Breaking the Nexus (Mythrian Realm) Read online

  Connor shook his head, unable to hold back any longer. “No one,” he confirmed, grasping her arms and yanking her against his body, mouth dropping to hers to stake his claim.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  By the flame, finally. From the moment their lips had first met, she’d wanted more, craved more. Was this the wisest decision she’d ever made given the precarious state of affairs? Probably not, but it was by far her best decision. She needed his touch, hoped it would assuage this inexplicable draw to him.

  But as his mouth devoured hers, his hands rushing over her back, pulling her against his arousal, her longing intensified. Liquid heat pooled low, triggering a throbbing deep in her core. Never had she hated being short until it prevented her from fitting herself against his hard length. As if he’d read her mind, Sha felt herself being lifted, carried to the couch, all the while his tongue thrusted over hers. A low moan escaped her when he pressed her onto the couch, his body covering hers, giving her the delicious pressure she needed.

  Connor lifted his head, chest heaving from exertion and a fire matching hers burning in his eyes. “Last chance, temptress.”

  Her heart melted at his words. Sweet of him to give her one last opportunity to change her mind, though unnecessary. There was no turning back from this, from him. “Connor? I appreciate the gesture, but there are better uses for your mouth than trying to be chivalrous.”

  His pupils flared, a dangerous gleam that should have put her on guard. Instead, she welcomed it, pushing her hands beneath his shirt, fingertips racing across his heated skin. When he dipped down, she expected him to kiss her again, but he surprised her, nipping the sensitive curve of her neck. Delightful sensation rushed over her, pleasure and pain blending, wrenching a small cry from her.

  Hands that had been braced on either side of her moved, pushing the shirt she wore up her torso. The plain shirt had been serviceable and far better than the garment she’d been given at the hospital, but she wanted it off. She’d go insane if she didn’t get his hands on her now.

  “Up.” The gruff command sent a little thrill through her. Nothing sexier than a dominant man who wasn’t afraid to tell you what he wanted. Since she was just as impatient, she instantly complied, sitting up and allowing him to pull it off.

  Connor groaned. “You’re not wearing a bra.”

  “No idea what that is,” she replied, breathless as he ground his hips against her core.

  “Doesn’t matter,” he said, filling his hands with her breasts. Pleasure radiated throughout her body, taking her breath away. His hands were a little rough, the friction amazing on her skin, her nipples hardening, begging for attention. Rocking her hips, she smiled as he closed his eyes, as if fighting for control. Good, wouldn’t want him to think he had all the power. In the next instant, however, he turned the tables on her, swooping down to take one turgid peak into his mouth, suckling with strong pulls that shot straight to her clit.

  The wave was building with every pass of his tongue on her nipples. With his hand he plucked the other breast, rolling the tip between his fingers and making her squirm. Hips surged against his as she sought relief. So close, gods she needed it. His teeth gently closed over the peak, the pressure rising even further.

  “More, damn you.” She was panting, body begging for him to give her release.

  He chuckled, the vibrations traveling through her breast and down between her thighs. “Have a little patience, sweetheart. We’re just getting started.”

  Frustration mounted and her hands raced over his skin, raking her nails lightly down his back and enjoying the subtle shiver that ran through him. Continuing lower, she kneaded his ass, admiring the firmness even as she pulled him tighter to her core, her hips swiveled upward to meet him. Close, so close.

  Connor’s hand left her breast and she whimpered at the loss. Before she could voice her protest, his fingers swept down her abdomen, unbuttoning her pants, and diving into her undergarments. The instant the pads of his fingers touched the throbbing apex of her desire, she cried out as the wave crested and pleasure exploded through her system.

  “Again,” he demanded, two fingers thrusting into her. The heel of his hand pressed against her clit and she felt another orgasm building, more intense than the last. Determined to drive him wild, she brought her hand to his erection, curling around it and pumping. He cursed, straining into her touch and adding a third finger inside of her. It was too much. She convulsed around him, her inner muscles clutching his digits and she rode the orgasm.

  When her body stilled, he removed his hand and she whimpered again as he stood. Where did he think he was going? There was no way in hell she’d let him leave her like this. Instead of her two climaxes taking the edge off her lust, they’d deepened it and her body craved his cock.

  “We’re not stopping, just moving to the bedroom.” He bent down and scooped her into his arms, his long legs carrying them to the bedroom in record time. Stopping next to the bed, he let her legs dropped and yanked her pants as she worked the button on his, both frantic to undress the other. Her mouth went dry as his pants dropped, revealing his impressive erection.

  By the flame, she wanted that inside her more than anything she’d ever wanted before. Licking her lips, she reached for his cock, spreading the bead of moisture around the tip. He only let her play for a minute before he grabbed her wrists, pulling her arms above her head as he pushed her to the bed. His mouth closed over her and she drowned in his heat, his scent, his taste. Too soon he sat up, fumbling in the night stand for a small foil packet.

  “What’s that for?” Sha asked, taking the opportunity to wrap her hand around his length, his hips pumping into her hand.

  “Woman, you’re going to be the death of me. Protection.” He ripped open the packet, putting a sheath over his cock and pushing her back to the bed.

  They groaned as his head probed her entrance, dipping into her molten heat. The pleasure was too intense and she thrashed on the bed, seeking relief as another wave threatened to crest over her.

  “I’m not going to last,” he warned as he entered her to the hilt began to thrust shallowly.

  Her body began to shake, orgasm nearly upon her. “Don’t care. Harder.”

  The words seemed to break whatever thread of restraint he still possessed. Tilting her hips to give him a better angle, he slid deeper, moving faster, one hand going to her clit and playing over the hard bud. The climax washed over, so powerful she swore she saw stars, body convulsing in endless pleasure. Distantly, she heard his shout, felt him shaking as he came.

  Finally, the sensations eased and he pulled them both onto their sides so they faced each other, bodies still locked together. He stroked her back, movements lazy as their skin cooled and hearts slowed, the movement lulling her. Leaning forward, he pressed a kiss to her forehead.

  “Sleep.”

  Too exhausted to argue, she complied with the whispered command, dropping into sleep between one breath and the next.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Bzzz. Bzzz. What the—? Disoriented, brain still muddled by sleep, it took Connor a second to realize the buzzing was his cell phone dancing across the floor. A weight pressed against his arm and he looked down, a primitive satisfaction welling inside him at the tousled blonde hair peeking out from beneath his comforter. He couldn’t believe how deeply he’d slept, but maybe he shouldn’t be surprised considering the events of yesterday. He glanced at the alarm clock and strained to make out the numbers: 4:03 AM. He’d only slept for about an hour.

  Bzzz. Bzzz. He sighed. Stupid thing would keep going off until he answered it or threw it across the room. Either way he’d have to get out of bed, so he may as well save himself a couple hundred of dollars and resist destroying it, no matter how much it would make him happy. The only question was how the hell to extricate himself without waking Sha. Before he could attempt it, her lashes fluttered open, sleep glazed eyes meeting his.

  “Hello,” she whispered, smiling.

 
; “Hey. Didn’t mean to wake you. Someone’s calling me. You can go back to sleep.” He didn’t want to ask, but felt like he needed to. “Any regrets?”

  She grabbed the pillow under her head, thumping him with it. “Connor, I more or less seduced you, you gave me every opportunity to change my mind, do you really think I’d regret it now?”

  Ducking her attempt to thump him a second time, he capture her mouth with his. “No, just making sure. You never know, I could have been a horrible lover.”

  “Fishing for compliments? It was incredible and you know it. Now go away, I’m tired.” Plumping the pillow and placing it back under her head, she curled onto her side, already dropping back into sleep.

  Damn she was cute. Bzzz. Okay, breaking that thing was sounding more appealing by the second. He sat up and tucked the blanket around Sha, then rummaged around on the floor looking for the phone. Spotting it half under the dresser, he scooped it up along with his jeans, a clean shirt and holster, and left the room.

  Turning the display on, his jaw dropped. Six Missed Calls. Six? Really? What the hell could be so important that someone couldn’t just leave a message? Speak of the devil, it began buzzing in his hand again.

  “Ian? I’m assuming someone died?”

  “Jeez, took you long enough to answer the freaking phone. I was debating whether to send a search party in for you. I’m outside, let me in.”

  “You have a key, why not just come in yourself?” Connor asked as he wound his way through the house to let his partner in. Ian stood just outside the door glowering.

  “Because I didn’t want to walk in on you in a—how should I put this—compromising position. Judging by the shirt on the couch and your state of undress, I’m guessing I was right?” His question was layered with threads of amusement and teasing. There was no censure, though, and Connor found himself relieved. It wouldn’t have kept him away from Sha, not now, but he was glad his friend wasn’t bothered by it.

  “Shut up,” Connor said mildly, pulling his shirt on as he walked.

  “Hah! I knew it.” He sobered for a moment. “I like her, what I’ve seen of her at any rate. I think you’ve got horrendous timing, but I understand it.”

  “Thanks, man. What’ve you got for me?”

  “Shit’s still hitting the fan. You have anything?”

  “World could be ending.”

  Ian sighed. “Oh, good to know. Have any coffee? It’s best to have caffeine in the blood before discussing the end of the world.”

  “Sure. Come on.”

  Connor filled his partner in on everything Sha had revealed about the Nexus as well as their theory that the events in Mythria were tied to the crimes here. When the explanation was over, Ian sat back, studying his mug of coffee.

  “Well, I agree that this is all connected somehow. I stopped by the precinct and signed out evidence from the different scenes for her to work with. I assume she’s sleeping?”

  “Yeah, I’m going to let her get a little more sleep before I ask her to start trying to track. The battle with the banshee wore her out.”

  “And I’m sure you didn’t—” His words cut off as Connor cuffed him on his ear. He was grateful for his partner’s banter; it never failed to ease a tense situation.

  “Did you and Claire find anything?”

  “There was a report of another one of those things, a banshee, attacking a civilian. It wasn’t pretty. Happened about ninety minutes ago. There have also been scattered reports of other beasts being cited, ranging from demons to gnomes, and a huge increase in accidents. The city’s going to hell.”

  “Son of a bitch, why didn’t you call me?”

  “I did, you didn’t answer.”

  Connor shot him an exasperated look. “I mean before, when the reports were coming in.”

  “What were you going to do? Captain Morrison wants Sha kept under wraps for now and I saw how tired she was when I got here. Nothing either of you could’ve done. The captain is calling in every cop in the city to try to contain whatever is going down. The media is having a field day with it all.”

  He loathed reporters, especially how they sensationalized everything regardless of the fallout, all in the name of ‘the people’s right to know.’ Bullshit, they just wanted to make a profit any way they could.

  “Fair enough. We need to—”

  A floor board creaked, interrupting Connor’s train of thought and both men whipped around, their weapons drawn and aimed at the stairs.

  “Guys, I’m unarmed.” Far from sounding afraid, Sha was struggling not to burst out laughing. She was dressed in one of his shirts and sweat pants that he recognized as a pair his sister Erin kept here.

  “You may not have a weapon, but you’re far from unarmed,” Ian pointed out.

  “See? I knew you were a smart man. Hope you don’t mind, I rummaged around the spare room and found these pants. I didn’t think you’d appreciate Ian gawking at me half-naked while I came down to gather my belongings.”

  “Don’t mind at all and that was very smart. I’d hate to have to kill my partner,” Connor said, his tone half-hearted. He’d meant the words as a joke, but he suspected there might’ve been more truth to them than he’d care to admit. “Is something wrong?”

  “No, I just heard voices and curiosity got the better of me.”

  “Are you up to going through some evidence?” Ian asked, appearing to ignore the withering glare from Connor. Hadn’t he just finished telling the man he wanted to give her time to rest before asking her to track the suspect?

  “Sure, I’ll give it my best shot.” After Ian left to bring in the evidence boxes, Sha walked up to Connor, wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed a soft kiss to his lips. “I’m fine, quit staring daggers at your partner. Believe it or not, I seem to be able to draw some energy from you. It’s unusual because typically it requires a great deal of trust, but then again nothing between us has made sense yet so why should things conform to convention now?”

  He hugged her close, savoring the feel of her in his arms. “No idea what that means, but take what you need.”

  “Should I come back later?” Ian asked from the doorway, holding a box of evidence.

  “No need,” Connor replied, bending down to take her mouth one last time. Wasn’t like his partner didn’t already know they were involved. “Let’s get started.”

  *******

  Sha sat on the hardwood floor of the living room, surrounded by a veritable mountain of evidence encased in clear bags. They didn’t collect anywhere near this amount in Mythria, but she supposed it helped that they could use magic to assist in finding criminals. She lifted a brow at the men. “I’m hoping I’m allowed to open some of these bags because otherwise we’re wasting our time.”

  “The captain cleared it in light of recent events. He said the department needs all the help it can get at this point and we’ll deal with any chain of custody questions when they come,” Ian answered.

  “Good. I’ll start with the latest scene since it’ll be freshest.”

  “Can I ask you something?” Ian said after a moment of hesitation.

  “Uh huh.” Eyes closed in concentration, she eased open the bag containing the white shroud that had covered the woman’s body and braced herself for the shock as she made physical contact with the cloth.

  “Why the blue streaks?”

  “Signifies my class. One of them at least,” she said absently. Emotions from both victim and killer battered her. Terror, excitement, agony, a feeling of superiority. She let them wash over her, focusing instead on the underlying thread belonging solely to the perpetrator.

  “What does that mean?” Connor asked.

  At any other time, she would have snapped at the men to leave her in peace, yet for once their voices seemed to be helping her maintain focus. This guy was smart and powerful; she was sure he was trying to obscure the magical signature left behind, but lucky for her, she was better. She had to be careful though, it’d be easy to fall
into a trap and open the door for the suspect to enter her own mind.

  “Blue is for the water element; I’m an Aquarum Sorceri. It’s customary to display the colors of your classes to help identify you, and it’s my favorite color. Helps give me an edge in battle too, because I also belong to the Infernum class. People attack thinking I have limited offensive magic, only to wind up with a nasty surprise.”

  “Very smart,” Connor murmured and his praise warmed her.

  The trail was winding and complicated, filled with subtle pitfalls designed to make her slip up. Her energy was beginning to wane and she was nowhere near reaching the source. Almost as if he’d read her thoughts, she felt Connor rise and position himself behind her, his hand at the nape of her neck. How he’d known to do that was a mystery, but she was grateful. Almost immediately, he bolstered her flagging energy.

  Clever girl, you don’t really think you’re a match for me do you?

  Shock rippled through her system and she came close to dropping the connection. The low voice in her mind mocked her with similar praise to what Connor had uttered, and it pissed her off.

  Who are you? Sha responded.

  You can call me ‘Nightmare.’

  Nightmare? Really? It sounded like something a child would come up with. A searing blast of pain exploded in her brain and she clenched her teeth to hold back the scream that had risen.

  “Sha?” Connor’s voice sounded harsh, concerned.

  “Fine. I’m fine. Little busy at the moment.”

  Gentle fingers massaged her head, releasing some of the tension and the agony lessened to a dull throb. Gods that helped. If she hadn’t already started falling for him, that right there would have triggered it. Wait, what was she thinking? She couldn’t be falling for him already…could she?

  You will respect me, you little bitch. That was a taste of what I can do to you.