouldn’t want him," Katie said with
more calmness than she felt. "He’s…you know, small."

Megan looked ready to laugh but smiled widely
instead.

"You can say you haven’t slept with him. I
won’t tell," she said. "I’ll tell Aisha to back off anyway."

Katie flushed without answering. She gathered
her things and left. Rhyn was standing outside the door, and she
passed him without a look. He trailed her through the halls. She
wasn’t the only one who stopped traffic and conversations. She
expected someone to be angry that there was a man in the women’s
wing. Instead, the women gave him open looks of lust and approval,
as if he were the hunted and they the lionesses lining up to take
their turns at him.

She was scared to turn around, almost as if
afraid he’d be passing out his phone number to every lithe,
beautiful Amazonian they passed. She wouldn’t put it past him. He
wasn’t known for his morality or virtues. They reached her room,
and she threw down her shower things on the bed, agitated. The door
closed softly behind him. She was surprised he made it and wasn’t
screwing one of the Amazons in the hall.

"I need to put on some clothes. Please turn
around," she said.

"Nope."

She faced him, suddenly overly aware of how
small the room was and the fact that he leaned against the only way
out. He watched her with an intensity that made her blood quicken
and her nipples harden. She crossed her arms. He wore the
long-sleeve knit shirt, snug enough to show his physique without
clinging to it, the snug jeans low on his lean hips.

"What do you want, Rhyn?"

"My room, too," he said.

"What? No. You have to go to the men’s
wing."

"Nope."

He lowered a backpack from his shoulder to
the bed, nearing her. She all but jumped away.

"Scared, little girl?" he growled without
looking up.

"Scared, no. Suspecting you’re in the women’s
wing to get something other than sleep, yes."

He looked at her closely, a slow smile
spreading across his face. He pulled out a small stack of clothing
from the backpack and peeled off his shirt, displaying the lean,
muscular body beneath. She stared, awed. He caught her and said
nonchalantly, "Only one woman in this wing I’ll fuck."

"I see you’ve met Aisha," she said
stubbornly, flushing.

He took a step to close the gap between them,
and they were kissing again. Emotion and desire fueled her. She
responded as aggressively as he. He wrapped one arm around her and
pulled her against him. The feel of his warm skin against hers
thawed her resistance, teased her with the image of his naked body
against hers. He smelled of sweet rain and dark grasses, his taste
just as exotic.

His strength, his heat…in seconds, she
couldn’t think of anything more than feeling more of him, tasting
more of him. His arousal rose solid and thick against her belly,
and the soft towel agitated her straining nipples. She met his
aggression with her own, nibbling his lower lip, tasting him. Her
hands roamed his chest and back. He pressed her against the wall,
moving against her slowly while intensifying the kiss.

"Say yes," he ordered in the low growl.

"Yes," she said breathlessly.

He chuckled and lowered her onto the bed, his
body atop hers. She surrendered to the heat in her blood.

CHAPTER NINE

They made love twice, then once again. When
her mind had cleared and her body no longer thrummed with need, she
tried to figure out what the hell had happened. She felt too sated
to move. She breathed deeply of his scent and listened to his heart
beat from her position sprawled atop him. She’d never felt such a
connection to anyone. It was so much more than their physical
joining; she’d felt him from the inside. For the first time since
she could remember, she felt at peace, whole.

She didn’t exactly understand the sensation
except that she didn’t ever want that feeling to end. She felt
alone when he was gone, and while he frustrated the hell out of
her, she still felt better when he was near.

"Rhyn…" she whispered. "Was this supposed to
happen?"

"Don’t start."

"Don’t start what?"

She lifted her head to look at him. He
propped his head with one folded arm, silver eyes glowing at
her.

"You’re my mate."

"So…that’s permanent."

"Yep."

"Guess that means I’ll have to stop sleeping
around," she retorted.

"Go ahead. Don’t ask where I hide the
bodies."

She chuckled. His confidence was too strong
to shake, and she suspected he knew just how damned good in bed he
was and how unlikely any woman who’d had him would choose another
man over him.

"Don’t expect me to sleep with you at your
bidding," she warned. "You’re still a jerk."

"Only have to say yes once."

She sighed, content to rest atop him. His
confidence was the only rock to stand on she’d found in this
forsaken world of immortals. She didn’t know if she could trust
him, or Kris, or anyone yet, but she could at least know the man
beneath her was probably the only man she was safe from. It wasn’t
much, but it was more than she’d had in what felt like a lifetime.
He’d protected her and made it clear anything that got near her
would die a nasty death.

Albeit everything he did was on his terms.
Always on his terms. She couldn’t swallow his ability to be a
fierce beast shredding human-like creatures with no regard or
morals. She didn’t understand why he’d chosen her of all people.
She feared knowing what he truly was, that she’d married a
demon.
There really couldn’t be any kind of good demon,
could there?

Troubled, she dozed, waking when she heard
the knock at her door. Her demon lover was gone and her body
covered with a sheet. She and her bed still smelled of him, and she
breathed deeply.

"Hey, Ully wants to see you. Something about
science experiments," Megan said, poking her head in.

"I’m coming," she replied, stifling a groan
as she shrugged out of the sheet to stand. Her legs were wobbly,
the muscles of her inner thighs stiff.

Megan disappeared, and Katie changed into one
of the outfits she’d chosen. She almost felt normal in the jeans
and light sweater. She slid her feet into clogs and left the room,
meeting Ully just outside the girls’ locker room. He beamed a smile
and offered his arm, which she accepted.

"All hell’s broken loose," he said
cheerfully.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, Sasha's created some sort of funky
monster that even an immortal can't kill."

Her thoughts went to Jade, and she frowned,
troubled.

"Awful."

"Yeah," he agreed. "The tests I did with your
blood came back promising, but I can’t nail down the right genetic
code."

He led her down a floor to a large gym where
a group of men stood in a loose cluster on a mat. Her eyes found
Rhyn first, then Kris. Jade was there, another man with Kris’s eyes
but whom she didn’t recognize, and a fifth man. All but the man
with Kris’s eyes and oriental beauty were sweating and bloodied in
at least one spot.

Ully stopped a short distance from them, as
if expecting them to launch into a battle despite their relaxed
poses. The oriental man held a PDA and was frowning as he read
through notes while the others waited for him to speak. Ully
cleared his throat. The five turned, and Rhyn winked at her. She
crossed her arms, forcing herself not to cover her neck as four
sets of eyes landed there. Her gaze settled on Jade, whose dark
eyes still held the fire of danger.

"Kiki, this is Katie, Rhyn’s mate," Kris said
coolly. "Katie, Kiki, one of our brothers."

The oriental man looked her over,
almond-shaped turquoise eyes assessing.

"Pleasure, Katie," Kiki managed before
returning his gaze to his PDA. "That’s five, brother."

His voice held an accusatory note that Kris
ignored.

"Your theory looks legit, Ully," Jade voiced
at the tense silence. "Rhyn is immune to everything. Kris was for
all of five minutes."

"Five minutes?" Ully repeated with a frown.
"That would mean…"

"Either we get an emergency five minutes or
you figure out how to make it work longer," Kris said.

"It’d take
all
her blood at this
point," Ully said absently.

Five sets of predatory eyes fell to her, as
if realizing there was a lame lamb in their midst. She moved closer
to Ully, even while knowing the skinny nerd was the least likely to
defend her.

"Is it because she’s his mate or because her
blood sustains him?" Kiki asked, agitation on his face.

"Both, I’d say," Ully said. "If my serum
worked, then we know her blood will give immunity. Rhyn’s bond as
her mate amplifies her natural ability. He needs less to do
more."

"Sasha’s figured it out," Kris said. "His
monsters are tearing through our warriors like they're made of
cotton candy."

"I know, I know."

"He drank her blood," Rhyn said.

"Sasha?"

"Yeah."

Once again, the predatory look from all. She
wanted to shrink away and hide. Instead, she drew herself up to her
just above average height, and confirmed, "He nearly killed me. He
brought in a healer who pieced me back together when he was
done."

"Before or after your mating to Rhyn?"

"Before," Rhyn volunteered.

"Would have to knock you off for that to work
now," Kris said with thinly veiled hostility.

Kiki rolled his eyes, and Jade inched away
from Rhyn, who bared his teeth in a humorless grin.

"Like children on a playground," Katie
murmured.

"Worse," Kiki agreed. "In any case, it looks
like Ully needs to go back to the drawing board, and we use Rhyn
for now to take out Sasha’s henchmen."

"Have you learned some control of that demon
power, little brother?" Kris asked.

"Didn’t have to," Rhyn said.

"Katie stabilizes him," Ully offered. "I did
some tests and then asked Ginny for some research help. The mates
of old balanced out the powers of your badass predecessors."

"Let me rephrase. Have you learned any sort
of
discipline
?"

"It doesn’t matter, Kris. We don’t have much
of a choice," Kiki said pragmatically. "I’ll go with him."

"I don’t need a babysitter," Rhyn
snapped.

"Yes, you do," Kiki said firmly.

Both Rhyn and Kris sulked. Katie smiled,
deciding she liked Kiki’s no-nonsense attitude.

"We’ll report back nightly," Kiki added. "In
person. Jade's coming with us."

"Very well," Kris relented.

She frowned at the thought of Rhyn being gone
all the time but was glad Jade would be with them and not around to
try to drag her back to Sasha.

"I’ll introduce you to the mates of the
Ancients. Your place is there," Kris said dismissively. "Ully, take
her to the royal wing."

She bristled, feeling as if she’d been
sentenced to nothing more than a sewing circle for good little
wives. Before she could object, Kiki took charge again.

"Rhyn, go get ready. Kris, can you spare a
few warriors?"

"Yeah."

"We’ll test this out and see how it
goes."

Ully stepped aside as the massive men passed.
She scowled. Rhyn slapped her on the butt as he passed. She cursed
him quietly. When they’d gone, she turned to Ully and demanded,
"What do the mates of Ancients do?"

"A lot of things," he said cheerfully. "They
take on the roles the Ancients and immortals can’t, like working
with human counterparts, touring the Council's facilities all over
the world. They’re into the arts, and charities to raise money for
our war. Most…well, all but you come from the elitist circles of
their times. The Ancients and immortals could choose anyone they
wanted as mates, and they chose from among the royalty, the
wealthiest, and most influential."

"I really won’t fit in."

"It really doesn’t matter what they were when
they were mortal," he assured her with an uncomfortable chuckle.
"The rank structure in the immortal world is based on your
mate."

She’d never in her life wanted to be a
princess. She’d always wanted to be a financial planner, and the
thought of becoming a socialite with no real responsibilities made
her gut sink.

Eternity?

"Sounds awful," she said.

"You’ll be the envy of us lesser immortals,"
he assured her.

She wanted to go home. In the face of a fate
she doubted she wanted any part of, she felt homesick again.

You. Are. Mine.

There really was no chance of it. She felt
she’d been a good sport since entering the immortal world, but she
knew she’d never fit into a world where her sister surely
would.

"When you see your room, you’ll totally feel
better," he said, and held out his arm.

She went grudgingly. He led her to the
uppermost floor of the castle, to a hallway with magnificent views
of a green valley with towering trees. She felt immediately out of
place, even in the hall. The ceilings were gilded, the chandeliers
dripping with crystals. Ensconced lights glowed in the midday, and
antique furniture, rare paintings, elegant marble sculptures
befitting a museum, silk Persian rugs underfoot, and many other
priceless displays of prestige lined the wide hall.

He pointed as he walked, indicating the
dining room, the library, the reception room, and others, each
sounding stuffier than the last and all marked by polished oak
double doors. They left the common area for the bedchambers wing.
His voice grew hushed, as if the all-important guests behind each
door might hear him. He paused at one room toward the middle of the
hall and pushed it open.

No one in this place believed in locks. She
crossed her arms and followed him in. Her bedchamber was half the
size of a small house, with a domed ceiling replete with vibrant
paintings of the sun progressing across the sky. The bed was the
largest she’d ever seen, with a finely spun silk bedspread of pale
yellow. The bedchamber was done up in pastels, soft rose drapes,
light blue and green rugs, yellow pillows and highlights, which
seemed to take the chill out of the stone walls.